GNAG fine-tunes programs


GNAG’s Children’s Winter Carnival
For over 40 years, December was the month when GNAG hosted its annual winter community party, the Snowflake Special. It was our way of celebrating winter and our wonderful community. There were sleighrides, hot chocolate, talent show and face painting. After the Snowflake Special was cancelled last year because of COVID-19, we hoped to reinstate it this year but given the circumstances, we do not yet feel ready.
Instead, GNAG will host a new event, which promises to be festive, fun and safe! You and your family are invited to GNAG’s Winter Carnival on Sunday, December 12 at the Glebe Community Centre. Children from three to 12 years old and their parents can enjoy crafts, carnival games, bouncy castles, photo booth, prizes and more, all organized by GNAG’s Youth CAT (Community Action Team) volunteers and staff.
We have scheduled two time slots (1–2:45 p.m. and 3:30–5:15 p.m.) with reduced capacity to ensure everyone’s health and safety. All guests must wear a facemask, and those eligible for full vaccination must show proof of getting their shots. Food and drink will not be served, but children will go home with a loot bag full of wonderful goodies.
A very special thank you to our sponsors Magnolia Construction and Party Time Inflatables for making this event possible. Limited tickets are on sale at GNAG.ca. We hope you will join us. It has been a tough 20 months, but we believe we have gotten over the worst of it and have lots to celebrate.
What’s Cooking for Taste in the Glebe
Our beloved annual Taste in the Glebe fundraiser will be back, but only when we are confident that we can ensure public health and safety. In the meantime, our tenacious Taste team has been cooking up exciting plans for safe re-entry sometime in 2022.
The Glebe’s award-winning sommelier Phil Nicholson will return in late winter or early spring with his always-an-instant-sell-out premier tasting, featuring special chef offerings from a half dozen of the region’s finest restaurants. We’re busy exploring ways to offer well-spaced tables in Scotton Hall. This will pave the way for a full and safe return of Taste in the Glebe at a later date.
Phil is also revving up plans for the return of the Culinary Caravan, where he arranges gourmet fixed-menu meals (with wine pairing options) at restaurants in outlying areas, with school-bus transport to and from the event. The inaugural events at gezellig in Westboro, Les Fougères in Chelsea and The Village House in Wakefield were stunning successes.
Our Taste chair Tahera Mufti and the rest of the Taste Team are hard at work on other culinary offerings, so watch for news in the new year.
Children and vaccination
As I was walking home from the GCC, a young boy about seven years old was skipping down the street with a giant smile on his face as his mother tried to keep up. “Someone’s in a great mood,” I commented to the mother. She responded, “He just got his first shot and is good to go!”
It has been interesting to hear children’s reactions to getting vaccinated: “I don’t like needles, but I’ll be ok,” and “I get my first vaccination on Saturday and then I’m going to a birthday party. I can’t wait!”
“Every child who came to the craft fair who was going to get their shot was so happy,” says Clare Davidson Rogers. “When I was asking to see their parents’ certificates, they would brag, ‘I’m going to get mine on Tuesday!’ And that was completely unprovoked, straight out of the blue. They clearly understand the implications of being fully vaccinated. Way to go kids! You can do it.
With children getting vaccinated, what does this mean for GNAG policy? Effective April 1, children born in 2016 or before will be required to provide proof of full vaccination (including the completion of the two-week, post-vaccine waiting period) to attend a GNAG in-person program or event, including March Break Camp and Youth Dance. People who don’t provide this proof will not be able to participate in any in-person programming or event. Children born in 2017 will be required to be vaccinated 12 weeks after their fifth birthday to attend GNAG programs or events, including camps. Children born in 2018 or after and children registered in GNAG’s 2021-22 Q4/BC will be exempt from this requirement when attending before- and after-school programs. Winter program registration is now open at GNAG.ca.
On behalf of the GNAG team, we wish you a safe and happy holiday!