Brooke Cain
Brooke Cain started her new job as a bakery clerk lacking in confidence, but within months she hit her stride and never looked back, taking on so many responsibilities that she made herself indispensable within the department. Not only was she an ace at performing her own tasks, including quality control and packaging, she was eager to learn new baking and decorating skills, and was assigned to train new bakery employees. Her supervisor says she really came to the rescue when they were short- staffed. “Without Brooke, I wouldn’t have been able to make any sort of schedule within the department work. Without any actual training on baking, Brooke offered to do the job.” Brooke, who has taken a sabbatical to attend university, admits she was “terrified” her first day on the job, but came to love the position. “It built my confidence to allow me to fulfill my dreams.”
Cynthia Campbell
When Cindy Campbell is faced with adversity, she looks for ways to get over an obstacle while helping others along the way. In 2017, Cindy was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis but has continued to work and is now fundraising for the cause. “Last year was a very hard year for me,” she says. “But the support of a lot of people at Sobeys and my family is helping me get through it.” The company has since offered her full-time employment, which has done much to bolster her spirits. “I don’t know where this road is going to take me or how long I can work … but they still hired me full time.” Cindy formed team So Be It with family, friends and co-workers to take part in an MS walk, and she was a top fundraiser; a bake sale at the store also raised funds. “It feels amazing to know I have such a great support system both at home and at work.”
Shannon Chahal
When a young boy was swept away in winter floodwaters in Oakville, Shannon Chahal was moved to help. “As a mom of three, I was very impacted,” she says now of her efforts. “This really did affect me and I wanted to do something for the volunteers who were going out in terrible weather.” After contacting two Sobeys Vice Presidents, she began working with Shelburne Foodland to supply food and supplies to the volunteers and she also volunteered her time to help in the search. “They were tired of eating sandwiches, so we provided chili and other warm comfort foods.” Shannon says it gave her a good feeling to be able to represent Sobeys in the effort. “I take pride every day that I come to work, so to be able represent myself as an employee at a great Canadian company that serves our communities… I felt proud.”
Stéphane Charron
With a gift for inspiring others to follow his lead, even-tempered store manager Stéphane knows how to remain authentic and draw the best out of his employees. He encourages his employees to take initiatives, and learn from their mistakes. His personal motto is “nothing ventured, nothing gained.” “People need to be in a comfort zone to make decisions,” says Stéphane. “It is what will enable us to forge ahead, to grow. With 130 employees, sometimes, in a store, one cannot be the only one to have the best ideas.” A successful graduate of Sobeys Career Access Program, he always places the human aspect of things at the top of his list and emphasizes the positive, if possible. Work is more enjoyable if you’re having a little fun too: Very expressive in nature, Stéphane loves to tell stories and to inject a dose of humour into the workplace.
Kelsey Cole
Integrity, honesty and understanding is vital to the role Kelsey plays every day as retail support for all the banners in Alberta. “To me, Stay Real is all that you really have,” she says. “If you don’t have your honesty and your integrity and you’re not real to yourself, you can’t be real to anybody else.” Kelsey genuinely cares about people, and her efforts and work ethic have not gone unnoticed. “Kelsey is an amazing leader and we are lucky to have someone with her talents and expertise working with us at Sobeys,” states the nomination letter. Mentoring others is the most rewarding part of Kelsey’s job. “There was a general clerk and I saw so much potential in her,” she says. “I knew she wanted this as a career, I gave her that stepping stone, but I was honest and open about all of my experiences. She’s moving up the ranks now and everytime I look at her I think you can do this because I did this.'”
Andrea Cossette
Anyone who has spent time on the South Shore of Nova Scotia knows that brown bread is as essential to the weekly grocery order, as are staples like milk and butter. “It’s been a thing here for as long as anyone can remember – you had brown bread and beans on Saturday night,” says bakery manager Andrea Cossette. So when the bread was recently discontinued, Andrea found another way to serve her customers. She and her bakery team developed a recipe that was as good – if not better – than the original and cost about the same. The bread started flying off shelves and is now sold all along the South Shore. Andrea, who has worked for Sobeys for 10 years, says her passion for baking comes from spending hours in the kitchen with her grandmother and mother. “Baking is cathartic for me,” says Andrea. “It is such a pleasant experience. It will always be my happy place.”
Stéphanie Coursol
Success is impossible if one does not work hard each and every day; therefore it is not an objective but rather a consequence of our day-to-day actions. One must understand the “why” and the “how” of things in order to better respond to customers’ needs and to identify potential solutions. This is the mindset with which Stéphanie approached her work and her increasing responsibilities towards customers and her coworkers from year to year, even from her first day on the job. Placing the customer first, according to her, encompasses all other values. It is the primary reason one comes to work each day, and she is proud that her colleagues and customers appreciate her hard work. As a role model, she admires Nellie McClung (1873-1951), who devoted her life to fighting for women’s rights, including the right to vote. “My Sobeys is the place where I have learned the most over the past few years and where I still learn every day.”
Kayla Daigle
Dietitian Kayla Daigle has a passion for promoting health in the communities she serves, but one group in particular has touched her heart. Kayla has worked very closely with the First Nations community in Esgenoopetitj, and recently offered a popular eight-week prenatal program to 19 participants. “Since the start of the year we really wanted to get in shape. We had the exercise figured out, but had no idea how to eat better,” wrote one expectant mother. “Since starting the nutrition program at the store, we know how to make better choices, we feel better.” The program was so popular that Kayla will offer it again, and she is also planning postnatal sessions. “It’s a really fun, rewarding partnership,” she says. “I really enjoy helping customers take those nutrition recommendations and turn them into useable skills.” She also spreads the healthy lifestyle message on local radio and partners with public health nurses and diabetes organizations.
Sarah Allen
Sarah runs the Mommy Chain, an online support group for mothers from the Oxford County area where they can share and help each other with difficult life situations. “We help families who have just had a baby, who are going through sickness or who just need extra support,” she says. “I want to make sure that the moms in my community know that I am genuine and that we all need to reach out to one another. It takes on that whole idea of it takes a village to raise your kids.” Sarah collects children’s Halloween costumes all year round and then offers them for free at an exchange party every fall. Not only do kids come in a pick out their costumes, they get a treat provided by Sobeys and the moms get a chance to socialize. As a mother, Sarah works to show her own four children the importance of giving back. “I strive every day to teach them about being kind and loving our community.”
