The Red Deer & District Chamber of Commerce has been selected as the Alberta Chambers of Commerce 2017 Large Chamber of the Year.
Robin Bobocel, Red Deer & District Chamber of Commerce CEO, said the Alberta Chambers of Commerce offers four awards every year to small, medium and large sized chambers. For the 2017 award, the local chamber was up against other similar sized chambers in cities such as Edmonton, Calgary and Lethbridge.
He said the the award is a testament to chamber’s staff and all the hard work they do.
“We are (going in the right direction) and we will see greater gains over the next year,” he said.
“The staff is really proud and so am I, and it’s a great win for us.”
The award was presented at the 80th annual general meeting of the Alberta Chambers of Commerce hosted in Grande Prairie May 25-26.
Throughout 2017, the local chamber in partnership with Westerner Park hosted the most successful Agri-Trade yet, attracting thousands to the region and resulting in an economic impact of over $250 million. The two also worked hard on the successful bid to host the Canadian Finals Rodeo in Red Deer for the next 10 years that is estimated to create an economic impact of $25 million to the region on an annual basis.
Chamber advocacy efforts helped support RDC’s successful bid to pursue degree granting status, pressured city council to keep increases to operational spending to a minimum, and started a national movement pressuring the federal government to undertake comprehensive review of the tax statutes.
The chamber hosted the first ever Giving Tuesday Luncheon stressing the value of corporate philanthropy and community engagement.
The 2017 Business of the Year Awards recognized business excellence in the community and included for the first time ever the Legacy Awards, honoring 50 plus year members and the Young Entrepreneur Award to recognize entrepreneurs 35 years old and younger.
The Alberta Chambers of Commerce is comprised of 122 community chambers and in turn represents more than 24,000 businesses across the province making it the largest business and advocacy association in Alberta.
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