Choking back sobs, Reeve Paddy Munro dropped a bombshell at the end of last Wednesday's council meeting.ìIt is with great regret that I have to announce my resignation as reeve of Mountain View County,î he said to an empty public gallery.ìDue to personal health concerns I believe I can no longer adequately fulfil the duties as required as reeve and the time demands of the position. I will be remaining at the council table as the Div. 6 councillor and look forward to supporting the new reeve.îHis voice breaking up, Munro called for a recess and CAO Tony Martens announced that deputy reeve Bruce Beattie would take over the position until council's organizational meeting in two weeks, when council would elect a reeve and deputy reeve for the next year.Councillors and staff stood up and applauded Munro, thanking him for his dedication and leadership during the last 11 months, and in an emotion-charged exchange he shook hands with each person present, embracing a tearful Div. 2 Coun. Patrica McKean.Munro, 59, told reporters outside the council chambers that he had been diagnosed with atrial fibrillation, a common but serious abnormal heart rhythm. He is being treated with drugs for the condition and underwent a cardioversion procedure in July.ìIt's a process where they put you to sleep, they stop your heart and then they give you an electric shock to bring it back to regular rhythm. And it worked. But within the last few weeks I started to go out of sequence again.îHe decided to step down as reeve, he said, because ìthis job demands performance. I'm like the all-in kind of guy. If I'm doing something I want to give it my best shot and I will not compromise on quality. I just happen to be not up to physical strength to do that right now.îMunro said he was hopeful that he will regain his health and was full of praise for the quality of medical treatment he has received.ìI'm working with a very good family doctor in Olds and a great cardiologist in Red Deer and I'm hoping that we go to the next level, which is a treatment where they give you a defibrillator and a pacemaker and I just go electronic.ìI'm just hoping that as I'm working with them and that happens, I'll be back.îMunro told the Gazette he was diagnosed with the condition early this year after an episode in Olds.ìI noticed in January walking up the stairs to the radio station that I just about fainted when I got to the top. It was like I was good and then all of a sudden my heart didn't work.îMunro had never suffered from high blood pressure ñ one of the conditions sometimes associated with atrial fibrillation ñ and in fact ìwas healthy since the day I was born.î But after visiting his family doctor in Olds, he said he learned that his heart rate had doubled.ìWe're still trying to figure out what happened.îMunro, a journeyman carpenter who lives southeast of Sundre and was raised in Didsbury, rose to prominence as a firebrand in October 2009 after launching the controversial Rural Roots petition campaign. Relentless in his attacks on the previous county council and administration, at a series of open houses Munro called for the termination of the former CAO and two senior planning managers, and for reversing land-use policies deemed too urban for the county.With Munro as president, Rural Roots packed community halls across the county and collected about 1,900 signatures on each of its petitions to council. Munro faced down the previous reeve at a tractor rally later that fall and made headlines by vowing not to leave the building until council complied with the group's demands ñ a pledge he later abandoned.In the municipal election one year later, the new council included fellow Rural Roots director Kevin Good and three other newcomers described as ìlike-mindedî ñ Patricia McKean, Duncan Milne and Bob Orr. The group elected Munro as reeve and its first order of business was to fire the CAO. The planning manager was terminated last spring as part of a county reorganization and the director of planning left her position in what was described as a mutual parting of ways.The new council also suspended provisions in the Municipal Development Plan allowing for multi-lot developments and subdivisions beyond first parcel out, and launched a still-ongoing MDP review with a series of public roundtables early this year. In keeping with Rural Roots' anti-bureaucracy stance, the Munro-led council has also downsized county staff and taken a staunch pro-agricultural position.Asked whether he believed the intensity of the year prior to his diagnosis had contributed to his medical condition, Munro pondered the question.ìI think I've lived my whole life that way, though,î he said. ì(It was) a totally new career path for me ñ I'm not a politician, I had no idea I'd ever do this ñ but everything I do in my life is with passion. I'm one of those guys I don't sleep much. I always like to enjoy what I do.ìReally, it was work that needed to be done and I enjoyed doing it ñ that is the truth. I always have passion.îDoes he have any regrets about his decision to go political?ìNo way.îWhen it was pointed out that he's set the county on a new path, he replied: ìNot just me. I've worked with council to do that. That's the thing I learned. It's not just one councillor striking out on his own. And I trust these guys. We're diverse. We've got Bruce Beattie, an incredible guy, unbelievable guy, and he's definitely got his points. But also in there we've got Trish, Kevin, Duncan ñ it's important to get that broad range. I'm very happy with this council.îLooking ahead to his reduced role as divisional councillor, Munro said: ìWith a little less pressure I'm really hoping that I can fulfil that dutyÖ When you're only pumping less than half of the capacity of your blood, you get tired. But while I'm here and before I totally fade out, my brain's still working, I still function. But if I have to do public engagement things, which is a big responsibility, you just can't do it.îFor his constituents in Div. 6, he simply had this message: ìThey got my number.î
