INNISFAIL - Heading up to the podium to emcee important community events is nothing new for local businessman Mark Kemball.
For more than two past decades he has hosted many, including regular annual duties emceeing previous community and business awards.
But that was before the COVID-19 pandemic arrived in 2020.
Kemball was asked at short notice to emcee the annual Innisfail & District Chamber of Commerce Business Awards on Nov. 23 at the Innisfail Royal Canadian Legion Branch #104.
As always, Kemball was full of humour. His audience was instantly engaged but he also recognized how important the awards are for the business community and the community at large. The annual business awards event was the first since 2019.
“Man, it’s nice to see people again,” Kemball told his audience.
Re-energized atmosphere
Unlike past business awards, Innisfail’s 2022 version was far different. It was not a gala. There was no big dinner.
It was a relaxed three-hour $40-a-ticket casual event running from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. Drinks were offered, as well as a scrumptious selection of appetizers and fellowship.
There was a determined emphasis by the chamber to have attendees mingle and network, not just sit at tables waiting to be served.
Blaine Staples, the chamber president, said about 100 Innisfailians attended, which was less than he hoped for.
“The only thing I'm a little disappointed in is that we had quite a lot more tickets sold than people that were able to attend,” said Staples. “There seems to be a lot of people right now with either COVID or some seasonal illness that cancelled at the last minute just because they weren't feeling well.
“There were two of our board members who were too ill to attend.”
Nevertheless, despite any challenges the show went on and it was clear a good time was had by all.
“Our goal was to get people to have kind of a casual night where they could mix and mingle and network and I think that is exactly what happened,” said Staples. “We really didn't want people sitting with the same table group of people all night, listening to a whole lot of speeches and stuff. We even set up the table strategically, so it'd be easy to stand around and visit and move around and stuff.
“I hope we can continue on with this format, and just make it bigger and better for next year.”
The awards
Following a long mid-event break, which saw many attendees repeatedly returning to the appetizers, Kemball came back to the podium. There were more humourous anecdotes to lead into the announcement of award winners.
Three awards were returning for Business of the Year, Customer Service of the Year, and Family Farm.
There were three new awards being offered, including Community Impact Award, Non-Profit and Chamber Partner Award.
The first announced winner was Stickland Farms, a composting business that takes municipal waste and transforms it into a nutrient life material that can be used to enrich crops.
“This award doesn't happen without great employees, who I call my teammates. I thank you all for your dedication and new ideas and hard work,” said owner Brian Stickland in accepting his company’s award. “The path to this venture has had its share of bumps and growing pains along the way, but it has proven to be worth it. Farming and operating in business is a family affair.”
Next up was the new Non-Profit award. The Innisfail & District Victims Services was declared the winner over four other worthy nominees.
Mary Dawn Eggleton, the agency’s executive director, was there to accept the award.
“This is definitely not a one-man job,” said Eggleton. “We are all working together to be the best that we can be for our victims and making sure that every victim of crime and trauma is treated with dignity, treated with respect, and that they can put their worst day behind them or at least start to process it and learn how to start to move forward.”
The third award of the evening was for Customer Service of the Year; an award that had six nominees.
This year’s winner was NAPA Auto Parts. Owner Warren Bell was on hand to accept the award.
“It's exciting to win any kind of accolade from your fellow business people in town,” said Bell, who has been with the Innisfail business for 35 years. “It's something that staff was excited to see this morning. I do a lot of behind-the-scenes things and they are the people on the front counter serving customers. We had a little high five and got back to work looking after people.”
The winner of the Chamber’s Community Impact Award was the second new honour to be awarded in the evening.
There were four worthy candidates for the inaugural award. The winner was The Coffee Cottage. Co-owners Dale Dunham and Shaun Steen proudly accepted the award.
“When we first bought The Coffee Cottage, we really didn't know whether we were crazy or smart or what because we bought it just as COVID was starting,” said Dunham. “But the one thing that we knew right from the start was that we had an opportunity to build something that was community-based and was for everybody.
“Shaun and I both believe there's a bigger obligation when you're given an opportunity that you need to work wholeheartedly to make the most of, and that's what we really strive to do.”
And finally, there was the award for Business of the Year. Innisfail’s Central Alberta Co-op was declared the winner.
“So, like everyone else this is unexpected. There were great nominees,” said Chris Irvine, the store’s assistant food manager, in praising the award’s other two nominees, Day Dental and Revive Cannabis. “It's not just because of the great staff we have, it’s because of the members. Without membership we don’t have a Co-Op.
“Through our five locations here in Innisfail we strive to give you the best service every day,” he added. “We go beyond every day to give you the service you guys deserve.”
Final recognition
Before closing the chamber had one more award to give out, and it was the third new one of the evening.
Staples said his organization wanted to create the Chamber Partner Award because members wanted to offer recognition that “mattered” to the chamber and to the community.
He said a decision was made to honour an organization that partners and works with the chamber.
The inaugural winner is the Town of Innisfail. Earlier this year the chamber and the town jointly signed a Memorandum of Understanding; an agreement to rebuild their relationship and move forward together into a prosperous future.
“That's been my goal right from day one; to rebuild that relationship, to really partner with the town because we have to work together to go forward,” said Staples. “The business community is the backbone of the town, and the town is our support too.
"We just have to work together to move forward in the best way possible.”
