Biography
Allan (AL) Markin is a distinguished Alberta business and community leader who is as innovative as he is successful. In his business career, he has helped to create the prosperity the province enjoys today. In his philanthropic endeavors, he has ensured a brighter and healthier future for his fellow Albertans.
He was born on May 6, 1945 in the town of Bowness, which at the time sat outside the Calgary corporate limits. The small community eventually became part of the city and Allan became a proud Calgarian. His parents, Andrew and Florence Markin, set an example of hard work for Allan and his siblings: Diana, Jerry and Kathy. The rhythm of family life was set to the pulse of classic Alberta traditions – curling and hockey in the winter and summers spent outside under the blue Alberta skies. Al was a keen scholar and natural athlete who quickly developed what would grow into a lifelong passion for sports in general and hockey in particular.
When choosing a profession, he set his sights on electrical engineering and enrolled at the University of Alberta campus in Calgary. But when the time came to transfer to Edmonton to complete the degree, Al knew that his future lay in the oil and gas sector. He switched his focus and graduated in 1968 as a chemical engineer.
He started in the field learning every facet of operations, form drilling to completion. He then moved to increasingly senior responsibilities with Amoco Texas and Merland Exploration before joining Calgary's Poco petroleum as President and Chief Executive Officer in 1982. Six years later, Allan became Chairman of the Board of Canadian Natural Resources Limited (CNRL). The firm would grow to become one of the most successful oil and gas companies in the world but it started as a small operation with just six employees and very limited capital. Allan credits the success of CNRL to three factors: a good vision combined with good strategy and a healthy dose of serendipity.
In many ways, the company's successful vision reflects the innovative spirit and desire for balance that permeates Allan's approach to life. He raised industry eyebrows when he unveiled the company's decidedly unconventional vision statement: "to develop people to work together to create value for shareholders by doing it right with fun and integrity." Allan also holds a rare commitment to getting out and meeting every field staffer at least once a year.
The second factor for success – the good strategy – Allan credits to his friend and business partner. The serendipity some might discuss as simple good fortune, but those who know and respect Al will tell you that he's created his successes through tremendous skill and imagination along with unrelenting energy and hard work.
Al has applied those same qualities to his efforts to serve the community and province he loves. He has focused his contributions on the areas of health care and education. Al's contributions to health care have placed a decided emphasis on wellness and disease prevention. He endowed the Markin Chair in health and Society at the University of Calgary and Invested in the schools Institute for Public Health. Al has also offered significant support for Markin Hall, the Management and Health Services Building at the University of Lethbridge. Al's interest in preventative health care also extends to the support he offers field CNRL employees. Under his guidance, the company developed a comprehensive, gold standard wellness program that includes flying doctors to field operations as needed. Al has also spearheaded nutritional research in northern regions and has implemented the Pure North S'Energy Project to provide supplements and nutritional guidance to prevent disease and enhance employee health and longevity.
Al has offered equal contributions to developing educational opportunities for Albertans. He served as a driving force behind the creation of St. Mary's University College in Calgary, an institution that reflects Al's belief in the importance of spirituality and academic freedom. He also support the Markin/CNRL Natural Resources Engineering Facility at the University of Alberta, the Oil Sands Graduate Research Award at the Northern Lights College and the Marking Flanigan Distinguished Writer in Residence Program at the University of Alberta, with the stipulation that recipients make room in their timetables for arts courses. This approach reflects Al's originality and is in keeping with his own commitment as a lifelong student of the liberal arts.
Other organizations that have benefited from Al's community leadership include the United Way, The Alberta Adolescent Recovery Centre and the Nature Conservatory of Canada. His hometown enjoys the vision he has provided as a longstanding co-owner of the Calgary Flames Hockey Club. Much further afield, Al has given valued support to organizations such as World Vision Canada, the Sri Narayani Foundation in India for the Education of Children and programs for children in Chinese Tibet.
Al holds Honourary Doctor of Law degrees from the University of Lethbridge, the University of Calgary and the University of Alberta. He received an honourary fellowship from St. Mary's University College, The Alberta Centennial Medal and the Pinnacle Award of Business Excellence in Alberta. In 2004, he was named the City of Calgary Citizen of the Year. Al is also a multiple recipient of the Wall Street Journal Gold Award for Outstanding Achievement. In 2008, the Governor General announced Al's appointment as an Officer of the Order of Canada.
When asked what he wishes for the many students he has encouraged and supported over the years, Al offers imply that he hopes thy enjoy "exceptional values and positive balance throughout their lives." If those students are in need of a role model on how to achieve that balance, or how to serve their community with compassion and true distinction, they need look no further than Al Markin.
Biography
Edward (Ed) McNally was born in Lethbridge in 1925 and he witnessed the effects of the depression. His working career started with a job as a journalist, then a newspaper editor where he learned the value of words and how less was more.
After completing a law degree he married Linda and had four children. Ed practiced law in Calgary. Weekends were spent on a family farm south of Calgary where Ed discovered the joys of growing his own produce. His passion for farming grew and expanded to include growing barley and raising cattle.
A ferocious reader and entrepreneur at heart, Ed read about the "Mushrooming Microbreweries" in the US and believed that there was a market for "real beer" in Alberta; beer that was flavorful and true to the Reinheitsgebot, The Bavarian Law of Purity of 1516. Big Rock Brewery was established in 1985 because a few people understood the simplicity and truth of Ed's belief. Ed's life experiences, determination, hard work, commitment to the community and superb employees have culminated in the success that is now Big Rock Brewery – the second largest Canadian owned brewery dedicated to the production of a vast selection of pure malt, unpasteurized beers.
Ed graduated from the University of British Columbia in 1951 with his Bachelor of Laws and Arts Degrees and received an Honourary Doctorate of Laws Degree from the University of Calgary in 1998. Past and present directorships held by Ed include positions with the: Alberta Barley Growers, Alberta Genetics, Algonquin Oil and Gas Ltd., Huntly Cattle Company Scotland and Western Barley Growers Association.
Ed has been honoured for his vision, business acumen and community involvement through receipt of: the Governor General of Canada Order of Canada in 2005, the Mount Royal College, Distinguished Citizen of the Year Award in 2004, the Ernst and Young, Canada's Entrepreneur of the Year Award in 1995, the Fraser Milner Casgrain LLP, Pinnacle Award of Business Excellence in 1992 and the University of Calgary, Haskayne School of Business, Distinguished Business Leader Award in 1992. The University of Lethbridge has also honoured Ed McNally with an Honorary Doctorate Degree.
Ed's philanthropic contributions and donations are notable including but certainly not limited to: The Alberta Beef Producers Market Development Fund, the Alberta Mentor Foundation for Youth, the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra, the Calgary Women's Shelter, Drought Aid and the United Way. With specific donations allocated to education and health care Ed supports a diverse range of organizations and causes which include Renfrew Education Services and The University of Calgary, Big Rock Lecture Series as well as the AIDS Calgary Awareness Association, Alberta Cancer Foundation, Alberta Children's Hospital, the Canadian Diabetes Foundation, Heart and Stroke Foundation and the Summit Foundation for Cystic Fibrosis.
Located in Calgary, Big rock Breweries is the most state-of-the-art facility in North America. The name "Big Rock" comes from a large glacial rock located outside of the town of Okotoks just south of Calgary. Today Big Rock Breweries is a public company with 120 employees and its own distribution network making it a true Alberta success story.
Biography
Patrick (Pat) Burns was born on July 6, 1855 in Oshawa Upper Canada. He was the son of Michael Byrne Burns and Bridget Gibson, who were both Irish immigrants. One of 11 children, his family moved to Manitoba in 1878.
He started his career as a labourer on the railroad and later became the "Cattle King" of Western Canada. Pat discovered the hefty profit margins available from the sale of beef. He and his brother John financed their move from Ontario by slaughtering and selling oxen they had been given the previous winter, when their employer was unable to pay them in more conventional currency. With that clever stroke of creative financing, pat was on his way; on his way west and on his way to becoming a very wealthy, respected and influential man. The Burns brothers each bought a quarter section of land in southern Manitoba but working the land was temporarily, out of the question. The trip and the land purchases had depleted their financial resources. They tool jobs on railway crews and hoarded their wages. Within a year, pat was able to begin work on his land. He was also busying and selling cattle at a profit and arranging profitable contracts to supply need to work crews scattered throughout Canada and the United States. One of those contracts was with an old school mate, William MacKenzie. Railroads were Mackenzies's game. He loved to build railways, but in order to do so he needed well-fed construction crews. Pat was on his way to becoming a large-scale beef supplier.
This small beginning was a far cry from the extensive plants and operations of P.Burns and Co. Ltd. of which Pat was the President and driving force. The company was established in Calgary in 1890 and the first building he owned was little more than a hut, but from those most humble beginnings Pat built and empire. It became one of the largest businesses of its kind in the world, with branches in London, Liverpool and Yokohama. His holdings, included five large plants, five export offices, seven branch offices, five wholesale fruit houses, ten creameries and poultry fattening stations as well as over 130 retail markets in western Canada, In addition to these, he owned and operated several hundred thousand acres of farm and grazing lands scattered over that three provinces and ran up to 80,000 head of cattle at the various ranches, By this time the entrepreneur has married Eileen Ellis, the daughter of a successful rancher in British Columbia. Coal was discovered in the Sheep River area around 1900, and was home to one of Pat's business ventures, the Burns Coal Mine. Not much coal was ever shipped from the valley as most of it was stockpiled to await the arrival of the Calgary and Southern Railway, and the mine was eventually shut in the 1920's due to declining demand for coal. However, the land the mine occupied is still privately owned by P. Burns Coal Mines Ltd. and there are still remnants of some old building and stockpiled coal.
The building up of an organization of this size, single-handedly and in such a short time was due to the shrewd business qualities of Pat. He was a simple, straight forward and modest man. Short in stature and stockily built, he owes his success to his ability to plan ahead, a thorough knowledge and proper appreciation of conditions as well as fair and honest dealings with all whom he met in business and elsewhere.
Pat held directorships in several important banking, engineering, and insurance companies. In 1912, he was one of Alberta's "Big Four" cattlemen who, in that year, backed the first ambitious Calgary Stampede. Despite his well-earned status in the community, Pat never lost his sensitivity or concern for people's well being. One small anecdote illustrates this point most succinctly. Apparently, in his travels he noticed a small church of his own denomination was badly in need of paint. He immediately paid to have the job done. When the little church was all spruced up Pat noticed that a neighboring church, of a different denomination looked shoddy by comparison. Pat simply arranged to have that one painted as well.
His 1901 marriage to Eileen Ellis produced one son, Michael who died in September 1936. Pat was called to the Canadian Senate in 1931 but relinquished his seat in 1936. He died in Calgary on February 24, 1937.
Senator Patrick Burns lived a life of citizenship and integrity and he was well honoured for his contributions having received the following awards and honours: the Calgary Herald, best of Alberta Project, greatest Citizen Award 2008, Canadian Business Hall of Fame, Inductee 1981, Senator Burns Building (SAIT Campus), Senator Patrick Burns School, Pat Burns Memorial garden, Calgary Cosmopolitan Club, Cosmopolitan Distinguished Service Medal 1931, Pope Benedict XV, Knight Commander, Order of St. Gregory the Great Burns Building established in 1911.
Pat was a true Albertan, citizen and entrepreneur with a dedicated history of giving back to the communities in which he operated. Today the Burns Memorial Trust oversees the distribution of philanthropic donations with special emphasis on: Salvation Army, Calgary branch, City of Calgary, Children's Shelter, The Father Lacombe Home in Midnapore and the widows and orphans of the Calgary Police Force and Fire Departments.
Biography
Alfred Ernest Cross was born in Montreal and came to Alberta in 1884. The following year he started the A7 Ranch west of Nanton, Alberta. He founded the Calgary Brewing and Malting Company in 1892, and was president until his death. He served on the North-West Assembly from 1899 to1902. He was a founding member of the Western Stock Growers' Association, Calgary Board of Trade and the Ranchmen's Club, and was one of the "Big Four" who founded the Calgary Stampede. He was also instrumental in establishing Alberta's petroleum industry. He started Calgary Petroleum Products in 1912, and was a director of Canadian Western Natural Gas. In 1961 A. E. Cross School in Calgary was named in his honour.
He attended private school and high school, later entering the Montreal Business College. He continued his education for a time in England as a student at Haileybury College, Hertfore, from 1875 until 1878. Returning to Canada, he attended the Ontario Agriculture College, 1879 until 1881. He graduated from Montreal Veterinary College in 1884.
The close of the 19th century saw Cross wearing even more hats. He was also elected as Conservative member if the East Calgary constituency to the Legislative Assembly of the North West Territories and participated in events leading up to the birth of the Province of Alberta. In 1899, he married Miss Helen Rothney Macleod, and had seven children. Mr. Alfred Ernest Cross passed away in 1932 at the age of 70.