Steven Brown will start as CAO effective Feb. 22. (submitted photo/City of North Battleford)

By Derek Cornet

Hired staff

New CAO hired for La Ronge, deputy-fire chief begins duties

Jan 28, 2021 | 12:57 PM

Two important positions have been filled for La Ronge and the tri-communities.

Effective Feb. 22, Steven Brown will be joining municipal staff as the new chief administrative officer (CAO). Brown was unanimously selected by council to fill the position as he has worked in senior management capacities for the last nine years. He mostly recently was employed in North Battleford, but also worked in Humboldt, Prince Albert, and for the provincial government.

“We had a lot of candidates who were interested in the position this time around,” La Ronge Mayor Colin Ratushniak said. “We were able to narrow it down to Steven Brown, who has a wealth of knowledge and a lot of municipal experience. We’re super excited for him to join us and he’s excited to integrate with the town, not only as a CAO, but also just be there, present and active in the community.”

HMC Management Inc., which was hired back in October 2019, will now mentor Brown for one year until he becomes fully certified. Acting-CAO Dean Yaremchuk, an HMC representative, will be leaving the role in February and the company will come up with an exit strategy.

When HMC was first hired, it was expected to cost taxpayers approximately $120,000. Ratushniak was unsure what the final cost will be, but noted the service will be free during the mentorship.

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“HMC has stuck it out even longer than they’ve had to and, even through this mentorship, there is no additional financial implications because they do want to see the success of town go through,” he said.

New deputy-fire chief arrives

There’s also a new deputy-fire chief at the La Ronge Regional Fire Department.

Matt Rexin arrived in La Ronge this week having recently retired from the Canadian Armed Forces after 16 years. He served as fire service instructor in Ontario, but has also been an inspector in British Columbia and a member of the urban search and rescue team.

Matt Rexin arrived from Ontario. (La Ronge Regional Fire Department/Facebook)

“I have never been to La Ronge before but I spoke with a lot of people from Saskatchewan who spoke very highly of the area,” Rexin said. “I have always wanted to work for a combination department. In a smaller town, it is easier to connect with the community and the firefighters are responding to calls from friends, coworkers, neighbours and family.”

As a fire service instructor, Rexin taught Canadian Air Force recruits and journeyman-level firefighters the full spectrum of firefighter training. That included structural and airport firefighting, medical response, technical rescue, auto extrication and hazardous materials.

Rexin also worked with special forces running scenarios including confined-space rescue from train cars and pipes, rope rescue down embankments, aircraft crashes and structure fires.

“I am really looking forward to being a part of this fire department as it seems like a great place to work,” he said. “I’m looking forward to getting to train and instruct again, to respond to emergencies and run fire prevention and education presentations in the community.”

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derek.cornet@jpbg.ca

Twitter: @saskjourno