Prince Albert firefighter and mental health advocate Jeff Reeder has announced his intention to seek the Saskatchewan Party nomination in Prince Albert Carlton.
Reeder has spent two decades with the Prince Albert Fire Department, and 25 years as a frontline worker in public safety. He is also the co-founder of the River Valley Resilience Retreat, a Saskatchewan-based non-profit.
Reeder said his work as a firefighter is why inspired him to seek the nomination.
“(It’s) seeing the conditions in the city and certain areas and wanting to step up and do my part to make things better,” Reeder said.
“A lot of it is surrounding mental health and addictions and working towards a solution for homelessness and working to provide some more resources to help make things better.”
Reeder’s journey in public service began at the age of 15 as a volunteer firefighter, followed by three years in Emergency Medical Services after completing high school.
The River Valley Resilience Retreat he helped found offers a tranquil space for Public Safety Personnel, Armed Forces members, Veterans, and their families, to recover from Operational Stress Injuries and Post-Traumatic Stress.
Reeder said he believes his experience in helping found the retreat will serve him well as an MLA.
“I think I have a lot of experience in that realm of dealing with the retreat and providing some resources to be able to help people overcome those obstacles and I want to be able to shift that focus and strengthening in the community and help solve some of those issues,” he said.
Previously, Reeder served as the President of the Local 510 chapter of the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) Union. Nearly half of his career was dedicated to various executive roles within the union, advocating from local communities to higher levels of government.
Reeder confirmed that he is one of the two candidates awaiting approval by the Saskatchewan Party. The nomination meeting is scheduled for Aug. 21.
“I’m working on formulating my campaign platform, so I’ll be making some more announcements here in the next few weeks,” Reeder said.
“The first step was to make it known that I am running and be trying to gather some support from the community members and hear from the community.”
In addition to his union work, Reeder is the Co-Chair and a founding member of the Sask First Responders Mental Health Committee, established in partnership with the Saskatchewan Workers’ Compensation Board.
Reeder said in a release that he aims to channel his work ethic and extensive experience into politics, pledging to diligently serve the interests of Prince Albert Carlton’s constituents.
Reeder and his wife Natalie have been married 22 years and have three teenage children.
Meghan Mayer, who withdrew after announcing her intention, was the first candidate to seek the Sask. Party’s Prince Albert Carlton nomination since former MLA Joe Hargrave announced he would not run again. Hargrave was first elected in 2016, then re-elected in 2020, and was acclaimed as the Sask. Party candidate again in November 2023.
However, in May 2024, Hargrave announced he would not seek another term, saying he had discussed the issue with his family and believed he could not commit to another four years.
Longtime nurse Carolyn Brost Strom is the NDP candidate in Prince Albert Carlton after winning a contested nomination in September 2023.
The 2024 Saskatchewan provincial election must be held on or before Oct. 28
michael.oleksyn@paherald.sk.ca
