The Mayor 2011/12
The Mayor of Okehampton for 2011/12, is Councillor Maureen McDonald.
For anyone, being asked to serve as Mayor of Okehampton is a huge honour and privilege; this is particularly true in my case as I have only lived in the town for ten years, having been brought up in Southampton and having spent my working years from 1978 onwards living in Plymouth and teaching mathematics at Tavistock College. I know that many residents of the town give their time and energy freely to supporting the town through its wide variety of charitable and social groups, and I look forward to meeting as many of you as time will allow.
I decided to relocate to Okehampton because of its stunning location in the heart of Devon and its excellent position as a base for my new job which involved travelling to schools throughout the county. Its closeness to the Dartmoor National Park with its wonderful opportunities for walking in wild country was an added bonus. I have become very fond of the town, whose fantastic shops, parks and leisure facilities and friendly local businesses are second to none.
I moved to Okehampton at the height of the foot and mouth epidemic in 2001 and I am impressed by the determination of local farmers and associated businesses in recovering from that crisis through hard work and diversification to rebuild their lives literally from the ashes
Since then, the town has been hit by the effects of the current economic downturn, but residents, local business and the Town Council have refused to be beaten down. We must all look on the positive side and adapt to the circumstances we find ourselves in so that we can survive to fight another day.
I have experienced hardship and poverty myself as a child in the years after the Second World War, when food rationing and fuel shortages made everyday life very hard. My father was often out of work through no fault of his own, but my mother always made sure we were fed and clothed. We certainly didn’t have many of the luxuries available today, and my mother instilled into me her own philosophy that “if you can’t afford it, you can’t have it”.
I hope that we can all work together with the appropriate agencies to achieve the improvements we want to see in our town and that we can present a united front to everyone to prove that when we use the words “Opportunity Okehampton” and “Okehampton Works” we really mean what we say.
Cllr Maureen McDonald Mayor of Okehampton