Happy Holidays
The Holiday Season is now here, and the New Year is just around the corner. This is the time of year when we should set aside some time to celebrate and reflect on the past year with friends and family.
During this hectic time of year, we often try to fit too much in a short time span. Plan ahead; take it easy while you’re driving, so you get there and back, in one calm and relaxed piece.
Think about those who are less fortunate and contribute to those agencies that can make a difference. Think about what your goals will be for 2015 and how you will achieve them.
I wish you all a Merry Christmas and a very Happy New Year!
I look forward to what is coming for Surrey in 2015!
Happy Holidays!
Surrey Mayor & Councillors’ Inauguration – Dec. 8th
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Disaster Planning
Emergency Preparedness.
We in Surrey, as a community, need to ensure everyone is prepared and able to survive on their own for the first 72 hours after a large-scale disaster, while we wait for our services to be restored. The Surrey Fire Services has a very comprehensive plan to deal with large-scale emergencies that include (but are not limited to) reconnaissance of the area surrounding the fire station locations to determine emergency activity, accessibility and communications. Triage is also an important part of a large-scale incident so the most critical items are addressed in priority. All of this takes time which means we need to have our neighbourhoods prepared for large-scale incidents today.
The Surrey Fire Service has been, and continues to be, the lead agency with regards to emergency preparedness. The Neighbourhood Emergency Preparedness Program (NEPP) was developed by Surrey Fire Service members and the program is facilitated by our Surrey firefighters. The NEPP utilizes resources from Surrey community groups such as Search and Rescue, our Amateur Radio group and Emergency Social Services along with the Fire Department in the event of a disaster.
This program provides key information for people in a neighbourhood to comfortably survive in a disaster for at least 72 hours. The NEPP has been in place since 2001 and has trained over 22,000 people during this time. There is one week set aside in May of each year to promote Emergency Preparedness and displays are all over the City. The program is free to Surrey residents and the delivery can be customized to fit any group’s needs and will be delivered (dependent on size of group which can vary from 15 people to 150 people) between 45 minutes to 2 hours. For more information, please go to the City’s website at https://www.surrey.ca/city-services/698.aspx
Final Thanks
To the 40,000 plus people of Surrey who placed their trust in me, by voting for me yesterday, I thank you. To all the voters in Surrey who chose Linda Hepner as their Mayor, and to those same people for putting their trust in the entire Surrey First Team of Councillors, I thank you as well.
To those who did not vote for me, I hope over the next four years, to earn your confidence and help make Surrey a better place to live.
I would also like to thank the Surrey First Campaign Team who kept us moving forward with positive messages, positive ideas and providing a positive look at the future and what we can accomplish. Our team stayed on the high road and the public responded well to the positive things we have done and what we will do in the future.
I would also like to thank my personal team made up of neighbours, friends and family who surrounded me with non-stop words of encouragement and support during the past few months. They kept me moving forward with the goal to be in City Hall, and to be in a position to keep the City we live, work and play in, the best place to be in the world.
Thanks to the Fire Fighters of Surrey who were awesome during this campaign. They provided me with unwavering support by sharing what I stand for. They were critical to the Surrey First Team with the placement, maintenance and upkeep of all those signs. They also made those “gold and black” shirts, some of the most sought after goods in this campaign. More importantly, my Brothers and Sisters of the Surrey Fire Fighters’ Association, placed their trust in me that I will keep public safety and the needs of the citizens of Surrey at the forefront, no differently than I had done for the 32 years I served as a Surrey Fire Fighter.
Lastly, thanks to my family. I will never forget that dinner when I asked them what they thought about my possible endeavour. They had no hesitation and quickly came up with ideas on what they could do to help me and the Surrey First Team. I could not have survived this campaign if it were not for the love, compassion and support they gave me.
I look forward to taking a seat on council and moving the issues I talked about during my campaign, forward, and helping move the City forward over the next four years.
Thank You Surrey
Thank you Surrey!
Thank You
An open thank you to all of those who have helped me. Because of Elections BC regulations, we aren’t allowed to be ‘social’ on Social Media tomorrow… but please don’t think, because this account suddenly goes silent, that we aren’t out there, trying to earn every last vote.
I appreciate all the LIKES, SHARES, and wonderful comments of support we’ve received throughout the campaign! They mean SO much to me and my team. On Election Day, please remember to contact your friends, family and neighbours, and remind them how important it is to vote.
A few shout-outs before the silence of Social Media becomes the regulatory requirement.
I want to thank all of you that I have had the opportunity to meet and speak with over the last few months. I have to let you all know that regardless of the support (one way or another) I have grown from this experience. I hope the voters of Surrey give me the opportunity to use this experience.
Thank you to the Surrey First Councillors, Candidates and Campaign Team, who have all become extended members of my family.
I want to thank “Mike’s Campaign” team for all of their hard work and their persistence to keep me moving forward. They have been there at a moment’s notice for tasks that we wanted and needed to be done. These are the people that I am proud to call friends and will cherish taking this journey with them.
To my fellow firefighters. Words will never describe my thanks for your efforts to get me noticed. Yes. I know I did some of that on my own, but my IAFF Brothers and Sisters efforts have surpassed my wildest dreams. Together we have made firefighting synonymous with public safety, as it should be. I am truly proud to be a member of the IAFF and will never forget a somewhat copied phrase I have used from many years ago and plan to continue to use, “membership has its privileges” and I’m privileged and honoured to be a member.
Lastly, to my family. They have seen the highs and lows of this campaign and offered nothing other than words of praise (sprinkled with a few swift kicks in the butt) during the past months. They understand the pressures I have been under and I couldn’t have done this without their support. Love you all!
Consider this a “good luck” chain letter and consider calling 10 people and letting them know that the Surrey First TEAM is the best choice for all of Surrey and you get great luck! Add the Surrey First Education team and you get super great luck!
Thank you.
Mike
