Blue collar candidate wants to be a listener

Flathead County commissioner candidate Glenn Kolodejchuk says he has no agenda and just wants to see county government continue to make efficient use of taxpayers’ dollars.

He joins six other Republicans in the race for the late Jim Dupont’s seat representing the north valley. He said his decision to run happened suddenly after Dupont died on March 19.

“Friends and family members approached me about running,” he said. “They thought I could do the job. I made some calls to people around the valley who I look up to and respect, and they encouraged me to run.”

Kolodejchuk moved to the Flathead with his family in 1967. They eventually homesteaded at a site in Coram still owned by the family. Kolodejchuk graduated from Columbia Falls High School in 1980 and worked 25 years in the timber industry before starting his own excavating business, Dirt Works Unlimited. After the recession took the wind out of the construction business, he took a job in maintenance at Glacier Park International Airport.

The sixth of seven children in his family, Kolodejchuk says he has lots of support. He’s also proud of his blue collar heritage.

“I made half a cent apiece when I was 10 years old stacking poles at my family’s post and pole plant in Columbia Heights,” he said. “I’ve been a blue-collar worker all my life. I’ve taken risks, made mistakes and was never afraid to face a challenge.”

Kolodejchuk has held supervisory jobs and, as he puts it, “signed both sides of the paycheck.” He and his wife own three homes in the valley, so he understands the importance of taxes. He also says he possesses the temperament and skills to work with people in county government.

“I relate well to people and have strong interpersonal skills,” he said. “I can talk to people at all levels. I’m a good listener and good at asking questions. I can think outside the box.”

Kolodejchuk says he wants to get a good grasp of an issue before he takes a position. Recognizing the difficulties facing the 911 dispatch system, he says he wants it to meet “the best interests of the county, to get it running at its highest potential.” On the Whitefish doughnut issue, he says recognizing property rights is important, but the county needs to see how the case is resolved in court before moving on. As for roads, he recalls taking his driver’s education class on La Salle Road when it was a bumpy rural road, not a five-lane U.S. 2.

“I’m not going to promise changes when we might not be able to fulfill them,” he said. “I don’t see myself proposing any big budget adjustments. I’m not into headhunting, but everyone should be accountable.”

Kolodejchuk empathizes with all the other county residents who are struggling through the recession.

“People have left and people have stayed and picked up the pieces and continued to make it,” he said. “I’ve worked for everything I have. I don’t have a mile-long resume. I’m just a blue collar guy.”

Kolodejchuk said he’s been busy making election signs for a difficult race that covers as much area as the state of Connecticut. His supporters will hold a spaghetti dinner fundraiser for him at the Eagles Club on the U.S. 2 strip in Columbia Falls on Friday, April 27, from 6 to 9 p.m.