Altona Chamber celebrates business excellence and community at annual gala

It was an evening of elegance and a celebration of local entrepreneurial spirit as the community gathered for the Altona and District Chamber of Commerce 2024 awards gala last night. 

Sun Valley Co-op was presented with the Business Excellence Award with eleven (11) employees or more.

"We were very surprised and humbled," said Board Chair, Kevin Bell. "There's so many wonderful businesses and organizations in the Altona area, we feel very fortunate to win this."

Sun Valley Co-op employs over 150 staff, providing quality products and services, and returning millions of dollars to over 8,000 members since the co-op was formed.

"I'd just like say thank you for the support from all of the members. I'd like to give a huge thank you to all of our employees and their dedication in looking after our members so Sun Valley Co-op can continue to grow and keep giving back to the community."

Sun Valley Co-Op has been in operation since 1931 with a long and remarkable history. There are 10 locations made up of Gas Bars, Home Centres, Bulk Petroleum, Cardlocks, Carwash, and Food Stores operating out of Altona, Morris, St Jean, Dominion City, and Emerson. In Altona, there has been significant upgrades and renovations to the grocery store and gas bar. 

It also supports the community through donations, volunteerism efforts, capital investments, 

"Community support is very much a two-way street," added Bell. "When members spend money at our locations on goods, we return the profits back to them in cash and equity. We also do give out donations to help worth-while causes in the community to get them off the ground and going too. Most of our bottom line comes right back into the community which really sets us apart from a lot of other businesses."

The Business Excellence Award with ten (10) employees or less was presented to Agassiz Massage Therapy. 

Brittany Dyck accepts the award from SEED board chair, Mike Friesen.

Agassiz Massage Therapy is a small health care clinic that offers Massage Therapy, Physiotherapy and Acupuncture services. The business opened on April 18, 2022, with one massage therapist. In just two years, they have grown to support three staff members with medical specialties that complement each other. Agassiz Massage Therapy has supported the Kiddie Sunshine Centre and programs at Ecole Parkside School and W.C. Miller Collegiate. They also continue to support hospital activity books for kids and look forward to mentoring massage therapy students in the future.

Entrepreneur of the Year went to Sarah Braun, owner of Springtide Wellness, a provider of therapeutic and wellness services that promote health and wellbeing, including reflexology, massage therapy, chiropractic, and esthetic services.

Sarah Braun accepts her award from Chamber President, Kal Smith

She is recognized for her impressive employee quality growth, marketing strategies, expansion ideas and her overall contribution and impact on the community. Sarah is all about employee satisfaction and proud of her employees. She feels that building up her team will allow them to grow the business.

Finally, adding to the momentum it's been gaining in the last year, The Community Exchange (TCE) was recognized as the Non-Profit of the Year.

Altona Deputy Mayor, Donna Rosling-Wolters, presents Cal Funk with TCE's award

"We were just so honoured to be nominated, being as new as we are, and then to find out we were awarded the award kind of blew us all away," said Board Chair Cal Funk. "We're very thankful and we're humbled by how the community has really engaged with what we're trying to do."

The Community Exchange’s vision is to build community connections through gatherings around food, learning from and with each other and creating a community resource hub. It works with eighteen local businesses and organizations who use the space or work together with them to create meaningful programming. Some of these programs include monthly community dinners, games night, English Café, Share the Warmth Project, Community Shop, and Food Rescue Program.

"Thank you to the community," added Funk. "I mean, the award's great but we feel a groundswell of support from within the community. We see people coming in and asking, 'is there a place I can volunteer?' We get random donations, and they're all welcome by the way," he chuckled. "And that's all great, but just seeing people plugging in and seeing people benefitting from what we're trying to do there is such a reward."

Donations to TCE can be made through canadahelps.org. Interested donors can also send etransfers to info@tcealtona.ca or stop by with a cheque.