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Cards for Soldiers program continues momentum into holiday season

November 12, 2026   ·   0 Comments

Dianne Harrison, an Aurora resident who has been galvanizing residents for more than 20 years to take a few minutes every year to write a Christmas card to a member of the Canadian Armed Forces serving at home or abroad, is always looking for new businesses, organizations, and even communities to join the cause.

When she and her husband Brian recently approached a local retirement home to house a drop box for card-writers to leave their messages for pickup, she didn’t even need to explain how important it is for personnel to receive words of support when they are away from home in what is already often a lonely time of year.

The receptionist, said Harrison, has a son deployed overseas.

That may have been enough of an inroad, but her son was also deployed around this time last year as well and, come Christmas, was thrilled to open up a box with well-wishes from his hometown of Aurora.

As the Harrisons and area community groups, particularly the Optimist Club of Aurora, make the rounds distributing blank cards and collecting completed messages this year, they are already well on their way of reaching their goal of 10,000 cards.

This was a goal they held last year – and handily surpassed with a total of 12,400 – so while it might not be the most ambitious goal when viewed through that lens, each card received is a blessing as far as Harrison is concerned.

“Last year, we were overwhelmed when we hit 12,400 and that just boggled our minds,” Harrison told The Auroran on Friday after receiving a donation earlier in the day of a whopping 2,100 cards completed by the residents of the Meadows of Aurora retirement community. “If we hit 10,000 this year, that would be great, but even if we don’t, whatever we receive will be a blessing to the soldiers that receive them.

“A card means they care. The bottom line is they care. They want our soldiers to know that back home – we want them back home safely with their families. A lot of them probably have had family members that have been in the military and they know what military families go through when their loved ones are not with them.”

That is at the core of how the Christmas Card campaign began.

It was initially spearheaded by the late Vhonda Harper, whose son Nicholas was serving at the time. Harper died 21 years ago, and the Harrisons took over the initiative from her, maintaining Harper’s momentum.

The momentum has only grown with each passing year.

“I think she would be overwhelmed and she would be thrilled,” says Harrison when asked what Vhonda might think to see where her initiative is today. “She was a very confident lady and I can just see her thrilled that this was continuing to honour the military.”

Joining the drive this year are a number of local schools, including those in the York Catholic District School Board, additional schools in Caledon – with a local drop box in the offices of the Caledon Citizen at 30 Martha Street in Bolton – as well as Aurora-based business The Glitter Hub, which has donated a number of hand-made cards to the cause.

Last year’s overwhelming response was distributed to members of the Canadian Forces serving in just about every part of the world, including Latvia, Norway, and Israel, as well as scores of Canadian bases. This year, cards will be distributed through CFB Trenton once again and it is hoped that a number of messages will be received at CFB Wainwright, which is still recovering from a devastating October fire which killed four service personnel and seriously injured dozens more.

“They’ve got to know that we care about what happened out there,” says Harrison of the Alberta tragedy. “It’s very difficult to have your family away at Christmastime or even at any time of the year. When children do the cards, people might say, ‘Oh, I’ve only got a three- or four-year old at home,’ but how do you know a card received overseas by a [soldier] doesn’t have a three- or four-year-old at home? That card will touch their heart.”

When you’ve completed your card, place it in a sealed envelope marked “To a Canadian Soldier.”

Those completing their cards are encouraged to include their home, school, or church address on the envelope, along with their email addresses, should soldiers choose to respond.

No postage is required.

Cards will be collected through November 25 at several locations throughout the community, including The Aurora Legion, Aurora’s Royal Rose Gallery, the office of Newmarket-Aurora MPP Dawn Gallagher Murphy, and the office of the Caledon Citizen, noted above.

For further information on the card initiative, contact Dianne and Brian Harrison at bdharrison2012@gmail.com.

By Brock Weir
Editor
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

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