Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, today I would like to make my Member's statement today about some of the activities that took place in Hay River over the weekend. Friday night was the annual Hay River Chamber of Commerce banquet. I would like to say congratulations to President Doreen Farrants and their newly sworn in board of directors and executive.
It was billed as the 25th anniversary of the chamber in Hay River, but as newspaper stories from as far back as 1962 were shared, they clearly made reference to the activities of the Hay River Chamber, so the chamber is more like 40 years old, but only filed annual reports with the societies registry for the last 25 years.
I had the privilege of having been the Chamber of Commerce president for the years 1987, 1988 and 1990, and served on the board of directors in various capacities for a number of other years.
Past presidents Bob McMeekin, Barry Ashton and myself were asked to share our memories of the chamber. Bob reminisced about some of the amazing business community efforts in the early days of establishing the chamber, and Barry talked about the very proud history of the business community in Hay River.
As a chartered accountant and very active member of the business community, he was keenly aware of the number of businesses in Hay River which have seen the participation of two and many three generations, companies started by the parents, now owned, managed and operated by the children and even the grandchildren. Statistics indicate that only ten percent of family-owned businesses make it to the third generation, so Hay River must be some kind of anomaly.
My recollections of my years with the chamber mostly focused on the relationships and although we accomplished a lot of work, we had much fun in the process -- the weekly luncheons, the special initiatives, the celebrations, rallying the troops and even tackling the government on occasion, are all things that I was reminded of and realized how much I had missed in the last six years.
At the annual banquet each year, the chamber also recognizes the citizen of the year. This year's recipient for 2001 was Ron Cook. Ron is just about to retire as the town's recreation manager. What a deserving recognition this was of Ron's remarkable contribution to so many aspects of community service in Hay River. The bonus is that Ron and his wife Gail plan to continue living in Hay River in their retirement.
In closing, Mr. Speaker, when it comes to private sector activity per capita, Hay River is the business capital of the North. With the resource of our many business people dedicated to the economic well-being of Hay River and fair treatment of this government, we plan to hold onto that distinction for many years to come.
Also, Mr. Speaker, I would like to congratulate the K'amba Carnival planning committee, who this year again, for the 19th year in a row, put on a wonderful K'amba Carnival. Mr. Speaker, I entered the axe-throwing contest. My colleagues will be relieved to know that I did not win. Thank you.
-- Laughter
-- Applause