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The Kelowna Chamber of Commerce has elected a new president and added a few new faces to its board of directors.
March 13, at the Chamber’s annual general meeting, chamber members elected Carmen Sparg as their new president.
Sparg, who was previously the chamber’s executive vice-president, recently opened a management consulting firm. Prior to that, she worked for more than a decade with Total Interiors, during which she contributed to a 300 per cent sales growth at the company.
She takes over for Tom Dyas, who served two terms as president.
Sparg said it is an “honour” to take over as the chamber’s president, and that she has big shoes to fill replacing Dyas.
“Following in Tom’s footsteps won’t be easy. He was very active on a number of files, championing the needs of our members and the business community wherever he could. I am excited to work with the new board which have diverse backgrounds, plenty of experience and some new blood that will help shape the chamber’s future growth,” she added.
Dyas, who will remain on the Chamber’s board as past president, told the crows 2017 was one of the chamber’s busiest years on record, as it stepped up its advocacy efforts to challenge the proposed federal corporate tax changes, the provincial increases in the minimum wage, and new taxes being introduced by the provincial government.
The Chamber also held its first membership policy forum in the fall and expanded the role of its Policy Advisory Committee.
Along with Sparg stepping into the role of president, the largely unchanged board of directors welcomed a few new members: Dan Price, Andrew Brunton, Jenelle Hynes, and John Devitt.
Check back with Okanagan Edge tomorrow, when we’ll speak at length to Sparg.
A complete list of the chamber’s 2018 board of directors is listed below.
Returning board directors include:
- Carmen Sparg, Silver Lining Management Consulting Inc.: president-elect;
- Tom Dyas, TD Benefits: past president;
- Una Gabie, Touchstone Law Group LLP;
- Stuart Grant, Norelco Cabinet Solutions;
- Al Hildebrandt, Kelowna Foundation for Hope & Social Innovation;
- Angela Nagy, GreenStep Solutions;
- Ron Cannan, Interior Savings Credit Union;
- Domenic Rampone, West Manufacturing;
- Marek Buryska, Valley First Credit Union.
Re-elected directors include:
- Shelagh Turner, Canadian Mental Health Association;
- Nikki Csek, Csek Creative;
- Andrew Ingenhorst, Grant Thornton LLP.
Newly-elected directors include:
- Dan Price, CFO, Dilworth Quality Homes/Emil Anderson Construction;
- Andrew Brunton, Partner, Pushor Mitchell LLP;
- Jenelle Hynes, Business Development & Customer Service Manager, Pacific Coastal Airlines;
- John Devitt, Manager, Business Development & Community Relations, Kelowna International Airport.
The Board is also strengthened by a number of appointees including:
- Tracy Gray, Councillor, City of Kelowna;
- Barry McGillivray, Associate Dean, Okanagan School of Business;
- Gene Bernier, President, Kelowna JCI;
- Jeff Robinson, Partner, Rush Ihas Hardwick LLP.
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