It’s a striking sight that has caught the attention of community members and left some with questions, including about possible connections to last winter’s Freedom Convoy. A team manager has flatly denied any connection to the protest that shut down part of downtown Ottawa for three weeks last winter, saying it is unrelated to the march and anyone who says otherwise is spreading misinformation. But one of the agency’s managers shared posts about the escort on social media, and a second described herself as an adviser to Dwayne Lich, husband of escort leader Tamara Lich, during her parole process. Sylvie Bigras, president of the Lowertown Community Association, said it is not easy to get clear answers about the group that started working from the former Catholic church on the streets of St. Patrick and Cumberland. “Their messages are very vague about who they are and what their goals are.”

Group calls The Embassy building

The logo of the tree hanging in St. Brigid’s represents The United People of Canada (TUPC), which describes itself online as a “diverse, intergenerational fraternal organization.” Posts on social media refer to the building as the Embassy. The team advertises weekly barbecues as a chance to see what they’re up to. When the CBC visited on Sunday, about 10 people were present, including several wearing hats with the TUPC logo. William Komer, director of the board, said the organization was formed this year and began looking at acquiring St. Brigid’s in recent months to adapt it into a community event space where everyone is welcome to “dialogue”. “There needs to be a lot of healing in our communities,” he said, adding that he wants to create a site where people can come together to discuss issues, whether they agree or not. Komer proposed a model where people could use a key fob to access a co-working space, visit a coffee shop, or even access the site as a “24/7 secure community space.” Red banners with The United People of Canada logo hang in St. Brigid’s. A team manager says it is in the process of acquiring the building. (Dan Taekema/CBC) “We’re in a due diligence process right now with the current owners,” he said when asked about the building’s status. “It’s under a contract of sale.” An online real estate listing for the address at 310 St. Patrick St., was still active as of Monday morning, with an asking price of $5,950,000. Land registry documents show that a numbered company traced back to Patrick MacDonald, one of the investors who bought the church after it was deconsecrated in 2007, still owns the property. The CBC has tried to contact McDonald since Friday, but he has not responded. Asked where the agency found funds for a purchase of this size, Komer said the primary source of funding is through community bonds and added that more information will be shared online later. TUPC’s website also offers visitors the chance to donate or purchase a range of products bearing the organization’s logo, from $45 water bottles and hats to $250 high-top sneakers. We are also not Nazis, racists, misogynists or anything else.- William Komer, The United People of Canada “Some people have speculated, ‘Oh, some Freedom Convoy funds used to buy a building here?’ I can say for a fact that’s not the case,” Comer said. “I don’t know what happened or what didn’t happen with … those things, but it’s totally funds that we raise privately through community rates.” The largest contributor so far gave because of “the good work we do in the community,” Komer said, but he declined to say more about them because he hadn’t talked to donors about sharing their names with the media. “I wouldn’t feel comfortable right now talking about who they are, given the hate being spewed about our organization right now.”

Commenters on Reddit and Facebook have raised questions about the organization online. Komer said some have gone even further than suggesting a connection to the convoy. “We are also not Nazis, racists, misogynists or anything else that is slanderous, slanderous writing on the Internet, which we understand is both a civil and potentially criminal offense for individuals.” Comer said the organization has retained legal counsel who are ready to step in if necessary. I would say at this point our community here in Lowertown is concerned and trying to get more information.- Sylvie Bigras, Lowertown Community Association Corporate filings for TUPC show it was incorporated as a nonprofit on March 24 and lists three directors: Komer, Kimberly Ward and Diane Nolan. In a video posted March 7, after Freedom Convoy leader Tamara Lich’s hearing, a woman who identified herself as Kimberly Ward described herself as an adviser to Dwayne Lich, Tamara Lich’s husband. “This is just the beginning of something that is so beautiful for Canada,” he says in the video, asking people to pray for the couple. “Know that they stood up for most of us.” Komer confirmed that the woman in the video is the same Kimberly Ward who sits on TUPC’s board of directors. Posts shared on Nolan’s Facebook page include several related to the Freedom Convoy and the movement it inspired, such as the Canadian Convoy Rally Song. Diane Nolan, one of the directors of The United People of Canada, has shared several posts about the procession on Facebook. (Diane Nolan/Facebook) Asked about those posts and how some might see Nolan sharing them as being connected to TUPC with the protest, Komer said he disagreed. “Whether or not someone personally supports something doesn’t mean an organization is associated with that thing,” he said. “To draw that conclusion would be inappropriate and to make such a statement would be false in this case.”

Nolan also shared information about TUPC and construction photos of his equipment first published by Dwayne Lich. Photos of Dwayne wearing a TUPC hoodie, including two of him posing with his wife, can be seen on his Facebook page, along with images in St. Brigid’s and inside St. This photo posted by Dwayne Lich on Facebook shows him wearing a hoodie with The United People of Canada logo while standing next to his wife, Tamara Lich. (Dwayne Lich/Facebook) During a parole hearing for Tamara Lich in February, her husband told the court he doesn’t believe in lockouts, but also said he sees nothing wrong with protesting being equated with a major traffic jam or parked cars in a blizzard . “I don’t see any guns. I don’t see anything criminal as far as I can see,” Dwayne Lich said at the time, also questioning whether the state of emergency law was legally implemented. Asked about Dwayne Lich’s role with TUPC, Komer said he believes the connection between Tamara Lich’s activities with the escort and her husband’s connection to the organization may be “marital status discrimination.” “I’m not aware that this person who happens to be married to Tamara Lich has ever supported the Freedom Convoy, not to my knowledge,” he said. Comer said he was in Ottawa himself during the march as part of a documentary crew, adding that what he saw during the protest differed from the public narrative. While people said the convoy was “besieging” Ottawa, “in my personal opinion maybe … the convoy was besieged by others,” Comer said. Asked if he considers himself a convoy and supporter of the freedom movement, Comer did not answer directly. He said he believes people should be able to have a conversation about the COVID-19 mandates and mandatory vaccinations, but he doesn’t think the best place for the conversation is on the streets of Ottawa. “I think a building like this might be a better place for it, right?” he said pointing to St. Bridges.

The community is “worried”, trying to find out more

Rideau-Vanier Coun. Mathieu Fleury said the situation showed the “danger” of putting a privately owned heritage property with close community ties on the market. The wounds left by the convoy in Lowertown and the ByWard Market are “fresh,” he added, and he said he’s seen the “concerned” questions about TUPC they’ve generated on social media. A banner with the logo for The United People of Canada is inside the St. Brigid’s, a former Catholic church on St. Patrick in Ottawa. (Dan Taekema/CBC) Bigras, the community association president, said her staff is on “a fact-finding mission” about the group and its plans. Those efforts included talking to the police and Fleury’s office. A vice president of the association also visited the building on Sunday, but no one was there, he said. The church is a beautiful property and the club would love to see it occupied, but it’s a “wait and see” situation now, according to Bigras. “I would say at this point our community here in Lowertown is concerned and trying to get more information.” Ottawa Morning8:14 Community Concerns New Church Owners’ Connections to Convoy Protests An organization called The United People of Canada says it plans to turn St. Brigid’s in downtown Ottawa in a community center where everyone is welcome.