In May, participants and partners in The Prince's Operation Entrepreneur (POE) met with The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall at Canadian Forces Base Gagetown. The POE program provides ex-servicemen and women from the Canadian Forces with the education, financing and mentoring needed to launch and sustain successful businesses. The program combines the strengths of the Canadian Youth Business Foundation's (CYBF) 15 years of mentoring and financing entrepreneurs with SIFE Memorial's internationally recognized business boot camp for veterans.
"The Prince's Operation Entrepreneur is a continuation of His Royal Highness' lifelong commitment to the Canadian Forces," said Amanda Sherrington, President and CEO of Prince's Charities Canada. "The Prince is extremely proud of this program and you could see that today in his interactions with participants." The father of two sons serving in the armed forces, The Prince of Wales first visited CFB Gagetown in the 1970s while on exercises with the Royal Navy. The Prince's Operation Entrepreneur program is supported by Prince's Charities Canada, the Department of National Defence (DND), Veteran Affairs Canada (VAC), and Advancing Canadian Entrepreneurship (ACE).
"It was an honour to be able to present the participants of the Prince's Operation Entrepreneur to Their Royal Highnesses," said Shane Skinner, incoming President SIFE Memorial University and co-manager Based in Business. "To be able to share this experience with successful graduates of the program, upcoming participants and their mentors is an experience I will never forget."
"The entire team at PropertyGuys.com is pleased to be part of this Entrepreneurial initiative for Canadian military veterans. It was not only an honour to participate in the introductions to Their Royal Highnesses, it was exciting to be able to include one of our franchisees, Rick Davies, in a group discussion on what being part of a franchise network like ours is like with program participants," said Ken LeBlanc, CEO PropertyGuys.com and POE mentor. "Rick is a great example of someone who puts his military background to good use as a franchise operator. We see great potential for this program to give us the opportunity to help more franchisees like Rick successfully transition their careers."
