OUTLOOK - There really isn't anything that Rachel Sillers hasn't already done in the offices of the Town of Outlook over on Saskatchewan Avenue.
As a transplant to the riverside community, originally from Ontario, Rachel quickly adapted to the rural Saskatchewan way of life and it's something that she wound up loving very quickly, becoming immensely proud of her new home in the irrigation capital of the province.
Serving with the Town as the assistant chief administrative officer, Sillers says one of her professional desires was to work in the community where she called home, eliminating the need to commute.
"I've been in this role since 2018, and I've been with the Town since 2014," said Rachel, sitting down with The Outlook. "I started out front here in the office as a clerk, and then I just managed to stick around after that! I think at the time, I had recently moved here, and I was interested in municipal government, but on a very small level. It was a foot in the door, for sure, and I really wanted to work here as I lived here because I didn't want to commute anymore. That's what attracted me to the job."
Perhaps it can go without saying that there really is no such thing as a standard or typical day for Rachel in her line of work. While there are tasks that often come up and lend themselves to being more of a "This time of year" event, she says that there's often something new every day to tackle from her end.
"No, it's not typical," she said. "I would say there are a lot of things that are very cyclical, like with financial duties and things like that. But there is always something new every day, whether it's something that doesn't come up as often or if it's a fix job; each day is definitely a little bit different."
Of course, working with the Town's dollars and cents and ensuring that they're used in the most ideal and efficient ways as possible can bring its own set of challenges. After all, not everyone is going to be happy with the ways that the Town is going to use X dollars for this project, or X dollars for that one.
"Not to say it's not challenging because it IS challenging, but I think the biggest thing is managing our financial position as best as I can on a day-to-day basis," said Sillers. "Of course, the big things like budgeting and planning are probably the most challenging because there's only so much money to go around, but most of all it's just managing the day to day and making sure that Outlook is in a good spot."
Through her time in the office, Rachel has had many titles and garnered experience in virtually every role there is to have. She says that the benefits of working for the Town are plentiful, including educational growth, as well as the chance to work with the public to see if both sides can work towards common goals to ensure that Outlook as a community has the best chance at being a town that stands out among many others.
"There really are so many," she said. "I love working for the Town. It's a great place to work. The people, for sure; we have a great team here. The opportunity is great because I was able to take schooling and get my certification to be an administrator while I worked here. The opportunity to learn is awesome; I've had every job in this office that there is and bounced from desk to desk, including when we've been without an administrator, which was challenging but it was still good with its own ups and downs. The people in the community, too; we're just trying to make it as best as we can. A lot of times, we're not seen as those people, being in the office, but we all try our best to contribute to Outlook being as best as it can and the best that it can be."
Working so deeply within the system of the Town, Sillers says that the public might not be necessarily blind to the work that she and others carry out, but rather that they might not consider that it's actual human beings doing perhaps the most menial of tasks for them, whether it's providing need-to-know information in their mailboxes or making sure that residents don't mistakenly overpay for something.
"I don't know that they're 'blind' to them, but I just think it's one of those things where you don't necessarily think of a person actually putting your water bill in an envelope and sending it to the post office for you, or you don't think that we're checking on your account to make sure that you're not paying interest when you don't need to be," she said. "I don't think that people are blind to those kind of things, but I think there's a lot more that goes on here that people just don't know about."
The job has been eye-opening for Rachel for a number of reasons that over time, revealed themselves as she went to work each day. Whether it's trying to eliminate the idea that Outlook is just another 'small town' or learning what it takes to essentially create potable and drinkable water for well over 2000 people each day; these kind of things helped shed light on the place that Rachel now proudly calls home.
"It definitely has," she said. "I think a lot of people look at Outlook as still being a small town, but we're kind of a 'bigger' small town compared to some of our neighbors. And what it takes to run a community? It's a lot! We rely on people and professionals, but most of all, we rely on each other, too. It's kind of a symbiotic relationship; we need people doing their part so that we can do our part. We know that not everybody is happy all the time, and that's okay, but yes, it's all very eye-opening as far as what it takes to do what we do. We have to make water for 2500 people; stuff like that, you know? And how much does it cost to maintain those things? It's things like that."
To Sillers, Outlook stands out as a community because of its people and the pride they take in their hometown. Ensuring their yards and homefronts are well-kept and maintaining eye-catching gardens; when other people see that attention to detail, the pride can sometimes spread across the population and elsewhere. As well, she's glad to see that the demographic of the town is changing and including people from all over the age group.
"I think it's our people that make it stand out," she said. "One of the first things I noticed when I moved here was how much pride that people take in their properties. How many beautiful yards and gardens that we have here. The demographic, too; having a good seniors population, but now we also have quite a few young families coming to the area or coming back to the area, and being attracted to Outlook and our surrounding communities, too. That's what makes it special. A lot of people also take pride in the history of Outlook. People are very proud to be from here, and I think that kind of translates to people like me who are a transplant to the community. I grew up in Ontario, but I'm proud to be from Outlook now too. Those kind of things make you want to be part of the community."
Proud of the team that she works with every day, Rachel says that although there have been some ups and downs over the years, people who work for the Town put in their best efforts to do what's right for the community. There's a true and concerted team effort applied to all of their tasks, helping to ensure that every day goes as smooth as possible in the Irrigation Capital of Saskatchewan.
Sillers says that she could easily see herself working for Outlook for the next quarter century.
"We have a great team here," she said. "We've had a lot of ups and downs in the time that I've been here and we've had a lot of people come and go, but everybody who's come through this office really has tried to do their best for the community. We strive to do that every day. We really focus on building Team Outlook so that we can all collectively do the best that we can. I feel very lucky to work here, but I also feel very lucky to live here, too. Now that we've started a family, I hope we never leave here. That's how I feel. I've already worked here for ten years, and I could see myself working here for 25 more, which I think is pretty special. It's not always easy, but it's still a great job. I love it."
