National Grandparents Day, Sunday September 7, 2025, 10 a.m. – 2 p.m.
Rain date: Sunday, September 14, same time.
Calling all grandmothers and grand-others!
The One World Grannies (OWG) with the Aylmer Gogos invite you to join us for a Grandmothers Bridge Crossing and awareness raising event on National Grandparents Day, Sunday, September 7, 2025. This year’s event will be held at the Passerelle Adawe Crossing (Adawe Pedestrian Bridge), that crosses the Rideau River from Strathcona Park, Range Road, Ottawa. It is open to the public and we welcome everyone, so please be proactive and invite friends, neighbours and colleagues to join in.
Consistent with last year’s event, which was held on the Chief William Commanda Bridge, this event is an awareness raising event in support of the Stephen Lewis Foundation’s (SLF) Grandmothers to Grandmothers Campaign (grandmotherscampaign.org). Once again, written messages of hope and support for the grandmothers in sub-Saharan Africa will be pinned on temporary clotheslines to be sent to the SLF as messages of solidarity with African grandmothers.
We encourage your support by walking, biking or taking any active mode of transportation to cross the bridge with purpose to help share information about the Grandmothers Campaign, the impacts of the Trump’s administration’s devastating cuts to USAid on HIV, AIDS and other funding in communities in sub-Saharan Africa, and how to help Bridge the Gap left by fund withdrawal.
OWG and Gogo Grannies will be on site to answer questions and provide additional information. Donations to the SLF in support of the 2025 Emergency Fund will be gratefully accepted by our donation jars or by using a QR code.
Madame Claudette Commanda, Chancellor of the University of Ottawa, graciously agreed to open our inaugural bridge crossing last year on National Grandparents Day. Once again, she has agreed to offer remarks at 11 am. City councillor Stephanie Plante, in whose ward the event is being held, also agreed to attend and provide remarks. Other invitees include additional City councillors and representatives from African organizations in Ottawa.
There is time for fun and relaxation! Bring family and friends to enjoy a picnic in the park while supporting the Grandmothers Campaign. Unlike last year, we anticipate a warm and sunny late summer’s day and look forward to seeing you there. Please see below Mia’s beautiful poster, as well as a photograph taken in Strathcona Park.
