Latest / Coffee In The Park with Jennifer and Cam / Coffee in the Park Year End Review

Transcript

Coffee in the Park Year End Review · Coffee In The Park with Jennifer and Cam

• 0:15
  Well, hello, everybody, and welcome to another edition, a special edition of the ABA Coffee in the Park.
• 0:21
  My name is Cam Milliken, and I'm here with my co-host extraordinaire, Jennifer Herrick, the Executive Director of the Acheson Business Association.
• 0:29
  Hi, Jennifer.
• 0:30
  Well, hello, Cam.
• 0:32
  I am excited.
• 0:34
  Do you know why?
• 0:35
  Because...
• 0:36
  Tell me.
• 0:37
  We are doing a year-end review.
• 0:38
  Year-end review today.
• 0:40
  Of the ABA Coffee in the Park Podcast.
• 0:42
  That's right.
• 0:43
  So that is amazing.
• 0:45
  Let's just give a little bit of background.
• 0:46
  But before we do that, we want to let everybody know that we are coming to you from the Wall Coffee Roaster in the heart of beautiful downtown Acheson.
• 0:56
  That's right.
• 0:57
  So if you hear some coffee noises in the background or people talking, it's because, yeah, there's all kinds of stuff going on in here today.
• 1:03
  And Jennifer, we want to say thank you to some people.
• 1:06
  We sure do.
• 1:07
  We want to thank our gold corporate sponsors, which include the MyShak Group of Companies, Genics and Parkland County.
• 1:14
  Thank you to all of these businesses for what you've done for the ABA in 2024.
• 1:19
  Yeah, without you, we would not be able to do this.
• 1:22
  So thank you very much.
• 1:24
  So let's get back to our show today and let's start with, well, let's Jennifer, let's start with the beginning.
• 1:33
  Let's start with the beginning.
• 1:35
  No, because we've told this story a few times, but let's start from the beginning.
• 1:39
  So we've done 26, 26 shows.
• 1:43
  Yes.
• 1:44
  Yeah.
• 1:44
  But some people don't know how this all got started.
• 1:47
  No, they don't.
• 1:48
  How did, how did, do you want to tell that story?
• 1:50
  You know, I don't even, I don't even recall the date when this, this all started.
• 1:56
  And this is the, the pre, pre podcast.
• 1:59
  This is before, we weren't even recording.
• 2:01
  No, no.
• 2:03
  If I recall correctly, and this was when we were in our old offices, on the other side, that I walked into your office one day and you had a microphone sitting there.
• 2:14
  One of these mics.
• 2:15
  One of the mics that we're using right now.
• 2:17
  And I looked at you and I thought, I wonder what he's doing.
• 2:20
  And I think actually that day I left, but then the next day it was still there.
• 2:24
  And so I said to you, well, what are you doing?
• 2:27
  And you said, oh, we're going to do a podcast.
• 2:29
  I'm like, you're going to do a podcast?
• 2:31
  No.
• 2:32
  And you said, no, we're going to do a podcast.
• 2:35
  We're going to do a podcast.
• 2:36
  That's right.
• 2:36
  And if I recall, I looked at you.
• 2:38
  Yeah.
• 2:38
  I called you an idiot.
• 2:39
  You did.
• 2:40
  You said, you're an idiot.
• 2:41
  That's what you said.
• 2:42
  Like my exact words.
• 2:42
  Those were your exact words.
• 2:44
  You're an idiot.
• 2:44
  Yeah.
• 2:44
  And I walked out.
• 2:45
  And you walked out.
• 2:46
  I wasn't offended or anything like that.
• 2:48
  I mean, I didn't take that personally, really.
• 2:50
  No.
• 2:51
  For a while.
• 2:51
  But yeah, so yeah.
• 2:54
  And so yeah, then we convinced you.
• 2:56
  And two microphones showed up.
• 2:57
  Yeah, two microphones showed up.
• 2:59
  And I wore you down.
• 3:01
  And eventually I'm like, well, why not?
• 3:04
  I think you gave in because you were just tired of me.
• 3:06
  I think that was it.
• 3:07
  Yeah.
• 3:07
  And you weren't sure.
• 3:08
  But then we started.
• 3:09
  We did it.
• 3:10
  We did.
• 3:11
  We did the first one.
• 3:12
  But no, we actually, let's go back, because we talked about what we wanted it to be.
• 3:15
  That's right.
• 3:16
  Yeah.
• 3:17
  So, and I think this stemmed from you and I meeting so many great people in and around Acheson.
• 3:24
  Yeah.
• 3:24
  And when we would sit down with them, we would hear some amazing stories.
• 3:27
  Yes.
• 3:28
  They had amazing stories.
• 3:30
  They did.
• 3:30
  And somehow we got to know a lot of those stories just by conversations with those people.
• 3:34
  In fact, over coffee here at the Wall Coffee Roasters.
• 3:37
  Many, many meetings here with people, and they start telling you their story.
• 3:41
  And so you and I came to the conclusion that the story behind the story.
• 3:46
  Right.
• 3:47
  Because everybody, whether they think so or not, and we have had lots of people say, I don't have a story, everybody has a story.
• 3:54
  And then we start talking to them, and before you know it, they're telling you their story, and you're like, wow, that's a fantastic story.
• 4:01
  So we batted this around for a bit, and then we thought, well, where are we going to do this podcast?
• 4:06
  And because these stories always seem to come out at the Wall Coffee Roasters, we thought, why not coffee and conversation?
• 4:14
  Right.
• 4:15
  So we went to Michael.
• 4:16
  We did.
• 4:16
  And we said, hey, can we, in this corner, where we are right here, is it okay if we record our podcast?
• 4:22
  And he really didn't.
• 4:23
  He said, yeah, sure, go ahead and do it.
• 4:25
  I don't think he really thought much of it.
• 4:26
  But yeah, and so we just started.
• 4:29
  We started.
• 4:30
  Yeah.
• 4:30
  And here we are 26 episodes later.
• 4:32
  26 episodes later.
• 4:33
  Amazing.
• 4:34
  I know.
• 4:34
  It's incredible.
• 4:35
  And we've had some fantastic guests.
• 4:37
  We're going to talk about them today.
• 4:38
  But that's sort of how it all got started.
• 4:40
  It was just an idea.
• 4:42
  And we just stepped out and said, let's do it.
• 4:44
  We truthfully didn't even know much.
• 4:46
  I didn't know how to record podcasts.
• 4:48
  I didn't know much about it.
• 4:50
  We played around a little bit to try and figure it all out.
• 4:53
  And yeah, here it is.
• 4:57
  I think the funny part is you and I both do not like to listen to ourselves.
• 5:03
  We recorded back.
• 5:04
  So here we are doing this podcast thinking, oh, what are we doing?
• 5:08
  I'm just like, I want to listen to that guy.
• 5:12
  You're great.
• 5:14
  I hear me and I go, who would want to listen to him?
• 5:17
  But nonetheless, I think that's why it works great is because we work together.
• 5:22
  And yeah, so here we are.
• 5:24
  We're in our little corner here at the Wall Coffee Roasters.
• 5:27
  We don't really, some of our pictures you see are on air sign behind us.
• 5:31
  And we have all our equipment set up.
• 5:33
  And yeah, we just, away we go.
• 5:35
  So Cam, do you want to know the first date we recorded our podcast?
• 5:38
  Okay.
• 5:39
  June 27th.
• 5:40
  No.
• 5:41
  Yes.
• 5:42
  Serious?
• 5:42
  That was our inaugural episode.
• 5:45
  June 27th.
• 5:46
  Wow.
• 5:47
  I know.
• 5:47
  It seems like forever ago.
• 5:48
  Doesn't it?
• 5:49
  Or it seems like just yesterday.
• 5:51
  That's really incredible.
• 5:52
  June 27th.
• 5:53
  The fact that we started it at the end of June, almost July.
• 5:57
  And for the amount of listeners we have, and worldwide.
• 6:02
  All over the world.
• 6:02
  Honestly, this is a piece that amazes me.
• 6:04
  Yeah.
• 6:04
  Technology shows us where our listeners are.
• 6:07
  Now, of course, the bulk of them are Alberta and around here.
• 6:11
  But when we started seeing that people are actually genuinely listening to us in other parts of the world, I'm like, my goodness.
• 6:18
  And on a regular basis.
• 6:19
  On a regular basis.
• 6:20
  Yeah.
• 6:22
  It really is.
• 6:23
  So, you know, when we first started, we did, again, full transparency.
• 6:27
  We thought like five people would listen.
• 6:29
  Our families, and then they would get bored and stop listening.
• 6:31
  Yeah, they would stop.
• 6:32
  They'd move on to something else.
• 6:34
  To Joe Rogan or something like that.
• 6:35
  But anyways, and it just kept growing and going and growing and going.
• 6:39
  And a lot of that has to do with our guests.
• 6:41
  100%.
• 6:41
  And when they're on and they're telling their friends and stuff like that.
• 6:46
  But it's just, it's been unbelievable where it's gone.
• 6:48
  And so June 27th, wow, that's really incredible.
• 6:52
  So for half a year, we've been doing this.
• 6:53
  And for those that stuck it out after that inaugural episode, because it was a little rough.
• 6:58
  That was a little rough, that one.
• 7:00
  We were trying to figure it all out.
• 7:02
  Should we air this or shouldn't we?
• 7:03
  Well, let's just do it.
• 7:04
  Well, let's just go with it.
• 7:05
  Yeah, let's just do it.
• 7:06
  And you know, I want to say a big thank you.
• 7:08
  We don't mention her very often to Hannah.
• 7:11
  Oh, Hannah is amazing.
• 7:13
  She's the one who uploads these.
• 7:15
  She's the one who does kind of the behind the scenes once we've recorded.
• 7:20
  And she makes it happen.
• 7:21
  So without Hannah, none of this would get out there.
• 7:23
  That's right.
• 7:23
  Shout out to Hannah.
• 7:24
  Yeah, shout out to Hannah.
• 7:26
  So yeah, it was so new to us.
• 7:28
  We had no idea.
• 7:29
  We're still rookies at it.
• 7:31
  We are.
• 7:31
  You know, we've had people tell us, hey, why don't you come record in a studio or our studio?
• 7:36
  Yes.
• 7:37
  And we just said, no, we're not doing that.
• 7:38
  We're staying here in the coffee shop.
• 7:40
  We're staying in our booth in the coffee shop and we're keeping it grassroots.
• 7:43
  That's right.
• 7:43
  Because we get good coffee.
• 7:45
  Yes.
• 7:45
  And this is just a great place to have conversation.
• 7:48
  And you know what, Cam, I really feel, and our guests have told us this.
• 7:51
  Yeah.
• 7:52
  I think a lot of them are really nervous coming in.
• 7:54
  Some of them have never done a podcast before, but they come to the Wall Coffee Roasters.
• 7:59
  They grab a cup of coffee.
• 8:01
  They sit down with us.
• 8:01
  It's so relaxed.
• 8:02
  You know what?
• 8:03
  It puts our guests at ease.
• 8:04
  Yeah, it's just relaxed.
• 8:05
  Which is why we will never go to a professional studio.
• 8:08
  Never will.
• 8:08
  We like it here.
• 8:09
  ABA Coffee in the Park is always going to be at the Wall Coffee Roasters.
• 8:13
  Until Michael kicks us out.
• 8:14
  Until he kicks us out.
• 8:15
  He hasn't done that yet.
• 8:17
  And so shout out to Michael for letting us do our podcast here, because he could have got rid of us a long time ago.
• 8:24
  We could be sitting out in the parking lot, which today would be a little cold.
• 8:27
  Yeah, a little trailer.
• 8:29
  That's right.
• 8:30
  Hi, we're coming to you live from our little trailer.
• 8:34
  The heat's not on.
• 8:36
  It's minus 74 in here.
• 8:37
  But anyway, we're in the warmth of the beautiful coffee shop.
• 8:41
  So Cam, I made, because quite honestly, there's been so many great guests.
• 8:47
  I needed to write this down so I wouldn't forget.
• 8:49
  So you have a list?
• 8:50
  I have a list.
• 8:51
  Of all our guests?
• 8:52
  Of our guests from 2024.
• 8:54
  Okay, so who was our very first guest?
• 8:57
  Our very first inaugural guest, and I am so happy she said yes, was Jan Michener from Michener Allen Auctioneering, and now owner of Deb's Dogs, the food trailer.
• 9:10
  Yeah, yeah, she was great for a first guest because she made it easy on us.
• 9:16
  She had great stories to tell, she had great personality, and she was probably looking at us going, Whoa, you guys, but she was such a good sport, and she did a great job.
• 9:26
  And she had a fantastic story.
• 9:27
  She does have a fantastic story.
• 9:29
  She does.
• 9:29
  Yeah, yeah.
• 9:30
  No, she was really great, and I'm glad she was our first guest.
• 9:32
  Thank you, Jan, for being our first guest.
• 9:34
  Thank you, Jan, and so she kicked it off.
• 9:35
  All right, then we had...
• 9:36
  Well, we had to have owner of The Wall Coffee Roaster, Michael Wall.
• 9:40
  Michael Wall.
• 9:41
  That's right, and he has a great story.
• 9:43
  Just even how he started this whole coffee business.
• 9:46
  That's right.
• 9:47
  How he went into coffee roasting, period.
• 9:49
  And I think it was a good play on our part, because he was on the podcast.
• 9:52
  Again, he hasn't kicked us out as a result.
• 9:54
  No, he hasn't kicked us out.
• 9:54
  So yeah, Michael did a great job, and it was awesome.
• 9:58
  And again, another really great story.
• 10:00
  And then...
• 10:01
  Oh, I love this lady.
• 10:04
  She is a dynamo.
• 10:05
  Tamara Sanderson from RST.
• 10:07
  Tamara was great.
• 10:08
  And has a great story.
• 10:10
  And she was awesome.
• 10:11
  She telling her story.
• 10:13
  We've had really good feedback from Tamara's podcast.
• 10:16
  And not only that, she's such a faithful listener.
• 10:19
  And such a faithful supporter.
• 10:20
  I know.
• 10:21
  And a booster of the podcast.
• 10:23
  Tamara, if you were listening right now, you are amazing.
• 10:27
  She's one of our biggest fans.
• 10:28
  She really is.
• 10:29
  In fact, her, she brought her mom.
• 10:32
  That's right.
• 10:33
  Because her mom listens to us.
• 10:35
  And her mom wanted to go to downtown, beautiful downtown Acheson.
• 10:39
  And Tamara had to bring her here.
• 10:40
  I think she was a little disappointed.
• 10:41
  I think she was a little underwhelmed.
• 10:43
  But it's okay.
• 10:43
  Yeah, that's right.
• 10:44
  But we thought that was really great.
• 10:46
  And Tamara told us that story.
• 10:48
  And so we thought right there, oh, well, people are actually listening.
• 10:52
  So we had to be careful what we were saying.
• 10:54
  But nonetheless.
• 10:55
  Yes.
• 10:55
  And then, oh, this was a good one.
• 10:58
  And you recall this one because we ate some delicious food.
• 11:02
  Mr.
• 11:02
  Mike Chadi from Wing Snob.
• 11:04
  Oh, man, that was the best.
• 11:06
  Wasn't that a great episode?
• 11:07
  He brought wings.
• 11:08
  And if you've never been to Wing Snob, it's a fantastic franchise in the city of Edmonton.
• 11:14
  And Mike brought wings that day.
• 11:17
  Great story of starting of his life and starting his franchise.
• 11:21
  From a lawyer to wings.
• 11:24
  To Wing Snob.
• 11:26
  He's like putting people in jail to getting people to eat his wings.
• 11:30
  Hey, I think the latter is better.
• 11:32
  Yeah, no kidding.
• 11:33
  And he does too, I think.
• 11:34
  I think so too.
• 11:34
  So that was really cool.
• 11:35
  And I really enjoyed Mike.
• 11:36
  And thanks for bringing the wings.
• 11:38
  That was awesome.
• 11:38
  Yeah, exactly.
• 11:40
  And then we did something a little different.
• 11:42
  We brought one of our not-for-profit partners on.
• 11:45
  We brought on Sheri Ratsoy from the Parkland Food Bank to talk about her story and why she's been a part of the Parkland Food Bank for as long as she has been.
• 11:53
  That was a great story.
• 11:54
  And it was also, I thought that one, a great info session on the food bank.
• 11:58
  She told us things that people don't know about the food bank.
• 12:01
  And it played such an important role in our community.
• 12:04
  For sure.
• 12:05
  So, Sheri, thank you for coming on to do that.
• 12:08
  Appreciate that, Sheri.
• 12:10
  And then we went on to, oh, Benny Loates, Ben Loates.
• 12:16
  For those of you that listened to, well, if you haven't listened to the Ben Loates Podcast.
• 12:20
  Oh, boy, if you want to, wow.
• 12:22
  That's gotta be in one, you gotta go listen to Benny Loates.
• 12:25
  It was amazing.
• 12:26
  Ben's story is just unbelievable.
• 12:29
  Skateboarder to real estate agent.
• 12:30
  Skateboarder to real estate agent, few things in between, clown and all that kind of stuff.
• 12:34
  He's so funny.
• 12:35
  And he was great.
• 12:36
  What a great story and what a great guy.
• 12:38
  You know what?
• 12:39
  You will not find a nicer person than Ben and his wife, Jenna.
• 12:44
  We get to see them a lot here at the coffee shop.
• 12:46
  I believe it is also their second office.
• 12:48
  That's right.
• 12:49
  And so often when we're recording our podcast, they're sitting right over there and it's great.
• 12:53
  And he's just, they're such great supporters of ours.
• 12:55
  They are.
• 12:56
  Thank you, Benny.
• 12:57
  You're awesome, buddy.
• 12:58
  So this next one was a lot of fun because we had to do a road show.
• 13:02
  That's right.
• 13:02
  That was our first road show.
• 13:03
  It was our first road show.
• 13:04
  Our first remote.
• 13:05
  Remote, yes.
• 13:06
  And mostly because it was a cat and he couldn't come in the coffee shop.
• 13:11
  That's right.
• 13:11
  Felix the cat, the shop cat.
• 13:13
  Felix the shop cat from Bushell Transport.
• 13:14
  That's right.
• 13:15
  And we couldn't bring him in to the, because you know, health regulations and all that.
• 13:19
  So we had to go to Felix.
• 13:20
  And people were thinking, well, why a cat?
• 13:24
  But he is Acheson and Instagram famous.
• 13:27
  That's right.
• 13:28
  He has like what, 25?
• 13:29
  No, like close to 3,000.
• 13:32
  3,000 followers on Instagram.
• 13:34
  I know.
• 13:34
  And so, yeah, he was such a big hit, such a success.
• 13:39
  He was famous because he also was our...
• 13:42
  He won Podcast Guest of the Year Award at our awards gala.
• 13:47
  Our first Podcast Guest of the Year.
• 13:48
  His social media handler, Cheryl Glattacker, aka owner of Bushell Transport, had to accept on his behalf because, again, he had cat duties.
• 13:58
  Yeah, he had cat duties.
• 13:59
  So yeah.
• 14:00
  So that was a lot of fun.
• 14:01
  I enjoyed that remote.
• 14:02
  And then we did Don and Jan from Mprint.
• 14:06
  Yes.
• 14:06
  Yeah.
• 14:07
  What a great story.
• 14:08
  Beautiful people.
• 14:08
  Siblings.
• 14:09
  Wonderful people, brother and sister.
• 14:11
  Own Mprint here in Acheson.
• 14:13
  Big supporters of ours.
• 14:14
  Jan sits on the ABA board.
• 14:16
  And they're just great people.
• 14:18
  Started during COVID.
• 14:19
  Yeah.
• 14:19
  What a story.
• 14:20
  What a story.
• 14:20
  Yeah.
• 14:21
  Small print shop starting during COVID.
• 14:23
  It was fantastic.
• 14:24
  Yeah, it was great.
• 14:25
  Oh, you and I had a blast with this next lady, Cathy Dool.
• 14:28
  Oh, Cathy.
• 14:29
  Cathy Dool is amazing.
• 14:31
  Cathy helped start the Acheson Business Association 30 years ago.
• 14:36
  And they own Hayworth Trucking here in Acheson.
• 14:39
  But Cathy, I'm telling you, there's nobody that makes me laugh like Cathy.
• 14:42
  She just gets me going and makes me feel really good at the end of the day.
• 14:46
  That was a great interview.
• 14:47
  It was.
• 14:48
  This next one was really a highlight for me.
• 14:53
  And I think a bit of a highlight for you.
• 14:55
  It was Mr.
• 14:56
  Wes Wall, owner of Genics.
• 14:59
  Yeah, owner of Genics.
• 14:59
  And winner of this year's Lifetime Achievement Award.
• 15:03
  That's right, at the Gala.
• 15:04
  And not only because Wes is my boss, but because Wes has been my friend, one of my best friends for 45 years.
• 15:12
  And just a great guy, great business he runs.
• 15:16
  One of the most caring, giving guys I know.
• 15:18
  And yeah, he won the Lifetime Achievement Award, which was pretty awesome.
• 15:21
  It was.
• 15:22
  Yeah.
• 15:22
  Yes.
• 15:22
  Oh, Cam, this next guest.
• 15:24
  Oh, this one.
• 15:25
  This one was quite the interview for anybody that hasn't listened to his story.
• 15:30
  You must.
• 15:31
  It was our friend, Tyler Pelke.
• 15:33
  Oh, Tyler.
• 15:34
  Yeah.
• 15:34
  You know, Jennifer, I remember, you and I talked a lot about this.
• 15:38
  And even, you know, we wanted to have Tyler on, but the story is so, it's just so impactful.
• 15:46
  It's so amazing.
• 15:47
  And I remember you and I talking a lot about, you know, how are we going to approach it?
• 15:52
  How are we going to approach this one?
• 15:53
  And then Tyler came on and told his story.
• 15:56
  And actually Tyler, I think, made it really easy for us.
• 15:59
  He did.
• 16:00
  Because you and I were really nervous about this one.
• 16:02
  Yeah, we were.
• 16:03
  You're right.
• 16:03
  And you and I talked a lot, but he did such an amazing job.
• 16:07
  If you have not listened to Tyler's story, do it.
• 16:10
  Be prepared, because it's going to tug at your heart, not only tug at your heartstrings, but there's people who have gone through traumas and things like that.
• 16:19
  But what a story.
• 16:20
  Phenomenal story.
• 16:21
  Tyler, thank you so much for coming on and doing this podcast.
• 16:27
  Then after Tyler, we had...
• 16:29
  Well, we had Mr.
• 16:31
  Murray McCourt, who is the General Manager of the Ranch Golf and Country Club, which I don't think people know is in Acheson.
• 16:37
  That's right.
• 16:38
  People think it's more in Edmonton, Wrong! but it's actually in Acheson.
• 16:41
  We claim it.
• 16:42
  It's Acheson.
• 16:42
  It's ours.
• 16:43
  And that's where we do the ABA Golf Tournament every year.
• 16:46
  Yes, which you and I had a blast at.
• 16:48
  We did, that's right.
• 16:50
  We had to patrol the entire golf course in the golf cart.
• 16:55
  And yeah, we made sure that we got to everybody and it was fun.
• 16:59
  And Murray, they do such a great job out there.
• 17:01
  And he has a great story.
• 17:03
  He had a fantastic story.
• 17:05
  Yeah, just, I mean, where he's been and what he's done.
• 17:07
  And he's wrote a book.
• 17:08
  Yeah, wrote a book.
• 17:09
  And oh, man, that was great.
• 17:10
  Love Murray, yep.
• 17:12
  Okay.
• 17:13
  This next guest is my heart.
• 17:17
  She is one of my favorites.
• 17:18
  You know she's one of my favorites.
• 17:19
  Yeah, I love her too, but she's one of your favorites.
• 17:21
  I know.
• 17:22
  And she always claims I bully her into things.
• 17:25
  Well.
• 17:25
  It's not true.
• 17:26
  Well, no, well, you know.
• 17:31
  She's always happy she does it after.
• 17:32
  I know.
• 17:32
  At the end, she's all, I'm so glad I did that.
• 17:35
  But yeah, she needs a little convincing.
• 17:37
  She does.
• 17:37
  So I don't know if you bully her, but you're very good at convincing.
• 17:40
  There we go.
• 17:41
  Darlene Whittaker.
• 17:42
  Darlene Whittaker, President and CEO of ReliableTube.
• 17:45
  Darlene is amazing.
• 17:47
  Was also a Lifetime Achievement Award winner at our gala last year.
• 17:51
  2023, Lifetime Achievement Award winner.
• 17:53
  One of the most caring, giving ladies, but what an incredible story of resilience and perseverance.
• 18:00
  I just love Darlene.
• 18:01
  I've known Darlene many years and her family, and she is one of your favorites.
• 18:08
  One of my favorites.
• 18:09
  I love her.
• 18:09
  She's amazing.
• 18:10
  She is a powerhouse.
• 18:12
  You just have to convince her a little bit.
• 18:14
  I know, but she is an inspiration for me, 100 percent.
• 18:18
  Once she gets going, she's amazing.
• 18:20
  So then after Darlene was, oh, this was a great one.
• 18:25
  Broddy Olson.
• 18:26
  We had Broddy Olson.
• 18:28
  Now Broddy is one of the, or is the?
• 18:30
  I think he is the longest serving member of the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra.
• 18:35
  How long has he been?
• 18:36
  Like, he was, like, like, it's like a year, like a long time.
• 18:41
  Yeah.
• 18:41
  Yeah, I don't even want to say it because I don't want to, I don't want to misrepresent it.
• 18:45
  But Broddy has an amazing story.
• 18:47
  Broddy and his wife, Patty, Patty had a severe accident and became a full quadriplegic.
• 18:53
  And Broddy came on and told the story about their their journey.
• 18:57
  And Patty has passed on.
• 18:59
  But he told the story.
• 19:00
  And because he plays in the symphony, he brought his violin.
• 19:05
  He played Amazing Grace.
• 19:06
  It was so cool.
• 19:07
  Do you remember the whole place went quiet?
• 19:09
  The Wall just shut down.
• 19:10
  And everyone's looking at Broddy.
• 19:11
  And I'm looking around.
• 19:12
  I'm looking at you, me.
• 19:14
  And there's tears in our eyes.
• 19:16
  And he just sat here and played Amazing Grace.
• 19:18
  It was so good.
• 19:18
  Wonderful guy.
• 19:19
  So good.
• 19:20
  Love you, Broddy.
• 19:20
  You're just amazing.
• 19:21
  Appreciate you coming on.
• 19:22
  And then we had Mr.
• 19:25
  Darren Hinkel of the Black Dirt Company.
• 19:27
  Yeah, Darren, what a great story.
• 19:28
  It was a great story.
• 19:29
  It was because it was like one of those family stories, family succession of business.
• 19:34
  And, you know, when you hear Black Dirt Company, you're like, well, what's a, you know, is there money in Black Dirt?
• 19:39
  Well, it's quite a story.
• 19:41
  And you know what I really loved about Darren's story was his involvement in the community.
• 19:45
  Yeah.
• 19:46
  I thought, you know what, this is a guy that gets it.
• 19:49
  Yeah, he did.
• 19:50
  Yeah.
• 19:50
  And he does.
• 19:51
  And he's, it was a great story or great inspiration.
• 19:54
  It was, for sure.
• 19:55
  I think for businesses.
• 19:56
  And then after Darren, we did our Thanksgiving special.
• 19:59
  Remember that?
• 20:00
  Because we taste tested the pumpkin pie.
• 20:03
  Oh, what did we ever?
• 20:05
  Yeah.
• 20:05
  We talked about what we did.
• 20:08
  We did.
• 20:08
  We talked about Thanksgiving traditions, what to not talk about at the family table.
• 20:12
  That's right.
• 20:13
  Because there's certain things you shouldn't be talking about.
• 20:15
  Right.
• 20:15
  Yes.
• 20:16
  And so here, if anybody is listening to this, if you took us literally and actually took us up on our pumpkin pie recommendations, let us know.
• 20:26
  Because I don't think anybody, I don't know.
• 20:28
  I don't know, but they should have.
• 20:29
  They should have, because we tried them.
• 20:30
  But you know what, after eating all that pumpkin pie, I'll be honest and say I ate nothing at Thanksgiving for pumpkin pie.
• 20:35
  I was like, I'm done.
• 20:36
  No, thank you.
• 20:37
  No, thank you.
• 20:38
  Now that you say that, neither did I.
• 20:39
  That's hilarious.
• 20:40
  I know.
• 20:40
  Okay.
• 20:41
  Then after our Thanksgiving special, this was a big one for us, Mike Myshak Sr.
• 20:47
  Boy, was it ever.
• 20:49
  Yeah.
• 20:49
  We weren't sure.
• 20:51
  This took a bit of conversation back and forth.
• 20:53
  It took some convincing, yeah.
• 20:54
  But wow.
• 20:56
  Yeah.
• 20:56
  We are so honored that Mr.
• 20:58
  Myshak Sr.
• 20:59
  agreed to come on our podcast and share his amazing journey.
• 21:02
  Mr.
• 21:02
  Myshak is.
• 21:04
  89.
• 21:04
  89 years old.
• 21:06
  Yeah.
• 21:06
  And what a story.
• 21:07
  Absolutely.
• 21:08
  Those who work or are familiar with Acheson and Edmonton area, well, and actually Alberta will know the Myshaks and their business.
• 21:16
  Yes.
• 21:17
  And what they do.
• 21:17
  And when Mr.
• 21:19
  Myshak Sr.
• 21:20
  came on and began to tell his story, I mean, it's just, it's amazing.
• 21:23
  It really was.
• 21:24
  It's just incredible.
• 21:25
  So thank you, Mr.
• 21:27
  Myshak.
• 21:27
  And we had his son, Jim on, and his grandson, Mike Jr.
• 21:32
  And we actually had a little bit of a studio audience that day.
• 21:36
  We had his granddaughters, I think.
• 21:36
  Because a bunch of his family members were here.
• 21:38
  And that was pretty cool.
• 21:39
  I just thought that was really cool.
• 21:41
  Yeah, that was a great podcast.
• 21:42
  Yeah, great podcast.
• 21:43
  Absolutely.
• 21:44
  After that, we had, and we've talked about it on the podcast Gather Bakery, we had Teresa Jackson.
• 21:50
  Yeah, Gather Bakery.
• 21:51
  Yeah.
• 21:52
  We go there too much.
• 21:53
  I know.
• 21:56
  Matter of fact, we just did our Christmas special, and we were, we actually made...
• 22:01
  That's where we got our gingerbread people.
• 22:02
  Yeah, we made gingerbread people.
• 22:03
  Gingerbread, they have gingerbread people kits.
• 22:06
  Yes.
• 22:06
  And we made gingerbread people while we were doing the podcast.
• 22:09
  And actually, if you go back, you'll see it on our social media, Jennifer's and mine's gingerbread people.
• 22:14
  Inspirational story of she is a single mom now, raising like a lot of kids on her own.
• 22:21
  Seven or something like that.
• 22:23
  Doing a great job.
• 22:23
  Runs a couple businesses right across Canada.
• 22:26
  Absolutely.
• 22:26
  And so yeah, great story.
• 22:28
  Tune in to that story.
• 22:29
  I love that one.
• 22:30
  This next one was a lot of fun for me.
• 22:32
  We got to turn the tables and we got to interview someone who interviews people, Mr.
• 22:37
  Daryl McIntyre.
• 22:37
  Yeah, Daryl McIntyre.
• 22:38
  Yeah.
• 22:39
  He came to MC, our gala.
• 22:40
  He did.
• 22:41
  And agreed, graciously agreed to come on the podcast.
• 22:44
  And those again in Alberta and area know Daryl.
• 22:48
  You know Daryl McIntyre.
• 22:49
  Because he was on the news forever and ever and ever and ever and ever.
• 22:52
  He was 630 ched, which is now, I don't even know what it is.
• 22:54
  I don't know what they are now.
• 22:55
  But anyway, I don't even know if they're anything now.
• 22:58
  But yeah, that was a great interview.
• 22:59
  And it was kind of fun.
• 23:00
  He made that easy.
• 23:01
  I enjoyed that one.
• 23:01
  Oh, well of course.
• 23:02
  He's such a pro, right?
• 23:03
  And then after Daryl.
• 23:05
  We went on another road show.
• 23:07
  That's right.
• 23:08
  Remember?
• 23:08
  That's right.
• 23:09
  We went on a road show.
• 23:10
  This is one of my favorites.
• 23:11
  Amy Quon from the Lingnan restaurant.
• 23:15
  And we went to the Lingnan.
• 23:17
  Remember?
• 23:18
  We went to the Lingnan and what a blast that was.
• 23:21
  But you know, the best part of that one was before we interviewed Amy, remember we went and had dinner at the Lingnan and she put on a dinner.
• 23:29
  And then we interviewed Amy a couple of weeks later.
• 23:32
  And that was just so much fun.
• 23:34
  What a story.
• 23:35
  And to be at the restaurant, nobody but just you and me and Amy.
• 23:38
  Yes.
• 23:38
  We were the only ones there.
• 23:39
  That's right.
• 23:40
  It was a lot of fun.
• 23:40
  It was a lot of fun.
• 23:41
  And then after Amy, we did, oh, Brett Oland from Bow Valley Credit Union, the president and CEO of Bow Valley Credit Union.
• 23:50
  What a great story.
• 23:51
  Cayman Islands.
• 23:53
  Like that could be like, well, I think that was like an amazing story.
• 23:58
  Yeah.
• 23:59
  Dealing with banks in the Cayman.
• 24:00
  We had to ask if it was legal.
• 24:01
  That's right.
• 24:02
  Because we've only seen it in movies.
• 24:04
  That's right.
• 24:05
  So yeah, Brett was great.
• 24:06
  He was.
• 24:06
  That was a lot of fun.
• 24:08
  And then, this is another Dynamo lady.
• 24:12
  You know, I love all, I mean, all of our guests are great.
• 24:14
  But you know what?
• 24:15
  These women we've interviewed are so inspirational.
• 24:17
  Super.
• 24:18
  I mean, amazing women.
• 24:19
  And this one is the ultimate go-getter, Bronwyn Scrivens.
• 24:22
  Bronwyn Scrivens.
• 24:24
  She was amazing.
• 24:25
  Wasn't she?
• 24:26
  It's like she's like the top, one of the top 40 under 40.
• 24:28
  She's just, she's just like a go-getter.
• 24:31
  Vice President of JLL, which is commercial real estate.
• 24:34
  Yeah.
• 24:35
  What a story.
• 24:35
  Graduate of U of A, graduate of NYU, graduate of Cornell, one of those places.
• 24:41
  Just unbelievable.
• 24:42
  One of a dynamite force in the real estate business here in Alberta.
• 24:46
  Yeah.
• 24:46
  She was incredible.
• 24:47
  She is.
• 24:48
  And then this is where I coined the word Achesonite, if you recall, for our dear friend Karen Fallowfield from Supreme Steel.
• 24:56
  Karen, she was great.
• 24:59
  She is a true Achesonite.
• 25:01
  She is working with Karen is just amazing and everything she's done.
• 25:05
  Another very strong woman in leadership.
• 25:08
  And she was also a nominee, as was Bronwyn for our Women in Leadership Award.
• 25:13
  Yes.
• 25:14
  Fantastic.
• 25:14
  Absolutely.
• 25:16
  And then we had another Acheson business owner.
• 25:19
  Oh, yeah.
• 25:20
  Reina VanGenderen.
• 25:22
  Thank you.
• 25:23
  I always have a little trouble with that one.
• 25:25
  From VanGenderen Cranes.
• 25:26
  Yes.
• 25:27
  And that was a really fascinating story.
• 25:30
  I learned a lot that episode.
• 25:31
  You wouldn't think Cranes are all that interesting, but actually, Cranes are really interesting.
• 25:36
  Listen to that podcast.
• 25:37
  Listen to the podcast.
• 25:38
  And I found out that, well, we talked about how there's a crane company on every corner in Acheson, and they don't all hate each other.
• 25:46
  No, they actually work together.
• 25:47
  Yeah, they kind of work together.
• 25:49
  I just thought, you know, that was really interesting in the way she kind of made us understand how they work together and why they work together.
• 25:57
  But their story, incredible.
• 25:59
  It really was.
• 26:00
  I wonder if they got their new crane yet.
• 26:01
  Because at the time of the podcast, remember, they had that new crane, it was coming.
• 26:06
  So I wonder if they got that yet.
• 26:07
  We'll have to find out.
• 26:07
  That was a really great story.
• 26:09
  I really enjoyed sitting with Reina that day.
• 26:11
  And then to wind up 2024, Cam, we had the absolute honor of interviewing Mike and Lea Stelter with the Ben Stelter Foundation.
• 26:23
  What a story, of course.
• 26:24
  Those in Alberta and really everywhere around know the story of Ben Stelter, the young boy who died of cancer, but has raised literally millions of dollars for cancer research.
• 26:37
  And his mom and dad, Mike and Lea, now basically run the Ben Stelter Foundation and do such an amazing job.
• 26:46
  And you know, just sitting here with them that day, because we always talk about our podcast being the story behind the story.
• 26:53
  And the story, of course, is Ben, without a doubt.
• 26:55
  But we wanted to know their story.
• 26:57
  Yes, we did.
• 26:58
  And they were so open with us.
• 26:59
  They were so generous.
• 27:00
  Yes.
• 27:01
  And they were willing to just tell us.
• 27:02
  Cam, I cried.
• 27:03
  That was a hard podcast for me.
• 27:04
  That was a hard podcast.
• 27:05
  And it, you know, because they told that we went back to before sort of the fame and before all the notoriety.
• 27:12
  And wanted to know about what it was like for them.
• 27:15
  Absolutely.
• 27:15
  And they were so transparent with us.
• 27:17
  And so again, if you're listening and you haven't listened to that particular podcast, for sure go and listen to it.
• 27:23
  And if you can contribute to the Ben Stelter Foundation, do it because, you know, Jennifer, and you and I both know this, cause we worked in these fields.
• 27:31
  It's one of those not for profits where I would have absolutely no trouble.
• 27:35
  Me too.
• 27:36
  Recommending them.
• 27:37
  Yeah.
• 27:38
  They were fantastic.
• 27:39
  Get that tax receipt before December 31st.
• 27:41
  Yeah, that's right.
• 27:42
  And you'll be helping a bunch of people.
• 27:43
  100%.
• 27:44
  Yeah.
• 27:44
  So pretty incredible.
• 27:45
  Yeah.
• 27:46
  Well, Cam, that's the list.
• 27:47
  That's the Year End Review.
• 27:48
  It's since June, end of June.
• 27:51
  Unbelievable.
• 27:52
  That's a lot of people.
• 27:52
  That's a lot of people.
• 27:57
  And I'm thankful that you wrote it all down, because I would never remember, but it's just been fantastic.
• 28:06
  It's been fantastic.
• 28:07
  And Cam, I am so looking forward to 2025 for this podcast.
• 28:13
  Me too.
• 28:13
  Jennifer, we've got some great guest lined already.
• 28:16
  We sure do.
• 28:16
  I'm pretty excited about it.
• 28:17
  So am I.
• 28:18
  And I'm pretty excited about it.
• 28:21
  And it's just, I hope, I hope it's just getting better.
• 28:26
  I hope that people listening, and I think they are, are finding these stories fascinating, because I sure do.
• 28:34
  Yeah, fascinating.
• 28:35
  I hope encouraging in certain areas, because that was part of our goal too, is that we wanted people to know that there are other people out there.
• 28:43
  Going through what they're going through.
• 28:44
  That's right.
• 28:45
  Yeah.
• 28:45
  Yeah.
• 28:45
  And so I hope in those ways, it's encouraging for them too.
• 28:50
  And so in 2025, you and I are going to be sitting here at the table again, every Tuesday.
• 28:58
  Again, unless Michael kicks us out.
• 28:59
  Unless Michael kicks us out, every Tuesday, and we're here.
• 29:04
  And I'm just going to say this because, first of all, you heard us talk about the beginnings.
• 29:14
  And Jennifer, thank you for taking the risk.
• 29:19
  You have to put up with a lot of my really harebrained ideas.
• 29:22
  I really do people.
• 29:22
  Our offices are 20 feet apart, 30 feet apart.
• 29:26
  And I think some days she just walks out.
• 29:28
  Well, no, actually I take that back.
• 29:30
  I know some days she walks out of my office, just shaking her head.
• 29:33
  But you are such a good sport.
• 29:36
  And not only that, you are willing to step out and take a risk.
• 29:39
  That's something that I just felt we could do to just encourage people.
• 29:44
  And so I want to say thank you.
• 29:46
  I want to say thank you for being here every week with me.
• 29:50
  I couldn't do it without you.
• 29:52
  Well, we've talked about this.
• 29:55
  If one of us said, nope, we're done.
• 29:56
  That's it for the ABA Coffee In The Park Podcast.
• 30:01
  If something happens and Jennifer decides to move.
• 30:03
  If I win that lotto, people.
• 30:04
  Yeah, she's gone to the Cayman Islands.
• 30:06
  Cross your fingers, I win.
• 30:07
  That will be the last episode of ABA.
• 30:10
  But yeah, I do mean it.
• 30:12
  Because you know what?
• 30:14
  It's something I look forward to.
• 30:16
  And I'm just, I couldn't ask for a better co-host.
• 30:18
  Well, ditto.
• 30:19
  And I'm thankful.
• 30:20
  It is the highlight of my week every week, getting to do this with you.
• 30:24
  So thank you for having the harebrained idea for this podcast.
• 30:30
  I think it's the last one you've actually listened to.
• 30:32
  But we'll come up with something else.
• 30:35
  Anyway, the other thank you needs to go out to all of you.
• 30:40
  Yes.
• 30:40
  Our listeners.
• 30:41
  Yes.
• 30:42
  I don't know how to say thank you enough.
• 30:43
  Obviously, we'll never get to meet you all.
• 30:46
  Some we get to see.
• 30:47
  Some we do.
• 30:48
  Thank you for the words of encouragement.
• 30:50
  Yes.
• 30:51
  Thank you for the emails of encouragement.
• 30:54
  Thank you for listening.
• 30:55
  Thank you to our guests who are willing to come on our show.
• 30:59
  And yeah, it's been fantastic.
• 31:02
  It's been fantastic.
• 31:04
  Thank you all.
• 31:05
  We hope you enjoy your new year as you ring in 2025.
• 31:10
  Yep.
• 31:10
  And it's our thoughts and prayers that 2025 will be a good year.
• 31:16
  And we just want you to just keep listening.
• 31:20
  Keep listening.
• 31:21
  So make sure you tell your friends.
• 31:23
  And tell your neighbors, tell your coworkers, tell your enemies.
• 31:26
  If you don't have any friends, make a friend so you can tell them about the ABA Coffee in the Park Podcast.
• 31:32
  Or you can go to our and get you can get our podcast wherever you get your podcast.
• 31:37
  Or you can go to our website at www.Achesonbusiness.com.
• 31:43
  That's right.
• 31:44
  We wish all of you a happy and healthy new year and we'll see you in 2025.
• 31:50
  See you everybody.