One of the big winners at the Langley Advance Best of the Best awards this year was shocked to learn her group had even been nominated.
“Total surprise, we actually didn’t know until we saw it in the paper,” said Shannon Woykin, executive director of Langley’s Meals on Wheels.
The group won both non-profit and volunteer categories, scooping up two plaques in its first year winning, after almost 40 years serving Langley.
“This is all because of our volunteers, we have amazing volunteers,” Woykin said.
The Best of the Best Awards are all about finding the local businesses and non-profits that go above and beyond for their clients and customers.
Another first-time winner was Buhf Beauty Boutique, another double winner for best hair and nail salon.
Dena Fyfe, Magda Jaskiewicz, and Jennise Ing were there to pick up their first awards.
Fyfe said a customer told them she had already voted for them and brought the contest to their attention.
“It was a big honour,” Fyfe said.
“Pretty cool,” Jaskiewicz said of the win.
The salon has been involved in supporting several charities in the community, including the Weekend Fuel Bag that helps keep kids from going hungry, and a breast cancer support project.
Some businesses and restaurants win year after year, thanks to what Langley Advance publisher Lisa Farquharson said was a commitment to customer service, great products, innovation, and embracing corporate social responsibility by giving back to the community.
“Customer service, although its always been important, it’s still the mainstay,” Farquharson said. “It’s the reason why people keep coming back.”
Farquharson talked about how every company there made a huge impact in the community by giving back every year.
“Thank you to each and every one of you for going above and beyond,” Farquharson said.
Katy Mayrs and Kerri Lucas-West of Duolynx Design and Print aren’t exactly new to Best of the Best. They’ve picked up 10 of the awards over the years.
That’s all the more remarkable because they’ve been in business exactly 10 years.
“It was super exciting,” Mayrs said about the first win. “We hadn’t been in business long, and to have that recognition… it verified the hard work, and that we were doing something right,” she said.
Now the duo has been confirmed again and again through the annual voting.
