After four terms as a Blind River councillor, HP Roy made a heartfelt farewell to the council position he has held for 16 years.
The councillor decided not to seek a fifth term for the upcoming Oct. 24 election on Monday.
“As most of you know, I’ve taken a job out of town, so I’m not able to be a good councillor, being able to do the job properly otherwise I’d be here for 20 enough to make it a nice round number,” he quipped. “I really enjoyed my time on council.”
“I was asked just recently if there was a high point, and the answer is no. Every day was a new challenge or disappointment.”
He said the job at times is a “thankless job,” but he “enjoyed it.”
The councillor, during his term, also sat on a number of committees and took part in many events and saw the town move ahead with improvements to a number of services and buildings.
During his term, he saw the town have two clerks, two deputy clerks, three mayors and “multiple councillors who I enjoyed working with.”
“I thought I’d take this and do it for one term and get the heck out of here before people figured out I didn’t know what I was doing,” he said of his initial election win. “Here I am for four terms later, and I guess people thought about what I was doing and elected me for four terms.”
He wished the upcoming council the “best of luck.”
Mayor Sally Hagman wished him the best and acknowledged his long service to applause by the council.