Mike Pagtakhan was born in the Philippines and emigrated with his family to Winnipeg at the age of 3.
He grew up in St. Vital and is a graduate of Dakota Collegiate Institute. Mike started working part-time at Manitoba Hydro’s corporate library while pursuing his undergraduate degree. After completing his Bachelor of Arts, he started full time at Hydro, where he worked in a few departments including Accounts Payable, Energy Management, and Purchasing. During this time Mike enrolled in evening courses to attain his Certified in Management (CIM) designation from the Canadian Institute of Business, and his Certified Professional Purchaser (CPP) designation from the Purchasing Management Association of Canada.
Mike has a long history of community involvement. When he was 13 years old, Mike started volunteering with St. Amant where he was a recreation team member supporting a variety of fun activities for youth with developmental disabilities. Over the years, Mike served as a volunteer with the Winnipeg Boys & Girls Club, the Folk Arts Council Inc, Folklorama, the Manitoba Museum, the Health Sciences Centre, and with Junior Achievement of Manitoba. During his time on Winnipeg City Council, Mike served on many Boards & Commissions including Chair of the Winnipeg Housing & Rehabilitation Corporation, Chair of the Fred Douglas Foundation, Chair of the Winnipeg Committee for Safety, and Chair of the Citizen’s Equity Committee. He was also a board member with the Exchange District BIZ, the Winnipeg Public Library Board, and the Seven Oaks House Museum Board.
Mike looks forward to serving residents as a newly elected member of the RM. Before this, he served as a Winnipeg City Councillor for 16 years. In October 2002 he took a leave of absence from Manitoba Hydro and was elected to City Council representing the Point Douglas Ward. He was subsequently re-elected in 2006, 2010 and 2014. During his political tenure on Council, he was appointed Acting Deputy Mayor by Glenn Murray, appointed as Deputy Mayor by Sam Katz, and appointed as Deputy Mayor by Brian Bowman. Mike also served as the Chairperson to several Standing Policy Committees of Council including Downtown Development, Planning Property & Development, and Protection & Community Services. Some notable projects that Mike successfully advocated & championed include the designation of the Centennial Neighbourhood as a Housing Improvement Zone, the redevelopment and renaming of Sergeant Tommy Prince Place, renovations to Sinclair Community Centre, the twinning of Inkster from Keewatin to Brookside, the twinning of Keewatin from Inkster to Jefferson and renaming to Dr. Jose Rizal Way, the creation of a public plaza at Waterford Green with a statue of Dr. Jose Rizal, the development of the North End Boxing Club, the development of Roger Le Grand Park, and the development of Gord Dong Park.
In 2018 Mike made the decision to retire from City Council and return to Manitoba Hydro where he is a Project Liaison Officer in the Project Management Division. In 2019 Mike and his family moved from Winnipeg’s inner city to Ward 3 on 2.5 acres, where they absolutely love the space, the beautiful sunsets and the strong sense of community. Mike is also a Lieutenant in the Canadian Armed Forces, as a member of the Cadet Instructor Cadre Unit, where he is a Senior Instructor with the 1226 Fort Garry Horse Royal Canadian Army Cadets Corps. Mike enjoys spending time with family, working in the garden, cooking, baking, creating wood-fired pottery and arm-wrestling.
She obtained both her Arts Degree and Education Degree from the University of Winnipeg. She has been active in the community serving on large boards such as Ducks Unlimited, and her children’s sports teams, as well as serving on the board of directors for the Seven Oaks Hospital Daycare. She also successfully lobbied the provincial government for $1,000,000 in funding for pediatric speech therapy, and helped with the reorganization of speech therapy departments.