The Lincoln and Welland Regiment Association Band is giving back this Christmas season, by providing homeless veterans in the Region with care packages.
“Because we are attached to the regiment in a roundabout way we do see a lot,” says tuba player Julie Barker, in an interview with ThoroldToday. “Without the band members this couldn’t have been because we all understand and link together.”
For the past few months, Barker has been hard at work collecting winter essentials such as hats, gloves, scarves, and toiletries.
“After practice, band members would throw in a toonie and I’d go figure out what we need,” she says. “In October, we did women’s and in November every week we did men’s.”
Barker’s initial goal was to create 25 care packages for men and 25 care packages for women but the campaign just blew up and now there will be plenty more to give.
It is not a coincidence the band has decided to do something for homeless veterans.
Their drum major, retired Sgt. Todd Scotney, started working with Gateway Community Services over a year ago, to help homeless veterans get off the streets.
“They thought with my experience in the military I could be useful to go out there,” Scotney tells ThoroldToday. “We have a homeless problem, which is terrible, but to find out that there are people who have served their country that are out on the street — it’s disturbing to see that.”
When Barker came to Scotney with the idea for the care packages, he felt grateful.
“It’s not an apartment and it’s not housing but at least it’s something,” he says. “They’ve just done a terrific job. I wish I could give them all a medal.”
Staff members from the Niagara Assertive Street Outreach Team at Gateway will now hand out the care packages to those they see in need.
According to Barker, it’s important to honour men and women who have served their country.
“We respect what they’ve done for us,” she says. “We’re so rich that we’ve forgotten what it’s all about. These people have done unimaginable things. There are even members of our band that have been in Afghanistan. It’s very important to give back.”
Band member Karen Dykes, who plays the trumpet, points to the band’s motto: ‘Be bacon.’
“It’s easy for the chicken to give eggs every time but it’s harder for the pig to give parts of himself,” she explains. “We’re going out of our way to help each other. It’s the community that has given to us so that we can represent and give back.”
As for Scotney, he hopes that the care packages will make the holiday season a little more bearable for those who don’t have much.
“Maybe it’ll make someone’s Christmas a little bit different when they have little things like hats and gloves — things we take for granted,” he says.
