Chamber Board
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ABOUT THE BOARD
The Toowoomba Chamber Board Members are prominent business professionals with a passion for and commitment to the Toowoomba Business Community. They provide their time, energy, and expertise to the Chamber in a completely voluntary capacity.
Real People. Real Solutions.
Toowoomba Chamber Board
President| Myf Rigby
Myf is a Director at Accession3 Business Advisers, she is a Certified Practising Accountant, has a Bachelor of Business and a Diploma in Financial Services (Financial Planning).
Myf started running her own business, in partnership, in 2009 and has not looked back. Her passion lies in the areas of strategic planning, both business and personal, disposable cash flow and asset growth.
Her ultimate aim is to see a stress free and comfortable lifestyle for clients and their families.
Myf has held community roles in Goondiwindi and has previously served on the board of Toowoomba Anglican School (TACAPS at the time). Myf is an advocate for education and improvement in all areas of personal, business and community life.
Vice President | Sam Wright
Sam joined the Toowoomba Chamber of Commerce Board to fill the role of Treasurer from 2016 until October 2019 when Sam was then elected as a Vice President and has been serving in that position since and is sincerely seeking re-election to contribute to the execution of Chamber’s vision for a thriving business community. In the early days of Sam’s involvement with the Chamber, he played a crucial part in reshaping the Chamber’s financial path and ensuring its long-term sustainability.
Over the past 7+ years, Sam has been a proud contributor to the Chamber’s current community presence, including its strong brand, growing membership, successful events and Business Excellence Awards, and advocacy for members.
Sam has a fervent belief that a strong and thriving small business community is a bedrock for a successful society. As a trusted advisor to small businesses, Sam is well placed to bring the challenges and opportunities of small business to the Chamber’s governance.
First involved with the Toowoomba Chamber of Commerce in 2011 as part Future Leaders, Sam has enjoyed giving back to the Toowoomba Business community through his contribution to the Chamber.
Sam has completed the CPA program, holds a CPA Public Practice Certificate, is a registered Tax Agent, holds a Masters of Business Administration through UniSQ, and has graduated the Company Director’s Course through the Australian Institute of Company Directors. Sam is a Partner at Ambrosiussen The Business Accountants, a CPA accounting firm in Toowoomba that provides taxation and management accounting advisory services focused on small & medium family businesses and not-for-profit organisations.
Vice President | Barton Castely
An extremely enthusiastic and entrepreneur who has owned/ pioneered businesses within the:
- HR Recruitment industry
- Retail construction industry
- Motor vehicle industry
As well as holding Senior Management/ CEO roles within these industries at a national level along being a registered minister of religion for 5 years and a current registered Marriage Celebrant
I believe that I bring not only local business knowledge and perspective but also a broader national business insight and connections that the Toowoomba Chamber of commerce may benefit.
Already being intrenched in the building, construction and manufacturing community which may be area of potential growth for the Toowoomba Chamber of Commerce, I believe that I am well situated to represent chamber to my section of the Toowoomba community.
From a personal perspective as a member of the Toowoomba Chamber of Commerce, I have found the connections over the past 7 years to be key to the growth of my personal brand and our business within the local community. Therefore, I am passionate about being involved in its impact with other businesspeople like me in the future if selected for this role.
Treasurer | Peter Rowe
Peter is an Associate and Equity Partner at Power Tynan, where he has enjoyed working with a wide range of small and medium Toowoomba businesses for almost 15 years. He specializes in strategic planning, business growth, compliance and succession planning, providing clients with valuable insights and practical solutions for navigating the complex financial landscape.
Peter is very passionate about our business community here in Toowoomba and is excited about what the current and next generation of leaders will be able to do. He relishes the opportunity to be the a part of working with members to make the most of the strong established business community Toowoomba has. Peter is currently a part of our Future Leader Advisory Group, so looks forward to using this potential position to continue helping Future Leaders grow their networks and skills.
His passion and drive have seen Peter nominated as a finalised in Rising Star of the Year and Young Accountant of the Year in national awards, as well as being a finalist for Future Leader of the Year in the 2022 BEAs.
Outside of work, Peter enjoys taking quality time with his family, especially his young son Emmett who keeps he and his wife on their feet!
Rouz Fard
Rouz Fard is the Associate Director (Industry and Community Partnerships) at the University of Southern Queensland; an experienced relationships manager and partnerships strategist with a demonstrated history of strategic industry and community collaborations, working in higher education partnerships to build a future-ready workforce in various sectors. Highly skilled in Learning Management, Tertiary and Vocational Education and Training, Industry Linkage, Business Development, and consulting with a great passion for regional Queensland. He is actively building mutually beneficial relationships between industry, communities, and the university to drive innovation in industry collaborations and regional outcomes for our communities through engagement.
Rouz is currently a board member of the Regional Development Australia DDSW, an executive committee member of the Australian Computer Society DSWC, a Committee member of Toowoomba Regional Jobs Committee and an appointed member of Advancing Queensland’s Regional Forum DDSW. Rouz is a strong business professional who graduated from the University of Southern Queensland and holds several professional memberships, including:
- Australian Association of Graduate Employers;
- Australian Computer Society;
- Australian Collaborative Education Network; and
- National Association of Graduate Careers Advisory.
Matt Gregg
Matt is an experienced and dedicated stakeholder engagement professional committed to serving others and working collaboratively to create a resilient and thriving regional community. He has a proven ability to build, develop and maintain communication channels and strong, harmonious relations with major stakeholders across many industries, including the public sector.
Matt is a well-established and connected community leader with a demonstrated ability to broker relationships while facilitating and coordinating group activities, programs and events. He is an agile, versatile, and adaptive individual who works well under pressure and exudes positivity.
He is committed to delivering high-quality community outcomes through collaborative, well-researched initiatives.
With experience in agriculture, retail operations, sales, and stock management, Matt has proven expertise in designing and delivering successful community programs. Matt has a strong commitment to an ethical, transparent, values-based approach that supports a healthy workplace culture and upholds people’s human rights and dignity. Matt is known for his dedication to empowering others and pursuing solutions that empower and improve others’ lives. Matt is dedicated to the local community and has a firm belief in the region’s potential and its people.
Gordon Grover
Gordon is the founding Director of Specialised Property Consulting (SPC), a Project Management and Development Management Consultancy which provides a range of services to clients in the property industry.
Gordon grew up in Toowoomba and attended Concordia Primary School before completing his high-school at Toowoomba Grammar School. Following school he spent a few years in Armidale at the University of New England before pursuing a career in Brisbane working for various contractors and consultants delivering some of the largest and complex projects in Queensland. After 10 years in Brisbane and a short stint back in Armidale delivering the Armidale Hospital Redevelopment Gordon returned to Toowoomba with his young family and the goal to establish his own business.
Outside of business Gordon has a family of 3 small boys which take up a lot of his spare time with school and weekend sports and generally keeping them entertained and busy.
Jenni Butler
Jenni worked for a large corporation for 10 years before purchasing a small business in Toowoomba, which she owned and operated for 4 years, employing 5 staff. During this time, she commenced her career at TAFE Queensland She has over 28 years’ experience in the Vocational Education and Training sector as an educator, senior manager, Executive Director, General Manager South West region, prior to being appointed to the role of Chief Academic Officer, TAFE Queensland.
Jenni plays a pivotal role in shaping TAFE Queensland’s organisation’s educational landscape and is passionate about the VET sector, understanding the importance of what training and skills brings to individuals, businesses and communities. Living and growing up in regional and remote Queensland for most of her life, Jenni has a strong connection and consistently advocates and champions the importance of VET within these communities and across the state. Jenni also believes it is important to support and develop her people to become future leaders for the organisation and local communities. Jenni is the chair of the TAFE Queensland Academic Board. She holds of Bachelor of Vocational Education and Training and is a member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.
Shelley Burchett
Shelley is the Director of Ink and Think, a Toowoomba based marketing consultancy. With a background in marketing and civil engineering, she is passionate about bridging the gap between technical doers and marketers.
Shelley is involved in the local community through fundraising for Momentum Mental Health’s 2023 Everest Base Camp Challenge (raising $8,5K and hiking to Base Camp), participating as a judge over the past 3 years for Chamber’s Business Excellence Awards and supporting industry as part of the Institute of Public Works and Engineering SWQ Branch Committee. Having been a Future Leader Advisory Group member from 2021-2022, I’m excited at the prospect of making a bigger impact with the growth and support and our community through the Chamber board.
Gary Wilson
As an experienced professional largely in the National Air Traffic Management (ATM) domain, I also have 11 years Small Business experience as a Franchisee. Additionally, I was Group President of the City Heart Toowoomba Group Inc (2013-2018) where I influenced small business growth, ideas and direction within the Toowoomba CBD. My interest in becoming a Toowoomba Chamber Board Member is with a degree of enthusiasm as I am keen to utilise and share my experience within Toowoomba Chamber small business sector to enable better outcomes that will promote, enhance and energise the small business community.
Furthermore, I believe my extensive and diverse aviation operations, training and project management background is well suited to this key role. As a dedicated and accomplished aviation professional and small business owner, I feel I have a strong alignment to the key attributes required. My business management and leadership experience has been developed across several domains including complex projects such as the National OneSKY Program where I was appointed as the Senior Air Traffic Controller responsible for the Operational Training Solution for both the Civil & Military ATC operational domains. I also have experience within capability development management, aviation safety management and regulatory governance & compliance.
