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Upcoming events
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MILLENNIUM PARK BBQ hosted by Orléans South-Navan councillor Catherine Kitts and Ottawa Mayor Mark Sutcliffe from 1-3 p.m. with live music and entertainment by children’s performers Monkey Rock Music, a free BBQ, and tons of family fun.
TRIVIA NIGHT from 6:30 p.m. at the Stray Dog Brewing Company. Exercise your grey matter before it turns to mush over the holidays. Reservations are a must to secure your spot. Send your team name and number of people to info@straydogbrewing.ca. The Stray Dog Brewing Company is located at 501 Lacolle Way in the Taylor Creek Business Park.
ORLÉANS FARMERS’ MARKET from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the Orléans Town Centre Plaza, 290 Centrum Blvd. Browse 130+ local vendors, grab a bite, and discover amazing handmade and local finds. Plenty of parking available.
CUMBERLAND FARMERS’ MARKET from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the R.J. Kennedy Arena in Cumberland Village with a variety of local farmers and vendors ready to showcase their freshest produce, handmade goods, and unique finds! FREE ADMISSION
CORN ROAST AND BBQ hosted by Orléans MP Marie-France Lalonde and MPP Stephen Blais near the nature centre close to the northwest corner of Petrie Island. Hot dogs, corn and refreshments with live entertainment.
THE NAVAN FAIR returns to the Navan Fair Grounds after a three year hiatus. Plenty to see and do including a demolition derby, midway, livestock shows, the Ultimutts Dog and Cat Stunt Show, the Rock the Arts Puppet Show, tractor and truck pulls, musket demonstrations and live entertainment under the domes on Thursday, Friday and Saturday night as well as Sunday afternoon. For a complete schedule visit 
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(Updated
9:30 a.m., June 13)
Four deserving families are now proud new homeowners thanks to the efforts of Habitat for Humanity. The four families were given the keys to their new homes during a special ceremony on June 14. "This is a day to remember for my family... a very special and a happy day,� said Abdellatif Moustabchir, who will be moving into his new home with his wife Saadia and their six children on July 1. "I always wanted to make a better life for my family from when I first came to Canada 16 years ago and thanks to Habitat for Humanity this is possible.� The four homes make up the first phase of Habitat for Humanity's Leacross Landing development at the corner of Fortune Drive and Jeanne d'Arc Blvd. in Chapel Hill. Construction began last fall and took six months to complete. The work was done entirely by volunteers under the supervision of a Habitat for Humanity project manager. Under the Habitat for Humanity program families with an income between $46,000 and $69,000 are given the opportunity to become homeowners without having to make a downpayment, or be burdened with a crippling mortgage. Instead, they are given an interest-free mortgage with payments based on their annual income. The families, who are chosen by Habitat for Humanity, must provide up to 500 hours of volunteer service on their new homes, but they often donate hundreds of additional hours on other builds. Besides the Moustabchir family, the other three new homeowners are Hadi El-Hajj his wife and their five children, Tereza Fitzsimmons and her three children, and Annie Aningmuiq and her four-year-old son Hunter. "Being able to provide a home for me and my son means everything to me,� said Aningmuiq, who has been renting a single room for her and her son. "He will be able to live, learn and grow in a place that's our own.� Having a home where their children can grow up in and feel safe and secure was a common theme among the families who were chosen to occupy phase one of the development. An emotional Fitzsimmons tried to express how grateful she was after receiving the keys to her new home. "We are so excited to start a new chapter of our lives together in our forever home,� said the single mother of three with her children by her side. "Now we will have a home to create memories in and a place that my children can look back on in 20 years and say that's the home we grew up in.�
Besides the families who will be moving into their new homes on Canada Day, two other families who have been chosen to occupy two of the four homes being built during Phase II of the development were also at the key presentation which doubled as a ground-breaking ceremony. The footings for the four additional townhomes have already been poured and construction is set to begin in the coming weeks. Construction of eight additional homes will take place next year, bringing the total number of homes at Leacross Landing to 16. The Leacross Landing development is the biggest build Habitat for Humanity has taken on, surpassing the seven homes that were built on Nantes Drive in Avalon in 2012 and 2013, and the four homes that were built on Cousineau Street in 2016. Two additional homes were built on Tulip Crescent in 2008. Habitat Ottawa's goal is to build eight new homes a year starting in 2019. The organization is already accepting applications from prospective families for Phase III. Information on eligibility require- ments and the application process can be found at www.habitatgo.com. As well, Habitat for Humanity Ottawa is looking for volunteers to help build the four new townhomes that will make up Phase II. Individuals and local business can donate building materials, money and/or man- power by contacting Habitat for Humanity at the address provided. Habitat for Humanity's motto is to give families a hand up rather than a hand out. Counting the four families who received the keys to their new homes on Saturday, 72 families in the Greater Ottawa area have received the latter.
(This story was made possible thanks to the generous support of our local business partners.)
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Habitat
for Humanity homeowner Tereza Fitszimmons
addresses a crowd during the key presentation
ceremony for the organization's latest project
on Fortune Drive as her son and her two daughters
look o. Fred Sherwin/Photo
Commons Corner
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Queen's Park Corner
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