A large group of established, successful, upwardly mobile professionals will soon be standing around waiting to talk to a large group of young people who want to one day be like them.
The United Way of Northern BC is bringing these two groups together at Schmooze Fest, so they can meet each other, socialize, and maybe create some business sparks.
"We found out about this from the United Way of Ottawa. They did this and it worked really well," said Meghan Ginter, the engagement and campaign officer for the local United Way. "It is actually an extension of what we are doing with our Mentor Me Program where we pair someone coming into the business world with someone already experienced in the business world. Mentor Me was formed to make that clear to young people, and this is a one-night event that builds on that and brings out those examples in a different way."
The group of business VIPs is pre-established. Ginter and her United Way colleagues rounded up more than a dozen top local business mentors from both the public and private sectors. The list includes:
- forestry CEO Greg Stewart of Sinclar Group
- Caribou Brewmaster proprietors Jim and Liz Mullen
- Integris Credit Union boss David Bird
- the city's current Business Person of the Year Shauna Harper of Live Work Communications
- RBC's regional vice-president Trent Waughtal
- CNC president Henry Reiser
- HUB/Barton insurance executive Chris Dornbierer
- BC Hydro regional manager Mark Prestwich
- BC Housing regional official Malachy Tohill
- Northern Health communications director Steve Raper
- Deloitte LLP accountant/manager Lorna Wendling
- Regional District of Fraser-Fort George's Renee McCloskey
- UNBC's acting provost John Young
- machinist and Timken manufacturing manager Preston Ireland.
Others are being added prior to the event and the headliner for Schmooze Fest is MLA and Minister of Jobs, Tourism, Skills Training and Labour Shirley Bond.
"They can give good advice," said Ginter. "They don't have all the answers, but they are at a stage in their lives where they can pass on useful examples of what they know. They will have knowledge that young people will know comes from a place of experience. And who you know is huge. A lot of the companies we talk to tell us that they are looking for motivated young people, so we will have some of those in the room."
There will be entertainment, refreshments, and a few mixer exercises, but the up-and-comers and the already-theres will largely be mingling freely with the loose instructions to try touching base with as many people as possible to maximize everyone's chances for a conversation.
Schmooze Fest happens May 31 at 7:30 p.m. at the Coast Inn of the North ballroom.
Anyone under the age of 40 - regardless of whether you're a student, employed, stay-at-home parent, looking for work, or entrepreneur - can get a Schmooze Fest ticket at Books and Company for $40 ($25 for students) as long as they are available.
