With the holidays upon us, I want to send best wishes to everyone.
It truly has been an exceptional year, and we have all had to make such enormous sacrifices. Perhaps one of the most difficult impacts of the pandemic is that in trying to stay safe and healthy, many of us had to give up spending time with our loved ones – and that has been very hard.
Toronto Public Health officials are asking us to limit the number of people we see over the holidays and only spend time with those who live with us.
If you live alone, you should spend time with only one family. That way, you don’t have to be alone for the holidays and you minimize the risk of becoming ill with COVID-19.
We all have heavy hearts knowing we won’t be able to celebrate as we normally would.
But, if we just hold on a little longer, there is hope of better days to come. Hopefully, next year, all of our celebrations will be even more joyous when we can all finally gather together again.
We certainly miss all the smiling, happy faces that usually brighten our programs and enter our doors.
We encourage everyone in our community to stay connected online. If you aren’t comfortable using your computer devices or Zoom, let us help! Through our Seniors Active Living Centre, SPLC has been offering many different programs in various languages to help people get comfortable with technology. You can find information about these sessions on our Programs and Services page.
Our teams have worked creatively to bring virtual programming to seniors as a way to keep everyone connected and active. Throughout the holiday season, there are several virtual celebrations to look forward to, including:
- Dec. 20: Join the Virtual Christmas Celebration in Cantonese. The Scarborough Chinese Baptist Church-Cantonese Gospel Singing Group will be joining us.
- Dec. 30: The SPLC community is invited to join us for a Virtual Holiday Party.
- Jan. 16: Join us for the Virtual Thai Pongal Celebration to honour the harvest festival with an evening of music and dance.
You can find details about all of these event listings on our events page.
If you have not attended a virtual program with us before, you are always welcome! Our community has had great fun together online throughout 2020. The invitation to join us is extended to all seniors who would like to connect with others in a fun and informal way, right from your own homes.
If you need help with connecting to these programs or finding the right one for you, call us at 416-493-3333. Please also read our updated Program and Services page to see what programs are currently available.
On behalf of SPLC, I am sending you all warm wishes for a healthy, happy holiday season.
Diane Duncan
Executive Director
