Thursday, October 29, 2020
VOLUME 3 I ISSUE 18
MERIDIANSOURCE.CA
LRHF honoured as Business of the Year TAYLOR WEAVER
EDITOR
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It may not have been the year local businesses were hoping for, but the Border City business community proved anything can be accomplished when faced with adversity. The Lloydminster Chamber of Commerce hosted their 2020 Business Excellence Awards on Oct. 22, and the Lloydminster Region Health Foundation (LRHF) walked away with the Business of the Year award. The awards were held between Spiro’s Family Restaurant, Harvest to Home and Three Trees Tap + Kitchen, and livestreamed online, to adhere to social gathering restrictions. Despite the changes to the evening’s program to ensure public safety guidelines were met, the night’s excitement was not lost as local businesses celebrated each other’s successes. LRHF CEO, Malcolm Radke, summed up his reaction to the news in one word, shock.
“To be held in that light by the local business community is such an overwhelming compliment,” said Radke, noting the organization is a member of the Chamber.
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It felt like maybe a testament to how grateful our community was to all of our local healthcare facilities, and all of those frontline staff members, and I can definitely tell you the feeling is reciprocated.
“My phone blew up right away just from the staff in our group chat. I was in shock. I didn’t really know what to say to anyone. “We’re all just flattered by the honour. That was our initial reaction. I would also say it felt like a COVID
award … there weren’t too many buildings open in town for a couple of months there, but overall, government agencies can’t win chamber awards, so it felt like maybe a testament to how grateful our community was to all of our local healthcare facilities, and all of those frontline staff members. “I can definitely tell you the feeling is reciprocated, and our local frontline workers really felt supported and appreciated through the entire pandemic based on the local support to the facilities and to our foundation.” Not only was the LRHF graced with the Business of the Year award, but they were also the recipients of the Community Spirit Award. “If you look at the nominees for the community spirit award, there were some great nominees, all doing great work, and all of them are actually donors to our foundation, so I think we were honoured just to
Photo courtesy of Noyce Photography
LRHF CEO, Malcolm Radke, humbly accepts the Lloydminster Chamber of Commerce Business of the Year award at the organizations 2020 Business Excellence Awards, held on Oct. 22.
be in that category,” he said. “Anyone could have won it, but when we won that award, our night was made. There were some very worthy recipients, so when we were named, I really didn’t know what to say.” Radke described the Health Foundation’s success at the business awards as a feel-good story about a small town rallying behind the local hospital.
“That was a highlight for a lot of people in this organization and a testament to the work of a lot of people in the local healthcare facilities, and if we could figure out a way to drink champagne out of these Chamber awards, we would have done it by now.” Again, Radke noted his shock when the LRHF was named business of the year as he was unaware that non-
profits were eligible to win such an award. “It was a running joke that things must have been bad if a charity won the business of the year.” This mystery was cleared up by the Chamber as “the final decision on the winner is up to the three anonymous judges and not the Chamber.” For more stories on this year’s winners, turn to Page 6.