It was a night to honour local businesses.
The 13th annual Humboldt and District Chamber of Commerce (HDCC) Mark of Excellence Awards were held on March 7.
"Once again, we have a sold-out Mark of Excellence awards banquet, which speaks to the excitement and enthusiasm that our business community is having right now," said Jodi Smith, MC of the event.
"In each category, it was very close, which speaks to the caliber of our nominees this year... You must all be very, very proud of your business and contribution that you are bringing each and every day to make this region the best place to live, work, and invest," Smith added.
Kevin Plemel, president of HDCC, agreed that the contributions of the different businesses help make Humboldt a great place to live.
"Tonight is really about what is going on here in Humboldt - we have a very vibrant community," said Plemel.
"There are great things happening in and around Humboldt.
This year, two late, local business legends were inducted into the Business Hall of Fame - Ken Dust and Don Wassill.
Dust, who was born in 1922, went to school in both Humboldt and Muenster. After serving with the Armed Forces for three years, Dust started his business career with his father, who was the founder and owner of Dust Motors. Dust was the first dealer to bring snowmobiles into the Humboldt region.
In 1947, Dust started an auto-body paint shop and sporting goods. Two years later, he was elected as mayor at the age of 26, making him the youngest mayor in Canada.
During his second term as mayor from 1963-1965, he saw to the building of Town Hall.
In 1971, he opened Dust's Furniture and Sporting Good Store. He also invested in real estate in both Humboldt and Saskatoon.
In addition to being very involved in the business world, Dust was also dedicated a large amount of time to volunteerism. He was a member of the Knights of Columbus, Lions Club, the Chamber of Commerce, Legion, St. Elizabeth's Hospital board, St. Augustine parish council and Young Men's Board of Trade and chairman of St. Mary's Villa. A 40-bed addition to the villa finalized during his time as chair was named in his memory. Dust died of a heart attack in 1975 at the age of 52.
The award was accepted by Dust's son Brian Dust who explained that his father was very passionate about community service.
The other inductee, Wassill, was born in 1928 in Zenon Park. Once married, he moved to Humboldt to start his business career.
Wassill was a great entrepreneur who introduced a number of new products to the Humboldt area.
In 1959, Wassill opened the first drive thru restaurant in the area, called Corral Restaurant. In 1964, he opened Murray's Menswear with his partner, Murray Stebbings.
He continued to bring new services to Humboldt, including one of the province's first Kentucky Fried Chicken franchises, called El Rancho. He also opened Humboldt's first automatic car wash and opened a Pop Shoppe on Main Street.
Wassill was also involved in the community as an administrator of St. Elizabeth's Hospital for 26 years. He served on numerous provincial health boards, the St. Elizabeth's Hospital Building Fund Committee and was instrumental in building Humboldt's first outdoor swimming pool.
He also served on the Chamber of Commerce, was a senator with JCI, a member of both the Knights of Columbus and Lions Club and refereed hockey. Wassill retired to St. Albert, AB, where he passed away in 1995.
David Wassill accepted the award on behalf of his family.
"My father was passionate about business because he came from a business family," said David Wassill.
He explained that his grandfather owned a farm equipment dealership in Zenon Park, where Wassill and his siblings learned how to be business people.
After moving to Humboldt for his administrator position with the hospital, Wassill realized what a large region the Humboldt business community covered and noticed some services the city was missing.
"This encouraged him to take his business skills to introduce all the businesses he did in Humboldt," said David Wassill.
He explained that although Wassill was a businessman, he was still passionate about the community.
"That is the primary reason, I believe, that he was so passionate about making Humboldt business a success," said David Wassill.
After the Hall of Fame inductees, it was time for the Mark of Excellence awards to be presented.
The Community Merit award goes to a non-profit organization that has made a positive and creative effort to enhance the community. The award was presented to Family Services - Partners Building Hope (Partners).
Partners provides support services for the prevention and intervention of family disharmony. They have supported their partners in many endeavours, including James Folster's dream of a Soup Kitchen in the community.
Recently the organization has expanded to include the Before and After School program and the Youth Musician Collective.
Also nominated were the Big Brothers Big Sisters of Humboldt, Humboldt and District Community Services, Humboldt and District Kinettes, JCI Humboldt and Watson Community Club.
The Community Involvement award, which goes to a business demonstrating exceptional performance in its support of the arts and culture, amateur sports, education, health care and/or voluntary groups, went to Meyers Norris Penny (MNP).
MNP has a staff of 21 employees in Humboldt, who all excel in their career, give back to the community and make a difference for their clients through personalized advice.
"Thank you so much. Its truly an honour to be chosen for this award," said Mike Freeman on behalf of MNP. "This award is a reflection of MNP's connection to the community all across the province, especially Humboldt, where we have been a member of the business community for 50 years."
Also nominated were Canadian Tire, Causeway Natural Health, Reel Attractions Cinema and Video and Spotlight Sport and Corporate Wear.
The Service Award, which goes to a business demonstrating exceptional performance in providing quality customer service, went to Shoppers Drug Mart (SDM) in Humboldt.
SDM has been a part of the business community since 1995. They are a strong believer that exceptional customer service is necessary for a business to excel. They have been recognized in the past for their efforts by HDCC and two of their team members have received Courtesy Service Awards in the past.
The business was also recognized by its peers in 2011 for achieving the highest satisfaction score for the Manitoba/Saskatchewan region in Q2.
"I'm truly honoured to be up here tonight accepting this award," said Bill Gerla, owner of SDM in Humboldt. "I've always felt that customer service is one of the cornerstones of any successful business."
Also nominated were Canalta Hotel Humboldt, Century 21 Diamond Realty, Johnny's Bistro and SEARS.
The Marketing award, presented to a business that demonstrates exceptional performance in the execution of a successful marketing strategy, went to Century 21 Diamond Realty.
"Cheryl (Torwalt) is a big part of the marketing. It's all her ideas," said owner Dan Torwalt of his wife during his acceptance speech. "Everything we do with marketing comes (from) her."
Also nominated were Chick Allan's Restaurant, Prairie View Properties, Spotlight Sport and Corporate Wear and 107.5 Bolt FM and Discover Humboldt.
Greg Velanoff of Canadian Tire was awarded Young Entrepreneur of the Year.
Velanoff is president of Greg Velanoff Enterprises LTD and currently owns and operates Canadian Tore in Humboldt.
He started his career with Softchoice Corporations. During his ten years with the company, he helped it become Canada's top industry leader, was involved with their US expansion and worked withe industry leaders such as Bill Gates.
He left the company in 2007 to start his own business. He built the Humboldt Canadian Tire in 2009 and is one of Canadian Tire's youngest dealers.
"I'd just like to thank all the nominees for tonight's awards - you're all very deserving in all categories," said Velanoff.
He is glad to be a part of the community and feels accepted into the city.
"I'd like to thank the Chamber of Commerce and the community of Humboldt who has welcomed Canadian Tire and ourselves into the community. We're really happy to be here," said Velanoff.
Also nominated were Carla Clement of Johnny's Bistro, Larry and Patti Durand of Field Good Agronomics and Prairie View Properties, Dawn Hayward of Ideal Wellness Clinic, Shauna Ilg of the Shampoo Shack and Mathew Niekamp of MNM Plumbing and Heating.
The New Business Venture, going to a business that has been in operation for three years or less and has shown positive performance in terms of current and expected profitability, job creation and/or entry into new markets, went to the Canalta Hotel in Humboldt.
"Humboldt is very welcoming of the hotel," said Maxine Tebbe, general manager of Canalta Humboldt. "I'd like to say to the community, thank you for accepting us into the community."
Also nominated were 107.5 Bolt FM and Discover Humboldt, and Anywhere Fitness.
The title of Small Business of the Year went to Diamonds of Detroit.
The company and its employees are very committed to their mission statement, "create an ultimate buying experience with integrity and professionalism that will result in a lifelong customer."
"This is really nice," said Diamonds of Detriot owner Michelle Bankowski. "I'd like to thank the Chamber of Commerce for putting on these awards. We don't take enough time to acknowledge each other's success and applaud other's success, so I'd like to say congratulations to all the other nominees."
Bankowski also acknowledged the hard work put in by her staff, saying that you are only as good as those who support you and share your vision.
Also nominated were Kemway Lanes, Muenster Powder Coating, Rural Drywall and Spotlight Sport and Corporate Wear.
The last award of the night, Large Business of the Year, went to Michel Industries of St. Gregor.
The business, which has been around for over 40 years, manufactures unique systems for the farming business.
Recently, the business has completed an expansion, incorporating updated equipment to help them continue excellent service.
"This really is an honour," said Brad Michel of Michel Industries. "I'd like to dedicate this award to the employees of Michel Industries. It is because of their hard work and dedication that we are here tonight."
Also nominated were Canadian Tire, Canalta Hotel, Humboldt IGA, Koenders Manufacturing and MNP.
