Leslieville pizza shop receives new patio and fence through efforts of high school students, Build a Dream and MicroPro Sienna

By JOSHUA McGINNIS

Slowhand Sourdough Pizza, an East Toronto pizza restaurant known for its Detroit-style pizza and quality bread, has a brand new patio this summer — thanks to the efforts of MicroPro Sienna, Build a Dream, and students from Westview Centennial Secondary School in North York.

Located at 99 Pape Ave., Slowhand received the free patio, complete with a fence to enclose the eating area, built by students who donated their labour, tools and time. The initiative is part of a broader effort to introduce young people to skilled trades and provide hands-on experience.

Mark Rason, spokesperson for MicroPro Sienna — a brand specializing in treated wood — was on-site Wednesday, May 28, working alongside the students building the patio.

He spoke to Beach Metro Community News about the value of projects like this.

“The Slowhand Sourdough Pizza has an incredible story and started in COVID and everything. We wanted to create a little bit of a private feel that feels really good, and they have a robust social presence as well. So we wanted it to look good, be functional, but also create an excellent opportunity to teach kids within the community as well,” said Rason.

Leading and mentoring the students was Build a Dream, a Canadian non-profit organization that encourages female empowerment in skilled trades through events, programs and career support.

McKenna Goodwin, a Red Seal general carpenter and career support specialist with Build a Dream, emphasized the importance of community building and creating opportunities for young women.

“This event is fantastic. Whether we’re working with one woman or 100 women — here we have four high school girls with us today and that’s still four lives you’re impacting. So it’s a smaller project, but who knows what effect that even an event like this would have on their lives and on their journeys. So we love getting to give back to the community as well, support a small business and put together a really great day.”

Goodwin said that encouraging girls to take an interest in the trades, and believe they could have a career in them, can be a challenge.

“Even in 2025, there’s still the stigma that the skilled trades is a man’s job. So that’s definitely something that we are working hard to prove wrong and trying to empower girls to have the confidence to pursue this.”

Six students from Westview took a day away from class to learn essential skills and work with a variety of tools during Wednesday’s event. Mike Nippard, one of the school’s construction teachers, said the hands-on opportunity gave students exposure they might not get in a traditional classroom.

“We’ve been helping with building a fence for the patio, we did some painting. We were cutting some wood. We’re stripping some wood. A few of the kids got to use the nail gun today, which we don’t have at school. So that’s fantastic. So it was, you know, a learning curve for them today,” said Nippard.

Despite concerns about rain and a tight timeline, the team completed the project in time for the summer season.

Slowhand Sourdough Pizza co-owner Dan Ewing said he was thrilled with the new addition to the restaurant.

“It’s amazing. I mean, a patio for us is certainly great to have in the summertime. When they brought the opportunity to us, I was like — is this real? Is this a scam? What’s going on? They’ve been awesome.”

As the day wrapped up, everyone involved celebrated with some well-earned pizza and valuable new skills to carry into the future.

Below are more photos taken by Joshua McGinnis of Wednesday’s build of the patio and fence.