The community saw the many facets to Gateway Resources in Winkler Wednesday night. The inaugural Faces of Gateway Dinner Gala took place at the Days Inn Conference Centre.

Gateway Resources CEO Kim Nelson explains participants were in the spotlight.

"I get to the opportunity to be part of these lives and to hear these stories every day, and I wish everyone got that opportunity... and it's important for everyone to hear their stories."

Community Learning Manager Alesha Hildebrand says it was an empowering experience for the participants.

"Not very often do they get to share with a wide number of people about what it means to be in the community," she says.

Another facet in the spotlight was Gateway's employment partnerships with local businesses. Approximately 75 work placements give participants a chance to serve in a number of avenues within the community.

"It's a win-win... you're going to have a dedicated employee," Hildebrand says. "And the relationships built through these job placements are really inevitable."

Long-time participant Keith Peters is employed at Hometown Ford.

"I love these guys a lot, they're good workers, and they actually have me as one of their staff members... it feels great," Peters says.

Keith Peters and Employer Bob Derksen

Local businesses also shared of how impacting the work placements can be.

Employer Bob Derksen says it was a natural fit. Derksen had been a Special Olympics coach for a number of years before looking at the potential of having a Gateway Resources participant work at Hometown Service.

"It's been a good experience," Derksen says. "Keith is really a part of the team, and I would say he is an ambassador to our staff and to our clients."

"He just has a great attitude, he's always got a smile on his face and I don't think Keith's ever had a bad day at work yet," Derksen says. "It's just win-win for everybody."

In total the Faces of Gateway event is expected to have brought in over $5,000 for Gateway Resources and continued programming.

"Without the community member support, we wouldn't be able to do any of the work that we do," Nelson says.

 

The innaugural event raised over $5,000 for Gateway Resources