ST. PAUL – The County of St. Paul is bidding farewell to one of its longest-serving staff members, Tim Mahdiuk, who has served the municipality for 35 years – starting his employment in 1988.
For five of those 35 years, Mahdiuk has been serving as the Director of Community Services.
“[I feel] excited,” said Mahdiuk as his eyes crinkled at the corners with a smile. And, “It’s not that I wasn’t enjoying what I was doing.”
“I still enjoy what I do,” working with others to serve the public, he said. But now 62 years old, Mahdiuk wishes “to accomplish something different” while he’s still healthy and physically capable – like travelling and seeing more of the world.
He recalled a former colleague telling him not to wait for too long if he wanted to do something different, “because that window tends to close quite quickly.” In addition to wanting to look after himself and focus on living a healthy lifestyle, “I want to spend more time with family,” he added.
Looking back, Mahdiuk’s roles included being responsible for Public Works payroll when he first started, then transitioning to becoming a main accountant for the County. He also worked as an assistant CAO for some time.
Then in 2016, he was appointed the Director of Community Services, “which was a different role for me because it got me out from behind the desk and got me involved with the public a little more.”
Reflecting on his time as the director, “[it] exposed me to different departments,” like local fire departments, waste management, agricultural services, and running the County’s four community parks “which was a passion of mine.”
Serving the public is both rewarding and challenging, according to Mahdiuk. There are times when requests from the public are denied for various reasons and “you have to make people understand that.”
But, he was keen to work with people and find solutions to problems.
It’s satisfying, he said, when he could go home and think to himself, “I helped that person today.”
Mahdiuk officially retired from the County on March 31. He thanked the public, all his colleagues, former and current elected officials, as well as the mentors he has worked with – “thank you all.”
Jason Storch
With Mahdiuk’s departure comes the arrival of a new Director of Community Services – Jason Storch.
“I’m excited to be here,” said Storch. “I started [working in a] municipal government in a rural setting, and I’m very happy to be back in a rural setting again.”
Storch’s familiarity with public service within a rural setting is both personal and professional, having grown up on a mixed-grain and cattle farm in Hanna, Alta.
His experiences include working from 2007 to 2019 as the Manager of Agricultural Services for Cypress County, located in southern Alberta. He was involved with a myriad of responsibilities in addition to agricultural services, including disaster management and communications.
Then he served for about three years in the City of Medicine Hat as a Landfill Superintendent until March, 2022. Prior to coming to St. Paul, he also worked as the Planning and Operations Director at the Town of Redcliff.
“So, I’ve done urban and rural, and I hope [that] I have a fairly rounded background in municipal government,” said Storch.
He looks forward to the challenges that come along the new position, “and I realize that I have big shoes to fill with Tim leaving and him having such extensive knowledge of the programs and the layout of the County of St. Paul.”
“I certainly hope that I can live up to the expectations and do a good job for this region,” he said.
According to Storch, throughout his time with Cypress County, having been involved in various provincial committees and conferences, the County of St. Paul staff he encountered “were always well-respected.” This respect was among his inspirations to apply when the opportunity to work in St. Paul came up.
“Additionally, my wife’s family is from the Bonnyville area, so this is a little bit coming closer to home too,” he said, explaining that over the years, his family has driven through the St. Paul region, “and it seemed like a very nice place to live.”
As the new director, Storch believes the key to the success of any organization is building respect and a working relationship with County council and staff.
He also acknowledges the responsibilities that come with the position, as well as the challenges facing every municipality “with the rising costs of doing business and a limited tax base,” for example, “and helping the County work through that.”
“I believe that municipal government is one of the most important levels of government,” as it impacts the life of every resident every day, explained to Storch. “If you get into the higher levels of government, that [close connection with residents] might not be there.”
“I hope that I am someone that the [municipality, and] the residents... would view as being one of those good people to help navigate these times.”
