THUNDER BAY – CIVIC POLITICS – Charmaine McCraw would like to announce that she is joining the race for City Council for the seat of Councillor At Large. Born and raised in Northern Ontario, Charmaine possesses a strong knowledge of the current landscape of Ontario’s North. Her interest in community and capacity development paired with her public policy experience in First Nation and Municipal Economic Development, Community Development, Energy, and Resource Revenue Sharing brings her into her current position of Project Manager for ORIGIN; a company working together with individuals, communities and employers to achieve sustainable employment outcomes for Indigenous peoples.
McCraw has held positions overseeing resource and economic development, research projects on Indigenous workforce participation and has experience working across the workforce spectrum in many jobs; from a gas attendant to an elementary school teacher. She is an entrepreneur, Economic Development practitioner and holds a degree in Political Science Pre-Law from Lakehead University with a background in Journalism.
As an Irish-Ojibwe woman, McCraw has spent much of her life bridging different perspectives. “I believe that this is a beautiful city, with a lot of people who are making their way through life,” said McCraw. “I believe that as a City, we are responsible to provide each and every person living here the right to feel safe, live affordably and secure supports they need to maintain or create positive change in their lives and become productive members of this city we call home.”
There are many things of concern to McCraw happening within the city that she is committing to working hard on, to promote positive change. Namely, lack of economic development to provide a spectrum of career opportunities and decrease the tax burden on residents; the lack of available/affordable housing; the capacity to care for our elderly; Thunder Bay’s shrinking population and what is being done to attract and retain youth, talent and new families.
Centering her platform on the need for fiscal responsibility and restoration of honourable relations within the city, McCraw promises only one thing. “I will listen, not to respond, but to hear you and your concerns, and to bring them forth to the elected team. Rome wasn’t built in a day and Thunder Bay will never be perfect in one term, but, keeping fiscal responsibility in mind, I will do everything I can to find solutions, create open dialogue about methods positioning our city for growth and bring a fresh perspective to Thunder Bay’s City Council.”
Inquiries can be directed to mccrawforcouncil@gmail.com or Charmaine via telephone at 807-356-2123.