Success Story Details

Young Summer Company 2009 Entrepreneurs Wrap-up A Summer of Hard Work...and Success!

Location: Canada

It’s been a great summer for Durham student Josh Gardiner. He’s made enough money to pay for his second year tuition at Brock and will have plenty left over for a financially carefree year as well. And he did it without summer job.

Instead of looking for scarce work at the end of May, he applied and was selected to participate in Summer Company. The program, sponsored by the government of Ontario and coordinated in the Durham region by BACD Business Advisory Centre Durham, assists students ages 15-29 to start and operate their own summer business. Along with 19 other enterprising Durham youth participating in the program this summer, Josh has turned a start-up award of up to $1500, business training, one-on-one mentoring and a heaping helping of just plain hard work into his own successful business.

Thursday, August 20^th, Josh and his fellow Summer Company young entrepreneurs were publicly recognized for their initiative and effort at the 2009 Summer Company Wrap-up Celebration held at the BACD Business Advisory Centre Durham office in Oshawa.

‘’The Wrap-up Celebration is an opportunity for the Summer Company young entrepreneurs to get together for the last time in the program and celebrate their own success,” says Wenda Abel, program manager. “But, it’s also an occasion to acknowledge the courage, determination and leadership they’ve displayed in launching and successfully operating an enterprise. And, to give recognition to the important contribution made by volunteers from Durham’s business community who provided critical advice and support as mentors to the students over the summer as they developed their businesses.”

Attending the Wrap-up Celebration were local dignitaries including Oshawa Deputy Mayor and Regional Councillor , Joe Drumm and representatives from the Ontario Government to bring greetings and congratulations from Durham provincial ridings and municipalities and present each student entrepreneur and their mentor with certificates of acknowledgement and congratulations.

Following the presentations, the young entrepreneurs, their mentors and guests enjoyed a slide presentation of the ‘Durham Totally Awesome Twenty’ on the job... and the chance to mix and mingle and just relax and bask in the glow of their accomplishments.

For more information, contact: Wenda Abel, Young Entrepreneur Program Manager, BACD, 905-438-4008 X 226,

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