Celebrating Christmas with Operation Friendship Residents

Feb 4, 2025 | Our Stories

On Thursday, December 5, nine members of the Rotary Club of Edmonton Riverview and family members visited McCauley Lodge to distribute Christmas gifts and serve lunch to residents.

McCauley Lodge is one of five facilities managed by the Operation Friendship Seniors Society, providing accommodation to approximately 300 seniors in the inner city who might otherwise not have access to safe and affordable housing options.

The Riverview Rotary club has had a long relationship Operation Friendship, which was established in 1969 to provide services to improve the quality of life for seniors over 55 years of age who live in the inner city.

For several years, Rotarians sponsored and served three or four meals annually at the McCauley Drop-in Centre. When that facility was closed in 2022, the Riverview Rotary club shifted its attention to McCauley Lodge, where Rotarians serve three or four meals annually, in addition to sponsoring the Christmas party.

“We appreciated that the groups who had supported us at the drop-in centre were adaptable and flexible,” says community relations manager Jimmy Morrison. “We worked with them to find other places where their involvement would have an impact for our seniors.”

Beyond what it does at McCauley Lodge, the club purchases flowers each spring for the gardens and hanging baskets at Pioneer Place, another residential facility operated by Operation Friendship. Members also support Operation Friendship’s annual “Socktober” drive and make donations of clothing, toiletries and housewares to the Community Distribution Centre located in Alliance Manor, where those items are available to Operation Friendship residents and community seniors at no cost.

“It’s important to support seniors who are down on their luck,” says Rotarian Lora Lee Peaslee, who co-ordinates the Riverview Rotary Club’s involvement with OperationFriendship. “It’s a charity that doesn’t receive a lot of attention and doesn’t get much support.”

“Volunteers are the backbone of our agency,” Jimmy says. “Take them away and we could do less.”

A former on-air radio host, Jimmy has been at Operation Friendship for 12 years. Despite receiving offers for positions that would be more lucrative, he chooses to remain in his role as a champion for the agency and an advocate for the seniors it serves.

In 2022, Jimmy was the Riverview Rotary club’s recipient of an integrity award, which is given each year to a non-Rotarian who demonstrates high ethical standards and a commitment to service.

Prior to the December 5 lunch, Rotarians delivered gifts to residents in their rooms. The gift boxes included socks, mitts, hats, scarves (made by Lora Lee), mugs, books, treats, toothbrushes and toothpaste.

The items were either donated by club members or purchased with club funs.

On the Sunday prior to the Christmas party, Rotarians Lindsay Robinson, Paul Dusseault, Paul’s wife Cynthia and Adel Collingwood (the wife of Rotarian Brent) gathered in Lora Lee’s home to pack and wrap 65 gift boxes for the residents.

Gestures such as the gifts from the Rotary Club of Edmonton Riverview are important to the residents of McCauley Lodge, according to Jimmy.

“It’s a difficult time for some residents,” he says. “Many don’t have family. This helps them get through the Christmas season.”

Residents look forward to meals supplied and served by outside groups, such as the Rotary Club of Edmonton Riverview.

“They appreciate having a nice meal, instead of a typical meal, such as soup and a sandwich,” Jimmy says.

Operation Friendship community relations manager Jimmy Morrison in his office at Pioneer Place.

Former Rotary District 5370 Governor Brent Collingwood from the Rotary Club of Edmonton Riverview cleans up after club members served lunch at McCauley Lodge.

Rotary volunteers wrapped 65 gift boxes for the residents of McCauley Lodge. From left to right, Lindsay Robinson, Lora Lee Peaslee, Cynthia Dusseault and Adele Collingwood.