Christmas was always a special time in all the Tomlin/Boult homes and I believe it was because our grandfather was an orphan shipped to Canada as a child and was left out of Christmas celebrations, so as a parent he went overboard to make sure his children never felt as he must have, at Christmas.
My memory happened over several years in the late 1950s. Many of you will remember our elementary school janitor, Joe Jackson, who lived in the school. He collected broken toys and fixed them up for needy children at Christmas. The Elks Club would take the toys along with a food hamper and my dad (Vic Tomlin) and Dr. Art White would put on Santa suits and deliver them on Christmas Eve.
I don’t know if Marlene White knew about this, but that was where her dad was on those nights. Of course the two Santa Clauses always took a bottle of ‘belly warmer’ with them and turned it into an adventure.
There was one family with three little children who’s father could not afford to feed his family but could afford to sit in the pub and play pool all day. So when they were at our house getting ready to leave they flipped a coin to see would deliver the gifts and who would kick his butt. He wasn’t home when they got there so all turned out well.
So Christmas Eve in the late 50s was spent without our dad being home, but we knew he was out making other children happy. The trip to the Indian Reserve was always a special experience and dad would have tears rolling down his checks when he told about these screaming excited children.
In later years the social clubs got together when planning the food hampers and gifts, to eliminate duplication. However, the Elks always looked after the native children. They decided to meet in the old Inkameep school, by the old village above Osoyoos Lake, on the Sunday before Christmas.
Dad would go up early in the morning split wood and build fires in the heaters to make sure the hall was warm when the people arrived. Dad and his brother Allen were Santa Clauses for many events at that time. I remember one Christmas we had no snow so they hired a sky diver to parachute into the airport. He landed behind a van where dad jumped out in his suit, put the parachute on his shoulders and came running out and toward the screaming kids dragging the chute behind him where he performed his Santa duties.
(Memories from 60 years ago – first spotted on Oliver Memories – Facebook)