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Alberni election: Cole is next generaton of Alberni leader

Rob Cole, 39, is running for one of six council seats on Port Alberni city council.

There’s a time to talk about doing and a time to stop talking and start doing, and that time has come, city council candidates Rob Cole said.

Cole, 39, a married father of four who has lived in Port Alberni since birth is running for one of six seats on city council.

He grew up active in sports and graduated from high school in 1990.

While many of his peers moved away to make a life Cole stayed in the Alberni Valley. He worked for the family’s marine business for 18 years before opening his own small business, which he’s run for three years.

“My university was working in a Valley business,” he said.

Cole has been involved in a series of community initiatives including the water ski club, Alberni adventure tourism, and the 20-20 Focus Group.

He also coached hockey teams for nine years and has served on the Alberni Valley Minor Hockey executive for two years.

No one thing made Cole want to run he said. Rather, in July, he felt he was at a stage in life where he wanted to do more for the community.

“I think that there’s a sense out there that people want some new blood and new ideas,” Cole said. “I don’t have a pre-set agenda, I just want to contribute the best I can.”

One thing Cole said he wants to promote is better educational and job opportunities for Valley youth.

“Young people should have the option of staying here and getting a job,” he said.

The son of sportfishing advocate Bob Cole, the younger scion discussed his decision to run with both his wife and father. “We weighed the pros and cons and he’s supportive,” Rob said of his father.

In choosing Cole, voters are choosing the next generation of adults who will lead them. “I strongly believe that you can’t be a background complainer, that you have to step up and help,” he said.

reporter@albernivalleynews.com