United Way: Seeing is Believing bus tour!

I found out that United Way Ottawa was organizing a “Seeing is Believing Tour” through Twitter.  The twitter invitation said that the tour was open to ALL of those with an interest in seeing positive change in the community and that it wasFREE.  From the description of the participants they were looking for I decided that I could be included in the “I care for the community I live in” category, so I quickly registered online and signed up to go on the bus tour!

I didn’t know anybody else who would be on the tour, but I had been looking for ways to approach United Way and offer volunteer for them, so what a better way to do this then at one of their events, right?

All that I knew before going on the actual tour was that a group of like minded people would be going on a bus tour to two community organizations where we would be able to see firsthand how United Way has helped change people’s lives – for the better. But I didn’t actually know which projects we would be touring.

On Wednesday, November 3rd I headed out to the United Way headquarters equipped with my camera and a whole lot of enthusiasm!  All the participants were very kind and friendly. Most were talking and typing on their smartphones throughout the tour. Twitter was flooded with updates from most of the participants who were using the hashtags #UWtweets.  We visited the Carling Family Shelter (formerly Bayshore Hotel) and the Boys and Girls Club on Pinecrest where we got really great guided tours of the facilites and learned how United Way Ottawa helps these organizations change the lives of so many people in our community.

Due to privacy issues we weren’t able to take photographs during the tour. So you’ll just have to get on the next“Seeing is Believing” bus tour and see for yourself. Please stay tuned for the following blog posts where I will write a detailed account of each of the facilities we visited.

Thank you United Way for the opportunity to get to know you better and congratulations to everyone involved in the organization of such a wonderful event! A special thanks to Beau’s beer for supporting United Way and giving us a chance to sample your brews after the tour was over; it was a perfect way to wrap up the day.

Published by Stella Garcia

I was born and raised in Monterrey on the majestic Sierra Madre mountain range in Mexico. Over 20 years ago my parents gave me my first camera as a birthday gift and ever since I got that simple point and shoot Kodak camera, I have enjoyed looking at the world from behind a lens. Technology has improved and I have upgraded cameras many times since then, but the need to capture a perfect moment remains the same. Photography provides me a way to communicate with others. Digital photography allows me to play with photographs and it enables me to sink deeper in the creative process. I studied photography for the first time in 1995 and continue to enjoy capturing special moments every chance I get.