Connecting the Dots

Lack of policy explained

Sean Holman. January 25, 2008.

Lack of policy explained

Last year, Ian Reid replaced David Perry as provincial New Democrat leader Carole James's chief of staff, leaving the post of caucus policy director vacant. But, next month, Public Eye has learned British Columbia Government and Service Employees Union staff representative Vanessa Geary will be filling the vacancy. Ms. Geary, who has been an executive assistant to union president George Heyman and Vancouver mayor Larry Campbell, was recently elected to Vision Vancouver's board of directors.
Posted by Sean Holman at 01:05 PM

*******************************************
BCGEU President announces he will not seek re-election
January 24th 2008. BCGEU.

George Heyman has announced he is not going to run again as president of BCGEU, not sure why he felt the need to issue a self-congratulatory memo to union members when he doesn't step until June, when the next BCGEU convention happens?

One might wonder if Mr. Heyman and his trusty executive assistant Anita Zaenker, former co-chair of COPE are still members of the old team, or have they traded in their memberships for Vision? They were in the thick of the split between COPE & Vision. Sounds like some things are being lined up quite neatly.

And of course, Jeff Fox, president of the BC NDP is Director of Organizing & Field Services of the BCGEU, so he would have worked with Ms. Geary when she was with BCGEU.

http://www.bcgeu.ca/Provincial_Executive

One thing that's for sure, Ms. Geary is a woman to watch and will hopefully add something entirely different and valuable to the old boys club (aka the Silverbacks), which sure needs a breath of fresh air.

What's that sound, oh it's the balls being neatly racked up and put in their proper places.

**********************************
Centre for Civic Governance. Columbia Institute.
Board of Directors, hmmm, more dots.

CREATING A SUSTAINABLE LEGACY
Forum for Progressive GovernanceHarrison Hot Springs March 25th/26th 2006
Keynote and Plenary Speakers

VANESSA GEARY has been involved in progressive locally based action for over 15 years, serving on the boards of a number of neighborhood organizations. She 'has worked directly in government at BC Housing, as the coordinator of the Tenants' Rights Action Coalition and as Executive Aassistant to Mayor Larry Campbell. Vanessa is currently Executive Assistant to George Heyman, President of the BCGEU. Vanessa has a Master's degree in planning.

**********************************
Notes on the making of a disaster
by Reed Eurchuk. The Republic of East Vancouver.
May 25 to June 7, 2006 Issue 139

Excerpt:

Power lines
Vanessa Geary’s career trajectory neatly illustrates the institutional basis sustaining the so-called “left” side of the political spectrum. Geary worked for the NGO “Tenant’s Rights Action Coalition” [TRAC]. She went from there to work in ex-mayor Larry Campbell’s office. Following Vision Vancouver’s loss of the mayor’s office, she found herself a new gig covering Anita Zanker’s maternity leave at BCGEU headquarters. From NGO to government to union headquarters, such is the path available for the professional “left.”

*****************************************
Vision seeks members
By Matthew Burrows. (December 29, 2005).
The Georgia Straight.

Before the November 19 municipal election, NPA Mayor Sam Sullivan made considerable political hay by criticizing the "undemocratic" structure of then-fledgling Vision Vancouver. At one point, Sullivan told former Vision councillor Jim Green that Green's party, mostly created out of the split with the Coalition of Progressive Electors, had been hand-picked with no membership list.
Vision Coun. Heather Deal recently told the Straight that this is rapidly changing. "We've got a very strong caucus," Deal said. "Our executive is in place and we're meeting on a regular basis. Josh Coles is president, as he was throughout the campaign. We don't currently have staff, but we have a strong group of volunteers."

Both Deal and Vision Coun. Tim Stevenson-formerly a COPE park-board commissioner and a COPE councillor, respectively-told the Straight that Vision was making a steady transition to a membership-driven party. "We've had a couple of executive board meetings since the election," Stevenson said. "We have between 500 and 700 members signed up. We're registered in Victoria, we have a board, and we'll be having an AGM like other parties do, of course."

Geoff Meggs and Vanessa Geary, both executive assistants to former mayor Larry Campbell, are on the new Vision board, according to Stevenson. The two-term councillor and former NDP MLA added that Vision has "not been able to go beyond planning" yet, due to the holiday break, but that a party "retreat" is planned for January.

Deal could not confirm that members of Vision are excluded from being members of COPE. "I don't know how that's going to work out," she said. "We are separate parties. That's going to be one of the issues that we have to work through. At this point we are very distinctly two separate entities."