It was a simple visit to a long-term care facility that changed Jill Harrington’s life forever. During that visit, which happened on Christmas Day, Jill noticed that some seniors were sitting or standing outside their rooms. Many were dressed up. She inquired to the staff about what they were doing. The answer she got was heartbreaking.

She was told they were hoping for family or friends to visit. For some, however, those visits would never happen. It broke Jill’s heart knowing some people would be spending this special day on their own. That’s when she came up with the concept for her charity, which she calls Children of Christmas Past.

Here’s how it works. Seniors who are alone or who have a small family and live in a senior’s facility can put their gift wish on a tag and place it on the Christmas tree in their facility.

The tag also includes their name and the name of the facility. Those tags are collected by an army of volunteers who purchase gifts, wrap them, and deliver them to Jill’s Burlington home.

Countless businesses have stepped forward to help with donations, including Union Gas, making the program a huge success.

Jill’s home is the headquarters for the gifts and by the time Christmas rolls around, they’re stocked from floor to ceiling in some rooms. Some days she has come home after work to find 500 to 1,000 gifts piled high on her front porch.

“I never, ever thought it would grow as big as it did,” said Jill.

On Christmas Day, Jill heads out and delivers gifts, traveling around Burlington, Oakville, Georgetown, Welland, Niagara Falls, and beyond. It’s also spread to Orangeville and now many volunteers come to her home to pick up gifts.

Since the charity started in 1999, it has grown from helping a few hundred seniors a year to more than 5,000. An effort of this size requires superb organizing skills, and Jill, who is a single mom, uses a spreadsheet to keep track of the gifts, senior’s names, and facilities where they live.

A few years ago, Jill estimated that more than 80,000 seniors had received gifts since she started. Despite the workload, Jill says the rewards are more than worth it. It comes back to her in the smiles of the seniors as they open their gifts, in the hundreds of dedicated volunteers who come to her house with wrapped presents and in the businesses who have stepped forward.

The outpouring of help she’s had over the years and the army of volunteers who have helped have shown her that people really care.

The kind of gifts that seniors ask for is interesting, said Jill, and, in some cases, speaks to the need. They range from small items like soft tissues, a jar of pickles, diabetic socks and a warm jacket, to more luxury items like spa bathrobes. One of her most interesting gift wishes was for a fedora. Sadly, the fellow who asked for it died before Christmas.

The fact that each gift is personally picked out and wrapped is important to her as she didn’t want just any generic gift. Inside that wrapping, she said, is the message that people care.

“I really wanted them to get exactly what they wanted,” said Jill. “For some, this may be their last Christmas.”

Jill says some of the seniors who have received gifts are among the more than 75,000 elderly people who live in poverty in the GTA area. Many people aren’t aware that the number is that high just as they’re not aware that so many seniors are alone on Christmas Day.

Jill has pulled back from the project this year in order to concentrate on developing an elder abuse prevention program, but she is overseeing the many volunteer groups who are helping, which include mom’s groups in Oakville and Tyandaga.

Thanks to Jill, Christmas still comes to thousands of seniors in the GTA every holiday season.

by Denise Davy

Local Link

The Children of Christmas Past
childrenofchristmaspast.com

We all know someone who, in some way, has served our country. It could be a great-parent, it could be a friend, it could even be yourself. Being a veteran does not stop at the World Wars. Today, there are members of our community volunteering their lives, both locally and overseas, to protect our country, our people, and ensure a future.

There was a brief period of time in World War I and World War II when members of our military were called up to serve our country.However, Canada has a long history of apprehension when it comes to compulsory military service. 

Drafting of our military ended after the Second World War. Beyond that, all men and women who have served and continue to serve our country, choose to enter the Canadian Armed Forces.

Fred Kendall of Oakville is one of those who chose to enroll in our nation’s military. In 1943 at age 16, Fred volunteered himself for the Royal Canadian Air Force. Graduating near the end of World War II, Fred received his wings but was unable to use them. It was at this time President Truman dropped the atom bomb over Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan, resulting in nearly 80,000 deaths and ending World War II.

At 91, Fred continues to serve Canada and marches each and every year in the November 11th Bronte Legion Remembrance Day ceremonies. 

Armistice Day, which was inaugurated in 1919, did not reflect the November 11th we know today. Held in correlation with Thanksgiving, Canadians observed the date with little public demonstration for our veterans. In 1928, some prominent citizens, many of them veterans, pushed for greater recognition and to separate the remembrance of wartime sacrifice from the Thanksgiving holiday.

 In 1931, the Federal government decreed that the newly named Remembrance Day would be held on November 11th, and Thanksgiving would be moved to another day in October.

Every year around our nation, veterans, dignitaries and members of the Canadian public gather to emphasize the memory of fallen soldiers and recall those who served in our nation’s defence.

This year, Remembrance Day takes place on a Sunday, with 2018 marking the 100th anniversary of the end of World War I. The events are expected to be memorable this year, and there are many opportunities to honour our veterans at ceremonies across Oakville and Burlington.  

 Fred says, “this is a piece of history we should never forget. Many men and women gave their lives so we could live our lives today. Attending a ceremony is a small sacrifice to make over their ultimate sacrifice.” 

You can take part in a Remembrance Ceremony at one of these locations: 

Oakville

Bronte Village
November 4, 2018, 10 a.m.
The Royal Canadian Legion parade will proceed west along Lakeshore Road from 79 Jones St. to the Cenotaph for the Ceremony of Remembrance, hosted by the Royal Canadian Legion.

George’s Square Ceremony
November 11, 2018, 11 a.m.
The Veterans Parade will proceed east along Lakeshore Road to Trafalgar Road and north on Trafalgar Road into George’s Square for the Ceremony of Remembrance, hosted by Oakville Legion Branch 114.

Trafalgar Memorial
A Ceremony of Remembrance will take place on November 11, 2018, 11 a.m.

Burlington

Sunrise Remembrance Day Service
November 11, 2018, 9 a.m.
(Spencer Smith Park)
This 30-minute ceremony takes place at the Naval Ships Memorial Monument in Spencer Smith Park.
For more information, contact the
Burl-Oak Veterans at 905-632-3118.

Remembrance Day Parade
November 11, 2019, 10:30 a.m.
The parade starts at Central Public School. Brant to Elgin Street, Elgin to Locust Street, Locust to Ontario Street.

Remembrance Day Service
November 11, 2018, 11 a.m.
(Cenotaph, City Hall (426 Brant St.)) This 45 to 60-minute ceremony is held at the Cenotaph, on the north side of
City Hall. For more information, contact the Royal Canadian Legion Branch 60 at 905-639-6400

On the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month, we remember.

by Anneliese Lawton