Rural Polarization and Mental Health

The first of May carries a kind of weight this year. It marks the start of Mental Health Awareness Month, and with it, an opportunity to bring light to a subject that too often stays in the shadows.

This week I'll be in Edmonton, speaking at the Alberta Community Crime Prevention Association conference. My audience will be municipal leaders and enforcement officers, people who know what it means to serve their communities through hard seasons and harder conversations. The topic is one close to me, but not one often spoken aloud: rural polarization.

Over my eight years as a county councillor and deputy reeve, I saw firsthand how divisions between ratepayer groups and community leaders can grow sharp. It is not only policy that suffers when that happens, but the people. Those who step forward to serve carry the weight of that divide in their daily lives. The word government itself can turn sour, as though the folks who volunteer their names for election are somehow separate from their neighbors. Yet they are also farmers, business owners, and parents, standing shoulder to shoulder with the very people they represent.

The strain of that disconnect takes a toll. It can leave those in leadership feeling isolated, targeted, or worn down. Talking about this matters, not because it is easy, but because silence only deepens the divide.

So as May begins, I want to use this platform to both acknowledge the challenge and offer encouragement to those who serve. You are seen. You are needed. And the work you do in shaping our towns and counties is worth more than the criticism that sometimes comes with it.

To those brave enough to keep showing up, thank you. May this month be a reminder that your mental health matters too.