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Port McNeill mayor re-elected as Vancouver Island Regional Library board chair

Port Hardy Councillor Fred Robertson was elected to serve on the nine-member executive committee
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Port McNeill Mayor Gaby Wickstrom. (Photo supplied)

The Vancouver Island Regional Library (VIRL) Board of Trustees held its Annual General Meeting on Jan. 29 and elected its officers and Executive Committee members for the year. Due to the ongoing pandemic, the AGM and elections were again held in a virtual environment.

Gabriele (Gaby) Wickstrom, mayor of Port McNeill, was re-elected as board chair. Wickstrom served as the chair in 2021, as vice chair for the two previous years, and sat on the board’s executive committee from 2012 – 2014.

“I am excited to once again lead VIRL with a dynamic team of trustees,” said Wickstrom when asked to comment. “We are looking forward to formulating our new Strategic Plan that will set the path for this library system’s future. We will continue to demonstrate tremendous leadership by advancing reconciliation with Indigenous communities, and endeavour to remain the vibrant, inclusive community spaces we are known for.”

Erin Hemmens, councillor for the City of Nanaimo, was elected as vice chair. Hemmens has been on the board since 2019 and sat on the executive committee in 2019 and 2021.

Port Hardy Councillor Fred Robertson was also elected to serve on the nine-member executive committee.


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