FREDERICTON, NB – Yesterday at their 2020 annual general meeting, the Fredericton Chamber of Commerce welcomed Bob Chisholm of McDonald’s Restaurants as its board of directors president for 2020-2021, taking over the role from Karen Grant of Kiers Marketing. Grant moves into the past president role for a one-year term. Grant (left) and Chisholm (right) are seen here ‘passing the buck’ – a Fredericton chamber president tradition. 

Chisholm has been a board member at the chamber since 2016. During that time and in preparation for the role, he has been heavily involved in the chamber’s activities, particularly in relation to advocacy efforts and has chaired several chamber committees including the Policy Development Committee and Government Affairs Committee.
 

“It is certainly an interesting time to be taking on the role of president of the Fredericton chamber’s board of directors and I am looking forward to working with the members, staff and volunteers to help put our community on the path to growth” said Chisholm. “I want to thank Karen for her stewardship and mentorship over the past year – it is a great benefit to me that I am following a great number of community champions and leaders in this role.” 
 

Grant’s final act as president was to award the 2020 President’s Award to Michael Melvin of McInnes Cooper. Each year the outgoing president of the chamber has the opportunity to award an individual or business that has gone above and beyond for the betterment of the chamber. Grant highlighted Melvin’s contributions to the chamber’s former immigration program, his work on the governance committee and his leadership rewriting the organization’s bylaws to comply with new legislation. 
 

“Our community is fortunate to have so many incredible volunteers that continually step up with their expertise and limited time to lead organizations like ours, I am grateful for the opportunity to work with them on behalf of our members everyday,” said Krista Ross, chamber CEO. “Having worked with Bob over the past four years, I am excited that he is at the helm of the chamber for the next year – he is an accomplished businessperson, but more importantly, he’s as community-minded as they come.” 
 

In addition to Grant and Chisholm, the other Executive Committee members for 2020-21 are: 
 

• Vice President – Jeff Saunders, Teed Saunders Doyle 
• Secretary/2nd-Vice President – Jill Stairs, Daye Kelly & Associates 
• Treasurer – Shannon Dion, Bringloe Feeney LLP 
• Executive Member – Mark MacKenzie, Green Imaging Technologies Inc. 
• Executive Member – Mike Melvin, McInnes Cooper 

The chamber board also had a number of incoming board members confirmed, replacing members that completed a two-year term. 
 

The newest members of the chamber board are:  
 

• Betty Blanchard – My Closet Consignment 
• Fanny Bodart – The Property Ladies 
• Beth Fairbairn – The Learning Bar 
• Dave Milburn – Focal Point Landscape Design and Installation 
• Derek Sullivan – Auto City 
• Kumaran Thillainadarajah – Smart Skin Technologies 

Returning Board Members are: 
 

• Krishna Khaitan – AV Group Inc. 
• Adam Peabody – Planet Hatch  
• Cassandra Blackmore – Fredericton Community Kitchens 
• Lindsay Bowman – Connors Stilwell 
• Shawna Foster – Moco Downtown 
• Mohamed Khirallah – Roticana Coffee Company Inc. 
• Geoff Phinney – Fredericton Toyota 
• David Shipley – Beauceron Security Inc. 

Finishing their terms on the board in 2020 are: 
 

• Ryan Boyer – Cain Boyer Benefits Group 
• Lori Clarke – Lori Clarke Interior Design Inc. 
• Ken Critchley – Morneau Shepell 
• Kim Nash-McKinley – Saint Mary’s First Nation 
• Dhirendra Shukla – University of New Brunswick 
• Lori Stickles – New Brunswick Liquor Corp. 

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The Fredericton Chamber of Commerce, a nationally accredited organization with more than 1,000 members, is an active business organization engaged in policy development and advocacy that affects the competitiveness of our members and the Canadian business environment. The Chamber’s vision is ‘Stronger Community Through Business Prosperity’ 
 

Contact: Krista Ross, Fredericton Chamber of Commerce CEO – (506) 458-8006