WE’RE IN THIS TOGETHER
Kelowna and the Okanagan are built upon the strength and partnership of family-oriented businesses. Although diverse in trade and expertise, a common goal in which these organizations share is to positively impact the broader community. When collaborative partnerships are aligned in vision, they become more responsive to local needs, and are ready to act and serve at a moment’s notice to create collective change.
Don’t let the windows of your home be so small that the light of the sun cannot enter your rooms.
Inuit Proverb
The Yardhouse, powered by B3 Better is proud to announce a community involvement partnership with Joe & Sons Concrete Ltd. Both family owned and operated organizations will work together to contribute new resources to the Okanagan. The partners will combine efforts to increase access to expert sports performance coaches in the region, raise the physical literacy and overall well-being of young people, and support youth sports & leadership initiatives for First Nations students.
“Kim and I are really excited to work with Danielle and Kris. They are both wonderful people and it is inspiring to see another couple work so hard to build their business and uplift their community.” Byron Wilson, Owner of The Yardhouse and B3 Better.
Owned and operated by Kris and Danielle Courtoreille, Joe & Sons Concrete Ltd provides full-service concrete forming, and finishing for residential and commercial clients in the Okanagan. Kris is a third-generation concrete finisher and grew up working alongside his father ever since he was a teenager.
After his father suffered a heart attack and could no longer work, Kris left SK Form and Finish where he had been the Operations Manager for 13 years, and he and Danielle formed Joe & Sons Concrete Ltd. They took over Kris’s father’s operation and kept his employees, while expanding their own business in Kelowna and the Okanagan. They named their company Joe & Sons Concrete Ltd to pay homage to Kris’s father’s former business Joe’s Concrete, so that the legacy would live on.
We borrow the earth from our children.
Inuit Proverb
Kris and Danielle’s children, Kash and Ryley, both have a history of sports performance training, and spending hours honing their skills at The Yardhouse. 8-year-old Kash is a highly active football and baseball player and currently participates in Speed Camps and Hitting Camps at The Yardhouse. Ryley is a standout college freshman softball player at Salt Lake City Community College. Growing up, she excelled in sports, athletics, and academics, and last year gained working experience as a Yardhouse staff member.
“Rylie was a joy as an employee. To be able to still support her on her journey means a lot to us. Kash has been super impressive as a young athlete and the sky’s the limit for him and his athletic future.” Byron Wilson
Ryley has been selected by The Yardhouse to participate in a young women’s sports leadership & empowerment group and mental performance program: EMPWR FIT, developed by Jessica Marano. EMPWR FIT is designed to educate and emphasize the importance of mind-body connection.
Jessica is a former and highly accomplished NCAA athlete, and current Strength & Condition Coach, Education Service Teacher for the Surrey School District, Certified Yoga Instructor, and Mental Performance Coach.
EMPWR FIT will use mentorship, professional development, and community leadership to align student-athletes with social causes to directly impact their local and hometown communities.
As the Kelowna and the Okanagan community evolve, grow more connected, and interact in new ways, a continuous flow of new resources, ideas, and services across cultures to meet the ever-advancing shift is needed.
A core mission of The Yardhouse and B3 Better is to solidify a sports education and training pipeline that creates connected experiences for local student-athletes with world class professional coaches, professional athletes, and international sports brands. The program will enhance the long-term physical development of local athletes, provide talent identification and sports placement capabilities, and increase touch points for national and international college scouts that will expand local recruiting and scholarship opportunities.
“The community has been awesome to us. We’ve been able to grow our business here. The sports community as well as been awesome too for Ryley and for Kash so far. This is just our way of starting to give back and it’s just really close to our hearts. We’re looking forward to seeing who this is going to help. We wish to continue to help families with athletes from a young age and watch them grow and be successful just like we have with Ryley.” Kris
“Bringing something like this to the Okanogan is amazing. With Ryley, for the last 10 years, we had to travel to Vancouver to be able to do these types of things and sometimes even the States. So now to be able to start to bring this to the Okanogan and to Kelowna gets me so pumped! I’m just so excited for these young kids to be able to have something that she didn’t have access to. I love that.” Danielle
To know where you are going, you first have to know where you have come from.
Inuit Proverb
The Yardhouse, powered by B3 Better with the support of Joe & Sons Concrete Ltd will deliver the same development resources, expert coaching, and sports diplomacy programming to First Nations families and youth organizations in Kelowna and the Okanagan.
Both family owned and operated businesses will devote their energy and time to serve First Nations communities and develop a team building mentorship program that forms a network of stability, life skill resources, academic enrichment, and apprenticeship. The plan is to provide 1-on-1 mentoring, small group workshops, career development lessons, and an online life-skills and soft-skills resource library.
“I’m actually status First Nations. My dad was Cree and my mom is Inuit. That’s her background. All that stuff hits really close to home. Both my grandparents on my dad’s side were in residential school. Anything in this community that we can do to help First Nations get an upper hand or upper leg on anything; whether it’s work, employment, sports, or mental health we want to do. Whatever it is, we’ve always talked about how I would be able to one day help my people out.” Kris
“It’s important for Cash to see too since he is part First Nations. Being able to be conscious and aware that other people aren’t as fortunate as him or his friends might be, and also from a very young age, being able to help and serve is really important.” Danielle
“Finding out that Kris was First Nations just made the connection between our businesses and families even stronger. Impacting underserved communities is a pillar of B3’s business practices.” Byron
