I can't be certain, but I imagine it's rare for a government bureaucrat to have more than a hundred people come out to their retirement party - especially in a small town like Revelstoke.
But that's what happened to Alan Mason, who retired last week after 15 years as the City of Revelstoke's director of economic development. On Thursday, his friends, family, co-workers and many of the people he supported over the years came out to wish him farewell at a party at the Regent Hotel.
Mason was praised for his work ethic, his support for community groups, his friendly demeanour and his willingness to work with everyone.
I know Mason always returned my calls. He was candid with information, candid in his assessments and had a great memory of the past 15 or so years.
At his retirement party, everyone referred to him in glowing terms. It didn't hurt that he controlled a $2 million budget, a lot of which consisted of grant money that was distributed to local community groups.
But he also helped local groups gain access to funding, informed them of grant sources and assisted with applications. He was the council representative on the housing society, the social development committee, the tourism infrastructure committee, and the environment committee, on top of his work in economic development.
He leaves some pretty big shoes for Nicole Fricot to fill. Fortunately, he's staying in Revelstoke and I'm sure he'll keep lending his expertise to the community.