Local businesses shine at awards night

When they called Danielle Mills to the podium to accept her award, she was caught off-guard.

“I honestly didn’t expect it at all,” she said. “It was surreal.”

Mills, who works for Logan Stevens Construction, accepted the “Marketing” award on behalf of the company at the 2018 Celebrate Success ceremony last Wednesday. Mills’ work promoting the Logan Stevens brand was applauded with the award. She came out on top in a tough category with three other finalists.

“Obviously hard work pays off,” she said. “I definitely earned it, I think.

“It’s just empowering.”

The Yorkton Chamber of Commerce (YCC) hosted the 13th business awards night at St. Mary’s Cultural Center on Oct. 3. The trophies honoured the brightest, busiest, and boldest businesses who submitted nomination packages to YCC earlier this year. Hundreds of business owners, employees, friends, and family members filled the banquet hall for an evening of cocktails, perogies, and business success.

The awards night has been held irregularly in Yorkton for over 20 years. The most recent edition was in 2016. The night is an opportunity to pat local businesses on the back for their financial and communal victories.

“We’re awfully proud of our business community,” said Mayor Bob Maloney during a speech at the event.

Video packages played for every company in all the categories (think of them as Oscar clips for Yorkton businesses). Winners approached the podium as flashing lights danced on the stage and songs like “Safety Dance” and “We Are The Champions” blasted through the speakers.

Randy Hrywkiw, president and founder of RH Electric, is no stranger to the awards night. In 2014, his company won the “Large Business of the Year” award. This year, his company conquered the “Community Involvement” category.

“It’s such a nice feeling to be recognized by the community for what you do,” he said. “It’s a humbling experience.

Hrywkiw thanked the Yorkton area for pushing his company to higher levels of success.

“Without the community support, we can’t do what we do,” he said.

Bailey Popowich’s Inner Cycle Spin Studio is a newcomer to the awards night. She won the “Young Entrepreneur” award last Wednesday. She credited her family for supporting her.

“We tell our kids to follow their dreams, so it’s important we practice what we preach,” she said.

Wade Allin certainly didn’t expect to be onstage at the awards ceremony. The project supervisor for SveinCo Developments was in the audience when the company won the “Small Business of the Year” award. Since the company owners weren’t in attendance, Allin accepted the trophy for SveinCo.

“It was a total shock,” he said. “I run a framing crew, but standing in front of 400 people is totally different.”

Other winners at the ceremony included:

•Collins Barrow for “Education and Training.”
•Yorkton Co-op’s Pumpkin Walk, Kinsmen Club, and the Health Foundation’s Rhythm ‘n’ Ribs for “Community Merit.”
•Harvest Meats for “Safety.”
•Rayzr’s Cellar for “Property Restoration.”
•NL Construction for “Business Growth and Expansion.”
•Three Way Industries for “New Business Venture.”
•The Plum Tree for “Customer Service.”
•Cornerstone Credit Union, Miccar Aerial, and TA Foods for the “Award of Excellence.”
•Farrell Agencies for the “Large Business of the Year.”