MOUNTAIN VIEW COUNTY - The Mountain View Seniors' Housing (MVSH) board has a new chair and vice-chair.
Town of Olds councillor Heather Ryan was elected chair and Town of Carstairs councillor Marty Ratz was elected vice-chair during the recent MVSH annual organizational meeting.
Ryan replaces longtime board chair Bruce Beattie, who is reeve of Mountain View County, while Ratz replaces Village of Cremona councillor Sonia Temple.
MVSH is a non-profit organization that operate seniors lodges in Sundre, Olds, Didsbury and Carstairs, as well as self-contained seniors’ apartments and subsidized family housing. It requisitions funds from area municipalities.
Ryan has been on the MVSH board since being elected as an Olds town councillor in 2017.
“There are always challenges,” said Ryan. “COVID is really taking up a lot of time, both from the board and our administration and staff. Obviously the safety of our residents and staff will remain a priority.”
Up until, this week, there had been no COVID cases in MVSH facilities. Housing officials were informed Monday that a resident of Mount View Lodge in Olds had tested positive for COVID-19.
Ryan commended Beattie for his longtime service as MVSH board chair.
“He has done a tremendous job as chairman and we are going to missing him on the board,” said Ryan.
For his part, Beattie says he believes the new board is in good hands.
“I think the organization is in good shape,” said Beattie. “Heather has lots of experience and the board has stayed relatively the same. I’m confident that the board will continue to do a good job.”
Councillors Dwayne Fulton and Duncan Milne are the county’s two representatives on the new board.
Beattie is pleased with his time as chairman.
“We’ve seen a lot of changes,” he said. “It was pretty bumpy when I came on, with the issues around Olds lodge and getting that finished. It was a great project that we completed in Sundre.”
He commended longtime MVSH's chief administrative officer, Sam Smalldon, for his leadership over the years.
In other news, officials announced last week that April Mattson has been appointed to the role of executive director of Mountain View Seniors' Housing Foundation.
The foundation is a registered charity through which funds are raised to assist the work of MVSH and to help support the four lodges operating within the region.
Officials also announced that MVSH director and Town of Sundre councillor Richard Warnock has been appointed to the MVSH ex-officio role on the foundation board.
