Omicron spread forces many Hamilton families to miss holiday reunions — for a second year in a row

With COVID-19 cases in Hamilton spiking over the last week, some local families are making the tough decision to cancel or change their upcoming holiday plans.

Among those is Sue Littleton, who recently cancelled her plans of flying to Thunder Bay to see her sister and nephews due to the increasing number of cases.

It's a flashback to 2020, when she says her family was not able to see each other for a whole year due to the pandemic. Luckily, they were able to reunite over the summer. 

"We're a close family so not getting to see each other for a whole year was really hard,"

Littleton said. "I have three young nephews and an 11-year-old son and they were really, really looking forward to seeing each other."

Now, while Littleton is scrambling to "make it feel celebratory" at home with her son and wife, she's also reflecting on what staying home means for her this holiday season. 

"As sad as it is, it's an important lesson for our children to learn too, that sometimes things happen that we can't control and resilience is the idea of making the best out of what the situation is."

She is also taking the opportunity to teach her son that "what's best for the greater community may not feel very good on a personal level all the time but it's so we can take some satisfaction in making the choices that are safest for everybody," she said. 

On Monday, Hamilton's medical officer of health, Dr. Elizabeth Richardson, encouraged people to reconsider plans and limit gathering in numbers, after the city reported more than 500 new cases of COVID-19 over the weekend. She also asked for patience as the city seeks to add new booster shot appointments to accommodate all those now eligible.

Long lines for those seeking out rapid tests were reported in the area over the last few days as well. 

Littleton was not the only Hamiltonian making a last-minute change to holiday plans as a result of the rapidly changing COVID context and the spread of the Omicron variant. 

Omar Shams also had "no choice but to cancel" a flight to London, U.K,, where he had plans to attend his cousin's wedding, he said. 

Originally from Afghanistan, the trip also represented for Shams a long-awaited chance to see other members of his family.

"I live here and my cousins are living in the U.K., so it [would have been] a good reunion after many years to attend his wedding and spend some time with them," he said.