New RDNO Director looking to strengthen communication, community partnership

Heins ran in the 2018 election but did not secure the seat, and in 2022 Hopkins ran unopposed.

Heins told Vernon Matters she believed communication was lacking in the previous term and it was a key component to her campaign, which she believed helped her secure the seat in this election.

Looking ahead, the new director hopes to put that promise into action once in office.

“[A top priority for me will be] increasing the community’s voice at the RDNO table and getting the communities more involved with each other , the community halls more involved with each other , and bringing back that unity that was there so long ago and has kind of gone by the way side,” Heins said.

“That’s the first part…getting people back together and talking amongst each other and each of these communities supporting one another throughout elections, throughout decisions that might affect them, throughout wildfire season even and things like that. So that’s my first part, building communication and trust with the communities again.”

For the long term, Heins said she hoped to bring together representatives from area communities to work on a joint wildfire program.

“There’s a lot of good programs within each of these smaller communities, like Mable Lake and Ashton Creek, and I just want to bring everybody to the table to talk about where they’re doing well with that, where they might be lacking, and hopefully all of us together can support each other to come up with a good plan.”

Examples for that would be fire brigades, escape plans, or people able to transport or house animals that are available for some communities but not others, and those resources and knowledge could be shared more broadly to ensure everyone in the area is ready for an emergency such as a wildfire.

Before starting this major work, though, Heins did note this will be her first time in office and will need some time to learn the ropes and get familiarized with the role and responsibilities as an RDNO Director.

She did note though she would like to be involved with work involving the Rail Trail, and will likely want to be involved in other committees once she’s learned more about them.

The municipal election was running when a snap provincial election was called, with voters going to polls to elect their MLAs Oct. 24, one week after voting for their municipal representatives.

Heins said having the two elections overlapping created difficulties for not only her campaign but for many others running for municipal roles.

“I went door knocking to remind people to get out and vote, and they’d say ‘Oh yeah, we’ve got our card and we’re going to be out on the 24th,’ and I would say ‘No, no, the other election is on the 17th and you just need your ID, you don’t need a card,'” Heins told Vernon Matters.

“There was so much confusion, and then when it came time to vote, they had voting for the local election, like here in Enderby it was at the Senior’s Complex for the local vote, and then over at MV Beattie Elementary School for the provincial voting, and it just created so much confusion.”

Despite this confusion, Heins said the voter turnout did show people were informed and involved in the democratic process, adding it also gave her the opportunity to encourage people to not only vote in the local election but to also go and cast a ballot for their MLA on the same day.

Results of the 2026 local general election were preliminary as of time of publication.

by Liam Verster

New RDNO Director looking to strengthen communication, community partnership

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