North West Regional Executive – 2023 Election Results

My name is Lindsay Page, I am a Registered Nurse in Smithers BC. I have a background in Maternity and Emergency Nursing and have recently moved into the Public Health world. I have held the role of Communications Secretary for two terms and would be happy to continue to serve the members of the Northwest. I am organized, efficient, and feel that my knowledge and experience will allow me to fulfill all the duties of this role.

My name is Taryn Opel, and I currently work as a Regional Communicable Disease Coordinator RN for Northern Health. I have been an RN for almost 13 years, and have been a BCNU steward for approx. 7 years. I have lived in the North West, Smithers BC, for the last 12 years. Prior to my current role I worked as a Public Health and Primary Care Nurse for 9 years.

I am putting my name forward for re-election as the NW Mental Health Representative. I have had the pleasure of serving the North West region as Mental Health Representative for the last 4+ years. In that time I have grown in ways I could not have imagined, and I’ve developed a deep passion in advocating and working collaboratively with members both across the NW and provincially. 

In my time as Mental Health Rep I’ve worked collaboratively with the NW OHS rep to ensure members in the NW have a voice provincially. Recognizing that psychological health and safety in the workplace has equal importance to physical health and safety I’ve advocated to ensure that concerns brought forward by NW members have impact. I have served as a Joint Occupational Health Committee (JOHSC) in my workplace for the past 9 years. I do this to ensure that psychological health and safety has a place at the table, and that it is recognized when doing worksite evaluations, or incident investigations. Stigma continues to be a huge challenge when it comes to Mental Health injury/illness, so I work to support members to report these injuries/illnesses to the Workplace Health Call Centre so we can impact the supports available, and reduce barriers to care. I advocate at Regional Meetings, and Provincial Conventions and Bargaining with a voice that represents all the NW voices I’ve heard. I actively participate with the regional executive to ensure these comments, questions, concerns, and successes are shared. My steward work continues to inspire me to be a strong advocate. I became a steward because I felt a personal injustice in my workplace, and I knew if I wanted to ensure no other member experienced the same thing I needed to step up, learn the contract, and speak up. I continue to see value in being educated and informed, and having a strong voice that can impact positive change. 

I would be honored to continue to serve BCNU membership in the NW Mental Health Rep Role. Please get out and vote, and if you feel inclined, vote for me to continue to represent you. 

You are welcome to reach out to me via email at bee_optimistic@hotmail.com

Kind Regards, 

Taryn Opel RN

My name is Connie Kearley. I am a rural nurse working primarily in Home & Community care in Kitimat. I have served as your Regional Executive Occupational Health & Safety Representative for several years now. I am incredibly passionate about the health & safety of our members. Over the past several years I have worked to establish strong BCNU representation on local JOHSC committees and supported BCNU member representatives to address important safety concerns. I have also served on several committees and worked with important stakeholders to address safety concerns on regional and provincial levels. While I recognize change is slow, especially in health care, I am so proud and grateful to our members and to BCNU for the OH&S improvements and initiatives undertaken and achieved in my current term. I have had the pleasure of witnessing and supporting the growth and empowerment of our JOHSC member representatives who fight daily for the improved health & safety for our members. 

If elected for another term I will continue to advocate for the health, safety, and inclusion of our members to the best of my abilities. I will continue to recruit, retain, and support our local JOHSC representatives as well as support our membership as a regional steward. I will voice the priorities of our membership at every opportunity. I will bring my passion and drive to every challenge and make the most of the new and improved language of our latest collective agreement. I look forward to celebrating every win with the members of North West region.

Hello,

My name is Beth Marko. I have worked as an ER nurse for the past 10 years, and worked as a union steward for 8 years. Working in a rural hospital has shown me the challenges nurses are faced with everyday. Staffing levels being at an all time low have highlighted the inability to meet BCCNM standards. Although the change in the collective agreement has made it difficult to address issues through the PR process I am determined to support nurses and hold employers accountable for the limited resources we are working with. I am the current PR Advocate for the North west and want to continue to support and defend the nurses of the North West. 

Supporting Nurses is what I am passionate about. I work hard to strengthen the healthcare system, and that advocacy starts by listening to those at the front line. 
My name is Teri Forster, I use the pronouns she/her and hers, and I am respectfully submitting my name for Regional Council Member representing the North West Region for the 2023-2026 term. I want to respectfully acknowledge that I reside as a settler on the traditional and unceded lands claimed by the Tsimshian people and work throughout the North West on the traditional lands of many Indigenous People. 

I have held the elected Regional Council role for the North West since 2016, and in that time, have demonstrated my abilities as a responsive, fair, hard-working, honest leader who is highly organized and focused on improving the working conditions of all nurses. I strive towards providing the highest standard of assistance and dedication in all tasks I perform on behalf of others, including holding others accountable for the work they do. I have actively worked to advocate for our nurses through consistent communication on the needs of the North West, while respecting the needs of other areas. 

I am unafraid to ask hard questions to ensure that the decisions and/or actions taken while representing our members are well thought out and all viewpoints are considered. I work hard to create and maintain relationships with a variety of leaders from sectors both within healthcare and other industries to foster dialogue and understand perspectives that are different from my own. I highly value respectful collaboration and communication where both sides are equal partners in working to remedy a situation. Where this is not attainable, I am comfortable in filing a grievance to support the rights of workers and ensuring the collective agreement language is upheld.

If re-elected, I will continue to provide exceptional service for our area and will work hard to ensure member voices continue to be heard. I welcome opportunities to answer questions and discuss my experience and credentials. Please email me for election related questions at teriforster@gmail.com or contact me via social media platforms @tericarnegie. 

Thank you for your consideration.
In solidarity,
Teri Forster

I have been a nurse in a variety of settings but found my passion in the community and with advocacy. I am awed by the power we have collectively to affect change. When I reflect on the member engagement I have had over the last year, I believe change is needed. I believe that trust has been eroded between members and the union. To repair the trust change is needed. Trust is built with transparency and accountability. I will be a strong voice for the northwest that will fight to keep the union accountable and transparent to its’ members. 
I believe that nurses in the northwest deserve to have a voice in creating change within our union. I believe that members’ feedback should be taken seriously and used to improve our union. My experience with systems level change, organizational improvement and change management as well as my experience as your northwest Lobby Coordinator and Men in Nursing Chair has given me the tools to lead change in our union. If you vote for me as the Northwest Regional Council Member I will leverage my experiences to ensure BCNU remains member led and member accountable.

Objectives
1. Increase accountability and transparency to members
2. Ensure the Northwest remains a strong voice within BCNU
3. Leverage my experience for organizational reform within BCNU

Please reach out to me if you have questions about me or my campaign.

My name is Kate Fodor, current Treasurer for the BCNU North West Region. Advocacy, education and accountability, along with fiscal responsibility have been, and will continue to be my top priorities.

As an active member in BCNU, I have been the Treasurer on the North West Regional Executive team for the past 5 years. I am seeking re-election for this position in the upcoming General Election. I feel that I have gained immense experience in this role and would like to continue to support BCNU members of our Region in this capacity. I have been fortunate enough to cover for the Regional Chair and participate in Council meetings, expanding my knowledge of the Union as a whole. In addition to being the Regional Treasurer, I have also been an active Steward, providing support to the members of the North West. 

I am a mother of 3 busy children and live in the Bulkley Valley, where we garden and play. I have been employed as an RN with Northern Health for almost 12 years in a variety of position. I am currently working in Smithers in a casual capacity at the Bulkley Lodge, IPT and on the ICMT team. Travelling is a huge passion of mine both locally and internationally. I feel very fortunate to have been a part of the Regional Executive for the past 5 years, allowing me the opportunity to not only meet the diverse members in our Union, but also travel to various the parts of our unique and truly beautiful region. 

Providing relevant and current information through effective, transparent communication is an essential duty of your Union and I vow to uphold these values if re-elected. I look forward to carrying on the important work of the Union through the role of North West Regional Treasurer and would like your support.