About Michelle
Elected Experience
In November of 2011, Michelle Kirby was elected to Oak Bay Council. She was re-elected in November 2014. On Council, Michelle was a strong advocate for the establishment of active and safe routes to schools, active transportation, affordable housing and secondary suites, the environment and climate action.
Michelle chaired several committees of Council, represented Oak Bay regionally on Capital Regional District (CRD) Boards and Committees, built a new relationship with the Songhees and Esquimalt Nation Councils, established Parental rights for elected officials in Provincial standards, brought a Code of Ethics to Council and organized a community conversation on youth mental health and addiction.
Work Experience
In her early years in Victoria, Michelle worked with the Youth Employment Project helping at-risk youth gain work and life skills, and later with the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA).
After deciding not to run for re-election in 2018, Michelle Kirby returned to her earlier focus of child care and began a new role as Partnerships and Engagement Manager for Childcare BC. In this capacity, Michelle travelled BC encouraging communities to apply for the unprecedented child care funding. BC is now experiencing the fastest growth in new child care spaces in history, with more than 26,000 spaces funded in the last three years.
With the arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic, Michelle pivoted to manage a team of Engagement and Communications Specialists to ensure child care operators, providers, and parents were kept up-to-date on the emergency response measures.
Michelle has now returned to her role as Partnerships and Engagement Manager for Childcare BC, where she continues to work with communities all over BC to build access to quality, affordable child care.
Child Care Advocacy
As a young mother, Michelle learned first-hand the challenges faced by women wanting or needing to return to work who sought reliable and affordable child care. She began advocating for this right through letters to the editor and helping former Victoria MP Denise Savoie in her efforts to bring a private member’s bill to Ottawa that would have seen the creation of a Universal Child Care system for Canada.
Michelle co-created Parents for Child Care, an online parent advocacy community that amplified the voices of parents who felt left out by their Provincial and Federal governments. In 2006 she joined the Regional Child Care Council and became the voice of parents at rallies and in the media.
Community Building
Seeking to build connection to her community, Michelle helped to start the Community Association of Oak Bay and was elected President in 2010. She volunteered on the school Parent Advisory Committee, and Oak Bay Green Committee. She started the École Willows School Bike Trains, led the fundraising to add 10 bike racks, and return bike skills education to the elementary school level with the now annual Oak Bay Police grade four Bike Rodeos. Michelle is most proud of her work on the Oak Bay High School and Neighbourhood Learning Centre (NLC) project, which began at the community level in 2010.
Michelle organized a community forum to discuss the NLC funding that would ensure the new school included a theatre, child care centre, and community space. Once elected, she was appointed as Council liaison to the project to ensure that the redevelopment of the site would include the community’s vision for the restoration of Bowker Creek, wide multi-use pathways, and that the 19,000 square foot NLC would include child care, a youth drop-in centre, community art, activity and meeting space.
Personal Life
Michelle Kirby was born and raised in BC in the beautiful Columbia Valley.
After a year living in Belgium as a Rotary Youth Exchange Student, Michelle completed her Bachelor of Arts in International Relations at UBC-Okanagan in 1999, subsequently moving to Victoria. Michelle and her husband Len Kirby have lived in Oak Bay since 2004 where they are raising their two children, Liam and Meghan.
Michelle enjoys spending time with her family, friends and neighbours, walking her dog, and working in her garden with her three new chickens, Sakura, Maple and Bonzai (AKA Dr. Bonnie Hen-ry).
