Moving homes and hearts in Fredericton

Greetings from NB… what a great few days we have had since we left Saint John. Thursday morning Suzanne and I drove out of the fog and straight to sunshine in beautiful Grand Falls NB. We were eagerly greeted by the staff at our GRS Satellite office in down town Grand Falls. Tina Desjardins and her staff fed us local YUMMY pizza and provided us with a great tour of their wonderful contact centre. It was so great to see such passionate employees!

Staff of GRS Satellite Office in Grand Falls, NB

After our visit to GFS we headed to the provinces capital city… Fredericton!!! With a huge smile Martin Gilbert welcomed us to the Delta Fredericton for what turned out to be an amazing event. Maple Leaf homes, Recycle NB and a wonderful company called Track joined the Delta Fredericton and GRS staff along with dignitaries, such as the honourable Mayor Brad Woodside to parade the new modular home onto the Delta Fredericton site. With an excited crowd watching, media snapping pictures and tears flowing, the Habitat for Humanity family along with their new home made their way on site.

The Barton Family

Suzanne and I had the privilege of meeting and spending a lot of time with the Barton family which included 3 young children and a 4th on the way on August 11th. They told us that they are counting down the days until they can settle into their new home. Tyson their oldest son (who stole my heart) loved the cruiser and NEEDED to wave from the sun roof as I honked the horn to get everyone’s attention … he had an important message… “I am getting my own room”! Needless to say I was happy to have my sunglasses on so no one could see me choking up!

Tyson making his announcement

While everyone mingled, the staff from the Delta Fredericton along with Delta Global Reservations Services worked diligently on serving the community with a free BBQ along with free face painting. It was an amazing day for everyone involved.

Delta Fredericton and GRS Staff Volunteers

Suzanne and I were thrilled to hear that the shingles that were being used on the house were made from recycled plastic and they are guaranteed to last a minimum of … 50 years! How impressive… and GREEN!
Our next stop is Delta Beausejour … look out Moncton… here we come!

Suzanne and I heading the parade!

Charlene

Burgers, Blue Skies and Baby Barns!

So yesterday was Quebec Regional Ambassador Jean Brilliants last day. I was extremely sad to see him go, as I am all of the Regional Ambassadors. It’s such a unique experience, in that you are literally thrown right into getting to know strangers in a very short period of time. What I have found nice is that all Delta people are like-minded folks, which has made the treks on the long and winding road much, much easier. So farewell to my fantastic friend Jean, who brought a lot of heart and energy at a time on the tour when I needed it most. Quebec would not have been the same without Jean’s pride and love for his home province and it’s people.
Salut mon amie!

Jean beatin' on Bob the Incredible!

Once Jean and I had successfully arrived at the Delta Brunswick in Saint John, New Brunswick, we had the great pleasure of meeting the final Regional Ambassador, Charlene Kaine. After a fantastic dinner together and a good nights sleep, Charlene and I were ready to rock and roll at the Delta Brunswick’s fundraising BBQ for Habitat for Humanity. Apparently we brought the blue-skies with us and the sunshine too, as it was a perfect day to set-up a street-side BBQ for such a great cause. We also lucked out in that a cruise-ship from New York happened to be in port for the day, sending many hungry and happy travelers our way.

Waiting for the rush!

Along with yummy food, there were also two fantastic draw prizes as an additional fundraising effort. One was a 50/50 draw and the other a draw for the cutest (my words, not the manly and tough builders) baby barn ever! The shed had been built by volunteer high-school students at the Habitat site, then transported to the Delta Brunswick to be put on display and for the final shingles to be placed on the roof. There were also three different sets of musicians keeping the street hopin’. I even had my very first taste of Maritime music on this trip, which will apparantly, according to Charlene, prepare me for some jigs in the time to come. It was all good fun for a great cause!

Cute Baby Barn

I wanted to share this photo of Charlene. She is extremely fun and high-spirited. She is going to be fantastic to guide the cruiser and I through the last leg of this amazing tour! Grand Falls and Fredericton here we come!

Welcome to the tour Charlene!

Suzanne

Rivers of Kindness Run Deep in Trois Rivieres!

After a fantastic weekend in Quebec City, playing tourists, Jean and I were both hesitant to leave the historic capital behind, but excited to move onto new terrain. The drive to Trois Riveires was a visually pleasing one, with old houses dotting the highway side and little towns and villages, each one complete with an old church and steeple, clustered in the distance. Quebec is much more than just it’s big cities and European-esque life-style. Jean and I quickly found this out once we had reached the quaint city of 130,000 folks, in Trois Rivieries.

View from my hotel room!

So the original plan for all of the Quebec Delta hotels was to participate in a Blood Drive in partnership with Hema Quebec. However, due to some scheduling issues the folks at the Delta Trois-Rivieres were left to come-up with a event both fun, impactful and close to their hearts. And did they ever! We arrived early at a local children’s park on the day of the event, to begin setting-up what was to be a children’s paradise (and one for Jean and I too).

The Delta Trois-Rivieres had decided to partner with the Canadian Cancer Society in offering a fun-filled day of games and entertainment, along with some education and a healthy, but yummy lunch. When Jean and I arrived, to our delight, the giant inflatable bouncy toy had been prepared and was standing empty! In order to ensure that this massive and potentially dangerous toy would not crush the small and delicate children, Jean and I took many turns in ensuring its safety. Once we were satisfied we decided to let the children have a turn. I think they loved it almost as much as we did!

Quality Control!

The day was organized into small groups of children, from a local day camp, rotating through different stations. One was the inflatable toy, the other was a water park, and the next was an information tent run by the Canadian Cancer Society Cowboy Guillaume, who would entertain and teach the children about sun safety. After a couple of hours of fun we were ready to serve the little ones lunch. They all lined up politely to receive plates of vegetables, wraps, cheese, salads and fruit. It was delicious and we all knew it by the sudden satisfied silence of munching mouths in the park. However, in no time they were back at it and having a blast.

Lunch time!

There is something about hanging out with kids for a day that makes everything seem fun. Jean and I couldn’t resist the temptation of swinging in the park and playing on the monkey bars. By two o’clock, just like the kids, we were pooped and ready to head inside and out of the heat. After a couple of hours of rest (playing is soooo hard!) we were escorted to a fantastic restaurant by the amazing management team at the Delta Trois-Rivieries. After some great food, great conversation and amazing wine, I was once again smitten by this Quebec town. Not surprising since I have loved them all.

Playing!

This was Jeans final event, which is just a reminder to me of how fast time is going by. I have one more region and then I return home to my “normal” non-celebrity style life. I am almost ready to return to those who I miss whole-heartedly back home, but not until I have explored the uniqueness that is the Atlantic region of Canada. Next stop, New Brunswick!

Jean being Jean! Hehe!

Suzanne

I Heart Quebec!

I really shouldn’t be all that surprised that a city full of cheese, wine, chocolate and beautiful art and scenery would win me over. I guess I am surprised at how quickly I have fallen head over heels in love with Quebec City. For those who have been, you must completely understand. For those of you who haven’t, you should drop everything, jump on a plane and visit this quaint, European-esque city in the heart of Quebec Province. It is well worth the trek, as today on my tours I met visitors from all over the USA, Brazil, Portugal and France. Six million visitors flock to Quebec city each year, and for a darned good reason!

Welcome!

So Quebec City was our final blood clinic cruiser event. While blood clinics are a absolutely vital necessity in every community, I can’t completely say that I am heartbroken at the thought of a different type of event. I have seen more blood this week then I ever want to again, but it was for a good cause and I am so very proud of all of those who have donated. Including my new friend Sophie at the Delta Quebec. Sophie started with Delta this week. She has never given blood before and was very nervous going in. However, she overcame her fears and donated without any issues. In the end she was extremely proud of herself (as were we!) for doing something so simple, yet so impactful. For every one pint of blood collected, four recipients lives may be saved. What an amazing thing to do. While the team were aiming for a total of 70 donours, they hit a fantastic 60!!

Mon Amie Sophie!

So all day the hotel had been hinting at a surprise for Jean and I at the conclusion of the blood-clinic. We were very excited and nervous, as we had no idea what it could be. However, come three o’clock we were elated to find out that our surprise was a horse-drawn carriage tour of the city. We were accompanied by the very fantastic General Manager of the Delta Quebec, Monsieur Stephan Guy. After touring the city and a little break back at the hotel, Jean and I headed out for our night on the town. We started with the cities best poutine (as per many locals) at Le Cafe Ashton. We then met Stephan and all walked down to the free Cirque du Soleil show which was held under a bridge close to the hotel. It was my first Cirque show and I was already in love with the wild costumes and stunning acrobatics. Once the show finished, I thought that the evening couldn’t get any better, but Stephan was right in that it did.

Ashton Poutin! Yum!

Stephan took Jean and I to see Le moulin a image. It is a film composed by famous Quebec director Robert Lepage. The film is all images of Quebec city, along with musical accompaniment. What amazed me about it, is that the film was projected onto a gigantic grain silo in the center of the city. We were able to sit on a hill in front of the long silo and watch the images as the moved along the buildings. It was absolutely fantastic. I just couldn’t take my eyes off of the images as they danced before me. Sadly the show came to an end but in true French fashion we then looked for a nice place to have a glass of wine. By the end of the night I was pooped, but in absolute adoration with Quebec city. It has a heart to it that I have not seen quite so strong anywhere else (except in our Delta Hotels of course).

Stephan and Jean

In our carriage

Suzanne

All Smiles in Sherbrooke

To be perfectly honest, which is the French way, I have never really considered Sherbrooke to be one of my top travel destinations. This was until I had the great pleasure of spending some time there. Jean and I arrived to a wonderful greeting from the staff at the Delta Sherbrooke. We were then escorted to a fantastic reception with some of the managers at a local brewery, which the hotel has partnered with in some charity events. This brewery, called Siboire, was fantastic, serving delicious food and even a beer specially created for Habitat for Humanity, with proceeds going to the amazing charity. The only thing more amazing then the location, was the company. We were sincerely entertained by the fine gentleman who sought so genuinely to make us feel welcome in their quaint city.

Beer for a Benefit!

After some pints and some nibblies, we were taken on a walking tour of the beautiful city of Sherbrooke. This year it celebrated it’s 225 birthday. The buildings are historic and the streets are lined with greenery and flowers. There are murals covering the city walls and even a magnificent water-fall flowing through the city-center. After a leisurely stroll we were given the great honour of attending a local production called Omaterra. It is a Cirque-de-soleil-esque show in water. It was a tumbling, bouncing, flying wonderment that left Jean and I spellbound for nearly an hour and a half. Though we didn’t want the night to end, Jean and I finally called it quits and headed back to the hotel for a sound nights sleep.

City centre water-fall all lit up!

We began today at a coffee-break with the hotel staff in honour of the Blood Drive event which would be held later in the day. We were able to meet many of the fantastic staff that make this team so welcoming. After some free-time, in which I continue to try to lose some of this “Cruiser Weight” as I call it, we met much of the management team for lunch. Where I proceeded to put back on the “Cruiser Weight” I had just taken off. C’est la vie!

The missing ones weren't me....

Finally at 2pm the blood drive with Hema Quebec began. Jean and I are fairly well versed in blood drives these days, as this is our third this week. However, we were completely surprised to arrive at the door where the clinic was to be held, to find 40 people already in line and waiting. The remainder of the day flowed as quickly as the blood into the Hema Quebec bags. Jean and I were given the great pleasure of making Mango and Strawberry smoothies for the donours, once they were finished. We enjoyed talking to the donours, as well as sampling the smoothies here and there.

Taste testers...

Needless to say, we were sad to leave the team, the hotel and the city behind. Sherbrooke was not a town I would think to visit as a destination, prior to today. However, after visiting it’s city streets and it’s people, I am certain that I will be back, when I go back to my “real” life, which is quickly approaching. For now, we are off to historic Quebec City, for one more blood drive and a ton of fun!

Big ole hearts!

Suzanne

Au Revoir Montreal!

Straight From the Heart!

So today was the second half of our two day stint in Montreal. We began the day with another hearty breakfast with the Delta Montreal’s hotel staff and then visited the Hema Quebec blood donation room in the upper lobby of the hotel. The upper lobby and main entrance ways were transformed into a welcoming clinic, with no sight of the scary needles for those passing through. We were happy to see many of the same folks with Hema Quebec from yesterdays donation clinic as well.

Happy Hema Quebec Ladies!

Todays goal was another lofty 50 people. While the Delta Montreal staff felt that this was an achievable goal, we mentioned how difficult it seems to be to get people to donate blood these days. The Hema Quebec staff agreed with me and expressed their gratitude to the Delta Hotels in Quebec for bringing awareness to such a worthy cause, at a time when blood is greatly in need.

While Jean and I were both unable to donate, we held hands and chatted with those who were, many of them once again being hotel staff. We had some tentative “Nouveau Donneurs” who took it very well and were entertained by my mediocre French. In the end we had a total of 22 donours at the Delta Montreal. Which makes a total of 52 donours over the past two days. Combined the hotels achieved their goal and gave back an extremely vital necessity to their community.

Not so scary!

Before we were to take to the road once again, Jean and I were honoured to be the special guests at yet another fantastic reception. After more pictures, more eating and some quick speeches, we were off, heading towards the Delta Sherbrooke. Au Revoir Montreal! We had an absolutely wonderful visit!

A Cruiser Cake!

Suzanne

La Belle Provence!

While I fully suspect that I will find my journey through Quebec will expose me to breath-taking landscapes and beautiful historical villages, at this point “Le Belle Provence”, to me, is referring to the people. Jean and I were extremely fortunate to begin our tour of Quebec at the Delta Centre-Ville. We arrived at the hotel to a fantastic welcome from the eager staff and then directed towards our rooms, which happened to be on the top floor overlooking the entire city of Montreal. If that didn’t make us feel like celebrities, then being wined and dined at a very trendy restaurant in Old Montreal by the Delta Centre-Ville and Delta Montreal Leadership team members sure did. Jean and I were spoiled, and we loved every minute of it!

One of the first things that I heard about this team is that they act Straight From the Heart in everything that they do. While Jean and I experienced the spirit of this first-hand, we also witnessed it in it’s literal form. Today’s event was the start of a week-long Blood Drive in association with Hema Quebec. The hotel and the fantastic volunteers and employees of Hema Quebec established a make-shift blood-clinic in one of the hotel’s ballrooms for generous donors to give their blood. The goal was a lofty one at 50 people. While we didn’t attain this goal, we did have a fantastic 30 individuals turnout to give back! Many of these donors were hotel staff members themselves, including our generous host and hostess from the evening before Monsieur Larivee and Madame Bouchard.

What leadership!

Mid-way through the day the hotel also provided a monstrous lunch to the staff and Hema Quebec volunteers, as a thank you for the amazing work that they do every day. Now this is day 50 of my tour and I have attended many, many, many BBQ’s by this point. While they have all been great, I have NEVER seen a staff meal quite like this. There were the usual salads and hamburgers, but then there were stuffed potatoes, sauteed shrimp, vegetable skewers and so much more. Anyone who knows me at all, knows that I adore food. Thanks to this amazing job of mine, it has started to show. So my new-found friend, Marie-Josee Bouchard, accompanied me to their state-of-the-art fitness facility to work off some of the fromage et chocolate.

So much food....

After lunch, the afternoon flew by. By 3pm the Hema Quebec folks were packing up their clinic and heading off to set-up tomorrow’s clinic at the Delta Montreal. Once again in fantastic Quebec fashion, another lavish party was thrown to thank the volunteers and to bid farewell to Jean and I. While we were sad to leave, we weren’t going far, just two blocks away to the Delta Montreal.

Team members

What a fantastic start, from a team that knows no other way then to act straight from the heart. Bon travail!

Suzanne

Never Go to Bed on an Empty Tummy!

So new beginnings. Every time one Ambassador finishes and another starts, I’m not sure how to feel. Carys and I became quick friends and I soon found that she had a fantastic way of making everything shine. So needless to say I was sad and a little lost with the thought of her staying in London, and the Quebec Regional Ambassador Jean Brillant and I moving along to Ottawa. I neednt worry however, as Jean has a similar sense of excitement and life that I adore in Carys. So after a quick and delicious meal at the Delta London Armouries, and a fantastic nights sleep, Jean and I were off on a much anticipated road-trip to the Delta Ottawa Hotel and Suites.

Another hand-over of Prius keys!

Jean’s very first duty, upon my request, was to navigate us to Ottawa as quickly as possible (of course without speeding in the Delta cruiser!) as I had a special surprise waiting there for me, my boyfriend Aaron! Aaron flew in for the weekend to tour around Ottawa with me. We had a blast checking out the cities museums, tours and markets and dining on fantastic local cuisine, especially the Beaver Tails! One of my favourite purchases, which I am extremely proud to promote, is a necklace produced by an artist who recycles used diamond core samples. She cuts the samples into shapes and paints on them and then sells them at local markets. What a clever and fantastic way to reuse that which someone else considers waste!

Beaver-Tails!

The weekend quickly came to an end, Aaron went back to Cow-town and Jean and I found ourselves ready for his first event. Which just so happened to be where he works, at the Delta Ottawa Hotel and Suites. The event was called “Take a Bite out of Hungry!”. The staff had collected food and money for the last several months to be given to the Ottawa Food Bank. As a very clever marketing ploy, they created a bed out of the cans and boxes in their lobby. This brought out a handful of the local media, which brings more awareness to their fantastic cause. Jean and I had the great pleasure of building a night-stand out of these items as well!

As the camera lights faded, we loaded all of the food into boxes and the staff of the Ottawa Food Bank transported these items in their spacious trucks. We then all reconvened at the Food Bank itself where we were given the task of sorting the food. I have done a handful of these food drives now and this is the first time we have been given the task of sorting the food our staff has donated. It was an absolute blast and gave us an even better idea as to what goes where at the local food banks. The Ottawa Food Bank is a bit unique as it is a warehouse, rather than a direct person-to-person distribution centre. It serves approximately 136 Food Banks in the area by sending them boxes of their requested foods every week. So our job was to sort like foods with like foods into boxes, so that the warehouse workers would know who was to receive what.

Boxes of Delta donated food

Once all was said and done, the Delta Ottawa Hotels and Suites staff donated $561 and a 1/2 tonne of food to the Ottawa Food Bank, just from this event alone. What a fantastic job team!

Eager sorters!

Then we were off! Jean and I hit the road once again, this time towards our first stop in Quebec; the Delta Centre-Ville!

Suzanne

One Tonne –scratch that- Two tonne Challenge

I will try my darnedest not to let my bias squeeze out in the following blog but a forewarning to the readers; this is my last event in my home city, last day with Suzanne- the most amazing National Ambassador and new found friend, and subsequently my last blog. I couldn’t possibly be more proud of my Delta London Armouries team for making July 15th 2010 a day to remember.

Hank Stackhouse, or ‘Uncle Hank’ as I like to call him, asked me a rather startling question in my interview for the Delta Community Cruiser. “Carys, what is Delta doing for you? Why do you want to work for Delta?” Peppered with joy, I answered “I believe that Delta invests in me, allowing me to be a better person, evidenced by myDelta training.” More recently, my most fabulous co-workers proved to me yet again why I want to be a Delta employee at our One Tonne Food Challenge and BBQ.

Volunteers and pals from Delta London Armouries

The Delta London Armouries partnered up with the London Food Bank this year with hopes of raising one tonne of non-perishable food items, hence the clever name, “One Tonne Food Challenge”. DLA employees managed to bring in roughly 3,100 pounds, surpassing their already hefty goal. Then, John’s Fruit and Vegetables donated roughly 650 pounds of fresh food, and our delicious BBQ on July 15th raised another 368 lbs, ultimately raising 4118 lbs!!!! Also, DLA collected $822.45 from staff, guests and BBQ donations which will be used to purchase more carrots, cabbage, apples and oranges for the food bank.

Food! Food! Food!

Doubling our goal contributed to making the event a success, but more importantly the volunteers and DLA staff truly made me realize what makes my hotel so amazing. Your hard work, unlimited energy and passion made my day. Thank you for ‘keepin it real’ you made me proud!

Always time for fun...

To my lovely NATIONAL Ambassador Suzanne, you are absolutely amazing and I’m glad I experienced Ontario with you! I know you will continue to have a superb time and I can’t wait to see you again in Calgatious!

New found friends!

Lastly, Uncle Hank…the cruiser needs to be a permanent job. I’ll make it happen. I had a blast, this is my most favourite Delta experience and I’m not ready to end it.

Cruisin'!

Carys Ruth Roberts
Ontario Regional Ambassador/Potential Permanent Cruiser

The Great Sandwich Race!

So Carys and were girlie girls (when aren’t we!) and stayed up late last night to watch The Hill Series Finale! Needless to say, we were dragging our tails this morning when we had to rise and shine pretty early. While event-days are always exciting, the early morning rise can sometimes be a bit of a struggle to overcome. However, this morning we were extremely surprised walking into the magnificent ballroom at the Delta Kitchener to mass amounts of cheering, dancing and sheer insanity! It was brilliant and a great way to get-out of your early morning funk!

GOOOOOOD MOOOOOORRRRNIIIINNNNGGG!!!

Today was the2nd annual “Take a Bite out of Hungry” event to be held at the Delta Kitchener! Last year the team had completed a similar event, in which the hotel made a large quantity of sandwiches and then transported them to the St. Johns Soup Kitchen to disperse to their clients. This year however, they did things a bit differently! The employees of this fantastic hotel wanted to be a bit more involved, so they arranged teams, created costumes and team-names and prepared a fantastic competition room for the Great Sandwich Race!

Check out all of the costumes!

Carys and I, along with other dignitaries, including the Mayor of Kitchener, a few members of Parliament and a representative from the St. John’s Soup Kitchen, were the Quality Control Inspectors. Our roles were to ensure that our specific teams sandwiches, which were being made at a very swift pace in a conveyor belt like fashion, were edible for the patrons of the Soup Kitchen. While all participants were encouraged to fight for first place, we still needed the food to be as tasty as possible for those who would be receiving them at lunch-time.

Amid horns, screams, cheers and a fantastic live-band (who may or may not have been from Calgary!) the aptly named “The Winning Team” made their way to the podium to announce their first place spot. Quickly after this announcement, most teams finished and a massive pile of sandwich containers was created in the centre of the ballroom. What a visual for the employees to see! What good can be done, in such a short time, while still having fun!

Lunch Boxes!

Carys and I then had the honour (and I mean HONOUR!) of assisting in the transportation of the lunch boxes to the St. Johns Kitchen. The gratitude that we received upon our arrival, from the staff particularly, was heart-warming. However, what nearly got the old tear-ducts working for me, was when the Head Chef came to us and thanked us straight from her heart for making this meal, so that she could take the time to clean her ovens, rather than having to cook all morning.

Look at that oven shine!

It was such a simple thing to do. All we did was make a bunch of sandwiches. However, it brought together people from all departments and all types of employment levels (even some Corporate folks from the Big Smoke showed up, haha! Ya Ben and Krystal!). They cheered for one another and they worked together for fun. However, at the end of the day they fed people who need to be fed and gave a break to those who normally do so much for others. I was truly moved today by the spirits of all those I met and I give sincere kudos to the Delta Kitchener team. There is something to be said for helping out, but I am speechless, when you can feel how it has overwhelmingly come straight from the heart!

Very Important People!

Suzanne