Local businesses win big at the Mark of Excellence Awards

The gala was back in full force on Thursday night. The Humboldt and District Chamber of Commerce Mark of Excellence Awards packed the house at Jubilee Hall to celebrate a wide range of area businesses. Big winners for the night was Strueby Plumbing and Heating who walked away with three awards.

Business leaders, service agencies and dignitaries enjoyed a beautifully appointed evening banquet and ceremony presided over by Chamber of Commerce Chair Tammy Ward. Ward talked about the new directions the Chamber had taken over the last few years, particularly in supporting businesses in a post-pandemic environment, its “Shop Local” campaigns, and focusing its energies away from long term duties as campground managers.

Carlton Trail – Eagle Creek MP Kelly Block and Humboldt Watrous MLA Donna Harpauer both sent greetings and regrets they could not attend due to parliamentary and legislative duties. Mayor Michael Behiel brought greetings from the City of Humboldt and commented that each of the nominees were deserving of recognition and contributed immeasurably to Humboldt’s standing in the province.

The theme of the evening was resilience – a well-recognized refrain throughout the business community after the economic strains brought on over the last few years. Both presenters and recipients commented on the challenges that entrepreneurs endured, in part because of the pandemic, but also due to the mercurial nature of business and the marketplace.

No one at the gathering was better equipped to talk about resilience in the face of change than guest speaker Senator Pamela Wallin. From her beginnings in Wadena to a career as one of Canada’s most widely recognized journalists and broadcasters, later as Canada’s consul general to New York City and ultimately the senate, Wallin’s career path has been, at times, at turbulent one. She spoke about being a cancer survivor, bouncing back after losing a broadcasting position, weathering the oft-churning waters of Canadian politics, and adopting a stance that allows her to endure.

“You’re here tonight to celebrate excellence in your own community and to honour the people who make a difference,” remarked Senator Wallin, “Those who show resilience it takes to overcome the odds, to build or to build back, and to succeed. As you all know, it takes hard work, commitment and a little compromise all around. You know the old saying, ‘The oak fought the wind and was broken; the willow when it had to and it survived.’”

Two dozen area businesses submitted nomination for awards, and the final decision on winners came independently from the sister Chamber of Commerce in Nipawin.

For 2023, the Business Hall of Fame Inductees were Eric and Ken (posthumous) Ruthven of Kemway Lanes. For nearly four decades, the brothers guided the lanes business interests and ingrained Kemway into the community and region.

Winners were: