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Saskatchewan Chamber CEO visitsLa Steve McLellan, CEO of the Saskatchewan Chamber of Commerce, was in La Ronge June 5 and 6 to talk with members of the La Ronge and District Chamber of Commerce.
McLellan met, members of the La Ronge and District Chamber of Commerce board and local business people over the first day of his visit to La Ronge.
He spent time with local business people talking about their issues “in terms of the Chamber of Commerce.”
He found the interest in the Chamber “very, very high.”
“We heard yesterday, time and time again, how important it is to have a chamber that is strong and vibrant. What they need though, of course, is the business community to come and support them. You can’t expect one or two or three people to lead the entire charge. It is not the voice of two or three people. A Chamber of Commerce is the voice of the business community,” McLellan said in an interview with The Northerner.
McLellan said his trip to visitsLa Ronge was to encourage the business community to work together. “With many hands, work becomes lighter … We’re hopeful today people will say, ‘yes, we want a vibrant chamber.’”
The Saskatchewan Chamber of Commerce is responsible “to represent the business interests of the province.”
They have memberships across the province. “There is a network of Chambers that is critical to our success.” There are about 65 member Chambers across the province of which the La Ronge and District Chamber of Commerce is one, along with corporate memberships.
One of the roles of the Chamber is to carry concerns and interests of their membership to government agencies. “Business success is not just reliant on profits, it’s about a stronger community and we’re very cognoscente of that, so the chamber network across this province is very strong now. It’s gaining strength, but we also find in some communities … they stop for a minute and take a breath and say, ‘okay, let’s regroup a little before we move forward.”
Members of the La Ronge and District Chamber met on April 10 to determine whether to disband the organization because of low attendance and interest levels at meetings over the previous year.
Members present at the April meeting decided to make contact with business owners throughout the community to find out the potential interest in continuing the Chamber. They also decided to seek the expertise of the provincial Chamber of Commerce.
The La Ronge and District Chamber of Commerce will hold a general meeting on Monday, June 25 at the Woodlands and Waterways board room at 7 p.m. for the purpose of electing officers, a president, vice president, secretary-treasurer and five directors, according to a La Ronge and District Chamber of Commerce news release.
The second order of business is intended to be a “ratification of the committees of the Chamber with appointments of chairpersons and members of those committees.” The three committees of the Chamber are: Mining/Mineral Exploration Opportunities, Tourism and Retail.
“There were quite a few people that put up their hand as being willing to serve on the Chamber of Commerce, so everyone is optimistic that we can keep a functioning Chamber going in our area,” quoted from the news release.
The mission of the La Ronge and District Chamber of Commerce is to “actively promote trade and commerce to foster economic growth in our community; continually provide a collective voice for the benefit of our members; and create a community of opportunity for all.”
Valerie G. Barnes-Connell
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