My name is Sonja Reyerse and I am running for re-election as a Councillor in the Village of Harrison Hot Springs. It has been an honour representing the residents of Harrison Hot Springs during the last 3 years and I hope as they look back on the work I’ve done they will see a hardworking, common sense approach that I promised three years ago, has resulted in practical and effective decisions for our Village.
I was born in Vancouver and raised in Richmond BC. I moved to Toronto in my early 20’s to work with Reuters Information Services selling financial information to brokerage houses and foreign owned banks. After nearly 10 years in Toronto I moved with my husband Robert to Amsterdam to explore our Dutch roots. It was a wonderful experience and during this time I gained an international perspective working with Time Magazine. After 8 years and 2 children we decided it was time to move back to Canada and chose Harrison Hot Springs because it was a safe and beautiful place to live, a great community to raise children and seemed like a good place to start a small business. My parents, sisters and brother had also migrated out this way so it was a natural choice!
Upon moving to Harrison Hot Springs we bought Harrison Heritage House & Cottages, a business that we have successfully operated for 15 years.
I am a big believer in the importance of community involvement. When our children enrolled in Harrison Elementary I joined the PAC and took on the role of PAC Chair which I followed with the role of PAC Chair at AESS. I was a member of the School Planning Committees at both schools for 7 years and for the past 9 years have spearheaded the AESS Grade 7 year-end fundraising. At the same time I joined the local Harrison Agassiz Chamber of Commerce and became a Director in 2003, a position I still hold. I was a Director with Tourism Harrison for 4 ½ years ending in 2011. I continue to volunteer for many events and committees.
After many years of watching Council from the sidelines I ran for election in 2011 with the objective of bringing a balanced approach that considered both residential and business issues with a fact-based common sense approach to decision making. I love Harrison Hot Springs and am seeking re-election to continue this work and ensure that Harrison Hot Springs remains a great place to live, a safe place to raise a family and a successful place to operate a business.
On November 15th I hope that I can count on your vote. Many thanks for your continued support!