Now 100 years old, Bruce Scrivens no longer skis or paddles his canoe – but you may still encounter him out along the canal pathways on his scooter.
Scrivens has lived in the Glebe for most of his life. In three large green binders that he shows me in his secondfloor room at the Lord Lansdowne retirement home, he has recorded his life with photos and stories, letters and clippings of important events. The binders hold ration coupons from the Second World War and letters written on birch bark that he mailed to his parents from summer jobs in northern Ontario.
Scrivens was born in 1925 to a family living on Sunset Boulevard when the area on that side of Bronson Avenue was largely a lumber yard owned by lumber baron J.R. Booth. He remembers his boyhood there fondly – the smell of freshly cut lumber and the challenge of scaling a 10-foot-high board fence to watch the machinery at work. He remembers milk, ice and laundry being delivered to the door and a popcorn truck making regular rounds on the street. A photo in his album shows a thriving vegetable “victory garden” planted in the backyard during the war. Scrivens went to Mutchmor Public School for grades one to six and Hopewell for grades seven and eight.
In winter, he and his friends would clear the ice on nearby Dow’s Lake to play hockey, but they also set aside time just for skating. He says they also skied across Dow’s Lake to the Experimental Farm. There was a boathouse on Dow’s Lake at the time that later burned down. There was also
a favourite corner store that sold ice cream by the original Bronson Avenue swing bridge.
Scrivens earned enough money from his paper route to purchase a canoe, which he launched into Dow’s Lake in the summers. As he got older, he and a friend, Don Johnston, paddled longer distances, sometimes hauling up a lateen sail to catch the wind. They would set out on the last two weeks before school started in the fall and travel from Dow’s Lake down the Rideau Canal as far as Kingston, stopping at night to sleep in a field or, if it rained, to ask a farmer for shelter in his barn. On one canoe trip during the war, they were caught in waves from Corvettes, the smallest of warships, on Lake Ontario, and the canoe was badly damaged against the rocky shore. They sent the canoe by train directly to Peterborough where the company that had made his cedar strip canoe repaired it. He enjoyed school and was convinced by a canoeing friend to attend
Bruce Scrivens has a lifetime of memories recorded in photos, letters and clippings.
PHOTO: LESLIE COLE
Scrivens as a young man in his cedar-strip canoe with an added sail, on Dow’s Lake
Scrivens
Continued from page 1
Ottawa Tech for high school instead of Glebe Collegiate “because it was further away” from home. He was a member of the football and basketball teams and graduated just as the war ended. He was accepted at MacDonald College campus of McGill University to study general agricultural science with the biggest class as returning veterans came back to school. When he finished college, he started applying for jobs but had little success. His father, Bill, who was in the insurance business, said he needed help in his office. Bruce says he thought he would do that temporarily. “And 35 years later, there I was. I had no intention of spending my lifetime there, but I enjoyed it … I enjoyed being helpful to people, finding out what they needed and what they wanted.”
His father bought a house on MacLaren Street downtown to set up an expanded office in 1950. Scrivens joined when he had completed some insurance courses in Montreal and New York state. The business is still operating – his sons, Peter, David and Michael took it over, and Michael’s son, Jake, is the fourth generation to work there.
in an apartment over the garage of a large home on Queen Elizabeth Drive, which he later purchased. When their second child was born, they moved to a home in Alta Vista where their four sons were raised. Betty and the boys also became avid skiers and canoeists. Scrivens helped found the Edelweiss Ski Club in Wakefield, and the family skied there for many years.
Scrivens also kept an active art workshop in his basement that evolved from a photography darkroom to a pottery studio. He showed me photographs of stained-glass windows and aluminum sculptures he has crafted. He also has a display along his windowsill of wooden caricatures that he carved.
Scrivens and his wife moved back to the Glebe 16 years ago when they moved into the then year-old Lord Lansdowne. Scrivens remained active. He skied into his 80s and was in his beloved and restored canoe on Dow’s Lake on his 60th wedding anniversary. When his wife died seven years ago, Scrivens moved into a smaller suite in the home where he still takes part in social activities.
Bruce Scrivens celebrating his 100th birthday
PHOTO: MICHAEL SCRIVENS
MUTCHMOR BOOK SALE
By Sarah LeBouthillier
Mutchmor Public School is excited to announce that its annual Book Sale returns this spring, taking place from Thursday, April 10 to Sunday, April 13. We asked Mutchmor students to tell us about the book sale: why you should attend and what you might find there.
• “If you like books, you should go to the book sale.” Grade 3 student
• “There are tons of different types of books that people donated so you will almost certainly find a book that you like.” Grade 4 student
• “Books at stores are so much money. At the book sale, they’re way less.” Grade 3 student
• “There are books for grownups, kids, university students, twins, and so many people.” Melody, Grade 2
• “There are cookbooks, chapter books, baby books, and kids’ books. Books for grown-ups and books for big kids!” Mackenzie, Grade 2
• “There are tons of good series. There are nature books, science books and more!” Grade 4 student
• “If you want a little extra something to bring home, there are games and puzzles too!” Grade 3 student
• “I got monopoly there!” Grade 4 student
• “You should definitely go to the Mutchmor Book Sale. It’s so fun to buy books. It’s also super good for your learning. You’ll find a book you like for sure.” Grade 3 student
With 20,000 books to choose from, we know that the sale can feel overwhelming. If we can offer one tip for the book sale, it’s definitely this one:
• “Make a list because there are many different books that you must want.” Grade 2 student
If you are looking for some books to add to your list, students were eager to share some of their favourite books and series:
• “I like graphic novels that are based on a true story. My favourite author is Cassandra Calin.” Grade 3 student
• “My favourite series is by Chris Colfer, The Land of Stories. I read the first Land of Stories with my mom. I’m hoping to get the second one. I might get it at the Mutchmor Book Sale!” Grade 3 student
• “One of my favourite authors is Raina Telgemeier. She makes stories very interesting and fun to read. A few of my favourite books by Raina Telgemeier are Smile, Guts and Sisters.” Grade 3 student
• “My favourite book is Dog Man
and maybe you’ll like it too.”
Grade 3 student
• “My favourite book is by Roald Dahl. In fact, I think it will be at the book sale. It is called Matilda.” Grade 3 student
Funds raised from the Book Sale will go directly to the Mutchmor Parent Council. These funds play a crucial role in enhancing the educational experience of students at Mutchmor and its partner schools. In recent years, proceeds have been used to purchase books for the Forest of Reading program and to support the school’s playground committee who are planning some exciting things for 2025 and beyond.
We leave the last word to the students:
• “If you want to share your life, write a book. You don’t know something? Books can help. Want to watch TV? Read a book instead.” Ayla, Grade 2
• “I found books I like at the book sale. You might find books you like there too.” Grade 3 student
• “April is coming up. I can’t wait to see you.” Grade 2 student
Many thanks to the students of Mr. Neville and Ms. Hale for their contributions. Visit www.mutchmorbooksale.com or the Mutchmor Book Sale Facebook page for more information and for sale hours.
Book donations for the sale will be accepted starting the week of March 24. Please check our website or Facebook page to see collection hours and a list of what we cannot accept.
Written by students in Grades 2, 3 and 4 at Mutchmor Public School and compiled by Sarah LeBouthillier.
Business Buzz
Yolks is now open at the corner of Fifth and Bank. “Yolks, where breakfast, brunch and lunch are more than just meals – they’re our passion… Breakfast, but better.” Other locations in B.C. and soon in Quebec and Alberta. Yolks.ca
Poulet Rouge will open soon beside Smile Society at the bottom of the Amica building. A Quebec fast-food chain with other locations in Ottawa. Specialty: “customizable grilled chicken bowls.” Poulet-rouge.ca
Contributors this month
JODI
SELENA
JENNIFER
KAREN BELL
ALANNA BROWN
LISA BUTLER
UPJEET CAMBOW
BEN CAMPBELL-ROSSER
OLIVER CAMPBELL-ROSSER
ERIC CHERNOFF
LESLIE COLE
DUDLEIGH COYLE
JOHN CRUMP
GABRIELLA DALLAPORTA
JOHN DANCE
CLIVE DOUCET
ELLYN DUKE WATSON
JANIS ELLIS-CLAYPOOL
FIONA GILFILLAN
PAT GOYECHE
JULIE IRETON
BOB IRVINE
NILI KAPLAN-MYRTH
MAUREEN KORP
DAVE LONGBOTTOM
SARAH LEBOUTHILLIER
JOHN MEISSNER
SHAWN MENARD
T. SCOTT MURRAY
YASIR NAQVI
BARBARA OCHMAN
CHRISTINE OSBORNE
JOSH RACHLIS
LOUISE RACHLIS
KATE REEKIE
SUE REIVE
SARAH ROUTLIFFE
BROOKE SANCHEZ
MIKE SCRIVENS
SUE STEFKO
JANET SUTHERLAND
CAROL SUTHERLAND-BROWN
ARMAND TSAI
MARY TSAI
JANET UREN
ERIK WEBB
DELLA WILKINSON
DAVID WYLYNKO
ZEUS
Taking solace in grassroots tradition
At a time when all hell appears to be breaking loose in the world – “the blood-dimmed tide is loosed” – I look over this March issue of the Glebe Report and see a theme emerging –a yearning or nostalgia for the way things were, a certain grieving for the “normalcy” that we thought would last forever and a search for solace.
In celebrating Glebite Bruce Scrivens, we look back at the century of his life in the Glebe and long for that life of long ago.
We have an astonishing three articles on the grassroots tradition of outdoor skating rinks and neighbourhood hockey games – the lovely book, The Outdoor Rink, by Margo McDiarmid, Dudleigh Coyle’s account of the many years of grassroots work keeping the Glebe Memorial Rink going and the friendly, inter-neighbourhood rivalry of the Capital Cup hockey tournament held at the hard-won (and only temporarily won) Mutchmor rink.
We feature the longstanding tradition of the Mutchmor Book Sale, an
annual and much-anticipated occasion to buy books, divest of unwanted books, meet neighbours and scrutinize their reading choices – grassroots culture at its best!
We celebrate 50 years of lively community engagement with GNAG – a history few organizations can rival – and of Abbotsford House with its long tradition of serving seniors in the community.
The history of street names in the Glebe Annex again brings us back in time and, we suspect, to an era of greater simplicity and happiness.
And finally, I perceive in our pages a certain yearning for comfort – it’s likely no accident that we have articles on the mental health benefits of a sound bath and the solace of comfort birds.
It’s clear that we are labouring under the stress of the hour – let us be kind to each other and to ourselves, no matter what rough beast carries the moment out there in the world.
—Liz McKeen
Established in 1973, the Glebe Report, published by the Glebe Report Association, is a monthly not-forprofit community newspaper with a circulation of 7,500 copies It is delivered free to Glebe homes and businesses Advertising from merchants in the Glebe and elsewhere pays all its costs, and the paper receives no government grants or direct subsidies The Glebe Report is made available at select locations such as the Glebe Community Centre, the
PROOFREADERS................ Martha Bowers, Jennifer D'Costa, Jeanette Rive
AREA CAPTAINS................. Martha Bowers, Bob Brocklebank, Judy Field, Deb Hogan & Dave Yurach, Lynn & Dave Johnston, Elena Kastritsa, Brenda Perras, Julie Stephens, Della Wilkinson
The Glebe Report strives to be inclusive and to represent the full diversity of the community we serve.
Jennie Aliman, Baily Alyman, Lawrence Ambler, Nico Arabackyj, Aubry family, Gaja Bartosik, Alessandra & Stefania Bartucci, Selena Beattie, Adrian Becklumb, Joanne Benoit, Carolyn Best, Daisy & Nettie Bonsall, Martha Bowers, Bowie family, Adélaïde and Éléonore Bridgett, Bob Brocklebank, Naomi and Audrey Cabassu, Ben Campbell-Rosser, Nico Cauchi, Bill Congdon, Chiu-Panczyk Family, Sebastian, Cameron & Anna Cino, Claypool Family, JJ Comptois, June Creelman, Marni Crossley, Olivia Dance, Mark Dance, Dawson family, Richard DesRochers, Davies Family, Roslyn Demarsh, Marilyn Deschamps, Diekmeyer-Bastianon family, Dingle family, Delia Elkin, Patrick Farley, James & Oliver Frank, Judy Field, Federico Family, The Foo Family, Liane Gallop, Joann Garbig, Camilo Velez Gorman, Barbara Greenwood, Marjolein Groenevelt, Oliver, Martin, Sarah & Simon Hicks, Cheryle Hothersall, Jennifer Humphries, Sandiso Johnston, Tani, Pete & Bryce Nisbet-Jones, Jungclaus Family, Elena Kastritsa, Kasper Raji Kermany, Michael Khare, Lambert family, Fenton & Cora Hui Litster, Leith and Lulu Lambert, Kathleen Larocque, Catherine Lawr, Jamie, Alexander & Louisa Lem, Brams and Jane Leswick, Alison Lobsinger, Aanika, Jaiden and Vinay Lodha, Andy Lunney, Vanessa Lyon, Pat Marshall, Patrick Collins Mayer, Catherine McArthur, Ian McKercher, John and Helen Marsland, Matthew McLinton, Josephine & Elise Meloche, Julie Monaghan, Vivian Moulds, Karen Mount, Diane Munier, Rafi Naqvi, Maddy North, Xavier and Heath Nuss, Sachiko Okuda, Nicholas & Reuben Ott, Matteo and Adriano Padoin-Castillo, Brenda Perras, Brenda Quinlan, Annabel and Joseph Quon, Beatrice Raffoul, Bruce Rayfuse, Kate Reekie, Thomas Reevely, Mary & Steve Reid, Jacqueline Reilly-King, Anna Roper, Frank Schreiner, Short family, Deka Simon, Cathy Simons, Andrew Soares, Stephenson family, Elsie Sutherland, Cameron & Quinn Swords, Ruth Swyers, Tomlin Boys, John & Maggie Thomson, Tom Trottier, Trudeau family, Will, Georgie & Blaire Turner, Zosia Vanderveen, Veevers family, Nick Walker, Vanessa Wen, Paul Wernick, Hope, Jax and Ash Wilson, Howard & Elizabeth Wong, Berkan Yazici, Martin Zak.
Absurdity and pandering to a minority
Editor, Glebe Report
Here I sit on one of the Ottawa streets that pays the highest property taxes in the city.
To my chagrin, the street is barely passable a full week after our last snowstorm. Of immediate concern is the fact that no fire truck could even be able to think about navigating up our street. This exposes us to one of the fundamental risks associated with living in a city i.e., having your house burn down. Ironic that this is one of the risks that a city government is meant to mitigate. God help you if you want a friend to park on the street as all the parking spots are six-foot snowbanks.
I was astounded to note that the city had chosen to clear the snow from bicycle lanes on O’Connor Street. I view this as pandering to a small minority of citizens at the expense of the overwhelming majority of taxpayers. I am a statistician and have done the mental math to conclude that it would be cheaper to buy all the cyclists a gym membership.
I am an ardent cross-country skier and feel the city is doing me a disservice by not allowing me to ski in the summer. I propose that the city install refrigeration systems so that I and my four friends can ski all summer. Cross-country skiing consumes far more calories per hour than biking so is a much better form of active recreation. I realize that doing so might involve reducing city efforts on fire protection, road clearing, policing, enforcing the garbage bag limits and other important duties. So be it.
If the city is willing to pander to the four per cent of citizens that bike, I deserve and demand equal treatment. Denying my request for my virtue-signalling cross-country skiing would constitute discrimination of the most offensive sort.
T. Scott Murray
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Remembering Richard Webb: a life of love and dedication
By Erik Webb
To me and everyone who knew him, Richard Webb was an extraordinary person. It didn’t matter who you were or for what reason you came into contact with him, you were always better off for it. He was a great father, a devoted husband and a symbol of all that is good in the world. He wouldn’t hurt a fly – literally. He would rather take the time to chase it around the room and catch it because as he always said, “It deserves to live just as much as me.”
And live he did. Born in Calgary in 1950, Richard graduated from high school at 16 and pursued a Bachelor’s in Economics and English at the University of Calgary. He then went on to York where he attained a law degree and eventually found his way to Ottawa where he opened a practice for several years. Next, like many in Ottawa, he joined the federal government, both in the Department of Energy and then Finance. But this wasn’t his true calling. Richard spent
Janus raises awareness of organ transplants
Editor, Glebe Report,
Re: Janus V, Glebe Report, December 2024
I read with delight about Janus V and in particular about the “transplanting” of snow samples from the previous year.
As the recipient of a kidney transplant 38 years ago, I can testify to the life-changing results of receiving an organ, particularly from a living donor. There are currently 12,400 people in Ontario with end-stage renal disease who are on dialysis.
Only 5.6 per cent of patients receive a transplant, with less than 2 per cent of these from a living donor, the best option. The stats for liver transplantation are similarly in need of awareness and improvement.
I will be telling the story of Janus to the various organ donation and transplantation groups (including professionals and patients) that I work with. The TLC that he receives evokes the care provided by volunteers and practitioners in the renal field, and it will make the patients smile!
Fiona Gilfillan
Closure of Rochester Street 417 westbound on-ramp, NOW TO SUMMER
The Ontario Ministry of Transportation plans to close the Rochester Street westbound on-ramp to Highway 417 (Queensway) from February 24 to June 2 to allow for construction of sound barriers and trenchless crossing.
the rest of his career as a consultant on financial services with USAID. This job took him around the world, from Kazakhstan – where he met my mom – to Albania, India and many more countries.
But he wasn’t just his career. He had an amazing sense of humour and was an animal lover, an avid sports fan and a great athlete too. Above all, he was an amazing father and husband. It didn’t matter if it was a 7 a.m. house league practice or a AAA AllStar showcase, he was always there, supporting, giving tips and teaching. If his kids were involved, he took an interest. He loved being with his family, and his family loved being with him. He was also a lifelong learner – he loved to learn new things
Poem, Corrected
and would often throw himself headfirst into a new concept and before too long, it seemed he was the world’s foremost expert on the subject.
He is perhaps best known in the Glebe for his work in reinstating the outdoor rink on Mutchmor field. There were many roadblocks and obstacles, from the city councillor to the school board, but this did not deter him. He got it done and was always so pleased to see kids using it in the winter. He did not even skate anymore, he just wanted the kids to have a good rink. He was eventually awarded for his efforts on the rink, and in true Richard Webb fashion, he didn’t mention it to his family and filed the award away. He never sought recognition, but his quiet dedication left a lasting mark. Every time I see kids skating there, I think of him.
I know I would not be the man I am today if not for his unwavering support in all my endeavours and his lessons. He taught me the value of humility, work ethic, empathy – and above all kindness. I aspire to live my life as fully as he lived his – with generosity, humour and an open heart. Dad, I miss you, and I love you. I hope you are at peace. More than anything, I hope I can live a life as complete, happy and genuine as yours.
Erik Webb is the son of Glebite Richard Webb.
Maureen Korp’s poem “That Painting” from the February 2025 Poetry Quarter is reprinted here in corrected form, with apologies to the poet. The poem is a reflection on Vermeer’s painting, “Woman Holding a Balance.”
Maureen Korp
That Painting
Vermeer. “Woman Holding a Balance,” c.1662-63 she holds a simple balance in her hand it’s pure gold he said, a glimmering heartache. . . but, nothing’s there. Does it matter? he said Look again.
The Poetry of Home Call for submissions
Home – there’s no place like it! Even board games have a “home” square where you are safe from all comers! In hideand-go-seek, “home free!” is the call of triumph and relief. Home is where you find comfort from the world, where you can be, in short, “at home.”
Let us know your poetic thoughts on the idea of home, the longing for it, the sanctuary it can provide, or the heartbreakingly easily-fallen-into pit of homelessness.
As usual, poems should be:
• Original and unpublished in any medium (no poems submitted elsewhere, please);
• No more than 30 lines each;
• On any aspect of the theme within the bounds of public discourse; and
• Submitted on or before Monday, April 21, 2025.
Poets in the National Capital Region of all ages welcome (school-age poets, please indicate your grade and school). Please send your entries (up to 5 poems that meet the criteria) to editor@glebereport.ca. Remember to send us your contact information and your grade and school if you are in school.
Deadline: Monday, April 21, 2025
PHOTO: RICHARD WEBB, 1950-2024.
Winter wonderful at Glebe Memorial Rink
by Dudleigh Coyle
What a treat to have a real winter again for yet another banner year of skating at the Glebe Memorial outdoor rink. Families new to the north end of the Glebe have been delighted to discover our diamond-in-the-rough at 75 Glendale. No boards, no slap shots, just old-fashioned skating and shinny.
Some have also joined the flooding group; the more experienced do both.
On weekdays from 4 to 7 p.m. and on weekends 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., we employ student supervisors to be in charge. This system works smoothly. I’d estimate that during the last 40 years Glebe Memorial has had more than 95 parent volunteers and well over 100 student supervisors.
Special thanks to Randy Freda for great base ice and to the dedicated hoser group led by Eric Chernoff. Another remarkable year for Dave Hemphill’s student supervisors who keep watch after school and on weekends. I find it hard to believe that after 40 years of doing this job I can still convince more young dads to join our adult volunteer team – must be the orange hat, Habs tuque or crazy cool charm I exude! Whatever it is, we are a growing volunteer team, and I couldn’t be happier with how easy it is to keep our rink running so well.
Through the years we’ve enjoyed steady support from the City of Ottawa Outdoor Rink Program. Our strength is our community base. We currently have 26 dads and grandads who take turns being the “adult in charge” during the week from 7 to 9:30 pm.
We are a boardless rink catering to young families with young skaters. There is always a shinny game going on at one end of the ice. Everyone plays and everyone shovels when needed. In the event of a really heavy snowfalls, like the two that buried us between February 13 and 16, we bring in a plowing service as we don’t keep a snow blower on the premises.
Special note for parents in the north end of the Glebe – we would love to include you in our volunteer team known fondly as the Glebe Rink Rats. The job is easy and fun. Be in touch with me (dudleighcoyle@gmail.com) and I will explain. Kids love having their parents on the team.
Dudleigh Coyle is the Chief Rink Rat at the Glebe Memorial Rink on Glendale Avenue.
Shinny at Glebe Memorial PHOTO: ROGER SMITH
Rink Rats at rest PHOTO: ERIC CHERNOFF
The Allure of the outdoor rink– and its uncertain future
A Q&A with photographer Margo McDiarmid
Outdoor rinks (ODR) are an iconic symbol of the Canadian winter and a boon to our neighbourhood – imagine all the memories made on the ice at Glebe Memorial Park and Mutchmor. In The Outdoor Rink, former CBC reporter Margo McDiarmid captures their romantic appeal with 30 stunning photographs of rinks around Ottawa. But while this has been a great year for shinny and skating, the past two seasons fueled fears the unrefrigerated ODR might be an endangered species. In a chat with the Glebe Report’s Roger Smith, McDiarmid expressed concern that climate change could turn her book into a historical record of what used to be.
GR: After a career in journalism, why did you decide to focus on photography in retirement?
I’ve been taking photos for most of my life and moved towards it in a more concrete way once I became a journalist. I really got hooked when I spent five years in Alberta as a videographer for CBC ‘s The National, shooting my own documentaries. I discovered that I liked capturing images more than writing the story. The same thing happened when I covered the 2015 federal election, writing stories but also taking photos of the campaign. Again, I was way more interested in the photos than the words. So, as I thought about leaving the world of 24-hour television news after more than 30 years, I decided to study photography. I applied at the School of Photographic Arts Ottawa (SPAO) for the two-year diploma program. The day after I was accepted, I decided to retire.
What made you choose outdoor rinks as the subject for your book?
I used to live in Old Ottawa South for many years, and every winter night I walked my dog in the park past the Windsor Park rink. It was so beautiful – a cathedral of warm light in the cold night with people laughing and skating or zipping around playing hockey. It was such a heartwarming Canadian scene.
After I graduated from SPAO, I was accepted as an Artist
in Residence there to work on a personal project. I decided to do a series of portraits of community skating rinks across the city. I took the photos at night when the rinks are the most beautiful. Although I did take some photos of people skating, the main focus was each individual rink with its own personality. I focused on unrefrigerated rinks that are maintained by volunteers in city parks. There are 270 of them, and obviously I couldn’t photograph all of them. The City of Ottawa was very helpful, providing me with a list of rinks in a variety of neighbourhoods. It also bought books to give to 300 volunteers as thanks for their hard work during the pandemic.
You did the environment beat for some time at the CBC. Do you fear this book might become a legacy to something lost to climate change?
Unfortunately, I fear that my book may turn into a historical document. I took some of the photos in the first winter of the pandemic in 2021-22, then took more last year and added them to a second edition of The Outdoor Rink.
The contrast between the first winter and last year was painfully striking. It took me three or four trips to rinks just to get one usable shot. The City of Ottawa estimates its normal skating season is about two months; last year it was about two weeks. The problem is that it’s hard work to get a rink built – about 70 hours of shovelling and flooding before the first skater glides onto the ice. With increasingly warm winters, the freeze-thaw cycle makes maintaining an outdoor community rink very hard work and very discouraging for volunteers.
This winter is perfect for rinks, but the problem is that weather is so unpredictable, it’s hard to tell what we’re facing in the future and whether some community outdoor rinks will disappear just because of the frustrating logistics of keeping them open.
The Outdoor Rink is available at Octopus Books and Books on Beechwood. You can Margo McDiarmid directly at: mcdiarmm@gmail.com.
Mutchmor Rink hosts 15th Capital Ward Cup
By David Wylynko
The patchwork Mutchmor Rink in the Glebe hosted the raucous Capital Ward Cup community shinny tournament on February 8 before a boisterous standing-room-only crowd – the only option, given that the venue lacks bleachers!
The Glebe Goal-Getters team mounted a spirited campaign for the 15th rendition of the event that former Capital Ward councillor Clive Doucet founded in 2008 but fell in successive games to the Old Ottawa East Hosers and the Old Ottawa South Moose. The game consists of four-on-four hockey with no goalies and no equipment other than helmets, gloves, sticks and skates.
Glebe, unfortunately, was eliminated from contention at the outset of the tournament, when Capital Ward Councillor Shawn Menard acknowledged that the team lacked the requisite female skaters. At all times, the rules require that each team put at least one female on the ice.
“Most females who play hockey are already committed all weekend,” lamented one disgruntled player, recognizing that beyond the confines of the Capital Ward Cup, women’s hockey is thriving nationwide. Later that same evening, in fact, the annual Rivalry Series saw Canada’s women’s national team cap off a third consecutive win in its annual competition against the United States, matching a feat the Hosers achieved at the Capital Ward Cup earlier in the day.
This year, the four-team tournament was rounded out by the Heron Park Hackers, who mounted a team for the first time since the tournament was last hosted at this same venue in 2020, just before the COVID pandemic shut down the world. The Hackers, however, also lacked the requisite females.
As astute hockey observers will discern, the Cup is the prototype for the 4 Nations Face-Off which Canada won with a breathtaking 3-2 overtime win in
the tournament final against the U.S. The debt that the 4 Nations Face-Off owes to the Capital Ward Cup for borrowing its format has, sadly, thus far gone unacknowledged.
Admittedly, the Face-Off boasted somewhat more talented rosters, consisting of many of the best NHL players. But the Capital Ward Cup prides itself on being equally competitive and historically just as engaged in what some sports commentators called a “fierce” battle in the round-robin game between Canada and the U.S., when three fights broke out in the first nine seconds.
In years past, the Cup has featured no shortage of tussles, broken sticks, bone-crunching illegal bodychecks, trips that send players Bobby-Orr-style airborne and all-out brawls – though the latter usually occur in the warming hut as players jostle for the free coffee and donuts.
The Cup circulates among rinks in each of the four neighbourhoods. The
2020 event took place mere months after the historic Mutchmor Rink was restored – sort of – after having been dismantled in 2013 to accommodate this or that requirement related to the Mutchmor Public School expansion.
Unfortunately, the City of Ottawa and an impressive roster of acronyms, including the GCA, GNAG and the OCDSB, were unable to agree to restore a full-size ice surface. Rather, in classic political style, the powers that be agreed to meet halfway, the result being a rink roughly half the usual size. For the Cup, the result was a lot of close checking and tight play. Absent were the usual stretch passes and highenergy, end-to-end rushes typical of Cup events played elsewhere.
But true to its historic roots – the original Mutchmor Rink having hosted enthusiastic shinny hockey since the 1930s – the location with its makeshift plywood boards is reminiscent of hockey’s origins, resembling the 1884 McGill University rink where the first known photo of outdoor hockey in Canada was taken. That makes the Mutchmor Rink an enduring symbol of the greatness of one of Canada’s most beloved outdoor winter pastimes. Just be careful on that rough ice.
Writer David Wylynko is the manager of the Old Ottawa South Moose. His hockey novel Puck Luck and latest non-fiction book The True Canadians are available at Black Squirrel Books.
For the record: the OOE Hosers defeated Heron Park 9-5 and the Glebe Goal-Getters 11-3, to go to the final, and the OOS Moose defeated Glebe 9-6 and Heron Park 6-5 to go to the final, which was won by the OOE Hosers 7-3.
IN THE HEART OF THE
The Glebe Goal-Getters (in black) play the OOE Hosers (in green), Miles Krauter officiating. PHOTOS: JOHN DANCE
Capital Ward Cup players in green are the OOE Hosers and those in blue are the OOS Moose. Front row /kneeling (from left): Erika Ehrenberg, Bridget Moore, Andy Moore, Andrew Matsukubo, Randy Boswell. Rear: Noah Killeen, Yasir Naqvi, Ryan Morrison, Brad Scott, Shawn Veinot, Ross Anderson, Mackenzie Tobin, Mathew Pearson, Maya Launiere, Louis Denis, Ian White, Mark Dance, Shawn Menard, Miles Krauter.
A Practically perfect production: GNAG’s Mary Poppins hits the stage!
What every family needs – an uncanny nanny to work magic in our stressed-out households! GNAG’s community theatre is bringing Mary Poppins to life, with Hannah Brown in the title role, David Arnold as Bert and a mix of real and stage families making up the Banks household. More than 50 performers – from the Spoonful class to the kids’ and adult choruses – are singing and dancing away the winter blues.
Behind the scenes, excitement is building as the production team gears up for showtime. “I love hunting for what works best for each cast member and then seeing it all come together, one little puzzle piece at a time,” says costume head Mellissa Boicey.
For production stage manager Luc Asselin, the magic is in the music. “Hearing the songs come together is amazing. Musical director Lauren Saindon works with performers of all experience levels for months, and suddenly all those parts combine into one big, beautiful song.”
And that sense of connection is exactly what makes GNAG’s theatre productions unique, says Saindon. “Collaboration is key. It’s rare and incredibly special for families to rehearse and perform together. This theatre family cares deeply about each other, working from deep respect to give their best performance.”
Don’t miss the magic of Mary Poppins – a show filled with heart, talent and the kind of community spirit that makes GNAG productions truly one of a kind!
Tickets for Mary Poppins go on sale from March 12. Shows run at 7 p.m. every day from April 9 to 13 and also at 2 p.m. on the weekend of April 12 and 13.
Spring Registration and Programming
Spring registration is coming, and we can’t wait for you to see the program lineup! Please check out the guide online at www.gnag.ca. Registration is Tuesday, March 18 at 7 p.m.
Spring Soccer Takes a New Spin!
GNAG Spring Soccer is back with Soccer Shots! Soccer Shots Classic utilizes creative and imaginative games to focus on basic soccer skills
Sarah Routliffe
like dribbling, passing and shooting. We also highlight a positive character trait each session such as respect, teamwork and appreciation. Your child’s registration also includes a jersey. Join us at Glebe Memorial Park (Glendale Park) for all the fun!
NEW Youth Theatre Excalibur
Looking for another chance to act after Mary Poppins? Join GNAG’s Youth Theatre Production of Excalibur! Written by Eleanor Crowder and directed by RJ Mayo, this spring theatre class will include a formal performance or two at the end of the session. More info found in the spring program guide.
GNAG 50th Anniversary Party, May 31
This month’s fun and flashy tidbit is all about the five decades GNAG has been part of the community (yes, five!). To celebrate, we’ll have a special anniversary display at the party, beautifully curated by the lovely Jennie Aliman, a true walk down memory lane!
Aliman is looking for memorabilia to feature, including old photographs, so if you have anything to contribute, please reach out to her at piswolsky@ rogers.com. She’s also on the hunt for mannequins to help showcase some classic GNAG gear – if you have one to lend (and don’t mind it sporting a vintage staff shirt!), let her know.
And don’t forget – GNAG 50th swag is available for sale at the Glebe Community Centre! Grab yours and celebrate this milestone in style.
Mutchmor Rink Party
While GNAG may not have been operating the rink this year, we teamed up with rink operators Charlie Wood and Nate Wightman, along with the Glebe BIA, to throw a rink party to remember!
With plenty of hot chocolate, hot dogs and over $500 in prizes from the Glebe BIA (a big thank you to Dar rell, Julia and Lucia!), we had a fan tastic time celebrating Mutchmor Rink – and embracing true Canadian winter spirit, despite the freezing temperatures!
A special shoutout to Pete Wight man, who may no longer be our rink operator but still showed up to flood
and snowblow, ensuring a great season for everyone.
Thank you, Glebe!
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the GNAG created a COVID Relief Donation Fund to support the organization through a challenging time. Thanks to this community’s generosity, we made essential improvements and replacements, including new mats for children, a replacement fridge, a replacement industrial dishwasher
and a new kiln.
Most notably, we installed a longneeded washer and dryer at the Glebe Community Centre – ending the yearslong practice of staff taking home laundry from programs and events. We are incredibly grateful to the Glebe community for stepping up when we needed it most. Your support made a lasting impact, ensuring GNAG can continue providing high-quality programs. Thank you!
A lively Mary Poppins rehearsal
Democracy matters
In a time when democracy is under threat around the world, it was reassuring to look around Scotton Hall last month to see the turnout for the provincial candidates’ meeting. There were about 200 people in the room and thanks to taping and rebroadcasting by Rogers Cable, another 1,000 or so watched later online.
Now that the provincial election is history, we are looking ahead to the federal contest which could happen as early as this spring. At last month’s GCA meeting, the board voted to support a federal candidates’ debate whenever the election is called. It takes a lot of work to organize the venue, round up the candidates, arrange the taping, etc. So thanks to everyone who was involved in organizing and who took part in the provincial event, especially our partner community associations in Centretown, Old Ottawa South and Old Ottawa East. You’ll be hearing from us again soon.
Whither Bank Street
There are a few issues that never go away in the Glebe. Lansdowne is one of them. Another is Bank Street. The City of Ottawa’s Bank Street Active Transportation and Transit Priority Feasibility Study is supposed to “evaluate options to improve conditions for transit, walking and cycling.” The City came up with four options last year, held a consultation session
John Crump President, Glebe Community Association
and conducted an online survey to see what people think.
The GCA has learned the City is taking a long time to analyze this public input and is not coming out with a recommended option (which may be something other than the four on the table) until May rather than March as expected. There will be another set of public consultations after that and then a recommendation will go to City Council.
With this in mind, the GCA will discuss the options further, so we are prepared to either take advantage of opportunities for additional comment, or are better prepared to respond when the next report comes out. We now have the advantage of being able to review the public input that has come in, which will allow for a more informed discussion.
Lansdowne LEED lack
LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) is the world’s most widely used green building rating system. It provides a framework for healthy, highly efficient and cost-saving green buildings, which offer environmental, social and governance benefits. In April 2022 when the Ottawa Sports and Entertainment Group (OSEG) presented Lansdowne 2.0 to City of Ottawa Council and taxpayers, they proudly promoted that Lansdowne 1.0 achieved LEED Silver
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certification for a Neighbourhood Development. They promoted the idea that Lansdowne 2.0 would follow the same design goals and “be a shining example of sustainable design and operational practices.” This commitment was to apply to the rebuilding of the event centre and stadium. So imagine our surprise when the GCA’s Environment Committee learned that the Silver certification has been downgraded to simply “Certified”, the lowest ranking. Ottawa taxpayers were sold Lansdowne 2.0 based in part on it achieving LEED Silver certification. At the first stage of the development this has been downgraded, so one has to ask: Was the marketing of sustainable green buildings in the Lansdowne 2.0 proposal just greenwashing? Will taxpayers see associated cost reductions for this and future design downgrades?
Membership drive coming
In March the wheels start turning on the GCA’s annual membership campaign. A lot of hard work is already going on behind the scenes and you can expect communications starting soon to make the membership drive more visible in the community. Our webmaster has been doing a great deal of work behind the scenes to improve our membership data. As always, the backbone of the drive is the volunteers who hit the streets in
May and knock on as many doors as possible. The GCA also has an online option for becoming a member or renewing. The Membership Committee statistics show 70 per cent of members sign up at the door with the other 30 per cent doing it online. The goal is to move more renewals online this year, saving time and energy – and making sign-up more convenient.
AGM moves to September
The board approved a motion to move the 2025 Annual General Meeting to September 2025. The GCA moved its 2024 annual general meeting from June to September to give time to prepare for compliance with Ontario’s Not-for-Profit Corporations Act. Changing the date of the AGM gives time to make sure that the membership list is updated and financial reporting complete.
Next meeting
The next GCA Board of Directors meeting takes place Tuesday, March 25, 2025 at 7 p.m. on ZOOM. Login information will be sent out before the meeting.
ENGLISH CONVERSATION FOR UKRAINIAN NEWCOMERS
The English Conversation Program for Ukrainian Newcomers to Ottawa provides free, volunteer-run teaching of English for Ukrainians who have arrived in Canada since Russia’s invasion in February 2022. As the third anniversary of the war slips by, this program is providing even more vital support to Ukrainian newcomers.
English language sessions are held at
Café Ukraine at 913 Carling Avenue in Little Italy, with some people participating remotely. There are group sessions, small groups and one-on-one tutoring to accommodate newcomers at all English levels from beginner to advanced and in all age groups. Since January 2023, the program has helped more than 150 Ukrainian newcomers to gain confidence using English in everyday situations, helping them in pursuing new career and educational opportunities. Volunteer teachers come from various backgrounds, including teachers, business professionals and retirees.
For more information on the program, visit the website at ottawaesl4ukraine.my.canva.site or email ottawaesl4ukraine@gmail.com
Our focus is SMALL PROJECTS DONE RIGHT –projects that larger contractors do not consider.
We do everything from landscaping, interlock, fencing,
Shawn Menard
Councillor, Capital Ward N 613-580-2487 www.shawnmenard.ca
Transportation planning, urban sprawl and road improvements in Capital Ward
I’m composing this column mid-February on the day of the giant snowstorm when much of the city shut down. This has been a challenging winter; we’ve had a lot of snow and many days of extreme cold.
Winter also has its bright spots. We’ve had many days of good skating conditions on the canal. The Rideau Winter Trail was operating again with a pilot extension across Bank Street to Vincent Massey Park. We brought the boarded rink back to Mutchmor, where this year’s Capital Ward Cup was held! And we were able to get the city to expand its stair-shoveling pilot, so more stairs are open during winter, including the ones at Central Park on Bank Street.
I hope you all have had an opportunity to enjoy some of what the city has to offer in winter.
Transportation Master Plan
At the end of January, our office hosted an online public consultation on the future of Lees Field in Old Ottawa East. Currently, that parcel of land has been set aside for a future freeway called the Alta Vista Transportation Corridor.
We had a very thorough and thoughtful discussion with the 140 residents who attended. And one thing that was clear was that residents do not want to keep following the same tired approach to transportation planning that has been failing us since the 1950s.
People are aware that inner-city
freeways increase traffic congestion, carve up neighbourhoods, degrade the environment and bring far too much noise to densely populated areas.
We held this consultation because the city is about to start the next phase of updating the Transportation Master Plan (TMP). Part 1 of the TMP, which covered transportation policy, active transportation projects and the framework for prioritizing transit and road projects, was approved in April 2023. Now we move on to Part 2, which looks at travel trends and forecasts (based on the recent Origin-Destination Study) – it will set transportation modal share targets and establish the transit and road projects implementa tion plan.
Staff are planning to hold consul tations throughout March and April. Transportation materials will be posted online. There will be virtual and in-person public consultations, as well as an interactive map-based engagement tool.
It’s easy to think of transporta tion planning as just responding to people’s travel patterns, but the deci sions we make – what we prioritize, what we neglect, where we spend money – have a tremendous effect on the transportation choices people make, so it will be important for every one to give feedback so that staff know what kind of city we want to build.
(And to be clear, we don’t want the city paving over Lees Field for a free way. We’re pushing to have it removed from the TMP.)
Tewin lands and urban sprawl
It’s time to reconsider the addition of the Tewin lands to Ottawa’s urban boundary. The city has already iden tified a $590-million price tag to pay for the water-related infrastructure alone needed to sustain sprawl in this costly location. This does not account for the cost of any other infrastructure needed to service Tewin, nor does it account for any of the operating, maintenance or lifecycle costs, such as new plowing, new transit, new sidewalks. Costs that will be borne by all of us, in perpetuity. This adds up to billions of tax dollars needed to facili tate a profitable real estate investment
for a wealthy and well-connected development corporation.
The language of reconciliation was used to include these unsuitable sprawl lands in our urban boundary, despite public outcry from Indigenous leadership that this would set the relationship back by decades and despite the inclusion of the lands going against Council’s own scoring criteria and recommendations from our professional land-use planners. This new council has an opportunity to revisit this decision before it’s too late.
Roadwork improvements
the spring, you can expect work to continue on Bank Street south of the river. Work will also resume on the Monk, Oakland, Wilton and Woodlawn project, and the Ella and Ralph reconstruction project will get underway. Additionally, we’re pushing to get the reconstruction of Pretoria Avenue underway, after several years of delay.
In the coming years, we’ll also see reconstruction work on Clarey, Melgund, Monk, Regent and Thornton, as well as resurfacing projects on sections of Glebe, O’Connor and Percy. We will share updates and information on public consultations for these projects in our e-newsletter, which you can sign up for by email Capital-
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GLEBE ANNEX STREET NAMES
Powell, Clemow and Maclean
By Sue Stefko
In the second of two articles about street names in the Glebe Annex, we’ll look at three east-west streets in the neighbourhood – Powell, Clemow and the rather mysteriously named Maclean.
Powell Avenue initially stretched a single block between Bell and Turner (now Cambridge) and was called Ernest Street. In 1901, the city resisted pressure to extend the street to Concession (now Bronson), arguing it would not benefit the adjoining properties. However, the city relented in 1905 and agreed to extend the road to Bronson, even though some families were displaced. Ernest seems to have been renamed Powell Avenue in 1909, when lots on Powell Avenue between Bronson and Bank were being developed.
Powell was named after William Frederick (WF) Powell, a politician and chief of the Ottawa Police. The development of Powell and Clemow Avenues were closely linked. Senator Francis Clemow married Margaret Powell, the sister of WF Powell, who owned about 65 acres of land at the edge of town, including the future location of Powell and Clemow. In a joint real estate venture called Clemow-Powell Realty (later Clemora Realty), the Clemows and Powells started subdividing the land in 1906 and offered prime building lots over the next several years.
The Glebe Annex portion of Clemow Avenue used to be a short street called Crawford that stretched from Concession (Bronson) to Bell. It was named
after Mrs. Crawford of Toronto, a member of the Sherwood family who owned the area which was slated to become a subdivision. However, the neighbourhood grew more slowly than envisaged. The street’s first inhabitant was Sergeant Sam Chandler. He moved to Mount Sherwood in 1874 and built a house in the planned subdivision area. However, no subdivision was developed, no other homes were built –vehicles ran on the grassed area, tamping down what became a navigable road. Chandler’s house was described as being in a “commons,” as it was surrounded by open fields and bush with wild plums, grapes, apples and roaming cows.
Crawford was changed to Clemow
Avenue in 1915, once the street flowed into Clemow on the east (Glebe) side –it was, of course named after the aforementioned Senator Clemow. Among Clemow’s many accomplishments, he was a journalist and founder of a newspaper called The Monarchist, a merchant, the president of Ottawa Gas Works and chairman of the Ottawa Collegiate Institute.
The Glebe was considered a suburb at the time, and the arrival of streetcars helped enable its development. Clemow envisaged the neighbourhood and especially the street that bore his name as a grand statement, carefully planning every detail, such as the trees, lampposts, homes built by renowned architects and no unsightly telephone poles. The effort was the result of a public-private partnership between the Ottawa Improvement Commission (a precursor to the National Capital
Commission) and private developers to ensure long-term aesthetic beauty of the street.
Maclean Street is among the most untouched streets in the neighbourhood, though its name was spelled both McLean and Maclean over the years. It is shown in an 1879 map of Ottawa and always seemed to be only one block long.
It’s difficult to find a famous Maclean or McLean with connections to Ottawa in that era. One possibility is that the street was named after John McLean, who came to British North America (Canada) from Scotland as a young man. He became a fur-trapper, explorer, businessman and author. While he spent some time in the Ottawa Valley, he also travelled across the country from the Atlantic to the Pacific by foot and by canoe, becoming one of the key traders of the Hudson’s Bay Company. He’s renowned for being the first European to discover Churchill Falls in Newfoundland and Labrador.
A connection that may resonate today is McLean’s role in the Alabama Claims dispute, lawsuits filed by the United States in the 1860s against Great Britain for damages caused by British-built Confederate warships during the American Civil War. The U.S. asked for financial compensation (approximately $2 billion), though some politicians called instead for Great Britain to cede parts of Canada to the U.S. McLean wrote letters to newspapers across the country, helping to solidify public opinion against ceding any Canadian territory.
Sue Stefko is vice president of the Glebe Annex Community Association and a regular Glebe Report contributor.
Orangeville according to the H. Belden & Co. 1879 atlas of Carleton County
The length of Maclean Street, one of the few streets in the Glebe Annex that has retained its initial name PHOTO: GABRIELLE DALLAPORTA
Fitness studio celebrates 10
By Selena Beattie
“We’re still here!” says Sarah Thompson, with a little relief or maybe surprise in her voice. In January, Sarah Thompson and Jamie Rigby celebrated 10 years of their small Glebe-based business Where I Thrive (affectionally referred to by members as WIT). “And now we offer the Glebe community everything and the kitchen sink!”
“Are you a new mom looking for an activity to do with your baby? We offer mom and baby barre, yoga and strength series,” says Thompson. “Looking to increase muscle mass and bone density as you age? We offer classes tailored to an older clientele. Or maybe you want a barre class, a high intensity spin class, a HIIT class, a strength and conditioning class or even a yoga class. You’re in luck because we offer it all under one roof at 117 Glebe Ave.”
But how did they get here? “Well, it’s been a journey with a few major hurdles we almost didn’t get past,” says Jamie Rigby. The husband-and-wife co-owners originally began as a franchise of California-based Dailey Method barre studio before evolving into an independent business that offers barre, yoga, cycle, a weight room and personal training.
“When we first started this business, our goal was to create a happy place, a community,” says Thompson. “Yes, clients do get an efficient and effective workout, but what motivated us to build our studio was a drive to create opportunities for our clients to create friendships and connect with their fellow Glebites.”
As for many small businesses, change has been a constant. Their creativity and their ability to inspire their community sets them apart – and their community loves them right back.
Looking back on his first visit, member Dave says, “I’ll always remember how welcoming it felt, I thought, wow! The staff already knew my name!” Says Andrada of her first time: “As soon as class ended, I immediately wanted to come back the next day and do it again.”
Thompson and Rigby started in 2015 by offering
studio classes at Fifth Avenue Court, then added a cycle room and spin classes in 2017. They expanded that site twice, doing much of the renovation work themselves. Then redevelopment of the building forced them out and into the search for a new location. Staying in the Glebe was a must. They revealed their new site – in the old car wash on Glebe Avenue –with a scavenger hunt for members. They gutted and renovated the building, adding a café to the new workout areas.
A few months later came a bigger challenge: COVID shutdowns. They pivoted to online classes, with upbeat teachers posting videos for classes at home, using canned goods or wine bottles for hand weights and dog leashes or bathrobe belts to replace yoga straps. The community stuck with them, relishing the continuity amidst pandemic anxiety and work-fromhome isolation.
The café was harder to sustain and never really recovered. So, another pivot: in 2024, they renovated again, eliminating the café to double the size of the weight room. Members love the light streaming in through big south-facing windows while they work out.
Members have access to more than 60 barre, yoga, cycle and strength classes a week, plus personal training; for non-members, there are targeted classes that offer a set program at the same time with the same instructor each week. The Mom & Baby series, first offered when Thompson was toting their firstborn, has seen a succession of next-gen babies bouncing around the studio. A new six-week Strength for Longevity series offers older adults a slower-paced, smallgroup fitness program focused on gaining balance, mobility and flexibility; it’s led by Leo Pineda, the studio’s master personal trainer.
Having weathered three renovations, multiple COVID lockdowns, three babies and the growth from four teachers in 2015 to 40 today, Thompson feels like the studio and its community are in perfect alignment. “We tried things, some failed, but we learned and evolved to a place where we are really happy with what we’ve managed to build. Now we want to sustain it, have the opportunity to get more creative with the fitness side of things and have fun with it.”
If the smiles and energy radiating from members are any indication, it seems like WIT will continue to thrive!
Selena Beattie is an occasional contributor to our business column. She first met Sarah and Jamie in 2017 on assignment for the Glebe Report.
Sarah Thompson (above) and Jamie Rigby, co-owners of the fitness studio Where I Thrive, celebrate the 10th anniversary of the studio as they aim for a sense of community among members.
Talking to bees
By Clive Doucet
A bee is a bee but not exactly the same bee. There are more than 3,000 types of bees on the planet. Each Queen Bee is a little different. Some are more aggressive than others. Some have better defenses against the feared Varroa destructor mites. These mites are capable of wiping out an entire colony to the last bee in just one season. This isn’t a trivial problem. Varroa makes the COVID virus look like a small-time operator. Fortunately, there are some bee colonies which do have the genetic strength to defend themselves against the Varroa mite. Not many but some.
The world of bees is genetically complex. Italian bees are a favourite of beekeepers because they’ve been domesticated for a very long time, are peaceable and produce a lot of honey. Russian and African bees are vibrant producers, strong but also aggressive. They don’t like you or anyone else playing about with their hive home. Nonetheless, the fundamentals of being a bee whether it's Russian, Italian or African remain the same – to produce honey and defend their hive against invasion.
Bee life also remains similar. During every bee’s life cycle, they all take a turn taking care of the young, cleaning the hive, standing guard and foraging for nectar. It is the guard bees that will fly up into your face and attack, which is why beekeepers like to wear some head protection when they open a hive up. Once bees perceive a threat to their home, no matter how peaceable a hive is, the guards will attack very
quickly and precisely. You will be bitten before you have time to defend yourself, and it will hurt. This is why beekeepers also have a live-fire smoker handy to blow smoke into the hive after it has been opened. You don’t want to hurt the bees, but you do want to deaden their capacity to react with an attack.
Humans are similar to bees at least in their desire to defend their territory. The Trump tariff attack on Canada has brought Canadians together in a way that usually only a war does. In Quebec and Alberta, support for Canada has skyrocketed. Polls show that support for separation has hit historic lows in both provinces. Alberta Premier Danielle Smith, whose first reaction was to announce Alberta would not support any attempt to limit oil and gas exports to the United States, has suddenly discovered she’s leading a parade that no longer exists. All polls show a clear majority of Westerners think oil and gas should be included in the Canadian tariff defence, not given a pass.
Times have certainly gotten weird. The morning news has begun to feel like news reports from the front. Each day brings more unexpected and destructive bulletins from the White House. The United States has supplied sufficient arms to Israel
at first seemed like something out of a comic opera, suddenly doesn’t seem so funny. Trump is pushing the U.S, a founding UN member, back to the international conditions which prevailed before the Second World War when “might makes right.” Remember Czechoslovakia.
The United Nations was invented to give all the nations of the world some protection against the natural and primal desire of the powerful to increase their territory based on strength, not compassion or reason. History teaches us that dividing the world into “them and us” can work for a time for the strong, but ultimately it fails because the reality is, like bees, there is no them and us. There is just us.
I have this image of a new chick struggling to hatch. The chick is trying to peck a hole from the inside through the shell to the outside world. It’s hard work. In every country, there are millions of people also trying to peck their way through the suffocating shell of extreme nationalism. At the same time, millions of other people are anxious to keep the hole closed tight. In this way, they want to Make America Great Again even if it takes the oppression of others. The problem is, oppression never made any country great. It turns people into jailors and jailed, them and us. Neither is
COMMUNITY LIVING FOR SENIORS
A new Abbeyfield housing initiative for central Ottawa
By Janet Sutherland
Since its beginnings in post-war England, the successful Abbeyfield model has offered healthy middle-income seniors a supportive, affordable and non-institutional housing alternative. Canada is home to 19 Abbeyfield houses in four provinces, including Abbeyfield Ottawa on Parkdale Avenue, and efforts are underway to bring another one to the city.
An Abbeyfield residence is created most often in a donated property or large home that is renovated for purpose, although some have been co-designed as part of new housing developments for seniors. A group of committed and enthusiastic volunteers are currently looking to realize the Abbeyfield vision in central Ottawa, but we need the community’s help to identify potential donors and volunteers.
Abbeyfield Riverside was initiated by Seniors Watch Old Ottawa South, a committee of the Old Ottawa South Community Association. We incorporated as an independent not-for-profit organization in late 2022.
Abbeyfield Riverside will provide a welcoming home environment for 15 to 20 seniors who can connect with others while enjoying the privacy of their own suites. The Abbeyfield Riverside residence will offer seniors a unique balance between independence and family-style community living.
In the Abbeyfield model, each resident enjoys a private, self-furnished bed-sitting room with an ensuite.
Abbotsford Seniors Centre looks back to the 1990s
By Julie Ireton
This year, Abbotsford at the Glebe Centre will mark 50 years as a social hub and service provider for seniors. For Dorrit Crosby, long-time staffer and volunteer, there’s much to celebrate.
“Abbotsford is very important to a lot of people – it’s where important friendships form,” said Crosby. “And it was pretty much my only place of employment.”
It all began for her in the craft room, helping with ceramics classes in 1977. Decades on, she’s now taking advantage of the centre’s activities as a retiree and member herself. Crosby has watched programs at the seniors’ centre across from Lansdowne Park develop and evolve over the years.
1990s at Abbotsford
Back in the 1990s, she helped out with the popular luncheon club that would pick up 30 clients two days a week for lunch, exercises, word games and music at Abbotsford. Luncheon club was designed to give seniors who were at risk of isolation some social interaction with others living on their own, she said.
“It was a fun program. I really liked
Lunch and dinner are provided; breakfast is self-serve. Communal spaces for dining and leisure activities foster social interaction. Accessibility is a priority, both in the interior design of each room and in the location, which ensures easy access to transportation and essential services.
Each Abbeyfield residence is governed by a volunteer board of directors that supports and guides operations as a self-sustaining social enterprise. The board handles applications, employs staff, maintains the property and takes an active interest in residents’ well-being. A dedicated house manager ensures smooth operations, helped by volunteers who support the residents.
Our board of directors is in the
planning and development phase of this exciting housing initiative, guided by the policies and procedures of Abbeyfield Canada and building on the success of Abbeyfield seniors’ residences across Canada. We want to create a centrally located seniors’ residence which will offer easy access to neighbourhood amenities, services and public transportation.
Abbeyfield Riverside remains a vision to be realized. Help us make a difference for seniors in central Ottawa! To bring our dream to fruition, you can help in various ways:
Volunteer. Lend your expertise to our finance, communication and location committees. Or assist us with specific projects, such as website development
and exploring potential properties.
Donate land or a large residence Donate a suitable property in central Ottawa as a personal legacy or as part of a nonprofit partnership. Some Abbeyfield Houses are named after their donors, who receive considerable tax benefits. Some donors may wish to live at the residence once established.
Contribute. Provide financial support, professional expertise or in-kind services.
We look forward to working with individuals, community organizations and all levels of government to plan, finance and create Abbeyfield Riverside.
Together, we can create a home for middle-income Ottawa seniors. If you can help – or know someone else who can - we would love to hear from you! Contact us today at riverside@ abbeyfield.ca
Janet Sutherland is a resident of the Glebe and has been an Abbeyfield Riverside board member since 2023 as a liaison for the GCA’s Health, Housing and Social Services Committee.
it. It was mostly ladies, but also some men,” said Crosby. “I just fell in love with many of the participants.”
Then in 1996, she helped develop the centre’s “Day Away” program as it got underway. Still in operation today, Day Away provides activities and entertainment for seniors diagnosed with early-stage dementia. It also helps provide some respite for the spouses or caregivers at home who watch out for them.
“We spent months researching and going to other day-away programs to see how they were run,” said Crosby. “We recruited volunteers, some who are still helping.”
Teddy Bear production
Since the 1990s, Norma Knight, another volunteer-turned-Abbotsford member, has spent much of her time at the centre with the teddy bear crafters.
“Abbotsford has been a very good place for me,” said Knight. “I could go there and make friends and contribute to what they were doing.”
Knight, who grew up in Quebec’s Eastern Townships, was young when she learned how to sew, so volunteering with the teddy bear group was a natural spot for her.
“I’ve made several friends over the years making teddy bears,” she said. “A lot of us are getting to the older age group now, so it’s nice to go in and see them. We’ve done some recruiting, and there are now some newer, younger members too.”
Friendly face
By 2001, Crosby had worked in a
variety of staff positions at Abbotsford when she moved into her role at the reception desk and became the friendly face for visitors coming through the door.
“I retired on a Friday, but was back in the chair on Monday,” said Crosby about her volunteering. “I worked every day the first week of retirement.”
Now as an active member, Crosby helps out with fundraisers, answers phones and prices items for the annual garage sale.
A celebration is being planned for the official 50th anniversary this fall. And you can be sure that Crosby will be at
the party.
Abbotsford Seniors Centre is part of The Glebe Centre Inc., a charitable, notfor-profit organization which includes a 254-bed long term care home. Find out more about our services by dropping by 950 Bank Street (the old stone house) Monday to Friday, 9a.m. to 4 p.m., phoning 613-230-5730 or checking out all of The Glebe Centre facilities and programming on our website www.glebecentre.ca.
Julie Ireton is a journalist who writes regularly on Abbotsford for the Glebe Report.
From left, Abbeyfield Riverside board members Nora McKnight and Angela Davis at the Abbotsford House Seniors Fair, January 7, 2025 along with Anna Cuylits and Patricia Eakins (Seniors Health Innovations Hub Steering Committee members).
Dorrit Crosby presenting flowers to Norma Knight at a volunteer appreciation event
PHOTO: PAT GOYECHE
The Heart of GNAG: a community built by volunteers
by Mary Tsai
Organizations like the Glebe Neighbourhood Activities Group (GNAG) thrive because of the generosity of volunteers who bring its mission to life. But volunteering isn’t just about giving back – it’s about learning, forming lifelong friendships and being part of something bigger. I’ve experienced firsthand how GNAG fosters meaningful connections and strengthens our community. Volunteering has shown me that when we give our time, we also grow and become part of a greater purpose.
Why We Volunteer
For many, volunteering with GNAG becomes more than an act of service, it becomes a way of life.
Clare Pearson, a former board member, moved from England with two young children and knew no one. “GNAG was a welcoming family away from home,” she says. Over the years, she helped with fundraisers, events and even coached GNAG soccer, learning that British terms like “pitch” for “field” weren’t always interchangeable!
For Megan Malloy, a simple request from a daycare parent sparked more than a decade of volunteering. “That moment changed everything,” she recalls. “Through the board, Taste in the Glebe and Snowflake Special, I met lifelong friends. The laughter, teamwork and camaraderie made every event unforgettable.”
Elspeth Tory got involved when a neighbour asked if she’d be board secretary. “She promised it was fun, and thankfully, she wasn’t lying,” she jokes. “Later, as chair, I helped navigate COVID and find a new executive director. GNAG is the core of our community – giving back felt especially important.”
Youth Volunteers:
The Next Generation
Each year, GNAG recruits young volunteers to support programs like summer camps and after-school care. They also contribute countless hours to fundraisers and events.
GNAG partnered with the Ottawa Youth Services Bureau to raise awareness and funds for homeless youth
through their sleep-out initiative, an inspiring example of youth helping youth. Watching these teens work together is a testament to community spirit.
Maggie Wightman started as a participant and later became a dedicated volunteer. “It gave me experience, something fun to do, and led me to helping with GNAG Theatre and Taste in the Glebe.” Now a GNAG staff member, she helps create meaningful experiences for new volunteers.
Megan Stahl joined through GNAG’s Leadership program. “At first, I volunteered because my friends did,” she says. “But I soon realized it was more than just a way to connect, it became my way of giving back. GNAG became a second home.” She adds, “My most memorable moment? Meeting my now fiancé. GNAG was a huge part of both our lives.”
A Legacy of Giving
Mary Lovelace, a former board member and staffer, grew up believing that giving back is essential. “Volunteering at GNAG brought me joy, challenges and adventures,” she says. “I loved seeing kids grow up in our programs and return as volunteers themselves.”
Jennie Aliman, a former GNAG chair,
first connected with GNAG more than 30 years ago when she and her son Nathan attended playgroup. Grateful for the welcoming community, she soon became a volunteer. “One of the best things I ever did was join playgroup. It brought me friends, a job, a community and helped me feel I wasn’t alone as a new parent.” Today, Clare plays a vital role in coordinating GNAG volunteers.
More Than Just Volunteering
GNAG isn’t just an organization, it’s also a network of neighbours turned friends, a place where people of all ages come together to create something special.
As Eleanor Crowder, GNAG’s theatre director, puts it: “Volunteerism keeps the heart beating in a community. It’s how you meet your neighbours, how you live the full life of your neighbourhood.”
moved to the Glebe in 1987 and quickly got involved. “Our kids attended programs, worked at the community centre, and we all participated in events like the Craft Fair and Lobsterfest,” she shares. “Being on the board allowed us to shape programs that responded to community needs – it was exciting, creative and empowering.”
GNAG staffer Clare Davidson Rogers
Thinking of getting involved? Just ask any GNAG volunteer – they’ll tell you it’s one of the most rewarding things you’ll ever do. Visit GNAG.ca/volunteer to learn more.
More Than a Party: We Are Celebrating You
Saturday, May 31 is the date for GNAG’s 50th anniversary celebration. The event features a street party, decades display, entertainment, music, refreshments, games and activities for children. In the evening, the celebration continues with a party featuring Juno award winner KellyLee Evans. This isn’t just a celebration of GNAG’s history, it’s a thank you to everyone who has shaped this special organization. GNAG brings people together, and we look forward to celebrating you!
50 Memorable Moments
There are countless inspiring stories behind why we get involved with GNAG. Visit GNAG’s social media to explore heartfelt memories and photos from our community.
Have a special GNAG moment to share? Send your story to clare@gnag. ca with the subject line “Memorable Moments.” We’d love to hear from you!
Mary Tsai is GNAG’s former executive director and current chair of GNAG’s 50th anniversary committee.
Some past and current board members. From left, front to back: Mary Lovelace, Mary Tsai, Kate McCartney, Christine McAllister, Pascale Pergant, John Richardson, Suzanne McCarthy, Cathy McCallion, Sarah Wilson, Elspeth Tory, Sheri Segal Glick, Liz Izaguirre, Christy Oliver, Megan Malloy, Sally Coutts, Hannah Reid, Ian Nicol, Lynn Barlow, James Meloche, Geoff Kellow and Brad Sigouin.
GNAG is the heart of the community!
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Lansdowne 2.0 LEED silver certification in question
By Della Wilkinson and Kate Reekie
In April 2022, when the Ottawa Sports & Entertainment Group (OSEG) presented Lansdowne 2.0 to City Council and residential taxpayers, they proudly advertised that Lansdowne 1.0 had achieved LEED Silver certification for neighbourhood development. As shown in this screenshot recently taken from that proposal on the OSEG website (tdplace.ca), they claimed Lansdowne 2.0 would follow the same design goals.
LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) is the world’s most widely used green-building rating system. It provides a framework for healthy, highly efficient and cost-saving green buildings, which offer environmental, social and governance benefits. According to the US Green Building Council, the LEED certification process starts at the design stage:
“The process begins when the owner selects the rating system and registers the project (see Rating System Selection). The project is then designed to meet the requirements for all prerequisites and for the credits the team has chosen to pursue. After documentation has been submitted for certification, a project goes through preliminary and final reviews. The preliminary review provides technical advice on credits that require additional work for achievement, and the final review contains the project’s final score and certification level.”
LEED has four levels of certification, based on a point system: Certified (40–49 points); Silver (50–59 points); Gold (60–79 points); Platinum (80 points and above).
In the Lansdowne 2.0 proposal (page 33), OSEG declared sustainability as their third guiding principle and that achieving LEED will allow Lansdowne 2.0 to “be a shining example of sustainable design and operational practices.”
OSEG repeatedly state throughout the proposal their commitment to “targeting LEED silver for both the Event Centre and the Stadium.”
Given this documented commitment, most taxpayers would reasonably assume that the first public consultation of the Lansdowne 2.0 north-side stands would clearly specify the design elements required for LEED Silver certification. Not surprisingly, at the City’s public consultations in January, OSEG and city officials were asked whether the stands will be built to a LEED Silver certification. Surprisingly, this question did not seem to be clearly answered. Since LEED certification must be a consideration from the earliest stages of the design, this should concern taxpayers.
The GCA Environment Committee tried to seek clarification by asking two simple questions “Could you please confirm what level of LEED is projected for the northside stands?” and “Also, what level of LEED certification is projected for the Events Centre?”
The Lansdowne 2.0 Project Team replied as follows: “The City and their design team are designing the event centre and north side stands facilities to meet ‘LEED certified’. The certification range is: Certified, Silver, Gold, and Platinum.”
Ottawa taxpayers were sold Lansdowne 2.0 based in part on it achieving LEED Silver certification. At the very first stage of the development, this has been downgraded, which makes one think that the marketing of sustainable green buildings in the Lansdowne 2.0 proposal was no more than greenwashing. It begs the question: will taxpayers see associated cost reductions for this and future design downgrades?
Della Wilkinson is chair and Kate Reekie is past co-chair of the Glebe Community Association’s Environment Committee.
Comfort birds
By John Meissner
Last year, I sought a solitary activity to fill my time with a useful and caring social component. I have admired volunteer quilters who raise money for charity or to warm up people who benefit from more warmth. Also, the women who knit caps for the babies in the neonatal intensive care unit at our city hospitals.
But these weren’t my thing. One afternoon, I took an afternoon workshop course at the Ottawa City Woodshop in City Centre to learn the basics of carving birds, specifically comfort birds. These small birds – chickadee and sparrow lookalikes – are created as gifts to help people who are dealing with pain, anxiety around health issues or the loss of loved ones.
These little birds sit smoothly in the palm of your hand, like meditation stones, and are given to people with the stated and clear intention that they know that others care for them and that they are loved. A comfort bird is a unique woodcarving that is appealing to view and touch. Holding one and rubbing your hand over its smooth
The “medic” chickadees painted on the side of a building in Hintonburg send the message that these birds are there to provide aid and comfort.
countours can bring a sense of well-being and comfort, much like the “worry rock” of times past.
Carving comfort birds can fill otherwise empty hours in a way that avoids endless TV streaming and computer screen time. It is a tactile and physical medium; the wood can be seen, touched and manipulated. A piece of wood and a carving knife, a little sandpaper and furniture oil is all that’s required.
As a novice wood carver, I am learning as I go along. While carving, it seems inevitable that one of these little birds will go out of proportion about two-thirds of the way through. At this point, I’ve learned to put the carving knife down and pick up sandpaper to make changes more slowly.
For me, this process takes time. Some carvers make the work go faster by using an electric spindle sander to turn out birds at a more rapid clip, taking about a quarter of the time that I need. For now, I have avoided electrical tools, having downsized a number of times in the last decade, leaving behind table saws and band saws. I now live in a very small apartment, and all my current tools fit into a single kitchen drawer.
Comfort birds evolve from roughhewed blocks of wood that are reduced with rough carving and are further refined and sanded into shape, then stained or painted. I like basswood –like many soft woods, I find it easy to carve, and it has a lovely grain.
I have heard stories of people dealing with the later stages of terminal health diagnoses, receiving and holding on to
comfort birds throughout as a means of grounding and emotional self-regulation. After four decades of working as a psychologist, I very much appreciate the notion that transitional objects help children and older people deal with change and challenging situations.
D.W. Winnicott formulated the idea of transitional objects to keep a person’s inner and outer worlds separate and still connected. At the time of his writing (1951), Europe was dealing with masses of traumatized children who survived the Second World War but were still suffering. His theories on transitional objects alerted others to practices that help ease suffering.
A comfort bird can provide this source of grounding and connection with loved ones. People working through end-of-life issues are often described as continuously holding their comfort
birds in hospice care. Later, the comfort bird resting on a shelf or mantle helps survivors stay connected to their lost loved one.
The birds are also very accurate depictions of the real birds. I gave one to a friend who had lost close family members. She has a cat and reports that the cat is constantly stalking the comfort bird and seeking out new angles of attack. It instinctively wants to conquer this unmoving prey but can’t figure out how.
John Meissner is a retired psychologist living in the Glebe who has worked and developed programs at Carleton University and worked at the Board of Education and Algonquin. He has many interests in the arts, cars, Buddhist philosophy and premillennial music.
A recipient of a comfort bird can hold it in their hands and know they are not alone and that others care for them. They are not fighting their battles alone.
Ravens in the Glebe
By Ben and Oliver Campbell-Rosser
You’re walking in the Glebe and hear a loud croaking sound from up high. You look up and there, perched in plain sight, is a large back bird. Surprised, you might think “that’s the biggest crow I’ve ever seen.” You are, however, most probably looking at a common raven (Corvus corax) – they have been regulars this winter above Bank Street.
Common ravens are entirely black. This includes their thin legs, heavy bill, small eyes and shiny feathers. They are big birds. The sexes are similar, but males may be a bit larger. Adults weigh from 0.69 to two kilograms. Body length ranges from about a half to almost three quarters of a meter, with an impressive wingspan of just over one meter. The neck is thick, throat feathers are shaggy, and the upper half of the bill is larger than the lower. The tip of the bill is hooked slightly downward.
Crows and ravens are almost lookalike relatives, but it is easy to spot the differences. The tail feathers of a crow are the same length, creating a chopped-off, fanshaped profile during flight. The central feathers in the raven tail are longer than those on the sides, resulting in a large wedge or diamondshaped tail profile during flight. When flying, crows usually flap their wings; ravens frequently glide while holding their wings outstretched. Crows lack the shaggy throat feathers and have less robust bills with the two halves being of similar length. Crows are on average about half the weight and three quarters the size of ravens. You
are more likely to see a crow – recent bird counts in the Ottawa area show crows outnumber ravens at least 100 to one. In the Glebe, it’s not unusual to see crows chasing a raven.
Ravens were common in this area during the 1800s but became less so during the middle half of the 1900s. This was due in part to ravens eating carcasses that had been poisoned to kill wolves. Also, because they were considered vermin, ravens were shot. The birds began to make a comeback in the late 1900s, and their numbers continue to increase.
The common raven is a remarkably successful species. They are year-long residents throughout most of Canada, the western U.S. and Mexico, most of Europe and central and northern Asia. They are found in a diverse habitats –coastal, sagebrush, grassland, tundra,
high desert and deciduous and evergreen forests. Ravens are opportunistic hunters and scavengers. They survive on carrion, insects, grains, berries, fruit, rodents, nestlings, eggs and human food waste. The average lifespan is 10 to 15 years in the wild. In captivity, ravens may live more than 40 years.
Their intelligence is key to their adaptability and success. Ravens are believed to be the smartest of all birds. Their brain is the size of a walnut and is the largest compared to body size of any avian species. They are confident and curious creatures. They use stones, feathers, twigs, bark and evergreen needles as tools. Much like other birds, ravens learn through trial and error, but they also learn from one another and can solve problems by thinking things through. Ravens have problem-solving
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capabilities comparable to a sevenyear-old child and forward-planning abilities greater than those of the average four-year-old. Ravens like to play. They are skilled aerial acrobats, sometimes performing rolls and somersaults or plummeting, seemingly just for the fun of it. Ravens have a wide range of vocalizations and are amazing mimics. Faking the calls of other species, bird and mammal, they can deceive and manipulate. Captive ravens can, like parrots, copy human speech. In homage to Edgar Allan Poe, at least one raven was taught to say “nevermore”. People have long been fascinated by the raven. It is part of the mythologies and folklore of many ancients, including Greek, Roman, Celtic, Norse and Pacific Northwest. For example, the Norse god Odin had two ravens, Hugin and Munin, whom he used as spies and messengers. Indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest have a deep relationship with the bird, which is both a creator god and a childish trickster. Ravens also permeate popular culture. The Carleton Ravens varsity teams and the video game character Corviknight attest to this.
The next time you gaze skyward and spot a great black bird, perhaps you will be able to identify a raven. You will be seeing something wild and magnificent. And, who knows, maybe it has a message from Odin.
For additional information about ravens and crows, see the article, by Jeanette Rive, entitled “Corvids – the smartest birds around” in the September 2023 issue of the Glebe Report.
Ben and Oliver Campbell-Rosser are residents of the Glebe. Oliver is a Grade 7 student at Ottawa-Carleton Virtual Elementary School, and Ben is a Glebe Report carrier and retired academic.
A common raven calling, perched atop a utility pole, during a snowy day in the Glebe
PHOTO: BEN CAMPBELL-ROSSER
Glebe Central Pub a haven for sports fans
By Dave Longbottom
For the sports fan(atic), there’s nothing greater than the feeling you have walking up to the home stadium/rink/park of your favourite club/team to attend a live match. The sights and sounds and the excitement and anticipation of thousands of fellow supporters walking alongside is a beautiful thing.
Alas, it’s not always possible to attend in person, particularly when your team may be hundreds or thousands of kilometres away. There is, luckily for committed fans, another great way to get the fan fix and support your side, and that is watching at a local sports pub. The pub can provide much of what the sports fan is longing for – atmosphere, camaraderie, community.
If you can’t be in the stadium, a good pub is the next best place to enjoy a match. It’s an even better experience in one way – the selection of drinks is wider than in most pro sports locations, and the beer (and food) is certainly cheaper. Also, the local pub is more likely to support local businesses by having their products on the menu.
We are blessed in this neighbourhood with a special such place, the Glebe Central Pub. It is warm, welcoming and well equipped, and it is staffed
with people who know that fans, there to watch their favourite teams, require special handling. The staff know that before the first ball is kicked or the puck is dropped, it’s vital to have screens and sound all set and synced. It’s vital that customers be set up with delicious food, fresh local beers and other drink, fuelled and ready to celebrate a win or, heaven forbid, commiserate a loss. The staff care about the outcome, or at least are very convincing at pretending they do! They revel in your joy and sympathize with your pain.
Then, there are your fellow fan(atic)s. Whether it’s your first match or your 100th, you are embraced by the warmth of other humans who care as deeply as you do about your team. You create lasting bonds as you ride the highs and lows of the match. You share an unwavering devotion to the star players, frustration with under-performers and a healthy skepticism of the motives of game officials.
You find like-minded (perhaps obsessed) individuals who share a need to sit and talk endlessly of the possible upcoming trade, rehash the minutiae of the performance, chew on the tactics (good or bad) of the manager and debate prospects for the season ahead. When the match is on, you cheer and jeer together and forget where you are. When the goals go in, you all react as one. Songs are sung, drinks are downed, and, if the score holds (and it’s a soccer match), another three points are in the bank.
This, of course, is the essence of a great neighbourhood pub at any time, but the camaraderie of sports fans torques the feeling to the top of the dial. When I can’t get to the home of my favourite teams, the Glebe Central is where I head for my sports. What a place, what a feeling!
Dave Longbottom is the majority owner of Flora Hall Brewing, and more than a little partial to
The author at the Glebe Central Pub, enjoying a local brew
Here is a list of some titles read and discussed recently in various local book clubs:
TITLE AUTHOR BOOK CLUB
The Personal Librarian Marie Benedict & Victoria C. Murray 15 Book Club
Spare
The Break Prince Harry Katherena Vermette
Abbotsford Book Club
Permanent Astonishment Thomson Highway Amica Book Club
James Percival Everett Broadway Book Club
The Secret Life of Sunflowers Marta Molnar Carleton English Grads Book Club
Rose à l’île Michel Rabagliati Club de lecture des francophones d’origine et d’accueil du Glebe/OOS/ OOE
The Hidden Keys André Alexis Helen’s Book Club
The Art of Power: My Story as America’s First Woman Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi Seriously No-Name Book Club
Stoner John Williams The Book Club
The Massey Murder Charlotte Gray Topless Book Club
Foster Claire Keegan Sunnyside Adult Book Club
The Daughter of Time Josephine Tey Sunnyside Mystery Book Club
The Covenant of Water Abraham Verghese Sunnyside Second Friday Adult Book Club
If your book club would like to share its reading list, please email it to Micheline Boyle at grapevine@glebereport.ca
Here be dragons!
By Barbara Ochman
Dragons, dragons, dragons! I’ve always been a big fan of dragons and fantasy books. Dragons have always been popular when it comes to literature, for both children and adults. Think of classics like The Hobbit or The Neverending Story Since starting to work in the children’s section at the Sunnyside branch, I’ve been exploring some books that are dragon-themed beyond those massively popular series like Wings of Fire, The Inheritance series, Dragon Masters and How to Train Your Dragon. To celebrate Paperbag Princess Day (the first Saturday of March) and dragons in general, here are some light-hearted and fun recommendations. These books are available through the Ottawa Public Library!
Don’t Wake the Dragon, by Bianca Schulze
Shhh, don’t wake the dragon! This fun, interactive picture book is perfect for preschoolers. A large, red dragon is fast asleep, but there’s a big party happening in the castle! Will the banging of pans in the kitchen wake up the dragon? Or the music in the party room? Readers need to help the narrator and make sure the dragon stays asleep. This book is perfect for reading out loud with a child. It’s full of playful words, sounds and lullabies. Little ones will giggle throughout the story. For ages 2-5.
Long Goes to Dragon School, by Helen H. Wu
A delightful story about accepting yourself and others. Long was excited to go to school, but soon realizes that he’s different. Instead of breathing fire like other dragons, he breathes out water! Will he test his powers and find his own unique path? Filled with gorgeous illustrations, this heartwarming story has humour, food and lots of dragons. For ages 4-8.
City of Dragons: The Awakening Storm, by Jaimal Yogis
The first of a series, this coming-of-age graphic novel is a great story of friendship, adventure and, yes, dragons. Set in Hong Kong, the main character, Grace, starts a new year in a prestigious high school. One day at the Kowloon market, she is gifted an egg. And guess what? The egg hatches and a little blue dragon emerges! Grace’s world is turned upside down when she realizes that she and the dragon may be in danger. This book is exciting and funny. It also has an adorable baby dragon named Nate. Recommended for ages 8-12.
Dealing With Dragons, by Patricia C. Wrede
This is not your average fairytale-dragon book. It is playful, light and perfect for middle-grade readers who are looking for a strong, independent female lead that simply gets things done. Cimorene is an intelligent, headstrong princess who is very bored. She isn’t interested in any conventional standards that a princess should follow, such as marrying prince Therandil. Instead, she decides to run away and live with dragons. Now she is far from being bored. Living in a vast, underground world with a large dragon named Kazul, Cimorene must learn how to do spells and keep those irritating knights from “rescuing” her. This book is full of wit and humour, adventure and magic. It also has a friendly witch, sneaky wizards, a prince made of stone, an enchanted forest and an evil dragon that she must try to stop. A classic novel that both younger and older generations will enjoy. For ages 9-12.
Barbara Ochman works in the children’s section of the Sunnyside Branch of the Ottawa Public Library.
Krakowsky McDon a l d
The Warmest Blanket in the World
A delightful children’s book inspired by life
Review by Carol Sutherland-Brown
What is a young girl to do when her beloved great-grandmother is always cold? Frida’s quest to keep her Ama warm forms the plot for the delightful children’s book The Warmest Blanket in the World, by long-time Glebe resident Tamara Levine.
The struggle to keep her own elderly mother warm provided Tamara with the inspiration for this beautiful story.
“It hardly mattered what time of year it was or what my mom (Helen Zivian Levine, 1923-2018) was wearing, she was always shivering,” says Levine. “When she came to our house, she’d leave her winter coat on and ask us to turn the heat up. She was especially cold at night when she couldn’t get warm in her bed.”
The Warmest Blanket in the World tells the story of little eight-year-old Frida who loves to spend time with her great-grandmother known as Ama.
An early feminist and social justice activist, Ama weaves inspiring stories drawn from her own life experiences. Frida delights in Ama’s tales of marching for women’s equality, peace, good childcare and better pay and working conditions for teachers.
As many of us can relate to at this time of year, Ama, who is over 90, is always cold. Her fingers are like ice cubes, and sometimes she feels like she is living inside a fridge. Frida and her family try everything to keep her Ama warm. They experiment with mohair socks, a hot water bottle, a cozy shawl. But then
Tamara Levine, author of The Warmest Blanket in the World, with her granddaughters.
Frida has a brilliant idea! She remembers that in one of her classes she had learned that the muskoxen in the Arctic have the warmest wool in the world. It’s called qiviut and is eight times warmer than sheep’s wool!
Taking a page from Ama’s activist ways, Frida writes to Tanis, who is Inuk from the Northwest Territories and who runs a qiviut mill in northern Alberta. For thousands of years, the Inuit have collected the wool from the muskoxen after they shed their undercoats each spring and made it into yarn for blankets and clothing. Tanis is happy to help and sends Frida a beautiful blanket made from yarn made from the downy fibres of the muskoxen. Lo and behold, it is an age-old Indigenous practice that provides a very Canadian solution for the shivering Ama.
The gorgeous and very colourful illustrations by Ellie Arscott invite us into a multi-generational world of shared magic between child and great-grandmother and the stories that bind them
Second Story Press at www. secondstorypress.ca or from your local independent bookstores.
together. The scenes of Ama, Frida and other family members are portrayed in beautiful shades of purple, green and turquoise. The images of the hairy muskoxen on the northern plains contrast well with this rich palette.
This book will appeal to children between six and eight years of age as well as to their parents and grandparents. The book’s messages of empathy and empowerment will resonate with all age groups, particularly with young girls.
Tamara Levine is an adult educator and literacy activist who worked with unions and employers on workplace literacy and clear language initiatives. Retired from her job in labour education, Tamara is a grandmother with a
passion for writing. Frida, the name of the protagonist in this new book, is an amalgam of the names of her two granddaughters, Vida (10) and Freya (seven).
Levine’s first book But Hope is Longer: Navigating the Country of Breast Cancer (2012) is also available from Second Story Press through your local independent bookstores. Levine is a devoted memoir writer, and many of her essays have appeared in the Globe and Mail’s First Person, the Glebe Report and other publications. The Warmest Blanket in the World is Levine’s first children’s book. The book launch will be held on Saturday, May 10 at Westboro Books, 314 Richmond Road. Children are most welcome! Please RSVP to rtamaralevine@ gmail.com.
Carol Sutherland-Brown is a longtime Glebe resident with an interest in memoir and writing.
The Warmest Blanket in the World, by Tamara Levine, illustrated by Ellie Arscott, is available from
BABYGIRL A GUT-WRENCHING EROTIC
Babygirl
(The Netherlands / USA, 2024)
Directed by Halina Reijn
Review by Iva Apostolova
Babygirl is written and directed by the Dutch actress Halina Reijn, largely unknown to North American audiences since her body of work has been done primarily in her native country. The movie stars the Hollywood heavyweights Nicole Kidman and Antonio Banderas, who need no introduction, opposite rising English star Harris Dickinson (among his more notable appearances are The King’s Man, Where the Crawdads Sing and Triangle of Sadness).
Nicole Kidman’s character, Romy, is the CEO of a large, successful company. Romy’s husband, Jacob (played by Antonio Banderas) is a renowned theatre director. Together, Romy and Jacob are raising two teenage girls, one of whom is non-binary queer; on the surface, the perfect modern family, really. And yet, the opening scene reveals visible cracks under the surface. Reijn doesn’t waste any time to get into the thick of the story, and so 10 minutes into it, Romy has already met Samuel (Harris Dickinson), a young intern who immediately catches her attention. What unfolds is the evolution of a deeply complicated love triangle in which Romy becomes Samuel’s submissive. The seemingly only-reserved-for-the-bedroom new role that Romy assumes proves to cost her nearly everything. And while the release date (Christmas Eve) and the trailer may suggest an unorthodox romcom, or at the very least a romantic dramedy, I would
describe the movie as an erotic tramedy (i.e., tragedy + comedy).
What works well in the production is, first and foremost, the casting. While I have always found Nicole Kidman lacking in genuine sex appeal (somehow her doll-like appearance has never translated into feminine eroticism for me), I understand why she was chosen for the role. Most of Babygirl’s erotic scenes are raw, gut-wrenching displays of vulnerability with-
out any safety blankets, which only an actress of Kidman’s calibre will be able to pull off without resorting to sentimentality or using nudity as a crutch. Curiously, this is the first movie, at least to my knowledge, in which Kidman addresses, through her character, the cosmetic interventions that the actress has clearly undergone in real life. Praises need to be sung to Dickinson as well – his American accent is flawless, and he manages to effortlessly convey the cold, calculating, true nature of his character, hidden under the veil of youth and adventurousness. Viewers who associate Antonio Banderas primarily with fluff like the
franchise Spy Kids or the genius comedic voice acting he delivered in Puss in Boots will be pleasantly surprised at how great a thespian he really is. The tackling of a whole gamut of issues ranging from ageism to gender power dynamics to the nature of sexual desires only speak to Reijn’s directorial prowess. But not everything is perfect, of course.
The fact that Kidman, who doesn’t look her age, not even a bit, was cast in Romy’s role reveals to me sameold Hollywood tropes where no woman above the age of 40 is considered sexually attractive. Which, in turn, takes away from the film’s fresh outlook on forbidden love where an older woman has an affair with a much younger man. Not to mention that a reversal of the roles where the man is the “sub” and the woman is the “dom” would have been even fresher. I would have also liked to have seen a deeper exploration of why Romy assumes a role which not only goes against everything she has worked for in her life, but which visibly chips away at her sense of self-worth. And while I found Banderas’ performance of a flippant husband who, when deeply challenged turns as traditional as they come, very powerful, I was having a hard time finding the all-will-be-well ending convincing.
Iva Apostolova is associate professor and vice-rector, research and academic, at Saint Paul University and a regular Glebe Report contributor on films and TV.
Running time: 1h 54m
Rated R
In select theatres and on Prime Video
My
By Josh Rachlis
If you saw snow in the Glebe in July, you weren’t dreaming. That was the set of a Hallmark Christmas movie where a dreamy, tall leading man with great hair was romancing a small-town girl. And if you saw a short, bald man drinking coffee or wrapping presents behind that dreamy couple, that was me –a background actor with a dream of being noticed.
And that dream has come true! I always thought I’d have to fly to LA to become famous. But it turns out I just had to walk to LV – to be clear, that stands for Little Victories Coffee, not Las Vegas.
Flashback to July 2019. I sold my Toronto condo to be a digital nomad. I’d been interviewing celebrities at the Toronto International Film Festival for my YouTube channel, and now I dreamed of interviewing celebrities in hotel lobbies around the world. In March 2020, I finally left Ontario to attend a podcast convention in Orlando. Now that I was travelling, I thought, “OK, now I can finally go to LA!” But due to COVID, Trudeau announced that it was time for Canadians to come home. But what home? I returned to a locked-down Toronto and was leery of going through lockdown with a random roommate. So, like a Hallmark leading lady, I returned to my hometown, Ottawa.
Cut to December 2020. I’m living in my parents’ basement, with no friends in town and with everything closed because of COVID. At 11:23 p.m. on a Sunday, I googled “Ottawa talent agents” and sent this email to Angie’s Models: “Hi. I was living in Toronto but I’m in Ottawa now. I’m a full ACTRA member. It just occurred to me to check with you if there are jobs I could audition for or do. Even background or small parts, if they need ACTRA members.”
Fifteen minutes later, Angie replied, and a few days later I had a background role as a cop in a crime thriller. In the spring, she messaged me on Instagram, asking if I wanted to be in a Christmas movie. That shoot in the ByWard Market was my intro to fake snow. Since then, I’ve background-acted in exotic locations like Carleton Place, Almonte, Stittsville and Manotick. Half my earnings were going to Uber drivers. So, I loved the two gigs I got in the Glebe. Even Hollywood stars don’t live walking distance to movie sets.
In November 2023, I was in the movie Everything Puppies as a customer in Little Victories. My many hours sitting in Glebe coffee shops had prepared me well for this role.
In June 2024, I walked to St. Matthew’s Anglican Church to be in Unwrapping Christmas: Tina’s Miracle. While there, I remembered that Angie had asked me to submit a video audition for a speaking role. I filmed my
audition in the church basement where “background holding” was but discovered that Bell’s mobile service doesn’t reach inside the church or even outside on First Avenue and is even weak on Bank Street. I had to wander to Starbucks to upload the audition and had a fellow background actor text me when I was needed back on set. It was the kind of excitement you’d expect in a Mission: Impossible movie. Maybe the Glebe BIA should pitch Tom Cruise the idea of shooting in the Glebe. Forget the Burj Khalifa – he could climb Lansdowne 2.0!
Then, for my biggest break, I had to travel far from home – to Brockville. That’s where I spent 12 days in April on the set of Hot Frosty. After it started streaming on Netflix this November, people started messaging me that I was going viral on TikTok. Elana Mai, a wheelchair-using singer and background actress in England, had posted a video zooming in on my funny facial expressions in a party scene, with the caption: “Praying the man in the blue shirt in the background gets the big break he was hoping for.” Well,
her video was my big break. It has 2.6-million views, plus millions more on Instagram where other pages have posted it. People are commenting that I should have my own movie. And Jonathan Bennett, host of Finding Mr. Christmas, a Hallmark+ show where actors vie to be the next Hallmark leading man, commented, “I’ll make a call.”
So, the next time I’m acting in the Glebe, maybe I’ll be a short, bald leading man. Or maybe I’ll just continue to delight millions with my facial expressions in the background. But one thing is for sure – just like the trees blocking my mobile service on First Avenue, my fame has its roots in the Glebe.
Josh Rachlis is a background and voice actor and a cartoonist and was recently an independent candidate for Ottawa Centre MPP.
The author is the man drinking coffee at left in the background at Little Victories in the Glebe.
Art Lending Ottawa kicks off 2025 season with diverse local talent
by Christine Osborne
Art Lending Ottawa (ALO) is set to launch its 2025 season on March 15 at the Jim Durrell Recreation Centre, showcasing a diverse range of artistic styles. With over 40 exhibiting local artists, the event will feature everything from florals to landscapes, realism to fantasy, abstract to surrealism, along with photography and cartooning. Whether you’re looking to purchase or rent artwork, the show promises something for every taste.
To offer a closer look at the artistic process behind the works on display, I spoke with two ALO members: landscape artist Sarah Bradfield and abstract and impressionist artist S. Gordon Harwood.
Sarah Bradfield: Capturing Light, Movement, and Magic
Sarah Bradfield’s signature vibrant landscapes reflect the natural beauty of Canada, often featuring recognizable Ottawa scenery. Her work is characterized by its interplay of light and movement, creating a sense of energy and wonder.
“My creative process starts in a logical way,” Bradfield explains. “I begin by sketching lightly on the canvas without overthinking. There’s an initial structure, but once I start, the painting takes on a life of its own. I trust that the piece will evolve naturally, allowing me to embrace the process without fear of mistakes.”
Through her work, Bradfield hopes viewers experience brightness, fun, magic and whimsy. “For those familiar
with Ottawa, I hope my art sparks recognition while offering a fresh, playful perspective.”
Beyond her paintings, Bradfield recently released a children’s book, ABC Landscapes, along with a matching colouring book. These projects celebrate Ottawa’s charm through vibrant original paintings and interactive pages for all ages. Visit for more information visit www.sarahbradfieldart.ca.
S. Gordon Harwood: Emotion Through Impression and Abstraction
S. Gordon Harwood is a self-taught abstract and impressionistic artist and serves as artist-in-residence and director for Looking at the Stars, a Canadian charity that brings world-class classical music performances to refugee communities, correctional institutions and long-term care facilities. For Harwood, creating a new piece is a journey that begins with inspiration. “My process typically starts with a spark – an idea, a memory, a theme or an emotion I want to explore. Inspiration is everywhere if
you take the time to observe.”
He often works within a theme, allowing him to explore different aspects of life through series-based projects. Past solo exhibitions have included: Postcards from Provence; Miles Davis – Kind of Blue Tribute; John Coltrane – Reimagining.
Experience Art Lending Ottawa Live
Each ALO artist brings a unique vision to their work, offering viewers a chance to experience art in a personal and immersive way. Explore these talented artists and many more at Art Lending Ottawa’s season opener on March 15 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Jim Durrell Recreation Centre (1265 Walkley Road). Can’t make it in person? Visit www.artlendingofottawa.ca to learn more.
Harwood’s goal is to create an emotional connection between the viewer and the artwork. “Each piece is crafted with intention, aiming to evoke a specific response – wonder, melancholy, joy or contemplation. As an abstract painter, I understand that some viewers may not have a background in art, so I encourage them: ‘Ask not what it is, but how it makes you feel. That’s where the connection lies’. ”
Most recently, Harwood completed a collaborative project with poet E. Watson and composer Sayer Roberts titled Postcards from Paris. To see more visit www.sgordonharwoodartist.com.
Are you an Ottawa artist, interested in displaying your art and being part of a vibrant artist cooperative? Consider applying to our jurying process, which opens in early April. Please click on the ‘Artists’ tab on our website for more information; if you are interested, consider coming out to our show in March to see what we’re all about.
Christine Osborne is an artist member of Art Lending of Ottawa.
Island Swirl by Sarah Bradfield
Light Eclipse II by S. Gordon Harwood
GREAT BOWLS OF FIRE IS BACK!
Soup and bread in a beautiful bowl
By Lisa Butler
The ever-popular Great Bowls of Fire is back on Saturday, March 22 at the Glebe Community Centre, hosted by the Ottawa Guild of Potters (OGP). This annual event helps raise much needed funds in support of the Ottawa Food Bank. Food security matters!
Patrons can look forward to selecting a beautifully handcrafted pottery bowl and choosing their favourite soup and bread from some of Ottawa’s best restaurants and bakeries for a delicious take-home meal. We encourage patrons to host soup parties across the city. Simply get:
• your tickets
• a handcrafted pottery bowl
• some delicious soup and bread
• your friends and have a party
What a fun and delicious way to support the Ottawa Food Bank!
Guild potters have been hard at work crafting bowls in preparation for this year’s event. Eighteen featured potters have each donated 25 bowls for patrons to choose from, with other potters broadening the selection with their own donations of beautifully handcrafted bowls.
Some of the best restaurants and bakeries in the city will provide soup and bread, ready for guests to take home and enjoy with their friends and family. This year’s partnering restaurants and bakeries include Absinthe Café, All About The Soup, Black Walnut Bakery, Your Bread Box, Coconut Lagoon, Les Fougères, Life of Pie, Nat’s Bread
Company, Le Poisson Bleu, On Union Street, Thyme and Again, Strawberry Blonde Bakery and Top Shelf Preserves.
Many of our potters, restaurants and bakeries participate year after year in Great Bowls of Fire, and familiar faces from the community return annually.
The OGP has held this fun event for more than 20 years, raising well over $180,000 for the Ottawa Food Bank.
Now more than ever, people in our community are depending on the Ottawa Food Bank for help. Gather your friends and family, plan your Great Bowls of Fire soup party and help make this another successful fundraiser!
Again, Great Bowls of Fire takes place on Saturday, March 22 from 4 to 6 p.m. at the Glebe Community Centre. For those of you who want to line up early, doors open at 3:00 PM.
Tickets are $55 and will be available on Eventbrite.ca on Wednesday, February 26.
For more information, please contact GBOF@ottawaguildofpotters.ca or go to ottawaguildofpotters.ca/events/ great-bowls-of-fire. To see all the featured potters and handcrafted bowls,
keep an eye on the OGP Facebook (ottawaguildofpotters) and Instagram (ottawapotters) accounts leading up to the event.
the
Free concerts at 12 p.m. on Wednesdays at Southminster United Church, 15 Aylmer Avenue. Freewill offering, live-streamed on YouTube. Learn more at www.DOMS613.com.
March Concerts
March 12 – Heartbreak Songs
Acclaimed Canadian jazz pianist, vocalist and composer Steve Amirault plays original music in an exclusive solo concert featuring instrumental piano pieces and vocal compositions.
March 19 – Dueling Harps
Harp duo Lucile Hildesheim and Susan Toman play Celtic music honouring St. Patrick’s Day, baroque music to engage the mind and tango music to fire the heart.
March 26 – Berg and Barber
Soprano Susan Elizabeth Brown and pianist Lucas Porter perform music by Berg (Seven Early Songs) and Barber (Knoxville: Summer of 1915) evoking the carefree serenity of summer.
Lisa Butler is communications co-chair for
Ottawa Guild of Potters.
The Glebe according to Zeus
PERSPECTIVE ON THE GLEBE
A GUINEA PIG’S
Pundit piggies go feral as Rump proposes peace between Rockliffe and Urbandale!
Legacy news outlets are abuzz with heated coverage of rodent Rump’s recent announcement that he not only spoke to President Cavalier Gluten of Rockliffe, he also had plans for a peace deal to end the gruesome conflict with Urbandale.
After the historic phone conversation – Gluten has been cancelled for some time – Rump and Gluten issued read-outs that further antagonized pundits. While Rump wrote that he and Gluten agreed to dine, Gluten wrote that Rump agreed that understanding the origins of the conflict between Rockliffe and Urbandale needed to be understood.
Narratives around the origins of the conflict have been fairly aligned for some time, with GPTV steadily reporting that Gluten is evil, and the world should live Gluten-free. Grocery stores have Gluten-free sections, companies have taken to Gluten-free advertising, and the United Neighbourhood Association’s annual budget dedicated a chapter to anti-Gluten policies. “I mean, everyone just knows, Gluten is
just, like, bad,” stated Polly Fèves-aulard, leader of the Conservapig Party, while munching an apple.
With Rump, the status quo narrative has been challenged. “It’s not clear Gluten is inherently bad for you,” stated Rump’s special envoy Heave Witcon, “unless you are gluten intolerant.” Indeed, some fringe commentators have been patiently suggesting that the Rockliffe-Urbandale conflict was never about “good versus evil” but rather a proxy war on behalf of hegemonic western neighbourhoods that are jealous of Rockliffe’s superior ballet, literature and dome-shaped architecture and who further have no regard for the young pigizens of Urbandale sent to the front line.
Despite the backlash in the media that Rump is facing, some blue-collar guinea pigs are expressing their views on social media. “I’ve never been to Rockliffe or Urbandale, but couldn’t peace be a good thing?” posted Floof, a GiddyPigs.com mailroom attendant and part-time personal assistant to Zeus.
Glebe to host duck-calling Olympics
By Bob Irvine
From June 14 to 21, Patterson Creek will be a hive of activity as teams of duck-callers from around the world compete in the Quadrennial Duck-Calling Olympics. The president of the IDOC (the International Duck-Calling Olympic Committee), Myrtle McCoy of Gobbler’s Knob, Tennessee, recently visited the Glebe to oversee preparations for the big event. The Glebe Report had a chance to speak with her.
GR
– What can people expect when they come to Patterson Creek to see the best duck-callers – both men and women – on Earth?
McCoy – “First off, everyone, both young and old, will have a great vantage point to see the action. That’s because of the 10,000-seat grandstands being erected on each side of Patterson Creek. They’re all a gift of philanthropist and Glebe resident Sonny Waize. I met with Sonny to thank him personally for his generosity. It turns out that Sonny has had a deep love of ducks since his childhood.”
GR – How does the competition work?
McCoy – “First, let’s get our terms straight. Each participant will use a “duck call” to imitate quacking ducks. They can fit in the palm of your hand, and the best ones are made of wood or acrylic. Musicians play wind instruments – like clarinets – by forcing air through a mouthpiece and across a reed, which vibrates to produce
sound. Duck calls work the same way.
“Second, each of the mixed teams – from some 30 countries – will proceed slowly in a line into Patterson Creek on flat pontoon boats, just small enough to squeeze under the bridge under Queen Elizabeth Driveway. (Sonny is kindly covering the costs of a team of men and women – headed by Boyd, Lloyd and Floyd Krankcase of Nova Scotia – who will carefully pilot the boats.)
“Finally, once inside Patterson Creek, the teams will perform before the 20,000 spectators as well as a panel of distinguished judges. The judges will score each country’s duck-callers on the enthusiasm they exhibit, the beauty of the costumes they wear and the imagination they show in making duck calls. And we’ve invited one of your own residents to join the panel: long-time conservationist Ima Keener will assess how much of each team’s costumes and paraphernalia can be recycled.”
GR – What does each team do on Patterson Creek?
McCoy – “Think of the Samba Parade at Rio’s Carnival. Past Olympics have brought amazing surprises: last time around, all while doing their duck calls, the Swiss yodelled, the Aussie team hopped like kangaroos, the Argentinians performed a breath-taking tango and the Scots played “Scotland the Brave” on their bagpipes. And rumour has it that this time the Germans will do their duck calls while playing the overture to Richard Wagner’s opera,
Tannhäuser.”
GR – What specifically has brought you early to Ottawa?
McCoy – “I need to verify personally the sturdiness of all the platforms atop the pontoon boats, on which the teams perform. The IDOC wants to avoid the catastrophe of our last Olympics in Kyoto, Japan.”
GR – What happened?
McCoy – “Back then, we were just using half-inch plywood for all our platforms. The men and women of the Spanish team were doing their duck calls while performing spirited flamenco dancing – so spirited that their boat broke up and sank. Luckily, a team of Sumo wrestlers was in attendance. The wrestlers dove in the water and quickly brought the Spanish team to safety.”
GR – Will there be any special safety measures this time around?
McCoy – “As word spreads from flock to flock, thousands of ducks from across North America are expected to converge within
a four-block radius centred on Patterson Creek. I understand that your councillor, Shawn Menard, is planning to dispatch a squad of street-sweepers that will operate 24-7 within an official DPZ (duck-poop zone) established by the city and centred on Patterson Creek.
“And we’ll be holding seminars for seniors on how to walk safely through crowds of ducks on roads and sidewalks. The course is entitled Walk Softly and Carry a Big Mop.”
GR – Thank you so much for meeting with us. Please accept our sincere best wishes for the Duck-Calling Olympics, this time in the Glebe! McCoy – “Thanks. I’m off to check more boats.”
From 10 to noon on Tuesday, April 1 at the Glebe Report offices, a representative of the IDOC will display the gold, silver and bronze medals for duck-calling (for those who have not yet realized that this is Bob’s latest April spoof).
Glebe residents will need to take care walking during the Olympics: thousands of ducks will be underfoot.
Yasir Naqvi
MP, Ottawa Centre
N 613-946-8682
E yasir.naqvi@parl.gc.ca
Defending the CBC: Why it is important for Canada
For nearly 90 years, the CBC has been a pillar of Canadian democracy, culture and public life. It informs, unites and reflects Canada’s diverse communities. Yet, Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre has vowed to defund the CBC – an ideological move that would undermine independent journalism, media diversity and national identity. I disagree with him.
The CBC’s Role in Democracy
Trustworthy journalism is essential to democracy, especially in an era of misinformation. The CBC remains Canada’s most trusted news source, with a McGill University study confirming that most Canadians want to keep it. Mr. Poilievre’s plan ignores this reality and would weaken public access to fact-based reporting.
Public broadcasters worldwide, from the BBC to NPR, serve regions that commercial media neglect. The CBC does the same in Canada, delivering news to rural and Indigenous communities, holding the powerful accountable and producing investigative journalism that private outlets often avoid due to cost.
With local newspapers disappearing and private networks cutting back, the CBC remains one of the last sources of independent journalism. The Broadcasting and Telecommunications Legislative Review Panel affirms that CBC/Radio-Canada plays a crucial role in maintaining democracy by providing “high-quality, accurate and dependable” news. Defunding it would leave Canadians more vulnerable to misinformation and foreign media influence.
The CBC’s Cultural and Economic Value
Beyond news, the CBC tells Canadian stories. Without it, our media landscape would be dominated by American content, limiting opportunities for Canadian artists, actors and filmmakers. The CBC has been behind beloved programs like Kim’s Convenience and Schitt’s Creek, supporting thousands of jobs in Canada’s $54.6 billion creative sector.
The CBC also serves official language minority communities, broadcasting in English, French and Indigenous languages. It provides essential public-service programming, including emergency alerts, educational content and coverage of national events like wildfires, elections and the Olympics – without the influence of corporate advertisers.
For those concerned about cost, CBC’s 2019 submission to the Broadcasting and Telecommunications
Legislative Review found it costs Canadians about $34 per person annually – half the rate of most European public broadcasters. It also showed that every dollar invested generates two dollars in economic benefits, supporting journalism, culture and jobs. Funding CBC isn’t wasteful – it’s a smart investment in Canada’s media and identity.
Keeping Radio-Canada but Cutting CBC Makes No Sense
Mr. Poilievre has suggested defunding English CBC while keeping French-language Radio-Canada. This is both unrealistic and misleading. CBC and Radio-Canada share infrastructure, including production facilities, journalists and technical resources. Removing $1 billion from the English service would cripple the entire organization, including its French counterpart.
This isn’t about saving money –it’s about silencing a public broadcaster Mr. Poilievre sees as politically inconvenient. Cutting CBC but keeping Radio-Canada isn’t about fairness – it’s about playing political games.
Mr. Poilievre also falsely claims that private media can fill the void. Yet, commercial broadcasters, driven by profit, have been slashing local newsrooms and investigative reporting. They cannot replace the CBC’s essential role, especially in underserved regions.
A Plan to Strengthen the CBC, Not Destroy It
In my view, the CBC doesn’t need to be dismantled – it needs modernization and support. A stronger CBC should be regionally focused, prioritize high-quality journalism and Canadian programming and operate transparently with a clear mandate. But reckless cuts are not the answer.
In Parliament, I will:
1. Fight for stable, long-term funding to keep the CBC independent and free from political interference.
2. Advocate for stronger regional reporting so that local voices are heard and the CBC reflects Canada’s diversity.
3. Push for collaboration between CBC and independent media to ensure they complement rather than compete with each other.
4. Challenge Conservative misinformation that frames the CBC as an enemy rather than a public good. Canadians deserve leadership that values independent media, not slogans like “Defund the CBC.”
Many of you know that my family and I came to Canada when I was 15 years old. The CBC was our portal to learn about our new country. It helped shape me as a Canadian. Defunding the CBC would be disastrous for Canadian democracy, journalism and culture. It would leave Canadians –many new to our country – with fewer independent news sources, fewer opportunities to see Canadian stories on screen and fewer protections against media monopolies.
At a time when misinformation is rampant, we cannot afford to lose the CBC. A national public broadcaster is not a luxury – it is a necessity. That’s why I will stand up to defend it.
Provincial Election in Ottawa Centre
Aisling Boomgaardt and Bram Boomgaardt Telephone: 613-746-2367
As many may be aware, Catherine McKenney of the New Democrat Party party was elected Member of Provincial Parliament for Ottawa Centre on February 27.
The community associations of Glebe, Old Ottawa South, Old Ottawa East and Centretown organized a candidates’ debate, moderated by journalist David Reevely, on February 20. Candidates of the four leading parties were invited to take part in the debate, with other candidates hosting information tables. From left: Catherine McKenney of the NDP, Simon Beckett of the Green Party and Thomas Simpson of the Liberal Party. Scott Healey of the Conservative Party did not attend.
By Ellyn Duke Watson
Parkinson’s Disease
By Sue Reive
As a physiotherapist working in orthopaedics and sports injuries, I treat a lot of people with musculoskeletal injuries. As part of my assessment, I always observe how patients walk. Sometimes I notice issues with balance and a shuffling gait. These can be symptoms of an underlying neurological issue. One such condition is Parkinson’s Disease (PD).
Parkinson’s Disease is a neurological condition involving the breakdown of neurons (nerve cells) in the brain that produce dopamine which is responsible for sending a message to other nerve cells that help to control and coordinate movement. A reduction in dopamine leads to movement disorders, including resting tremor, slow movement, freezing, rigidity and poor balance.
The cause of Parkinson’s Disease is unknown. There are millions of people in the world suffering from PD. The risk increases with age, and the risk is higher for people who have a parent or sibling with PD. It is most often diagnosed at age 70, but a small percentage will be diagnosed at 50 years or younger. Men are more affected than women. Other risk factors include exposure to toxins and certain drugs. Researchers have discovered that people with PD have groups of proteins in their brain called Lewy bodies which they believe may shed light on the cause of PD. It is important to note
that the nerve cell death in PD is a slow process, so symptoms may not present themselves until 10 years after the onset of the disease.
Common motor symptoms include:
Resting tremor: About 70 per cent of people will notice a resting tremor in one hand or foot which often will stop when a movement is performed.
Slowness of movement (Bradykinesia): This shows up during gait where people with PD have short shuffling steps, difficulty speaking which results in a quieter voice and small writing (micrographia).
Rigidity: The muscles become stiff which limits mobility especially in the thoracic spine; patients are often flexed forward with reduced movement in their spine, hips and shoulders. Their arms don’t swing during gait. This rigidity can cause pain in the musculoskeletal system as it places more pressure on the joints. Restricted mobility can lead to tendonitis and frozen shoulder.
Poor balance: PD patients often can’t right themselves due to the loss of reflex control over balance; they tend to fall backwards easily. During sit to stand, patients will often not move their centre of gravity forward and lean backwards instead which makes rising out of a chair very difficult.
Freezing: During gait, patients are sometimes unable to initiate movement of the legs to start walking; they freeze. Certain cues can help with this problem – I often have people repeat the mantra “heel to toe.”
Drooling: Due to decreased swallowing and saliva build-up.
Mask-like face: Due to the decrease in facial movements.
Non-motor symptoms: Anxiety,
depression, constipation and bladder issues, sleep problems, loss of smell, change in cognitive abilities.
The diagnosis of Parkinson’s Disease is made by taking a detailed history of signs and symptoms and with a thorough examination by a neurologist. There are no specific tests. Although not readily available, there is a brain scan that can specifically measure the dopamine system and the brain’s metabolism. It is important to note that there are some neurological conditions that have some of the same symptoms as PD, such as slowness of movement, but are not considered PD.
FORWARD TILT TO POSTURE
BLANK FACIAL EXPRESSION
SLOW, MONOTONOUS, SLURRED SPEECH
RIGIDITY AND TREMOR OF EXTREMITIES AND HEAD
These conditions are referred to as Parkinsonism and are still considered to be caused by reduced dopamine.
Physiotherapy is very helpful in the treatment of Parkinson’s Disease; it can help with improving gait, balance and activities of daily living. Occupational therapists can advise patients on how to make their home environment safer and easier to live in. Speech therapists can help when vocal ability changes. Medications are available to help with dopamine levels.
Early diagnosis and treatment are helpful. Currently in Canada, many individuals do not have a family doctor, and sometimes the physiotherapist is the first health professional whom a patient will consult about issues with balance, gait and muscle stiffness. Recognizing the symptoms of PD is important so that a referral to a neurologist can be made for further evaluation.
Sue Reive is a physiotherapist at Ottawa Physiotherapy and Sport Clinics Glebe.
SHORT, SHUFFLING GAIT REDUCED ARM SWINGING
IMPROVE YOUR WELLBEING WITH A SOUND BATH
By Jennifer Bell
With the current focus on improving mental and physical health and wellbeing, people are exploring new ways of resting and restoring. One practice that is getting a lot of attention –from interviews on the CBC, to articles in the Globe and Mail, to features on TV shows – is the sound bath. You may wonder if this is some new fad, or how it works and what benefits it has . . . and if there is actually water involved.
What are sound baths, and why are so many people talking about them?
Sound baths are a form of sound therapy, which has been used for centuries. Mantra meditation, plainchant and drumming are just a few examples of how sound has been used to bring people to places of greater health and wellbeing for many generations. A sound bath is perhaps more accurately seen as a recent iteration of a long tradition; it is one way of exposing people to the benefit of positive therapeutic sound.
What might you expect if you decided to attend one? Typically, the practitioner has a selection of instruments; these might include gongs, Himalayan singing bowls, crystal bowls, rainstick, tuning forks, chimes or drums. Participants arrive in comfortable clothes and are often led in a bit of gentle stretching to warm up and bring movement to their joints, then they get ready to relax into the experience. Though some prefer to sit, most prefer to lie down on a comfortable mat, usually with a pillow and a blanket. Participants are “bathed” not in water but in sound from the instruments. From beginning to end, the whole experience usually takes about an hour.
What does the sound do, and why is a sound bath said to help with health and wellbeing? One answer is that it helps us relax. Our modern way of living is very busy, for both our bodies and our minds. When we take a lying down (or sitting) position for a sound
bath, we immediately offer rest to our bodies; when the sound begins, this also invites our minds to rest. If gongs are involved in the event, their vibrations are very strong, so we also feel the sound that we are hearing, which helps to bring our awareness into our body.
Anecdotal evidence also points to easing of physical injury and disease during sound baths. We are taught that we are all vibrating at a molecular level, and each part of our body has its own specific resonant frequency. The instruments produce so many different tones. Since our bodies are about 70 per cent water (which is a good conductor of sound), gong sound stimulates many of these resonant frequencies, helping to bring our bodies back “into pitch.” Having a gong/sound bath is a little like having a massage at a cellular level.
Our lifestyles tend to have us operating mainly with the sympathetic nervous system stimulated – we spend a lot of time in the “fight or flight” state of analyzing risk and making decisions. It is also very important to also have practices that allow us to activate our parasympathetic nervous systems and enter into a “rest and digest” state. Sound baths can do that. It has been suggested that sound baths shift the brain waves from beta to alpha, theta and even delta waves. In this way, we are not just offering our bodies the opportunity to enter a more regenerative state, we are also affecting ourselves at the mental and emotional level, taking the opportunity to access the mental states that help us with problem solving and creativity.
Sound baths can clearly have benefits at many different levels. However, even if the only thing that happens for participants is a general relaxation of the body and mind, that is a good step in the direction of improved health and wellbeing!
The Glebe Neighbourhood Activities Group has started to offer these experiences each month at the community centre. If you would like more information about them or are curious and would like to give these healthful and meditative experiences a try, just reach out to GNAG at gnag.ca to register or give them a call at 613-233-8713. See you there!
Jennifer Bell trained in the UK as a sound therapist with the College of Sound Healing. She has since opened a private practice in Ottawa. For more information, go to ottawasoundtherapy.com.
Example
By Brooke Sanchez
Charlotte Ahern was 17 when she got her first tattoo –a set of one-line faces on her left forearm. Her parents signed for it for her birthday because it was something she really wanted, and she didn’t want to wait until she was 18. She got her second tattoo a year later, and then she was hooked, getting one to two new tattoos per month for about another year.
Now, the 22-year-old Glebe resident has decided to remove all 23 of her tattoos.
“I loved them all at one point. Looking back, my mental health was in a bad place at that time, and I got a lot of my tattoos with someone that I am not friends with anymore,” says Ahern. “When I got out of that situation and started to feel better, it was like I didn’t recognize myself in the mirror. It felt like I woke up – it was a strange feeling. I realized that my tattoos were too much of a reminder of my past, and I needed to let them go.”
Some of Ahern’s tattoos were done while she was under the influence, and some she got on really good deals. Unfortunately “it showed,” she said of the poor quality when the designs blew out, filled with ink or didn’t heal properly.
Seeking to relieve herself from a past that was present and permanently marked on her body, Ahern sought options to remove her tattoos. That led her to Removery’s Glebe studio where she’s now about a year into her tattoo-removal journey.
When you get a tattoo, the artist pushes ink under your skin with lots of tiny needles. This ink lodges itself into your middle layer of skin, called dermis. While your body flushes away the smaller particles of ink over time, most of them are too large to be taken away naturally.
Laser tattoo removal works by hitting the large particles of ink directly, completely avoiding your top layer of skin. When the laser hits them, it breaks them into smaller pieces that your body can flush away naturally until the tattoo is gone.
That’s why it can take a few sessions. It’s your body working in tandem with the laser to get rid of the ink.
“As soon as it started to fade, I was so happy. It’s indescribable. I’m getting back the body that I felt like I lost,” said Ahern.
Removery tells clients to anticipate eight to 12 treatments spaced a minimum of six weeks apart for complete removal. For cases like Ahern’s, where a very large surface area is being treated with heavy ink saturation in some places, Removery will split up the treatments to improve comfort and allow for a more consistent and safe treatment experience.
“Tattoos aren’t permanent anymore – and they certainly don’t define who you are,” shared Removery’s co-founder Carmen VanderHeiden Brodie. “We pride ourselves on offering a judgement-free environment in our studios, so whatever your reason is, we’re here to help with that transformation.”
Ahern says her experience with tattoos has affected her self-confidence.
“But I’m not swearing off tattoos,” she said. “I might get more and there’s a few I may want to have redone, but I wouldn’t have to put them in certain positions if I wasn’t trying to fill the sleeves initially.”
A piece of advice from Ahern: the decision to get a tattoo or removal is not one to make lightly.
“It didn’t really click that I would actually regret my tattoos when I was older. If you’re looking at something on your body and it’s causing you discomfort or just a general dislike, it’s not a bad thing to seek a change.”
Brooke Sanchez is the senior regional manager for Removery Canada, a tattoo removal company with a studio on Bank Street in the Glebe.
Charlotte Ahern, a 22-year-old Glebe resident, has decided to remove all 23 of her tattoos.
Tattoo before removal
Early morning exercise with a smile at the Taggart Y
By Louise Rachlis
In some Glebe homes, the lights are on by 6 a.m., and the inhabitants are moving to the music by 7.
That’s because they are devotees of Glebe resident and fitness instructor Janis Ellis-Claypool – her 7 a.m. classes from Monday through Thursday fill the gymnasium at the Taggart Y with positive energy and enthusiasm.
“I think that having taken the 7 a.m. classes for 25 years, that is one reason I feel in good shape, even though I am 90 years old,” says Glebe resident Ferd Roelofs.
Fitness class has also helped give Ferd “an interesting social life” with new friends she has made. “We usually have a coffee for about an hour right after the class and discuss a variety of topics, always interesting.”
“We love Janis because she has the tone right and provides lots of options for our aging bodies that can’t do all the moves!” says Anne Joyce, 80, who shows up with her husband Andy, 81. “It’s exercise that doesn’t cut into our day. You are home by 8.20 a.m. and the day is young.”
The Glebe couple also love it because of the people they exercise with. “We support each other, and many of us have been exercising together for over 30 years,” says Anne. “And we feel so much better afterwards – not necessarily though, as we get out of bed at 5:50 a.m!”
Another longtime Glebe participant Vaughn Guy, 78, began the early morning fitness classes around 2008. “Following retirement, I was looking for one means of structuring my day and giving myself another fitness activity,” he says.
Another longtime devotee is retired diplomat Bob Brocklebank, who started attending around 1986. “I would leave the house in a suit, with a tie in my pocket,” he recalls, “stop for a Y class and then proceed – with my tie tied – to work. I kept up the pattern of exercise before work in New Zealand, back in Ottawa, in Japan, and finally into retirement. Now at age 80, I’m stilling dragging my body off for early morning workout classes.”
He says the early start “gives you a sense of virtue” and leaves the rest of the day open. “Maybe my sense of guilt is underdeveloped, but I keep thinking
that having done myself some good at the crack of dawn, I have excuses for whenever I stray from the straight and narrow later.”
Glebe resident Katie Keita, 52, started classes in the fall of 2022. “Since I work from home, if I didn’t go to class, I might not get out at all in a day. And I keep going to class because I want to look like my classmates when I’m their age. And because it’s nice to be a part of something.”
Janis became a group fitness instructor more than 20 years ago, not long after starting her career in public health.” Much of my day was spent working on health policy and programs which involved sitting behind a desk,” she says, “and it seemed contradictory that I studied health and was sitting all day!”
She took the American Council on Exercise certification exam and has continued to renew with ongoing education on the science behind exercise.
Janis is up by 5:45 a.m., for a quick coffee and lesson review before heading to the Y. “I’ve taught in many different environments, and the beauty of the Y community is unmatched. I
Janis Ellis-Claypool’s advice on exercise
• The hardest part for many people is carving out the time and then executing the plan. I’ll often say in class, “You get a gold star for showing up!”
• A thousand steps start with one. There is a lot of evidence supporting the benefits of small intervals of moderate activity for 10 minutes at a time.
• Even self-described introverts say that it helps to have a social element worked in. They like the accountability of knowing someone is looking for them to show up. Be gentle on yourself if you fall off a routine. Life happens. Just get back to moving when you can.
• If you’re still hesitant about joining due to COVID, feel free to wear a mask, find a place in the back corner, and go at your own pace. There is no “right” way to do it.
• But if you really do want to stay home, my website offers online personal training at doitdifferentlytraining.com
only wish I could stick around for the post-workout visits and coffee chats! Instead, I’m heading off to work at the Public Health Agency of Canada.”
She says the “lovely, dedicated and energetic group of people who are showing up keeps me so motivated. I’m also very driven by the evidence
– bodies in motion tend to stay in motion, and I see it every morning especially with participants in their 70s, 80s, and 90s. I just heard a quote recently, ‘when you rest, you rust’.”
Louise Rachlis is a painter and writer who lives in the Glebe.
“It was an absolute pleasure to work with Jen and Ami and the Team for the process of selling our old home and purchasing our new one. We appreciated their calm attitudes and insightful advice while we navigated some tricky situations and an unpredictable market. I would not hesitate to recommend them to anyone looking to buy or sell their home!”
Many Glebites turn up with a smile to early morning fitness classes at the Y. PHOTO: JANIS ELLIS-CLAYPOOL
TENNIS ANYONE?
A GAME THAT GIVES YOU A NEW LEASE ON LIFE
By Janet Uren
Tennis is a very popular game in Canada, and the passion for it is clearly growing. Some five million people of all ages played the game in 2024, compared to a mere four million or so adherents in 2021.
A Danish study conducted over 25 years with some 8,500 participants found that sports generally increase your longevity, but tennis in particular increases it by almost a decade. The health benefits range from better cardiovascular and bone health to psychological improvements. It turns out that tennis makes us happy.
The study compared the life span of people active in various sports in relation to a sedentary population. Every sport, it concluded, brought significant improvements in longevity. Badminton, for example, could increase your life by over six years, soccer by nearly five, cycling and swimming by over three. But nothing compares to tennis: tennis players can expect an average increase in lifespan of nearly 10 years.
workout that resembles high-intensity interval training, and it delivers the same kind of benefits, including greater bone density as your strength improves. Only, tennis is more fun. Furthermore, tennis is a game that can be played by all ages.
And fun is important. One of the factors that researchers have identified in terms of longevity is the mind. Tennis is good for the brain as it requires strategic thought and demands intense focus. It reduces stress. It promotes good sportsmanship and makes us feel good about ourselves. And did we mention the healthy rays of sunlight? Tennis is often played outside where you can bathe in mood-lifting Vitamin D. Sports that involve more social interaction also tend to make people happier, and happy people live longer.
Getting started
If you have always been sedentary and decide to take up tennis, you need to check a few boxes first. Talk to your doctor and if you get the all-clear, go shopping for good shoes and a racquet.
Har-Tru courts at any facility in Canada. Clay courts matter in terms of longevity because they are very kind to joints. Physiotherapist and past OTC board member Susan Yungblut relies on the shock absorption qualities of the HarTru surface to protect her lower body joints and extend her playing enjoyment for years to come. On a hardcourt surface, the lower body joints must absorb every abrupt stop, start and change in speed and direction; the soft Har-Tru surface allows players to slide into their shots, greatly reducing the amount of joint stress.
The OTC also has a restaurant and a swimming pool for relaxing those muscles after the game. Club professionals can teach you the game, and a system of ladders and round robins helps introduce you to other players at your level. The OTC also runs summer tennis camps, if you would like to get your children involved in the game early.
If you prefer something smaller, more local and casual, check out the city map at ottawa.ca – it lists all the city’s clubs and courts, including ones that require no membership. There are asphalt or acrylic courts all over the city, including in the Glebe. Two unlighted courts in Chamberlain Park are free on a firstcome, first-serve basis; four acrylic courts at the St. James Tennis Club are
OTTAWA ROWING CLUB named club of the year
The Ottawa Rowing Club (ORC) was named Rowing Canada’s Club Outstanding Achievement of the Year Award for exceptional accomplishments in 2024. The largest percentage of its members live in the Glebe.
The club, located on the Ottawa River and founded in 1867, is Canada’s oldest rowing club. The non-profit, volunteer-run club provides rowing training, competition and recreational rowing, and it partners with Carleton and uOttawa in their rowing programs.
Rowing Canada states, “By restructuring its Junior Program to align with Long-Term Athlete Development principles, expanding adult and Special Olympics programming, and excelling at regattas like Défis du Canal, RowOntario Championships and Canadian Henley, ORC demonstrated outstanding leadership, innovation and inclusivity, making a significant impact at all levels of rowing.”
In addition, Melanie Bryce won the Umpire of the Year Award. Athletes Mia Bulmer, Jack Coulson and Samaya Khosla were awarded International Achievement Awards for multiple podium finishes representing Team Canada at the CanAmMex Regatta in Mexico last summer. And ORC alumni received several awards: Aidan Hembruff was named Rowing Canada’s U23 Athlete of the Year; Anna Currie received the Tony Zasada Memorial Award; and Rachel Weber received an International Achievement Award.
If you want to live an extra 10 years, you might as well enjoy it. Consider
Thank you to the Glebe community for your support over 35 great years!
Dr. Nili Kaplan-Myrth
OCDSB Trustee, Zone 9
Tackling inequities among schools
By Nili Kaplan-Myrth
Every weekend when our children were young, we woke them up by putting on the Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young song, “Teach Your Children.” It was the soundtrack to pyjama-clad playful mornings, amid relief that we didn’t have to coax them out the door.
Parents of children with exceptionalities – including those with individual education plans for multiple learning disabilities, giftedness, ADHD, neurodiversity – understand that it requires constant advocacy to navigate through school. You have a child who is bright and curious about everything in the world around them, yet school is a source of anxiety and stress.
Our eldest child was sent to sit in the corner of the classroom and kept in at recess repeatedly in Grade 1 French Immersion. He was not disruptive; he was silent, cocooned into himself, chewing his T-shirt with anxiety. He did not understand the instructions for the dictée, so he was still trying to figure out how to draw columns on his paper while other students had finished their test.
He was one of the disproportionate number of children with special needs, disproportionately boys, who were shuttled out of First Avenue Public School (back then it was exclusively French Immersion), then spent the remainder of Grades 2 to 6 bouncing between the English program at Mutchmor and the Alternative program at Lady Evelyn. In Grade 7, he was assigned to Broadview Public School for the Gifted program,
In
By Josh Rachlis | SparkTheGenius.com
despite our pleas to allow him to attend Glashan’s Gifted program, where he could at least walk to school and enjoy the companionship of neighbourhood friends. He lasted at Broadview less than a month. On parent-teacher interview night when his teacher informed us, “Your child might be gifted, but we don’t do learning disabilities here,” we cleared out his desk and brought him back to Glashan’s English program. He attended five schools between JK and Grade 8. What did his elementary school experience teach him? That he could not fit in.
Why am I sharing this? Many families are upset about the OCDSB’s Elementary Program Review (EPR). It is the right of every child to have the supports they need to thrive, yet our current elementary school model has major flaws. We shuttle children to programs across town rather than supporting them in their home school. Only a small number of children meet the criteria for specialized classrooms, and the rest are left to fend for themselves. We push boys, children of non-English speakers, children from poorer families, children with disabilities and special needs and racialized children disproportionately out of French Immersion. Alternative schools are overwhelmed with students who were not supported at their previous schools. How can we justify these practices of exclusion?
What’s more, how can we justify some schools that are seen as “tier one” and others that are less desirable? That does not happen so much in the Glebe and Old Ottawa South, but it certainly happens throughout our city. I had a conversation with parent in Alta Vista who does not want to send her child to a local school that gets a lower score (on whatever rating scale) when she could send her child to a school which she sees as preferable. The difference between those
schools is that one offers English only, while the other offers French Immersion. The former is under-enrolled, more racially diverse, has more less well-off families, has more children with special needs, has fewer extracurricular and curricular resources, has no parent council and consistently achieves below provincial standards. How can we justify these disparities within our own district? My response to the parent was, “Your child should be able to go to your local school, and it should be excellent.”
In our case, we had the resources to get the supports for our child and advocate for him. He is grown up now, went to university, and yet his sense of himself was in part shaped by the experience of bouncing between from elementary schools, of not fitting in. What happens to children who do not have the additional supports he had? Even with all the emphasis on equity, diversity and inclusivity in OCDSB’s Strategic Plan and in our policies, we have let down many children.
Community-based education, access to bilingual education and inclusive education are the goals. As we proceed with the EPR, I am asking the OCDSB to commit to ensuring that all children are able to access the programs they want in their local school, with all the supports that they need to thrive. That means redistributing resources, it means redrawing school boundaries, and it frankly means that we require more provincial support for education.
No child will be told, as mine was, “you should be elsewhere.”
The EPR consultation process is ongoing. For more information go to engage.ocdsb.ca.
Nili Kaplan-Myrth is the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board Trustee for Zone 9.
MUSIC PRODUCTION AND SONGWRITING AT GLEBE
By Upjeet Cambow
Remember learning the recorder in elementary school? I do! It felt like a rite of passage, but I quickly realized that my musical journey needed a deeper, more dynamic outlet. When I finally reached Grade 7, I graduated to percussion –drums, in my mind, a cooler way to make noise. But something was missing from the school music programs: a way to explore music production and songwriting, skills that connect with students in personal ways.
By the time I was finishing high school, I had learned how to write full songs and produce and record my own music. I couldn’t help but wonder why our music curriculum didn’t include these crucial, creative outlets. The realization simmered with me throughout my education and when I pursued my Master of Education, I knew that, given the chance, I would try to change that. My opportunity came at Glebe Collegiate, where the administration was enthusiastic about bringing this vision to life. Thus, the Music Production & Songwriting course was born.
But enough about me – let’s talk
Winter melts into spring at
GCNS
By Alanna Brown
Spring is almost here, but before the Glebe Coop Nursery School (GCNS) can celebrate blooming flowers and birds singing their morning songs, we probably have a few more weeks of fun in the snow.
Our new playground was completely buried by piles of fresh snow that February brought, and our toddlers and preschoolers have been shovelling pathways and packing down sled routes for everyone to play on safely. This transitional time of year is especially exciting as we balance the chill of winter with the promise of spring. These months are filled with special activities, themes and celebrations that not only help children learn but also help them understand the changing seasons.
The sounds of noisy snowplows kept us entertained as we learned about the importance of snow removal for our safety. Where does all the snow go? Who knows – but it sure is exciting watching the dump trucks follow
News from Glebe Collegiate Institute
about the incredible journey the students experienced this year!
Over the semester, students in the Music Production & Songwriting class learned a variety of technical skills and gained insight into the music industry. They worked in groups to write, produce and engineer their own EPs, each with two thematically connected songs. Genres spanned jazz, rap, metal and pop, reflecting the diverse tastes and personalities of the students.
A fun project involved creating jingles for commercials produced by the Video Production class. Students also remixed the school’s anthem, originally recorded in 1975.
The core project was the EP. Students collaborated, brainstorming themes and ideas that were meaningful to them. They explored concepts ranging from personal experiences to
the plows, scooping up all the snow to carry it away. Some of our kiddos had an exceptionally bumpy ride to nursery school as their parents and caregivers navigated strollers over growing snowbanks.
Inside the classroom, we’ve had a busy time making arts and crafts. In February, we celebrated Valentine’s Day, with a focus on kindness, sharing
social issues, turning them into music. Alongside artistic expression, they applied technical skills to their projects, shaping, arranging, equalizing, and compressing tracks to produce professional-sounding music.
One of the most valuable aspects of the course was the exposure to various career paths in the music industry. Students learned about roles such as producers, engineers, songwriters and marketers, giving them a broader view of the music world. However, what stood out most was the sense of community formed through collaboration. Creating music is inherently a team effort, and students found themselves working together to solve problems, share ideas and achieve success.
This course wasn’t just about learning music production, it was also about giving students a way to express
and empathy. Our teachers used this occasion to teach the children about love-themed crafts like painting colourful hearts and learning songs about friendship. These activities allow the children to express their creativity and also teach them about positive social interactions and the importance of expressing care for others. Our toddlers and preschoolers made Valentine gifts and cards to hand out to their classmates, and everyone was excited to bring home their bag of goodies.
An educational group called Busy Minds Education visited our classroom twice in February to teach about mindfulness, breathing techniques, fun space-themed yoga poses and moving our bodies to music. The kids took turns inhaling and exhaling deep breaths, first expanding big balls, then smushing them back into a small spheres. We learned about how this is a great way to calm our minds and bodies when we get a little too excited. It was such a treat to watch our children stand tall with their arms above their heads like a rocket taking off into space, spread their fingers high like the stars in the sky and bend their bodies like the curve of a crescent moon. We are lucky to be able to invite all sorts of creative and entertaining educators into our classroom.
March in Ottawa is truly a month of
themselves through music while learning about a career field that is often underrepresented in schools. It was a chance for them to acquire real-world skills while forming lasting connections with peers.
Curious about the music the students created? Keep an eye on the Glebe Collegiate website! I’m hoping to have their EPs available on YouTube soon, so stay tuned for some amazing student-created music!
Upjeet Cambow is a teacher at Glebe Collegiate Institute.
transition, as the city slowly moves away from the harsh winter and begins to embrace the arrival of spring. This allows preschools to focus on themes of change, growth and renewal, preparing children for the new season. Even though it’s hard to imagine with all the snow we’ve had, spring is surely coming, and we’ll soon be in our outdoor play space watching leaves grow back on trees. As the snow melts and the days grow longer, preschools use March as an opportunity to introduce the concept of seasons. Children learn about changes in nature such as the return of birds, the budding of trees and the appearance of flowers. Teachers often take the children on walks or have nature-themed indoor activities like planting seeds or discussing the lifecycle of a plant.
Spring-themed crafts are another popular activity. We create flowers, butterflies and other springtime images out of paper, paint and fabric, allowing the children to use their imaginations and fine motor skills.
But for now, we’ll continue to put on our snowsuits, boots, hats and mittens so we can play in the beautiful mounds of snow.
Alanna Brown is responsible for communications at Glebe Coop Nursery School.
Ciaran enjoys the purple scarf.
PHOTO: ALANNA BROWN
SSpreading smiles and joy: connecting generations at Corpus Christi School
By Jodi Ashton
Corpus Christi School is fortunate to have such a wonderful partnership with Lord Lansdowne Retirement Residence! The connections being forged between our curious students and the residents are truly heartwarming, bringing joy to both young and old.
This past December, our Grades 1/2 and 5/6 classes spread holiday cheer by visiting the residents of Lord Lansdowne and serenading them with Christmas carols. It was a truly magical experience for everyone involved.
More recently, our KP1 kindergarten class also had the pleasure of visiting them. They were treated to a delightful performance by Paddy Stewart, a professional entertainer (and former schoolteacher) who founded Paddy SKIPS (Seniors and Kids Intergenerational Program), which supports both Amica and Lord Lansdowne. Paddy’s magic tricks, songs, stories and
engaging nursery rhymes had everyone singing along and reminiscing. What made the visit even more special was that we met some residents who attended Corpus Christi School more than 75 years ago!
And the fun doesn’t stop there! Our KP2 kindergarten class will be visiting the Amica residence in the next couple of weeks, further extending these valuable intergenerational connections. These visits are incredibly impactful. The joy on the faces of both the children and the residents is truly something special to witness. We are grateful for these partnerships and look forward to continuing to build these meaningful connections in the future. They really are a blessing.
A reminder to our wonderful community: If you have a child turning four this year, kindergarten registration for the 2025-26 school year is now open! We encourage you to register early. We’re also excited to announce our Kindergarten Information Night Open House will be held on March 27 from 4:30 to 5:30 pm. Please pop in to learn about all the incredible things happening at Corpus Christi School!
Jodi Ashton is the principal at Corpus Christi School in the Ottawa Catholic School Board.
Breathtaking flowers, plants and striking contemporary decor
This space is a free community bulletin board for Glebe residents Send your GRAPEVINE message and your name, email address, street address and phone
Messages without complete information will not be accepted. FOR SALE
COMMUNITY CONNECTIONS
ABBOTSFORD SENIORS CENTRE (950 Bank St 613-230-5730) FREE LEARN & EXPLORE SPEAKER’S SERIES, (non-members welcome) Wednesdays 1-2:30 p m , MAR. 12 – Dr Bruce Wallace, executive director AGEWELL, will present Enabling Agingin-Place: Supportive Smart Home Solutions He will explore a new concept, the Supportive Smart Home, where technology solutions are focused on supporting the ongoing well-being and independence of older adults The presentation will also look at exploring solutions spanning the many use case models and specifically explore aspects of privacy that must be considered for the technology solutions in our day to day lives LIVE and on ZOOM MAR 19 – Catherine Bennett, community engagement lead with BuildABLE, will explore the critical role of home modifications in enhancing the lives of people with disabilities and seniors Covering home modification tips, grants/funding and innovative design strategies that ensure safety, independence and comfort Gain valuable insights from Sandy Alexander, Health Craft’s clinical education specialist, who will share information on the latest stylish Grab bars and Super Poles and where and how to place them safely at home LIVE and on ZOOM MAR 26 – Ian McKercher is back with his most recent novel Home & Away, the fifth episode in the Frances McFadden series Ian will speak about how this series began, how the stand alone first book then turned into a series He will share some insight on his writing process and read from the novel This will be held LIVE N.B.: The lectures are free, but one must register in advance for a seat or zoom link Tea/coffee and treats available for purchase in dining room courtesy of your Members Council and Amica the Glebe
ABBOTSFORD SENIORS CENTRE (950 Bank) continues to look for books, flea market items and your treasures to sell in house Accepted at Abbotsford House on Mon – Fri , 9 a m to 4 p m Your donations will be supporting the centre’s programming and services
CALLING GLEBE ARTISTS! THE GLEBE ART IN THE GARDEN TOUR will be held on July 5 and 6 We are accepting applications from local artists who live, work or have studios in the Glebe We are looking for a variety of high-quality, original artwork from painters, potters, sculptors, photographers A few spots are available for guest artists who may exhibit their work in the garden of a Glebe resident The deadline for submission is April 30 For information and an application form, please contact glebearttour@hotmail ca or visit our website glebearttour ca
OLD OTTAWA SOUTH GARDEN CLUB MEETING, Tues , March 11, 7 p m : Vines for the Garden. Though often overlooked in garden design, vines are a versatile category of plants that include many beautiful ornamental, native and edible varieties and can be used for a range of landscaping needs and gardening conditions Please join Mary Shearman Reid, owner of Green Thumb Garden Centre, a master gardener and popular speaker, as she shares her most noteworthy vine species and a brief overview of their care Membership: $25 per year; $40 for a family; drop-in fee $7 per meeting Info: Old Ottawa South Community Centre 623-247-4946
PROBUS Ottawa is welcoming new members from the Glebe and environs Join your fellow retirees, near retirees and want-to-be retirees for interesting speakers and discussions, not to mention relaxed socializing See our website: www probusoav ca for more detailed information about the club and its activities as well as contact points and membership information We will be meeting on Wed , March 26 at 10 a m at Gloucester Presbyterian Church,
91 Pike St for a presentation Dr Michael Allen will relate the science behind the COVID-19 vaccine and the remarkable story of Katalin Karikó, a Hungarian biochemist who was instrumental in early development of RNA type vaccines
UKRAINIAN PYSANKA (EASTER EGG) WORKSHOPS
Join us at the Ukrainian Banquet and Convention Hall, 1000 Byron Ave for a delightful, hands-on cultural experience as we explore the art of Ukrainian Pysanka – traditional egg decorating
Mar. 22: Beginner level 9:30 a m –12:30 p m
Intermediate level 1:30–4:30 p m
Mar. 29: Intermediate level 9:30 a m –12:30 p m
Beginner level 1:30–4:30 p m Cost: $40 All materials provided Participants will be entered into a draw for a $25 pysanka kit Under the guidance of an experienced instructor, you’ll learn the ancient wax-resist technique and the rich symbolism behind the intricate designs and vibrant colors of these unique eggs These workshops are suitable for the following skill levels: Beginners: no previous experience; introduction to Ukrainian pysanka (Easter egg); materials; wax-resist process; basic divisions and designs Intermediate: some
previous experience needed; improve lines, more complex egg divisions; dyeing techniques Spaces are limited, so be sure to reserve your spot early! Registration through eventbrite ca
March 22, 9 30–12 30 (Beg) https://www eventbrite com/e/1248252269139
March 22, 1 30-4 30 (Int) https://www eventbrite com/e/1248299981849
March 29, 9 30-12 30 (Int) https://www eventbrite com/e/1248302048029
March 29, 1 30-4 30 (Beg) https://www eventbrite com/e/1248296842459
FOR SALE
OAK WHISKY BARREL PLANTERS, authentic, secured steel rings, perfect for planting flowers, trees, vegetables $65 each Can be delivered in the Glebe area “Spring will be here soon ” Call (613) 261-4504
BEAUTIFUL MODERN GLASS COFFEE TABLE, approx 40” Almost oval shaped, thick glass on aluminum legs with a wooden shelf Unique Sell for $285 Call (613) 261-4504
