Bedtime usually gets all the credit for great storytelling. Then there’s the BGC Ottawa Morning Social, where the best stories are shared before 9 a.m.

They were all brought to life on stage Thursday before a packed audience of 393 community and business leaders at the Taggart Parkes Family Clubhouse on Heatherington Road. They were also told through professionally produced videos that captured the life-changing impact of BGC Ottawa, a local charity that serves 12,000 children and youth each year, including 4,000 young people who regularly walk through its clubhouse doors.

BGC Ottawa runs after-school programs at its four clubhouses, focusing on education, recreation, leadership and social development. It also operates an overnight summer camp near Eganville.

But none of this work happens without the community’s support. Ninety per cent of BGC Ottawa’s funding comes from philanthropy — much of it from the very individuals in the room that morning, along with the broader professional and personal networks they’re working to engage and inspire around the cause. And yesterday’s breakfast brought in more than $430,000 by the end of the day.

From left, long-time BGC Ottawa supporter Rob Ashe at the BGC Ottawa Morning Social alongside Katie Macmillan and Graham Macmillan, whose years of volunteer leadership work with BGC Ottawa earned him the title of director emeritus. Photo by Caroline Phillips

From left, Ottawa business leader Michael Wilson — whose support of BGC Ottawa landed him an Ottawa Philanthropy Award in 2022 — and BGC Ottawa board member Rudi Asseer, CEO of Mindstride Labs, at the Taggart Parkes Family Clubhouse for the annual BGC Ottawa Morning Social breakfast fundraiser. Photo by Caroline Phillips

BGC Ottawa board member and Syntax Strategic CEO Jennifer Stewart (second from right) hosted (from left) Angie MacRae (KOTi 28), Jennifer McGahan (Showroom Furniture + Lighting), lawyer Bree Jamieson-Holloway (Canadian International Trade Tribunal) and Kanata MP Jenna Sudds at the Taggart Parkes Family Foundation for the annual BGC Ottawa Morning Social breakfast fundraiser. Photo by Caroline Phillips

Michael Potter, former CEO of Cognos, and lawyer, strategic advisor and community leader Whitney Fox at the Taggart Parkes Family Clubhouse for the annual BGC Ottawa Morning Social breakfast fundraiser. Photo by Caroline Phillips

From left, Jacqueline Belsito, president of the Senators Community Foundation, alongside BGC Ottawa alum and former board chair Stephen Beckta (Beckta Dining & Wine and Gezellig) and Liza Mrak, executive vice president of Mark Motors Group, at the Taggart Parkes Family Clubhouse for the annual BGC Ottawa Morning Social breakfast fundraiser. Photo by Caroline Phillips

From left, Dennis Laurin, founder and chairman of LAURIN Company, and CLV Group Developments president Oz Drewniak at the Taggart Parkes Family Clubhouse for the annual BGC Ottawa Morning Social breakfast fundraiser. Photo by Caroline Phillips

The breakfast, presented by Mark Motors Group, embraced a Hopes and Dreams theme, with faux fluffy clouds floating above the stage, like something straight out of our childhood imagination. At BGC Ottawa, young members’ aspirations include becoming a pediatric surgeon, professional soccer player, FBI agent, dancer, teacher, engineer and “making my parents proud.”

BGC Ottawa has been part of Adam Joiner’s life since he was a shy nine-year-old kid looking for somewhere to belong, to learn, to be seen. What he found were mentors, friendships and opportunities “that I didn’t even know were possible,” Joiner told the audience, acknowledging that, even six years into his role as CEO of BGC Ottawa, “it still feels like a dream come true.”

Breakfast co-hosts and BGC Ottawa alums Delaila Salem, 18, and Aryan Kumar, 21, brought energy, enthusiasm and the kind of understanding that only comes from lived experience with BGC Ottawa. “For me, it was the first time I really understood what community meant,” said Kumar. “Not just teammates. Not just friends. But people who see you, even when you don’t fully see yourself yet.”

The hosts shared how they became involved with BGC Ottawa when they were young teenagers “just trying to figure things out,” said Salem. “After school, there was always somewhere to go. Someone to talk to. Somewhere to belong. And, over time, it changed what I thought I could achieve.”

They’re both now studying at Carleton University. Salem is in childhood and youth studies while working at BGC Ottawa, and Kumar is finishing his degree in business analytics, as well as coaching the Thunderbolts girls’ basketball team at BGC Ottawa.

BGC Ottawa CEO Adam Joiner on stage with the Morning Social co-hosts Aryan Kumar and Delaila Salem at the Taggart Parkes Family Clubhouse. Photo by Caroline Phillips

The audience heard the stories created by RAE Marketing of Zawadi Kasemire and Noshwan Islam, including the challenges they faced and the role BGC Ottawa played in helping them move forward. Kasemire is now studying public affairs and policy management at Carleton University, while Islam is a first-year political science student at the University of Ottawa.

For Kian Nejad, being up on stage was “surreal.” It felt like only yesterday that he was a kid walking through the doors of a BGC Ottawa clubhouse. Now he’s the head coach of its Thunderbolts basketball team. “I came to BGC Ottawa for basketball, but I stayed here because of the people.”

He spoke about the dreams of many of the team’s players to get recruited to the NBA. “Over time, many realized that path might not happen exactly as they imagined, but that was okay,” said Nejad. “Because basketball became something even bigger. It became motivation, discipline, purpose, and a vehicle to help guide these young men toward post-secondary education and become outstanding members of society.”

He proudly called some of the players to the stage, one by one. One of the best club teams in Ontario last year, the Thunderbolts won seven gold medals and never finished lower than second. They had a record of 91 wins and only seven losses. All the athletes called up on stage are now studying at university.

BGC Ottawa staff, parents and youth, including Noshwan Islam (bottom right), were summoned to the stage after their success stories were shared at BGC Ottawa’s Morning Social, held Thursday, May 14, 2026. Photo by Caroline Phillips

“There’s one moment when I realized this program had truly accomplished its purpose,” said Nejad. “It was our final gathering after years together, the last time this group would stand in the same circle before life pulled everyone toward their next chapter, scattering across the province to chase new dreams and new futures.

“We circled up, and one by one, everyone spoke. And then something unforgettable happened. When the last person finished talking, not a single person mentioned basketball.

“Nobody talked about wins, championships, stats, or highlights. Instead, there were tears. There were stories about brotherhood, family, memories, growth and the love they had for one another.

“At that moment, I looked around the room and realized we had done it.

“What started as a basketball program had become something so much bigger.

“These young men understood that the game was never the most important part. The relationships were. The loyalty was. The people beside you were.”

From left, former BGC Ottawa board member Michael Wilson, co-CEO of 1251 Capital Group, Ottawa firefighter Scott Williams and former BGC Ottawa board member Jock Climie, partner at Emond Harnden Labour & Employment Law, at the Morning Social. Photo by Caroline Phillips

From left, Jamie Petten and her sister Shannon Holbrook, both of Morris and James Interiors, were on the organizing committee for BGC Ottawa’s Morning Social. Photo by Caroline Phillips

Steve Barkhouse (Amsted Design-Build),  Al Pagliarello (Kelly Santini LLP) and Brian Morley (Morley Hoppner) at BGC Ottawa’s Morning Social. Photo by Caroline Phillips

From Mark Motors Group, from left, François Guimont, dealer principal Michael Mrak, Les Mise and John Cimir at BGC Ottawa’s Morning Social, presented by Mark Motors Group. Photo by Caroline Phillips

Former BGC Ottawa board member Gary Zed, founder and CEO of Canada’s Forest Trust, and Julie Taggart, president at Taggart Realty Management, at the Taggart Parkes Family Clubhouse for the annual BGC Ottawa Morning Social breakfast fundraiser. Photo by Caroline Phillips

From left, BGC Ottawa’s director of major gifts and campaigns, Paula Muldoon; board member Jennifer Stewart, founder and CEO of Syntax Strategic; and chief advancement officer Liz Burgess in the Homestead Gymnasium at the Taggart Parkes Family Clubhouse for the annual BGC Ottawa Morning Social breakfast fundraiser. Photo by Caroline Phillips

From left, Reg Southee (BMO Nesbitt Burns), John Bethune, managing vice-president and director of the Ottawa office at BFL Canada, and Steve Parkes, president at Tamarack Homes and Tartan Homes, at the Taggart Parkes Family Clubhouse for the annual BGC Ottawa Morning Social breakfast fundraiser. Photo by Caroline Phillips

From left, Ron Kolbus Clubhouse manager Kim Prescod and BGC Ottawa board member Aisha Sherazi at the Taggart Parkes Family Clubhouse for the annual BGC Ottawa Morning Social breakfast fundraiser. Photo by Caroline Phillips

From left, Devon McCarthy (Sussex Strategy Group) and BGC Ottawa board member Craig Robinson, CEO of Earnscliffe, at the Taggart Parkes Family Clubhouse for the annual BGC Ottawa Morning Social breakfast fundraiser. Photo by Caroline Phillips

From left, Mitch Robinson, managing partner at Sampford Advisors; Mychelle Mollot, chief marketing officer at CrashPlan; and technology mentor, advisor and angel investor Jennifer Francis at the Taggart Parkes Family Clubhouse for the annual BGC Ottawa Morning Social breakfast fundraiser. Photo by Caroline Phillips

From left, BGC Ottawa CEO Adam Joiner, left, watches some of the stories shared via video at the organization’s Morning Social fundraiser held Thursday, May 14, 2026 Photo by Caroline Phillips