Local Culture Corner July 2017 Mississauga is a beautiful city in the Canadian province of Ontario. It is situated in the Southern region of the province and lies on the shores of Lake Ontario in the Regional Municipality of Peel. It is part of the Greater Toronto Area or GTA and is west of Toronto. There are 721,599 residents of Mississauga making it the sixth most populous city in Canada. Though a separate municipal concern, Mississauga has long had to exist within the shadow of its larger neighbor Toronto and has since been absorbed into its metropolitan sprawl. It is content to regard itself as part of the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). With a rich history, a thriving economy, diverse population, and gorgeous scenery, Mississauga is a fantastic city that happens to be the home of one of Rand Worldwide’s largest offices with nearly 40 employees, who are all listed below: Local Culture Corner July 2017 IMAGINiT Sales and Services Nick Rizzo - Sales Manager, Eastern Canada Marketing Brent Davies - Account Executive, MSD Don Pecora - Account Executive, ISD/AEC Evelyn Pillai – Director of Marketing, IMAGINiT Al LePine - Account Executive, MSD Kareen Eckersley – Marketing Manager, Ascent Robert Kuh - Account Executive, AEC Leah Harrison – Marketing Specialist Diane Galic – Account Representative, MSD Laurie Elliott – Marketing Specialist Selina Homer – Account Representative, AEC Marvin Ramirez – Contract Renewal Coordinator, US Ascent Sales Government Sharon Boodram - Order Management Emily Xavier - Sales Representative Representative Sadaf Ehsan - Sales Representative Donald Syblis - Order Management Representative Candace Perretta - Customer Advocate Ascent Product Development Joanna Gryszka - Support Specialist, MSD Paul Burden - Director of Product Development Kamni Naidu - Solutions Center Administrator Jennifer MacMillan - Instructional Design Projects Iouri Apanovitch – Sr Technical Training Engineer Manager Alex Karan – Solutions Consultant, MSD Barb Nash - Sr Instructional Designer Imran Bhutta - Sr Applications Expert, MSD Graham Barclay - Jr Technical Writer Gabriel Onyegbule – Applications Expert, AEC Corina Sirb - Jr Technical Editor IT Renu Muthoo - Instructional Designer Lisa Kemp – Technical Writer Matt Buttrill - Director of Business Intelligence and Support Rand 3D Amanda Tkaczyk - Data Integration and Governance Analyst Meghan Foster – Director of Sales Karen Bing - Sales Representative Sanil Chopra - Salesforce Administrator Kyle Gooch - Sales Representative Canossa Armstrong - Sales Representative Human Resources Karen Cabrera - Sales Representative Bruce Markowitz- Sr. HR Business Partner The staff in Mississauga get to celebrate at the office throughout the year. Recently, they enjoyed the summer potluck lunch party. There was plenty of food and games! Staff contributed two full tables of food plus desserts in the kitchen! Everything from pot stickers to pulled pork sandwiches to chicken wings were enjoyed by all. Local Culture Corner July 2017 Everyone broke into teams for an epic Canada Day Family Feud showdown, hosted by Jennifer MacMillan and Paul Burden. Here are the finalists! The Canuckle Mooseheads 150 – “Best Sign”! The Canadian Jay Walkers, Eh! - “Best Costume”! Team Canada, Eh! – “Honourable Mention”! And the winners - Team Canada One!!! All of the finalists together, along with the hosts of the event, Jennifer MacMillan and Paul Burden Local Culture Corner July 2017 A Brief History of Mississauga When the Europeans arrived in the 1600s, both Iroquoian- and Algonquian-speaking peoples already lived in the Credit River Valley area. One of the First Nations groups the French traders found around the Credit River area were the Algonquian Mississauga’s, a tribe originally from the Georgian Bay area. The name "Mississauga" comes from the Anishinaabe word Misi-zaagiing, meaning "[Those at the] Great River-mouth." Toronto Township, consisting of most of present-day Mississauga, was formed in 1805 when officials from York (what is now the City of Toronto) purchased 84,000 acres of land from the Mississauga’s. In January 2010, the Mississauga’s and the Canadian federal government settled a land claim, in which the band of aboriginal people received $145,000,000, as just compensation for their land and lost income. The original villages settled in the area included Lakeview, Clarkson, Cooksville, Dixie, Erindale, Lorne Park, Port Credit, Sheridan and Summerville. By 1974, all of these villages were amalgamated to form the city of Mississauga. Economy Over 60 of the Fortune 500 companies base their global or Canadian head offices in Mississauga. Some of the strongest industries are pharmaceuticals, banking and finance, electronics, IT, aerospace, transportation parts and heavy equipment. International companies such as Microsoft, Hewlett-Packard, Oracle, Ericcson, PepsiCo, Honeywell, Marriott Hotels, Walmart, Kellogg’s, Sara Lee, Mattel, Nissan, DuPont, Wells Fargo, FedEx, UPS, Hershey, GlaxoSmithKline, GE, Whirlpool, Panasonic, Samsung and NetSuite have their Canadian headquarters in the city. The Mississauga skyline boasts many well-known brands! Local Culture Corner July 2017 Sports in Mississauga Being that Mississauga is located in close proximity to Toronto, the locals’ root for Toronto’s Professional Sports Teams. Toronto Blue Jays: Major Toronto Maple Leaves: Toronto Argonauts: Toronto Football Club Toronto Raptors: League Baseball National Hockey League Canadian Football (Professional Soccer) National Basketball League Association Mississauga has their own junior ice hockey team in the Ontario Hockey League called the Mississauga Steelheads. Fun Things to do in Mississauga Celebration Square Adjacent to Mississauga City Hall in the heart of downtown Mississauga, Celebration Square is an outdoor public square and state-of-the-art multi-media event venue complete with a permanent main stage amphitheater. There is also an interactive water feature in the summer months that transforms every winter into Mississauga’s largest outdoor skating rink. Celebration Square hosts a dynamic mix of free events and festivals throughout the year. The summer season offers an eclectic variety of events, including weekly movie nights and fitness classes, concerts, a Canada Day Celebration, food truck rallies, festivals and much more. Celebration Square as a skating rink in the winter. New Year’s Eve fireworks at Celebration Square People are gathering for a movie night in Celebration Square. Local Culture Corner July 2017 Multi-culturalism and festivals Like Canada, Mississauga is a testament of a rich multi-cultural society. Mississauga's largest festivities such as Canada Day Celebration, Ribfest, Tree Lighting Ceremony, and New Years' Eve Bash generally occur in Celebration Square. One of the most anticipated events in the city is Carassauga, a festival of cultures that occurs annually during mid-May. Carassauga displays the different cultures around the world by setting up pavilions for countries around Mississauga. Visitors get free public transportation with their ticket to tour the city and explore the different pavilions. Various countries showcase their culture through food stalls, dance performances and small vendors. There are also culture-specific festivals held throughout the year in Celebration Square, including Fiesta Ng Kalayaan for the Philippines, Viet Summerfest for Vietnam, Muslimfest for the city's Muslim community, and Mosaic Festival, which is the largest South Asian multi-disciplinary arts festival in North America. Carassauga multi-cultural festival in Celebration Square Port Credit Just a short drive from the office and situated right on the shore of Lake Ontario, one neighborhood that is a must see in Mississauga is Port Credit, especially in the summer. Whether you’re into charting a boat for salmon fishing, jogging, walking or cycling on the beautiful lakefront trail, dragon boat racing, wining and dining at one of the 60 restaurants along Lakeshore Road, or browsing in some of the 400 shops, Port Credit is a great place to experience. You can find street performances on multiple venues scattered throughout the former town during Buskerfest, the Mississauga Waterfront Festival, and Southside Shuffle celebrating the town's Blues and Jazz Festival. Musicians perform during Port Credit’s Southside Shuffle celebrating the towns Blues and Jazz festival Local Culture Corner July 2017 Climate in Mississauga If planning to visit Mississauga or to attend one of their many outdoor festivals, it is important to know when the best time of year to plan your trip is. Here are some pointers: The months May, June, July, August and September have nice weather with a good average temperature. On average, the warmest month is July. On average, the coolest month is January. July is the wettest month. This month should be avoided if you don't like too much rain. October is the driest month. Here are the average temperatures throughout the year in Mississauga: Fahrenheit Celsius Average Annual Precipitation in Millimeters .