The 18 Days of Shawnigan Christmas

It’s the most wonderful time of the year! The campus is sparkling with Christmas lights, students are swapping secret Santa gifts, and winter break is just around the corner. 

 

As my post about Thanksgiving proved, Shawnigan does holidays on a different level, and Christmas is no exception. In fact, as soon as December rolled around, the much-anticipated “18 Days of Christmas” was announced, each day bringing a new activity, counting down to the start of winter break. 

 

To kick things off, Mr. Blair Sturrock, the Events team, my fellow interns, and I lit up the School in Christmas lights. Thousands of bulbs were strung around the main entrance way, from the Stag to the Kaye Gardens, marking the beginning of the festive season. Students gathered on December 1 for the grand light-up, complete with a surprise appearance from Santa and his reindeer (yours truly may or may not have made an appearance in costume…) 

 

On the second day of Christmas, the School held the always-exciting inter-House basketball competition. It was a fierce battle. Kaye’s surprised everyone with an upset win over Renfrew, setting the tone for a competitive evening. Renfrew went on to beat Groves’, Groves’ topped Kaye’s, and Kaye’s wrapped up the event with a win over Strathcona. After what looked to be a three-way tie, Groves’ emerged victorious. On the boys’ side, Lake’s narrowly won over Lonsdale’s, taking the crown. It was certainly a fun, loud night with House pride bursting from every corner of the Sportsplex. 

 

On the third day of Christmas, students wrote cards to one another, spreading the Christmas cheer, while on the fourth, they arrived to class in their coziest PJs. Each student donated a minimum of two dollars to replace their uniforms for pyjamas, in effort to raise money for hurricane relief in Jamaica. 

 

The fifth day of Christmas brought candy grams to the Houses, each with a personalized message from their fellow students. Over 300 candy grams were expertly wrapped and hand-delivered to Houses by the wonderful Sophie L. from Kaye’s. 

 

With the first week of December coming to an end, students put on their best outfits for the exciting Snowfest dance. Throughout the week, students had been taking dance lessons from Mr. Sturrock and Ms. Mariel Solsberg, and inviting each other to go to the dance in creative and memorable ways. 

 

When the night finally arrived, the School looked like it had just stepped out of the movie La La Land. There was something for everyone: a feast of desserts and jazz band at Marion Hall, a dance floor in the courtyard, karaoke in Duke’s, and a quieter space to relax in Mitchell Hall. At the end of the night, students left with smiles on their faces (and very sore feet). 

 

The next morning, students woke up exhausted, but not exhausted enough to miss out on their House outings! Some of the Houses travelled to Victoria to go Christmas shopping, a few went out for dinner, while Samuel House went to Butchart Gardens for yet another light show, where they were wowed with scenes from The Twelve Days of Christmas.  

 

The following week was just as festive. On Monday, students had the opportunity to decorate cookies. Tuesday’s Stag Café featured MCB burgers alongside a Christmas performance. Wednesday saw Prefects spreading cheer by handing out candy canes to staff and students alike. Christmas movies were enjoyed at Duke’s all day on Thursday, while Friday was the U17 Prep ice hockey team’s Teddy Bear Toss game against the Pacific Coast Hockey Academy Sea Devils. Students arrived with stuffed animals in hand, ready to throw them onto the ice after Shawnigan’s first goal. All proceeds and donated bears were given to Victoria General Hospital Child Life Unit, following a wonderful tradition held by many junior and minor pro teams across North America. The week wrapped on Saturday with staff children taking part in the annual Nativity Chapel. 

 

At last, the final week before Winter Break came around, and the holiday spirit showed no signs of slowing down. On Sunday, Houses who hadn't yet gone on their outing headed to Victoria for their own shopping excursions. As Monday rolled around, students and staff added an extra dose of holiday spirit to their outfits for Ugly Sweater Day. From tinsel and lights to sweaters singing Christmas carols, the outfits were sure to be burned into people’s minds well into the New Year. Tuesday brought yet another performance at Stag, where students brave enough could sing for their peers, while sipping on “Melted Olaf’s,” a special menu item at Stag that night, which featured a vanilla milkshake with drops of blue food colouring. 

 

The 17th day of Christmas was the biggest one of all. Classes wrapped up early that day, allowing students to rush back to their Houses to pack their bags and get ready for the Christmas feast. At around 5:40 p.m., the girls’ Houses set off to escort their brother Houses to Marion Hall for a mouth-watering turkey dinner. There, we pulled Christmas crackers, wore paper crowns, and shared where we were going to spend our winter break. Once our stomachs were full, we headed over to the Chapel for a special candlelit service, where we listened to and sang the story of Christmas. 

 

Once our candles were extinguished, students ran back to their Houses for their House Christmas parties. Secret Santa gifts were exchanged, staff gave memorable performances, and students gave thanks to their duty staff, closing the evening on a warm and festive note. 

 

Finally, the 18th day of Christmas arrived. Students were bustling about, double checking their luggage, hugging their friends, and hopping in buses and cars to head back home for a well-earned break. 

 

Merry Christmas, Shawnigan! See you in the New Year!