A Nova Scotia woman lost her Christmas ornaments in the wildfires. Crafters replaced them

A Nova Scotia woman whose home burned in a wildfire earlier this year has received a collection of handcrafted ornaments from fellow crafters. 

More than 150 homes burned in a wildfire that started in Upper Tantallon, N.S., just outside Halifax on May 28.

Another 60 homes and structures burned in southwest Nova Scotia in the province's largest wildfire on record. It broke out that same weekend and affected 23,525 hectares.

Linda Alderdice lost her home in Hammonds Plains. Her Christmas ornaments had sentimental value.

"Either I made them or my mother made them or the grandkids made them, or special friends gave them to me," she said. "I found it very difficult to go into the stores and shop for ornaments because it just wasn't the same." 

Alderdice is a member of a sewing group in St. Margarets Bay and president of the Rug Hooking Guild of Nova Scotia. She said she was surprised when friends arrived at her rented townhouse in Bedford with a basket of Christmas ornaments.

Community support

She said the support from family, friends, and the community has been tremendous. 

"That's certainly what has helped us and we are very grateful for that," Alderdice said. 

She said she has plenty to be thankful for this holiday even as she and her husband work through an insurance claim. 

"We're still waiting to work through that process," Alderdice said. "So nothing's definite yet."

Ann Marie Harley, also part of the rug hooking group, was also touched by the wildfires. 

Her daughter's family lives in Upper Tantallon and had to temporarily move into Harley's Falmouth home. Their house was spared, but Harley and members of the guild stepped in to help Alderdice and her husband. 

'Who we are'

"We tend to be a group of people,who share materials, who share ideas, who share spaces. It's kind of what we do and who we are," Harley said. 

Harley said the idea to create Christmas came from a fellow guild member. 

There were also donations of essential goods as well as new materials for rug hooking in the immediate aftermath of the wildfires. 

"She just needed that for therapy," Harley said. "So instead of collecting dishes and that kind of thing, we decided to just make a huge contribution to her rug hooking craft."