I grew up on a farm in Central Alberta and I have always been a conservative but not necessarily politically active – until recently. The turning point was watching my wife go through round after round of oil and gas layoffs while the industry was subjected to death by a thousand cuts.
How did we go from Ralph bucks to this?
I got a United Conservative Party membership and attended an info session in town to learn about what our constituency was submitting toward the UCP's founding policies.
I was instantly impressed with the person leading on Healthcare policy - this person was Laura. She was articulate, passionate, well-informed, and was able to take a dry piece of policy and make me care about it. Following the meeting, she took the time to speak to every person who attended to get their feedback.
As I’ve come to know her, I have learned that Laura is not only an effective speaker and policy developer, she is also a nurse, a mother, a wife to an Afghanistan war veteran, a bookkeeper for a small business, and a volunteer in our community. She is incredibly hard working.
When I heard Laura would be running for the UCP nomination in Airdrie-Cochrane, my immediate reaction was "she is the best voice for us in Edmonton.” It’s so important at this point to choose representatives who are real folks, who understand and have experienced what everyday Albertans are trying hard to navigate right now.
Laura has had to navigate these same challenges. Her husband joined the oil and gas industry after retiring from the military and was affected by the downturn. Her parents are small business owners affected by the layers of challenges entrepreneurs are dealing with. She has seen firsthand how big government negatively impacts our healthcare system.
Not only does she support the critical changes that need to happen at the provincial level – like repealing the carbon tax, fixing the education curriculum, making major improvements to our healthcare system – Laura comes from a family of service (nursing and military) and will be the best advocate for our corner of the province.
Laura Talsma is a true conservative and believes in unity as our strength. Please consider her at the top of your ballot as we vote for our UCP candidate on Oct.18 and 20.
Tom Burns
