1982
John's Handy Work
In 1982, as a part time bus driver with the City of Medicine Hat, John was removing trees in addition to running a small construction business. He registered his trade name "John's Handy Work" in 1982
Who Is Rite Enterprises?
About us
The founder and owner/operator of Rite Enterprises, John Devine, has always "Done it Rite". For over 35 years our small, family owned company has prided itself in the high quality services we provide. Trust, honesty and integrity in an integral part of every job we do. As members of the International Society of Arboriculture, we are trained and equipped to deal with all types and sizes of trees. We carry $5 million of public liability insurance and are fully covered by Workers Compensation of Alberta. Our safety record is our proudest accomplishment - we have never had a liability claim and only one lost time accident in the entire 35 year history of operation. John trains and equips himself and his crew with the best up-to-date tools and equipment. Our quality of service is second to none and yet we continuously strive to improve. We encourage our customers to add a testimonial of the service they have received, on this website or on Google, as this is our best advertisement.
Our
History
1985
Mostly Tree Work
By 1985 the majority of work was in trees, not construction. In July 1985 they purchased the first truck to be used exclusively for trees - the "slightly used" 1971 Chevy 3 ton dump truck. It was a humble beginning indeed, but it started the growth of the business.
1987
More Trucks, Police Force
in the spring of 1987 a second truck - a 1966 1 ton - was added and John gave up driving city busses and joined the Medicine Hat Police Force as a special constagble, part time. After approximately 18 months with the police, John decided to leave the force and expand the tree business, working exclusively with trees.
1989
Rite Enterprises
The trade name "Rite Enterprises" was registered in 1989 and replaced "John's Handy Work" as the official business name.
1990
Arborist Training
In 1990, John enrolled at Olds College for his Arborist training, where he learned to "do it right" and met many qualified people with the same love for trees. After completing his training, the serious work began and the business grew quickly. At this point they adopted the slogan "We Do It Rite".
Later that year the first man lift - a 1980 Ford with 30 foot lift - was purchased.
1991
Chipper Truck
In 1991, our first chipper, purchased from a good friend, High Tree, in Edmonton (thanks Mike), and the chipper truck replaced the 1952 International. We also designed and installed our now familiar logo on our trucks and equipment.
1992
International Society of Arboriculture
In 1992 John joined the newly formed International Society of Arboriculture (Prairie Chapter). This made resources and educational material available to vastly improve the knowledge and skills of the rapidly growing company. The ISA annual conferences have helped keep our skills and knowledge current. Rite Enterprises was quickly becoming the best trained and equpped tree service in town.
1993
Stump Cutter
We introduced the first stump cutter to Medicine Hat in spring of 1993. The Vermeer 206 would be the first of many pieces of specialed tree equipment from Vermeer Manufacturing.
1995
New Location, More Equipment
The move from Brier Park to our newly purchased acreage was a big step but enabled us to increase our shop size, parking area and storage facilities. We also improved our equipment with the addition of a used 50 foot lift truck.
1997
Incorporated, and more equipment
In 1997 Rite Enterprises was registered as a limited company and became a division of 760087 Alberta Ltd. We also improved our stump cutter to the much larger Vermeer 630B.
2002
Radio Remote Controlled Stump Cutter
Although our stump cutter had been modified to be self propelled, we improved again with the purchase of the radio remote controlled Vermeer 50 HP tracked stump cutter - one of only 4 in Alberta! We also purchased our Vermeer 1800 chipper and our 18 yard dump box.
2003
65 Foot Arial Lift
We replaced our 52 foot lift with a 1998 Freightliner with a 65 foot arial lift. We also purchased our 4x4 kabota tractors to make our work more efficient and safe.
2006
James Morris Certified
James Morris, a dedicated employee since 1998, achieved his certified arborist qualification from the International Society of Arboriculture.
2007
All Terrain 4x4 Vehicles
The addition of all terrain 4x4 vehicles and trailer means we can access very remote, hard to reach locations efficiently.
However, the equipment is not the most important strength of the company. The most valuable asset of Rite Enterprises is the wonderful, knowledgeable staff. John remains the owner and foreman, and now with over 25 years experience, he is definitely a hands on operator. Over the years many wonderful employees have joined the team, worked hard and became dear friends. There is currently a core staff that has been trained and certified as arboriests by the International Society of Arborculture. James, a 13 year veteran of Rite Enterprises, and certified arborist since 2006, now has an apprentice working with him to get certified - John's son, Thomas.
Crew 2008
2009
25 Years Logo
Over the years a lot of our equipment has been replaced with the very best available to the industry to help us do it Rite. To celebrate our 25th year we created a new logo for our letterhead and trucks.
2012
70 Foot Lift, Thomas Certified
In August 2012 we took delivery of our new 70 foot Terex arial lift mounted on a 2013 Freightliner chasis. We matched it up with a new Vermeer BC1500 branch chipper. This being our first brand new arial lift device.
We are very proud that in September 2012 John's son, Thomas Devine, completed his apprenticeship and passed his final exam to become a certified arborist. Way to go Thomas!
2014
Emergency Flood Berm
2014 saw the addition of a 60 HP Kubota backhoe, a 110hp Vermeer remote control stump grinder, and a custom built trailer for our stump grinders. We also worked on the emerency flood berm project for the City of Medicine Hat, with our friends from Niwa Crand and Industrial Backhoe.
2015
Rite Downtown Garden Center
This spring my wife opened another division of 760087 Ltd. Rite Downtown Garden Center on 2nd Street SE.
2019
Our safety program has been verified by Comply Works. We have also added a new hybrid estimating vehicle. This year Thomas has made me a proud grandfather (welcome Nora Devine)!
2021
It's been a very difficult year, for our business and our society. The COVID-19 pandemic has affected almost all aspects of our lives. But with good advice from your health care professionals, a 'rapid test' program, and a bit of help from your government, we have all been able to keep working and keep healthy. I want to thank my staff for doing the right things to protect themselves, their family, fellow staff members and our customers. We will all get through this 'working together'.
2023
After 40 years of serving the Medicine Hat area doing what I loved, I have decided to retire. It’s been a great journey! It’s kept me fit and healthy, and I’m very proud of my safety record of my staff in a relatively dangerous business.
I’ve had many wonderful people working with me over the years, many that I consider close friends. Thank you to James Morris for over 25 years of work loyalty and friendship “it’s been great“. My son Thomas Devine you’ve been my pride and privilege to work with you. Over the years Rod Schritt, Gary Bray, Jansen Melander, Jerod Kopeck and Richard Hill are just some of the great hardworking people. Also two employees that are no longer with us, Glen Shirley and my brother Stephen Devine, R.I.P. Thank you all, I couldn’t have done it without you.
Small businesses don’t run alone, book keepers, mechanics, equipment suppliers, bankers and many others who helped make it successful, thanks. But most of all my supportive wife that helped in every way possible and imaginable.
Customers - it has been a pleasure! Thank you for the work.
For 40 years I’ve done business in the ‘Hat’ only on a handshake! When the job is done I get paid! In 40 years and close to $14 million in jobs completed, I have only lost $865 in unpaid invoices. I think that says a lot about the integrity of our community, and dispels the ‘myth’ that “you can’t trust people”. I made a great choice to be a local small business, and I want to thank all my customers for supporting Rite Enterprises.
DO YOU STILL HAVE A QUESTION REGARDING OUR SERVICES?
Give us a call, and we will gladly answer any questions you may have.