Marian Gillard
Observer Contributor
Mitch Vik was born in Oakville, Ont. in 1974 to Victor and Pauline Vik, both European immigrants to Canada. His mother immigrated from the U.K. and his father from Czechoslovakia (now the Czech Republic). He has a sister named Laura.
His father worked for Air Canada, and consequently the family moved several times. They eventually moved to White Rock, B.C. when Mitch was 16 years old.
Mitch says he did okay in grade school, but preferred high school because he had some good friends there. He says the assignments often saw him scrambling at the last minute but he made it through to university.
He became fascinated by history due to the positive impression made by one of his professors, Dr. Belshaw of the history department at the University College of the Cariboo (now Thompson Rivers University) in Kamloops.
Mitch joined the army as a member of the reserves immediately after high school, and spent two years with the 15th Field Artillery out of Vancouver (on weekends and during summers). He says his experience in the reserves made a very positive impression on him.
He graduated from CCU with a degree in Modern History, and says he still likes to study the two world wars.
Although his degree didn’t help much with finding employment, Mitch worked for The Source – formerly Radio Shack – during university under the guidance of his manager, Kevin Beaton, who taught him about the business.
Mitch continued working there after his graduation, and worked his way up until he became a director of the company for B.C.
Mitch has three sons; two with Tammi, who he married and calls the love of his life, and one from a previous marriage who now lives in Alberta. His sons are named Christopher, Connor and Quinn.
The electronics business was taking so much of his time that Mitch and Tammi decided to move to a smaller community and Mitch had fallen in love with Quesnel on his business trips.
Tammi became interested in starting a business, and so they started K-Max with renting videos — now almost outdated — and then decided to expand into toys and games. Christopher and his mom hit the ground running, and the expansion is impressive. Mitch has a good head for running a business, so it is a good match all around and the family ties are still very strong.
They love to ski and snowshoe in the winter, and mountain bike in the summer.
Recently, Mitch decided to climb Sugar Loaf Mountain in West Quesnel and he says he cycled up the hill just fine but decided to come down on the wooded hill in the back. He tumbled over and over, bumping into trees. His yells were heard by a neighbour below, but he was so embarrassed that he just said: “I’m OK, thanks,” and stumbled off.
Mitch has a very positive feeling about Quesnel. He was very involved with the Lions Club and has helped with the building of the brand new Silver Manor, which several seniors have since moved into.
Last year, Mitch decided to run for a place on city council, and was subsequently elected. He says he feels that his business acumen will help to see the City keep the budget on track, and he will also encourage the council when exciting new projects come into view to help make them happen.
community@quesnelobserver.com
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