The Burnaby NOW recently took a stroll through Lougheed Town Centre, looking for people to share their memories of the holiday season with our readers.
Thankfully, these shoppers took time away from their busy day to share their favourite Christmas memory.
LILLIAN LUM:
"I still remember my dad going out to get a real tree and putting it up for the three of us. (Lum is a middle child). My parents were immigrants to Canada and my dad said they wanted to do the Canadian thing and that was a pretty Canadian thing for him, putting up a real Christmas tree. - Funny thing is now, with my two kids, we have an artificial tree."
JOE KRAJNYAK:
"When the kids were growing up, we got an electric train for them. It was on a 4X8 piece of plywood, totally electric with all the switches and our three boys loved it. - They all loved those trains."
OLIVIA OSSAI:
"My favourite Christmas memory was when I was living in Terrace and my husband bought me a bike. He didn't want me to see it so he hid it at a friend's place down the road. On Christmas, he got the bike and hid it behind the tree and in the morning, I was totally surprised when I saw it there. - How often do you as an adult get a huge smile when you get a gift you really wanted?"
JIM TILLEY:
"I haven't celebrated Christmas for the past eight years. The kids are gone so we head south to Parker, Arizona and we're there for three months. Hopefully, I'll be on the golf course on Christmas day.
"My other favourite Christmas memory is in 1996 when we drove to visit our daughter, sonin-law and grandchildren in Ontario. - It was a smooth trip and it was great to be all together for Christmas."
ROD HIEBERT:
"Getting a train set when I was six years old was pretty cool. It was an electric train and I remember how much fun it was. - I don't even know if kids get train sets like us old guys do now. I just remember that with my train set, the biggest thing was my dad and uncle were playing with the trains all the time."
DAVE PRICE:
"I have so many, but maybe the best is the first one I ever spent with my wife Bonnie. We'll be married 40 years next April, but that first one was pretty good because it was all so new and different. It was our first Christmas together, and she set up the tree. It was small, but it really felt like it was ours. - Now, the family's all spread out and the kids are all grown up and we've got an eight-foot tree, but that first one is the one I'll remember."
RAY SARANCHUK:
"I live in Coquitlam, at 646 Claremont St., and I've been doing a big display there for about 20 years. I run it from Dec. 1 to Jan. 7 to mark the Ukrainian Christmas, and it's got about 7,000 to 8,000 lights.
"My favourite memory is taking my grandchildren through the display. Kylie's three and James and Ethan are two and everything's fenced off, but I took them in and let them walk through it and they got really excited.
"Their eyes got so big seeing all the lights and cords and everything up close."
(People can still come see Saranchuk's light display - he is taking donations for the Knights of Columbus.)
BOB ARSENAULT:
"I'm retired from B.C. Tel, and this goes back to when I was working there and they had just taken over or merged with Clearnet. After that deal, we were able to get a great deal on phones so with our two kids, son Jeff and daughter Sandy, we wrapped them up their first cellphones in a box for each of them and tied them up with a bow. -
"This was also the time when cordless phones in the house were big. Jeff gets his bow off pretty quick and when he opened the box, he was expecting a cordless phone and there was a cellphone instead. Sandy can't get her bow undone and she's getting a bit frantic, but she got it opened, and both kids had their first cellphones."
MARY MORICE:
"My favourite was when I was a kid, living on the North Shore and we just had a gorgeous snowfall. My mom called in sick for work, and she called in sick for the four of us kids, and we went up to Cypress, where we cut our own trail and went cross-country (skiing).This was before they groomed the trails, and we had all the equipment so we just went up there and made our way. - Our dad actually went to work that day, and he was able to ski down to work.- I think my mom decided to call in sick after he'd left for work."
STEVE KENT:
"My best one was three years ago when my wife Mary, son Bryan and daughter Lisa, along with their significant others, all went to Disneyland together.
"We also went to San Diego, Universal Studios and a lot of stuff in Southern California.
"It was really nice how they do all the lights there. ... My son's girlfriend at the time, it was her first time to Disneyland, and she planned for weeks beforehand."
