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Learn more about Chamber Circles for Women and Entrepreneurs
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One hundred years (plus) of economic history in our community is truly something that needs to be unpacked and we have been working hard throughout this year to capture some of those highlights over those years, even stretching back to the 1800s. Cambridge (Galt, Preston, Hespeler, and Blair) has always had a strong beat in its heart for industry. It’s not surprising since being located at the convergence of the Speed and Grand rivers where the water moves at a pace fast enough to turn mills that we quickly became a prized location to build business and community in the early days of industrialization of this country. I am sure that has been our collective “secret sauce” over the years. Our predecessors were innovators, dreamers, and action oriented. I can recall when I served on Cambridge City Council in the 1990s, walking along the Grand River on the Linear Park Trail with a senior staff member from the City discussing a ditch that ran adjacent to the river and the trail because it seemed an odd anomaly for nature to have left behind. I discovered nature wasn’t involved at all. In fact, during the early days of community building an early settler had come to Preston to find a place to build his mill operation. The Linear Park area, undeveloped, looked like the right spot to do that so he started to dig the waterway for the mill. Just as he was ready to open the ditch to the incoming water that would power the mill, his river access was denied, abruptly ending the project which, as memory serves me, was later revived in Hespeler. However, if you head out for a walk along Linear Park Trail today, you can still see the ditch, now overgrown, but still there.
Chamber history is your history
In the spring edition of our Insight Magazine, you will find some fascinating information on the building of this community and the integral part business played in that. The Chamber’s history is your history and the business community’s history tells the story of how we became who we are today. Innovation, determination, dedication, and a love for our community have always been the driving force behind our Chamber of Commerce. When we look around our community, we see evidence of our impact on the world. For instance, IMAX creator Graeme Ferguson was a Galt Collegiate Institute grad, and one of his partners Robert Kerr, former owner of Kerr-Progress Printing Company was mayor of Galt, and later Cambridge. Also, Cambridge-based Heroux-Devtek Manufacturing built the landing gear for the Apollo Lunar Module that landed on the moon. As well, COM DEV (now Honeywell) developed a spinoff company called exactEarth Ltd. (now Spire) that monitors all the shipping traffic in the world via low earth orbiting satellites which were built right here in Cambridge. That same company is also responsible for developing the key equipment on the James Webb Telescope which now allows us to see back in time to “first light”. These are just a few of countless others who are changing our world for the better, every single day. The Chamber solidified its purpose for existing through the pandemic, amplifying its dutiful responsibility for ensuring the voices of business are always heard and that economic vitality remains our No. 1 priority. We have always insisted the community’s problems become our problems to solve, and that we connect the community to those who can develop, provide, and inspire solutions that champion economic growth.
Test kits helped businesses
During the pandemic, even the Federal Government couldn’t figure out how to distribute COVID test kits to small businesses, that is until they mentioned their troubles to me. On a cold Saturday in March of 2021, I suggested to the Assistant Deputy Minister on the phone that the Chamber of Commerce could get them out faster than anyone, and we would be happy to help. Within a couple of weeks, we had thousands of rapid screening kits piled up at our Hesepler Road office and within a month, every Chamber of Commerce in Canada was distributing the kits to small and medium-sized businesses from coast to coast. Locally, we distributed about 1.5 million kits, and collectively Canadian Chambers of Commerce distributed more than 15 million. These kits not only assisted businesses stay open despite a tight regulatory environment but helped keep workplaces safe and employees feeling safe at work, which in turn saved lives. The Chamber is the place to turn when problems require solutions, where things need to get done, and where momentum must be forward moving. That is what we do day in and day out, and that is what we’ve done for the past century on your behalf, always keeping you in mind and community in our heart. We are just celebrating now the impact we’ve had in the past 100 years, which serves as a reminder that we have lots of work to do. The next 100 years begins right now!
- Cambridge Chamber of Commerce President & CEO Greg Durocher |
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Brian Rodnick 222 November 28, 2024 |
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Greg Durocher 41 July 28, 2023 |
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Canadian Chamber of Commerce 24 January 29, 2021 |
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Cambridge Chamber 2 March 27, 2020 |
750 Hespeler Road Cambridge, ON N3H 5L8
Phone: 519-622-2221
Fax: 519-622-0177
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