Mission Regional Chamber of Commerce

The Mission Regional Chamber of Commerce (MRCC) is a Canadian non-profit organization that acts as an advocate for economic development in the region and promotes area tourism to visitors and locals.[1]

Mission Regional Chamber of Commerce
Founded1893
FounderHarry Brown French
TypeAdvocacy group
FocusBusiness Advocacy
Location
Area served
Mission, British Columbia, Canada
WebsiteMRCC Website

It serves the businesses of Mission, British Columbia, and acts as a Chamber of Commerce, similar to a Board of Trade.

History

The MRCC was created on June 19, 1893[2] as B.C.'s fourth Board of Trade[3] by Harry Brown French, an American sent to Mission after the town's founder sold land to a New York railway corporation. French was elected the Board of Trade's first president, and upon its creation the Board took out advertisements in local newspapers, offering a package of free land, free water, free power and property tax exemptions to potential industrialists, as well as offering to construct factories, mills and other commercial buildings at no charge.[4]

In 1946, the Board of Trade suggested that a Strawberry Festival as well as a Soapbox Derby should be held on June 26. The event was successful and visitors travelled from different areas of the Fraser Valley to attend the event.[5] The festival was held annually until 1951, despite an interruption in June 1948 when the Fraser River flooded causing the event to be postponed until July in its third year.[6] In 1951, Langley, BC became the new host of the Strawberry Festival after the decline of berry farming and the increase in employment in the forestry industry in the Mission area.[4]

The organization operated under the name of the Mission City and District Board of Trade until 1961 when its name was changed to the Mission City and District Chamber of Commerce.[7] That name stuck until 1970 when it was changed to the Mission City Chamber of Commerce. In 1977, it was suggested by the organization's Vice President Dave Kenyon that the Chamber of Commerce should be terminated[8] due to poor attendance and lack of participation by members.[9] The Chamber persevered, avoiding termination, and in 1979 the name was changed for the final time to its present name, the Mission Regional Chamber of Commerce.[3] Since then, the MRCC has continued to serve the businesses of Mission and now houses a visitor centre.[10]

Description

The MRCC describes its mission as to "foster a network for entrepreneurial leaders to partner in representation, communication and education."[11] It acts on behalf of local businesses, and as an unbiased advocacy group, they serve as a direct liaison between their members and the local government. They also provide their members with networking opportunities, group benefits, educational seminars, as well as marketing and advertising opportunities.[12]

The MRCC is a member of the BC Chamber of Commerce.[13] It currently has 450 members and prints a monthly newsletter titled "The Business Track".[12][14] It hosts the Annual Candlelight Parade, the largest nighttime Christmas Parade in Western Canada and draws approximately 13 000 spectators every year.[15]

The original Mission Soapbox Derby is still held annually by the Mission & District Soapbox Derby Association.[16]

Current President

The current president of the Chamber is Manny Deol, a realtor with Royal LePage Wheeler Cheam Realty. Manny was born and raised in Mission.

Past Presidents

YearPresident
1893Harry Brown French[4] 1979 Dave Kenyon
1909 R.C. Abbot 1980 S. Barwell
1912 W.H. Mathewson 1981 Bob Cummings
1913 R.C. Abbot 1982 Dave Kenyon
1914-1915 A.M Verchere 1983 Stephen Phinney
1917-1919 A.A. Lane 1984-1985 Mart Kenney
1920-1921 F.J. Roche 1986-1987 Jeanne Price
1922 Hope Alanson 1988-1989 Doug Parkinson
1923 S.H. Crosby 1990 Sheila Jones/Ross Quinn
1924W.G. Gamble 1991-1993 Cal Crawford
1925Hope Alanson 1994 Doug Thorpe
1926-1927A.B. Noble 1995 Elaine Howardson
1928R. McRae 1996 Anne Norder
1929-1930Rex Cox 1997 C. Stacey Crawford
1931J. Yool 1998-1999 P. Gordon Wood
1932-1933 A.J. Clark 2000 S. Brad Powell
1934J. Muir 2001 Lynne Christensen
1935L.R. Wilson 2002-2003 Ted Adlem [17]
1936R.C. Cox 2004 Stacey Crawford
1937G.V. Ogle 2005 Cal Crawford
1938A.D. McRae 2006 Sheron Vallance
1939A.N. Lawrence 2007 Stuart Rosenberg
1940J. Muir 2008-2009 Sean Melia
1941E.J. Taylor 2010 Helen Secco
1942T.W. Davies 2011 Cal Crawford
1943-1944F.C. Lightbody 2012 Elyssa L. Lockhart
1945 Peter Grant 2013 Sean Melia
1946 C.S. Thompson 2014-2015 Ann Harper
1947A.G. McInnis 2016-2017 David Sawatzky
1948A.C. Fisher 2018 Andrea Walker
1949Harry Davis 2019 Raj Patara
1950 C.I. McMurdo 2020 Ellen Nguyen
1951Albert McMahon 2021 Angel Elias
1952Frank Kearney 2022 Manny Deol
1953K.A. "Ken" Shore
1954N.S. Thompson
1955E. "Ted" Boulter
1956Keith Collver
1957Percy Buckle
1958R.L. "Bob" Fletcher[18]
1959 Albert McMahon
1960-1961Lang Sands [7]
1962-1963Laurie Wainwright
1964-1965 Vic Wallace
1966-1967G.W. Walker
1968Bruce Catto
1969Paul Jacobs
1970-1971George Kummel
1972 D.C. Trumpour
1973 Mart Kenney
1974 J.A. Gagnon
1975 Dr. R.C. Barwell
1976 Bob Cummings
1977 G.H. (Bert) Chapman [9]
1978 Dr. R.C. Barwell

MASCOT

Stan the Sturgeon is the Ambassador for the Mission BC Visitor Centre. His primary role is to advise on all up-coming community events and to promote tourism within the region. This is achieved through social media outlets including Facebook and Twitter. Stan is regularly booked to attend local events and school field trips. Find him via Facebook - Mission BC Visitor Centre or Twitter Stansturgeon1

References

  1. "Mission Regional Chamber of Commerce Website:About Us". Retrieved August 7, 2011.
  2. "Old Document Reveals Board Founded in '93", The Fraser Valley Record, Mission, BC, Canada, 19 April 1945.
  3. Kask, Glen. "First board of trade in B.C.", The Fraser Valley Record, Mission, BC, Canada, 16 June 1993.
  4. Schroeder, Andreas (1991). Carved from Wood, Mission, B.C. 1861-1992, p. 20-21,173,193. D.W. Friesen, Altona, MB, Canada. ISBN 1-55056-131-6.
  5. Cherrington, John (1974). Mission on the Fraser, Patterns of a small city's progress, p. 33,172. Mitchell Press, Vancouver, BC, Canada.ISBN B0006CL344
  6. Robertson, Betty, Marcellus, Catherine, Dandy, Betty (1992). Mission's Living Memorials, p. 141. Friesen Printers, Altona, MB, Canada. ISBN 1-55056-205-3.
  7. "Chamber of Commerce Replaces Trade Board", The Fraser Valley Record, Mission, BC, Canada, 11 January 1961.
  8. "Chamber of Commerce may face extinction", The Fraser Valley Record, Mission, BC, Canada, 26 October 1977.
  9. "Mission Chamber Seeks New Identity", The Fraser Valley Record, Mission, BC, Canada, 30 November 1977.
  10. "Tourism BC: Mission Visitor Centre". Retrieved August 8, 2011.
  11. "Mission Regional Chamber of Commerce Website:Chamber". Archived from the original on July 3, 2011. Retrieved August 7, 2011.
  12. "Mission Regional Chamber of Commerce Website:Join". Retrieved August 7, 2011.
  13. "BC Chamber of Commerce: Directory". Archived from the original on August 19, 2011. Retrieved August 8, 2011.
  14. "Mission Regional Chamber of Commerce Website: Newsletters". Archived from the original on June 30, 2012. Retrieved August 5, 2012.
  15. "Tourism BC: Festivals & Events". Archived from the original on October 9, 2009. Retrieved August 8, 2011.
  16. "Mission & District Soapbox Derby Association". Retrieved August 12, 2011.
  17. "At Pete's Place, we love what we do", The Mission Record, Mission, BC, Canada, 30 June 2011.
  18. "Past Presidents Honored by Board of Trade", The Fraser Valley Record, Mission, BC, Canada, 19 November 1958.
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