ALL LEVELS OF GOVERNMENT - Airdrie Chamber of Commerce Breakfast & Panel Discussion

This panel event will feature an engaging Q & A session, moderated with questions sourced directly from the audience. 

This event serves as an interactive platform where the business community and our elected officials converge to facilitate productive dialogues and strengthen collaborative ties. It offers attendees an opportunity for direct engagement with elected representatives spanning from municipal, provincial, and federal levels of government. 

The primary objective of this event is to provide clarity regarding the responsibilities of each level of government, as well as to address questions related to business advocacy and support at each level. The questions raised and the ensuing discussions, will further inform the advocacy direction for our chamber moving forward.

Agenda:
7:45 AM - 8:00 AM Arrival
8:00 AM - 8:15 AM Breakfast Served 
8:15 AM - Sponsor Presentation: Melcor Celebrating 100 Years
8:30 AM - 9:30 AM Panel Intros and Q & A
9:30 AM - 10:00 AM Networking

For more information, contact Cheryl at cheryl@airdriechamber.ab.ca or by phone at 403-948-4412.

SPEAKERS:

BLAKE RICHARDS, MP Blake Richards has been a Member of the House of Commons since 2008. He is the Conservative Shadow Minister for Veteran's Affairs. Among other roles, he has previously served as the Chief Opposition Whip in the House of Commons, as Shadow Minister for Tourism, Small Business and Export Promotion, and was a member of the Finance Committee when the previous Conservative Government balanced the federal budget following the worldwide recession.   Always focused on the needs of his constituents, Blake has three times been named Canada's Best Constituency MP as well as Hardest Working MP. He has also received a Canadian Tourism Award for his work in Parliament on behalf of the tourism industry.

PETE GUTHRIE, MLA AIRDRIE-COCHRANE Minister of Infrastructure Pete Guthrie was first elected as the Member of the Legislative Assembly for Airdrie-Cochrane on April 16, 2019 and was re-elected on May 29, 2023. Prior to his service with the Legislative Assembly, Mr. Guthrie was a private business owner in the ranching and retail industries for close to 20 years. A professional engineer by trade, he worked for several years in the chemical and manufacturing industries before becoming an entrepreneur. Mr. Guthrie holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Alberta. Pete lives in Cochrane with his wife and is a proud father of two. Mr. Guthrie is a passionate advocate for Canadian Forces Members and Veterans and an active supporter of Civil Societies Organizations in his community. He works hard to promote local small businesses in their community contributions. MLA Guthrie was sworn in as Minister of Infrastructure on June 9, 2023. He previously served as the Minister of Energy.

 

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ANGELA PITT, MLA AIRDRIE-EAST Angela Pitt was elected to her third term as Member of the Legislative Assembly for Airdrie-East on May 29, 2023. She has been re-elected to the position of Deputy Speaker and Chair of Committees. Mrs. Pitt previously served as a member of the Special Standing Committee on Members Services, the Standing Committee on Legislative Offices, the Standing Committee on Privileges and Elections, Standing Orders and Printing, the Select Special Ombudsman and Public Interest Commissioner Search Committee and the Standing Committee on Families and Communities.  She was recently appointed by Premier Smith as the lead delegate to the National Conference of State Legislators to represent Alberta's interests amongst American law makers and our largest trading partner.  She is elected as the alternate chair to the Canadian Women Parliamentarians Association and serves as the Alberta chair. Prior to serving with the Legislative Assembly, she was a small business owner in Airdrie. During this time, she also served as president of a local constituency association and was an active volunteer in her community. She holds a business administration diploma with a major in marketing from the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology (SAIT). Mrs. Pitt has two children, lives in Airdrie and enjoys reading, gardening, and snowboarding. She was the 894th Member to be sworn in to the Legislative Assembly of Alberta.

 

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MAYOR PETER BROWN Mayor Peter Brown was sworn in as Airdrie's 6th Mayor for four consecutive terms on October 25, 2010, October 28, 2013, October 16, 2017 and October 18, 2021. He is passionate about our community and works tirelessly on behalf of all Airdrie residents and businesses. Mayor Brown is an active community leader with an interest in making communities better through volunteering. Mayor Brown attends over 500 events each year and is passionate about our seniors and youth. Mayor Brown gains wisdom and inspiration from breakfast and coffee meetings with our residents and businesses. Mayor Brown  also enjoys visiting with school groups and watching tomorrow's leaders take shape. Mayor Brown collaborates with the Airdrie business community to advocate for an entrepreneurial environment supportive of new and creative ways with the provincial government and the region. Mayor Brown currently sits on a number of Boards: AB Muni's as Director of Cities up to 500,000, AB Muni's Infrastructure Committee, AMSC Board, ALERT Committee, Calgary Metropolitan Regional Board, Rocky View  Foundation, Airdrie Main Street Square, Airdrie's Joint Use Agreement Committee, Inter-Municipal Committee, Emergency Advisory Committee and is an active member of Volunteer Airdrie.  Mayor Brown was a founding member of the Airdrie and Area Health Benefits Cooperative and the Airdrie and Area District Foundation. Mayor Brown previously sat on the following Boards: Airdrie Housing Limited, Calgary Regional Partnership, Airdrie Health Foundation, Abrio, AUMA Boards: Safe & Healthy Communities  Committee, Governance Committee and the Police Act Working Group.

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REEVE CRYSTAL KISSEL Reeve Crystal Kissel began her career with Rocky View County in 2017. She served as Deputy Reeve in 2021 and was appointed by council as Reeve last fall. She is passionate about serving the municipality and believes that working collectively with our neighbours will benefit the entire region. She has just recently helped to facilitate a partnership between Rocky View County and the City of Calgary to development a Joint Planning Area east of the city of Calgary.  This is a vision she hopes that will be shared with other municipalities as we all grow in the future. She and her family have lived in the area for the past 25 years and considered Rocky View County and Cochrane their home