OUTLOOK - Whittney Greig finds herself helping a lot of people in her position with the Town of Outlook.
In short: wherever her services are needed, that's where you're likely to find the town's recreation & community administrative assistant.
With such a wordy title, it goes without saying that Greig can sometimes wear a lot of hats with such a position, which is only about a year and a half old.
"It's relatively new with the town," said Whittney, chatting with The Outlook. "It's an interesting role, and I really go where I'm needed, like with Megan (Anthony, Outlook's director of community development) to help her out, or I'll help Owen (Redlick, recreation facilities manager) out where he needs me, and then any of the office ladies, as well. The position started in September of 2022."
Greig's former career background saw her put in over a decade with the local health care sector. She said that she never saw herself as someone who would pursue a job in the municipal field, but one of Whittney's passions is recreation and being able to provide such an outlet for others.
"I was working at the health centre as the recreation coordinator," she said. "I was there for around 14 years. I'd never thought of myself as someone working for a municipality, but I like the recreation aspect because I was a care aid for 12 years, and then I became the recreation coordinator, and I just enjoyed that recreation part of it all. Which is funny because I'm not one to do sports or anything like that! But I do like providing for people and being able to help them out where I can."
Unlike most previous interview subjects who answered this reporter's question of what a typical day might be like by stating that most days were different from each other, Greig's day-to-day activities can run pretty much the same, with her checking in with others and updating public information in order to keep the people of Outlook and area informed of what's going on and what's being offered.
"For the most part, it's pretty much the same," she said. "I'll come in and check on the website, as I'm the main person for the website, and I also update social media and the events calendar. I'm kind of like the middle-man in keeping the public informed of what's going on."
Of course, in working such a job, it can be difficult to please everyone with the activities or events offered, or even with the finer details such as when or where those things are offered. Greig says it's impossible to please everyone across the board, but it's about finding that middle ground and listening to what people have to say in order to come to a satisfactory end result.
"Pleasing everybody would be one," she said. "I like to joke that when I was the rec coordinator, I only had to please and satisfy 45 senior residents, and now I have a whole community to please. So it's quite the jump, and it can be hard because not everybody likes the same thing. So then I'm trying to hear feedback on what everyone likes. For example, last year when I first started, pickleball; certain people didn't like it at the OES gym and wanted a bigger space, and then it became the times that were chosen. You can't please everyone that way, but trying to hear feedback and trying to please the majority and finding out what works for them, listening to what they all have to say."
For someone who says she doesn't have any sort of background in sports, Whittney says she loves what the recreation side of her job can bring. Exploring what Outlook can offer people and finding those hidden gems that make one pause are among the benefits of the job, she says.
"I love it all," said Greig. "For one who wasn't involved in sports or anything like that, recreation is fun. We are moving more into community development, so Megan is kind of that in-between of 'rec director' and 'community development' right now, and I'm kind of in the middle with recreation and community development. So, I have a lot to learn when it comes to community development, but the recreation part has been really fun. Being able to explore options of what everyone likes has been cool, and there's things I never knew with this job where I'll go, 'Oh, this is cool! We had this? What?!?' And I love the staff here, and how we all work to help each other out. The atmosphere here is just amazing."
Jumping from the health care field to a municipality career changed Whittney's perspective on the community of Outlook, opening her eyes more to the people of all ages who call the riverside community home.
"Yes, absolutely!" she said with a laugh. "I worked with seniors, so I guess that kind of stays the same as there are seniors all over town, but we're talking older people who are more active in their lives, and I was working at the time with seniors who needed total care. Health care and municipality work are totally different, but I like challenges and trying new things. I didn't think that I would after 14 years of working at the home!"
As could be expected with such a job, it's the work being done behind the scenes in order for events or planned activities to go off without a hitch that people in the community may be in the dark about, according to Greig. What the public sees is the end result of what could be days or even weeks of planning.
"Probably with any job, it's the behind the scenes work," she said. "Everyone sees what the outcome of anything is, so with my job, people will see that there's an event going on but they don't know what it takes or the steps to get there; how we start planning and organizing. It's all laid out for the public, but we have to do the back work for it, like contacting people and getting times and dates, or seeing if I can bring speakers in or anything like that."
Going from a job in health care where she helped take care of the recreational needs of between 40-50 residents to entering her current job and doing so now for the 2300+ people who call Outlook home has been eye-opening for Greig. That being said, it's something that she at least has prior experience in doing.
"Yeah, it has," she said. "It's a lot more work, but being rec coordinator at my old job, I got to experience the backend of everything a lot more, so I kind of knew there was some of the same roles and responsibilities behind the scenes and how to get things going. It's just different and unique that it's more community-based and not just a group of 45 people. It's a whole other level."
For Whittney, the town of Outlook stands out as a place where you can trust the neighbors around you. The former resident of Kenaston and Davidson says she enjoys talking with the people around her as blocks and streets around town can sometimes form their own little niche communities.
"It's homey," she said. "I haven't lived here my whole life, as I'm originally from Kenaston and then moved to Davidson. I moved here in 2005/06, so there's kind of a feeling of, 'I'm an outcast' at first, but we have a family here now and I especially love my neighborhood. I can call up to my neighbor and say, 'Hey, I'm gone for this weekend, can you keep an eye out?' or ask if they've seen my kids and which house they're playing at, and I just love how everyone can get along together. You don't really have to worry about your neighborhoods or the people."
Greig says the people of Outlook are capable of accomplishing so much and hopes everyone can work together to make sure the future of the 'Irrigation Capital of Saskatchewan' is a bright one.
"By working together and being vocal, let's make this town bigger than it is and for the good!" she said.
