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It was another busy year for the Weyburn Chamber of Commerce in 2012. The year started when Jeff Chessall was sworn in as president in January.

The Chamber represented its members this year in their meetings with the federal government as they pressed for changes to immigration regulations so that businesses could attract workers faster. The Chamber also expressed concern around the increases to the duty-free exemptions for cross-border shoppers.

The Chamber met with the provincial government on many issues including minimum wage, the hospital funding and others. The Chamber continues to have regular meetings with both of these governments to ensure that local businesses are getting the policies required to continuing growing.

Closer to home, the Chamber also meets regularly with representatives from the city and RM of Weyburn. These two governments are meeting monthly at the District Planning Commission table, and the chamber is participating in this initiative.

Over the year, the Chamber brought the concerns of their members to local government and in each case found that the solution was usually accessible and they were successful.

The WEYBEX awards were presented in 2012. Souris Valley Industries won the New or Expanded Business Award, as well as Business of the Year. The Golden Service Award was won by Home Hardware, Community Involvement was won by the Mainil family of businesses, and the Business Leader of the Year was Kim Thorson.

During those awards, The Royal Bank, John and Helene Georgacocos and Access Communications were all inducted into the Business Hall of Fame.

This year, the Chamber presented its two annual awards, the Golden Sheaf to "Three Farmers" from Midale, and the Golden Spike to the Weyburn Young Fellows Club.

It was less busy on the political side, with only one All Candidates Forum hosted by the Chamber for the municipal election. This, alongside the regular events for the Chamber such as parades, luncheons and the golf tournament, provided a busy year for their event volunteers and coordinators.

The mission of the Chamber is to represent the interests of their members by advocating for a healthy community both economically and socially.

As Weyburn enters its Centennial Year in 2013, the Chamber is proud to stand tall and represent the business community and remain a community partner with a vision for growth and prosperity.