City Councillor Vesna Higham on election nomination day in 2017 at Red Deer City Hall. (rdnewsNOW file photo)

By Vesna Higham, City Councillor, Red Deer

announcement

Op-ed: Councillor Vesna Higham won’t seek re-election, shares final thoughts

Aug 27, 2025 | 1:36 PM

After much soul-searching and heartfelt consideration, I’ve made the bittersweet decision to retire from public life – and won’t be running again in the upcoming October election. This was a difficult decision for me, as I count it one of the greatest privileges of my life to have served for over a decade as a City Councillor.

I want to thank my fellow Red Deerians from the bottom of my heart for the trust you’ve placed in me these past three terms. I did my best to honour that trust and am grateful for the caring, engagement, and passionate volunteerism you continue to display day-in and day-out across our amazing community.

And while I must confess I will miss this interesting and important work of community stewardship, my husband and I have long planned for and dreamed about serving missions abroad for our worldwide church after retirement – so we look forward with great anticipation to that next chapter of our lives.

I feel deeply grateful to so many for the support and influence over the years. First and foremost, to my Heavenly Father and Savior Jesus Christ, for bringing me to this work and for guiding, comforting, and sustaining me throughout. Also, to my husband and family, who have stood by in resolute support through the many ups and downs of public life – thank you.

I owe a deep debt of gratitude to all the mayors and councillors I’ve served with in the past; in particular, however, I would be remiss if I didn’t publicly acknowledge the profound influence for good Mayor Ken and my current Council colleagues have had on me. It has been an absolute honour to have served, worried, laboured, and overcome challenges with you all – and I will always hold the memories of our shared experiences close to my heart.

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Likewise to the many City staff and managers who have worked with and supported Council in our labours over the years: your hard work and loyal devotion to our community’s best interests have always shined brightly and have been more greatly appreciated than you may know.

And I cannot neglect to acknowledge and thank the many volunteer committee and board members with whom I’ve served – and who never cease to amaze me with the commitment and passion you consistently bring to our community.

You know who you are and I shall treasure the friendships and bonds we share. It takes many backgrounds, perspectives, and varied skill sets to create the best outcomes in any endeavour – and Red Deer is indeed blessed with the best volunteerism and community spirit I’ve ever witnessed in my lifetime.

To those aspiring to pick up the torch of public service, I wish you every success. This work can at times be very challenging, lonely, and emotionally taxing, but it can also be profoundly rewarding and gratifying: you’re helping to shape and guide our community’s path forward and that’s a sacred stewardship.

Red Deer now sits on the cusp of transformational changes that are sure to influence our character and identity as a community for decades to come. The two billion dollar hospital expansion project alone will bring thousands of additional health-care jobs to our city, to say nothing of the wave of related employment, capital/housing infrastructure, and economic development activity it will attract to our community.

Additionally, many other emerging development and community endeavours (too numerous to detail here) are presently lining up to enhance our community – to be handled with wisdom, discretion and sound judgment.

This next Council will have a lot on its plate, but this community has always risen to the challenge. In the hallowed words of current Mayor Ken: “Public service is a reflection of our imperfect pursuit of something greater than ourselves. Something more noble.” Thank you for the privilege of serving you – it’s been one of the greatest honours of my life.

Vesna Higham

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EDITOR’S NOTE: The views expressed above are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of rdnewsNOW or Pattison Media. Column suggestions and letters to the editor can be sent to news@rdnewsNOW.com.