Recent News
April 04, 2008
Opening of Gordon Buchanan Recreation Centre April 4th
Gordon Buchanan, owner of Buchanan Lumber, officially presented the High...
February 01, 2008
Company gets the most value out of its wood
While mills are closing their doors, there is a mill...
Gordon Buchanan
When Gordon’s father Arnold passed away in 1961, Gordon took the reins of Buchanan Lumber and consolidated the company. Under Gordon, Buchanan Lumber became a core business in the High Prairie area, a state-of-the art operation, and an international exporter.
Gordon is considered a trailblazer in the Alberta forestry industry. He was the first to centralize logging operations in Alberta, a system that is now used by the entire industry. As one of his managers once said, “Gordon would have made a great captain of the Starship Enterprise for he dared to go where no has gone before”.
Over the years, Gordon has served on various industry committees, participated in discussions about the Canada-US softwood lumber dispute, and has been actively involved in charting a course for sustainable forest care through the Alberta Forest Products Association (AFPA).
Gordon has demonstrated on many occasions that he is as committed to the community as he is to sustainable forestry. He particularly believes in the power of education and the importance of team sports for youth development. When Edmonton was on the brink of losing its NHL hockey club the Edmonton Oilers in the 1990s, Gordon joined other Albertan entrepreneurs to keep the cherished team in the City of Champions.
No matter what Gordon does, he never forgets his roots or his mantra in life to “try to give back more than he receives”. In 2005, Buchanan Lumber donated $300,000 to a new aquatic centre in High Prairie, and two years later another $300, 000 to a new ice surface. The sports palace was renamed the Gordon Buchanan Recreation Centre in his honor.
In addition to support for sports, Gordon has donated to various causes from playgrounds to an MRI machine for the Stollery Childrens’s Hospital. In 2005, Gordon became a 2005 Junior Achievement Award Recipient for his tireless effort and contribution to the forestry industry and community. Today, he continues to be a risk taker, visonary, and philanthropist.
