Gibsons Recycling Depot was honoured last week as one of the winners of the Successful You Awards Contest, hosted by Small Business BC.
Gibsons Recycling received the Best Green Business Award, as recognition for its commitment to energy and sustainability through leadership and green practices with a long-term commitment to energy conservation and waste reduction.
Owners Buddy Boyd and Barb Hetherington were the first in B.C. to offer a children's car seat recycling service and strive to build recovery and recycling programs that create local jobs using discards as resources. They also raise community awareness, advocate zero waste, offer training and jobs to individuals with special needs and donate salvaged materials to charities for fundraising.
In order to be named among the best in B.C., they had to gain votes from the public to be short-listed to the top 10, and then submit an extended application detailing why they deserved to win. Once selected as a top-five finalist, they then went on to face a panel of judges, pitching their cases as to why they should be named B.C.'s best.
"This was our second year being nominated for the Best Green Business in B.C.," Boyd said. "The community, both locally, nationally and internationally voted, and we were fortunate enough to make it into the next round. BC Hydro sponsors this category, so our electric vehicle recycling service was something that really seemed to interest the judges, but it was the part of our presentation with all the photos with Sunshine Coast residents recycling and shopping with kids of all ages and families at our facility that really seemed to demonstrate a sense of community. And when we spoke of the collaborative effort with other Sunshine Coasts business, Gibsons Copy Shop, Cypress Power, Vital Signs, Greenomics and Community Futures, that seemed to generate a fair flow of questions from the judges.
"They were quizzing us on how we actually did collaborate together, so it was such a great feeling sharing with them, how we as a community have come together, which is why I think we were lucky enough to get this award."
The awards were handed out on Thursday night, Feb. 28 in Vancouver.
"We are so blessed to live in such an amazing place, in Gibsons, and are just both surprised and happy to have won the award," Boyd said.
More information on this year's winners can be found at www.successfulyou.ca.
