When Jennifer Hodel decided to quit her job as Mannville CAO and come to Daysland at the start of 2025 to take on the role of Assistant CAO under Jodi Quickstad, it really was a roll of the dice.
She’d worked with Quickstad before, from July 2018 to August 2022, where she was also Assistant CAO, moving to take on the CAO position after Quickstad came to Daysland.
Prior to Mannville, she worked in Innisfree as CAO for 6.5 years.
“I rolled the dice coming to Daysland. I knew that Jodi was planning on retiring, and I took the opportunity as Assistant CAO to prove myself to Council.”
She adds, “But talking to Jodi and hearing what he had to say about this community, and its people and council made it seem like a worthwhile chance.”
Hodel says she was super impressed with Daysland and with Council as soon as she arrived, “They were really wonderful, very welcoming. And I was very impressed with the level of volunteerism and community spirit in Daysland, which came to the fore very quickly.
“That’s so great to see, and it’s also great to see the town collaborate so well with all the volunteer groups here.”
Hodel says she’s been very fortunate through her career to work with some wonderful people, and councils, including Quickstad. She says, “We’re very lucky in Flagstaff to have some very experienced administration… there’s a lot of experience here.”
Hodel says peer support, like that through the Flagstaff CAO group, is extremely important. It’s one of the reasons she had stayed in touch with Quickstad over the years.
At present Hodel and her husband are living in Innisfree, but she’s thinking about looking for accommodation in Daysland for the winter.
She says the move to Daysland was helped in part because of the hospital, as well as the close proximity to a larger urban centre, Camrose.
She’s impressed with all the amenities in the community, like the golf course, Palace Theatre/DaysArts, Providence Place, as well as a strong business association, arena association, and Ag Society.
Hodel says Daysland and Mannville are almost identical in size, and very similar in term of operating budgets.
She adds, “Daysland is in really great shape, there has been some very steady hands at the helm. The town is very well situated to move forward and prosper.”
She says this summer’s capital projects are bringing some improvements to the business district, including sidewalk projects and curb stop replacements, which are presently going on. Other projects include dust control, manhole repair, fencing the reservoir.
Hodel says the town has also recently purchased a new bench for out at the cemetery, and completed some drainage and intersection repairs.
As well, the paving of the walking path around the area of the fully stocked trout pond has also recently been completed. “The walking path is very well used, and it’s now even safer and smoother.”
Hodel says it was bittersweet to leave Mannville, but adds that the staff in Daysland, and Daysland Council, have been “great, lovely, and very welcoming and kind.”
She is proud of some accomplishments in Mannville completed while she was CAO, including paving some busy roads and some golf course improvements. “We had succession planning in place there, and I know I left it in good hands.”
She’s also a certified Director of Emergency Management in Alberta, something she says was very well received by Daysland Council.
Quickstad retired at the end of April, and Council awarded the position of CAO to Hodel at that time.
At the first weekly barbeque of the season, the town held a small going-away celebration for Quickstad and an introduction of Hodel as the town’s new CAO.
“I’m committed to work with Council, community groups, and residents.
“All of us together can improve Daysland and make it a welcoming community.”
She says Quickstad has embraced his musical side, and has been playing at various events since his retirement.
Leslie Cholowsky
Editor
