It is the right time.  It is the right season.  It is right now.
A new year dawns at this time for everyone in the whole wide world.  A new era dawns for the City of Victoria.  As such, this newspaper cannot step forward gracefully until it recognizes gratefully the exceptional leader in this past eight-year era in the City of Victoria. 
That leader is Mary Meuwissen, who was elected Mayor of Victoria in a landslide victory in November of 1994 and who went on to serve the people of Victoria in more than a full-time capacity through December of 2002, a total of four elections, four terms. 
At various times during her reign, she wore the hats of City Administrator, City Planner, City Finance Director, City Architect, City Attorney, Public Works Director, and especially All Project Manager.  Calling Mary a "Hands On Mayor" would be an understatement.  That she often put in more than 40 hours a week for the people of Victoria, in a mainly non-salaried position, would also be an understatement.  That she redefined the definition of Public Servant is backed up by her record of service.
One almost sensed from the begin-ning that this time for Victoria would be noteworthy and remarkable.  When she first arrived on the public scene, Mary was a young wife and mother who happened to have recently been on the U.S. Ski Team.  Shortly before her first election to office in Victoria, she had donated one of her kidneys to a friend, thereby giving up professional skiing and a shot at the Olympics.   Indeed, the people of Victoria also received part of her life.
Many councilmembers and mayors have come and gone in the City of Victoria in the past 30 years, which is the length of time this editor has resided in the city.  Only in these past eight years, under the tenure of Mayor Mary, has the city purchased substantial property to plan and prepare for its future.  Only in these past eight years, under the tenure of Mayor Mary, have Victoria businesses started to expand and open instead of close doors.  Only in these past eight years, under the tenure of Mayor Mary, has the city become emboldened to blaze ahead in a world where it was being left behind.
In the front years of this eight-year era, Mayor Mary referred to her num-erous volunteer hours for the city as a "free education" for herself.  In latter years of this era, she dropped the word "free" from the description; the education was not free, for it stole precious days and years from her growing children.  It stole time from old friends.  It stole time and resources from the business of building homes with her husband Michael.  It stole the peacefulness of a private life.  Work-ing as a public servant was an education, but it was not free.
How does one begin to give recogni-tion to such a broad and successful ten-ure?  A plaque presented to her from the Victoria Chamber of Commerce this past December, 2002, perhaps says it well:  "The Victoria Chamber of Commerce recognizes and appreciates Mary Meuwis-sen for her dedicated energy, inspiring devotion, and extraordinary successes while serving eight consecutive years as Mayor of Victoria.  With admiration and high regard, we sincerely acknowledge and express deepest gratitude and contin-ued best wishes in all the years that lie ahead to Mayor Mary who worked tirelessly on behalf of the people of Victoria."
At this time the Gazette could do a feature on the many construction projects, both public and private, that Mayor Mary and her various councils spearheaded, prodded, managed, honed, constructed, or approved, such as ...
*The $160,000 Church Ballfield Purchase
*The $1.2 million Diethelm Parkland.
*The $23 million Holy Family High School.
*The Victoria hookup to Shorewood water
*The $.5 million 500,000 gal. water tower
*The $40,000 Acorn House remodel.
*The $70,000 Renovation of Hall/Offices
*The $6 million Victoria Field House
*The $1 million Stieger Lake Bridge
*The $ 1 million Diethelm Park civil work

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