Red Deer Mayor Cindy Jefferies on Leadership, Loss, and the Long Game

On October 20, 2025, Cindy Jefferies found out she had been elected Mayor of Red Deer by watching a TV screen at a press conference. The people who had run against her were standing in the same room.

That moment is where this conversation starts. But the real story started decades earlier.

Cindy has served Red Deer for nearly 30 years across school board, city council, and now the mayor's chair. She ran for mayor in 2013 and lost. She went back to the council chamber, worked another decade, and ran again. She co-founded 100+ Women Who Care Red Deer, which has raised over $640,000 for local charities. She became a grandmother in 2024 and ran for mayor six months later.

This is not a political interview. It's a conversation about what it looks like to build something slowly, persistently, and with genuine heart over 30 years. About what keeps someone coming back after a loss. About relational leadership and what that actually means in practice. About homelessness, economic development, and what Red Deer deserves. And about the personal life underneath all of it, including what it cost, and what it means to finally be sitting in the chair.

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Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:00

Did you know that there's 4.52 million podcasts readily available right now? Out of those 4.52 million, 90% of podcasters quit before they reach three episodes. Of those 452,000 that are still left, another 90% quit before they reach 20 episodes. So to be in the top 1% of all podcasts globally, you need to record 21 episodes. Well, I'm incredibly grateful because we have reached that milestone and we want to continue producing great quality work for you. It's not about the episodes, it's not about the fanfare, but it's about making something that's going to be quality, that's going to be impactful for each person's life that's hearing this. Can you help me be a part of this journey by simply hitting subscribe or follow? By doing so, it continues to grow our reach so that way we can get the best quality guests for you to continue on this currency of happiness journey. Thank you. Thank you, Mayor Cindy Jeffries, for coming in today. I'm excited to be able to talk to you about leadership, what a life of meaning looks like, and truly how do you give back to the city that you call home, which I think that you've done so well over almost three decades of civil service. Uh so thank you for being part of us today.

SPEAKER_02 1:19

Happy to be here. Uh it's always fun to have conversation in community and nice to meet you and to have this uh little sharing opportunity.

SPEAKER_00 1:27

So I want to take us back to October of last year when you won the elections. From my understanding, you're sitting standing beside all the other individuals that were running for the seat of mayor as it's announced in the room. Talk to me about the emotions, the feelings that are going on as you're standing beside individuals that you were on council with that are all vying for this position.

SPEAKER_02 1:49

Yeah, it's a little, a little hard, right? Because you know going into that situation that someone, maybe none of us that who are incumbent people on council, would be um taking the mayor's chair. Um, but also recognition that it could have gone anyway. I ran for mayor in 2013 and lost in that race. So I understand what that feels like. Um so it's it's not the best, you know, it's it's a great feeling when you win, and it's not a great feeling when you lose. But to be honest with you, um, when I made the decision to run this time, I was running to give citizens an alternative, someone else to vote for. Um, I didn't see a person running for counsel that I felt comfortable voting for, that I would put my vote, cast my vote for. So that's part of how I concluded that I needed to run.

SPEAKER_00 2:42

That's really powerful. So when you're thinking about who you're going to vote for, what are some of the qualities that you look for in a leader?

SPEAKER_02 2:49

Yeah, I think um, you know, first and foremost, listening. Um, if I've learned anything as mayor in the first little over six months, it's that listening is critical and um not always thinking that you've got the answers or you need to be the one to have the answers. Um so I I think the other piece for me was who would work well with others on council? Who would help strengthen that group as a team and um and carry our city forward in a really positive, energetic way. For far too long, I think Red Deer has been underrepresented and under-recognized. And um I know there's really good things happening here. We just need to show them off and be proud.

SPEAKER_00 3:34

And I think I've heard you comment on the fact that Red Deer often hasn't been in the strategic mix when it comes to economic decisions for the province of Alberta. What does that look like to actually have a seat at the table to make some of those strategic decisions for economic future?

SPEAKER_02 3:49

Yeah, I think there's a whole bunch of things on economic development front that are coming together for us. Um in the mayor's chair, I think it boils down to relationships and speaking to the possibilities and opportunities that are here. Um, I just came back, well, I guess it's almost a month ago now from Ottawa and uh met with several MPs and uh ministers and just talking about our city, talking about the good things that are happening here, people are like, wow, what's going on in Red Deer? Like, why is that all buzzing at once? And so and you could feel it actually during the campaign that there was a possible convergence of a whole bunch of things that were going to come about. And so far they seem to be bubbling up to the top and coming to reality. So um, so to talk about red deer, the opportunities, um, I think we're overlooked often between two big cities. Um, and often people confuse us with gasoline alley.

SPEAKER_03 4:47

Right. Yes.

SPEAKER_02 4:49

And uh I correct them always. Um, but you have to come into the heart of the city to actually get a feel for for what red deer is all about and so much to enjoy.

SPEAKER_00 4:58

Yes. It's funny about you say being in the middle of the two big cities, because I often think of it as being the middle sibling, where you have the first one that often gets to accolades, you have the younger brother that may be babied sometimes, but then the one in the middle probably has the best understanding of what's going on and where things need to be, but is often overlooked.

SPEAKER_01 5:16

Really like that. You can steal that. Yeah, I was gonna say I might borrow that.

SPEAKER_00 5:20

So take me back to the beginning of your career. Uh, I think back in the 90s is when you first started to put your name out there and it was sitting on boards for schools, if I'm not correct.

SPEAKER_02 5:33

Yeah. Actually, it actually goes back a little further than that. If you want to go back in time a little ways, um, I I attended Lindsay Thurber Comprehensive High School. And in grade my, well, the end of my grade 11 year, uh, heading into grade 12 year, I actually ran for class president and lost that. So I've I've lost a couple of elections. Um, but so very clearly I've often been involved or interested in um things that govern, things that help guide, um, shape things and opportunities. So that was my early foray into a small campaign and uh doing that kind of um, you know, the odd speech here and there, and and recognizing the role that a student could play in shaping their education and their experience at a high school. From there, it's okay. From there, I ran for um school board in 1995. And I always say that was Ralph Klein's fault. Um, he was, he and his government were making several cuts to public education. At the time, I had a uh two-year-old, well, almost three-year-old and a one-year-old. And um I thought to myself, wow, I don't know if what they're doing is good, bad, or ugly. And my husband uh said, uh, you know, if you're gonna take the time to figure it out, you should just run for school board. Um, and a friend, a good friend of ours, actually the best man at our wedding. Uh, his mom had been the former chair of Red Deer Public Schools when we were in high school. Um, so I would often end up when we gathered at their house having conversations with Francis Craigie about um school board issues and things like that. So I fell into that, um, I think by nature, uh curiosity perhaps. Nine years on school board, six of those years as school board chair, and then um decided I've been around this circle several times. And what I learned in school board um was uh really about community development and how we present opportunities to either students or citizens. When I look at what Red Deer Public Schools, and I would say the same goes of any of our schools here in Red Deer, the offering that students are, you know, the programs and classes that are there for them, um, it really made me see that the the more you offer kids, the more likely they are to find a place where they excel or they're curious. And that really helps them flourish and become who they can be. For me, it translated beautifully into community development work at a municipal level. And so in 2004, I left school board and ran for council, was elected there and served nine years, and then 2013 ran for mayor and lost, spent quite a long time licking my wounds, I must admit, in retrospect. Um, and then uh, you know, life carried on in that eight-year span. And 2021, we were just coming out of COVID almost, sort of, and uh didn't really like some of the things I was hearing coming out of City Hall and the city council of the day, and thought, hmm, maybe I should run. And then I was um driving out to get my hair cut actually, and uh heard that Ken Johnson had announced he was going to run. And I hadn't worked with Ken other than you know, just meeting him kind of in casual uh settings. But um I thought, how could I help Ken? Yeah, this council needs to be successful, and how could I help? And so I decided I would run for council then, so it was back in 2021. And by that time, the terms had gone from three years to four-year terms, and so it was a four-year term. And when I ran in 2021, I thought I would be one and done. And I wouldn't probably run for a second term or for mayor. Never mayor never even recognize, you know, I never even saw that. So um it gets in your blood, it becomes a bit a part of who you are and and knowing the insides. And um, we just have been going through um some city employee recognition awards earlier this week and today, and um really what inspires me to come back is the um in 2021 was the culture and the need for staff to feel supported and um just encouraged to bring their very, very best work every day. And um, you know, you as mayor, you get to do a lot of clapping and cheering. And uh I as a council member you do as well. And so I I think that that's really important to me is to try and help bring out the very best um in the team that we've got, and uh whether it's council or it's the whole city and through the city manager and her team. Um so yeah, it's just it's just a really good opportunity to do all of that and mix in a bit of politics.

SPEAKER_00 10:37

Yes, a lot of breath that you just went through. Uh, I want to go back to that first decision of your young mom, and that's a lot of responsibility. I look at my wife, we have three kids, six, four, two, and we have another one on the way. And I can't imagine if she said, Hey, I'm gonna run for a vest position, knowing the weight of what was going on at that time period. How did you balance being a new leader as well as a young mother?

SPEAKER_02 11:04

Yeah, it's a good question. Um, very supportive husband who was also incredibly busy. Um, and my mom was here in town, and uh, so Nanny uh came to the rescue on many, many days. And for her, she said, you know, uh right now I'm not doing any volunteer work in the community, but I'm gonna call the babysitting and childcare that I do and for you or help you out with my contribution. Um, and so, you know, my kids benefited from that, and so did I. The other thing about school board is that a lot of it happens at in the evening, at least in those days it did. And so um my uh husband, who's since passed away, um he picked up the slack. And so, and he was actually thankful that there were a couple of nights a week that I was gone because he got his one-on-one time with our two boys and then became three boys. I never thought that we were gonna have another child, and I convinced him uh that we could have one more. Um, so uh, and I it was interesting because at that time I was like, Can you do this? Can you have a baby when you're a school board trustee? And I met a lady from uh Fort Saskatchewan who brought a young infant to a convention, and I went, Well, if she can, I can. Um, and so uh now it's you know more commonplace and and people manage uh to do these things um with support. It takes a lot of support. So and I'm thankful that I had that circle. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 12:28

And I believe you correct me if I'm wrong, but your husband Dan was also a business owner. So that adds another realm into this as well.

SPEAKER_02 12:35

Dan was a chartered accountant, CPA, um, and so went back and forth between public practice and his own practice and then the private sector for a little while, and then back into uh public practice and uh was part of Cuthbert's and Sandal, and then they merged with BDO. So he was part of a large firm and he had a very busy practice. So um, anyhow, um I look back on those days and I think we must have been crazy.

SPEAKER_00 13:03

So looking back, what would be that one piece of advice that you would give that young mom that's doing all these things and making an impact at home as well as in the city?

SPEAKER_02 13:12

Yeah, I think I think, you know, I look back and I think, wow, sometimes I probably was a little bit too busy, particularly when our kids were maybe, you know, just coming into their teens or just kind of pushing through to high school. I think maybe I could have been a little bit more uh aware of some of the things that were going on. Maybe parents are just oblivious anyway. Um, but uh so I I sometimes I would think, I wish I could buy a little bit of that time back because I was focused on other things. At the same time, um, I think it sets an example of continuing to contribute. And um, school board years were busy, but not as busy. Probably the busiest time for me was probably around 2012, just before I ran for mayor in 2013. And because I was heavily involved in in council work, I was on the Alberta Municipalities board for two years as a director for mid-sized cities and then um ran for mayor. And I I was dumb. I announced my campaign very early and spent a lot of energy. It was more like a marathon rather than a sprint. And so, in hindsight, uh that that was you know not good advice. But um yeah, I think you have to try and find the balance, the balance that works for you and your family. Um, and it's okay to take a step back now and then and say, you know what, I need a couple days for me or my kids, or um, I always, you know, wanted to put family first and managed to squeeze in a lot. Like there were a lot of things uh happening around our world and um in our house that I used to drive to Calgary twice a week for freestyle skiing for the kids. And I think, what was I thinking? Like that's a big commitment.

SPEAKER_00 14:56

So what do you think it's shaped in your boys to seeing Vermom and leadership? Because I don't think a lot of young men get to see that witness, especially in their own household.

SPEAKER_02 15:05

Right. Yeah, I think um, you know, and haven't had conversations with them really about how they see that or saw that, but I do uh see them as young men and in marriage, two of them are married, um, and see them in their partnerships, and they certainly recognize that the work uh that their uh spouses do is um is important to community, important to their family well-being. And um one of them has a child, so I have one granddaughter. So um they're in that busy stage where full-time jobs, daycare, and you know, a little bit of family time on the weekends.

SPEAKER_00 15:42

So you have made mention a couple of times about your run for mayor first time around and not being the successful candidate. What were the emotions that were going through when you found that out?

SPEAKER_02 15:53

Yeah, it's interesting because I um, well, you know, when you run, when you decide to run for mayor, you obviously you care about your community a great deal. Um, and so I went in with that. And it actually wasn't, and I can almost remember the moment about maybe two or three days before the the election day, where I thought, hmm, I could possibly lose this. And that was kind of the first time I think I've been so busy, and but it was sort of the first time I went, I actually might not win. And um, and then of course the the announcement came out, and a good friend of mine said, uh, right after the election came out, she said, I think we need to do a quick trip somewhere. And so she and her husband and my husband Dan and I took off and went uh just to Palm Springs for a few days just to get out of the scene. And and then it was it probably wasn't until a few months later that I started to realize I was feeling shame, uh, feeling like I'd let the community down. Anybody that supported me feeling I let them down, um, and grief. Uh grief because uh there were things I wanted to see through that I wouldn't get to do because I wasn't there. And um, so you and it took me, took me a long time to kind of feel that out, I bet close to two years to try and realize and digest and put words to some of those feelings um that I was having. It also coincided, you know how life goes with these things is part of life, I guess. Um that year I turned 50. Uh my kids were mostly out of the house, so empty nest, and I lost my job and went, hmm, who is Cindy now? Um, and so that it took a little while. And people around me would say, Oh, it's great, you've got time off. And I'm like, Oh, yeah, but right. And you feel a little bit of the crunch at 50, although in hindsight it wasn't a big deal, but um feel that crunch of now what am I gonna do? I gotta hurry up. I'm I'm pretty soon I'll be too old, right? And um, so um yeah, my friends say, Oh, just keep moving on. And I'm like, well, there's something to process here. So um, anyhow, it's all I learned a lot.

SPEAKER_00 18:17

Yeah. Even you talking about the grief and shame, I can feel the emotion. Um how do you process that? How do you move forward? Because now you've won that seat that you that had that hurt before. How do you come to terms with, okay, that chapter's closed? How do we move forward?

SPEAKER_02 18:33

Yeah, well, I think it's partially comes about um through perspective that you gain. Um, the eight years that I was off of council, I did a tremendous amount of volunteer work. I think I was on eight different boards and different things, and um trying to figure out what was I gonna do next. Um, my mom and my husband's mom, uh mother-in-law, uh were both in health issues and aging and needed some supports. And so I was actually lucky to have that time to do some of that work. Um, also in that time of the 2013 election, my husband Dan was diagnosed with cancer. Um, I think it was in July. So I was full campaign mode. And I said to him, Um, I'm gonna pull out, I'm gonna drop out of the race because I'm I don't need that. And he said, No, no, stay in, I'm gonna be fine. And so I stayed in and lost, and then, as I say, sort of wallowed in the mud for quite a while. And then um he got well, our parents both died, and then Dan was diagnosed, rediagnosed with cancer. So a couple of years of caring for him uh before he died in 2019. So um when I was pondering running for mayor for in 2025, mayor Ken Johnson said to me, He he had encouraged me to run earlier, and I said, No, no, no. And then um a couple of conversations later, a couple months later, he said, I said, I think I'm gonna run. And he said, Oh, well, tell me more, kind of thing. And then he said, I at the end of our conversation, he said, I have one question for you. I said, What's that? How will you be if you lose? And I said, It's a really good question. Um I think I'll be fine because when I lost in 2013, that was probably one of the bigger losses that I'd ever faced. Um, personal and very public, right? Because everybody in the community knows you lost, um, or at least it feels that way. And then I said to Ken, the other part is that I've lost something much greater than a mayor's race when Dan died. So I think I'll be fine. I think I'll say, you know what, that's the way it's meant to be. And I gave the community a chance. I gave them a second chance. And uh he said, good, I just needed to check in with you on that.

SPEAKER_00 21:10

That's wise of him.

SPEAKER_02 21:12

So yeah. And so, and and actually that question prompted me to think, how will I be? Um, because I didn't want to spend, you know, you start to realize my time is my time is maybe well, we don't know how much time we have. And that was very real to me. Um, and so you just kind of think, well, I'll um I'll give it a go and see where this takes me, but I'll be fine if I lose. If I if I lose, then I know I have uh permission to go off and do whatever my bucket list.

SPEAKER_00 21:45

Most people start with motivation, very few start with a system. Last year I didn't guess my way through goals. I use the same framework I'm sharing with you today. Here's what it helped make possible it increased our net worth. We bought four properties, two on the Same day, spent more intentional time with family and friends, received two promotions, and took a dream vacation. This wasn't hustle, it wasn't willpower, it was clarity, structure, and alignment. That's why I created the ultimate goal setting framework. If you're tired of setting goals that sound good, then disappear. This is for you. Download it for free at thecurrencyofhappiness.com and start pursuing goals in a meaningful way. Do you mind if I ask you what were the lessons that Dan taught you?

SPEAKER_02 22:30

Oh now you're gonna get me to cry. Um I met Dan, I was 16. Um tissue, cue the tissues. Uh he my childhood was a little, I wouldn't say totally dysfunctional, but we were, you know, some days really good and some days a little off the edge. So my mom was an alcoholic for years. My stepdad was not the easiest person to live with. Um and Dan came from a family. We used to joke that his family was the Rockwells. They had everything great and all was good, and everybody loved one another, and they were a happy family. So when I met Dan, um, I moved into this space of stability and um calm, um, predictability, perhaps, uh, more than anything. So he um the other thing is that he would always say to me, sometimes you think you can't, and you can. And so if I think what he leave me with, that you can.

SPEAKER_00 23:44

Yeah, that's really good. Yeah, thank you for sharing that. I know that that's a difficult one, but I think so many people need to hear that of the fact that we oftentimes diminish our work. And we need an individual to step in and say, You can do this. Yeah, that's very powerful.

SPEAKER_02 24:02

Yeah, and he he was like like I think through our years together, we dated for eight years before we got married, and then we're married for about 32, I think. Um but he uh like I can remember key times in university where he would say, you know, um, you can do this course. You think you can't, but you can, and just sort of reset me and say, Stop saying you can't. And he taught me how to ski and uh downhill ski. And same thing. Often I would be on the side of the slope, frustrated and ready to throw my skis down the hill. And uh he'd stop me and say, Sin, you can do this. And so I would say that was through our married life uh what he instilled in me.

SPEAKER_00 24:54

That's very powerful.

SPEAKER_02 24:55

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 24:56

So um I also know you mentioned schooling. You I believe you uh took your MBA while being on council. Is that the same timeline or uh yeah?

SPEAKER_02 25:08

Well, I I wasn't take I didn't register in an MBA program. I registered in a master's program um for a little while uh in relational learning and uh decided after about, well, I think it was a semester and a half in, I went, why am I doing this? I'm not going to probably use this, right? In a practical way. Um I maybe maybe it wasn't wasn't quite what I needed or wanted, or really, I don't know. I thought I thought weird because I think back on that and I think it's something I really wanted to do, but I also sort of couldn't figure out how it clicked for me. Um and kids were young and we were busy, and why would I why would I be doing that? So yeah.

SPEAKER_00 25:52

I think that's so important of knowing what season that you're in, it'd be okay to let things go. Yeah. I think oftentimes we say, Oh, I've already told X, Y, and Z I have to do this now. Right. And it's okay to let those go. Uh when I was looking up, I didn't realize, but you actually were one of the founders of 100 Women Red Deer. And I believe it was over 600,000 that's been raised through 100 women red deer since its inception. Why did you start that movement?

SPEAKER_02 26:20

Yeah, a little bit more than that now, but um that's beside the point. Um, so it was 2014. Um, and so it was part of my time of sitting at home and thinking about what I was gonna do next. And I happened to hear on the radio, uh Calgary radio station, a couple of ladies talking about 100 women who care Calgary. And I thought, oh, this is quite curious, quite interesting. I need to find out more. So I listened to the interview and then I thought, I'll look them up a little bit. At the time, my youngest son was doing his grade 12 in Calgary, and I was trying to be this split mom. I was trying to be three days or four days in Calgary, and the other days back here in Red Deer. It was a crazy thing to think that would be enjoyable. Anyway, it was not. Um, so I was in Calgary a little bit. So I arranged to actually attend one of their 100 Women Who Care Calgary meetings just to see what it was all about, and really liked the concept and the model. And I uh came back to Red Deer and said to my good friend, lifelong friend, well, since high school friend, uh Susan, hey, here's this concept. What do you think about this? And uh I said, I kind of think we could do that here. Susan said, Oh, I think we could too. And uh and so we started thinking about it. I think that was probably about September of 2014. And so we merged our email contact lists and sent out a notice, I don't know, probably in November or so, saying, hey, we're gonna have this meeting in January. Why don't you come? And in our heads, we thought, well, let's see. Hopefully we could get to 75 women who care. And um when we opened the doors, uh people started pouring in. And we soon realized that we didn't have enough ballots, enough registration forms, enough chairs, enough anything. And so we did our first meeting. And the beauty, beautiful thing about 100 women who care and 100 men who care, and all those things that follow the format is that it's a one-hour meeting. And so you come in, and um as a member, so you commit to uh to be a member, you have to commit to four donations within a year, and it's a hundred dollars each meeting. You can do that as a team or as an individual. So um members can nominate a charity in their community that they would like to see take the money, and then all of those nominations for each meeting go into a hat, and you pull three, and those three members get to get up and pitch their charity of choice and convince us as member as voting people uh why we should vote for their charity to get the money. So it's uh it's very quick. You get five minutes to make your pitch. Usually there's tears and tissues, and um by ballot, everyone votes, uh, everyone in the room votes for their choice, and then the ballots are counted right there, and then and um the winners announced and they take the money for that meeting. So we had the first meeting, 223 people show up. So the first uh recipient of our funds took home $22,300. Um and the first year we kept that up. Every meeting was generating about $22,000, kind of dropped off to about $180 for a year or so, $190. And then COVID hit, we kind of dropped down. We did Susan was Susan's the detail person and the real creative person, and um came up with like drive-thru meeting ideas and things like that. So it's uh a very positive space and um helps you learn a little bit about your community, the good things people are doing that you maybe didn't hear, wouldn't otherwise hear about. And it's an hour that fills your bucket, fills your energy level up and and uh fills your cup, as they say. Um just come out of there feeling, you know, really good. And uh so Susan and I kept that going for 10 years, and then um at the 10-year mark, we well, kind of halfway through the ninth year, we started looking for who could our successors be. And uh we're lucky to find Bree Fitzpatrick and Lane Tomalty to take over, and uh they're doing a fine job to keep it running. And Susan and I go now and we sit in the audience and you know, enjoy. Which is a nice change of face, probably. Yeah, that's right.

SPEAKER_00 31:00

Uh you and made mention that Susan's abilities was the detail and creativity. I'm wondering for yourself, when you look at what you bring to the leadership table, what do you feel is your superpower? What's one area where you have the mark that you leave?

SPEAKER_02 31:14

Yeah, I think it's probably well, uh listening. Um and then um I just think in it's that encouraging and and um trying to trying to help others shine or shine the light on others uh a little bit. Um and you know, obviously I spend a fair amount of time communicating. So that piece as well. And um, so that's probably it. Yeah, I don't some days I go, I don't know. I just show up.

SPEAKER_00 31:46

I think you're doing a fine job communicating. When you look at the future, I know that we spent a lot of time in the past, but when you look at the future for yourself and for Red Deer, what do you see?

SPEAKER_02 31:58

Well, um, you know, I think as I said earlier, there's this convergence of things happening where we're, I think the community is recognizing that it's not so much the city's role or the government's role or some other organization's role to solve issues and challenges or create opportunities. And Red Deer for me has always been a city where if uh someone came up with an idea and they wanted to make it happen and they talked to a few people, they could pull together a group of people and make it happen. And you know, you see you can the number of times that that has happened are you know as long as you're ARM. Um and so Red Deer will continue to do that. And I think, you know, communicating in a way that broadcasts how we who we are and how we are on a broader stage, if you will, um will help us just become more of ourselves in that way. Um I'm thrilled to see Red Deer become a more diverse place. Um I at one of our hundred women meetings actually recently, um staff from Fairview Elementary School presented, and one of the things they pointed out was the number of kids in their schools who speak different languages at home. And it's it's a huge number. Um, and so we did a little, you know, I did a little bit of looking, and 20% of our population is immigrants, new immigrants to our community. So when I uh Dan and I, you know, graduated from Lindsay Thurber, but went off to Calgary to University, came back um to Red Deer in '91. Red Deer was a very white place. Um and and now I look at it and go, wow, look at all of this richness and the breadth that's coming through and the different experiences you can have right here, people you can get to know. So I value that. Um I and I only see that continuing. There's lots of opportunity in all of those spaces. Um so I think we need to, I don't know if is there one thing, you know, I think about farming has been, agriculture's been a strong contender in our economic space. Um, petrochemical plants obviously are have been key employers for 40 some years. Education, healthcare, lots of opportunities there. Um when we talk about the hospital expansion, I think about 3,000 new jobs coming into that space. That will change our community in a big way because all of those people aren't here right now. So there'll be new new people coming in, new housing needed, all of those pieces and the ancillary parts. What businesses will support them? What will they need when they get here? What um, you know, what schools, what churches, what who will come and and what will they need. So I think Red Deer's time feels like it's it's here in many ways. And um yeah, I think in a sense, I know I don't want to tell people about our park system and our trails, but at the same time, it really is one of the best parts uh of the city. So um yeah, I think there's lots of opportunity. And um I often think, and it goes back to that conversation we started with around school board and schools having opportunities for kids to learn and find their passion. Um, I think Red Deer can be that place for people. It's uh connections that help you understand how you can and realize you can do those things. So lots of opportunities.

SPEAKER_00 35:44

I know oftentimes when people think of politics, they're looking at the federal provincial scale. But truly I believe that the municipal scale is where you feel it the most within your household. It's where you're doing your life. What needs to change for citizens to truly care about what's happening in their community?

SPEAKER_02 36:04

Yeah, it's a weird time we live in with all the noise from other places, uh particularly from the south. Um and I think, although I feel it's changing, maybe it's just me. Um, it feels like it's been fairly negative. Uh, and I'm gonna date that back to COVID-ish times. Um lots of negative comments and negativity, and I guess still a little bit of divisiveness. And we certainly see that here in the province of Alberta. Um things that divide us rather than unite us. And um I think it boils down to community and where you live and how you can make a difference. People can actually feel um that they can contribute at this level. Um, other, you know, orders of government maybe feel a little bit more distant. But um I've kind of lost track of your question a little bit. So no, that's right.

SPEAKER_00 36:58

I think at the end of the day, it's people taking ownership of their place where they live. Yeah. Um and I think oftentimes it feels like that's someone else's responsibility, that's someone else's problem. Yeah. And my hope and desire is that we would come more as a community and say, hey, I want to show up. I want to vote for who's gonna be on our next city council mayors. I want to know what's happening so I can make a positive difference.

SPEAKER_02 37:24

Yeah, it's interesting. Um, thank you for helping me get back on track there. Um, I think that sometimes people don't realize, um, although it sort of depends who you're talking to. Uh, people don't realize the decisions that each level of government makes sometimes, although the grade twos seem to know it quite well because when they come to City Hall, they seem to have it figured out. Um, you know, often you'll see somebody complaining about healthcare and blaming their city council. Well, it's yeah, not my not my you know area to be concerned about to a certain extent. Um and I I think that we've seen people pull back from things like service clubs and organizations that contribute back into community. And I maybe we're going through a bit of a I don't know, uh a reshaping of what it looks like to be engaged in community and where people find meaning and connection, right? Um and I think sometimes people uh look at the service clubs that have been around for years and years um and think, well, it's not quite my thing. And yet uh when they enter that space, they realize that there's connections to be made there and that there's a difference to be made when we can pull together. So I see lots of things like that happening in Red Deer. Um and sometimes actually when I hear somebody complaining, I want to say, what have you done for your community lately? Um, in a in a bit of a cheeky way.

SPEAKER_00 38:58

Yeah, there's this uh great book by Brene Brown called Darren Greatly. Yes. And in it she quotes uh Teddy Roosevelt's Man in the Arena speech. And I think about that quite often of the fact that you can have people that are spectators that are watching what's going on, but their voice doesn't truly matter unless they're willing to step into that arena, get covered in mud, sweat, blood, whatever it takes, and are actually moving forward. Those are the voices that are gonna matter. Um, and I think for anyone, whether it's in a leadership position like yourself or whatever you're doing, that's constantly what I think back on is who's doing this work with me? How are we moving this forward?

SPEAKER_02 39:34

Yeah, for sure. Um I think I mentioned when I came in that I've been doing a little bit of work on the mayor's recognition award file. Um, and one of the things that has struck me as I look through the nominees for that, and that's coming up in June, um, I think of in many cases, it's someone who has stepped up and gathered good people around them uh to help do something or to take interest. And so maybe it's about inviting others in and uh recognizing, and you know, people do lots of great things in our community, whether it's coaching or volunteering at different things, but um the more we do that, the the better community we have. So I think when I think about new people coming to Red Deer, uh new immigrants, people who move here from other parts of Canada, um I think the greatest gift we can give them is connection to community and reaching out and helping them find what they need to find within community. Um imagine if you arrive here with nobody and uh you honestly don't know where to turn next. And what do you need most? You need at least one or two connections to help stabilize you and uh and um find your grounding, found, find your footing and move forward. And what red deer what's happened to me, my red deer experience, has been that through the people I've met along my way here, um, I came to Red Deer the day before grade 10 started. Um so it's the people I've met uh along that way that have really shaped who I am in a in a very real way. Um, and my connection to them has opened the doors for many things that I have done. Um so opening the doors for someone else, uh, I think is how we can help others.

SPEAKER_00 41:30

That's really good. We have a tradition on the podcast where we ask each guest, what does happiness look like to you? So I'm curious. Maris Cindy Jeffries, what does happiness look like to you?

SPEAKER_02 41:39

What does happiness? Uh it's probably a contentedness. Um, I don't know. How do you want to go about this? Uh, happiest day for me, something like that, uh, probably involves being outside and being with family and friends, food in there too. Um, just feeling, you know, the opportunity to connect and and be together and uh with loved ones. And I'm lucky I have a lot of great friends and many who I went to high school with that I'm very close with still. Um and I live in a great neighborhood. So happiness, you know, I don't have to go too far to find that, luckily. Um, but yeah, mostly it's family, family friends. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 42:22

What is the last thing that you want to leave, whether it's the citizens of Red Deer that you serve or other individuals that are tuning into this and want to know how they can step up greater in leadership? What is the last thing that you'd like to leave them with?

SPEAKER_02 42:35

Well, it may come down to Dan's uh contribution to me, right? Uh believe that you can. And the thing that um I find myself going back to as mayor, and I think it's actually helpful uh regardless of where you're at and and what stage of leadership you might be in or uh community development kind of opportunities. I I know what I know right now, uh, and I don't know the answer to the question that I might be posing myself, but what's the next step I could take? Might be a small step. Uh might be going and having coffee with someone who might know something about what I'm thinking about. And then that will help guide me to the next step. So you don't have to know the answer you're seeking. You just need to know how to weave together the parts. And I that I think is the magic of uh of finding your way through. Um if you think you know the answer when you start, you're probably starting in the wrong spot.

SPEAKER_00 43:40

Thank you so much for your time, Cindy. This is a great conversation. Um I think the one piece that stood out the strongest to me is what you shared about Dan about how even when you don't believe in yourself, someone else does. And how do you step up to live up to that? So thank you for sharing.

SPEAKER_02 43:56

Thank you. It's my pleasure. Yeah, it was is a gift that he gave me. And continues.