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| Robert Kirwan was born on May 28, 1950 to Tom and Audrey
Kirwan. He was the oldest of five children with two brothers, Frank and
Wayne, as well as two sisters, Carol and Janet.
For the first five years of his life, he lived in Coniston where his
father was employed with INCO.
Then, at the age of five, the family moved to Lively to be closer to
where his father worked at the Iron Ore Recovery Plant in Copper Cliff.
Robert went to Lively Public School #1 and then went on to graduate from
Grade 13 at Lively High School in June of 1969.
He attended Waterloo University for one year and then returned to
Laurentian University where he completed his three-year B.A. in Math and
Economics. Upon graduating in the spring of 1972, Robert married Valerie (Starcevic)
whom he had met while they were both in high school in 1968.
Robert and Valerie moved to North Bay immediately after their marriage
where they lived from July 1972 until June 1973 while Robert attended
Teachers' College at the Canadore College site. That was the first year
the new school was opened.
 After graduating from Teachers' College, Robert accepted a position
with the Sudbury Catholic District School Board in September 1973 and
remained with the board until his retirement, 28 years later in June 2001.
Robert and Valerie purchased a house in the spring of 1974 on Noel
Crescent in Val Therese and have
lived in that same house ever since.
They raised three sons, shown in the photo from the left: Warren (1977), Ryan (1975),
and Marty (1979).
All three went to St. Anne School in Hanmer, St. Charles College in
Sudbury, and then graduated from the School of Business and Commerce Program at Laurentian
University. Ryan, currently lives in Val Caron where he works as an
independent Mortgage Broker; Warren is an elementary school teacher in the
Simcoe District School Board near Barrie; and Marty is a police officer in
the canine division with the Peel Regional Police Department.
Robert has operated a private practice as a marketing consultant and
publisher since 1985. He
currently publishes the Valley East Today Community Web Site which was
founded in 2003; is the administrator for the Valley East Facebook Group
which has over 1300 members; and is the host of a weekly live talk radio
show, The Learning Clinic, which is broadcast every Monday afternoon at 12
noon from Laurentian University’s CKLU 96.7 FM. He operates a private
practice as a Business Development Manager, working mainly on
education-based marketing & training programs as well as strategic
planning for small businesses and organizations.
Robert and Valerie have seven grand children: Hailee (9),
Hannah (7), and Cade (5) who live with their parents, Ryan and Angele (Rochette)
in McCrea Heights; Brittney (18) and Austin (15), living with Warren and
Cindi (Meyer) in Barrie; and Keelan (5 ) and Aislin (2) living with Marty
and Julie (Auger) in Brantford. Rockford. The following is the family
photo which was taken at Christmas 2013.
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| Robert Kirwan Declares
Candidacy For Councillor of Ward 5 |
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January 2, 2014 (Val Therese): Robert Kirwan official registered today as a candidate for the position
of City Councillor for Ward 5 which consists of Val Caron, Blezard
Valley, McCrea Heights and the Northwest section of Sudbury
Kirwan currently represents Wards 5 & 6 as a Trustee with the Rainbow
District School Board and is completing his first term.
“The next four years are going to be the most important transition period
for the City of Greater Sudbury since amalgamation,” Kirwan declared
when explaining his decision to run for City Council. “Our future as
a community is going to depend on how well we adapt to the 21st
Century needs of each and every one of our citizens, but especially
our youth and our seniors. We must also find more effective ways of
ensuring that there are rewarding, long-term career opportunities
for young adults in order to guarantee economic development in the
region and make this a much more desired place for people to raise
their family. With my background and experience I feel I can
contribute positively to the future of the Greater Sudbury Area as a
member of City Council where I will be able to provide the kind of
intuition that may help us make better decisions in the best
interests of our current and future citizens.”
Kirwan stated that he intends to continue to place a great deal of
emphasis on education if he is elected to City Council. “I have
gained incredible insight into the state of education during my time
as a Trustee with the Rainbow District School Board. That being
said, I feel that my
influence on the education sector can be much more effective as a
member of City Council where I can help implement policies that will
enhance the learning opportunities and experiences for children from
all school boards from elementary to post-secondary levels.”
Robert Kirwan and his wife Valerie, are life-long residents of the City
of Greater Sudbury. They moved to Valley East in 1974 and raised
three sons, Ryan, Warren and Marty. During the past 40 years he has
been heavily involved in all aspects of the community, including
positions of leadership in sports and recreational organizations;
editor of the Valley Vision, a community newspaper; and he was an
elementary school teacher for 23 of his 28 years with the Sudbury
Catholic District School Board.
Kirwan currently publishes the Valley East Today Community Web Site which
was founded in 2003; is the administrator for the Valley East
Facebook Group which has over 1300 members; and is the host of a
weekly live talk radio show, The Learning Clinic, which is broadcast
every Monday afternoon at 12 noon from Laurentian University’s CKLU
96.7 FM. He operates a private practice as a Business Development
Manager, working mainly on education-based marketing & training
programs as well as strategic planning for small businesses and
organizations.
Kirwan feels that next City Council will be all about leadership and
finding creative solutions to the many challenges facing our
community. “As a member of City Council my job will be to
aggressively advocate for the residents of Ward 5 while at the same
time being considerate of the needs of the City of Greater Sudbury
as a whole. Ward 5 is going to experience tremendous growth during
the next four years because of the new developments that have been
approved, the available space in the industrial park and our
proximity to the amenities in the Sudbury core. Council will also
need to get control of municipal taxes by eliminating waste of both
human and physical resources through increased productivity at all
organizational levels.”
“We need Council members who are able to apply creative solutions to the
issues that are put in front of us week after week.” Kirwan went on
to explain, “We need people elected to Council who are able to
debate passionately and aggressively and then make a decision to get
the job done. The 21st Century is all about making
decisions and moving forward. I am known as a person who gets the
job done and I am looking forward to working with like-minded
Councillors."
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| ADDITIONAL IMPORTANT INFORMATION |
| For information about Robert
Kirwan's career path -
Click Here |
| For information about Robert
Kirwan's formal education -
Click
Here |
| For Robert Kirwan's formal resume
effective January 2014 -
Click Here |
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| QUESTIONS & ANSWERS |
| Why did you run for Council instead of
trying for a second term as a Trustee with the Rainbow
District School Board? |
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The main reason I decided to run
for Council in Ward 5 instead of for a second term as a
Trustee with the Rainbow District School Board is because I
feel I can make more of a significant contribution to “all”
of the people living in the City of Greater Sudbury in a
role as Councillor, specifically in Ward 5, which is
arguably going to become the growth centre of the City
during the next four years.
My background and experience has
provided me with a unique perspective on how the resources
we have in the community and in the schools can be
coordinated and integrated in order to allow teachers and
parents to provide their children and youth with rewarding
learning opportunities that are outside of the traditional
classroom setting.
I was born, raised and worked my
entire life in the City of Greater Sudbury. I went to school
in the public school system. I taught for 28 years in the
separate school system. And my grandchildren attend a French
language school. The past four years as a Trustee have
convinced me that most of the major decisions about
education are taken care of by the Ministry of Education, so
local Trustees have very little influence on local policies.
But what I have found, is that the priorities, needs and
challenges facing parents and children are the same in all
school systems.
I truly believe that the two most
important influences on education today are “home” and
“community”. If I can help improve the community resources
we have available for families and if those resources help
schools become more involved with their community, then I
believe I will have made a huge contribution to the
education of all children and youth and I will have made it
much easier for parents to fulfil their responsibilities.
I also think that it is important
for residents of Ward 5 and Ward 6 to see their Councillors
working together for the benefit of both wards. I live in
Val Therese, which is right in the middle of Valley East.
This allows me to honestly declare that consider myself to
be a resident of “Valley East”, so I want both Councillors
to demonstrate that regardless of where people live, they
can count on both of us to look out for their interests. We
need to communicate and we need to work together.
Also, as Councillor for Ward 5, I
would have an opportunity to encourage the interaction and
engagement of the residents who live in the Sudbury portion
of the ward with those who live in the Valley East portion
of the ward. Ward 5 is the most centrally located Ward in
the entire City of Greater Sudbury. It has one of the most
diverse business communities; it has hundreds of building
lots already approved for housing developments; it has an
industrial park that has plenty of room for expansion; and
it contains one of the busiest intersections in the City,
making this a crossroads for so many other Wards and
sections of the City of Greater Sudbury. I want to encourage
people living in Sudbury to become involved in the
activities and events that are going on in Valley East and I
want to encourage people living in Valley East to support
the activities and businesses along the Notre Dame and
Lasalle Blvd. corridors that lay within Ward 5.
Someday there may be a Ward
boundary review and it is possible that the boundaries may
shift to exclude the Sudbury section of Ward 5. That means
that where I live right now will most likely be included in
Ward 5 because it is right on the border of the two Wards.
In the meantime, I am absolutely committed to making the
current system work and I think the best way is to do what I
can to encourage the integration of all sections of Ward 5,
both in the Sudbury segment and the Valley East segment.
This is a remarkable Ward and I can see so much being
accomplished as a member of City Council for all age groups,
especially for our children, youth and families.
CONCLUSION:
I was born in Sudbury; went to school in Sudbury; had a
career in Sudbury; raised my family in Sudbury; and want to
spend my retirement in Sudbury. So I feel it is time for me
to make a significant contribution to the future of the City
of Greater Sudbury by using my experience and perspectives
to help City Council plot a course for the future which will
allow others to enjoy the quality of life that I was blessed
with over the years. I am running for City Councillor of
Ward 5 because I think it is the right thing to do and
because I think I can help make life in this region a whole
lot more satisfying for people of all ages.
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Shouldn't a
Candidate live in the Ward in which he is running?
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I've always viewed Valley East as one community, so living
in Val Therese I have never really considered myself as
either a Ward 5 or Ward 6 person and I have always
considered Ron Dupuis and Andre Rivest to be my dual
representatives when it comes to Municipal Affairs.
As a matter of fact, there have been so many debates during
the years as to where Val Therese belonged that at some
times we were considered to be part of Val Caron because
that would have split the population of Valley East
communities in half.
When amalgamation came there was a deliberate effort to
attach the outlying communities to a "section" of Sudbury in
order to establish some sort of connection. That is why you
see Valley East and Rayside Balfour as well as Walden
divided into two Wards each. One of the Wards is completely
in the old community and one has an attachment to Sudbury.
They could have kept 12 Wards with 6 in the City and 6 in
the outlying areas, but that would have been exactly the way
it existed pre-amalgamation.
I feel as much a part of Val Caron as I do Hanmer since I
live in Val Therese which is right in the middle. Therefore,
at some point when they do another census and when the
population figures for the entire region are recalculated, I
do expect that the boundaries for Wards 5 and 6 will change
in order to reflect the population distribution. The
boundary line in Valley East is going to fluctuate in Val
Therese because that is where the middle is.
For example, there were 10,000 registered voters in Ward 6
in 2010, all from Hanmer and Val Therese. There were 6400
registered voters in the Val Caron section of Ward 5 and
another 2500 registered voters from the Sudbury section. The
difference of over 1000 voters between the existing
boundaries for Wards 5 and 6, coupled with the fact that it
is possible that the population has increased a lot with the
completion of the Dominion Parc development, means that if
the boundaries do change for the Wards, or if the
adjustments are made in the City portion to reflect the
decline in population in the City coupled with the increase
of population in the outlying areas, then it is likely that
I will end up becoming part of Ward 5 anyway because I live
right on the boundary where the division would be made.
I also expect that we may see a redistribution of Ward
boundaries which will include the 2700 registered voters
from Capreol as part of Ward 6. It makes more sense than
lumping them with the rest of Garson. If that happens, then
Val Therese will certainly be moved to Ward 5 and the
Sudbury Section will be divided up between two of the Wards
in Sudbury.
So I agree with you that a person should be part of the
community he represents, but I do feel that in the case of
Wards 5 and 6, both Councillors basically work as a team
representing the Valley and our section of Sudbury. I do
expect to receive calls from residents of Hanmer dealing
with services that are being provided to the entire
community. Also, as indicated above, the Ward boundaries are
sure to change during the next term which will move me to
Ward 5.
All I can do at this point is guarantee that I will be a
dedicated representative for Ward 5, but I will always at
the same time be speaking on behalf of the entire Valley. |
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