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As the winter blues set in for many, a Guelph resident is trying brighten the mood by getting Cambridge residents out and into a social setting.
Georgia Huntley's business, Friends of Friends, is bringing a speed friending event to Farm League Brewing on Feb. 7.
Think speed dating but to find friendships.
Thriving in social settings herself, Huntley started the business to help people connect within the community.
"I'm a connective person," Huntley said.
"My friends are all friends with each other because I brought them together. I just want to make friends myself and have some cool conversations."
After a few months of playing around with the idea, she was planning a clothing swap and decided to make it public. The gathering saw 60 people come out.
The interest caught the attention of Brothers Brewing Company in Guelph, who reached out to Huntley to try and collaborate.
"They were like, hey we noticed people aren't coming to the bar, they aren't as social as they used to be," she said.
"They wanted a conversation style event and I said sure, I'll figure out."
That's how speed-friending came to be.
At each event, four or five people sit at tables that have conversation starter cards in the middle. The small groups and topics are meant to break the ice and make interacting less awkward.
And it's worked.
To date, Huntley's hosted over 20 speed-friending sessions, with the largest attracting more than 85 people.
"Once I had people together, they were like 'we need this,'" she said.
"When people come into the event, they know that other person is there to make a friend. I saw the need."
Huntley acknowledges overcoming the initial barrier of meeting someone new can be difficult but believes everyone is interesting and has a story to tell.
She hopes people that come do so with an open mind and willingness to listen and learn.
"I want people to be more curious," Huntley said.
"We're on autopilot a lot. I think the reason we feel lonely is because we have opportunity to be connected but we're on our phones. People feel better, they feel like they did something or they're a part of something."
The cost to attend is by donation to help cover costs.
Anyone interested in signing up can do so here.