The Grande Prairie & District Chamber of Commerce 2021 Annual General Meeting is scheduled for Thursday, December 2 at the Pomeroy Hotel & Conference Centre.

This is a hybrid event. To participate virtually, the cost is $20 + GST and you will receive a Zoom link to log in for 6:30 PM.

For in-person attendees, doors open at 5:30 PM with dinner at 5:45 PM. Please indicate any dietary questions by contacting our office.


The AGM will include a review of our activities in 2021 and election of our 2022 Board of Directors. A reminder that each Chamber Member business in good standing is entitled to ONE vote.

THIS YEAR'S NOMINEES FOR THE 2022 BOARD OF DIRECTORS ARE LISTED BELOW.

The meeting will be followed by networking prior to the Awards and Chair Salute program which will begin at 8:00 PM. Door prize draws and more networking will end the evening.

The cost to attend the AGM, Awards and Chair Salute in person is $60 + GST. The Pomeroy Hotel & Conference Centre has implemented the Government of Alberta Restrictions Exemptions Program. Proof of vaccination or negative test result, plus mandatory masking is required from all guests.

Contact the Chamber Office by phone at 780-532-5340 or email info@gpchamber.com for more information.
EJIBOLA ADETOKUNBO-TAIWO

Ejibola is a proud black entrepreneur, an entrepreneurship Consultant, a business coach, and a women entrepreneur advocate. A former business banker of over 10 years, Ejibola carries an impressive entrepreneurial spirit paired with passion and an ambitious drive to grow more women leaders and drive change by empowering women using entrepreneurship as a tool.

An innovative, dynamic entrepreneurial professional, Ejibola is the CEO of Simply Ejibola Inc. and the Founder/Principal Consultant at de Sedulous Women Leaders. Today, Ejibola continues to support women's equality in business and women's economic advancement by helping business-challenged entrepreneurs, those wanting to take their side hustle full time, start-ups and medium enterprises to growth and scalable level.

Ejibola has been the lead creator of several fancy entrepreneurship initiatives she is well known for; she is the Creator of the femImmiGRANTS, a grant opportunity in its 2nd season specifically for female entrepreneurs in Canada; the Initiator of the iiNTEGRATE NEXT program for Newcomers in Canada sponsored by the Government of Canada; the strategist for the iLaunchHERproduct aimed at connecting women-owned businesses with big box retail stores in Canada; and the Co-Organizer of the Rise Up Pitch Competition, a national grant program co-hosted along with BBPA and Casa Foundation (both from Ontario).

Through every initiative she leads, Ejibola shares the stories of others and learn a little more about herself along the way, expanding her creative and innovative expertise. Ejibola speaks so passionately about being on a mission where "#NoWomanShouldBeLeftBehind", a slogan behind the Social Development Goal (SDG) Goal #5 Gender Equality her network de Sedulous Women Leaders is built on. de Sedulous Women Leaders is a safe space where immigrant women (black women, women of colour, BIPOC whichever way they self identify) are empowered to embrace their business journey through their unique business model; develop, explore and challenge their mindset for barrier-breaking success, and find meaningful business resources to help grow, scale and expand their business venture.

Ejibola’s mission in the entrepreneurial ecosystem is to amplify the voices of all women in business and tell their stories from a unique point of view – their products. As a Nigerian-Canadian woman and BIPOC entrepreneur, Ejibola is an underrepresented person, so she gravitates towards other entrepreneurs who are also underrepresented. Ejibola bonds with every business owner she supports in a respectable, authentic way due to her compassionate nature and ability to truly understand another’s perspective.

Ejibola has received several awards amongst which are Woman of Influence Trailblazer Award by the City of Grande Prairie; Rural Women Mentorship Award by the Universal Women Network; Entrepreneurship Mentorship Award by the Grande Prairie Chamber of Commerce; Top 75 Canadian Immigrants in Canada by Canadian Immigrant Magazine; Leadership Award by the Diversity Magazine Canada, and most recently she will be receiving the Community Leader Award by the Council of Nigerian Professional come December 2021.

Ejibola currently sits on the Economic Development Strategic Planning and Advisory Committee at the City of Grande Prairie. Beyond entrepreneurship and business consultancy services, in her downtime, she is an avid movie watcher who loves to learn more about people and disruptive concepts, and she enjoys spending time with her family who enjoy road trips no matter the distance.
JON ANDERSON (Incumbent)

Jon Anderson is the Director, Business Banking for ATB Financial. Jon and his team are focused on listening to the needs of Alberta entrepreneurs and making banking work for them.

Jon believes that by surrounding entrepreneurs with knowledgeable experts and supportive advocates, he can enable entrepreneurs to be successful and resilient for the long-run.

Jon has focused his community contribution through serving on the Board of the Chamber of Commerce and through the Scouts Canada program. Not only does scouting provide enriching experiences for youth and actively give to the community through its many volunteering efforts, it also aligns strongly with Jon’s commitment to building future community leaders.
DAVID FENNER

I was born in Houston, Texas. I am a dual citizen of two great countries United States and Canada.

I served in the US Army for 7 years. I am a combat veteran and value my time in service as a great honor.

While in Texas I also started my degree program for Petroleum Engineer.

I moved to Canada after my service in the Army and looked to this beautiful country for my next great adventure in life. I chose Alberta, as my extended family had a small horse farm outside of Calgary.

After enjoying the Calgary area, I joined the oil and gas sector in the Grande Prairie area for a new and exciting career, where I spent 20 years of service, raised 5 children and grew to love our City of GP.

After leaving the oil and gas sector, I was invited to be part of a space telecommunications development in the New Mexico desert at Spaceport America, where I helped design and launch satellite systems into space.

Now back in Grande Prairie, my wife and I have opened a new and advanced career training centre in Cosmetology (LilyGray Academy). We are so proud of this business, training and excelling our students in their future careers by, in turn, helping and growing our economy with potential new business owners starting their business. We are proud to be part of the ever-changing businesses in our wonderful and growing area.

If elected to join the Chamber of Commerce, I will continue to reach out and help our local entrepreneurs and established businesses alike to excel and grow, while continuing to work with our charitable organizations in helping all in our great community of Grande Prairie.
JASON HOWRISH (Incumbent)

Jason Howrish is a Business Unit manager at the International Paper pulp mill and is responsible for safety, profit, cost, and people in the finished products area of the pulp mill.

Born and raised in the Grande Prairie area with over 25 years of experience in the forest products, oilfield, restaurant industries. Jason is part of a family of 5 with 3 boys. He enjoys spending time with them, travelling, doing outdoor activities such as camping, hiking, sledding and swimming.

Jason brings 20+ years of experience in progressively increasing leadership roles. Having a background in operations/ project management, he is passionate about business improvement and igniting real results. Jason has a track record of doing more with less through novel approaches and improved procedures.

Jason’s approach:
· Get to know the people
· Learn the systems
· Build plans together
· Implement those plans well
· Improve

Jason understands that people are what make an organizations great and looks forward to an opportunity to work with chamber and Grande Prairie’s business leaders to grow their businesses, while giving back to the community. Jason has spent time on 3 other community boards in the past.
LAURA LAVALLEY

Laura is inspired by community builders, thrives in teamwork, and loves to make meaningful connections.

Born in Grande Prairie, Laura has strong connections to our region. From her pioneer family roots and her long-time volunteer work, to her lengthy career in local not for profit organizations, Laura is a great advocate and community ambassador.

A GPRC alumnus, Laura attended the business program, specifically marketing and management. Giving of her time and talents to groups and organizations that better the region has been a north star in her career path. As the CEO of the Community Foundation of Northwestern Alberta, Laura appreciates the opportunity to build community through her work.

Laura has always acted as a visionary; generating solutions, forwarding important initiatives, and managing projects. She is comfortable advocating around the board room table, as well as digging in to do the grassroots tasks. She has a solid framework of experience working with Boards, balancing her connection to the area with proven skills to promote progress.

Laura has experience and interest in many different sectors including health care, finance, emergency response, education, energy, and agriculture. Her experience goes beyond the city boundaries, connecting and impacting regionally.

Laura is forward thinking with a strong desire to support and improve the region. She is always most at home when she has the opportunity to work as a team with diverse people who love to give back to their community.

Laura has lived on a bison ranch near Bezanson for the past 22 years with her husband Tyler, and kids; Mason, Carter and Sierra. The LaValley’s enjoy camping, hiking and skiing. Laura’s best days are the ones spent with friends and family, where good food and conversation are overflowing!
PAMELA NORDIN (Incumbent)

The importance of community was instilled in me at a young age having been raised in a small rural community in Manitoba. I am a proud mother to Sydney, a 25-year old student and entrepreneur, and wife to Geoff, with whom I run a small trucking business. My greatest personal achievement has been completing my Bachelor of Political Science degree as a mature student. Going back to school in my late thirties was both terrifying and incredibly rewarding. Upon completion of my undergrad degree, my husband and I officially put down roots in Grande Prairie where we continue to run our business.

Since moving here, I have had term positions with the Grande Prairie & District Chamber of Commerce and the County of Grande Prairie. I currently serve as a Director on the Grande Prairie and District Chamber of Commerce Board and am now running for a second term. Prior to my position as a Director on the Board, I served as a Chamber Ambassador which was a great opportunity to both promote the Chamber to prospective members and to visit and celebrate our current membership.

My community service also involves sitting as the Lottery Director for the Swan City Rotary Club and Chair of the Joint Venture Lottery Committee, which is a partnership with two other Rotary Clubs in Grande Prairie. I also serve as a Director on the Regional EMS Foundation Board. I am a founding member for Gaps in the Peace, which has been focused on food security in this community.

The Grande Prairie & District Chamber of Commerce is about the success of business while advocating improvement of the lives of those who work and live in this region. The past 18 months has seen our business community challenged like never before. It has been a privilege to serve with this Board and administration as everyone rolled up their sleeves and got to work and, I would suggest, made a fundamental difference in the lives of many small business owners as well as the community, as a whole. My knowledge and experience in owning a small business coupled with my passion for the work and vision of the Chamber compels me to run for this second term. To get the support from the membership that would allow me to continue to serve as a Director of the Board for the Grande Prairie & District Chamber of Commerce would be an honour.
KARCI WALLAN (Incumbent)

Karci is seeking a second term as a Director of the Grande Prairie and District Chamber of Commerce. She appreciates the opportunity to continue to serve the members of the Chamber and greater business community of Grande Prairie and surrounding area as they navigate the commerce and professional landscape. She hopes to support their needs and assist in their economic well being as a member of the Board.

Karci Wallan is a Partner with MNP LLP. Karci was born and raised in the Peace Country and has been exposed to homegrown and hardworking businesses and business owners through her experiences with family members and her time with MNP. Karci strives for a high level of client service in her day-to-day business advisor role and is looking forward to providing the same commitment to the Chamber members through her second term as a Director. During her spare time, Karci enjoys spending time with her husband Lincoln, her new son Eller and their pets Stella and Samson.
The Nominating Committee has also put forward the following candidates for the 2022 Grande Prairie & District Chamber of Commerce Executive:

CHAIR OF THE BOARD - Tertius Genis

FIRST VICE-CHAIR - Cindy Park

SECOND VICE-CHAIR - Cord Spero

(PAST CHAIR - Larry Gibson)