At their 15 th annual Spirit Lunch on Nov. 20, the Whistler Chamber of Commerce named Pique’s own publisher, Kathy Barnett, as Business Person of the Year for 2002.
Last year’s winners, Bob and Sue Adams from the Whistler Grocery Store, Upper Village Market and Pemberton Valley Supermarket, presented a surprised Barnett with the award.
"I had no idea until (Bob Adam’s) speech," she said. "He started out saying the winner started a business on a shoestring, which caught my attention, but it wasn’t until he said the person was a past president of the Rotary that I realized he was talking about me.
"It’s an honour because it’s not just about business, this award indicates involvement in the community, mentorship, all of those things. The great part of living in a town like Whistler is that you can be involved," said Barnett, who co-founded the paper in 1994.
"That said, it was really exciting to be presented with an award like this among your peers, other business owners in Whistler. I’ve probably been to the award ceremony for every year for the past 15 years, so I guess they knew I was going to be there."
The award is presented by the Chamber to leaders in the business community who meet criteria for business excellence, leadership qualities, corporate citizenship and mentorship.
"In the area of business excellence, the winner began the business on a shoestring," said Adams. "With careful management, supported by outside work, the business was nurtured through the first few years to its present level of success."
In the area of leadership, Adams said Barnett is "honest, fair and leads by example. This person constantly strives to improve our quality of life by being actively involved in community issues."
In corporate citizenship, Adams said "our winner demonstrates a meaningful contribution to our community by sponsoring many community events." Her volunteer positions include being a past president and current member of the Rotary Club, a board member for the Chamber of Commerce, a past-president of the Vancouver committee of the Women Entrepreneurs of Canada, and her continuing involvement with the Community Foundation of Whistler and the Women’s Enterprise Society of B.C.
In the area of mentorship, the Chamber recognized the Pique for empowering department heads and for making funding available to staff for education and training.
Pique Newsmagazine was first published on Nov. 25, 1994, and celebrates its eighth anniversary this week.
