Neepawa Chamber charts course for new year
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- Published on Tuesday, February 2, 2016
Photo by Kate Jackman-Atkinson. RBC Olympian and Olympic gold medalist Jill Officer was the evening’s keynote speaker.
By Kate Jackman-Atkinson
Neepawa Banner/Neepawa Press
With a keynote speech focusing on support, the Neepawa and District Chamber of Commerce welcomed the new year at their annual general meeting last week. Held Jan. 27, the evening event attracted about 70 members of Neepawa’s business community.
Board member Scott Dyke acted as the evening’s emcee and welcomed attendees to the chamber’s 116th AGM. Dyke noted that Neepawa is growing and diversifying, as both immigrants and Canadians, including himself, have made Neepawa home in recent years.
Marvin Beaumont presented the financial report from 2015, which included a loss of $3,296.32. The organization tapped into their retained earnings to cover the shortfall, leaving that account with a balance of just over $6,000. While income remained relatively unchanged from 2014, at $29,887, expenses were up, which led to the shortfall. The biggest expenses for the year were wages and cost associated with the Neepawa Fair. Beaumont noted that in 2015, there were a number of one-time expenses related to the fair. The fair was the biggest source of revenue, bringing in $12,639, including a $5,000 grant from the Town of Neepawa. Beaumont said that for 2016, they plan to focus on fewer, but more profitable events.
Instead of giving a report on the previous year, Chamber president Troy Mutch talked about plans for 2016. The organization’s biggest event will once again be the Neepawa Fair, which will be held May 27 to 29 at the Neepawa Fair Grounds. Mutch said that the rides will be coming back. In conjunction with other organizations, there are also plans to have a ball tournament, soccer jamboree, parade, gun show and possibly a social taking place that weekend. Mutch stressed that it was up to local businesses to attract these visitors into their stores with sales or special promotions. “We need you to bring them into your stores, we bring them to town,” he said.
Mutch said that they have considered organizing a Canada Day event, but concluded that they lacked the necessary man power. He hoped to see service groups or interested individuals step up to organize activities to run in conjunction with the Town’s fireworks.
The business portion ended with the election of board members. The board for the 2016 year will be: Scott Dyke (RBC), Troy Mutch (Century 21), Marvin Beaumont (MNP), Don Dufort (Hylife), Cindy Hockin (BPCU), Clinton Davie (CWD Satellite), Trisha Phinney (BMO), Marilyn Crewe (Town of Neepawa), Mitch Hutton (Gill and Schmall), Ryan McLaughlin (McLaughlin GM), Jeff Braun (Neepawa Area Planning Disctrict), Tammy Wilson (CIBC) and Ashley Monka (Chalet Flooring and Design). There are still two open board spots. The board will be sworn in by Neepawa mayor Adrian de Groot, who was unavailable for the AGM, at their February meeting.
The Volunteer of the Year was awarded to NACI’s social justice group, HOPE. On hand to receive the award were teacher advisor Katherine Kingdon and members Samantha Nickart and Kassia Hollier. Nickart explained that through their fundraising, they have built a school and a well in Kenya, as well as helped develop sustainable agriculture in that country. Hollier noted that they have collected over 2,200 lbs of food per year for food banks as well as taking part in local projects, such as delivering food at Yellowhead Manor when the elevators were being repaired and cleaning up Rotary Park.
The keynote speech was given by RBC Olympian Jill Officer. Officer, whose accomplishments include a gold medal in curling at 2014 Winter Olympics, spoke about support, healthy living and the importance of being yourself.
Drawing on examples from both competition and her personal life, including a 27 day trek through the Himalayas, Officer talked about the profound impact support can have when it comes to achieving our goals. “It’s something we always need,” she said.
Officer said that to operate at peak performance, not just as an athlete but also as a person, requires a focus on physical fitness, getting enough sleep and nutrition. She explained that when our overall health and wellness is in good shape, we are better able to deal with life’s challenges.
Finally, Officer stressed the importance of being yourself. “You can only do what you can do,” she said. She explained that we can get caught up in other people’s expectations and burn too much energy being self conscious of our perceived shortcomings.
Following her speech, Officer opened the floor to questions as well as giving attendees the opportunity to pose for pictures with her and her Olympic medal.
