Connection and Member Benefit Opportunities

With over 25 years of dedicated service in local government, Dawn is known for her straightforward and no-nonsense approach to solving complex and daily workplace  situations. Having worked in several different positions leading up to Chief Administrative Officer she has many real-life experiences to draw from and provides practical advice.  She is honoured to share her expertise and understanding in Local Government as a municipal advisor and Interim CAO to assist communities during times of transition and change.

Dawn is a lifelong learner and has a degree in Business Administration, diplomas in Local Government Administration, Advanced Leadership Development, her accreditation as a Certified Municipal Clerk along with several other certificates in Emergency Management, Leadership and Emotional Intelligence.

Giving back is a core value for Dawn and she serves as Chair on the Executive of Thompson Okanagan Local Government Management Association. Volunteering at PADM courses and LGMA Conventions led her to realizing her potential for coaching and mentoring. She is her happiest when she is guiding people to realize their full potential and empowering individuals to believe in themselves.    

Jon retired after more than three decades with the public service here in BC. He began his local government career as the Economic Development Officer for the Town of Golden, was recruited then as its Corporate Officer, and filled the role of CAO for his final 11 years.  

Jon has been an LGMA member since he started his local government career, and estimates to have missed just one LGMA annual conference during this time. He became the President and Director of the Rocky Mountain Chapter and served as a member of the LGMA board until his retirement. Jon also acted as the parliamentarian and policy writer for the Association of Kootenay Boundary Local Governments for several years. While his local government career took place in only one community, being a resident and visible public servant there for 30 years enabled long lasting friendships, trust, and familiarity with its citizens; provided stability and dependability in corporate processes; and facilitated his integration into a network of colleagues and communities that actively commiserated, consulted, and looked out for each other.  Internally, he curated a long-term management team that saw extremely little turnover in well over a decade, adding to the stability of the organization.

Jon is quick to admit he can be short on details and better on strategy, readily stating his staff were far more adept than he at a great many things. His style is founded in dedicated work, service over self, relationship building, giving credit where due, and managing for a mix of both autonomy and authority together with a team ethos. His greatest self professed triumphs and tragedies lie in the realm of human resource management, council relationships, and in helping to create a built and cultural environment for Golden that local government and its citizens can be proud of.  

Jon is far from confident his efforts will make their way into any historical annals, but is content in the belief he made small but measurable differences in a rural community’s social, cultural and infrastructure fabric and to the professional lives of those who worked with him.  

Patti originally started work in Municipal Government in Williams Lake. At that time, she did not know a lot about the role local government played in a community and for sure was not aware of the potential career opportunities but quickly became committed to public service, working in various departments including, but not limited to, administration, RCMP, and recreation services.

With this experience, Patti was quick to realize that her passion was in the corporate administration realm of local government and focused on gaining opportunities to enhance her skills in that area. She started with the City of Vernon in March 2003 with aspirations of building a career in the corporate administration area and moved through the corporation to corporate officer, manager, legislative services, director of corporate services, deputy CAO, and CAO. 

Her personal style is akin to “leading from the shadows.” Strong leadership comes from empowering the team we lead. A leader who can remove ego and lead with intention directly impacts the organization’s culture, builds employee motivation, and improves team morale. Value your team and let them propose solutions – inspire leadership by letting them lead. Intentionally bring value every day you show up to work! This is a quality she learned from a mentor she holds in high regard.

Stephen Fleming recently retired from the City of Kelowna after a 28-year long career in local government. He has been a volunter and active member of LGMA for many years, and has made numerous invaluable contributions to the Association and his peers. 

In 2005, Stephen joined the Capilano University Local Government faculty and has taught three of the four core PADM courses in Kelowna since then. Stephen’s professional and academic interests include municipal governance, corporate leadership, and local government staff mentoring, training and education.  He has essentially trained most of the Province and we are grateful for his knowledge and expertise over the years.