In Focus is our gift to the community. A way for us to help show our recognition for the people, businesses and organizations that help make our city great. The team at KelownaNow.com is passionate about this community and the people that make it amazing. We want to show our friends, neighbours, family and colleagues that we notice them and the fabulous things that they do.
What is your name?
Chris Hyland
Where are you from and how long have you lived in Kelowna?
Originally from the Ottawa Valley, but have been in B.C. for 37 years and Kelowna for five and a half.
Who is your favourite person to spend time with and why?
My lovely wife Marilyn. We have the same interests and both enjoy exploring the Okanagan Valley together.
If you could go anywhere in the world right at this moment where would you go and why?
Barbados, it would be simple to pick a new exciting place, but I’ve been there and love it. It’s very relaxing, would love to be at the beach right now.
What is your favourite local store in Kelowna and why?
My wife would say it's Home Depot, I would say yes, but add Golf Town too.
What is your favourite activity?
Golfing.
If you had to choose: pizza, tacos, or burgers?
Nothing beats an all-dressed homemade burger on the deck.
What is a hidden gem you enjoy in the Okanagan?
We love 19 on the Westside, the restaurant at Two Eagles Golf Course. Very warm and friendly staff and the food is always great.
What is the most embarrassing thing that has happened to you?
Running to first base and your pants fall down around your knees is something you don’t forget.
What is the most inspiring thing that has happened to you?
Seeing employees rise up through the ranks at FortisBC due to their hard work and dedication. It is very inspiring when my employees excel and get the recognition they deserve; I couldn’t be prouder.
Tell us your favourite childhood memory.
When my hockey team won the all-Ontario high school championships.
Where do you volunteer or give back to in the community?
My management team have quarterly meetings and during each meeting, we spend an afternoon volunteering for a local community project. Projects we’ve worked on include cleaning up and landscaping at “The Farm”, which is an after school/weekend facility for kids, at the Kelowna SPCA, painting and cleaning up the fencing at the Mission Park Greenway, and planting and protecting trees at the downtown Marshes. On a larger scale, FortisBC have community events which includes employees and their families. The most notable for me was spending a Saturday at the Kangaroo farm in Winfield.
If you could change one thing in the world what would it be?
I’d like a world that has never heard of bullying.
What is your favourite activity in Kelowna?
Golfing
Where would you sneak away to in Kelowna to spend some time alone?
We have a really cool backyard. Lots of shade and a waterfall, it’s very peaceful. I’d hide out in the backyard with a comfortable chair in the shade.
Where would you like to see positive change in Kelowna and why?
Finding a positive solution for the increasing number of homeless people in our community.
If you could be granted one wish for work or in life, what would it be?
Happy and healthy family and friends.
Tell us something that not everyone may know about you.
If I ever found myself parachuting into Sweden, I can speak enough of the language to survive.
What is the name of your business/organization?
FortisBC
What does your business do?
FortisBC supplies energy to homes and businesses across the province. As a regional manager, my team and I manage natural gas employees throughout the Okanagan and Kootenays who are doing everything from putting pipes in the ground to responding to emergencies.
How do people connect with you through social media? (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest)
People can connect with FortisBC through Twitter and Instagram and the good old fashioned telephone.
Where can people find your business online?
Fortisbc.com
Why did you get into/start this business?
By accident. I took a two week trip to Terrace to be visit an aunt and uncle and decided to stay a little longer and landed a job as a labourer with Pacific Northern Gas. Years later I transferred to Centra Gas on Vancouver Island, which is now part of FortisBC, when natural gas came to the island. So that two-week vacation has turned in a 37-year career with FortisBC.
What is the goal of your business?
As a regional manager at FortisBC, I would like employees that are happy, productive and return home safely to their families every day.
What has been your biggest struggle either in work or life?
I’m proud of our current safety culture, but it’s been a long, hard struggle to get where we’re at and we need a continued focus to get where we want to be.
Why do you think it is important to shop local?
Continue to support our own backyard, that’s why we give back to the community.
Give someone that you think deserves it a shout out and explain why!
My wife for putting up with me.
My nomination for the In Focus spotlight is:
The Kelowna United Way. They do so many great things for people in our community; they deserve all the recognition possible.
Other information you would like to share:
People may be surprised at the diversity of the FortisBC staff here in Kelowna and the commitment they have to the community, from responding to emergencies and keeping the gas on and the lights working to volunteering as a local soccer coach or cleaning up at a public park. Makes me proud to be a part of FortisBC.
We encourage you to leave your comments and words of support below, and submit your own nomination by clicking HERE. You are also welcome to submit a form of your own by clicking HERE. Thank you, Kelowna!
