Our Mission…
For many of us, Christmas time means a holiday off school and work; a perfect time to relax and enjoy good music, food, and prepare for the new year. However, each year in most major cities around the world, hundreds of people are living on the streets without adequate food, clothing, shelter and hope. Our goal is to share with the homeless some love, hope, items, and hopefully some
fun as well during this festive time of the year. It will be a great opportunity for us to talk with them and spread the true meaning and joy of Christmas. We believe that our events will not only provide hope, happiness, and a memorable experience for the homeless, but will also allow us to understand more about their circumstances and provide them with possible assistance. Story…
In the autumn of 2007, founders Edward Choi and Roy Wong was having dinner at a London, Ontario restaurant one Tuesday evening where the idea of an event to spread the joy of Christmas to those in need came up. During prior years, both individuals have encountered homeless people while travelling across several cities in Ontario. It was believed that providing them with food, clothing, other essentials and understanding their needs would better serve the homeless than to provide monetary donations alone. They decided to approach the local university fellowships, the Asian Christian Fellowship (ACF) at the University of Western Ontario and the Laurier Chinese Christian Fellowship (LCCF) at Wilfrid Laurier University for support. Both university fellowships supported this idea. The first C.O.A. presentation was made at the ACF Christmas party and electronic correspondence was sent to LCCF. During the first annual C.O.A. in 2007, we had 7 volunteers who actively handed out 80 gift bags to the homeless on the streets of downtown Toronto. Various organizations partnered with us throughout the years, including ACF, LCCF, the University of Toronto Chinese Christian Fellowship and Logos Baptist Church (Markham ON). Having expanded to 54 volunteers in 2010 was an impressive growth. Regardless of whether the event continues to expand, our goal is clear: to provide the joy and happiness to those in need. Whether you are a volunteer, donor, partnering organization representative, or simply want to learn more about Christmas Once Again, we thank you for writing part of the C.O.A. story… To be continued…
