In the Media

By providing job opportunities and affordable housing for newcomers, Jeff Van Gyssel is always looking out for his neighbours After Jeff Van Gyssel said he encountered God, he turned a new leaf from drugs and alcohol 10 years ago and decided to spend the rest of his...

Just Working Construction Inc., a small general contractor in Waterloo, garnered top honours in Ontario for the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board’s (WSIB) Elizabeth Witmer Health and Safety Leadership Award for 2022. It was recognized in part by the WSIB for its...

In the basement of the Waterloo house, four men are working. They’re pouring a concrete floor and installing drywall. Light from large, new windows fills the space. But this is no ordinary renovation. Two of the workers are newcomers to Canada. And the house where...

Bahar ALDeen Bakhash could only stare at the ruins of his home in Syria, the bombed-out walls, the collapsed roof and the artistic plaster work he had done by hand, all reduced to rubble. Through an Arabic interpreter, the Syrian refugee now living in Kitchener said...

As Syrian refugees begin to arrive in Waterloo Region, a local renovation company is doing its part to help newcomers find employment in Canada. Based in New Hamburg, Ont., Just Working Construction was founded last April with an aim to provide employment and on-site...

For many refugees and newcomers to Canada, finding work has proven a challenge. To help meet that need, Jeff Van Gyssel, a carpenter from New Hamburg, Ont., walked away from a good job at a successful construction company to begin Just Working Construction in April...

There was a time when New Hamburg was full of orchards. Every third or fourth house had at least a couple of fruit trees in their backyard, with Courtland, Northern Spy, and McIntosh apples sweetening everyone’s pies. In 1896, watchmaker Leon Gustove Pequegnat owned a...

Jeff Van Gyssel, in alignment with the values of his faith-based construction company, is building Wilmot township's first net zero home, and is making some affordable housing in the process. Wilmot council gave its go ahead for zone change at 407 Fairview Street  in...

Six years ago Jeff and Natalie Van Gyssel purchased a 1,100-square-foot mid-century bungalow on Fairview Street, but even then they knew—with just three bedrooms for them and their four children—it was not enough for their growing family. Nevertheless, they wanted to...

Jeff Van Gyssel wants refugees coming to Waterloo Region to feel like they belong here. The New Hamburg man started his own construction company — Just Working Construction — last April and hopes to be able to provide work for newcomers with some trades experience. "I...

"I knew that if I could share my dreams and my vision with a bank that understood them, they might be able to help me." https://youtu.be/3fWpy1WG79g

Just Working Construction is an Ontario construction management company that offers “credible construction with a social conscience,” according to Jeff Van Gyssel, founder and owner. He and his wife Natalie founded the company in 2015 with the goal of combining two of...