The Grande Prairie and District Chamber of Commerce has announced the nominees for the Board of Directors and 4 out of 7 nominees are incumbents, with those being Karci Wallan, Pamela Nordin, Jason Howrish, and Jon Anderson.
Wallan is seeking her second term as a Director on the Board. She is a partner with MNP LLP and hopes to support the needs of the Grande Prairie area and assist their economic well-being as a member of the Board.
Nordin currently serves as Director on the Board and has also worked with the County of Grande Prairie. She also served as a Chamber Ambassador and runs a small trucking business with her husband, Geoff. Nordin is a founding member of Gaps in the Peace, which has been focused on food security in this community.
Howrish is a Business Unit Manager at the Internation Paper pulp mill and is responsible for safety, profit, cost, and people in the finished products area of the pulp mill. He has more than 25 years of experience in forest products, oilfield, and restaurant industries. Jason has spent time on 3 other community boards in the past.
Anderson is the Director, Business Banking for ATB Financial. Jon has also contributed to the Grande Prairie community through serving on the Board of the Chamber of Commerce and through the Scouts Canada program.
The three new candidates include Ejibola Adetokunbo-Taiwo, Laura LaValley, and David Fenner.
Adetokunbo-Taiwo is a proud black entrepreneur, an entrepreneurship Consultant, a business coach, and a women entrepreneurship advocate. She currently sits on the Economic Development Strategic Planning and Advisory Committee at the City of Grande Prairie.
LaValley is the CEO of the Community Foundation of Northwestern Alberta. Laura has experience and interest in many different sectors including health care, finance, emergency response, education, energy, and agriculture. Her experience goes beyond the city boundaries, connecting and impacting regionally.
Fenner served in the US Army for 7 years. He is a combat veteran and value his time in service as a great honor. While in Texas he also started my degree program for Petroleum Engineer. After enjoying the Calgary area, Fenner joined the oil and gas sector in the Grande Prairie area for a new and exciting career, where he spent 20 years of service, raised 5 children, and grew to love our City of GP.
The board has also put forth the following nominations. Tertius Genis for Chair of the Board, Cindy Park for First Vice-Chair, Cord Spero for Second Vice-Chair, and Larry Gibson (Past Chair).