Posts filed under ‘history’
A Celebration of Black History Month with Maranatha Lutheran Church
Imagine worship with a steel marimba band, organ and guitar. Imagine families gathering at a chapel at Waterloo Lutheran Seminary on the campus of Wilfrid Laurier University for worship and celebration. That, my friends, was the celebration of Black History Month on February 24 2013 with our sister congregation, Maranatha Lutheran Church of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada (ELCIC).
Many other members of the Carribbean community had also come that day to celebrate the annual event with Maranatha. I was there, along with other council members and spouses from St. Philip Lutheran Church, having been invited by the Maranatha council. The Keffer Chapel was full.
Greeters welcomed us into the sanctuary, where the Starlite Band was already playing and people greeting each other. M. Guerra-Francis led in some welcome songs: It’s Me, O Lord; Go Down Moses; and He’s Got the Whole World in His Hands. Our voices were truly warmed up by the time we had sung all three hymns.
Rev. Peter Kuhnert, pastor of Maranatha, opened the service with words of welcome and dialogue on the theme of Faith, Education and Community.
Communion being prepared by Rev Peter Kuhnert and worship assistant
Communion: “All are welcome”
After the service, we went upstairs in the seminary building to a classroom where tables were set up for a meal. Mrs. Bell and Ms. Elaine had catered a full course Caribbean meal that members of Maranatha church served in a buffet line in another classroom. The food was delicious and the conversation around our table was enjoyable.
The afternoon program included music and entertainment, speakers, and greetings from our Member of Provincial Parliament, Peter Braid.
Entertainment by the Cameron Heights Chamber Choir under the leadership of Alan Xaykongsa. Delightful and lively African music that had us clapping or singing along
More Caribbean music, by a member of the Starlite band on guitar, accompanied by Chloe Callender.
Leaders in the Caribbean community of Kitchener-Waterloo spoke on the theme of Faith, Education and Community. Speakers were Marcia Smellie, Edwin Laryea, and Sylma Fletcher.
Pastor Peter Kuhnert gave closing greetings.
I cannot speak for anyone else, but I went home filled with the sights and sounds of that event, remembering new faces and the names connected to them, as well as conversations with others I already knew, … and oh, that African music too.
For more photos of the Black History Month celebration go to LINK Newsmagazine and select the first album.
Photos on this post by the gracious permission of Sylma Fletcher.
Saturday Snapshot–Steckle Farm and Storytelling
In February 2012, I attended the Steckle Farm Family Fun Event as a guest storyteller. Many things were planned: toboganning on the hills around the farm as well as seeing the animals. Only thing, there was little snow last winter. A few days before, we got snow, and those winter events could go ahead. The staff at the farm were delighted.
The sheep came close to the fence so the children could reach out and ruffle their heavy winter coats.
Two small children I happen to know were attracted to the bunnies in the barn.
The miniature ponies in their heavy winter coats
Staff member, Krista, leading the calf from the shelter
Fun on the hills with tobogans and sleds, then hot chocolate afterwards
And me, in between stories, with my coat on. Families kept coming and going at many intervals and the fireplace kept going out. It was so cold outdoors and in the Honey House
The heritage barn, parts of it date back over 100 years
Saturday Snapshot meme hosted by At Home With Books. Post a photo, suitable for all eyes, that you or a family member have taken. Link it to the hosting blog and then go and see all the other photos linked there.
Saturday Snapshot–Celebration of Community
Waterloo Region Museum, a celebration of community and the many people who make up Waterloo Region
The Conestoga Wagon, pulled by horses, brought many people to our community from the USA, Mennonites, and more
Arrival at Pier 21 in Halifax, and then across country to Ontario and other provinces
The Grand Trunk Railway Line. The intersection in the middle of the hallway, but of course the train does not run through that line anymore.
Travelling trunks from many countries around the world
Let’s not forget the Home Children, who were sent here—not by their own choice—but who also make up a section of our community.
People settled here and worked together to build a community with those who were already here.
The Storytelling Series at the Museum, this winter and spring, feature stories of immigrants coming to any part of Canada
This meme hosted by At Home With Books. To participate in the Saturday Snapshot meme post a photo that you (or a friend or family member) have taken, then go to the site and connect with the page by our host, Alyce. Happy Saturday, travelling from one blog to another.
I Love the Christmas Tree
The Christmas tree is just one thing I love about Christmas. The tree can be tall and stately outdoors, the right size for your living room, or even a tiny tree with a few ornaments to bring some décor to a small space. Decorating magazines show themed trees, with everything from angels and shepherds, birds and wildlife to items that have nothing or little to do with the celebration.
One year we attended the Festival of Trees and Lights, created as a fundraiser for a local hospital. Organizations provided the trees and decorated them, then the money raised from bids on the trees went to the hospital in support of their services and programs. Every tree had its own style, its own unique ornaments and garlands and many lights. Each one was a work of art, carefully put together and arranged.
Some years ago, as I marvelled over a friend’s artificial tree in her apartment, I learned that it had no less than 10 strings of lights. It must have taken her hours to put them on, but it was a thing of beauty once completed. Unable to put up a tree of that magnitude these days, she has a much smaller tree with ornamental birds perched on various branches.
If I appreciate the beautifully appointed indoor trees, I still love the real ones outdoors that stand as tall as 25 feet or more, with lights and then snow on their branches.
As I write this post, I must admit that our artificial tree is still in its box, waiting to be assembled. We bought our first artificial tree one year when I contemplated the trees tossed onto the curb after Christmas. It seemed such a waste. That was before I learned how they’re recycled.
The base of our tree is a wooden pole with the makings of a tree top on it, then branches—more wooden poles—with artificial greenery on the ends. They all need to be put in the right order so that it looks like a tree. It’s green and that’s where the resemblance ends, until we decorate it and put on the lights.
A fellow choir member helped me to decorate the tree one December. As we hung ornaments, she commented on our wide assortment of decorations, from store-bought to handmade. Snowmen, snowflakes, Santas, mini creche, cross-stitched pieces and angels. When we had finished, we sat sipping hot chocolate and listening to Christmas carols. She looked over the tree and called it eclectic.
The first Christmas tree is credited to Martin Luther, a German monk and sixteenth century Protestant reformer of the church. Imagine him walking through a forested area, apparently composing his sermon, when he looked around him and saw the natural beauty of snow on the evergreens and looked up to the twinkling stars in the heavens.
He found the scene so moving that he decided to recapture it for his family. It is written on history.com that he erected a tree in the main room of their home and that he attached candles on its branches and lighted them. From that time, German people started a tradition of bringing a tree into their homes and decorating it. If wood was scarce, they’d build pyramids of wood and decorate them with evergreen boughs.
In 1846, someone sketched a picture of Queen Victoria and her German prince, Albert, for the Illustrated London News. In that picture, the royal family stood around a decorated tree, and because the Queen was so popular with her people, what was done in her home would be reproduced in some way in the homes of her subjects in Britain and the New World.
It makes me sad to hear the term holiday tree. Somehow “Rockin’ around the holiday tree” just doesn’t work for me, nor does “Oh holiday tree.” I know that in Canada, we have people of many countries and differing backgrounds, but to me— having grown up with such a tree in our home this time of year— a decorated tree will always be a Christmas tree.
Time to put up our tree!
The Promise of Home by Rose McCormick Brandon
I’ve been reading the blog, The Promise of Home, kept by fellow writer, Rose McCormich Brandon. I remembered a story about a fellow who worked on my grandparents’ farm when my mother was growing up. He too was a home child, and so I shared a story for her collection.
Now I have invited Rose to share her connection and interest in the British Home Children on my blog. Please welcome Rose.
From 1869 to 1930, approximately 100,000 children immigrated to Canada from the United Kingdom. It’s estimated that 11% of the Canadian population traces their roots to one of these British Home Children. As a group, and individually, these children made a huge contribution to our great nation, yet when I spoke to a group of twenty teens recently, not one had heard anything about this segment of our history.
I grew up knowing my grandmother was a home child, but I don’t recall reading about this decades-long movement in any school history books. In May 1912 my grandmother, Grace Griffin Galbraith, and her two siblings, Lillian and Edward, arrived in Canada. Their father died before Grace, the youngest, was born. After their mother Esther remarried, the Griffin children’s stepfather, William Kelly, placed them in one of Britain’s many homes for children. They stayed there until after their mother’s death, then the three were shipped to Canada with 150 other children.
Today, no one would consider sending an 8-year-old to a foreign country to work on a farm, especially one that hadn’t stepped foot in a barn. But this is what happened to my grandmother. The Child Immigration Movement was intended to provide abandoned and orphaned children with opportunities for a better future and a home. The children weren’t so much concerned about their futures as they were about belonging to a family. Some landed in good homes where they were treated like family members. Others, like my grandmother, suffered abuse. She was rescued by an alert minister and a kind neighbour and placed with a good family.
After writing several short stories, some fact, some fictionalized, I decided to write a novel based on the experiences of home children. This novel is in the editing process. While researching, I became fascinated and inspired by how these children coped with loss. Some, like my grandmother, created fanciful stories of a privileged childhood to comfort themselves. Others, like my Uncle Edward (Ted), stayed grounded. He was proud of his heritage and showed steely determination. In his twenties, he wrote, “I go where I jolly well please and I don’t take any dirt from anybody.” A sturdy boy with an aptitude for farming, he stayed with the same family from age 12 to 28. He searched for and found my grandmother Grace. The two then maintained a close relationship. Sadly, Lillian Griffin contracted tuberculosis and died in a sanatorium at age 22.
Grandma Galbraith
Uncle Ted
A large number purposely lost their accents and hid their pasts, even from spouses and children. Many of today’s ancestry buffs are finding out that brave stories told by grandparents and great-grandparents of hopping on ships and sailing to Canada alone aren’t true. They were abandoned, orphaned and destitute children, forced into immigration by a well-meaning system that promised a brighter future than their home countries could provide. Most home children became thankful for their Canadian citizenship, but the road to thankfulness, in most cases, was a rough one.
This year marks the 100th anniversary of my grandmother’s immigration to Canada. In her memory, and to honour the contributions of all home children to our great nation, I started a blog called The Promise of Home (http://littleimmigrants.wordpress.com) that features their stories. Telling their stories elevates their standing in our country’s history.
The stories are written by children, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, and in some cases by unrelated people who have been inspired by a home child. Some stories are heartbreaking and difficult to read. Still, they must be told because telling them brings a measure of purpose to their hardships. Others are heartwarming and tell of siblings reconnecting after years of separation. Next to the stories, the most important feature of the blog is the photos. Dr. Thomas Bernardo, the founder of the most well-known child immigration agency, took pictures of each child who entered one of his homes. Many stories feature photos taken by Bernardo Homes.
A reporter wrote an article for Ontario Farmer about my blog. Through that article, I’ve received several phone calls and an invitation to a church that is celebrating 100 years since its rural congregation of farmers welcomed a group of Bernardo boys. These boys were given an academic and a spiritual education and prospered. I’m always pleased to hear about others who treasure home child stories as I do.
I’m always pleased to receive stories. Email them to me at rosebrandon1@yahoo.ca
Rose Brandon– Little Immigrants
A fellow writer, Rose Brandon, has begun a blog with stories of Little Immigrants. These young immigrants were the Home Children from England, a story dear to her, since her grandmother was one of those children.
Rose asked of The Word Guild writers if anyone had a story to add to her site. My story about Little Joe is posted there. Go and read my story and others and contact Rose if you have a story to share.
Saturday Snapshot-Trunks, Boxes and Baskets
Waterloo Region Museum: Immigrants coming to Canada trunks used trunks, boxes, baskets to bring everything they’d need.
A friend told me once about when she was a child and her family was moving to England that she was allowed to take only one toy.
To participate in the Saturday Snapshot meme post a photo that you (or a friend or family member) have taken. Photos can be old or new, and be of any subject as long as they are clean and appropriate for all eyes to see. At Home With Books.
Saturday Snapshot– Waterloo Region Museum
On the inside of the museum looking out through a floor-to-ceiling window. See how the track goes straight through? The museum is built right over the old rail line, but the steam engine doesn’t run anymore.
A wheel called Hazel, built in 1908 to provide steam power to local manufacturing.
An original Conestoga wagon
For more on the museum, check back in a few days.
To participate in the Saturday Snapshot meme post a photo that you (or a friend or family member) have taken. Photos can be old or new, and be of any subject as long as they are clean and appropriate for all eyes to see. At Home With Books.
Celebrating Stories That Connect Us in Waterloo Region– Part I
Front entrance to Museum, off Homer Watson Boulevard
On November 12, and 13th, Waterloo Region celebrated the grand opening of the new Museum with an opening ceremony and Jazz concert on Saturday and open exhibits to the community on Sunday.
The Museum, new gateway to the Doon Heritage Village, has been long in the planning. Many historical artifacts, now on display for the public to see, have been stored away in a variety of places, waiting for such a building to house them. While the main lobby,, meeting rooms and theatre have been in use for more than a year, the exhibit area opened officially this weekend.
The coloured glass panels on the outside of the building represent the stitching on a quilt, assembling many pieces to make a whole quilt. The colours were selected from quilts to be shown in the museum and the pattern shown here by the front door spell out names of the municipalities of Waterloo Region. Planners put a great deal of thought into the design, but I’ll let you learn more about that on a tour of your own.
“The museum is located at the intersection of two transportation routes that crossed this property in the 19th and 20th centuries,” say the words in the program.
Indeed there is a railway track running straight through the lobby of the museum. In the photo above, you can see the steam engine in the village, and though it looks as though the train might go right on through the building, the engine sits there, quiet and still, and a pane of glass and some distance separates it from the interior.
The track inside is under clear flooring, the steel rails and the wooden ties. One can walk down this track without worry.
Floor-to-ceiling windows allow people in the lobby to see the historic village outside.
On this special opening weekend, a young harpist wows and relaxes us with her music.
Come back in a few days for Part II of my feature on the new Waterloo Region Museum. Until then, go here for more information.
Once Upon a Sandbox–My book is out
After months of writing and editing, submissions, waiting, and more editing, my book is out. Once Upon a Sandbox is a narrative in prose and poety about life on a family farm in the 50s and 60s.
If you’ve grown up in a rural area, you will identify with many of my family’s experiences. If you’ve grown up in a city or a small town, you’ll appreciate the need to work together to get essential chores done. You will laugh at the antics of children and pets, understand the ties of family, as well as learning about the challenges and rewards of living on the land. Come and join me on a voyage of memories.
I’ll post updates here as book signings and events are planned. For more information or to purchase a book, please contact me.
Cover art by Deborah Pryce
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