Help Brown Loaf Bakery After Two Robberies

Hi friends, family, and everyone else!

 

I'm fundraising to help the Brown Loaf Bakery on Elgin St. in Ottawa, as they were recently the victims of two robberies (more information can be found here: https://ottawa.ctvnews.ca/community-lends-a-helping-hand-to-elgin-street-baker-after-robbery-1.5741695).

 

For those who don't know, Christian and I lived on Elgin St from May - October 2021. Being someone who is avid about getting to know the people in her community, appreciating high quality products, and actively trying to support the people in her community, we had one very important rule in our home - don't buy "big brand" bread! Instead, one of our all-time favorite activities was a morning walk down Elgin St and stopping in to chat with Yan and buy our favorite - herb bread - fresh that morning!

 

Yan is one of the kindest and most generous people I have ever met. I'm not sure if he has any idea how much the time I spent in his store meant to me. As someone who was having a very hard year, personally, working from home, and living in a city where I didn't have too many friends, the times he pulled out a chair and let me sit with him over my lunch break and told me stories about his immigration to Canada, the bakers he learned from, and some of the challenges he faced, meant more to me than I think he could possibly imagine. On my daily walks, he always yelled "hi" out his propped-open bakery door and gave me a big smile and a wave - he made Ottawa feel like home.

 

As a small business with only one part-time employee, Yan and his wife work long hours to keep it going. Yan often works 16-hour days. During the pandemic, with tourism struggling in the city, the bakery suffered as they often relied heavily on foot-traffic for attracting new customers. After an already difficult couple of years, Yan absolutely does not deserve these circumstances. Although I don't live in Ottawa anymore, I was devastated to hear this news. I would like to do anything I can to help, and would appreciate some help from the rest of the community as well! If you're able to make a donation, I would greatly appreciate it. I will be driving up to Ottawa this weekend to give any of the proceeds directly to Yan (and hopefully pick up some bread!). Thank you all for your support and help with this - I hope we can make a difference in this man's life, as he has made a huge difference in mine!