Danielle Lukenda drops us a line

The following message from Danielle and Brent Lamming in Hamilton, written earlier this month, is one of many special greetings that SooToday.com will be publishing over the holidays from expatriate Saultites.

If you're a former resident now living 200 or more kilometres away, SooToday.com would be delighted to post your message and photo.

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********************** Greetings from the snow-less city of Hamilton, Ontario!

As the sixth of ten children, leaving SSM was not an easy choice to make.

However, like the others before me, the paths of life and opportunities have directed my husband and me to settle in the city of Hamilton (hard to believe at one time received more snowfall than SSM).

As a graduate of Mount St. Joseph College, my educational pathways lead me to attain a BHSc from Northern Michigan Univ. Marquette, BEd Nipissing Univ. North Bay, BHSC PT McMaster Univ. Hamilton.

In my travels, I encountered another Saultite, Brent Lamming BBA Laurentian Univ, PFP.

He wooed me with his charm and we have since been living away from the north.

Brent is a regional Commercial Relationship Manager with Scotia Bank.

I am a Physiotherapist working in a clinic.

Our famous Buddy the dog has been with us since 1998 – six years.

He misses plowing his nose through the mounds of snow and having his urine freeze mid-stream.

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We have a chuckle when we hear people saying they are going up north for Christmas.

Translation – we are going to Toronto/ Muskoka/ Barrie.

Want real snow, guaranteed for a pretty Christmas?

Try the real north (SSM).

Most of my siblings reside in London ON (Kim/ Dwayne, Marissa/ Spaniard, Andrea/ Kevin, Damian/ Jillian), with one in Edmonton AB (Rachel/ Shawn), another in Tucson AZ (Mike/ Veronique) and the baby in Windsor (Christa).

We try to carpool on holidays to make the long trek…many hours away to a faraway land where the cell phones don’t rule the lifestyle, a traffic jam is five minutes long, and your nose hairs have the potential to freeze up on a cold winter day.

As we reflect on growing up in SSM, the sleigh rides at the Lamming farm, the snow days off school, Bon Soo – we remember our roots - where both of our parents and some family still reside.

One day, we may be back…when the big city lights, the shopping, the theatres, the proximity to NY, all wear off…

Until all of our hard-earned money is spent - we may save a penny to once again make the long journey to a place the both of us still call home.

(In the meantime, we will continue to read Sootoday.com daily)

Salutations from one steel town to another!

Merry Christmas and best of health and prosperity in the New Year!

Danielle Lukenda Lamming, Brent Lamming & Buddy the dog

******************* Other 2004 holiday messages from SooToday.com readers

Sault hockey mom becomes an international TV star A holiday note from London, Ontario Brandi says hi to all the 'crazy Mounties' Someone please shovel this woman's driveway Merry Christmas from Denmark Merry Christmas from British Columbia Merry Christmas from Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario Christmas in Iraq Hello from the mountains of the Dominican Republic 'Memories of the Soo' guy starts a family Adam Carricato says 'Fröhliche Weihnachten' A radio guy misses the Sault Happy holidays to the Bertos and the Mackans 'Bury our bones in Sault Ste. Marie,' say Connie and Steve Where the Turcos are, it's too hot to cook at Christmas

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