Sunshine Coast Tourism’s Annual General Meeting will be held Tuesday, November 9, 2021, beginning at 4 p.m. via Zoom video-conferencing.
Our Annual General Meeting (AGM) is your opportunity to learn more about our organization and review the years’ marketing, media, and financial activities – see what we’ve been up to and learn of the exciting new initiatives for 2022. Registered Stakeholders “in good standing” will have voting rights for business items arising at the AGM, such as voting on Board of Director positions. If you are not yet a Registered Stakeholder, you can register now. If you’re unsure, please contact us.
This meeting is open to all SCT partners, including industry stakeholders and government officials. There is no cost to attend the AGM, but you must register ahead of time via the link below.
The Annual General Meeting will be recorded for stakeholders who cannot attend or who would like to review the meeting after the event.
Register to Attend
Please register to attend this year’s virtual event for the Sunshine Coast’s travel and tourism industry and partners on November 9, 2021, from 4-6pm.
Keynote Speaker – Walt Judas
Walt has been involved in the tourism industry for more than 30 years, having worked at BC Pavco, Port Metro Vancouver and Tourism Vancouver prior to joining the Tourism Industry Association of British Columbia (TIABC) in May 2015.
As CEO, Walt leads multiple advocacy/policy files, sets the strategic course for TIABC, builds relationships with members and industry stakeholders, and communicates the value of B.C.’s visitor economy to various constituents.
Before TIABC, Walt spent 15+ years at Tourism Vancouver as Vice President of Marketing Communications, Membership and Sport.
Over the years, Walt has held dozens of board and committee positions. At present, he is on tourism program advisory committees for both Capilano University and Vancouver Community College. He also serves on the City of Vancouver’s Sport Hosting Grant Committee.
Walt has a Bachelor of Hospitality Management Degree from Vancouver Community College, as well as a Diploma in Broadcast Communications from the British Columbia Institute of Technology.
Having visited over 40 countries, Walt loves to travel and especially enjoys visiting communities around British Columbia to meet with tourism colleagues. For fun he plays hockey and golf, cycles daily to stay fit, and enjoys spending time with family and friends.
Information for Voting Stakeholders
AGM Agenda
- 4:00pm – Sign in & Welcome
- 4:15 pm – Presentations:
- Keynote Speaker: Walt Judas, CEO, Tourism Industry Association of British Columbia
- Annie Wise, Executive Director, Sunshine Coast Tourism
- 5:00 pm – AGM Business Agenda:
- Call to Order
- Adoption of Agenda
- Approval of AGM Minutes – November 25, 2020
- Approval of EGM Minutes – February 24, 2021
- Financial Report
- Election of the Board of Directors
- Adjournment
Am I a Voting Stakeholder?
Voting stakeholders are defined by Bylaw 2.9(a) as Registered Stakeholders having met all the stakeholder criteria and all the bylaws here within, AND who have participated with Sunshine Coast Tourism through
the Stakeholder contribution within the last 12 months since the previous AGM, will be considered a Voting Stakeholder.
Please note, the stakeholder contribution has been waived for 2021 due to these bylaws coming into effect part way through the year. In order to vote at the 2021 AGM, stakeholders must be registered and meet the stakeholder criteria.
If you’re not sure about your status, please email us at info@sunshinecoastcanada.com at least 24 hours prior to the AGM.
Board of Director Elections
One of the most important matters at the AGM is the election of Sunshine Coast Tourism’s Board of Directors. Our Board is composed of 11 members, representing specific sectors of the tourism industry as well as ensuring geographic representation of the region, as guided by our bylaws. As a reminder, the period for nominations is now closed, however, our bylaws do allow for nominations from the floor at the AGM.
The following Directors have served 1-year of their 2-year terms and will therefore continue another year:
- Christine Hollmann, Terracentric Coastal Adventures
- Member At Large – North
- Geoff Gornall, Tapworks Brewing Company
- Member At Large – South
- Jamie Mani, Alpha Adventures
- Member At Large – South
- Chris Tait, Klahoose Coastal Adventures
- Large Accommodations – North
- Heather Newman, Pointhouse Suites on Sergeant Bay
- Large Accommodations – South
The following 6 positions are open for election to 2-year terms at the 2021 AGM:
- 1 x Large Accommodation – North
- 1 x Large Accommodation – South
- 1 x Member at Large – North
- 1 x Small Accommodation & Campground
- 1 x Arts, Culture, & Heritage
- 1 x Recreation
Board of Director Nominees
The following members have been nominated to serve on the Board of Directors, and will be voted upon at the upcoming AGM on Tuesday, November 9, 2021:
J.L. (Jack) Barr – Beach Gardens/Town Centre Hotel
Position sought: Large Accommodation, North
Jack is a Vancouver businessman who has been in the Real Estate industry for over 35 years and whose interests include Vancouver, Washington State as well as Powell River. Having a strong community commitment, Jack’s volunteer board activities include past experience as president of the Powell River Chamber of Commerce as well as President of the Sunshine Coast Tourism. Other volunteer positions include Fundraising Chairman of the B.C. Learning Centres for Children with Dyslexia in addition to President of the Vancouver Masonic Centre Association, which is currently developing a 150 unit affordable rental housing tower in the heart of Vancouver. His affinity for the Sunshine Coast comes from a lifetime enjoying the environs of Pender Harbour as his family has had roots there for close to a century.
Theressa Logan – Sunshine Coast Air
Position sought: Recreation
Theressa graduated with Distinction in the Marketing Management and Communications program at BCIT. She moved to the Sunshine Coast in 2008 to find community and connect with nature. She currently is the Executive Director at the Sechelt Chamber of Commerce and Director of Marketing for the local floatplane business Sunshine Coast Air. “I am lucky to call the Sunshine Coast my home, this is a magical place with an amazing community feel.”
Gary Bearchell – Cabins on the Coast
Position sought: Small Accommodation & Campground
Having graduated from Simon Fraser University with a computer science degree, Gary lived and worked in Vancouver for nearly fifteen years. Realizing in 2012 that a significant lifestyle change was in order, he and his wife decided to convert their precious weekend getaway cabin in Tuwanek into their full time residence.
Being on the Sunshine Coast, having more free time, and being surrounded by many enterprising people encouraged them to try more creative ways to make a living. And so their decision to start renting the second cabin on their property became obvious. And just like so many other short term rental hosts when asked “why did you get into doing this?”, the answer is the same: they got into it for the money, but continue to do it because they love it!
Since then, that cabin has gone on to become Canada’s second most “wish-listed” property on Airbnb. Gary and his wife now also own and rent the two neighbouring properties alongside it. And the rest is history.
When not preparing cabins for guests’ visits, Gary does other various renovation projects on the side, as well as the odd throwback software development contract to save enough money to feed his travel habits
John Hermsen – Footprint Nature Explorations
Position sought: Member at Large, North
After a career as a Shift Captain with the City of Apeldoorn’s Fire Service in the Netherlands, John and his spouse Christy moved to Powell River in 2006. Out of love for the Great Canadian Outdoors, Footprint was born. Focusing on guided day- and multi-day kayak tours in and around Desolation Sound, it is our mission to inspire and educate our guests and to create awareness of the incredible natural- and cultural area we now call home. Besides operating Footprint, John is co-owner of Canada Jay Travel Ltd. A receptive tour operator / DMC with a focus on the western European FIT markets, promoting ‘slow tourism’ and ‘off the beaten path’ destinations where local businesses should profit from their short-term visitors. If you don’t catch John at work, he’s probably out kayaking on his own. Which is still one of the most important reasons to live on the beautiful Sunshine Coast.
Shangxuan Ma – Gibsons Garden Hotel
Position sought: Large Accommodation, South
Shangxuan and her family started running a 19 room motel in Sechelt in 2009 and in 2010, took over the Gibsons Garden Inn – at the time it was a retirement home. It took 2 years to convert it into a 52 room hotel. In the past 5 years of running the Gibsons Garden Hotel, they’ve not only renovated the hotel rooms, increased the room numbers to 55 rooms, updated the equipment and facilities but also enhanced the service experience to their guests. With their passion for tourism, hospitality and ongoing improvements, the hotel has become one of the most popular hotels in the southern Sunshine Coast.
Linda Williams – Coast Cultural Alliance
Position sought: Arts, Culture, & Heritage
Linda has always realized the experiential and economic value of tourism on the Sunshine Coast and never misses a chance to “show it off”. She has been involved in the Arts and Cultural sector since 1995 when she moved here permanently from Vancouver. Her continuing experience with the non-profit society, Coast Cultural Alliance has given her the opportunity to work with people, governments and businesses from Langdale to Lund and provides an insight to the “Big Picture” overview of Arts, Culture and Heritage on the Coast.
She is one of the organizers of the Sunshine Coast Art Crawl, the Gibsons Landing Jazz festival plus many other events throughout the coast and realizes the enriched cultural and economic value they bring as a destination for tourism, local businesses and participating artists in our creative community. She has been involved with the Sunshine Coast Tourism board and the former Vancouver Coast and Mountains board since the late 90’s.
Proxy Vote Form – closed as of Oct 26
Registered Stakeholders of Sunshine Coast Tourism can vote by proxy. According to the bylaws, proxy voting at any General Meeting is permitted for those who are:
- a) Registered Stakeholders in good standing
- b) Able to submit in writing (by email, letter or proxy form) the name of the proxy stakeholder 2 weeks prior to the General Meeting
- c) Able to arrange a proxy stakeholder to be present at the General Meeting. No one may be allowed to serve as proxy for more than one stakeholder at any one time.
To make this process easier, you can submit the form below to confirm your proxy vote. In accordance with the bylaws, this must be submitted no later than October 26, 2021. If you have any questions about this process, please email info@sunshinecoastcanada.com.
Sunshine Coast Tourism Bylaws
2020 Annual General Meeting Minutes
Voting stakeholders will have the opportunity to approve the meeting minutes of the 2020 AGM as an order of business. Please take a moment to review the minutes, and if needed, please contact us ahead of the AGM to discuss any errors.
2021 Extraordinary General Meeting Minues
Voting stakeholders will have the opportunity to approve the meeting minutes of the 2021 EGM as an order of business. Please take a moment to review the minutes, and if needed, please contact us ahead of the AGM to discuss any errors.
We look forward to seeing you virtually on November 9, 2021!
If you have any further questions, feel free to message us at info@sunshinecoastcanada.com or call 1-888-445-1808.