Sitting down with mayor finalists

WORLAND – On Tuesday, voters narrowed the Worland mayoral candidate list from five to two. Jim Gill and Keith McDonald will face off in the Nov. 8 general election to see who will serve Worland the next four years as mayor.

This week, the Daily News sat down with the finalists to get to know them on a more personal, rather than political level.

Jim Gill

Jim Gill likes working with people. Whether it’s from his 30 years as an Extension educator, working at his own business or being a city council member.

“I like working with people. I like teaching, and (in Worland) you get to know a lot of people,” Gill said.

He credits the people to being the reason he stayed in Worland to raise his family (after moving in the Spring of 1976) and as Gill sits down other people are what he’s most passionate talking about.

“I’ve learned you can only do what you’re resources will allow you to do. I like making sure we’re all getting a piece of the pie,” Gill said with a laugh.

When he has some leisure time, Gill said he likes to garden (he said most people might not know he has a degree in plant science) and spending quality time with his three granddaughters Carrie, Abbie and McKayla. (double check on spelling)

Gill grew up in Hidden Valley between Riverton and Shoshoni, and started as an Extension agent for in Big Horn County before moving to Worland. Gill lives in Worland with his wife, Connie, and opened Gill Plant Services in 2010 after retiring from the Extension office.

Keith McDonald

Keith McDonald brings dedication to the table. “I don’t do anything half-assed,” McDonald said. “Whenever I start out on any task I do, I give everything about me to it.”

“It’s just my personality ... It’s prevalent in my business (K&S Trucking, LLC), which I started with my own two hands 16 years ago and with my family. They’re the No. 1 thing in my life,” he said.

McDonald, who has a blended family of five children, said he would do anything for his kids Madison, Stone and Shelbea Ramos and Shayden and Dawson McDonald.

McDonald is the youngest of six children and said his family ended up in Worland by accident. “It’s crazy, but my dad stopped in to buy a map and they offered him a job (at the Chamber of Commerce,)” McDonald said.

As a Worland-raised boy, McDonald said some of his hobbies include hunting and fly fishing, though he doesn’t dedicate a lot of time to his leisure activities anymore because “family is my priority.”

He said he and his wife Melanie spend a lot of their time now traveling with the kids for sports, taking them to practices and watching them play.

“I came back to Worland for my parents, friends and relatives … I’ve had a lot of mentors in Worland and I grew up in a disciplined family, and I learned work ethic from my father,” McDonald said.

“It’s a testament to them that none of us ended up in prison or dead,” he joked.