The Battlefords Chamber of Commerce has recognized businesses and individuals who have gone above and beyond the call of duty in providing excellent customer service to the community.
The Star Quality Service Persons Luncheon, celebrating 29 years of service excellence, was held at Western Development Museum Oct.20. This year's awards event was held in conjunction Small Business Week.
Thirty-nine nominations had been submitted to the judges with 12 winners announced at the luncheon. The winners were:
Lawrence Blouin, general manager of Table Mountain Regional Park for his hard work and dedication to the park;
Pat Boychuk of Super 8 Motel, for helping a family on the road who had run out of gas and needed help;
The team at Ultra Print Services who went the extra mile in assisting a small rural community cemetery with programs and pictures;
To Heidi Ripka of Battlefords and District Co-operative for always being there for customers and her excellent skills in dealing with the public;
To John Millard and Robert Dallaire of J and J Air Conditioning from a very happy customer for promptly replacing an air conditioning unit that had been struck by lightning;
To the staff team at Fabricland for helping a customer to get an outfit done on time;
To Mark Day of Canada Post for making sure mail was delivered to the new home of a mail recipient;
To Brian and Carol Morrison, Yellowhead Truck and Equipment, from an Edmonton resident who encountered major difficulties driving a school bus during a snowstorm on the Yellowhead Highway;
To Terry and Corla Berg of Lash-Berg Towing, who provided a rental car at no charge and swift customer service to a Dryden, Ont. man whose vehicle required a new transmission;
To Gaetanne Beaudoin of Villa Pascal, who was praised by the nominator for going above and beyond her duties as a special care aide by helping her father, a Villa Pascal resident confined to a wheelchair, to get to and from events at the Knights of Columbus Hall;
To Dave and Laurie Bowman of D and L Auto Glass, representing Apple Auto Glass, for going the extra mile to replace a blown out car window on a weekend for customers who needed to be in Manitoba on short notice;
And finally, to Doug and Janice Horn and to Ken and Terry Blair for helping out their neighbours repeatedly by clearing snow, cutting trees and doing other chores throughout their neighbours' various health struggles.
Most of the recipients were on hand to accept their awards in person from the presenters and they were appreciative of the recognition for their customer service efforts in the community.
"It's always nice to be appreciated and acknowledged for doing good work," said Carey Tollefson, general manager of Ultra Print, one of the award recipients.
The event at the WDM was also held in conjunction with a Mini Business Expo held on site, with several organizations offering displays for businesses to access some valuable information. Small Business Week in the Battlefords ran from Oct. 18 to 22.
