The best news and events from around the Waterloo Region. Delivered Monday and Thursday mornings. For free.
π Are you eating soup?
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November 6th, 2025 Good Morning, Waterloo Region! Hope everyone's having a great week so far. It's slowly turning into soup season around here and I'm all for it (basically just eating lots of soup to stay warm because it's cold and rainy outside). So many flavour options... the absolute best! We've got lots of great content to cover, so let's get into it. In today's email:
Let's dive in π WHAT'S HAPPENING 15th Annual Open House | Thursday, November 6th | 10am-7pm | Relish, Kitchener | Infoβ Animation Celebration 2 | Thursday, November 6th | Doors Open at 5pm | Princess Twin Cinemas, Waterloo | Info United Way Ultimate Burger Battle | Thursday, November 6th | 6-9pm | Multiple Locations | Infoβ Wild Writers Literary Festival | Friday, November 7th - Sunday, November 9th | Waterloo | Infoβ Christmas Card Workshop | Friday, November 7th | 7-9pm | JTM Cake Studio & Cafe, Cambridge | Infoβ Hops & High Notes: Opera at the Brewery | Friday, November 7th | 7-9pm | TWB Brewing, Kitchener | Infoβ Family Feud Night! | Friday, November 7th | 7-9:30pm | EVO Kitchen & Bar, Cambridge | Infoβ Laurier Student Composers Concert | Friday, November 7th | 7:30-9pm | Laurier University, Waterloo | Infoβ Willow Quartet | Friday, November 7th - Sunday, November 16th | Multiple Times | Elmira Theatre Company | Infoβ Misdirection: Magic & Mind Reading Show | Friday, November 7th | 8:30-11:30pm | Farm League Brewing, Cambridge | Infoβ Merry & Bright Craft Market | Saturday, November 8th | 10am-4pm | Conestoga Banquet Hall, Waterloo | Infoβ Willibald Holiday Market | Saturday, November 8th | 10am-4pm | Willibald Farm, Ayr | Infoβ Tequila Expo | Saturday, November 8th | 4-11pm | Bingemans, Kitchener | Infoβ KW Toys & Collectible Show | Sunday, November 9th | 9:30am-2pm | Bingemans, Kitchener | Infoβ Awake & Dreaming | Sunday, November 9th | 5:30-8:30pm | The Jazz Room, Waterloo | Infoβ Comedy Thursday, November 6th | Tom Green: Stompin' Comedy Tour | Centre in the Square, Kitchener | 7pm | Ticketsβ Friday, November 7th | Dylan Mandlsohn: 'Late Bloomer' | Centre in the Square, Kitchener | 7:30pm | Ticketsβ Friday, November 7th | Rusty Nail Comedy | TWH Social, Kitchener | 7:30pm-10pm | Headliner: Casey Corbin | Ticketsβ Saturday, November 8th | YukYuk's | Kingpin Bowlounge (Bingemans), Kitchener | 9:00pm | Featuring: Bryan OβGorman, Zabrina Douglas & Keesha Brownie | Ticketsβ Saturday, October 8th | Rusty Nail Comedy | TWH Social, Kitchener | 7:30pm-10pm | Headliner: Casey Corbin | Ticketsβ Farmers Markets βSt. Jacobs | Thursday, November 6th (8amβ3pm) | Saturday, November 8th (7amβ3:30pm) βKitchener | Saturday, November 8th (7amβ2pm) βCambridge | Saturday, November 8th (7amβ1pm)β * none of these events are sponsored. that will always be made obvious if so. LOCAL NEWS Region Opens Public Input to Shape 2026 Budget. The Region of Waterloo announced on November 4th that residents are invited to share their voices to help shape the crucial 2026 Plan and Budget. This participatory opportunity ensures that Regional Council's investments align with the priorities and specific needs of the people across Waterloo Region. More details here. Phase 2 of the ION Light Rail Transit (LRT) into Cambridge. The Region of Waterloo advanced Phase 2 of the ION LRT system this week, with the Sustainability, Infrastructure, and Development Committee voting 15-1 to approve the expansion into Cambridge. The $4.1 billion project will add 17 kilometers of track from Fairway Station in Kitchener to Ainslie Street in downtown Cambridge, reducing travel time to 29 minutes with trains every seven minutes. Regional Arts Funding Applications Now Open. The application process is currently open for the Region of Waterloo's 2025 Arts Funding, which dedicates $265,000 to support individual artists and cultural organizations. This vital funding is being administered through a partnership with MT Space to help strengthen the local cultural economy and creative sector. More details here. Waterloo Library Launches Sensory Support Kits. The Region of Waterloo Library introduced new Sensory Support Kits in partnership with Porchlight Counselling, enhancing accessibility for residents. These curated kits are designed to promote comfort, stress relief, and emotional regulation, supporting individuals with diverse sensory needs, including those with Autism and ADHD. WEATHER π¦οΈ Thu, Nov. 6th | HIGH 6Β° | NIGHT 0Β° | 40% POP π§οΈ Fri, Nov. 7th | HIGH 10Β° | NIGHT 3Β° | 100% POP β οΈ Sat, Nov. 8th | HIGH 7Β° | NIGHT 2Β° | 30% POP π§οΈ Sun, Nov. 9th | HIGH 2Β° | NIGHT -4Β° | 80% POP (chance of our first snowfall this year on Sunday evening) SPORTS Kitchener Rangers π
University Football π
TRAILS AROUND THE REGION Last week I featured some of the 'best' trails to walk/hike on around the region. I also shared the list to a local Reddit page to see if others might find it useful, and there were a ton of great (and new!) responses. You all seemed to really enjoy it last time too, so sharing some of the recommendations below. βrare Trails | Cambridge | Multiple Trails | "We are a community-based land trust and environmental institute dedicated to protecting over 1,500 acres of environmentally sensitive land across Waterloo Region and Wellington County." βMonarch Woods Loop | Kitchener | Easy | 1.6km | 0.5-1hr | Inner-city trail where you can walk alongside Henry Sturm Creek βCambridge to Paris Rail Trail | Cambridge | Moderate | 20.6km | 5.5-6hrs | Popular with bikers and runners - and goes along the Grand River. Lot's of people were saying great things about this one. βGeo-Time Trail | Waterloo | Moderate | 4.2km | 1-1.5hrs | "Nice loop trail with hard surfaces, not many tripping hazards, a few ups and downs but easy. We walked in the morning, no bugs but plenty of birds, butterflies and squirrels. And frogs at the pond!" βDryden Tract | Cambridge | Moderate | 4.3km | 1-1.5hrs | A wooded area with different terrains, that then opens up into a meadow - "Beautiful, and a good mix of hills and flat." βSudden Tract | Cambridge | Easy | 3.1km | 0.5-1hr | This one was recommended and another person literally replied with this: "Shhhh. Keep this one secret. It's my favourite!!" π - gotta be good! βColumbia Forest | Waterloo | Moderate | 3.9km | 1-1.5hrs | "I would add Columbia Forest. Some amazing beech trees there." βStrasburg Creek | Kitchener | Easy | 5.3km | 1.5-2hrs | "Strasburg Woods/Brigadoon Woods is a nice little area for a forest walk too. Not super huge but a lovely forest." ADOPTABLE PET OF THE WEEK Meet Norman! Norman looks like such a sweet cat and I love his orange coat. He's a 5 year old, male domestic shorthair/mix and has been at the shelter since late September. And he also sounds quite friendly and 'easier' to handle. "When he's not busy soaking up pets or showing off his handsome marmalade coat, Norman enjoys finding the coziest sunbeam to nap in, preferably one where he can keep an eye on you. He's got just the right mix of charm and goofiness to keep life bright and full of love! If you've been wishing for a little extra light in your days, Norman is ready to be your glowing, purring ray of sunshine." Tap here to find out more. And there are tons of dogs, cats and other animals that are looking for their forever homes. You can find the adopt page here (there's lots of cats at the moment - and a couple snakes too if that's more your jam). * if you adopt a dog or any pet from these emails, reply and let me know! I'd love to send you a special gift to help get things started QUESTION OF THE WEEK This week's question was: Where's your favourite place to have breakfast in the region, and why/what would you recommend? π³ A couple great answers below, make sure to check them out! "My βgo toβ breakfast spot is Country Girl, Hespeler Road in Cambridge. They have a variety of delicious foods to choose from, the staff are very friendly and the atmosphere is welcoming." - Kim "My favourite place to have breakfast is the Yeti on Eby St in downtown Kitchener, across from the market. The food and coffee are delicious. There are lots of options for big and small appetites and you can bring your vegan friend! All this, and adorable decor." - Suzanne RANDOM FACTS OF THE DAY Australia is wider than the Moon. The Moon's diameter is about 3,474 km, while Australia's width from east to west is about 4,000 km. The word "spaghetti" is the plural form of "spaghetto," which is one single strand of spaghetti. Definitely going to try and get this in my vocabulary as much as possible going forward. There is a jellyfish that is considered biologically immortal. The Turritopsis dohrnii, or immortal jellyfish, can revert back to its juvenile polyp stage after reaching maturity. Not sure if I'd like the sound of that. β THANK YOU! Hope you have an awesome day & we'll see you Monday π β ps. If you've made it this far and enjoyed today's newsletter, I'd like to ask you for a bit of help. If you could please take a minute and share this link - grandriverbuzz.ca/signup - on your favourite social media platform, I'd be so grateful. It helps grow the community and could even be as simple as something like "I've enjoyed reading this local newsletter lately and think some of you might like it too". No pressure, but if you're comfy with it, it would be a big help. INFO STATION:β Had enough of these emails? No hard feelings, sometimes I don't like them either.. just tap this link to unsubscribe. π© Did someone forward you this email? And now you're wondering how to get in on the action? Say less friend, tap here to sign up for yourself: grandriverbuzz.ca/signupβ π Do you have an event, funny story or meme about the region you want to share? Hit reply to this email and let me know what you've got to be featured in an upcoming email! π Have a thought, comment or feedback about the newsletter? Or maybe you just want to tell me a random joke.. whatever it is, I love getting replies and try to respond as often as possible. Reach out whenever you'd like by hitting reply. π’ Think someone you know would love this email? Forward this to them to spread the love. β€οΈ Feeling extra generous and loving? Shout us out on your favourite social media platform using this link: grandriverbuzz.ca/signup - it really helps spread the word! |
Grand River Buzz
The best news and events from around the Waterloo Region. Delivered Monday and Thursday mornings. For free.
December 4th, 2025 Good Afternoon, Waterloo Region! I've said in previous emails that "this newsletter is packed", and I always genuinely thought it was... But this one... is JAM PACKED! There's so much going on around the region and it's fantastic. Great to see such a vibrant community, especially around this time of year. In today's email: a new medical dispatch system for the region Yoko the origin of Ketchup a ton of great, local events the 'GEM of the week' & more Let's dive in π -Ross...
December 1st, 2025 Good Afternoon, Waterloo Region! Here we are in the final month of 2025. (did this year go super fast for anyone else?!) 24 days until Christmas, and a ton of great events happening around the region. There truly is something going on for all ages and interests. In today's email: a must try for eggs benny lovers question of the week are sharks or trees older? a special community highlight & more Let's dive in π -Ross at Grand River Buzz WHAT'S HAPPENING Monday, December 1st...
November 27th, 2025 Good Afternoon, Waterloo Region! How about all this sno... ahh, nevermind, let's talk about something else. Hmmm.. tomorrow is Black Friday! I know for some of you it's all systems go for finding the best deals, while others are putting in noise-cancelling headphones and heading on a long walk. Whatever group you're in... hope you're having the best day and an awesome week so far. We've got lots of fun stuff heading into this weekend, so let's get to it. In today's email:...