New Iberia City Councilwoman for District 5 Sherry Guidry said political life was never at the forefront of her mind.

Speaking at the Iberia Industrial Development Foundation’s “Coffee and Conversation” series on Burke Street Thursday morning, Guidry described a need for social change in New Iberia as the catalyst that propelled her to run for public office.

“I had to pray a whole year, and then told my husband we need to run for office because we need to do something about the social things going on in our city,” Guidry said. “I love New Iberia, I think it’s a great place to live, I think it has great potential, but he flat out told me no, we can’t do that.”

Guidry joked that her husband’s opinion made a lot more sense now than it did before she started a campaign to run for office.

“One of things I’ve learned as a minister is that there’s power in agreement,” Guidry said. “I had to wait a whole another year, and on New Year’s night when we came back from church he said ‘Go put your name on the ballot.’”

Guidry promised her husband a small, grassroots campaign, but even she was surprised to be involved in one of the most talked about races in that election season besides the mayor’s race.

Now almost a year in office, Guidry said she’s been blessed with a cooperative City Council and mayor.

“When I first got into office I was surprised to know we have one of the most amazing councils I’ve ever seen in my life,” she said. “I’m so proud to work with Mr. Freddie DeCourt, it’s like a family. Whatever we don’t know we call each other or find someone to find out.”

Once she arrived in office, Guidry said she thought at the time that she would focus on one or two things as a councilwoman, but two quickly grew to five, and five grew to 10. One of those projects was the Citywide Youth Explosion.

“One of the things I heard on the campaign trail from mothers and grandmothers was there there’s nothing for kids to do,” Guidry said. “If you don’t have sports or extracurriculars, it’s either the park or the library. I partnered with Project Crusade Ambassadors. I did things I’ve never done  just to get out there and motivate our young people to give them something positive to do.”

“By the time it was over with, I think we fed 250 to 300 people,” she added. “There was even the fact that some kids missed their rides coming from home to get back in line for seconds. It wasn’t just to play, it was a chance to get motivated. We had gospel rap, cotton candy, laser tag, it just proved we have the potential to attract developers here that bring entertainment to the entire family and to the youth of New Iberia.”

Another major concern for Guidry has been littering in the city. While walking houses during her campaign, Guidry said she noticed for the first time how excessive the litter problem was in New Iberia.

“As I was meeting people, I noticed a lot of trash on the ground,” she said. “When you’re walking  you see everything.”

As she got into office, 80 to 90 percent of the calls Guidry received from constituents was about either litter abatement or high grass.

 That led her to begin the Tight and Right Cleanup Initiative, which began the process of city government talking about a litter abatement as an issue and other districts adopting similar efforts.

“Instead of just picking up trash, I thought we could manage litter and bring people together at the same time,” Guidry said. “I know it’s untraditional and unconventional, but I’m an untraditional, unconventional kind of person.”