Our Story

Friends of Friends was built on a simple, stubborn belief: belonging doesn't happen by accident.

It has to be designed.

We started hosting Speed Friending events in Guelph, low-pressure but with a bit of structure. Over 45 events and a year and a half, something kept happening that we didn't expect: people kept telling us the room itself changed them.

Not just the conversations. The container.

Hundreds of people told us that knowing everyone else was there for the same reason: not to network, not to perform, just to find a friend, that was what let their walls come down. Shared context made it safe and safe it turns out is rare.

We know why.

We don't know our neighbours like we used to.

We've lost faith in institutions. The world feels uncertain in every direction: politically, socially, economically. When the ground beneath you feels unstable, you stop putting yourself out there. You pull in. And quietly, collectively, we've become a society of people who are more connected on screens than across fences.

Doctors have found that being lonely is as bad for your health as smoking 15 cigarettes a day. It raises your risk of heart disease, depression, and dying too soon. Statistics Canada found that 1 in 5 Canadians often or always feels lonely, and those who do are far more likely to rate their mental health as poor.

Connection, it turns out, isn't a nice-to-have. It's as essential as food, sleep, and fresh air and too many people in our community are running low.

So we lifted our heads and looked at what others were doing about it. That's when we found Haley Ingersoll, founder of Pittsburgh's Social Health and the mind behind the Connection Expo. She hosted her first in 2025 to over 400 attendees and the second drew 800.

We reached out and she inspired us to bring it to Guelph.

Guelph is already full of people building belonging: clubs, coaches, programs, and community builders doing great work across our city.

The Connection Expo is a chance to amplify their voices, put them in front of an audience we know has already raised their hand for connection, and show residents just how many opportunities exist for belonging.

We're not okay those loneliness statistics. September 20th is where we start doing something about it — together.