Mayor’s race: Kyle Palmer learns the ropes by doing

By Brenna Wiegand

In recent years, Kyle Palmer has set out in some new directions that have made his life richer and more satisfying.

Longtime manager of Silver Creek Animal Clinic, last year he earned certification as a veterinary technician and now spends part of the day performing dental procedures on cats and dogs.

“I absolutely love small animal dentistry; being able to help cure a problem so an animal and its family can move forward,” Palmer said.

He also rediscovered his love of writing and last year began writing on www.dvm360.com and has had articles published in national trade journals – mostly on practicing veterinary medicine in a small town.

And now that he’s running for mayor, Palmer is finding that getting out and talking to community members about their concerns is both energizing and rewarding.  He attributes his penchant for community service to the example set by his mother.

Lorna Steinberger was named Silverton’s inaugural First Citizen in the early 1970s.

“She was involved in local politics, service organizations and helped run the baseball league my brother and I were a part of,” he said.

Palmer’s brother Kevin shaped Kyle’s approach to coaching and working with youth in general.

“When I grew up my dad was my brother’s baseball coach; then my brother became my coach,” said Palmer, who then spent 20 years coaching Little League teams.

“I was 14 and didn’t like a call at home plate,” he said. “I yelled something at the umpire that I shouldn’t have. My brother came out of the dugout and told me to apologize.

“ ‘It’s not happening,’ I told him – and ended up on the bench the rest of the game.” Palmer learned that, in more ways than one, it’s all in the follow-through.

Such experiences help set the stage for one of Palmer’s top interests – expanding the city’s relationship with Silver Falls School District to promote youth activities and provide more community recreation space.

“It’s been one of my priorities for the past six years,” he said. “As part of a committee to propose a new athletic complex, I was happy to see that become a reality as part of the high school completion bond. When it looked like some components of that project would not be finished as planned in order to preserve the more important needs of the high school project, I asked City Council to step up and share some of the responsibility for those improvements.”

The result, he said, is a high quality athletic complex that can withstand a high level of use by youth sports organizations, impacting the local economy by drawing hundreds of visitors to the area for games and tournaments, and it gives community members more places to play.

Besides his six years on Silverton City Council, Palmer said he has greatly enjoyed chairing the Silver Falls School District Bond Advisory Committee. The four-year public process has given Palmer the experience that has qualified him for the role of mayor, he said.

“I’d like to look back in 20 years and see a community that has maintained its livability,” he said. “I’d like us to move forward in a logical fashion that minimizes traffic and congestion, offers more family wage jobs and celebrates our agricultural history. I’d like Silverton to be a place where our children can afford to raise their families – and where they want to.”