Fewer Canadians gathered around twinkling Christmas trees to tear open presents with friends and family Saturday as COVID-19 put a damper on festivities for a second straight year, but the holiday spirit still managed to shine through for many.
Public health experts have spent recent weeks urging people to keep their gatherings small and intimate — if they were to go ahead at all — as COVID-19 cases spiked across the country due to the fasts-spreading Omicron variant.
Still, dozens attended a scaled-back noon-hour mass at St. Michael’s Cathedral Basilica in downtown Toronto, where churchgoers wore masks and stood two metres apart.
Bernadette Alexander, who attended with a friend, said the service was particularly moving because she had been worshipping from home for so long.
“We were just saying it’s been almost two years. We’ve been watching mass on TV, but this is the first time we’ve been to mass in person in two years,” Alexander said.
“It was amazing. It was beautiful. It reduced me to tears, actually.”
Froila Fernandes, an international student from India who moved to Canada two months ago, attended the service on her own — her first in this country.
“I found this service so spiritually enriching for me today because it felt like that was something I was lacking over here ever since I moved,” she said.
“Being able to experience this was really heartwarming and so touching for me. I kept kind of crying.”
At Saint Gabriel’s Parish in Toronto, Christmas trees and poinsettias were displayed ahead of a small in-person mass service on Saturday.
A pianist played Christmas tunes that filled the church. Green markers signalled where churchgoers could sit among the pews while being physically distanced.
Christine Odunlami of Toronto said she usually spends holidays south of the border catching up with loved ones, but since she suffers from asthma, she didn’t feel comfortable travelling this year.
“It’s still a little lonely in a sense,” she said. “I’m more accustomed to being around family this time of year.”
Odunlami said celebrations this year included a small Christmas Eve dinner with friends, complete with vaccination checks, and a virtual party over Zoom with other loved ones.
Over in Yarmouth, N.S., Const. Ryan Bell worked his first Christmas shift on Saturday. It was quiet, and he and other officers helped out at the Royal Canadian Legion in the small southwestern Nova Scotia town to distribute food and gifts to members.
“Driving around on the roads here in town, we haven’t seen many vehicles,” Bell said.
“With the pandemic, I think a lot of people are staying home, sticking with their families and enjoying Christmas.”
Few provinces reported new COVID-19 diagnoses on Christmas Day, though Quebec was an exception. It saw 9,206 new cases and four added deaths.
In recent days, many provinces have broken records with their infection counts.
On Christmas Eve, Ontario smashed past the record set a day earlier with 9,571 new cases, while British Columbia announced a new high of 2,144 infections and Manitoba broke its record with 742.
Nunavut, with eight infections in several communities, ordered a full lockdown in the territory on Friday.
Back in Ontario, St. Anthony of Padua Roman Catholic Church in Kincardine handed out free Christmas Day meals in drive-thru fashion in the parking lot like they did in 2020 — as opposed to offering sit-down lunches as was the case before the pandemic.
Organizer Sam Finnie said the church had given out 216 meals by Saturday afternoon. The meals consisted of turkey, potatoes, turnip, stuffing, mixed vegetables, gravy, cranberries and dessert. They were made possible with donations from community members, he said.
It meant a lot to be able to give the meals to those in need as well as people who won’t be celebrating the holidays with their loved ones this year, Finnie said.
Toronto-based Dr. Naheed Dosani said finding alternative ways to celebrate was the responsible thing to do during this phase of the pandemic.
“We have come so far and sacrificed so much that, at this time, a decision to put a hold on holiday get-together plans is the right thing to do.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 25, 2021.
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This story was produced with the financial assistance of the Facebook and Canadian Press News Fellowship.
PORT ALBERNI, B.C. – RCMP say the body of a second person has been found inside their vehicle after a road washed away amid pouring rain on the west coast of Vancouver Island.
Police say two vehicles went into the Sarita River when Bamfield Road washed out on Saturday as an atmospheric river hammered southern B.C.
The body of the other driver was found Sunday.
More coming.
The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
The B.C. Greens say Sonia Furstenau will be staying on as party leader, despite losing her seat in the legislature in Saturday’s provincial election.
The party says in a statement that its two newly elected MLAs, Jeremy Valeriote and Rob Botterell, support Furstenau’s leadership as they “navigate the prospect of having the balance of power in the legislature.”
Neither the NDP led by Premier David Eby nor the B.C. Conservatives led by John Rustad secured a majority in the election, with two recounts set to take place from Oct. 26 to 28.
Eby says in a news conference that while the election outcome is uncertain, it’s “very likely” that the NDP would need the support of others to pass legislation.
He says he reached out to Furstenau on election night to congratulate her on the Greens’ showing.
But he says the Green party has told the NDP they are “not ready yet” for a conversation about a minority government deal.
The Conservatives went from taking less than two per cent of the vote in 2020 to being elected or leading in 45 ridings, two short of a majority and only one behind the NDP.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 22, 2024.
The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
Toronto FC captain Jonathan Osorio is making a difference, 4,175 kilometres away from home.
The 32-year-old Canadian international midfielder, whose parents hail from Colombia, has been working with the Canadian Colombian Children’s Organization, a charity whose goal is to help disadvantaged youth in the South American country.
Osorio has worked behind the scenes, with no fanfare.
Until now, with his benevolence resulting in becoming Toronto FC’s nominee for the Audi Goals Drive Progress Impact Award, which honours an MLS player “who showed outstanding dedication to charitable efforts and serving the community” during the 2024 season.”
Other nominees include Vancouver Whitecaps midfielder Sebastian Berhalter and CF Montreal goalkeeper Jonathan Sirois.
The winner will be announced in late November.
The Canadian Colombian Children’s Organization (CCCO) is run entirely by volunteers like Monica Figueredo and Claudia Soler. Founded in 1991, it received charitable status in 2005.
The charity currently has four projects on the go: two in Medellin and one each in Armenia and Barranquilla.
They include a school, a home for young girls whose parents are addicted to drugs, after-school and weekend programs for children in a disadvantaged neighbourhood, and nutrition and education help for underprivileged youth.
The organization heard about Osorio and was put in contact with him via an intermediary, which led to a lunch meeting. Osorio did his due diligence and soon got back to the charity with his decision.
“It was something that I wanted to be a part of right away,” said Osorio, whose lone regret is that he didn’t get involved sooner.
“I’m fortunate now that to help more now that I could have back then,” he added. “The timing actually worked out for everybody. For the last three years I have donated to their cause and we’ve built a couple of (football) fields in different cities over there in the schools.”
His father visited one of the sites in Armenia close to his hometown.
“He said it was amazing, the kids, how grateful they are to be able to play on any pitch, really,” said Osorio. “But to be playing on a new pitch, they’re just so grateful and so humble.
“It really makes it worth it being part of this organization.”
The collaboration has also made Osorio take stock.
“We’re very fortunate here in Canada, I think, for the most part. Kids get to go to school and have a roof over their head and things like that. In Colombia, it’s not really the same case. My father and his family grew up in tough conditions, so giving back is like giving back to my father.”
Osorio’s help has been a godsend to the charity.
“We were so surprised with how willing he was,” said Soler.
The TFC skipper has helped pay for a football field in Armenia as well as an ambitious sports complex under construction in Barranquilla.
“It’s been great for them,” Figueredo said of the pitch in Armenia. “Because when they go to school, now they have a proper place to train.”
Osorio has also sent videos encouraging the kids to stay active — as well as shipping soccer balls and signed jerseys their way.
“They know more about Jonathan than the other players in Colombia,” Figueredo said. “That’s the funny part. Even though he’s far away, they’ve connected with him.”
“They feel that they have a future, that they can do more,” she added. “Seeing that was really, really great.”
The kids also followed Osorio through the 2022 World Cup and this summer’s Copa America.
Back home, Osorio has also attended the charity’s annual golf tournament, helping raise funds.
A Toronto native, he has long donated four tickets for every TFC home game to the Hospital for Sick Children.
Vancouver’s Berhalter was nominated for his involvement in the Whitecaps’ partnership with B.C. Children’s Hospital while Montreal’s Sirois was chosen for his work with the Montreal Impact Foundation.
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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 21, 2024.
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Here is the latest on the New Brunswick election
New Brunswick Liberals win majority, Susan Holt first woman to lead province
Toronto FC captain Jonathan Osorio making a difference off the pitch as well as on it
Inequality has broad impacts on the health of Montreal children, report finds
Two dead, one missing in B.C. after mudslide, road washout triggered by heavy rain
Premier-designate of New Brunswick, Susan Holt, is first woman to lead the province
