Back in her competitive water skiing days, Renee McCloskey earned her wings at an early age getting hangtime as a jumper.
Her father, Prince George Sports Hall of Fame member Howard Foot, founder of the Nukko Lake Water Ski School, got her used to clearing high-speed hurdles at a young age going airborne over jumps and it did not take long for her to conquer her natural fear of flying.
McCloskey learned to think on the fly and went on to become a multi-medalist in water skiing at the B.C. Summer Games.
The discipline and persistence it takes to be a national-level athlete has served her well in her working career as a full-time promoter of Prince George and the area she’s called home all of her 55 years. This week, McCloskey is retiring from her job as manager of external relations after 16 ½ years with the Regional District of Fraser-Fort George.
McCloskey’s job as the communications lead is to inform the public about wildfires threats and the requirement to act quickly to coordinate evacuations and there’s been a noticeable uptick in the frequency and duration of those emergency situations in recent years.
“When I first started (in 2007) our emergency events would last a week - flooding and fires are what we typically see but we’ve definitely seen a change in how many fires we’re seeing and how early we’re seeing them,” McCloskey said.
“The biggest and most serious event we’ve had to deal with was the wildfire in Norman Lake in 2015. Luckily there was no injury or death, and it was the closest to impacting properties. That was the first time where you’re really starting to appreciate the fire could cause serious damage and threat it was bringing to people’s dwellings. It started over the Mother’s Day weekend and that seemed really early, now it’s not uncommon.”
McCloskey’s job delivering services to small communities in the district has allowed her to get to know the people in places like McLeod Lake, Reid Lake, Dome Creek and Crescent Spur. Since the pandemic, regional board meetings have been livestreamed, which has helped keep rural residents better informed. McCloskey also had key input in the district’s redesigned website, which is a now a prime source of information and allows the district to interact more directly with residents.
Regional districts co-ordinate emergency preparedness and disaster relief and are a conduit that binds the large sparsely-populated areas that make up much of the territory they represent in municipalities within the region and rural areas. The district provides services such as water/waste management and emergency 911/ fire protection and maintains oversight on arts and culture, parks and recreational facilities.
Established in 1965 by the B.C. government, the 27 regional districts in the province provide the political and administrative framework that gives rural residents a voice in government and the services they rely upon, providing an economy of scale that would otherwise not be available to them.
Including Prince George, Fraser-Fort George has an estimated population of 104,141 living in an area of 50,676 square kilometres. That’s 2,055 people for every square km.
The district has about 100 employees, 70 of which are based at the head office in Prince George on George Street. It also staffs the regional transfer stations and landfills and recreation centres in McBride and Valemount.
Prior to joining the regional district, McCloskey worked five years for Initiatives Prince George and served as interim film commissioner and through Events Prince George she was in charge of communications and marketing the city for sporting events and conventions.
McCloskey maintained her duties with the district while she doubled her workload taking on a position as president of the 2022 B.C. Summer Games host society.
“I’m very grateful my employer provided me some ability to take that on, I’d say the Games were without a doubt the single most rewarding volunteer task I’ve undertaken,” McCloskey said. “For me personally, I’ve had a longstanding connection to the Games, our family participated in so many Games in the ‘80’s and ‘90’s with water skiing.
“What was great about that is I love Prince George and I loved my experience with the B.C. Games, so to play a role in bringing those two together and allowing our community to shine, it was one of the first major events since COVID and it just felt really good to have celebration again right here in my hometown.”
She said city residents and Games volunteers showed their true colours and she was proud of the job they did changing attitudes that Prince George is not just a winter sports hub.
“It gave me the opportunity to get to know some pretty incredible people I knew of but hadn’t had the chance to work with and key in that was Selen Alpay (Prince George Canadian Tire store owner),” she said. “He and I became fast best friends and one of the biggest treasures for me coming out of that experience was having him in my life.”
McCloskey’s husband Bill is also retiring as IT manager for the City of Prince George. They’re not planning any life changes in the first year but are looking forward having the freedom to travel more frequently with no work schedule considerations needed. They’re planning to tour Eastern Canada in September and enjoy sunny winter holidays but have no plans to move away from Prince George. She also says she will make herself available to volunteer for future events in the city.
