NAMBC Chairman Ed Story, 2006-2013, on Ken deGraaf’s retirement from the NAMBC BOD:

“Ken deGraaf has been a loyal and active supporter of the NAMBC and a good friend to Mongolia since he joined the Council in 1997. He has been our valued colleague on the board of directors since being elected in 1998 as the first Canadian board member. He served under three council chairmen as both a director and as Vice Chairman.

“But more important, Ken was an active officer whose commitment always went beyond the call of duty, long before the mining boom made Mongolia widely familiar to international investors. He enrolled as NAMBC members every company of which he was an officer, owner, customer or client. His companies were regular sponsors of NAMBC events, in good times and bad; in one of the lean years when many foreign investors were simply not interested in Mongolia, Ken deGraaf was the sole sponsor of one of our annual meetings -- in the United States, not Canada.  During 15 years as an officer, Ken gave generously of his time. He was the host chairman, organizer and sponsor of  our 2004 AGM in Vancouver in 2004, and both designed and donated the first  "three-flag" lapel pins we distribute to NAMBC members.

“He regularly assisted Mongolia’s ambassadors to Canada in their speaking tours of the nation. Ken also traveled to represent the NAMBC at various occasions ranging from the opening of Mongolia’s first honorary consulate in Toronto to the visit to Ulaanbaatar of Raymond Chan, MP, Secretary of State for Asia Pacific, the first visit of a Canadian cabinet minister,  to mark the 25th Anniversary of Canada-Mongolia diplomatic relations. In 2008, one of Ken’s companies, Brant Enterprises Inc. was the chief sponsor of the first-ever international academic conference on Mongolia , entitled "Contemporary Mongolia: Transitions, Development and Social Transformations," held at the University of British Columbia. Ken insured that the NAMBC was represented on the political roundtable at the conference. Business demands and other time constraints prompted Ken’s decision to retire from our board at this year’s AGM but he departs with our sincere gratitude for 15 years of faithful service and our warmest good wishes for his continued success.”