It’s Tradition
This annual Yuletide concert may be on hold this year, but the spirit of giving is alive and well
Every year, my friend Debbie stands in line outside the Toronto Star building at One Yonge St. to receive free tickets for one of two Christmas Carol concerts held at St. Paul’s Bloor St. Church. For the past 41 years, this concert has been the largest fundraising event to support the Toronto Star Santa Claus Fund and a long-standing tradition to bring the community together to support children in need within our communities.
With a ticket limit of four per person, Debbie gets back in line a few times in order to distribute tickets to all her friends as part of her Christmas giving.
It’s a two-fold experience, as it allows us to take in the coming together of like-minded people and also gain satisfaction in seeing underprivileged children receive a gift on Christmas morning.
Sadly, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and no large gatherings allowed, this custom will likely be put on hold this year. It’s still Christmas though, and more people than ever are in need. Like many others, I suppose I will mail in my cheque instead of putting my $20 in the collection plate.
A Century-old Event
Joe E. Atkinson (pictured above), a Canadian newspaper founder, editor and activist, was no stranger to childhood poverty and started The Toronto Star Santa Claus Fund in 1906. This concert is no ordinary festive singalong. The gathering embodies the true Christmas spirit with eight choirs, accompanied by the Salvation Army band, and 1,000 people attending each service, all happy to give to those less fortunate.
For me, it’s a chance to experience magic and joy with people whose hearts are open, to feel part of a community.
The carols in the program do not change from year to year. They are the traditional ones that tell
the Nativity story, including Once in Royal David’s City, Away in a Manger, The First Noel, Joy to the World and Good King Wenceslas, with the men singing the part of the King and the women and children the part of the Page, which takes me back to my father’s rich baritone voice singing the King, as my sister accompanied him on the piano. With my father long passed and my sister in Vancouver, it is a poignant memory.
It’s also a cue for Canon Giles, with his red cassock and flowing beard, to remind us all of the simple act of kindness displayed by Joe Atkinson by starting this fund, and that people currently struggling with poverty are in dire need of our help. He cajoles and entreats, “Empty your pockets of loose change, dig deep, forget the politicians on the paper stu,” as he hurls five and ten dollar bills from the pulpit, “We like to see the Queen (50s and 20s).” Then the collection plate is passed. The first time I heard him speak I was a little taken back, now I chuckle.
Going to this service has become a Christmas custom for me and my closest friends, one we treasure.
Touching Memories
During November and December, the Toronto Star publishes stories of readers’ memories. In December 1944, when Joyce Sitarski was eight, her father was injured and out of work. “I was so grateful for what they had given me, when I didn’t have anything.”
Ray Rolfe, now 90, recalls growing up in The Depression and seeing his father take on odd jobs to make ends meet and his mother taking in boarders. Christmas on Collier Street was meager but tempered by the local church that delivered an annual Christmas hamper with a turkey and the special boxes courtesy of The Star Santa Claus Fund. “We looked forward to those boxes. It was a big deal to get an orange all to yourself— those boxes, that was our whole Christmas.” The memory spurs him to send an annual cheque to the fund.
Margarita Mendez, now working in social services, recalls their first winter and Christmas in Canada in 1986 as governmentsponsored refugees fleeing Mexico. Her three-year-old son, Miguel, received warm clothes and a toy girae.
Today’s boxes, like the early 19th-century gift boxes, are designed to bring comfort and joy, a warm hat and mittens, socks, toothbrush and toothpaste, a fleece shirt or sweater, a toy, a book and candy. Families are nominated through social service agencies. For some it brings holiday magic, for others such as kids in trauma adjusting to a new environment, it brings a feeling of normalcy.
For me, connecting with the true meaning of Christmas away from all the hype and materialism is what it’s all about. It’s a time to reflect, be grateful and give back—a Christmas tradition I’ll continue year after year.