Lockwood councillor focused on ‘everyday person’

LOCKWOOD South’s Donna Nicholas is the new councillor for the City of Greater Bendigo’s Lockwood Ward.

When her predecessor John McIlrath resigned without warning at a council meeting in November last year, she said she couldn’t get it off her mind for days.

“It’s all I thought about and I was the first one to put my hat in the ring,” she said.

“Right from the beginning, it felt like this is where I’m meant to be.”

Nicholas said the crux of her motivation to nominate for council was a tendency to be involved and help out.

“Honestly, there were things that were being decided by the council that I didn’t agree with,” she said.

“I thought rather than be on the sidelines and query their decisions, why not try and get a seat at the table?

“I wanted to get in there and be able to vote on things that matter.

“To make change, you’ve got to put yourself in a position to be able to do it, and that’s why I did it.”

Once her nomination was tabled, there was no going back for the former catering business owner.

“I put in 100 per cent and so did the people that helped me, including my husband

Drew,” she said.

“We worked on it tirelessly.

“I thought, I will not regret it if I don’t get in because I’ve given it my best, I’ve worked really hard, I’ve stepped right out of my comfort zone, time and time again.

“That’s all I can ask of myself – to do my best and be proud of what I’ve done.”

Looking ahead, which in the short-term involves Nicholas taking her oath of office and going through the official councillor induction process, it will be all go from there.

“What I’m really passionate about is the everyday person that lives in the Lockwood Ward,” she said.

“I’ve always said I’m not about the big ticket items in Bendigo – I’m interested in the people who have a broken footpath, a council tree that’s blocking their solar panels, or can’t get their rubbish collected.

“All those types of things really matter to people, because they’re the ones that are paying the rates, but are maybe not being given the attention they deserve.”

Nicholas said she is keen to hear from people about their concerns.

“The people of Lockwood Ward are some of the nicest people I’ve ever met and I want to look after them,” she said.

“What do you need? What can I do?

“There’s a lot of people out there with a vast wealth of knowledge that I’d like to tap into.

“I’ll be getting around in the community as well – if I’m wearing my pink shirt, it means I want you to come and talk to me.”