Growing Guelph

In this episode of Growing Guelph, I sit down with Stephanie Scapinello, founder of Strawberry Sunshine — a handmade candle business that has grown into a community hub for makers, artists, and dreamers in Guelph.

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In this episode of Growing Guelph, host Jordan Sloggett is joined by Grace Sant, Host Farms, Outreach and Education Manager at the Donkey Sanctuary of Canada. Grace offers a deep and heartfelt look into the world of donkeys—exploring why these often-misunderstood animals need sanctuary, how they differ from horses and mules, and what it takes to care for them with compassion and respect.

We dive into:

• The Donkey Sanctuary’s missi...

In this episode, host Jordan Sloggett talks with Samantha Hicks and Kriti Murthy from the Guelph Climate Action Network (GCAN) about the emotional side of climate work—and how community, empathy, and education play key roles in moving from awareness to action.

We explore GCAN’s two key programs:

🌍 Climate Fresk – a collaborative, science-based workshop that breaks down the complexities of climate change

🌀 Climate Circles – a space...

In this episode I'm speaking to Glynis Hamilton, Principal and Founder of the Montessori School of Wellington, and Rayna Lew, Office Administrator—and Glynis' daughter. Together, they offer a unique look inside this long-standing Montessori school in Guelph.

We talk about what sets Montessori education apart, how it fosters independence and lifelong learning, and what it’s like to run a school as a mother-daughter team. Whether you'...

In this episode of Growing Guelph, host Jordan Sloggett sits down with Nathan Skoufis, a 23-time world martial arts champion and the owner of Guelph Family Martial Arts. Nathan shares his journey from starting martial arts at a young age to becoming an international champion. He discusses how martial arts instilled values of discipline and leadership, leading him to open a dojo that serves as a community hub in Guelph. Nathan also ...

This week on the Growing Guelph Podcast, we're joined by Conor Russell and Morgan Dandie—two local organizers helping to launch Resistance and Resilience Guelph, a community-rooted initiative responding to the challenges of economic uncertainty, social inequality, and political instability. Together, we explore their journeys into community work, the vision behind this new effort, and what it means to build a crisis-ready Guelph gr...

In this episode of Growing Guelph, I sat down with Dominique O’Rourke, the newly elected Member of Parliament for Guelph. Dominique shares the personal story behind her entry into politics, from her early days as a city councillor to her new role representing our community on the national stage. We discuss the values that drive her, the lessons she’s bringing with her from municipal service, and her vision for Guelph’s future.

🔗 F...

In this episode, I sat down with Anna Schwanke—known online as @thezerowastegryphon. Anna is a passionate advocate for accessible, joyful sustainability. Anna shares her journey into the zero-waste lifestyle, emphasizing that sustainability isn't about perfection but about making meaningful, manageable changes. Anna highlights the importance of community support, both online and in Guelph, and offers practical advice for those loo...

Matt Ryder is the founder behind FTI Studios in Guelph, and he might be among the most unrelentingly positive and collaborative Guelphites that I've had the privilege of speaking to on the Growing Guelph podcast.

In our long discussion, we talk about what motivates Matt to lift up fellow creators as part of From the Inside Studios, and the community of musicians and artists he's gathered together with his optimistic attitude.

Lynn Broughton from Taste Detours joins me on Growing Guelph this week. Lynn shares her wealth of knowledge all about Guelph's food scene - and the career she's established on giving personalized food tours in the city. Lynn started Taste Detours as a means of championing and elevating food people and places through exploration and connection.

Links:

• https://tastedetours.ca/about-food-drink-tasting-tours/
• https://www.instagram...

This week on Growing Guelph is my conversation with John Galbraith and Dakota Pitz. John is the creator of Doll haus events, and Dakota is a Guelph Real Estate Agent, Sponsor and judge of the DollHous event series happening right now called Guelph’s Next Drag Superstar. In our conversation we talk about hosting LGBTQ events in Guelph, and how supportive of drag related events the Guelph community is.

Links:

• https://www.instag...

Mike Smith is the farm coordinator for the Guelph Centre for Urban Organic Farming (GCUOF), at the University of Guelph.

This past week     Mike gave me a great tour of the GCUOF, otherwise often known as the Campus Organic Farm. located in the arboretum on the University of Guelph campus. After that tour we sat down in Mike’s office on campus and talked about the goals of the centre, the impact of taking part in the organ...

Adam A. Donaldson runs Guelph Politico - a blog dedicated to covering local Guelph city news. Adam also co-hosts a political and current affairs show on CFRU 93.3 fm called “Open Sources Guelph" as well as the movie review show "End Credits." Adam and I talk about the importance and challenges of covering local city politics, what covering the news on both the local and the global level mean in 2025, and a number of other tangents.

On this episode of Growing Guelph I joined Bobby Raffin at Three Pieces, a Fashion Boutique at 54 Carden St. in the heart of downtown Guelph. We talked about Bobby's work as a fashion designer, running a store in downtown Guelph, and what it means for him to blend art, fashion and culture together.

Bobby Raffin links:

• https://www.instagram.com/bobbyraffin/
• https://www.instagram.com/threepieces.ca/
• http://hamiltonfashionweek.com...

This week on Growing Guelph I sat down with Steve Snow of the Guelph Film Society!

Guelph Film Society Links:

• Meetup - https://www.meetup.com/guelph-film-society/
• Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/guelphfilmsociety/

Other Links we talked about:

• Justwatch.com/ca - find what platform/service something is on
• My Letterboxd account - https://letterboxd.com/jsloggett/

• About Community F.E.W.D.: https://sites.google.com/guelphneighbourhoods.org/fewdca/about?authuser=0
• DONATE to Community FEWD: https://checkout.square.site/merchant/ML66PMX3JTWFM/checkout/BR64LPUFQNCYJGGLOWYVCIK4
• Guelph Today article - https://www.guelphtoday.com/following-up/community-fewd-wins-20000-for-its-food-insecuirty-work-9670237
• Community FEWD on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/communityfewd

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About the Children's Foundation of Guelph & Wellington:

What they do - https://www.childrensfoundation.org/what-we-do

Ways to Help - https://www.childrensfoundation.org/ways-to-help

Donate - https://www.childrensfoundation.org/ways-to-help/donate

Volunteer - https://www.childrensfoundation.org/ways-to-help/volunteer-with-us

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/ChildrensFdnGW/

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/ChildrensFdnGW/

Fo...