The Drumheller and District Chamber of Commerce through the World’s Largest Dinosaur Legacy Fund presented funds to four local non-profit organizations on Wednesday, September 30. A total of $10,915 was handed out by Chamber of Commerce President, Landon Bosch.

The Canadian Badlands Artists Association received $3,000 to install flooring in the customer service area of the Badlands Gallery located in downtown Drumheller on 3rd Avenue. The Drumheller and District Rural Crime Watch Association received $1,915 for the addition of eight Crime Watch road signs throughout the area and the Drumheller Society for Recovery received $3,000 to assist with the replacement of shingles on the Grace House. In addition, the Pioneer Trail Society received $3,000 for custom made cabinets.

The World’s Largest Dinosaur Legacy Fund invests a portion of funds generated by the World’s Largest Dinosaur attraction and Giftshop to enhance and enrich community economic development initiatives in the Drumheller region. To date the Legacy Fund has contributed almost $580,000 to an array of worthy community group projects. The next application deadline for capital projects less than $3,000 will be March 1, 2016.

- 30 -

For more information, please contact:

Heather Bitz

Executive Director

Drumheller and District Chamber of Commerce

403-823-8100

On October 22nd, 2015, the Drumheller and District Chamber of Commerce (DDCC) capped off their Small Business Week activities with the annual Business Excellence Awards Gala at the Badlands Community Facility. Just under 100 people were present and 6 awards were given out:

• Arts, Culture and Community Award: Western GM Drumheller
• Diversity Leadership Award: McDonald's
• Most Promising New Business: Ivy's Awesome Kitchen & Bistro
• Small Business of the Year: Bold Efexx Hair Shop
• Large Business of the Year: Reality Bytes
• Business Professional of the Year: John Shoff

Attendees enjoyed a delicious buffet dinner by Double D Catering and lovely musical performances throughout the evening by the band Me & the Mrs. from Rosebud.

The DDCC began accepting nominations from the community for the awards in August, after which the Awards Selection Committee undertook the process of scoring each nominee based on the awards criteria. The three highest scores in each category were used to determine the finalists, and of those finalists, the highest-scoring ones were selected as the overall winners.

The Drumheller and District Chamber of Commerce would like to thank the event sponsors:

GOLD Sponsors: ATB Financial, Canalta Hotels

SILVER Sponsor: Telus

BRONZE Sponsors: Alok Verma Professional Corporation, TJ Valley Adjusters, Town of Drumheller

WINE Sponsor: Community Futures Big Country

Photos from the evening can be found on the Drumheller Chamber of Commerce Facebook page.

The location of the next Business After Hours networking event...

could be yours! If you are interested in hosting a Business After Hours please let us know, and we will give you information on how we can assist you. You can also download our "Tips, Suggestions and How-To Guide" for hosting a Business After Hours event.

Contact Marley by email or at the Chamber, 403-823-8100

Do your plans for 2016 include hiring or training staff? If so, you may be interested in an upcoming information session on the Canada-Alberta Job Grant and the soon-to-be reinstated Summer Temporary Employment Program (STEP).
Consider training new or current employees through the Canada-Alberta Job Grant and get 2/3 of the direct training cost reimbursed up to $10,000 per person.  This employer-driven program allows employers to decide on the type of training, who gets trained, and which eligible third-party trainer delivers the training.
The Summer Temporary Employment Program (STEP) is a wage subsidy grant that Alberta employers will be able to apply for in 2016. STEP grants will enable employers to offset the cost of wages for summer students while providing students with work experience and transferable skills that are valuable in opening the door to the labor market upon graduation.

*Date: Tuesday, January 12th, 2016*

*Time: 7:00 pm

*Location: Badlands Community Facility

This session is open to the public and is co-hosted by the Town of Drumheller and the Drumheller and District Chamber of Commerce.

On Tuesday January 26, the DDCC will be hosting a meeting with MLA Rick Strankman. The meeting will begin at 10:00 am at the Badlands Community Facility. This open dialogue with our MLA will provide an opportunity to discuss issues of concern to the business community, including the proposed minimum wage increases and Bill 6. This event is proudly presented by the Drumheller and District Chamber of Commerce, your voice for local business.