CARIBOU, Maine — With municipal elections on the horizon, the city is holding an open forum on Oct. 25 to give residents a chance to meet the candidates and ask them questions.
Of the seven candidates listed on the ballot for three council openings, four are newcomers: Kevin St. Pierre, Mark Goughan, Hugh Kirkpatrick, and Sarah McLean. The three incumbents are current Mayor Gary Aiken, and councilors Nicole Cote and Jody Smith.
Mark Goughan (Courtesy/Kathryn Olmstead)
Kevin St. Pierre (Contributed)
St. Pierre, 56, is a Caribou native and U.S. Army Veteran, with 20 years of military service under his belt. He is a Republican and holds a bachelor’s degree in education from the University of Maine Orono and another in liberal studies from the University of Maine at Presque Isle.
Currently, St. Pierre volunteers as the finance officer for the Caribou VFW and said he is running because he’s “interested in serving the community.”
Goughan, 63, owns Goughan’s Berry Farm in Caribou with his wife Gloria and children Kelli, Kristi, and Katie, who all attended Caribou schools. He does not subscribe to a political ideology, labeling himself as “independent,” adding that he is “free from the influence of others.”
Goughan’s primary motivation for running is to “help in offering a more creative form of governance. A governance that encourages a stronger private driven economy and will help in keeping the next generation in Aroostook County.”
Like Goughan, Kirkpatrick identifies as a political independent. He is 46 and married, but does not have children. Kirkpatrick manages the Caribou Utilities District, and holds a master’s degree in financial management from Southeastern University in Washington D.C., along with a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from UMaine. Over the years, he has earned four certifications related to his current career.
Nichole Cote (Contributed)
Hugh Kirkpatrick (Courtesy/Trent Phillips)
Kirkpatrick said he is running because he believes it is his “civic duty.”
While McLean was able to get her nomination papers in, she said she no longer is actively seeking a seat on the council because she “will not be able to put the required time and effort” into the position. It is too late to have her name taken off the ballot.
McLean said that instead she will be “taking on volunteering with Recovery Aroostook and the Hope and Justice Project, as well as being the leader of Indivisible Crown of Maine.”
Of the three incumbents, Cote is relatively new to the Council and was elected earlier this year to fill a vacancy after Councilor Shane McDougall resigned. She was then elected to fulfill the rest of his term, and is “eager to run again for a full term.”
Cote lives in Caribou with her husband Ryan and their two daughters Naomi and Madelyn, who both attend Caribou Middle School. She holds an associate’s degree in legal administration and a bachelor’s degree in marketing management, and is currently working toward a master’s degree in public administration.
Gary Aiken (Christopher Bouchard)
She currently works as the administrative services director at Loring Job Corps and is running for office to “be a part of the great things happening in Caribou and to be a part of the positive changes to come.”
Smith and Aiken both have a few years of experience on the City Council. Smith, who works as the grounds supervisor at Caribou’s Northern Maine Veterans Cemetery, was elected in December of 2014. He did not return requests made by phone and email for more information.
Aiken, 69, has been a member of the Council for the last six years, with the last five as mayor. His decision to get involved as a councilor occurred when he and his wife Barbara, to whom he has been married for 47 years, decided to retire in Caribou.
“I felt my experience in operating companies and my financial experience might be of some benefit in the decision making process for the city of Caribou,” he said. “I felt the long term decisions made by the Council would affect me the same way they affected everyone else, and I wanted to be part of that process.”
Jody Smith (Contributed)
The upcoming candidate forum will begin at 6 p.m. in the City Council chamber on 25 High Street. Jason Parent will moderate the event, and those who can’t attend can watch a live-stream and submit questions via Caribou’s Facebook page.
