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“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.<\/p>\n
“That’s all I can ask of myself – to do my best and be proud of what I’ve done.”<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
“What I’m really passionate about is the everyday person that lives in the Lockwood Ward,” she said.<\/p>\n
“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.<\/p>\n
“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.”<\/p>\n
Nicholas said she is keen to hear from people about their concerns.<\/p>\n
“The people of Lockwood Ward are some of the nicest people I’ve ever met and I want to look after them,” she said.<\/p>\n
“What do you need? What can I do?<\/p>\n
“There’s a lot of people out there with a vast wealth of knowledge that I’d like to tap into.<\/p>\n
“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.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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 […]<\/p>\n