The Guy With The Dog

We learned this week that our team was a TOP 1% DONOR last year for the Royal LePage Shelter Foundation. The foundation is Canada’s largest public foundation dedicated exclusively to funding women’s shelters and violence prevention and education programs. We were happy to be amongst the 31 people/teams that make up the top 1% and we look forward to helping the foundation support abuse victims in our community in the coming years.

Here is how the Royal LePage Shelter Foundation describes their work on their webpage:

Because we believe in the importance of giving back to the community, Royal LePage is the only Canadian real estate company to have our own charitable foundation. All of the administrative costs of the Shelter Foundation are underwritten so that 100% of every dollar donated goes directly to helping our cause.

Royal LePage real estate agents and their clients are working to create safer homes and safer communities by contributing more than $10 million since 1999 to help women and children across Canada. Through donating a portion of their commission on the purchase or sale of your property, our agents are helping bring hope and provide shelter for those who need it most.

Our brokers, agents and staff also provide volunteer time and in-kind goods, and hold special community events to help raise funds and awareness to end family violence for more than 30,000 women and children who take refuge in a shelter each year.

To read brave stories of hope from families whose lives have been touched by abuse or to learn more about domestic violence, please visit us at www.shelterfoundation.ca.

Spring is springing and in the spirit of new beginnings, we have lots of fresh news that we are excited to update you on.

Many people have been asking about Oli, and we are happy to tell you that she is enjoying her retirement in the countryside. Her stepping down has made room for the newest member of the McCann team – Gus. He is a vizsla puppy that is full of vim and vigor.

We have just launched our brand new website with a blog, designed to bring you timely, fun and important information about everything from listings and investment advise to restaurant reviews and martini recipes. We have also revamped our e-newsletter, the E-Bark. Every month, we’ll be sending out meaningful information about the Ottawa housing market, living well in the city and the odd bit of canine digest. Whether you are looking to move in the future or have settled into your forever home, the information is so varied that there is sure to be something for everyone.

If you would like to receive these tips, recipes and insights -click here to subscribe. We also encourage you to follow us on Twitter and be a fan of our Facebook page.

Please forward this message along to anyone you know who might be seeking this sort of information stream.

Don’t fret about spam! You can unsubscribe from the E-Bark at any time. Feel free to like, share and comment… we want to hear from you.

Looking forward to connecting with you in e-space,

Sean, Jeremy, Daria, Stephanie and Gus

Many of you have been asking for updates on Gus, the new puppy on the team, so here they are.

Gus has received his first diploma for completing puppy socialization class. The proof is on our Facebook page. When I reflect on his performance in said class, I realize that the word “completing” was carefully selected because if we were to substitute “passed” or “excelled” or even “successfully completed”, we might very well be without a diploma.

Gus is developing nicely on many accounts:

• He is developing his counter surfing abilities so that he can now jump up on the counter, swipe something tasty and swallow before his front paws hit the floor.
• He is developing his fine motor skills by opening those pesky passages to the great outdoors. Perhaps levers door handles were not the best idea for my home, although Gus seems quite fond of them.
• He is developing his table manners. In fact, he can now push the chairs out from the table and use them to climb up. He makes sure the table is clean before falling asleep up there. I suppose the view is better from that vantage point.
• He is also developing his spot in the family pack. They say all things are created twice, once in your mind and once in your reality. Well Gus has decided that his is the Alpha and despite my many attempts to dissuade him from thinking so, he is adamant that he is correct and I am simply in transition.

And finally he is developing a little place in our hearts…. His sleepy morning clumsiness, his afternoon madman runs, his insistence on being a lap dog denying his size relative to the lap, and his joie de vie over simple things like an ice cube, the sounds of birds chirping and the smell of rabbits in the backyard… all sort of endearing and a good reminder of how the simple things in life can hold so much pleasure.

Sean