Ben Purkiss is running for Grimsby Town Council because he believes the best local decisions are made by people who understand real life: raising a family, running a business, paying the bills, creating jobs, and showing up for the community.

As a local business owner, Ben knows what it means to pay bills on time and make careful decisions when people are counting on you. He owns BPD, a creative agency with decades of experience helping people and organizations tell their stories. Over the course of his career, Ben has worked with business leaders, national political figures, musicians and community organizations across Canada. That experience has taught him how to listen, bring people together, and focus on what matters. 

Ben has also spent years working in and around government and politics at both the federal and provincial levels. He understands how decisions get made and how important it is for local voices to be heard clearly when different levels of government work together. 

Here in Grimsby, Ben has already been putting that experience to work. He serves as a voting member of the Grimsby Economic Development Advisory Committee, where he contributes to conversations about how our town can grow responsibly while protecting what makes it special. He is also involved with MPP Sam Oosterhoff's local riding association, and previously served on the board of Destination Ontario, giving him a broader understanding of tourism, economic development, and the role strong communities like ours play in Ontario’s future.

At home, Ben is married and serves as legal guardian to his two nieces, aged sixteen and eighteen. That responsibility keeps him focused on the issues that matter most to families every day: safe neighbourhoods, good local opportunities, responsible growth, and a community where young people can see a future for themselves. 

Ben is running because Grimsby has given his family so much, and he wants to give back. He believes council needs people who are informed, engaged, and willing to do the work. Above all, Ben wants to be a strong voice for the neighbours, families, workers, and local businesses that make this town such a special place to call home.