LOU SEKORA
A longtime Tri-City politician will be missing from the Coquitlam council table when city business resumes in the new year.
Coun. Lou Sekora lost his bid to unseat Mayor Richard Stewart in November and retired from politics after 40 years in the game.
The Saskatchewan native got his start when he ran for council in the 1970s and eventually became mayor in 1983. He held that post until running federally in 1998.
After being defeated in the 2000 federal election, Sekora became a citizenship judge. But he could not resist the opportunity to re-take his spot on council. He won his seat in the 2005 civic election before losing in last fall's race for the mayor's chair.
After the votes were tallied, the 83-year-old said he was taking a much-needed break in Palms Springs.
MICHAEL WRIGHT
He entered the Port Coquitlam political scene before hometown hero Terry Fox ran his Marathon of Hope.
And he bowed out 33 years later after losing in November, his seat taken by rookie Laura Dupont.
Michael Wright's tenure as a city councillor was one of the longest in B.C. history and, next month, city hall will honour his passion for local government with a special event.
In an interview with The Tri-City News a week after he lost his seat, Wright talked about his love of the arts and culture, and how he took the most pride in building a PoCo library - naming it, of course, after Terry Fox.
