Jerry Friesen believes everyone is called to serve in different capacities. It's the reason he's running for Winkler City Council this fall.

"This is going to be outside my comfort zone," he says, but adds a strong council is crucial for a healthy community."

The mandate the citizens, your friends and neighbours, give you is to uphold what is best for our community. That's the bottom line."

Now that he's retired, Friesen says he feels he can give back in this way.

One of his passions is seeing Winkler continue to be known as one of the most beautiful cities in Manitoba, praising the Winkler Horticulture Society for their constant care for the community's many flower beds and planters.

Overall, he's impressed with the number of on-going projects the city has undertaken and would like to see them through including sidewalk improvements and the four-laning of PTH 32. If elected, Friesen says another priority would be opening a second splash park outside of the Winkler Aquatic Centre. "I think that would be great for the city to have."

Friesen joins eight others running for six council seats, including incumbents Michael Grenier, Marvin Plett, Henry Siemens, Andrew Froese and Don Fehr. The challengers are Karina Bueckert, Don Cruickshank and Zahid Zehri. Current Mayor Martin Harder has been elected by acclamation.