Register your home in the Oceanside Light Tour and brighten up others' holiday season.
The tour is being started this year by Penny McGuire, a volunteer at the Kathok Meditation Centre, a Buddhist Centre in Coombs. She said her and others at the centre lit up the three-tiered temple as a light offering to remind people to look on the bright side, and wanted to share it with others.
"We wanted to include it in the local light tour, so I started investigating and couldn't find one — so we made one."
People can donate any amount to the centre in Coombs (minimum $20 to receive a tax donation receipt) to register their home and then people can view the addresses on a map online for free, showing all the registered homes in the region, or view them on Facebook. People can vote for their favourite by liking them on Facebook and the winner will get a luxury light tour with VI limousines in their stretched limo.
McGuire said a common thread to easing physical and mental suffering is appreciating something, anything, in the present moment.
"This is how one feels when gazing upon a delightfully-decorated house," she said.
Visit www.pqlights.ca to register a home or view the map, which is updated every 24 hours.
The Kathok Centre is a non-profit society run by volunteers and all of the donations go to the running of the centre, McGuire said. The centre provides meditation instruction by the resident Tibetan teachers and offers end of life services, counselling and support, among other services.
The centre, located at 2800 Grafton Ave., is open any clear-weather evening until 7:30 p.m. and from Dec. 18-24 it will be open 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. with free guided tours, apple cider and tasty treats, and the gift shop will be open.