Hi, this is Fred Wallace with ” Off the Wire ”
When it comes to Christmas, there’s no shortage of descriptions for gifts given and gifts received.
Some are BIG….. Some are small….. Some of are needed….. And some are what you really, really, wanted.
Plus, there’s also the Christmas gift that surprises.
You might remember just before Christmas I mentioned to The Great Paul Hill that there was a card and a wrapped package on my desk here at CFOS.
My tradition at Christmas is to only open presents on Christmas Day and so I took the card & parcel and waited til the morning of December 25th, and opened a delightful item from an unexpected source…..
James Masters, the erstwhile photo journalist from The Sun Times, had wrapped up not only the gift, but also a very nice letter that accompanied the package.
The highlight of the letter was the articulation of the powerful connection to the community James felt when taking photographs of significant moments and milestones in and around Owen Sound, Grey & Bruce for the newspaper.
……………..The gift ?
It was a framed photo of Larisa Yurkiw standing at center ice at the Harry Lumley-Bayshore Community Centre prior to an Attack game against Guelph being warmly welcomed back to the city after competing at the 2014 Olympic Games in Russia.
Adding authenticity to James Masters’ photo was the photo cut line from the Sun Times along with a personal message, in a gold marker, from Larisa.
Years ago at an auction at Cobble Beach, I was outbid, easily, by David Black of CIBC Wood Gundy for a signed Larisa Yurkiw framed photo.
I told the auction story to James Masters after seeing his photo of Larisa in the Sun Times and he agreed to get me an enlarged copy.
Six years later, the photo from the Bayshore, framed and personalized, was opened on Christmas Day.
It was worth the wait.
I’m Fred Wallace