In Focus | Grant Lawrence

Meet Grant Lawrence. He's from Ottawa, Ontario and moved here in 2005!

Who is your favourite person to spend time with and why?
Susanne Lawrence. My partner in life; we've done so much together. Raised a family, running businesses, sharing our passions and past times. There is the right balance of similarities and differences to keep our relationship always refreshing!

What is your favourite local store in Kelowna and why?
I'm not much of a shopper, so I turned to my wife and asked her. Her reply is, Pier 1 for their original products!

Describe yourself in one word.
Pleasantly persistent!

If you could go anywhere in the world right at this moment where would you go and why?
With the current temperatures, I could go for kiteboarding in the islands somewhere.

What is your favourite activity in Kelowna?
Live music!

What is the most embarrassing thing that has happened to you?
As a kid, my bathing suit dropping to my knees when I was diving during a swim lesson.

What is the most inspiring thing that has happened to you?
One inspiring thing was seeing the sense of community at outdoor concerts in Kelowna which lead to myself and a partner creating Lake Country Open Air Performances, now live in Lake Country.

Tell us your favourite childhood memory.
Sports, sports and more sports. I was an outdoor rink rat and spent so much time outside playing hockey that I would forget dinner and would be on the ice for 3 - 5 hours regularly, as soon as school ended. I can remember many times how painful it was taking off my skates and my mother thawing my feet with her warm hands and sometimes warm water, then only to do it all again the next night. What a riot! This then translated into serious competitive sports, basketball being the main in high school and then a varsity player at university, I also gave lacrosse and to rowing a go at university. Bottom line is moving and playing is a natural high.

Where do you volunteer or give back to in the community?
While my boys were going to grade school and high school I was very busy volunteering. On the PAC each year, ran a guitar club at the high school and taught music at the grade school, coached basketball, high school and KMBA, and helped with other sports, did fundraising and chaperoned many a school trip. I also ran two non-profits. Today I regularly help startups in the Okanagan with advice on; improving their pitches to raise capital; their go-to-market plans and helping them network with investors and vice versa. Then after seven years of volunteering for the Lake Country Open Air Performances, and helping with the open mic contest, I now am part of a new group called the Lake Country Arts Council.

If you could change one thing in the world what would it be?
Give everyone the ability to walk in each other's shoes before reacting and acting. Having your eyes opened to understanding and doing the same for others. I also suggest everyone read 'Viking Economics' by George Lakey. You will be pleasantly impressed and maybe even moved to make changes.

Where would you sneak away to in Kelowna to spend some time alone?
One of the many wilderness hikes in our beautiful area.

Where would you like to see positive change in Kelowna and why?
A holistic approach to mental health that involves all stakeholders in the community so we don't have people falling through the cracks. As well as fixing our economic problems such that the temporary food banks are truly temporary.

What do you think makes Kelowna great?
Our growing startup scene and our community’s willingness to support it by giving back without strings attached.

What are 3 things on your bucket list?
1. Learn how to kite-board like a pro, unlikely but it will be fun trying!
2. See our son's become successful in whatever they choose to do and to be contributors to society
3. Do something on my wife's bucket list

Tell us something that not everyone may know about you.
I am a closet activist in a number of areas: health, food, finance and more!

How do people connect with you, personally, through social media? (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, etc.)
LinkedIn.

What is the name of your business/organization?
VA Angels Kelowna.

Why did you get into/start this business?
After running a couple of financial knowledge and intelligence classes at a local high school I recognized that innovation and entrepreneurialism were not high on the curriculum, if there at all. I next reached out to a local entrepreneur and got agreement for him to present to the senior students at the high school. This started me on the path to running VA Angels Kelowna, to help startups getting in front of Angel Investors.

What is the goal of your business?
Connect great startups with great investors to allow for our community to build thriving businesses resulting in all the fantastic spin-off benefits that occur.

What has been your biggest struggle either at work or in life?
It is always and continues to be setting the bar high for myself and then inadvertently expecting others to do the same.

If you could start all over again would you do things the same or would things be different?
Look into innovation and financial intelligence earlier in life.

What do you always find yourself saying?
'Way to go! Excellent! Well done!'

Tell us your best piece of life advice.
Keep in mind all things come from nature, everything, food, clothing, medicine, and shelter... Take time to enjoy it and keep it viable for future generations. People remember how you made them feel, not necessarily all the details of your conversation.

If you could spend one whole day with anyone in the world who is currently alive, who would you select?
Good question. In the past, I would have said a jazz artist but the ones I love have passed away, Miles Davis, Maynard Ferguson, and John Coltrane. I did get to see some of them as a kid, however. A rock artist would be second, like U2, during their recording of the Joshua Tree album, always wanted to be in a room where music creativity is just exploding. Today I would have to say hanging out with my parents, they are back east and learn more about what they lived through when London was under attack during WWII. I've got bits and pieces of their story and would love to learn more.

Why do you think it is important to shop locally?
Shopping locally keeps our community vibrant with jobs and all the spin-off effects for individuals and families to prosper. Small businesses are the true engine of our economy.

What has been your proudest accomplishment?
Contributing to and seeing my wife succeed with her decade garden project; my son Mathew’s success at work and his fledgeling steps into investing; my son Cameron’s success at being top of his class and passionate about his new career ahead of him.

Give someone you think that deserves it a shout out and explain why!
Mary Clarke, Founder of Agents of Discovery. Mary's passionate about helping people learn, using the latest technology, while also getting outside in nature is infectious!

My choice for the KelownaNow In Focus spotlight is:
Mark Ameerali.

Some general comments I would like to share are:
A lesson learned: we've lived in four different homes as a couple and then as a family. In our first home, we experimented by knocking on about 20 of the neighbours' doors to introduce ourselves and get to know each other. We repeated this with each move into a new neighbourhood and the results are always the same;
- The community starts to socialize more with each other
- When you get to know your neighbours you start to share more and look out for each other, recently we set up an emergency text messaging group to notify each other of wildfires, wild animal sightings, and unusual vehicles in the area
- This tends to expand outwards into other overlapping neighbourhoods and builds out our community

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In Focus is our gift to the community. A way for us to help show our recognition of the people, businesses, and organization that help make our city great. Thank you, Kelowna!