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Lifelong Entrepreneur Motivated By Connecting Awesome People
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Dave Pond ‘84 has a career that is a testament to the profound impact teachers can have on a student’s future. He fondly reflects on his Mohawk College experience and the teachers that truly made a difference including Bradley Berry, Jo-Ann Lamore and Hap Holman. One professor in particular, Harry Serbian, shared a cup of coffee with Dave that altered his career trajectory entirely.
By second year, Dave had a 90% average studying Business Administration with hopes of becoming a Chartered General Accountant. His finance professor, Harry Serbian, saw something more in Dave and took the time to talk with him about his future goals and aspirations. After the discussion, Dave switched streams to focus more on marketing information systems and is now President and CEO of Edge Imaging, a company which he started in 2005 and has grown to over 400 employees. “As I watch our Chief Financial Officer crunch numbers while sitting at a desk all day, it’s made me recognize that type of role is just not in my makeup.” If you’ve had the opportunity to meet Dave, it’s easy to see why sitting still would be a challenge for him. He is always thinking, growing, planning and physically moving. Dave is also an avid outdoorsman and cyclist.
The motivation for starting Edge Imaging stemmed from the desire to be first in the Canadian market with a digital workflow that would manage colour and images properly and efficiently. In 2005, Dave achieved his ambitious goal and hasn’t looked back. Edge Imaging now offers students, parents, coaches, athletes and school administrators a variety of technologies for creating, sharing, storing and utilizing school and sports photography in a convenient, user-friendly way. Not only does his professional and dedicated staff capture special moments through stressfree photo days, the company also operates a state-of-the-art lab, a Burlington-based customer care centre and an impressive digital workflow. The company offers schools an electronic student database, ID cards and visitor badges, pictorial directories, Ontario Student Record images, yearbook CDs, photobooks and more.
Dave feels “very proud and blessed” to have had such success throughout his career and he wants to help others realize their potential as well. In an effort to fuel others passions, he has taken on a number of rather large ‘side projects’ including Long Point Eco- Adventures, The Blue Elephant Brew House and Burning Kiln Winery. “The rest of the things I do are really just about finding really good people, connecting them with the right platform and getting out of their way to let them work.”
Long Point Eco-Adventures is an outdoor education centre ideal for school trips, team building and corporate retreats. The enthusiastic staff offers ziplining, mountain biking, kayaking and Zodiac boat tours, stargazing from the Long Point observatory, axe throwing, fishing and aviary tours. Accommodations in the company’s beautiful and environmentally friendly Wilderness Suites and Pods are also available. Dave plans to expand the offerings of Long Point Eco- Adventures’ facilities by this fall to include two new corporate meeting rooms and an alternative accommodation experience in the 1940s Mabee Marsh Cabin, overlooking the inner bay of Lake Erie.
The Blue Elephant Craft Brew House located in Simcoe, Ontario, takes care of more than just food and drinks. Reunions, celebrations, banquets, receptions and seminars often take place in many of their highly-developed spaces within the restaurant.
Located in Norfolk County, Burning Kiln Winery, originally a tobacco pack barn, has been architecturally redesigned and repurposed as a winery to pay homage to its roots and offer patrons an exciting historical experience.
Dave credits Mohawk College, “without a doubt”, for the majority of his practical knowledge. He also says his leadership skills and drive to achieve are attributed to his time spent with the Mohawk Students’ Association (MSA). Dave is certainly a proud Mohawk alumni who is working each and every day to create opportunities and a better future for us all.
