The editorial staff at the Williams Lake Tribune wishes all of our readers a very merry Christmas.
By the time this Dec. 24 edition is in your hands, we will have completed nine months of the COVID-19 pandemic precautions being enforced.
Are you ready to give birth yet?
Christmas in 2020 is much different than most.
We cannot gather in groups. We did not attend any Christmas concerts, markets and parties in the days leading up to Dec. 25. If we follow Dr. Bonnie Henry’s guidelines we won’t be getting together for big dinners with friends and family over the holiday either.
Local businesses have adapted to restrictions and our city has provided supplies to help those businesses maintain physical distancing and hand sanitizing precautions.
Williams Lake has not let the pandemic hamper its generosity and shown how great a community we have.
Even when the Cariboo Chilcotin Child Development Centre’s wish breakfast was cancelled, locals donated 1,242 gifts for children in need.
Efforts to provide gifts to seniors also received overwhelming responses.
Read more: Seniors Christmas Drive launched at Tourism Discovery Centre
As of Monday, Dec. 21, the Salvation Army said so far $52,000 had been donated toward the kettle campaign’s $72,000 goal. Corps captains Sergii and Tatiana Kachanov said one evening in December $30,000 in anonymous donations were dropped off.
Thank you people of the Cariboo Chilcotin for digging into your pockets to make sure others experience some joy or at least receive the basic necessities.
Our office will be closed from Dec. 24 through Dec. 27 as we take time to be with our families.
To all the people who will be working or volunteering on Christmas Eve through Boxing Day, including our frontline workers, please know we see you and appreciate your sacrifices.
We’ve got a bit of snow on the ground as we write this, but it’s too early to predict what we will have on Christmas Day. Nevertheless, make sure to get outside and enjoy the fresh air. Smile from behind your mask whenever you see others and don’t hesitate to pick up the phone and call someone who is housebound to make sure they are OK.
In the words of Dr. Henry, be kind, be calm, be safe. The novel coronavirus curve has not been drastic in the Cariboo Chilcotin. Let’s hope we can keep it that way.
Read more: VIDEO: Our 8 favourite COVID-19 catch phrases of 2020
news@wltribune.com
Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter