This article has been updated to include a list of Board members, as well the 2019, 2020 committee.
CORNWALL, Ontario – The Cornwall Chamber of Commerce announced its new President, Shannon Lebrun, as well as new Directors of the Board on Tuesday, March 16 during its Annual General Meeting.
“I’m pleased to congratulate the Chamber’s President elect, Shannon Lebrun, and to welcome newly elected and re-elected Directors to the Board,” said Past President, Rory L. MacLennan. “They will be directing the affairs of one of the oldest business associations in Ontario.”
MacLennan, who acted as President for a total of six years, thanked everyone for their support. Lebrun is looking forward to continuing to work with MacLennan as he acts as a mentor. Lebrun will also look to Lezlie Strasser, Executive Manager, for knowledge as she has been involved with the Chamber for 30 years.
Lebrun is excitedly anticipating overseeing new ventures with the Chamber. The Cornwall native, mother and Sales Manager at Corus Entertainment for the past 18 years was sure to consult with her family before applying to take on the role of President. Lebrun joined the Chamber as a Director last year.
“I’m from Cornwall, my husband has a business here, my kids go to school here…I have a lot invested in this area and I think being a part of the Chamber and a President to the Chamber will help move Cornwall and the city forward,” said Lebrun.
Going forward, Lebrun said the Chamber is always looking to grow its membership and share opinions and ideas.
“I’m looking forward to the new team that we have,” said Lebrun. “We have some returning and some brand new people around the table. We have some business owners, general managers, sales people, we’ve got a new financial business in the market, the non-profit sector…we really have a little bit of everybody around the table, which I think is going to allow us to do more around the table than we have ever done with more organizations participating.”
During the brief meeting, the 2018 Financial Statements were discussed by a representative of Johnston Beaudette.
“This (2018) year’s revenue of approx. $531,000 is about 3.5 per cent down from last year,” said the representative, who concluded that the Chamber’s Trip to China in 2017 was quite profitable to the organization, as well a Service Ontario grant for $20,000 was received during that fiscal year to assist with Service Bureau operations.
The representative determined that expense costs had also decreased by about 2.5 per cent. She also noted that Professional Fees almost doubled from 2017 to 2018, due to the implementation of external bookkeeping. In 2018, the Chamber finished with an excess in revenue over expenses of over $5,000.
Newly elected and re-elected Directors include:
- Milena Cardinal – Cardinal Law
- Shannon Donkers – Ramada Cornwall
- Bill Kingston – Cornwall Newswatch
- Silvia Marino – Nav Centre
- Andrew Seguin – Seguin Financial
- Kelsey White – BMO Bank of Montreal
Members joining sitting Directors include:
- Geoff Carter – O’Farrell Financial Services
- Lynn Chauvin – Chaucor
- Shannon Lebrun – Corus Entertainment
- Todd Lihou – Heart of the City
- Carolyne O’Reilly – Winmar Cornwall
- Allison St. Jean – Canadian Cancer Society
The 2019, 2020 Chamber Committee consists of:
- President – Shannon Lebrun: Corus Entertainment
- First Vice President – Lynn Chauvin: Chaucor
- Second Vice President – Geoff Carter: O’Farrell Financial Inc.
- Treasurer – Todd Lihou: Heart of the City
- Past President – Rory L. MacLennan
