You would think the fact the man set himself on fire would be the most notable thing about him, but with Coun. Peter Kent, that is not necessarily the case.
While the stuntman’s burst into flames to fulfil a campaign promise — if voter turnout increased for the 2014 municipal election, he would perform the stunt — did make international headlines, he is also known for other associations. He was Arnold Schwarzenegger’s stuntman for 13-years and owns the popular Vancouver-based stunt school, Peter Kent’s School of Hard Knocks.
Undoubtedly, Kent made a splash in Squamish since he arrived in the district 12 years ago.
But after his first term on council, Kent and his family have made the decision that not only will he not seek re-election this fall, but the family is moving away from the town they have come to love. Peter and his wife Marcia — herself a force to be reckoned with who is involved in Squamish Minor Hockey, Squamish Hospice Society and their twin sons’ school — shared the news with The Chief.
What follows is an edited version of our email conversation.
Q: You have told us you won't be running for Squamish council again. What factors led to that decision?
A: PETER: The main factor is for family and being closer to our extended family on Vancouver Island. Marcia and I both spent a great deal of time in our youth growing up on the island and to be closer to family for our boys, is something we’ve truly been missing.
Q: This was your first time as an elected official, was it what you expected?
A: PETER: Yes and no. I think if I could offer any advice to someone coming out to this for the first time, it is: don't expect to change the world overnight. Not to sound jaded, but there are regulatory and legislative policies that take time to work with and work around. Local government is still a fairly complex machine, there's the political side and then there's also the running of a multimillion dollar corporation whose money is not your own.
Q: What do you think your biggest contribution to council has been?
A: PETER: I don't know if I have one "singular greatest contribution” as the DOS is an incredible team of people who deserve most of the credit, but I'd like to think I was a good team player and tried to see every issue objectively and judge whether it was in the best interest of the community.
Q: You ran wanting to stop Woodfibre LNG, how do you feel now that it looks to be going ahead?
A: PETER: Saying that it's "going ahead” I think is putting the cart before the horse still. There are so many moving parts in play here, federally, provincially, locally and internationally still to be determined. However, I ‘d like to think I did my part in pushing back as people elected me to do. I will always believe this to be something that doesn’t fit for Squamish.
Q: PETER: Any advice for those who will run for council this time?
A: Start your campaign early. Be professional on social media. Get creative. Come out to some council meetings and sit in the crowd so you can see how it works. Signs are overrated; consider running a “greener” campaign without them. Be a team player. Have a good understanding of our community and involvement. If you are thinking of running and would like to have coffee and discuss anything, please give me a call and I will share whatever pearls of wisdom I may have.
P.S. Maybe don’t do any fire stunts in your campaign, leave that up to the stunt professionals.
Q: What are you thoughts on Peter not running again?
A: MARCIA: I’m proud of him. Change is always good. He’s given his heart and soul to our community these past few years and I know that he will continue to give so much, no matter where we are. We’ve lived in Squamish for 13 years now and I’ve been able to see firsthand behind the scenes his dedication towards our community, both before council and during council years. He’s a powerhouse and I’m sure this isn’t the end of the road for politics for him.
Q: What is next — when do you leave and where are you headed? What will you both do there?
A: PETER: We are aiming to move by the end of the summer to the Parksville/Qualicum Beach area. We’d like for our boys to finish the school year here and hopefully be able to be settled in time for the new school year. Marcia is a nurse, so luckily is very flexible with wherever we go for her work. I am still able to do my Film/TV work on the Lower Mainland and the island. I hope that the community understands this transition for the sake of my family and knows that I will continue to give everything I have till our time is up here.
Q: What do your boys think of these plans?
A: PETER: Luckily their roots are young enough to make this transition easier. We’ve been preparing them for quite some time but I know that they will miss their friends and sports teams here greatly.
Q: Marcia, you have been very active in both the school PAC and with minor hockey, what would you like to say about your feelings leaving Squamish in terms of theseorganizations?
A: MARCIA: It’s bittersweet. I’m looking forward to new challenges but I find it hard to fight back the tears when I think of moving on from things like PAC, SMHA, and Hospice. It’s been hard to juggle all of these commitments this past year while working full time. Some of them I’ve been able to dedicate myself to better than others; however, the relationships formed throughout all these groups I will cherish forever. Working at Squamish Hospital for over 10 years, the staff is like family to me and it’s hard to leave a community I’ve been looking after for all these years.
Q: Any parting words?
A: PETER: I ran my campaign on transparency and I hope that I am continuing with that transparency by opening up to the community our personal plans to move later this year. This is not goodbye yet, but just a way to communicate the reasons as to why I won’t be running again this fall in Squamish.
[Video by Tracker Productions]
