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STAY IN TOUCH
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GROWTH Alberta
5306 - 49 Street
Barrhead, AB T7N 1N5
P (780) 674-3140
F (780) 674-2777
inquiries@growthalberta.com
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HAVE YOUR SAY
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Grizzly Regional Update is published quarterly and is distributed electronically to
GROWTH Alberta members and friends of the alliance.
For more information, or to provide feedback,
please contact Jodi Goebel at (780) 674-3140 or growthmanager@phrd.ab.ca
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PAST AWARD WINNERS
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A. M.
Berry Farm
Alberta Café
Amity Plastics
Ltd.
Apollo Pizza
Arth's Fashion
Centre
Barrhead Auto
Parts & Salvage
Barrhead
District Co-op Ltd.
Barrhead Home
Building Centre
Bernie's Hot
Oil Service
Bert's TV
& Appliances
Bill Armstrong
Trucking
Busy Bee Mart
C C Cycle
Campsie
General Store
Commonwealth
Credit Union
(Westlock)
Dale Croswell
Construction
Dutch Delight
Restaurant
The Egremont
Hotel & Watermelon Patch Pub
The Empty Nest
Bed & Breakfast
Fas Gas Clyde
G. Marriott
Ditching & Excavation
George &
Judy Andrews
Gil Dubrule
Certified Management Accounting
Hidden Valley
Golf
Horse Creek
Ranch
KBJ Round
Farms
Lehman Trikes
Inc.
Muller Realty
Nanny Acres
Oola Ranch
Pembina
Medical Clinic
Pollard
Banknote
Precision
Design & Manufacturing
Redwater River
Ranch
Rochester
Hatchery
The Rusty Cup
Catering
Schmidt Arena
Sepallo Food
Ingredients
Sobeys
Westlock
Sunniebend
Greenhouses
Swan Hills
Home Hardware
Swan Hills
Super A
Swan Hills Tae
Kwon Do
Timeless
Treasures/Grizzly Gazette
Trident
Exploration Corp.
Tubs 'n Toys
Westlock
Veterinary Centre
Willowlane Bed
& Breakfast
Windsor
Plywood
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Greetings!
Welcome to the new Grizzly Regional Update! We're excited about the potential of this quarterly message to inform you of economic development news in the GROWTH Alberta region. As we get the word out, we're looking for your help to reach others who will be interested in this news. Please take a moment to consider who else we should be reaching, and pass along this message. We hope you find it useful, and look forward to your contributions, comments and suggestions. Thank you for taking the time to support our success!
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GROWTH Alberta's Business Awards
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The GROWTH Alberta Business Recognition Awards are an annual
program designed to acknowledge and celebrate business excellence in our
region. Since 2005, GROWTH
Alberta
has solicited public nominations, selected winning businesses, and commemorated
their outstanding work through professional video profiles and our must-attend
Business Awards Gala.
We will be accepting nominations for our 2008 awards in June, 2008. Keep an eye out in your local paper, download a nomination form from our Web site, or contact our office for more information about nominating a business in your area.
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2007 Business of the Year
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Bernie's Hot Oil Service, Swan Hills
When Bernie and Rita Krawiec moved to Swan Hills, they had
no intention of putting down roots. The plan was to stick around briefly and
make some money working in the oil patch, but the pair quickly fell in the love
with the town and 30 years later they have become invaluable members of the
community.
 Shortly after arriving, they established Bernie's Hot Oil
Service. The business employs more than 20 people - much higher during peak
periods - and the family has become one of the community's biggest boosters,
helping with everything from fundraising drives to volunteering for different
service groups.
"When we first moved here it was only supposed to be
for a couple years and now it's been more than 30," says daughter Liz
Krawiec, operations manager at Bernie's. "It's such a wonderful place to
raise a family."
Bernie's earned the highest honors at this year's edition
of GROWTH Alberta's Business Awards Gala, receiving both the Chamber of Commerce Award
for economic contribution and the GROWTH Alberta Business of the Year award.
"My parents are very active in the community, and
there's lot of things they do quietly. It's so important because if small
communities didn't have volunteers there's so much stuff that wouldn't be
done."
Bernie's delivers a wide range of services to the oil and
gas sector around Swan Hills, including oilfield production fluid hauling,
pipeline testing, and vacuum services. The company also has an onsite safety training facility and provides extensive training to its staff, which has helped Bernie's carve out a
reputation for delivering exceptional service.
"We are still a small business and we try to treat our
employees like they are family. Swan Hills is such a wonderful community and we
are doing our best to make a positive contribution."
Congratulations also go out to The Empty Nest Bed and Breakfast (Busby) for winning the Audience Favourite Award, and Commonwealth Credit Union (Westlock) for winning the Rotary Award for community service at the 2007 GROWTH Alberta Business Awards Gala.
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Supporting Our Chambers of Commerce
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The GROWTH Alberta Chamber of Commerce Award was created in 2007 to recognize a business that exhibits the values promoted by our local Chambers of Commerce. GROWTH Alberta continues to strengthen our ties with other organizations in the region, and is proud of the success that our Chambers are achieving in the region.
The Westlock Chamber of Commerce
The Westlock Chamber of Commerce
has shown how a dedicated and committed group of executive members can
revitalize an organization.
In the face of declining interest, the executive restructured the organization and committed to making it more
meaningful for local businesses. They launched a promotional program, including
radio and newspaper coverage, and developed a campaign to recognize people who
deliver outstanding customer service. As a result, membership jumped 25% in one
year.
"Our organization had really been
struggling for a couple years and membership was declining. Participation was
limited and our Chamber was dying," says Lesa Mueller-Schmaus, who headed up
the non-profit group at the time.
"We've made great strides so far. We began at the ground level by redefining what this
organization was to look like and where we were headed. After several planning
sessions, we came away with new mission and vision statements, short and long
term goals and an action plan of how we were going to get there."
That was two years ago. The organization has now grown to
78 members and earned a provincial Chamber of the Year Award in 2007 in the category of
51-100 members. Schmaus is now the past president and the Chamber is still
going strong, but it's always a challenge to maintain that initial momentum.
"We've already picked the
low-hanging fruit. It's definitely better than it has been in the past and we
have made a lot of progress, but we still have the same struggles other
Chambers do," says current president Jason McElroy. "We have to be more
visible, more active and let people know who we are."
There are three other active Chambers of Commerce in the GROWTH Alberta region: in Barrhead, Swan Hills, and Thorhild.
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Coming Soon
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Westlock Affordable Housing Workshop
The Town of Westlock is hosting a full-day workshop with Dr. Avi Friedman titled 'Designing Affordable and Sustainable Homes and Communities' on Tuesday, June 17th at the Westlock and District Memorial Hall. For more information contact Colleen Thome at (780) 350-2104 or Vivian Zittlaw at (780) 350-2109.
GROWTH Alberta June Board Meeting
Our board meeting for the month of June will be hosted by Evergreen Catholic Separate Regional Division on Wednesday, June 18th at 10am at Holy Trinity Church in Spruce Grove. Contact Jodi Goebel at (780) 674-3140 for more information or to RSVP.
Rural Matters! Conference
Rural Matters! will be held July 5-8, 2008 at the Shaw Conference Centre in Edmonton, bringing together delegates from throughout Canada to address the issue of 'Forging Healthy Canadian Communities'.
GROWTH Alberta July Board Meeting
Our board meeting for the month of June will be hosted by Woodlands County on Wednesday, July 16th at 10am at the Municipal Office in Fort Assiniboine. Contact Jodi Goebel at (780) 674-3140 for more information or to RSVP.
Pacific Northwest Economic Development Council
PNEDC's will take on the theme of "Partners Across Borders" at their 2008 Annual Conference in Nanaimo, British Columbia from July 20-23, 2008 at the Vancouver
Island Conference Centre.
GROWTH Alberta August Board Meeting
Our board meeting for the month of August will be hosted by the County of Barrhead on Wednesday, August 20th at 10am at the Municipal Office of the County of Barrhead. Contact Jodi Goebel at (780) 674-3140 for more information or to RSVP.
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And that's our first edition! Please let us know what you think, and thanks for taking the time to catch up with us.
Sincerely,
Jodi Goebel
Manager, GROWTH Alberta
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