The Mission Regional Chamber of Commerce (MRCC) is a Canadian non-profit organization that acts as an advocate for economic development in the region and promotes area tourism to visitors and locals.

It serves the businesses of Mission, British Columbia, and acts as a Chamber of Commerce, similar to a Board of Trade.

History The MRCC was created on June 19, 1893"Old Document Reveals Board Founded in '93", The Fraser Valley Record, Mission, BC, Canada, 19 April 1945. as B.C.'s fourth Board of TradeKask, Glen. "First board of trade in B.C.", The Fraser Valley Record, Mission, BC, Canada, 16 June 1993. by Harry Brown French, an American sent to Mission after the town's founder sold land to a New York railway corporation. French was elected the Board of Trade's first president, and upon its creation the Board took out advertisements in local newspapers, offering a package of free land, free water, free power and property tax exemptions to potential industrialists, as well as offering to construct factories, mills and other commercial buildings at no charge.Schroeder, Andreas (1991). Carved from Wood, Mission, B.C. 1861-1992, p. 20-21,173,193. D.W. Friesen, Altona, MB, Canada. .

In 1946, the Board of Trade suggested that a Strawberry Festival as well as a Soapbox Derby should be held on June 26. The event was successful and visitors travelled from different areas of the Fraser Valley to attend the event.Cherrington, John (1974). Mission on the Fraser, Patterns of a small city's progress, p. 33,172. Mitchell Press, Vancouver, BC, Canada.ISBN B0006CL344 The festival was held annually until 1951, despite an interruption in June 1948 when the Fraser River flooded causing the event to be postponed until July in its third year.Robertson, Betty, Marcellus, Catherine, Dandy, Betty (1992). Mission's Living Memorials, p. 141. Friesen Printers, Altona, MB, Canada. . In 1951, Langley, BC became the new host of the Strawberry Festival after the decline of berry farming and the increase in employment in the forestry industry in the Mission area.

The organization operated under the name of the Mission City and District Board of Trade until 1961 when its name was changed to the Mission City and District Chamber of Commerce."Chamber of Commerce Replaces Trade Board", The Fraser Valley Record, Mission, BC, Canada, 11 January 1961. That name stuck until 1970 when it was changed to the Mission City Chamber of Commerce. In 1977, it was suggested by the organization's Vice President Dave Kenyon that the Chamber of Commerce should be terminated"Chamber of Commerce may face extinction", The Fraser Valley Record, Mission, BC, Canada, 26 October 1977. due to poor attendance and lack of participation by members."Mission Chamber Seeks New Identity", The Fraser Valley Record, Mission, BC, Canada, 30 November 1977. The Chamber persevered, avoiding termination, and in 1979 the name was changed for the final time to its present name, the Mission Regional Chamber of Commerce. Since then, the MRCC has continued to serve the businesses of Mission and now houses a visitor centre.

Description The MRCC describes its mission as to "foster a network for entrepreneurial leaders to partner in representation, communication and education." It acts on behalf of local businesses, and as an unbiased advocacy group, they serve as a direct liaison between their members and the local government. They also provide their members with networking opportunities, group benefits, educational seminars, as well as marketing and advertising opportunities.

The MRCC is a member of the BC Chamber of Commerce. It currently has 450 members and prints a monthly newsletter titled "The Business Track". It hosts the Annual Candlelight Parade, the largest nighttime Christmas Parade in Western Canada and draws approximately 13 000 spectators every year.

The original Mission Soapbox Derby is still held annually by the Mission & District Soapbox Derby Association.

Current President

The current president of the Chamber is Celine Dauphney, President and Co-Founder of Urban Valley Transport Ltd., a Mission-based courier and freight service provider.

Past Presidents Year President 1893 Harry Brown French1979 Dave Kenyon 1909R.C. Abbot1980S. Barwell1912W.H. Mathewson1981Bob Cummings1913R.C. Abbot1982Dave Kenyon1914-1915A.M Verchere1983Stephen Phinney1917-1919A.A. Lane1984-1985Mart Kenney1920-1921F.J. Roche1986-1987Jeanne Price1922Hope Alanson1988-1989Doug Parkinson1923S.H. Crosby1990Sheila Jones/Ross Quinn1924 W.G. Gamble1991-1993Cal Crawford1925 Hope Alanson1994Doug Thorpe1926-1927 A.B. Noble1995Elaine Howardson 1928 R. McRae1996Anne Norder 1929-1930 Rex Cox1997C. Stacey Crawford 1931 J. Yool1998-1999P. Gordon Wood1932-1933A.J. Clark2000S. Brad Powell 1934 J. Muir2001Lynne Christensen 1935 L.R. Wilson2002-2003Ted Adlem "At Pete's Place, we love what we do", The Mission Record, Mission, BC, Canada, 30 June 2011. 1936 R.C. Cox2004Stacey Crawford 1937 G.V. Ogle2005Cal Crawford 1938 A.D. McRae2006Sheron Vallance 1939 A.N. Lawrence2007Stuart Rosenberg 1940 J. Muir2008-2009Sean Melia 1941 E.J. Taylor2010Helen Secco 1942 T.W. Davies2011Cal Crawford 1943-1944 F.C. Lightbody2012Elyssa L. Lockhart1945Peter Grant2013Sean Melia1946C.S. Thompson2014-2015Ann Harper 1947 A.G. McInnis2016-2017David Sawatzky 1948 A.C. Fisher2018Andrea Walker 1949 Harry Davis2019Raj Patara1950C.I. McMurdo2020Ellen Nguyen 1951 Albert McMahon2021Angel Elias 1952 Frank Kearney2022Manny Deol 1953 K.A. "Ken" Shore2023Manny Deol 1954 N.S. Thompson2024 Celine Dauphney 1955 E. "Ted" Boulter2025Celine Dauphney 1956 Keith Collver 1957 Percy Buckle 1958 R.L. "Bob" Fletcher"Past Presidents Honored by Board of Trade", The Fraser Valley Record, Mission, BC, Canada, 19 November 1958.1959Albert McMahon 1960-1961 Lang Sands 1962-1963 Laurie Wainwright1964-1965Vic Wallace 1966-1967 G.W. Walker 1968 Bruce Catto 1969 Paul Jacobs 1970-1971 George Kummel1972D.C. Trumpour1973Mart Kenney1974J.A. Gagnon1975Dr. R.C. Barwell1976Bob Cummings1977G.H. (Bert) Chapman 1978Dr. R.C. Barwell

MASCOT Stan the Sturgeon is the Ambassador for the Mission BC Visitor Centre. His primary role is to advise on all up-coming community events and to promote tourism within the region. This is achieved through social media outlets including Facebook and Twitter. Stan is regularly booked to attend local events and school field trips. Find him via Facebook - Mission BC Visitor Centre or Twitter Stansturgeon1

References

External links MRCC Website Tourism BC Website BC Chamber of Commerce Website The Canadian Chamber of Commerce Website Vancouver Board of Trade