Glebe Report

Among the new members appointed to the Order of Canada last November was long-time Glebe resident, Harvey McCue. An Anishinabe from the Georgina Island First Nation in Ontario, Harvey McCue – Waubageshig – is one of Canada’s leading experts on Indigenous education.

“Care for the caregivers” The co-owners of Cantina Gia, Chris Schlesak and Adam Vettorel, have been delivering delicious fresh pasta, salads and Budino chocolate puddings to our entire Brewer COVID assessment team.

I am sad to report that my 75-year-old Norway maple tree had to be removed last fall in the midst of the pandemic’s second wave.

It has been 27 years since Glebe Physiotherapy and Sports Injury Clinic first opened on the ground floor of what was then Fifth Avenue Court. Our new home now at Lansdowne checks all the boxes.

“Roses are red, violets are blue” – an overused line to be sure, but useful to launch our theme for this month’s Poetry Quarter: It could happen to you! Poems on the theme of love, to illuminate the long winter nights and bring us passion and joy as we celebrate love in the time of COVID.

I first heard about Glebe Neighbourhood Activities Group’s “Short Play Showcase” class a few years ago. As we’ve headed into another long lockdown with no clear end in sight, these classes have provided so many of us with a much-needed social, creative and emotional outlet.

I am new to this Buy Nothing group on social media and so thankful I found it. It has opened up a whole new world of discovery, especially during this pandemic quiet time.

Film lovers in Ottawa know that Glebe Video is an irreplaceable gem, a place where one can find thousands of films from around the world and through the decades, films that no streaming service offers. Like many small stores in our neighbourhood, Glebe Video is struggling.

Read the latest on the on-going story of the Mutchmor rink, alternatives considered and prospects for the future.

As a frequent walker, I notice motor vehicle idling, where drivers needlessly run their engines when they are not moving. This occurs at schools, drive-throughs, parking lots, malls, construction sites and in residential areas.

As the COVID-19 pandemic alters our lives, a group of students is boldly working to raise awareness about environmental stewardship and waste reduction. The Zero Waste Committee of the Environment Committee of the GCA is inspired by and commends the efforts of the TWIGS (Those Who Initiate Greener Spaces) club at Glebe Collegiate.

Nearly a century ago, a prominent Ottawa architect – John Albert Ewart (1872-1964) – designed Glebe Collegiate. The very same year, 1922, he stepped forward to design a clubhouse for the Ottawa Tennis Club. When the city awarded the building a heritage designation in 2019, the honour recognized the clubhouse as an outstanding example of an old-style sporting venue and also as an important cultural landmark in Ottawa.

Ellen’s dream of a basement meditation space and workout room was on hold for years because of all the dusty boxes that occupied that space. The boxes contained family heirlooms. The seemingly monumental task of tackling these ancestral treasures weighed her down and made her dream impossible.

As we approach the one-year anniversary of this insane pandemic, GNAG continues to be optimistic about bringing programs and camps back to the GCC.

As I reflected on how the Glebe Community Association has adapted our work – meetings by video conference, a virtual Great Glebe Garage Sale and virtual membership drive last year – I was pleasantly reminded of all the ways we have continued to advocate for a livable, sustainable and diverse urban neighbourhood despite current challenges.

The past year has been tough, and this year will continue to pose more challenges for residents of our city. And while we continue to fight the pandemic, the work at City Hall continues.

At 100 years old, Joan Norvid always looks forward to seeing her friends on Tuesdays at Abbotsford House’s luncheon club. Before the pandemic, she would be picked up by a minibus and delivered to the seniors’ centre across from Lansdowne Park to see the friends she first met there in person. Since last spring, the club has been meeting instead via teleconference

With Winterlude going virtual this year because Ottawa is under a stay-at-home order until at least mid-February, the BIA’s Snowphy Trophy Challenge is the perfect family activity to get everyone off the couch and outside for some winter fun in the Glebe.

This is the recipe for a spice cake that welcomed me on a Valentine’s morning years ago. It was found by my husband when searching the messy family recipe box for something special to bake for the occasion. The fragrant, heart-shaped cake has become our Valentine’s special, and it will bring joy and love again this Valentine’s in the time of pandemic.

Your sourdough starter starts with a name. I chose Penelope because it’s fierce. The kids on my team know not to mess up Penelope, lest Penelope get mad at them. A sourdough starter is alive, and that intimidates people. Penelope must be fed regularly so she will grow.

How much suspense does a story need? Just enough to keep you reading. Ken Shipley knows how to do that. LeapTurkey … and Other Stories, by Ken Shipley, reviewed by Stewart Geen.

The advice I got when I first moved to Ottawa was: Don’t try to avoid winter – embrace it. Here are some winter reads to help you and your child fall in love with winter all over again – even in the month of February!

This month our intrepid film reviewers bring you The Queen’s Gambit, the drama miniseries that everyone is talking about, and Arch of Triumph, a 1948 American film adaptation of the novel of the same name by German writer Erich Maria Remarque.

Mindfulness is much talked about during the pandemic, but it has these been around for thousands of years. It is important to realize that while mindfulness is simple, it is not easy.

Sometimes the best way to express a meaning is with a figure of speech, such as “straight from the horse’s mouth” or “to know the ropes.” But where do these sayings come from?

The church family of Glebe-St. James United (GSJ) did a quick and successful pivot in the face of COVID-19. True to our mission, we’ve worked innovatively to support one another and the wider community.

Glebe Cooperative Nursery School (GCNS) teachers welcomed students back to school on January 4. That day, the teachers decided to embrace the season (and the above average temperatures) with an outdoor morning adventure.

For many students, school is very different this year – online learning has come with many challenges and changes. But that hasn’t stopped a group of Grade 3 students with curious minds from learning important lessons about business. The class is part of an initiative by the Ottawa Catholic School Board (OCSB) called the Social Entrepreneurship Program.