All Candidates Forum:
Meet The Candidates

My name is Deanna Palmgren.  I have lived in Merritt for 6 years, moving here from Williams Lake.  I am married to my husband Alan and we have 2 grown children, Jennifer and Ryan. 

My 35+ years of work history mainly consists Office Administration in Dental, Chiropractic and Medical Office Reception and Management.  The favorite thing about my career has been that I get to work with people. 

My time in Merritt has mostly been spent as a Licensed Property Manager with Merritt Property Management Ltd.  Once again, my favorite thing is working with people. I have become quite passionate regarding the need for housing in our community. 

I became involved with Nicola Valley Food Bank Society approximately 3 year ago.  It has become very aware to me that not only is housing important, but food security as well!  It has given me great pride to not only be a volunteer, but to be President/Chairperson in a Society that assists to provide the needs of people that humbly reach out and “ask for help”. 

My name is Paul Petroczi. I am a candidate for the position of City Councillor. I am 55 years old, married to Cindy. We have called Merritt home for the past 10 years. Merritt is our retirement community. We have 3 grown children and 6 grand children. I retired from the RCMP 5 years ago. 

People in Merritt have come to know me as the friendly face at the local Canadian Tire Store over the last 5 years. Prior to that working as RCMP Constable working out of the Merritt RCMP Detachment. I continue to work at Canadian Tire, warehousing/maintenance. I am also employed by Commissionaires B.C. as an on call guard. I volunteered with the Salmon Arm Fire Department/Search and Rescue for approximately 5 years. 

I have always been guided by my core values, Integrity, Honesty, Professionalism, Compassion, and Respect. As City Councillor, I will continue to be guided by these values.  Thank you, Paul Petroczi 

Office Manager

Hi everyone, my name is Brian Peterson and I have lived in Merritt since early elementary school days. After graduating Merritt Secondary, I became a Red Seal tradesman, and have been a part of many projects throughout the Nicola Valley. I’ve always been so proud to tell folks that I live and work in Merritt; the small town with big potential.

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I love the community atmosphere in Merritt; people know one another by name and are always willing to lend a helping hand. Yet, we have a growing number of skilled, hard-working Merritonians are feeling squeezed out of the community because of high cost of housing and soaring rent fees, due to lack of options. It would be a terrible shame to loose the talent and skill that these folks offer our fine city; they are the backbone of this community.

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I dream about affordable housing, seeing our downtown core revitalized and incentives given to encourage business development in the heart of our town. And I believe it is possible to achieve this without losing the incredible sense of community that makes Merritt a wonderful place to live.

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Our city’s moto is “Flourishing Under the Sun”. I look forward to finding out what we can do together in seeing Merritt live up to this moto – its time to flourish!

Product Manager

Hi my name is Normajean Littleton. I am an artist musician and an author. I studied counselling for seven years and became a counsellor for the Anglican church working under the license of Bishop John Hannon.

For 20 years I’ve worked for school district 57 as a music teacher and a substitute. I am a wife mother of three and a grandmother of 10. My husband and I also fostered for 16 years.

I’ve been involved with my community for long as I can remember. One of the projects I was able to institute in the brand new community of Mackenzie was the Tuesday morning group. Many of our young mothers who were enduring the long cold winters for example suffered from loneliness and depression and this group was set up to not only provide a social forum for them to meet one another there but they were introduced to the different night school courses being offered by professional teachers. In addition I personally offered and taught Swedish exercise classes. The Tuesday morning to gathering made a difference for many people.

In the community I also sat on a committee that developed children’s parks and I organized and directed major plays for a few years.

Manuel Olguin is originally from Mexico City where he received his bachelor’s degree in Business Administration. From 2011 to 2021 Manuel was the Business Development Officer for Community Futures Nicola Valley. Since 2021, Manuel has been the rural business advisor for the Community Futures Entrepreneurs with Disabilities Program. He provides customized business training and counselling services to entrepreneurs dealing with a disability or a chronic health condition across British Columbia.

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Manuel is a strong advocate of entrepreneurialism and small business. In 2015, Manuel served as a director with the Merritt & District Chamber of Commerce. Manuel has been actively volunteering at Junior Achievement Canada delivering numerous classes to elementary and high school students. Manuel has lived in Merritt; B.C. for the past 12 years raising his family and would enjoy the opportunity to serve as city councillor. He recognizes gaps amongst residents and the city and would like to work on bridging and closing these gaps for the betterment of the City of Merritt. He truly believes that the key component of these elections is to vote for the right team who can represent the common interests of Merritonians as stated by his campaign slogan, “working together, for change”.

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I am a Mother and Grandmother. I grew up in Abbotsford, BC and competed for Canada internationally in track and field. I moved to Merritt in 1974 where I taught in both elementary and secondary schools for a total of 29 years. My hobbies and activities include biking, travelling, knitting and raising my back yard chickens.

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Professionally I have a reasonable understanding of how large organizations work. I firmly believe in team work and prioritizing the needs of our community as well as its well being.

A summary of my platform is:

-aggressively encourage industry who have competitive wages

-implement the best flood mitigation programme possible

-be transparent and ensure neighbourhood involvement with impact decisions made

by council

-have a council that is fiscally responsible and accountable to the citizens of Merritt

-promote a healthy community

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My name is Michael Behrens and I'd be pleased to serve the community I've loved for thirty years as one of the six elected Councilors for the next term.

I had been the editorial cartoonist for the Merritt News for the first three years of its existence, been involved in business in several capacities and had been serving our community Sunday mornings from the SDA Outreach for several years until last fall.

Old school values and new school innovative solutions are my platform. 

We all need positive change to help us through the life altering challenges our community has experienced over the last several years. 

Thank you. 

My name is Mary Fleury and I'm running for Council.

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I have a varied background which includes caring for thoroughbreds at the Calgary Stampede for a couple of years, running the kitchen at a diner which catered to tour buses and serving the Merritt and Nicola Valley community via the Merritt SDA Outreach for several years.

I am a mother of three and grandmother of six.

I would love to be helping our community heal and grow as we rebuild our city and valley from the devastating effects of flooding and economic downturn.

Thank you for your early vote on October 5th.