In Williston, Deanette Piesik was the lone female commissioner. When she decided not to run for a third term, she was determined to find women who would run, and get elected to the City Commission.
Piesik's mother inspired her political career as a child growing up in Glendive, Montana.
"I remember going door to door and I remember campaigning for her and what she was going to do and what her stand was. It was very interesting talking to the residents in Glendive - I grew up there and knew many of them and hear them talk about my mom and what they would like to see improved in Dawson County. So that was an exciting time for me.”
Piesik's time in office coincided with the oil boom, with tough questions facing the city commissioners about how to pay for basic services.
"So there was a lot of water, sewer, street issues that came up that had to be dealt with, that the city had to figure out how to pay for and provide that service to our citizens. That was one of the biggest challenges: how do we pay for that without overburdening them. You have to keep in mind that there are people in our community who are on fixed incomes who don’t work in the oil and gas industry who need to have these services provided.”
Williston of the oil boom is different from the Williston of today. It’s a lot of young families and young families brought more women to Williston. So Deanette started meeting with women she thought would be good candidates for Williston City Commission.
“I kinda looked around and I recommended Tori Siemieniewski to the city.”
Siemieniewski came to politics in a similar fashion as Piesik, although it wasn’t from campaigning with her mother. Her grandfather was mayor of Beulah, her hometown.
Siemenewski had planned on running for office in the future, but Piesik's call persuaded her, pretty quickly, to jump in the race. She remembered having questions about how to run a campaign and Piesik's reassurances.
“We’ll figure it out!”
Siemieniewski is the mother of two young children, a son and a daughter. And it’s that perspective as a mother that keeps her focused on Williston’s future.
“You have a different perspective on your priorities and how you might want to approach things in the future. That's what's ringing in my mind."
Siemieniewski was sworn into office in June after the primary. Piesik says she plans to move to Fargo to be closer to her grandchildren. She’s on standby to be an ear to Siemenewski, because that’s something she benefited from in her political career. But, she says, "At the end of the day you have to make the decision that's right for you and for the citizens you serve."