Curtis Crouse of A-1 Heating and One Hour Plumbing is the new board chair for the St. Albert and District Chamber of Commerce.
Crouse said over the years he has enjoyed the issues and decisions the Chamber board has tackled, and began his path to chair when he joined the board for the first time.
"For me, it’s a way to give back to the community and it’s a way for me to also, you know, help with my own personal development," said Crouse.
Crouse said he hopes to continue with the trajectory the Chamber is currently on.
The pandemic has proved to be a major stumbling block for many businesses, forcing many to shut their doors for a period of time and many others to pay for protection measures and new ways of operating. Crouse said he expects there will be big news in the coming months with regard to COVID-19 – be it a vaccine, a scientific breakthrough or different regulations.
"We don’t know what that’s going to be, but hopefully in the course of the next 13 months there will be some sort of news around that that will allow us to be able to continue more seamless operations within the business world," he said.The 2021 board of directors for the chamber includes past chair Marg Mrazek and first vice-chair Garry Wetsch of Landrex. The second vice-chair is Julie Quantz-Kovac from Oil City Signs Inc. Jill Bulmer of Cerulean Boutique was elected to be treasurer.
New directors for the 2021 year include Shawna Randolph, from Shawna Randolf Communications; Mel Garbe, from Lift Legal; Angie Hampshire, from the St. Albert Gazette; and Rosanna Fischer, from KDM Management Inc.; all of whom are taking on two-year terms. Patrick Kehdy of the Canadian Brewhouse is taking on a one-year term.
Directors on their second year of their two-year terms are Connie Clark from Mission Computers, Jillian Creech from the St. Albert Centre mall and Paul Lanni from Averton.
“If anyone had asked me this time last year what 2020 was going to look like for the Chamber and for our business community, I would have painted a very different picture than I do today,” said Mrazek.
Many annual events the chamber usually holds have been cancelled this year due to COVID-19. The Snowflake Festival and the Christmas Luncheon will not take place this year, although the Chamber is looking at other ways to support the St. Albert Food Bank and the Salvation Army.
Despite COVID disruptions and uncertainties, the Chamber has offered supports to businesses across St. Albert, including a Facebook page that allows businesses to post their hours of operation and other relevant information.
They have hosted virtual roundtables by business sector and held 36 “lunch and learn” webinars. They also advocated directly to the federal and provincial government about funding and other concerns small businesses had during the spring and summer months.
“The Chamber’s focus over the past months has been to provide support and access to resources to our business community to help mitigate these uncharted waters,” said Mrazek.
