"You only get out of your Chamber membership what you put into it," says past presiâ€" dent Michael Pratt, a manager at Royal Trust. "Being a comâ€" mittee member gives you a lot of insight into what the Chamber does. But if you only pay your dues and do nothing, you‘ll get nothing back." By Shelly Sanders G Special to the Beaver CC2 Committees â€" the backbone of the Oakville Chamber C.N.S. CANADA INC. 1135 North Service Rd. E., Unit 2 Oakville, Ontario L6H 1A7 . 77 This committee structure Thank you for playing such a large role in the growth of the Oakville e Business Community _ _\ Congratulations to the Chamber of Commerce on this 40th Anniversary from C.N.S. Canada Inc. With the Chambers assistance and services provided, we too celebrated our 5th Anniversary and have become Canada‘s largest full service computer repair depot right here in Oakville. 226 Lakeshore Rd. E. Oakville 844â€"6991 A oppy 40th 4/{/{/2*@/‘@&/7 At SmithKline Beecham Pharma, we know that a vigorous, prosperous future for Canada depends on the strength of our commitment to common goals and ideals. As the developers of many important patented medicines, our goal is longâ€"term health care solutions in partnership with all who bear the responsibility of caring for Canadians. We believe in fair pricing, sound and compassionate principles, and commitment to innovative research and development. We salute the members of the Oakville Chamber of Commerce who for 40 years have been the ‘Voice of Business‘ in the Town of Oakville, fostering strong and sound business practices. We congratulate the Ford Motor Compapy of Canada on their 40 years of leadership in the Oakville community. Salute! COMPUTER NETWORK SERVICES SmithKIine Beecham McCutcheon‘s Camera and Video xreer Thank You A Caring Company Currently, there are 10 active volunteer committees in the Chamber of Commerce, rangâ€" ing from a Small Business Committee to International Trade to a Golf Committee. "Every year, each committee of the Chamber is asked to dates back to the first days of the Chamber, although the types of committees have changed to reflect the times. x%::,,, > @® Phone 905â€"338â€"3044 Fax 905â€"338â€"3047 Quality Computer Services ANY The _ Small _ Business Committee also promotes the Student Venture Capital proâ€" gram through the Chamber. One committee member is responsible for making recomâ€" mendations for approval of loans to people with smart ideas. The Entrepreneur Centre at Shendan College is another concern of this committee. Basically, this government funded _ program _ trains entrepreneurs to put together solid business plans. A comâ€" Another area of involvement is reviewing local legislation as it relates to business people. The committee would look at licensing fees, for example, and monitor byâ€"laws and changes to these fees. "People have two hours to pick the brains of these experts," says Wrenshall. "It gives people the opportunity to find out what they should be doing." Chambers," says David Pollard, a member of the International Trade Committee as well as a Director. "Many of these changes do get adopted." Small Business Committee "Our mandate is to address issues that directly and indiâ€" rectly affect the small business person," _ says _ Bonnie Wrenshall, Small Business Committee chairperson. In addition, this committee tries to be responsive to new conâ€" cerns that develop over time. For example, it was determined there is a lack of available information for small business people, so this committee startâ€" ed a small business panel which offers experts who act as advisors to small business peoâ€" ple. The public at large is invitâ€" ed and these seminars are usuâ€" ally held the last Wednesday of the month at no cost. THE OAKVILLE BEAVER The success rate for this committee is fairly good. "Two to three years ago, the tax increases were 8% to 10% for the school board and 3% to 5% for the town, whereas inflation was at 3%. Now, we‘re expectâ€" ing a zero increase for 1994. To accomplish this goal, committee members attend town and regional budget meetings and try to get their message across. "Higher taxes make businesses less able to hire people and are hard on homeowners who won‘t be able to buy locally," says Hague. mittee member helps grade these plans. People who pass can continue to collect unemâ€" ployment while getting their business off the ground. Government Affairs Committee Dealing with local taxation issues is the major thrust of the Government Affairs Committee, headed up by Bob Hague. "We started out dealing with government relations, but now we‘ve narrowed our focus to local taxation." Hague explains. "This involves the Town the region, and the school boards. We try to ensure local property taxes stay at the level of inflation." ‘"Higher taxes make businesses less able to hire people and are hard on homeowners who won‘t be able to buy locally." Congratulations to the OAKVILLE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE From the Management and Staff Petroâ€"Canada â€" Lake Ontario Refinery on 40 years of outstanding service to the Business Community Suite 102 700 Dorval Dr. Oakville, Ont. L6K 3V7 8444661 Offices across Canada, including Chartered Accountants â€" .(:M::fement Consultants ian Member Firm of Crant Thornton International The partners of Doane Raymond extend dm&mukuom and best wishes to The Chamber of Commerce for Forty Years of dedicated service to our business community. Doane Raymond is one of Canada‘s leading firms of chartered accountants and management consultants, focused on serving the needs of entrepreneurial enterprises, financial institutions, governments, healthâ€"care organizations and other clients. Doane Raymond J PETROCANADA "We had a delegation from Sri Lanka recently," says Pollard. "We‘re looking at offering business opportunities for Canadians in Sri Lanka. We got them to Oakville from "For example, if the board of education gets a grant cut, how are they planning for that?" he asks. "They have to be more efficient, to do what companies in the real world would do and look into the organization to cut costs." International Trade Committee "We look at various issues to help people develop in foreign markets," says David Pollard, a member of the International Trade Committee. Some of the ways this committee educates business people is through seminars on topics like exportâ€" ing and NAFTA, liaising with the Buffalo Chamber of Commerce to enhance trade opportunities, and working with all levels of government on initiatives and programs of interest. For the future, Hague says his committee is looking at expanding its mandate to include making suggestions to government on how to adjust budgets in light of cutbacks. They‘ve heard our message." (_* M Bob Hague Because all these commitâ€" tees are so active, only those people with a strong commitâ€" ment level tend to be involved. "The Board of Directors has to approve committee memberâ€" ships," explains Pollard. "We try to get as wide a range of people as possible, memberâ€" ship is not automatic. We look for active people." Giving recommendations is also a large part of this comâ€" mittee‘s mandate. They run a Business Education Forum every spring where the purpose is to hear speakers and make recommendations for change. To ensure educators get a firstâ€"hand view of today‘s job market, this committee sets up tours of local businesses for guidance counsellors and stuâ€" dents. "Businesses are very receptive in Oakville," says Higgins. "We cover every type of career from tradespeople, to university graduates to downâ€" sized employees." Golf Committee The major fundraiser of the year is organized through the Golf Committee, which raised over $17,000 in June through the annual Chamber Golf Tournament. "We had over 225 golfers at the Richview Golf and Country Club," says Chairperson Jack Jamieson. "There are auctions, silent draws and entrance fees and golf prizes are donated by local businesses and members. Money raised helps run the various committees." Business/Education Committee | Providing business input to educators is the primary goal of the Business/Education Committee. "We liaise with educators to make sure they know what skills are needed in the _ workplace," _ says Chairperson Brenda Higgins. "To be competitive, it‘s really important that we have close contact with educators because skills can change very quickly. With technology, things are changing every two years." _ â€" TELEPHONE 845â€"8616 FAX 8421470 For the future, Pollard anticâ€" ipates there will be opportuniâ€" ties in South Africa, which was just deleted from the list of forâ€" bidden countries. "We have to keep our eyes open as opportuâ€" nities come about," he explains. Toronto on the GO train to demonstrate our transport sysâ€" tem. We‘re trying to get trade missions to go further than Toronto." CarLt W. DinKa, CHARTERED ACCOUNTANT Suite 211, 277 Lakeshore Road East Oakville, Ontario L6J 1H9 Oct. 20 1993