- (902) 826-1680
- info@smbcec.org
About Us
We’re about creating a stronger, more vibrant community, by bringing together the private sector, the voluntary sector and aspiring entrepreneurs. It’s about being a space unlike any other space that currently exists in the St. Margaret’s Bay area.
The St. Margaret’s Bay Community Enterprise Centre (SMB CEC) is a facility where local volunteer groups and businesses come together to work and share community projects, experiences, resources, and knowledge. It’s a place for everyone to work together to help businesses and community groups improve life for everyone in the St. Margaret’s Bay area.
It all started back in November 2014, after a very well-attended ONE St. Margaret’s Bay community meeting, organized by the St. Margaret’s Bay Stewardship Association. At the meeting, it was agreed by various community groups and development agencies that there was a great need for a physical location to provide a local hub for meeting, working, sharing, supporting, and inspiring.
Needs were outlined and identified:
• Somewhere for drop-in conversation, socializing and networking;
• A permanent location for the Seniors Association of St. Margaret’s Bay and other not-for-profit members;
• Serviced office and meeting spaces, staffed by volunteers from the location’s partners;
• Resources for social enterprises and entrepreneurs;
• Space to deliver training programs for local volunteer groups and businesses;
• Somewhere that would help with and facilitate accessing grants and other funding, including ; allowing for the delivery of government services in the area.
And so, the Community Enterprise Centre was born.
We invite anyone who wishes to be part of the CEC community and help build on what has already been created to get in touch with us by email at info@smbcec.org, by calling us at 902 826 1680, or by stopping by during our regular hours, 9 am to 4 pm, weekdays.
Our Vision, Mission & Values
Our Vision
The St. Margaret’s Bay Community Enterprise Centre is an active, mutually supportive, and welcoming community of people who use the resources they need to succeed in advancing social and economic development in our region.
Our Mission
The St. Margaret’s Bay Community Enterprise Centre is an enabling hub, fostering connections for members, partners, and our community to collaborate and cultivate relationships, improving the quality of life in our region.
Our Core Values
The St. Margaret’s Bay Community Enterprise Centre is where collaboration, communication, and mutual support are key to our success.
In working together as a team, we adhere to the following core values or guiding principles:
Respect: We conduct ourselves with integrity and seek diversity with the richness of perspectives it can bring to our community.
Collaboration: We take a collaborative approach to our efforts which makes us stronger together in supporting our community.
Community: We prioritize meaningful, supportive engagement with our community. A strong sense of community is at the heart of the centre.
Our Board
Board of Directors 2024-2025
Greg Brown Sipekne’katik First Nations
Julianna Davies Member
Fred Dolbel CEC Life Member
David Eisnor Futurpreneur
Marsha Fanning Member
Angie Green Business Committee
Andrea Hamm CBDC Bluewater
Richard Howell Stewardship
Bob Joyce Fair Winds Financial Coach
Richard Learmonth The Masthead News
Chris Pelham CEC Life Member
Chantal Pelham-Edwards Third Sector Enhancement
Melan Sapp CEC Life Member
Shelly Simpson Peggy’s Cove Area Art Society
Shelley Webb St. Margaret’s Bay Region Tourism Development Association
Officers
PRESIDENT – Bob Joyce
VICE-PRESIDENT – Marsha Fanning
CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER – Angie Green
SECRETARY – Melan Sapp
PAST PRESIDENT – Chris Pelham
Our Members
Bay Treasure Chest Association
The Bay Treasure Chest weekly 50/50 toonie draw was established in early 2014 by five local not-for-profit service organizations as a fundraising partnership in the St. Margaret’s Bay area. The partnership has expanded to eight groups, comprising 15 organizations. Volunteers from the partner groups spend many hours on the weekly draws, and local retailers support the program by hosting the chests. From their share of Treasure Chest proceeds, the partners deliver programs, services, recreation and other activities to benefit individuals, families, the environment, and our community.
Other community groups are eligible to receive honoraria by helping with a draw. Since 2016, Bay Treasure Chest has awarded more than $250,000 in scholarships to local secondary school students.
Carol Cone on Purpose
Carol Cone On Purpose was launched in 2015 as a flexible, authentic, experts-at-the-centre purpose-consulting model to advance organizations’ reasons for being beyond profit. From discovering what purpose means to your organization, through to an introductory workshop, to strategy development, leadership positioning, employee engagement, and partnerships, we work with brands, nonprofits, and corporations.
CBDC Blue Water
CBDC Blue Water is one of 41 Community Business Development Corporations (CBDCs) serving Atlantic Canada. Being a CBDC, we promote economic development in rural areas by providing financial assistance, training, and counselling to small businesses. As a CBDC, we assist in the creation of small businesses and in the expansion and modernization of existing businesses by providing financial and technical services to entrepreneurs. We are not-for-profit community-based organizations run by volunteers from the local business community who firmly believe in improving the economic viability of their communities.
Fair Winds Financial Coach provides independent financial advice and coaching through its owner-operator Bob Joyce, CPA, CA, CFP, who has over 40 years’ experience in financial services, including accounting, tax and estate planning, wealth management, and retirement planning. As an independent, advice-only, fee-based financial adviser, he is not affiliated with any financial institution, but works entirely for the client.
Peggy’s Cove Area Art Society (Peggy’s Cove Area Festival of the Arts)
Established in 2011, the Peggy’s Cove Area Art Society’s mission is “to bring together a community of artists to foster growth and development; and provide opportunities to share their work, knowledge, ideas, and passions.” In addition to various events and activities during the year for artists and art appreciators, the Peggy’s Cove Area Art Society presents the annual July Peggy’s Cove Area Festival of the Arts, named by Discover Halifax as one of the top 10 summer activities in HRM.
Seniors Association of St. Margaret’s Bay (Bay Seniors)
Established in 2009, the Seniors Association of St. Margaret’s Bay (Bay Seniors) is a not-for-profit registered society whose purpose is to help seniors in the St. Margaret’s Bay area realize their retirement dreams, maintain control over their lives and identify opportunities for sharing their skills and experience. Bay Seniors is inclusive and helps local seniors participate in social, community and wellness activities.
St. Margaret’s Bay Business Association
The St. Margaret’s Bay Business Association was formed to support the many businesses surrounding the Bay area, and to represent them in promoting their many unique ventures. They have been around for close to a decade and invite you to join them in some of the many opportunities they have to offer.
St. Margaret’s Bay Region Tourism Development Association
The St. Margaret’s Bay Tourism Development Association (SMB Tourism) grew out of a community group consisting of volunteers focused on enhancing visitor experiences. Formally incorporated in 1999, the organization’s mission is “to foster the growth and development of a sustainable tourism industry in the St. Margaret’s Bay region and to strengthen its position as a destination, while maintaining the cultural and environmental integrity of the region.”
SMB Tourism continues, with limited human and financial resources, like many volunteer organizations, to serve tourism interests in a variety of ways to promote the area as a premier destination.
St. Margaret’s Bay Stewardship Association
The Masthead News
The Masthead News is an independent monthly community newspaper currently distributed to over 30,000 households and businesses in and around Nova Scotia’s South Shore. The newspaper features original stories, photographs, and event notices from local contributors, and is funded by advertising by local business.
Third Sector Enhancement Ltd.
Our collective community development experience spans nearly 40 years. We have been working with communities, non-profit organizations, businesses and governments for decades – helping them identify their goals and the pathways to achieve them. We have worked in government, in nonprofits, and in private business, and understand the unique complexities of those environments. We believe that decisions should be influenced by those who will be most impacted by them. All our activities are based on this fundamental premise.
Ulnooweg
Ulnooweg, pronounced [Ul-noo-wegg], is a Mi’kmaq word that, broadly translated, means: “to make indigenous or to adapt beliefs, customs, etc. of the Mi’kmaq.” In this context, Ulnooweg Development Group would translate to an “Indigenized” Development Group incorporating the beliefs, customs, values, etc. of the Mi’kmaq nation. In this way, Ulnooweg operates as an extension of communities, uniquely stewarding their needs and supporting their business leaders and entrepreneurs. We are all one team working together toward a vision of self-sustaining, healthy communities.
As the Atlantic Indigenous business organization, Ulnooweg and its portfolio of strategic initiatives are pleased to engage with the St. Margaret’s Bay Community Enterprise Centre. Increasing participation by Indigenous entrepreneurs and innovators in the Atlantic economy is the goal, and we see ourselves as the conduit, or connector, of the two ecosystems. In the role of connector, working with other accelerating organizations of the CEC, we look forward to a positive increase in Indigenous entrepreneurs and innovators. Ulnooweg has been providing loans and business services to Aboriginal entrepreneurs in Atlantic Canada since 1986. With representatives in New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, and Nova Scotia, we offer convenient, personalized service to our clients to help them succeed.
Our Volunteers
These are the people who give their time, skills and dedication to support us, thereby supporting our community.
We would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who:
• Dreamed a place like the CEC could happen here.
• Worked so hard to establish the CEC.
• Is part of our participation in our community today.
Our special thanks to our founding board of directors and the dozens of individuals, organizations, businesses and government departments that made the St. Margaret’s Bay Community Enterprise Centre possible
If you are interested in volunteering, email us at info@smbcec.org
Annual General Meeting package
The St. Margaret’s Bay Community Enterprise Centre’s Annual General Meeting was held on Thursday, June 26, 2025. See AGM reports and financial statement here: CEC 2024-2025 AGM Package.
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