Blagen receives honour from AUMA
By Joan Janzen
joanjanzen@yahoo.com
Robert Blagen, Mayor of the Village of Youngstown, is the recipient of an Alberta Urban Municipalities Association (AUMA) Distinguished Service Award, to be presented at their annual convention on November 18th. Each year outstanding municipal professionals from across Alberta are recognized for their dedication and commitment to excellence. Mayor Blagen is one of twenty-one individuals to receive an award for twenty or more years of service on municipal council, and he has served well over twenty years.
Mayor Blagen has held that position for the past twenty-three years and was a councillor for twenty-three years before that. “Every four years, they keep voting me back in. If I finish off this four-year term, I’ll have put in 50 years,” Mayor Blagen said. “I don’t know if that’s a record or not, but it must be getting close.”
At 83 years of age, Mayor Blagen keeps on stepping up to the plate. “In these little towns, nobody wants the job. Little towns are getting tougher to get anybody out to go on council. I got a plaque at twenty years. My CEO, Emma Garlock, nominated me again.”
The awards signify how municipal leaders can work together to build strong Alberta communities. Youngstown is one of those communities, with a population of 154 and a Kindergarten - Grade 12 school, with students bussed in from the local area. It’s predominately a farming and ranching community, with the addition of some oil and gas activity.
“Things have changed a lot over the years,” Mayor Blagen said. “The mayor’s job used to include everything from cleaning out sewer pumps to digging out a water break. We used to do a lot of the work ourselves, but now you have to have it done professionally. Now the CEO looks after everything, and the town employees do the work around town.”
The mayor and two councillors conduct a council meeting once a month, and special meetings as required. It looks like Mayor Blagen will continue to diligently serve the community of Youngstown. Congratulations on your award!
