Eric Bunnell's People: Sharing the season

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Some Christmas this one’s gonna be.

We’re not even going to have snow. Environment Canada is calling for enough rain Friday and Saturday to wash away whatever may fall Thursday.

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And in this second COVID Christmastime of ours, I totally get Mike Crandall when he posts to the St. Thomas Happenings Facebook page.

“It looks like we are going to have a green Christmas,” he says. “We won’t need to shovel out the driveway for all the family and friends that — if restrictions are followed — won’t be coming over.”

He asks if that’s ironic. I don’t know the answer.

But though I’d happily settle for a lump of coal this Christmas rather than another locked-down Yule, I do know there’s a small reason to pour a hot cider and grab a mincemeat tart.

Prevented for a second year from holding its traditional community Christmas carol-sing at the start of the month, and a candelighted Christmas Eve service, Old St. Thomas Church is again sharing the spirit of the season online.

The historic Anglican church has posted a 20-minute YouTube video featuring a bundled-up brass quartet led by Ken Baldwin (Ken, Julie-Anne Baskette, Paul Poppy, Jeff Stokes), playing all the favourite carols in the sanctuary of the unheated 1824 building.

“All right, here we go!” Ken says, getting things under lively way.

And just in case you’ve forgotten in these foggy times of ours, videographers Catherine and Andre Villar have put up the words, as well.

“You can actually sing along if you want to,” smiles the Rev. Canon Nick Wells, who appears at the top of the video, waving in virtual carollers at the church door.

And why not?

Also featured is soprano Janette Byrne, accompanied by Catherine on old St. Thomas’s old pump organ. It wheezes and bangs right along, as old pump organs do.

Watch Catherine’s careful fingering on the keys, Nick delights. The director of music at St. Hilda’s/St. Luke’s Anglican Church, she skillfully navigates those that don’t work.

It’s all delightfully comforting.

And there is snow.

“The only two days we had snow, Catherine ran out and photographed the inside and the outside of the church to make sure she had snow for the video!”

Click through The Old St. Thomas Church page on Facebook.

‘The gift is in the giving’

The annual carol-sing raises money for the Salvation Army’s Red Kettle campaign.

But though we can’t pass the collection plate online, this year’s video ends by repeating Nick from last year’s.

“Without having the Salvation Army Band here and without the collection that we traditionally give to the Salvation Army Red Kettle campaign, I ask you to give generously – not only to the Salvation Army but to all the worthy causes that we have at this time of year.

“Because the beauty of the gift is in the giving.”

History lesson

Although he will lead Christmas Eve services at St. Peter’s, Tyrconnell (9 p.m.) and Grace Anglican, West Lorne (7 p.m. and livestreaming on Zoom), Nick says it may be a while before the candles are lighted again on Christmas Eve at Old St. Thomas.

He’s a historian who can say from his vantage point, “Looking at the history of pandemics, we have another two to three years before things settle down.”

But taking the long view, Nick says, “We’ll be, on the other side, a much healthier bunch of people.”

Impromptu finish

The rise of the Omicron variant forced a last-minute program change last Sunday at Centre Street Baptist Church, where the second of two Advent concerts this year attracted about four-dozen persons, masked and distanced.

Both the Railway City Brass and the Ukes of Hazzard bowed out of appearances. But after hymnals were passed through the 10 members of a new string ensemble under direction of Wayne Carroll, and Wayne called out the number for Silent Night, the concert continued, with tenor Marcel Van Helden beckoned to return to the stage to solo. (Earlier, he had sung Comfort Ye and Every Valley from Messiah, and O Holy Night after he was welcomed to St. Thomas by MC Steve Peters).

It was impromptu fun to fill out the afternoon. You don’t often get to hear the maestro tell musicians to open things up with “the organ and strings in a free-for-all” for the final verse of Hark, the Herald Angels Sing.

Convened by Wayne, a well-known recitalist and church musician, and by Gerald Vreman, director of music at Centre Street (who joined the Hark free-for-all on the organ, along with soloist Ken Baldwin on trumpet), the two concerts raised $1,200 for the St. Thomas-Elgin Food Bank and the church (on a 75/25 split), with more to come.

“Some people who could not attend are planning to donate,” Wayne says, “so the concerts helped to raise awareness and the need for help.”

That need is very real, food bank director Karen McDade told the concert audience, in thanks for their support.

“Unfortunately, there’s a huge need right now,” she said. “More than ever.”

The afternoon also featured the debut of a new classical trio, with Wayne playing piano, joined by violinist Tyson Moxley and cellist John Wolsley.

The three don’t yet have a name but Wayne said after that with intentions of playing in support of charity, they just may be the St. Francis Trio, honouring St. Francis of Assisi as a saint of charity.

Christmas Care

And as the countdown to Christmas Day continues, the i’s pretty well are dotted and the t’s crossed on this year’s Christmas Care campaign. The last hampers of holiday groceries and gifts for the kiddies were going out the door Wednesday from the organization’s space at Elgin Centre mall.

(The volunteers will return next week to pack things up.)

Pat Connor, a Christmas Care co-ordinator, sums up the 2021 campaign.

“It’s been awesome. Really, really awesome. We were able to reach more people, which is good … and bad.”

Indeed, Christmas Care packed about 1,300 hampers this year for families and individuals — a holiday hug for more than 3,060 people in the community.

It’s all made possible because of the “fantastic” support Christmas Care received from local residents, businesses and industries, and police and firefighters, Pat says.

“They all did a wonderful job.”

And like other long-serving Christmas Care volunteers, Pat already is ready to come back again next year.

“You don’t do it for the sake of it; you do it because you want to do it.

“It’s fun!”

Another SCOR

Regional economic agency SCOR “is working on a release of information in the New Year that could include a photo-op,” Cephas Panschow teases.

But with the brush now cut along the disused and overgrown rail line between St. Thomas and Tillsonburg (and Courtland beyond), and with a crew from Allied Track Systems of Grimsby, Ont., rehabilitating track this week on a small bridge east of Aylmer, it’s not a difficult announcement to guess.

Rail service is about to return to the dormant CNR Cayuga subdivision.

It has been just about a year since Cephas, Tillsonburg’s economic development commissioner, briefed Norfolk County council on the potential for industrial development that SCOR – the South-Central Ontario Region Economic Development Corp. – saw in the line, which CN had applied to abandon.

The agency – a regional partnership of the counties of Brant, Elgin, Middlesex , Norfolk and Oxford – said it held a letter-of-intent from an unnamed shortline operator interested in partnering with all levels of government to reactivate service after an earlier small railway had given up the line.

That interested operator now has been identified as Gio Rail of Welland, Ont., an experienced provider.

And, indeed, Kim Earls, SCOR executive director, recently updated Bayham council on the initiative, saying, “We’ve received positive and strong support from businesses along the line.

“There is certainly an increase in business looking for rail access.”

And there you have it.

Farewell to 2021

Well, I think that’s that for another year.

And what a year! Surely, none of us need reminding of the trials of this first full year of the pandemic.

We’re planning on staying up late Dec. 31 at the house – maybe even past 9 p.m. – to make good and sure that 2021 goes out the door.

Until this corner returns in the new year, here are best wishes for happy holidays. A Merry Christmas and a *better* 2022!

Stay well.

ericbunnellspeople@gmail.com