Wednesday, May 19, 2010

The Honorable Faith Yates Runs A Mock City Council Meeting

.
Mayor Faith Yates, a 12-year-old Grade 6 student, runs a mock council meeting Monday evening before the regular monthly meeting as Mayor Neville Greeley looks on. Faith will shadow Greeley today as mayor for a day. — Star photo by Cliff Wells

A Corner Brook youth got a taste of the mayor’s chair Monday evening, and she’s continuing her reign as mayor for a day today.

Faith Yates, a 12-year-old Grade 6 student at Immaculate Heart of Mary School presided over a mock council meeting at Corner Brook’s council chambers Monday evening.

She tapped the gavel to get the meeting underway while wearing the chain of office.

She and her six young councillors, all Grade 6 students at schools in the city, took part in a mock meeting before Mayor Neville Greeley and the Corner Brook council got down to business.

“My friends all said they wanted to sit in the mayor’s chair and put their feet up,” Faith said. “Unfortunately, I couldn’t put my feet up because I was on camera. It was fun.

“The chain was heavy. It was a bit different. I didn’t really want to put it on, but once it was on I felt special.”

She wanted to be mayor for a day so she could make sure some of the bad roads got paved, and she wants to see bike lanes around the city.

The young council consisted of Camille Thistle and John Bowles, of C.C. Loughlin Elementary School, Kristian Wheeler and Adam Critch, of St. Gerard’s Elementary School, along with Sarah Keeping and Nicole Keeping, of Immaculate Heart of Mary School.

Faith will be following the real mayor Greeley through Municipal Awareness Day today at city hall. A staff breakfast is slated for 8 a.m.

A barbecue starts at 11 a.m. with activities, displays and events continuing from there.
“There’s going to be tours of the city hall, a barbecue and I get to ride in a fire truck,” she said.

Greeley said the young mayor did a creditable job of being mayor for a meeting of a mock council.

Her essay on why she should be mayor for a day stood out. Her public speaking skills also impressed him.

“She’s got the world before her,” Greeley said. “She’s a young girl and I was just at the DARE (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) graduation Friday and she had the top essay in that, as well. She’s got a talent.”

12/05/10