Radio personality. Newspaper journalist. Salesman. City councillor. Future MLA or MP?
Considering his once-timid nature, Tim Babcock has certainly blossomed into one of Flin Flon’s most recognizable and respected citizens.
“I was a very shy kid,” recalled Babcock, now 36. “I remember sitting in kindergarten one day knowing how to read but being too shy to read out loud to the grade 6 student that was there to help us.”
With time came more confidence. As he progressed through school, he developed a passion for both sports and band class, interests that helped him cultivate a diverse range of friendships.
Growing up in Flin Flon, the eldest of two children, Babcock was never quite sure what he wanted to do with his life, though the community certainly afforded him some unique opportunities.
In high school he became a part-time deejay at CFAR radio, using his clear, composed voice to update the weather, present community announcements and introduce tunes.
“This was back before MP3s were a thing, so we had to handpick the music we were going to play for our six-hour shift,” Babcock recalled. “Everything was done manually. You would start playing a song on CD one and then cue up the second CD ready to go.”
Reporting
Later in his teens, Babcock put his strong writing skills to use as a freelance reporter for the now-defunct Northern Visions Gazette newspaper, then based in Creighton.
He became a full-fledged staffer at the Gazette when it was purchased by The Reminder and began sharing the latter newspaper’s offices in Flin Flon.
“I was selling advertising…but at that time I wasn’t much of a salesperson,” Babcock said. “We had a little office in the corner behind the inserters’ room [where the newspapers were assembled and flyers inserted], and everyone in the building smoked except me.”
After the Gazette closed its doors for the day, Babcock would sneak upstairs and help The Reminder’s reporters with their then-daily publication.
“They didn’t have a sports reporter at the time and I was a huge hockey fan, so I jumped at the chance to follow the Bombers and chip in where I could,” he said. “I guess I was better at writing than I was at selling, because eventually I became a permanent fixture upstairs. I got to meet a lot of interesting people in the community doing that job. I don’t know if I was a household name, but most people around at that time either knew who I was because they saw me at their kids’ soccer game or they at least were aware I existed because my byline was all over the sports pages.”
By the time he joined The Reminder staff in 1999, Babcock was two years removed from high school and taking university courses through distance education. He enjoyed the work but wasn’t sold on journalism as a long-term vocation.
Moving south
He remained The Reminder’s sports reporter until 2005, at which time he switched to ad sales. In 2006 it was time for another change when he moved to Brandon, where his future wife, Hollee, was attending university.
Babcock landed a job selling cars at a Pontiac dealership. Ever the sports fan, he also volunteered to call play-by-play for cable-access television broadcasts of the Brandon Midget AAA Wheat Kings hockey games and senior Wheat Kings baseball games.
His work caught the eye of an employee at Western Financial Group, an insurance brokerage in Brandon. The employee suggested Babcock for a vacant position within the company.
“I remember the manager walking right into my office at the car dealership. He said, ‘You’re Tim Babcock, right? Are you happy with your job?’” said Babcock. “Until that very second I thought I was happy with my job. I had been selling cars for two years and was starting to see some repeat customers and regular business. On the other hand, it was real tough selling anything in a community where you only know a handful of people.”
Within a couple of weeks Babcock found himself on the other side of Brandon selling commercial insurance. It was the first job he felt he could build into a career.
By this point Babcock was married and seriously considering settling down in Brandon. That idea abruptly ended when he and his wife returned to Flin Flon one weekend in 2009 to visit friends and family.
“Hollee said, ‘I think I want to move home,’” recalled Babcock. “‘Like, two years from now?’ I asked. ‘No, right now!’”
Babcock himself had never really wanted to leave Flin Flon, so he was happy to oblige. Within a month they were back in Flin Flon, with Babcock selling insurance in Creighton.
Reintegrated
He quickly reintegrated into the community, joining the Kinsmen Club and becoming president of the Flin Flon Trout Festival, which had been on its deathbed.
By the fall of 2010, Babcock was 31 years old. His years in local media, working with the public and volunteering had afforded him a level of recognition uncommon for a man his age. He was ready for a new challenge.
He ran for a spot on Flin Flon city council. As a first-time candidate, he earned more votes than anyone else on the ballot, with nearly seven in 10 voters backing him. He was easily re-elected in 2014. In both cases he was by far the youngest member of council.
“In some ways I feel at a disadvantage being the youngest person on council,” Babcock said.
“There are a lot of strong opinions around the table and at times it can be hard to get a word in. At the same time, I pick my places to speak and I feel that when I do say something, people pay attention. We don’t always agree on things. At the end of the day, we don’t have to agree. You just have to be able to live with the decision and move on to the next one.”
For Babcock, serving as a city councillor is more work than most residents realize.
“Some people think we get together for the public meeting and then go home,” he said. “In reality, we spend hundreds of hours behind the scenes attending meetings, debating ideas, reacting to emergencies and representing the city at various levels of government. We set the direction and policies, and the administration and staff look after managing the day-to-day operations.
“As councillors, we make a lot of tough decisions, and we carry the weight of those decisions on our shoulders. These decisions affect people’s lives, so what we do is very important. You can’t please everyone all the time.”
No longer selling insurance, Babcock is by day the manager of industrial-equipment supplier Acklands-Grainger. In his spare time he plays rec hockey in the winter and slo-pitch in the summer.
Future path
While he has had trouble determining a preferred career path, Babcock may have found it in politics. Indeed, he one day hopes to represent his hometown as MLA or MP.
“I was actually asked by one of the parties to run in this past provincial election, but it is a big commitment at age 36 to give up your career for something that may only last four years,” he said. “People joke that I’m the future mayor of Flin Flon. I don’t want to rule that out, either, but it’s not something I feel I need to do right now. People generally love you when you are a councillor but for some reason the mayor gets blamed for everything. The only job harder than mayor of Flin Flon is coach of the Flin Flon Bombers.”
Babcock gives ample credit for his success in life to his wife and parents Dave and Darlene, but his attitude certainly doesn’t hurt.
“I had a boss who used to tell me that hard work is always rewarded, and I truly believe that,” he said. “I don’t know if there is a single point in my life where I can say, ‘This one thing led to something great.’ But I’ve always tried to better myself and do the best I can no matter what the situation. I wake up, I smile and say to myself, ‘Today is going to be a great day.’ Life is too short to pick battles with yourself or the people around you. If you don’t like something about your life, you are the only person that can change it.”
