The Neepawa & District Chamber of Commerce’s Business After Five is a series of networking events by members and for members of the Chamber to meet, mingle, and showcase their businesses to other businesspeople in the Neepawa area.

Town of Neepawa EDO Marilyn Crewe spearheads the project, and Business After 5 events are promoted exclusively to members of the Chamber of Commerce, one of the perks of membership. Crewe indicates they are in the midst of the annual business survey and following that she expects to see some further businesses hold their own Business After 5 events in the next few months.

This month the event is hosted by the Salvation Army Thrift Store, a part of the Neepawa Community Ministries Centre which also houses the community food bank and other family resources.The thrift store is largely a means to an end for them, providing resources for their other programs, and participating in the Business After 5 series gets the organisation in direct contact both with business donors for their programs as well as potential partners for future projects.

On the subject of future programs, Executive Director Amanda Naughton-Gale indicates that she would like to see them be able to make space for the Addictions Foundation to come in periodically, or for mental health practitioners to offer services. Ultimately she’d like the Community Ministries Centre be a one-stop spot for information and resources for individuals and families in the Neepawa area.

“As much as we don't want to face those things,” she says, “I think a healthy  community is having those types of supports within it.” The networking available through Business After 5 helps to make the connections to create and build the kinds of programs that will help the organisation expand.