Meet the Judges

Kirby has worked in tourism since his teenage years, growing up in Lunenburg, NS before moving the mountains in Whistler, BC in 1993 and starting with Whistler Mountain. He joined the senior management team of Whistler Blackcomb in 1999 until 2007 when he left for the Kootenays as the President and COO of Panorama Mountain Village in Invermere, BC. He returned to Whistler in 2012 as the CEO of The Adventure Group and in 2015 Kirby moved to Squamish, BC to proudly join Sea to Sky Gondola as the General Manager. He served as the Chair of Tourism Squamish for 8 years and is the Chair of the Squamish Housing Society. Having been blessed to live and work within the unceded ancestral territory of the Squamish Nation, Kirby is honoured to be able to contribute to the work of the Hiy?ám? ta S?wx? wú7mesh Housing Society (Hiyam Ha) as an inaugural non-indigenous board member since 2020. He is still active with the Governor General's Canadian Leadership Conference (2008 Alumni) and was the BC Chair and on the National Organizing Committee for the Duke of Edinburgh's Commonwealth Study Conference in 2023. Outside of work Kirby spends time on his passion project, Playground Builders which has built hundreds of playgrounds in Afghanistan, Iraq and the Palestinian Territories since 2007.

I'm stoked and honored to be part of the judging panel for the Squamish Business Excellence Awards. Every year, these awards shine a spotlight on the incredible talent, creativity, and hard work happening across our community. I'm excited to celebrate the amazing businesses and individuals who make Squamish such a vibrant place to live and work.

I am a third year associate lawyer at Race & Company LLP. My practice is largely split between family law and civil litigation. Although I am a relatively junior lawyer, I have quite a diverse and rigorous work / volunteer background. During my undergraduate degree, I obtained five professional summer positions at Microsoft, Scotiabank, AGF Investments, Gowling WLG and DundeeWealth. These positions allowed me to gain extensive and valuable professional development at an early age and exposure to a diverse collection of industries, people and perspectives.

During law school at the University of Calgary, I volunteered / worked full-time for a pro bono legal services charity providing assistance and advocacy to the least fortunate populations in the city. As a student executive at this charity, I was exposed to a well-functioning Board of Directors that comprised of lawyers, judges and other community leaders. My time working with this charity awakened my desire to dedicate a significant amount of my professional capacity to community-based programs like the Chamber of Commerce. Since moving to Squamish in 2020, I have learned a lot about this special community and have developed a large network of people who share this passion (with help from the Chamber's Apres events). In 2023, I became the Supervising Lawyer for Sea to Sky Community Services Legal Advocacy Program, which offers advocacy support and assistance to financially restricted individuals and families in Squamish, Whistler and Pemberton. In my free time, you can find me skiing, mountain biking and hiking.

Ashley Oakes is the Executive Director of PearlSpace Support Services Society, a role she has held since December 2018. In her tenure with PearlSpace to date, Ashley has led the society in the development and realization of an ambitious strategic plan that included renovating the society's Squamish headquarters, increasing access to emergency and supportive housing for survivors of gender-based violence, rebranding the society to become more inclusive of diverse populations and growing programs and services to meet the evolving needs of the Sea to Sky Corridor. Through collaborative leadership, community engagement; and advocacy efforts, PearlSpace has grown substantially under Ashley's leadership.

In addition to her role with PearlSpace, Ashley has served as a board member for several non-profits and is currently on the Board of Directors of Squamish Community Housing Society and the Aplastic Anemia and Myelodysplasia Association of Canada.

Ashley has lived in Squamish with her husband, son and two dogs since 2014. She loves to spend time outdoors and in her garden, is an avid reader, and is an MBA candidate at Royal Roads University.

Jarrett Zavitz is a financial planner at Zavitz Insurance & Wealth and is based out of his office in the Northyards building in Squamish. He works with small business owners on their benefit plans and their personal protection plans, as well as working with many families in the corridor who need life & disability insurance or financial planning. 

He holds many financial designations, including Certified Financial Planner, Chartered Life Underwriter, & Certified Employee Benefits Specialist. He has a Bachelor of Science and a Graduate Diploma in Business Administration from Simon Fraser University. 

Through his work, Jarrett hears a lot from the local business community about challenges they are facing and areas which are working effectively. He wants to be able to take this feedback to influence positive change and build a strong business-friendly community in Squamish. 

Outside of his professional life, Jarrett has rooted himself in the community. He is a member of Squamish Search & Rescue and has also served on their Board of Directors. He is a sponsor of both SORCA and Squamish BMX. 

He lives in Squamish with his wife and 2 young boys and is a regular out on the mountain bike trails, fishing the rivers, or in the winter backcountry.