Honouring Donald Badger after 42 years in municipal politics
At a reception held at Auberge Knowlton in TBL on Sunday afternoon, citizens, friends, and neighbours of Don Badger gathered to pay homage to the man who selflessly dedicated the better part of his life to public service. At the same time, West Bolton Mayor Jacques Drolet took the opportunity to recognize Carole Kralik, who worked alongside Badger for 22 years as an assistant and eventually director general and who retired without acknowledgement several years ago.
Introducing Badger and officiating the formal part of the reception, Drolet spoke about Badger’s commitment to the community as well as to agriculture in the region.
Sedrick Briggs offered a recognition plaque to Badger and noted that as a former councillor he was speaking on behalf of all the councillors who had served under him.
Sylvain Bolduc, retired prefect of the Brome-missisquoi MRC, regaled Badger for his honesty and integrity and dedication. “He has demonstrated that the function of a political elected is a profession that deserves respect. He has shown patience, dedication while managing employees, council, and citizens while taking on the enormity of this responsibility. His conscience to serve the citizens has been generous and with respect for all and he has the capacity to be trusted. He shared his intelligence and vision and his intellectual curiosity. He is someone who knew how to develop the municipality in accordance with its conditions. He is capable. He didn’t speak a lot but he listened and when he did speak it was with great wisdom.”
Born to a West Bolton dairy farmer, Badger’s curiosity for new farming techniques led him to Macdonald College in St. Anne de Bellevue. It’s there he met his wife Margaret and on graduation, they elected to buy a farm in Ontario after marriage. However when Badger’s father retired in 1972, he made the decision to return to it and manage it. Dairy farming eventually morphed into raising beef and he became the first
rancher in Canada to introduce Highland cattle to the agricultural landscape and improving the genetic line for others raising this specific breed.
In his final words Badger said that, “As a citizen you have two choices: you can go to a meeting to complain or you can try to get involved where you make a conscious effort to find solutions and make decisions.” He was 31 years old when he entered municipal politics in 1973 while the rest of the council members were all over 60. He knows how hard it is for young people to get involved when they have young families and careers getting off the ground. “But it is important,” he said, “because we need them to put sense to the council. Praising former councillor Lindsay Tuer for her efforts as a young councillor during a two-year period, Badger said that it is for the young people to get involved because it is their future that is being taken into consideration in this kind of governance.” He hopes that others will have the confidence that Tuer has had and step up to the challenge of commitment to the municipality.
“When former Mayor Lahue retired, I decided to give it a try. I would not be mayor would it not be for the citizens who voted me in and gave me the support all these years. For that I am thankful.”