Carrie Parsons didn’t expect a personal writing project to turn into one of Victoria’s fastest-growing connection engines, but the signs were there, literally.
Long before her Meet a Stranger gatherings started drawing crowds in Fairfield, she was leaving handwritten invitations around town, offering to buy a stranger a cup of coffee in exchange for an hour of conversation.
Halfway through those early chats, she realized the idea wasn’t just working, it was revealing something bigger.
“I was learning so much about myself,” she said. “I really wanted to take this personal project and make it public and let other people learn as much about themselves and others as I’m doing.”
That impulse became Meet a Stranger, which launched in July 2024 and now reliably attracts about 50 people to each gathering. Parsons caps attendance only because the room can’t hold any more.
She can tell you exactly why the demand is there.
“Ninety to 95 per cent of the people who came were introverts,” she said. “They were all saying the exact same thing: I want to connect with strangers. I just feel like I need permission or an invitation to connect.”
Outside of the monthly meetups, Victoria residents can take advantage of a second pathway to connection through a growing network of local coffee shops.
Seven cafes are already on board: Peckish Cafe, Deer & Dough, Ruth & Dean, Breakwater Bistro, Koffi House, North Perk and Bean Around the World.
This program, run through Parsons’ nonprofit West Coast Speaks, uses three simple tools to make that invitation unmistakable: monthly events, buttons scattered around the region and table signs in participating cafes.
“When you walk into this room, everyone is open to conversation,” Parsons said. “No one’s going to turn to you and be like, ‘Go away, weirdo.’ We’re all on the same page.”
The effect, she says, is immediate.
“You remove those labels that divide us, sit down as humans, and every single person finds this beautiful silver thread of commonality. It’s the coolest thing.”
Solo customers can request an Open to Conversation sign with their order and set it on their table, a quiet signal that someone is welcome to join them.
“It really makes my heart happy,” Parsons said. “It’s so beautiful to see businesses volunteering their space for the price of a cup of coffee. Cafes used to be community hubs. Now people buy a coffee just to use the Wi-Fi. We’re trying to bring back that connection.”
Buttons offer another simple invitation.
Of the 10,000 made, more than half have already been handed out, and anyone wearing one is signalling they’re open to a friendly chat.
Parsons isn’t done building.
She’s preparing two new projects for 2026, including a seniors initiative called Tech & Talk.
Inspired by conversations with a 90-year-old friend and her husband, Parsons wants to replace intimidating tech classes with low-pressure discussion.
“Once you fall a little behind with technology, you fall a lot behind,” she said. “So with Tech & Talk, it’ll be a conversation, not a class. Then we all grab a coffee and chat. Totally low pressure.”
Meet a Stranger returns on Dec. 20 and Jan. 17 at the Fairfield Community Centre, and Parsons hopes more cafes will join the table-sign network.
“People are lonely,” she said. “Once you see the problem and the simple, organic solution, you can’t not do it.”