Photo: Mrs. Claus

It is unlikely to surprise anyone to learn that the Coronavirus Grinch prevented Santa from dropping by the Jeffery Hale Hospital this year for the HO! HO! HO! Here We Go Again children’s Christmas party that usually takes place in the Coin Soleil. This annual get-together for English-speaking parents and their young children has become a holiday tradition for many families in our community.

Photo: Wikimedia Commons - Public Domain

This street is named in honour of Jovette-Alice Bernier (1900-81), a journalist and writer, born in Saint-Fabien-de-Rimouski. Because of the extensive exposure she received in print media and on the radio, she was often referred to simply as “Jovette.”

Photo: Cassandra Kerwin from QCT archives

Saint Brigid’s Home in Quebec City is currently enduring the worst COVID-19 outbreak in a long-term care facility in the Capitale-Nationale region, according to data provided by the ministry of health on Dec. 13, with 58 total cases among residents and staff and 20 deaths.

Christmas came early, with approval by Health Canada for at least one vaccine against COVID-19. It marked the official start to what will become the largest vaccination campaign in Canadian history.

As a general rule, the first to get the vaccine will be residents of long-term care homes and the health-care professionals who look after them – the groups hit hardest by the pandemic.