Mobile Brunch mobile

Some 200 people came by last Sunday for the St-Jean Baptiste mobile brunch. Whether Sikhs, Christians, people of other religions or no religion, this was neighbours meeting neighbours over food and table. The food was delicious - Thank you to all the cooks of all denominations! - and a good time was had by all.
Thanks to the team who hand-distributed flyers in Crawford Park, and to our MNA Mme. Melançon whose donation helped pay for the event.

Canada Day

Happy Canada Day!

On Canada Day we celebrate our country. 
We recognize the defining moments that have brought us together.
We reflect on how fortunate we are to be Canadian, and what we still need to do to make sure that everyone across this land shares in the same rights and opportunities.

Bonne fête du Canada!

En ce jour de la fête du Canada, nous célébrons notre pays.
Nous reconnaissons les moments déterminants qui nous ont réunis.
Nous réfléchissons à la chance que nous avons d’être Canadiens, et aussi à ce qui reste à faire pour que toute personee à travers ce pays ait accès aux mêmes droits et aux mêmes opportunités. 

This year's Canada Day Parade is on Sunday, July 1st at 11:00am, starting at the corner of St.Catherine and Fort streets, and ending at Place du Canada, where the festivities continue:

Between 1:30 p.m. and 2 p.m., the parade wraps up at Place du Canada and a huge cake measuring 1.22 metres by 2.44 metres (4' by 8') will be served. It's expected to feed up to 2,500 people.

There will also be face painting and caricatures for kids on site.

All activities, cake and water are free of charge (but bring your own reusable water bottle anyway: it's better for the environment, and it's going to be hot and humid out).

Verdun's own Legion #4 is hosting an Open House in honour of Canada Day, starting at 3pm on Sunday. Join the celebration and enjoy the music of Rick Tennant.

Mini-market June 20th

Please join us June 20th for a celebratory Welcome Wednesday. What are we celebrating, you ask? How about everything we've been able to accomplish over the school year that's coming to an end?
We celebrate the time, energy and creativity that Sheila, Maurice, Mackie and others put into the Mini-market every two weeks. From ordering, to setting up and decorating (often on a seasonal theme) to keeping accounts, this has been a colossal task that could only have been accomplished by teamwork.
We celebrate the vision and initiative of our Kitchen Coordinator, Leonore, who guided teams of cooks, working with whatever ingredients were on hand, to produce tasty nutritious community lunches.  By bringing our kitchen up to MAPAQ standards, she was able to revive our partnership with Moisson Montreal, and to obtain meat and fresh produce as well as non-perishables, from them and other organizations. Wednesday lunch went from being every two weeks to every week, attracting a diverse and enthusiastic crowd.
We celebrate Frank, Kathy, Darlene, Lily and others, who have helped organize sales big and small over the year that bring in revenue and help us pay our rent at the Mission! 

As you have probably heard by now, the Mission is part of a renovation project at Verdun Elementary that begins the last week of June. as a result we will be shutting down from June 30th through July 15th, and will have to modify our activities for the rest of the summer. Wednesday's Mini-market will unfortunately be the last until August 1st. This week there will be books and knick-knacks for sale but they will also disappear after that, to return in August.
After June 20th, the formal lunches are suspended until the fall, but we will be having light salad meals outdoors every Wednesday through the summer.

We even celebrate the renovations because, despite any inconvenience, they will ultimately provide a more pleasant environment for us to continue working in. We embrace the challenges of the summer as we look ahead to all we will accomplish in the next school year!

Please click to download the price list for next Wednesday's Mini-market:

Storytelling

Are you from Verdun or the surrounding areas?
Do you have a story to tell?
Of course you do!

Literacy Quebec and the Suspicious Fish have teamed up to create the Community Led Storytelling Workshop. They will be holding a series of gatherings to share stories, participate in writing workshops and more! The next one is being held at SouthWest Mission next Thursday, June 21st at 3PM. All ages and backgrounds welcome. Use the contact info on poster below to find out more.

Visite guidée des serres de Verdun

Il me fait plaisir de vous transmettre l'information concernant la visite guidée que nous organisons ce samedi 16 juin, de midi à 13h, aux serres municipales de Verdun pour présenter le tout nouveau centre de ressources en agriculture urbaine de Verdun, GRAND POTAGER! 

Découvrez le Grand Potager: Centre d’agriculture urbaine au coeur de Verdun!

21 organismes-membres utilisant l'espace, rencontrez certains membres et visitez les serres. Découvrez des projets d’aquaponie, compostage, plantes rares et exotiques, herboristerie, arbres fruitiers tropicaux, pépinière dédiée aux plantes comestibles et plus! Un lieu unique à Montréal, au coeur de Verdun! Réservez votre place dès maintenant sur EVENTBRITE!

Facebook:www.facebook.com/events/1685014831584005/

Eventbrite: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/visite-guidee-des-serres-municipales-de-verdun-par-grand-potager-tickets-46946052908

PRIX D'ENTRÉE: 5$
Visite bilingue

Seniors and Trees Video Project

From Westmount Park United Church:

Do trees have meaningful memories for you?
We want to hear your stories.

If you are a senior interested in participating please contact: Gabriel at 514-222-8064 or
e-mail faithinnature.wpuc@gmail.com

Video recording sessions will take place at Westmount Park United Church, 4695 Boulevard de Maisonneuve Ouest on June 21st 2018. Another video session will take place in the second half of August 2018.

Organized by Westmount Park Church’s Living Church Program and sponsored by the Kelley Trust.

Guided Tour of Verdun Greenhouses

Below is all the information concerning the guided tour this coming Saturday June 16th, from noon to 1pm, of the Verdun municipal greenhouses to present the brand new urban agriculture resource center, GRAND POTAGER!

Discover le Grand Potager: Centre for Urban Agriculture in the heart of Verdun!
21 member-organizations share the space. Meet some of our members and visit the greenhouses. Discover projects in aquaponics, composting, rare and exotic plants, tropical fruit trees, a garden centre dedicated to edible plants and more! A unique site in Montréal, in the heart of Verdun! Here are the links to the Facebook and Eventbrite for the event. 
Facebook: www.facebook.com/events/1685014831584005/
Eventbrite: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/visite-guidee-des-serres-municipales-de-verdun-par-grand-potager-tickets-46946052908

ENTRANCE FEE: 5$
Bilingual event

Thank you Austin

Stage student Austin (second from right), shown here on literacy day.

As the school year draws to a close, we say goodbye to our stage student from Lakeside Academy. Austin has been with us most Wednesdays and Thursdays since last fall, helping with Breakfast Club, Welcome Wednesdays and the VES hot lunch program. It has been a very successful stage and we're sorry to see him go.

A big thank you also to Sheila, as well as Frank, Sue and Leonore, who supervised Austin and made sure he had lots to do! Thanks to Ayana from the WOTP program for her collaboration.

All the best to you Austin in your future endeavours!

St. Jean Baptiste Mobile Brunch

It seems the road won't be torn up yet, so we are going ahead with this planned collaboration with our Sikh neighbours. On Sunday, June 24th, weather permitting, SouthWest church will be offering sweets and lemonade out on the church lawn at 11:30. If that stimulates your appetite, you can move on at 12:30 to the Guru Nanak Temple just steps away on Ouimet for a savoury buffet! What a delicious way to celebrate the diversity of Quebec in 2018!

Health and Wellness Fair May 31

LE FRANÇAIS SUIVRA

SouthWest representatives will be on hand this Thursday for the Health and Wellness Fair in Verdun. We will share a table with our partners from Un plant de tomate à la fois so people can learn about our programs. We will be offering apples from our Mini-market in the interest of keeping the doctor away! Please note the following details from our partners at CCS:

This Thursday, May 31st, CCS and the Anglo Family Council will be hosting our fourth annual Health and Wellness Fair at Epiphany’s green space – 4322 Rue Wellington. Come check out the fun as Promenade Wellington kicks off it’s Sidewalk Sale!

Between 1pm-4pm we will have hourly demos, raffle draws, healthy snacks and tables full of information regarding local health and social services. All are welcome – free admission. Please note the change that Zumba will be at 1pm and Chair Yoga will be at 2pm.

Drop by Epiphany a bit early, and catch their community lunch from 12pm-1pm – a yummy pasta dish will be served up by the awesome teams at Epiphany and Reclaim Literacy, for a suggested donation of $2.

We look forward to seeing you there!

Le jeudi 31 mai, CCS et l'Anglo Family Council accueillerons notre quatrième salon de la santé et du bien-être, dans l'espace extérieur de l'Épiphanie, au 4322 rue Wellington. Venez nous visiter dans le contexte de la vente trottoir printanière de la Promenade Wellington.  

Entre 13h et 16h, nous présenterons des démonstrations à chaque heure, des tirages au sort, des collations santé et des tables pleines d'informations sur les services sociaux et de santé locaux. Tous sont les bienvenus. Activité gratuite. S'il vous plaît noter le changement que Zumba sera à 13h et le yoga sur chaise sera à 14h.

Vous êtes invités à venir visiter l'Épiphanie un peu plus tôt et ainsi participer à un dîner communautaire entre midi et 13h, où un succulent repas de pâtes vous sera servi par les impressionnantes équipes de l'Épiphanie et de Reclaim Literacy. Une contribution de 2$ est suggérée.

Au plaisir de vous y rencontrer!

Jillian Ritchie
Manager - Network and Community Social Health
CCS Collective Community Services
451 Ave De L’Église, Suite 200
Montreal, QC, H4G 2M6
(514) 937-5351, ext 245