OLDS — If you have a business or employee you’d like to reward for great service, now is the time.
The Olds & District Chamber of Commerce is asking for nominations for its various awards, which will be presented during its annual Small Business Awards gala this fall.
But you’d better hurry.
The deadline to fill out those nominations is Aug. 15, Small Business Awards Committee chair Murray Elliott warns.
The nominations are easy to fill out, he says and can be filled out online on the chamber website or on paper, with forms available at the Albertan office, coincidentally where the chamber office is located.
Award categories are Business of the Year; Best New Business of the Year; President’s award; Innovation award; Youth Employee of the Year award; Community Spirit award; For Profit and Not For Profit, all in one; the Exceptional Customer Service award; and the People’s Choice award.
Celebrations of the community’s business achievements and service begin Sept. 24 with the annual Business Beer & Blue Jeans evening from 5 to 7 p.m. at the Werklund Agriculture & Technology Centre on the Olds College of Agriculture and Technology campus. That’s when business awards finalists will be revealed.
“We held it there last year; beautiful venue,” Elliott said during an interview.
This year, national Small Business Week occurs Oct. 20-26.
For the second year in a row, the Olds & District Chamber of Commerce will kick off observance of that week with breakfast at the Cacio e Pepe Italian Bistro. That event runs from 7:30 a.m. until 9 a.m.
Like last year, speakers during that breakfast are expected to include mayor Judy Dahl, the town's chief administrative officer Brent Williams and Olds-Didsbury-Three Hills MLA Nathan Cooper.
The highlight of the week’s celebrations is the annual Small Business Awards Night on Oct. Oct. 24.
Like last year, the banquet and awards ceremony will be held at the Royal Canadian Legion Branch #105 in Olds.
“It was a great event,” Elliott said.
He noted that tickets for that banquet are the same price as last year; $50.
