The MENTOR award is presented to a Chamber member who, through their daily work, intentionally or not, helps develop others with their leadership and guidance.
Amber Darling—A Champion of Grassroots Growth
Story prepared by Ashley Foley, Foley Communications & Consulting.
Walking Beside Entrepreneurs for 30+ Years
One might say the 2025 recipient was just doing their job, but when someone has committed over three decades to their work, it deserves recognition. Throughout her career with Trenval Business Development Corporation, Amber Darling has been a guiding presence, sounding board, and champion for entrepreneurs across the Bay of Quinte. Since joining the organization in 1994, Amber has embodied a rare mix of compassion, integrity, and tenacity that has helped thousands of people turn ideas into thriving businesses. This acknowledges the years she’s served and the futures she’s helped build.
Her mentorship has quietly and consistently shaped not just businesses, but people. “Amber has been an excellent leader, mentor, and teacher,” wrote Luc Fournier, Small Business Centre Program Coordinator. “Her openness and leadership foster open discussion. My growth under her leadership is attributed to the value she places on personal development and her supportive approach in growth overall.”
This sentiment echoes across the province. As Devon Girard shared, “I couldn’t be more grateful for the mentorship, guidance and continual support from Amber. When I joined the Community Futures team as a new Executive Director, Amber was one of the first to reach out directly and offer to spend time with me to support in any way she was able to. Almost two years later, I continue to feel lucky to have her invaluable guidance and wisdom shared with me.”
Humble Beginnings, Lifelong Roots
Amber’s journey began not with a plan, but with possibility. After graduating from college, she was, in her own words, “flopping around a bit,” unsure of her next step. When she landed the receptionist job at Trenval’s Stewart Street office in Trenton, she didn’t expect it would be the start of a lifelong career.
“I was happy just to get a job,” she recalled. “And the first thing I asked for was a day off to attend my convocation. When they said yes—right then I knew I was going to work with good people.”
Starting out, she was tasked with operating the front desk, but quickly immersed herself in the deeper workings of community lending and business development. By 1999, she was promoted to bookkeeper and project coordinator, helping administer the Eastern Ontario Development Program (EODP)—a federal grant initiative to revitalize the region.
That early exposure to grassroots business support lit a fire that never burned out. “Even as a kid, I was selling dandelions or mixing up perfume potions to sell to the neighbours,” she laughed. “I didn’t know it was entrepreneurship—I just liked to build things from nothing.”
From Learner to Leader
Amber’s ascent through Trenval is a testament to her dedication to lifelong learning. As she moved from administrative support to loan officer, and eventually to Executive Director, she took every opportunity to expand her education.
She earned diplomas in Legal Administration and Accounting from Loyalist College (early 1990s), completed the Ontario Management Development Program in Business Management, and earned a Small Business Counselling Certificate from Western University. In 2015, she made national history as the recipient of Canada’s first Community Futures Professional Designation through the CF Leadership Institute.
“I did most of it through night school,” she said. “Learning wasn’t just a credential—it was how I became better for the people who needed me.”
Amber also completed multiple entrepreneurial and business analysis certifications through the Asia Pacific Economic Council and other professional development streams, always staying current with trends and tools that could support her clients.
Learning from Mentors, And Becoming One
Amber credits her growth not just to textbooks, but to people. “Every Executive Director I worked under taught me something different,” she said. “Jim taught me how to manage nonprofit books and stay organized. Garrett helped me understand marketing. Bruce Davis taught me how to lead—and how to believe I could.”
She also honours Keith McMullin, one of Trenval’s early staffers, as someone who taught her what no school could—how to sit across from someone, explain loan documents, and support them through a scary first step.
Those lessons shaped how she would later lead her own team. “I never thought of myself as a mentor. I just tried to help people.”
And yet, mentorship has become one of the most defining legacies of her career.
“I Just Want to Help People”
Amber’s philosophy is simple: “If you call me with a question, I’ll try to find the answer. If I don’t know it, I’ll find someone who does.”
But if you ask the hundreds of entrepreneurs, colleagues, and board members she’s worked with, her impact runs much deeper.
“You are such a role model for many women,” wrote Suzanne Andrews of the Quinte West Chamber of Commerce. “Your skill set, and caring personality made you a fantastic chair.”
“You were Trenval’s ‘Darling’ years before you became a Darling. Trenval loves you … and I love you,” wrote longtime collaborator and previous Trenval Executive Director, Bruce Davis.
Amber deflects the praise with a modest shrug. “I still get calls from people who say, ‘You helped me once—I want to talk to you again.’ And I always make time. If I can’t help, I’ll find someone who can.”
A Legacy Measured in People, Not Programs
Amber has supported thousands of small business owners over the years—farmers, makers, retailers, service providers—many of whom walked in with nothing more than an idea. One early example is John Bell of Redtail Paddle, who started his business from nothing and today operates a thriving company with national reach.
“I didn’t even think of it as mentorship,” she said. “I just saw someone with potential and wanted to help.”
Amber has consistently advocated for local mom-and-pop shops, reminding everyone that big impacts start with small beginnings. “They matter. They build our towns, hire our neighbours, and make our communities vibrant.”
Grassroots Growth, National Impact
As Executive Director, Amber led Trenval to new partnerships with BDC and Futurpreneur, expanded its Small Business Centre programming, and helped deliver emergency recovery funds during the COVID-19 pandemic. In many cases, she personally delivered relief cheques to entrepreneurs who weren’t eligible for traditional bank support.
“She has made Trenval a household name,” wrote Bruce Davis. “Her focus has always been Main Street.”
Amber also helped develop national standards through the Community Futures Network of Canada, ensuring that equity, accessibility, and local economic growth remained core values in entrepreneurship development.
The Cornerstone of Community Futures
Repeatedly, Amber’s name is spoken with admiration—not just for her professional contributions, but for her humanity.
“You’re the treasure chest of knowledge and the giver of advice, time, and appreciation,” wrote Alysha Kavanagh. “You made me feel welcome, actively listened to my big, boisterous plans to change the world, and offered your space, time, and brainpower to help lift my ideas. You’re a collaborator—and I instantly saw why you are so loved by everyone around you.”
Amber, ever humble, says: “Trenval is as much a part of me as I am of it. We’ve grown up together.”
With the 2025 Cornerstone Mentor Award, the Belleville Chamber of Commerce is proud to recognize a leader who shaped thousands of futures quietly, powerfully, and with a lasting heart.
Amber Darling by the Numbers
