Christmas kindness
Charlottetown woman looks to spread some seasonal cheer to seniors
Unlike the Grinch, Ashley Feschuk did not need a positive change of heart to grasp the true spirit of Christmas.
The 37-year-old Charlottetown resident has long been a caring soul.
Her kindness was inspired and fueled by her grandmother, Carole Hjorth, who raised Feschuk — and raised her well.
“She always made me think of other people,’’ she says.
“She’s always tried to teach me to see the value in being a compassionate person — being a kind person.’’
Feschuk, who works as a front desk agent at The Holman Grand Hotel in Charlottetown, owns a hobby rescue farm.
How fitting for a person filled with such good will.
Feschuk cares for an old pony that nobody else wanted.
She has bunnies, roosters and chickens as well. She also boards horses.
“I spend most of my time with the animals there,’’ says Feschuk, who is married but does not have any children.
This thoughtful woman got to thinking recently as she made her way to work, driving by a nursing home.
Having lost loved ones over the years, and knowing just how difficult a time Christmas can be for many, she found herself wondering how other people who don’t have loved ones around might feel over the holiday season. Particularly seniors.
So she approached the retirement home Andrews of Charlottetown.
She was told some residents do not get any visitors.
“That, to me, was unacceptable,’’ she says.
“I thought, well, how can I make people feel better during the holidays and comfort people.’’
Her heartfelt brainstorm was to have Christmas cards, each filled with a happy memory of the holiday season, delivered to seniors.
At first, she didn’t expect her special project to get off the ground. She didn’t think Andrews of Charlottetown would share her enthusiasm for the proposal.
They did.
“They told me that some of their seniors don’t get visitors and that this would be really appreciated,’’ she says.
“From there, I just got more excited by the project.’’
Feschuk scooted to the store and bought “a ton’’ of Christmas cards.
She has gotten the ball rolling by putting her own Christmas memories in 12 cards — a different memory in each card.
Her best memory is, as a 10-year-old girl growing up in Vancouver, dancing in The Nutcracker Suite over the holidays.
She reflects fondly, too, on the smell of short bread coming from the oven and childhood excitement sparked by the first snowfall.
She hopes the cards will give seniors a bit of comfort.
“Just give someone a little something that they can kind of hold on to,’’ she notes.
“It’s physical. They can touch it.’’
Kathy Ready, program coordinator with Andrews of Charlottetown, says Feschuk’s Christmas card campaign will hit the mark.
“Just the simplest, smallest acts of kindness with this generation, when you are at this chapter in life, make a huge difference in their day,’’ says Ready.
“Giving the cards will make them feel someone is thinking about them.’’
Ready says Feschuk embodies the true meaning of Christmas by seeking to share a little love.
“Ashley is a sweet, sweet kindhearted person who wanted to make a difference for Christmas,’’ she says.
Getting back to the Grinch, Feschuk is always touched by that old softy’s rethinking of the season when he wonders what if Christmas doesn’t come from a store - what it Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more?
The card project seems destined to make this Christmas mean a little bit more to Feschuk.
“This was just me trying to do something nice and hoping other people would be inspired and maybe want to be a part of it,’’ she says.
“I would hope that maybe this card writing becomes a tradition for people.’’