Editor's Note: Clarification: The story has been updated to correct the dollar amount in the Chamber's bank account according to the August 31 month-ending balance sheet presented at last year's annual general meeitng. The balance was aapproximately $41,000 not $60,000 as was written in the original version of this story.
“The Chamber is in a little bit of a financial issue right now.”
That’s how Lac La Biche and District Chamber of Commerce executive director Karen Collins began the explanation to a dozen of the organization’s members at their last general meeting. She then went on to say there may be some help for the organization in the form of a government assistance loan of $40,000. The Canada Emergency Business Account (CEBA) is a federally-funded small-business loan available for not-for-profit organizations. The loan plan offers interest-free payments. It is one of the funding life-rafts that Chamber officials are looking at.
But with just $13,000 currently in their bank account, monthly expenses and payroll totalling $5,000 — and annual fundraising events cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the ability to pay back even an interest-free repayment was questioned by some of the members.
“The Chamber has been struggling for awhile,” said Collins, “and COVID means that we can’t put on the big fundraising events like our golf tournament.”
With 167 members paying membership fees last year, Collins hopes to make some financial headway with membership payments she said that will be coming due in September.
Time and money
She also says there are a number of good ideas she has been planning — around the COVID protocols — to draw more awareness to the organization and to put more money into its coffers. To bring it all together, Collins estimated she would need another four to six months.
The problem with that, noted one member at the meeting, was that with just $13,000 in the bank account, there is only enough time for two and a half months of operations.
And that is what triggered the discussion of the loan.
“Without the loan, I don’t think we’ll tide over the time to get to those good ideas,” said Lac La Biche County council’s representative to the Chamber Lorin Tkachuk.
Discussion about the loan centred on several points, including a need to find out specifically what the loan’s repayment options were and where the Chamber’s money has been spent. Financial statements from the 2018-19 operating year for the group presented at last year’s annual general meeting on September 30, showed a bank balance of approximately $41,000.
Next meeting ...
Members at the meeting did agree to support the idea of the loan — but will only vote to pursue it once the details of the repayment were known. The organization’s vice-president Dave Phillips said he would contact members with the details in the coming weeks in order to have the decision to go with the loan or not ready before the upcoming annual general meeting on Tuesday, September 29.
