by ALEX P. VIDAL
RICHMOND, British Columbia — No public official in British Columbia, or in the entire Canada for that matter, has placed a home phone number in a calling card except William “Bill” McNulty, this city’s longest serving councilor and next mayor.
“For others (public officials), it’s a no-no; but for me, I am available to serve 24 hours a day,” McNulty told this writer in an exclusive interview at Kumare Restaurant and Bakery last month.
“I have great respect for Filipino community in British Columbia and I am actively involved in raising funds to help calamity victims in the Philippines and other countries,” he added.
A long-time Richmond resident who worked as a counsellor in a Vancouver secondary school, McNulty has been city councilor since 1993. His efforts to donate funds for recent victims of typhoons in the Philippines were “through my own personal initiatives,” he said.
CONSISTENT
“I am consistent and I go out on my own and do something with or without the election to help people here and abroad,” he stressed, explaining that they were able to raise $127,000 for children victims of “tsunami” in Onagawa, Japan last year.
Better known as “Richmond’s Man in Motion”, McNulty is active as a community volunteer in Richmond for many years, especially in sports-related activities. He has served on Sport B.C. for six years, was a member of the committee which organized Richmond’s bid for the 1994 Commonwealth Games, and is extensively involved in local community television broadcasting.
McNulty, raised as a Catholic, wants to work with newly landed immigrants to achieve a better quality of life saying “Canada is a better place to live and I want them to enjoy the quality of life here.”
As a public servant, he describes himself as “hard working, very honest, very trustworthy, and most caring councilor.”
FRIEND
“I don’t do things for personal gains. If I consider you as friend, you are my friend for life and not just during the elections,” he quipped.
“I know many people in the (Filipino) community have dug deep in their pockets to help (calamity victims in the Philippines). We are all part of the community and our small efforts become big efforts.”
McNulty has been involved in track and field for six decades and is a life member of Richmond’s Sports Council and the Richmond Lawn Bowling Association. He has been President of both B.C. Athletics and the Canadian Track & Field Association. For many years he was a B Director of the Canadian Olympic Association.
He has been a coach, manager, administrative leader and Chef-de-Mission of many Canadian Games teams and touring Canadian track and field teams around the world. McNulty is also a long time serving Rotarian.
SHARING
“I believe in sharing cultures,” McNulty mused. “It is important we understand each other from music to arts to family values. Regardless of religion, race, culture, we all have the same goals and objectives.”
A past president of the U.B.C. Alumni Association, McNulty is currently serving his eighth three-year term on the Senate of the University of British Columbia. He served on Richmond’s Advisory Planning Commission for six years from 1986-1992, five of them as Chairman.
He currently represents Richmond as the first alternate to the first Director on the Metro Vancouver Board. He is also a director on the Board of E-Comm (911) and is Richmond’s representative.
METRO
McNulty is director of the Metro Vancouver Housing Committee and a director of the Metro Vancouver Housing Board of directors for the past six years.
He is chairman of Richmond’s Planning Committee and a member of the following Standing Committees of Council: Finance; General Purposes; Community Safety and Parks, Recreation and Cultural Services.
He is also the City Council representative to the following advisory committees, organizations and community associa-tions: the Richmond Sports Council; the Richmond Arenas Association; the Richmond Chamber of Commerce; Thompson Community Centre; Richmond Committee on Disability; and Tourism Richmond. /MP
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