Hello ORLÉANS!

Welcome to the 24th edition of Orléans Connect.

As we approach the end of August, has everyone gotten all their 🚌 back-to-school preparations and shopping done? Always an exciting and nerve-wracking time for the kids and parents alike isn’t it?

🐶 And on a tangential note, we’re on the hunt for your opinion about what your favourite DOG PARK in Orléans is? Scroll down to the bottom of the newsletter to give us your answer in this week’s poll.

This week we’ve got a brand new Orléans Food Spot review - it’s a perfect date spot! ☕️🍰 Make sure to check that out below. ⬇️

❤️ SHARE AND HELP US GROW 📈

Many thanks 🙏 to everyone that continues to share our newsletter each week with this wonderful Orléans community. Our goal is to grow our readership significantly over the coming months and our existing subscribers are a big part of that.

Help us reach a new subscriber milestone by sharing Orléans Connect in your usual online hangouts, especially all those local Facebook groups. You can use the button below. ⬇️

As always, there’s a lot happening in Orléans, so let’s get to it: ⬇️

Here’s our roundup of upcoming events:

• 👢August 22nd - The Navan Boot Scootin’ Line Dancers are hosting a Fundraiser: EO Stars Barn Dance - event starts at 7 PM. 🎟️ Tickets $20.

  📍Navan Fairgrounds, 1279 Colonial Rd, Navan

• 🌭 August 22nd - Join MP Mona Fortier for the Ottawa-Vanier-Gloucester Community BBQ from 5 PM - 8 PM.

  📍 Blackburn Hamlet Community Hall, 190 Glen Park Dr

• 🎥🏳️‍🌈 August 22nd - In honour of Capital Pride, check out a screening of Someone Like Me, a film that follows the parallel journeys of Drake, a gay asylum seeker from Uganda and a group of strangers from Vancouver’s queer community who are tasked with supporting his resettlement in Canada. Drop-in program. Film begins at 4 PM.

  📍Cumberland Branch, Ottawa Public Library

• 🎶 August 23rd - It’s the 3rd Annual Music Festival and Family Fun Day, hosted by Queenswood Heights Community Association. 10 AM - 4 PM. Free food with a donation to the Food Bank. Free face painting and bouncy castle for kids! 20+ local vendors. Live music and more!

  📍Queenswood Ridge Park, 346 Kennedy Ln E

• 🎨 August 23rd - Expo Orléans is a celebration of Orléans’ diverse artistic and entrepreneurial spirit. Discover the creativity, craftsmanship and talent of local artisans and creators while supporting Orléans’ business community. 10 AM - 4 PM.

  📍Shenkman Arts Centre, 245 Centrum Blvd

• 🍿 August 23rd - Cardinal Creek Community Association is hosting Movie in the Park! Showing Moana 2, starting at 8:30 PM.

  📍Glandriel Park, 2122 Valin St

• 🧺 August 24th - Do you live north of the 174 and east of Champlain? Bring a potluck item, a picnic blanket, utensils and meet your neighbours Have a lawn game? Bring it along! Worried we'll end up with 20 salads? Check out the potluck sign-up list.

  📍Big Bird Park, 936 Lawnsberry Dr

• 🌻 August 24th - Don’t miss the Original Navan Market, on from 9:30 AM - 2 PM! The market runs rain or shine and features over 100 vendors, including so many of our local favourites! 

  📍1279 Colonial Rd, Navan

🗓️SAVE THE DATES! 🗓️

Upcoming dates worth getting in your calendar - and for some grabbing tickets / registering ahead of time:

• 🤠 Time for a Barn Dance at the Cumberland Heritage Village Museum, on August 30th! Experience a charming heritage village setting brought to life by the sounds of Le Grand Portage and DJ Hokum. The guest caller will guide you through the steps as you hit the dance floor after enjoying a special roast dinner (included with registration). Explore the living history museum, say hi to the farm animals, enjoy a tractor-pulled wagon tour, vote for your favourite scarecrow, and challenge your friends to tailgate games. Register now!

🧑‍🌾 WEEKLY EVENTS 🥬 

Summertime has so many great weekly events happening!

• Every Tuesday

  • 🧠 Trivia at Broadhead Brewery. Free to play, no registration required. 630 PM - 830 PM 📍1680 Vimont Ct, Unit 106

  • ☀️ City Councillor for Ward 19, Catherine Kitts is hosting a Pop Up Freezie Party on Tuesdays from 2 PM - 4 PM (subject to change due to weather). Final date - August 26th - Sweetvalley Park, 180 Sweetvalley Dr

• Every Wednesday: Get Outside

  • 🛶 Try-In Out Evenings with Petrie Island Canoe Club - try canoes, kayaks and paddle boards. Reserve your spot online (Form opens on Mondays at Noon). From 6:30 PM - 8 PM 📍Petrie Island

  • 🧘🏾‍♀️Yoga in the Park from 7 PM - 8 PM. No registration required.📍Décarie Park (7883 Décarie Dr)

  • 🧘 Outdoor Yoga Classes from 630 PM - 730 PM. Register here.📍Alain Fortin (676 Lakeridge Dr)

• Every Thursday

  • 🫛 The Orléans Farmers Market from 11 AM - 4 PM. 📍Parking lot of the Ray Friel Community Centre

  • 🟢 Bingo Night at Broadhead Brewery - starts at 6:30 PM. Free to play, prizes to be won! First come, first served.

  • 🎤 Open Mic Night at Stray Dog Brewing Company, from 7 PM - 10 PM.

• 🧑‍🌾 Every Saturday - The Cumberland Farmers Market from 9 AM - 1 PM📍1115 Dunning Road, Cumberland

• 🚲☕ Every Sunday - Community Café from 930 AM - 12 PM. 📍Voyageur Park, 6137 Voyageur Dr.

Do you have an event you want to see featured here? Let us know!

📰 News you should know about…

Ottawa firefighters, city employees rescue man buried up to waist in mud on Orléans trail. [CTV News]

Do you know someone outstanding in Orléans who deserves some recognition for their exceptional contributions to our community? Nominations are open for the 14th annual Order of Ottawa and Brian Kilrea Award for Excellence in Coaching. Deadline for nominations is September 3rd, 2025. [City of Ottawa]

 🚸 Become a Crossing Guard! 🚸

Are you looking for a way to engage with the local community? Consider becoming a Crossing Guard with the Ottawa Safety Council. You can make a real difference in the community, support local kids and families, and get to know your neighbours. Learn more here.

BUSINESS SPOTLIGHT 🔦

This week’s Orléans business spotlight is… 🥁 … BEYOND CAFÉ - located at 2701 St. Joseph Blvd.

Beyond Café is a family owned business with a location that is designed entirely to make you feel like you’ve travelled back in time to a cozy home in the 1950s. It’s a great place for high-quality coffee, tea, sandwiches, salads, breakfasts, homemade baked goods and more.

Read our full Orléans Food Spot review of Beyond Café here. ➡️

If you’re looking for the perfect spot for a cozy date, a place to study or hang out with your bestie, while enjoying some delicious beverages and snacks, Beyond Café truly goes beyond the usual coffee shop experience.

As always, if you wind up visiting them, make sure to tell them that Orléans Connect sent you.