T's/ OnceUponATeaLeaf.com

VOTE In the MUNICIPAL ELECTION today Maple Ridge!

If you value small business make sure to vote Stephenson.

❤️

My own daughter defaced my campaign poster. 👀

Taryn put googly eyes on me in the window at The Nut Coffee Shop - Maple Ridge, BC to make me laugh on election day. It worked 🤣

But I want to say something about the window behind those eyes.

Thank you to The Nut and to every local business that put up one of my posters. I know that isn’t a small thing. You chose to put my name where your customers would see it, and I’m grateful for the trust you’ve shown me.

I’ve spent over 20 years running a business in Maple Ridge. I know the work that goes into opening the doors each morning, and how a break-in, a rising bill or a decision at City Hall can affect everything you’ve worked to build.

Our local businesses are part of what makes Maple Ridge feel like home. They deserve someone at the council table who has lived that work and will speak up for them.

If you haven’t voted yet, please make time today. Look near the bottom of your council ballot for STEPHENSON. The googly eyes won’t be on there.

And T thank you for the laugh, I needed it. ❤️

Mumsy

You know the heart behind our little tea shop. Tomorrow YOU can help bring that heart to City Hall. ❤️

Mumsy has spent nearly 20 years making this community part of our business, supporting local causes, listening across the counter and showing up when people need a hand.

We know Saturdays are busy. Please make voting part of yours. It should only take a few short minutes.

Look near the bottom of your council ballot for STEPHENSON. Let’s get the tea shop lady a seat at the council table.

Tomorrow I’m asking you to save me a seat at the council table.

For 48 years, Maple Ridge has been my home. It’s where I raised my daughter, built businesses and found people who have carried our family through some pretty difficult days.

For nearly 20 years, you’ve walked through our tea shop door and shared pieces of your lives with me ( and at the coffee shop in the mall before that). The new babies. The loss of someone you love. The excitement of opening a business. The worry about whether you can afford to keep it.

Those conversations stay with me and they are a big part of why I put my name on the ballot.

I want you to feel that someone at that table understands what a repair bill, a delayed permit or another increase in household expenses means in your everyday life. Someone who will listen, ask questions and follow through.

I’ve spent years showing up for this community. Tomorrow, I’m asking you to show up for me.

If you’ve been thinking “ gee I sure hope Mumsy gets in,” please turn that hope into a vote. Make a plan to get to the polls and maybe ask a friend to come with you.

And if you’ve already voted thank you. You can still help by sharing this post and telling someone why you believe in me.

Look near the bottom of your council ballot for STEPHENSON and put a check beside my name.

It would mean so much to have your support and it would mean even more to put it to work.

With love and gratitude,
Mumsy ❤️

For every corner of Maple Ridge.

Yesterday I popped into the dollar store and it was FULL of Christmas. Already?

For 20 years we’ve made room to remember before we make room to celebrate.

Our family’s military connections make this personal and here at Once Upon a Tea Leaf Christmas will continue to begin after Remembrance Day.

We know what the holiday season means for a small business. We also know some things matter more to us than getting a head start on sales.

And when it IS time? Oh baby we’re going all in. This year’s ornaments are OUT OF CONTROL!

🎄 CHRISTMAS ON 224TH
November 12: VIP evening
November 13–15: Everyone is invited!

Save the dates. We’ll remember first, then we’ll make a little Christmas magic.

The one thing you can count on from Mumsy and me is that we will never stop showing up for the community we love.

This Saturday we aren’t asking for you to vote a certain way on the big ol Rec Ready Referendum but we are asking for your consideration to show up and vote for a woman who has always shown up for this community even when it wasn’t easy. ❤️

Customers and friends have been asking, “Are you having an election party on Saturday night?”

Well, Taryn and I will be getting dressed up, but we’re heading to the Twinkle in Twilight Gala in support of Maple Ridge/Pitt Meadows Community Services

We’ll be spending the evening with people who put so much heart and hard work into caring for our community. I can’t think of a better place to be.

Supporting the people doing good in Maple Ridge has always been part of my life. Through our tea shop, volunteering and lending a hand wherever I can, I’ve seen how much it matters when we show up for one another.

And showing up matters just as much after the election signs come down.

Whatever Saturday’s results bring, that will continue. Maple Ridge was my home long before my name was on a ballot, and there will still be plenty of work to do and people to support after the votes are counted.

I hope to serve you on Council. And you can count on me to keep showing up. ❤️

Hey Maple Ridge! Let’s pack this fundraiser with fun people who want good things to happen in Maple Ridge! Kiwanis Club of Golden Ears gives so much to the community! ❤️❤️❤️

🪩🎤 THE LEGENDARY ERNIE DAKIN IS IN THE HOUSE! 🎤🪩

Get ready to boogie, because we’re thrilled to announce that the one and only ERNIE DAKIN will be our MC and Bingo Caller for our 70’s Bingo Night! 🕺✨

With Ernie behind the mic, you KNOW it’s going to be a night full of laughs, entertainment and maybe a little disco fever! 🪩

Join the Kiwanis Club of Golden Ears for a groovy night of bingo, prizes and fun, all while raising funds to support our community! 💛

📅 Friday, November 6
📍 Thomas Haney Secondary School, Maple Ridge
⏰ Doors open at 6 PM | Bingo 7–10 PM
🎟️ $36 per person – 10 games and dabber included!
💰 $1,000 Grand Prize
🏆 Best 70’s Costume Prize
🎉 50/50 Draw

🎟️ GET YOUR TICKETS WHILE YOU CAN!

👉 Buy online:
https://kiwanis-club-of-golden-ears.square.site/

💌 Or pay by e-transfer:
[email protected]

Grab your friends, dust off those bell-bottoms and get ready for a night with the legendary Ernie Dakin!

Don’t wait — get your tickets and join the fun! 🕺🪩

T here! Mumsy shared that she is worried that her message might get lost because she isn’t the loudest candidate.

Let’s make sure she has a seat at the table!

I might never be the loudest voice in the room. But I will listen to yours.

Over the years people have shared a lot across our tea shop counter. The happy news, the hard days, the worry about keeping a business open, raising a family or making a pension stretch.

Those conversations stay with me because behind every concern is a person who deserves to be heard.

Maple Ridge has been my home for 48 years. I raised my daughter here, built businesses here and kept showing up through some very difficult days. I care deeply about this community and the people who call it home.

Getting people angry is the easy part. Working through a problem takes listening, asking good questions and staying at the table when the conversation gets difficult. That is the work I’m ready to do.

I want safer neighbourhoods, a stronger local economy and thoughtful growth that considers the people already here and those still to come.

I can’t promise to fix everything. I can promise to do my homework, work respectfully with others and remember that decisions at the council table are felt at kitchen tables across Maple Ridge.

I’m running this campaign on a very modest budget, between serving customers and keeping our small business going. There are people across Maple Ridge I haven’t had the chance to meet yet. You can help me reach them.

If you believe I belong at the council table, please share this post. Tell a neighbour about me. A few words about why you support me would mean so much.

And most of all, please vote. Your encouragement has helped me take this step. Your vote can help me take the next one.

You can vote tomorrow, Saturday, October 10, from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. at the Ridge Meadows Seniors Activity Centre, 12150 224 Street.

Can’t make it tomorrow? You can also vote October 14, 15 or on Election Day, October 17

Please vote STEPHENSON for City Council.

With heart,
Cindy “Mumsy” Stephenson
For Every Corner of Maple Ridge

A full fridge. A warm meal. People to gather around the table with. There is so much to be thankful for, and so much we can share. 🤍

This Thanksgiving, let’s turn some of that gratitude into groceries for our neighbours.

We’re accepting donations for Friends in Need Food Bank at Once Upon a Tea Leaf. If you’re able, bring a donation when you pop in for your tea today or tomorrow.

Every contribution is a little way to look after the community we call home.

We’re closed Sunday and Monday, so please bring your pre-Thanksgiving donations by Saturday, October 10. We will be accepting donations all month long so if you can't make it this weekend we'll catch you next week.

Thank you to Shop Maple Ridge and all of the other participating businesses.

If someone else is roasting the turkey, peeling the potatoes and making room for you at their table, bring them a little something that says, “I’m grateful you saved me a seat.” 🤎

And by a little something we mean the BEST tea. Something lovely to pour with pie, share around the table or tuck away for themselves once the dishes are done.

Pumpkin Spice Black, Thanksgiving Herbal or our limited-edition Autumn Grey? Come in and we’ll help you choose.

POP INTO THE SHOP BEFORE WE CLOSE SATURDAY and get your Thanksgiving sorted!

We’re closed Sunday & Monday for the long weekend. 🍂

Don’t forget to vote on Oct 17th!
💕