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Happy sunny week, friends!
Majority couples said yes to June 19 for couples only dinner club - so please save the date 🙂 sign up link coming next week.
It’s a big one, so onto the rhythm of the week. Wish you’all a great start to patio season! with love,
your friendly neighbourhood goose 🦆
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BELONGING
When was the last time someone asked you what you needed? I mean really asked, sat with you, looked into your eyes and waited for your answer.
For most of us, the honest answer is: probably never, and if it has happened, you remember it precisely, you remember the room, the person, the feeling of being taken seriously.
Now imagine you're nine or twelve or sixteen...
I spent an hour last week with Adan Imran, a nineteen-year-old who, five years ago, was handed a seat at a table where adults were making decisions about young people's lives, and was asked, warmly, “what do you think?”. Isn't that rare?
The Children and Youth Planning Table (CYPT) makes it possible. Every three years they run the Youth Impact Survey for anyone aged 9 to 18 across Waterloo Region, asking them what they think and want.
Adan told me not being heard might be the worst feeling a person can ever have. "You have a voice," she said, "but no importance to your voice makes your stomach feel empty”. We all know that feeling. And somehow we hand it to the next generation without thinking. CYPT is trying to put it down.
The last round, in 2023, gathered around 1,800 voices. Those voices became six priorities now being worked on by the Regional Council. It is also the data behind close to three million dollars in funding for youth programs across this region. Activities. Physical and mental health support. Safe spaces. Programs built on what young people actually said they needed, not what adults guessed.
Their 2026 goal is 2,000. They're at 600 responses at the moment. The survey closes June 1.
If you know youth between 9 and 18 in this region, especially if they're not your own, forward this to them. Make their voice heard. They'll earn volunteer hours and get a shot at fifty-plus prizes including a Nintendo Switch 2, iPad Air, Lenovo laptop, and Flair Airlines flight!
(for ages 9-18, takes 20 minutes)
There's more to this story, read about how a girl in grade nine, five years later, ended up presenting six youth priorities to Regional Council just two weeks before her university finals.
AT HOME IN THE REGION
with Cheryl Goetz, Real Estate Agent, REAL Broker Ontario Ltd.
When it comes to getting the most from the sale of your home, the simplest and least expensive updates are actually the ones that go the furthest. Any time I'm getting a home ready to list, I get the same question from sellers: should I renovate my kitchen? And 90% of the time, my answer is no.
Over the last 10 years of helping people in Waterloo Region buy and sell, I've spent my weeks inside homes across our three cities and four townships. The patterns are clear by now. The renovations sellers assume they need to do before listing are usually not the ones that move the needle. The things that actually do are smaller, simpler, and easier to tackle than most people expect.
Here are the 8 SIMPLE UPDATES that helped my clients sell for more.
ROLL OUT ROOTS
House of the Week: This c1850 build marries heritage with modern luxury well
New Work: Multiple roles, Humane Society of KW & SP
Volunteer: Join the brand new Resident Panel for the City of Kitchener
Adopt a pet: Waldo will spot you anywhere, if you allow him to be your best friend!
RIDDLE ME
Comedy week trivia: Which Canadian sketch show, filmed in Toronto and Edmonton between 1976 and 1984 - launched the careers of John Candy, Eugene Levy, Catherine O'Hara, Rick Moranis, and Martin Short?
Last week looks like most were guessing, so here's the kicker: Victoria Park's Queen Victoria statue was unveiled in 1911 and at the time, Kitchener wasn't even
called Kitchener. The city was still named Berlin, and wouldn't be renamed until 1916 during WWI. So a city named after the German capital cast a bronze tribute to the British Queen.
RIFFS & RIBS
Last week I asked if we should have a running list of eateries that play live music, and we have a resounding 97% YES! I’ve got work in progress on this, and would love your help bringing it together.
If you are a restaurant owner, or are aware of music schedules at your fav eateries, reach out, let’s collaborate.
THU, MAY 21: Weekly open mic night welcoming musicians of every stripe (19+) 7pm, The Falls Road Irish Pub, 296 Victoria St N, Kitchener info
FRI, MAY 22: Solo set from singer-songwriter John McKinley in the dining room (all ages) 6pm, Lancaster Smoke House, Kitchener info
Folk troubadour Paul Cafcae plays the brewery taproom (all ages) 6pm, Block Three Brewing, St. Jacobs info
Ben Doerksen and Rick St. Clair share the Boathouse stage (all ages) 7pm, Boathouse DTK, Kitchener info
SAT, MAY 23: Singer-songwriter Ian James Bain headlines the Boathouse (all ages) 7pm, Boathouse DTK, Kitchener info
SUN, MAY 24: A matinee tribute to Mo' Kauffey, Boathouse's late longtime bartender and friend (all ages) 2pm, Boathouse DTK, Kitchener info
ROAM & RAZZLE
FEATURED EVENT
Dinner Club first time in Kitchener on Thursday, May 28 at 6:30pm.
Last chance to sign up to make new friends, meet neighbours you haven't met yet, and try a new place to eat - all good vibes, no awkward intros required. Each seat lands you at a table with a small group of neighbours at a hand-picked Kitchener spot.
Got an event coming up? Submit it and it could show up right here.
THU, MAY 21
Learn: Nature and history programming designed for homeschool families at the historic Wilmot estate (all ages) 10am, Castle Kilbride, Baden tix
Exhibit: Annual youth art exhibit launches across four community centres, featuring paint, photography, sculpture, and digital work by artists ages 10-18 (all ages) Kitchener info
Live Show: Indie Music Night brings a rotating lineup of emerging acts to the Maxwell's stage (all ages) 7pm, Waterloo tix
Film: World premiere of the Circle of Music documentary from the Laurier Centre for Music in the Community (all ages) 7pm, Waterloo info
Comedy: Award-winning comic Eric Johnston brings his Son of a Bull tour fatherhood, marriage, ambition to the brewery taphouse (all ages) 7pm, Waterloo Brewing, Kitchener tix
Comedy: All-women stand-up showcase headlined by Heather Mariko, capped with a secrets auction (19+) 8pm, Whoopsie Daisy Drinks, Kitchener tix
FRI, MAY 22
Talk: Speaker Jennifer Huber on the Beat of Waterloo, part of the Empowered Learners lecture series for older adults (all ages) 1:30pm, WMRC Community Pavilion, Waterloo info
Comedy: Stand-up showcase at Midnight Run Cafe (all ages) 7pm, Kitchener tix
Live Show: Poets and musicians weave together at Call & Response, curated by Karl Kessler and Andy Macpherson (all ages) 7:30pm, The Registry Theatre, Kitchener tix
Comedy: Rusty Nail Comedy Friday night with headliner Zabrina Douglas (19+) 7:30pm, TWH Social, Kitchener tix
SAT, MAY 23
Gardening: Annual sale featuring tulip, narcissus, and hyacinth bulbs plus native perennials and annuals from Rockway Botanical Garden (all ages) 9am, 7 Floral Crescent, Kitchener info
Fest: First annual Bloom Fest at Shuh Orchards wagon rides through apple blossoms, hard cider, live music, petting zoo, corn box, and a playground (all ages) 9am, Shuh Orchards, West Montrose tix
Market: Benjamin Tree Farm's first Spring Market & Family Fun Day tractor rides, face painting, farm animals, bounce pillow, scavenger hunt, food truck, plus 15+ local vendors (all ages) 10am-4pm, 770 Benjamin Road, Waterloo tix
Interactive Learning: Climb the trucks, watch live demos of road and parks equipment, with food trucks and giveaways (all ages) 10am, Public Works, Cambridge info
Expo: Waterloo Region Women's Expo with vendors, workshops, and speakers (all ages) 11am, Bingemans - Marshall Hall, Kitchener tix
Dance Party: Music from DJ Rob Da Selekta for mothers at Maxwell's (19+) 6pm, Waterloo tix
Arts: Try the art of tattooing in a paint-night-style workshop (all ages) 6:30pm, 238 King St N, Waterloo tix
Sports: Local indie pro wrestling showcase Slamdemonium 2 (all ages) 7pm, The Aud, Kitchener tix
Comedy: Taylor Featherstone brings a pro stand-up showcase to his hometown brewery (all ages) 8pm, Wave Maker Craft Brewery, Cambridge tix
Variety Show: Variety cabaret night marking Pinch Cabaret's 50th edition (19+) 8pm, Button Factory Arts, Waterloo tix
Comedy: Yuk Yuk's On Tour stand-up showcase featuring three comedians, with bowling and arcade after (all ages) 9pm (doors 8pm), Kingpin Bowlounge, Kitchener tix
Comedy: Canadian Hall of Fame comic Tony Lee returns with un-filtered Gen-X comedy hypnosis (19+) 9pm (doors 7:30pm), Dallas Nightclub, Kitchener tix
SUN, MAY 24
Family: Meet Lightning McQueen Ontario in District Square as the Canadian Grand Prix plays on the Big Screen (all ages) 1pm-3pm, The District Square, 64 Grand Ave. S., Cambridge info
Arts: Craft aromatic hydrosols from fresh seasonal plants paired with climate stories and poetry (all ages) 1pm, Kitchener-Waterloo Art Gallery, Kitchener tix
Sports: Kitchener Panthers host the Welland Jackfish in afternoon baseball (all ages) 2:05pm, The Aud, Kitchener tix
Live Music: Big Band Theory closes the Spring Big Band Jazz Weekend at the Registry (all ages) The Registry Theatre, Kitchener tix
MON, MAY 25
Arts: Hand-stitch a personalized minimalist leather cardholder in a beginner-friendly two-hour workshop (all ages) 7pm, Ernie's Cookhouse, Cambridge tix
Theatre: Agatha Christie's twisty whodunit on a remote island where ten strangers are picked off one by one (all ages) multiple times till Jun 7, St. Jacobs tix
Tour: A month-long, self-paced geocaching hunt for hidden caches at cultural sites across Waterloo Region (all ages) all month, Homer Watson House & Gallery, Kitchener
TUE, MAY 26
Tour: Stroller-friendly guided gallery tour for caregivers with babies, toddlers, and young children (all ages) 10am, Kitchener-Waterloo Art Gallery, Kitchener info
Community: Monthly fiction book club with beverages and treats at the cake studio cafe (all ages) 6:30pm, JTM Cake Studio & Cafe, Cambridge tix
Comedy: Dog Mic weekly stand-up open mic with amateur comedians from Waterloo Region watch or sign up to perform (19+) 8pm, Revive Karaoke, Waterloo tix
WED, MAY 27
Community: Buy a handcrafted bowl filled with soup to support local food security at the annual Empty Bowls fundraiser (all ages) 11:30am, Lazaridis Hall, Waterloo info
Film: Screening of A Dream Called Khushi with filmmaker Rishabh Jain and subject Rahima Khushi in conversation about refugee-camp resilience and education (all ages) 6:30pm, Tri-Sisters Art House, St. Jacobs info
⏩️ Forward this to families with kids in the region of waterloo 🫵
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