In a year when business activity has surged in the area, the Terrace and District Chamber of Commerce is once again honouring top achievers through its annual Business Excellence Awards.
Top finishers in 14 categories will be recognized at a gala planned for November.
The categories take in everything from Company of the Year to Newsmaker of the Year to Executive of the Year to Tourism Excellence.
And there are categories for community participation as well.
If chamber executive director Carol Fielding has any favourite categories it would be ones for Volunteer of the Year and Community Booster of the Year.
“These would be people who contribute to the community and they can be under appreciated at times. It really is about community,” she said.
Last year’s Volunteer of the Year award went to Mavis and Ron Ramsey who run Helping Hands by raising money which is then used to defer the costs of prescription drugs for seniors and others and the 2013 Community Booster award went to Northern Animal Rescue for its work with animals that have either been abandoned or abused.
Fielding also pointed to the Rookie of the Year category, saying people who are starting out in a business venture demonstrate commitment and spirit.
That award went to Blue Fin Sushi which is now expanding its seating capacity.
Significant news making events of the past year might include the completion of B.C. Hydro’s Northwest Transmission Line, overall development of the city’s Skeena Industrial Development Park south of the airport, the increasing passenger traffic at the Northwest Regional Airport and the massive search last fall for two missing mushroom pickers.
The awards are sponsored by a variety of local businesses.
Key to the success of the awards is that anyone can nominate a business or person, said Fielding.
“It’s not just [chamber] members who can nominate. But we do ask that all the [nomination] fields be filled in. We will need to contact people who have been nominated,” she said.
Three finalists from each category will be chosen by category sponsors and voting will then take place to choose a winner.
Voting, as with nominations, will be open to anyone, and takes place next month.
Nomination forms were printed in the Sept. 17, 2014 issue of The Terrace Standard and extra forms are available at the George Little House at the foot of Kalum St.
The nomination deadline is Oct. 1 at 4:30 p.m. Submission information is outlined on the nomination form.
In addition to the gala night for first place finishers, there will be an earlier event at which the top three nominees in each category are announced and recognized.