NEWS RELEASE
ORILLIA MUSEUM OF ART AND HISTORY
*************************
After a break for the summer, the Orillia Museum of Art & History (OMAH) History Speaker Series continues with Lori Oschefski, president of Home Children Canada with her talk: Home Children Canada: Breaking the Silence.
Please join us at 7 p.m. on Sept. 21 as we continue our series via Zoom.
Did you know that between 1869 and 1948 over 100,000 children, between toddlers and 18 years old, were forcibly emigrated from the United Kingdom to Canada?
Known as Home Children, many were mistreated and had difficult childhoods. Many never saw their siblings, parents, or families of origin again. Through their own strength and courage, most became productive and upstanding citizens of our great country. Most Canadians are unaware of their story.
Citizens of our own community have family members who were among these children. The Home Children were not brought here for love; they were brought here to work. Called "orphans," only 12 per cent truly were.
Orillia-born and raised, Oschefski became involved with the Home Children (child migrants from Britain), when in 2007, her mother revealed that she had been a child migrant, arriving in Canada in 1924 at the tender age of two.
Lori’s passion for the Home Children came from the need to help her mother and then others who were looking for help.
Oschefski founded Home Children Canada in 2012. It is now the leading organization in the world that advocates for the lost voices of so many children brought to our shores.
Home Children Canada provides families with a platform to tell their stories and find free help with their own family research. Lori is also the author of ‘Bleating of the Lambs - Canada's British Home Children,’ released in 2015.
Today we celebrate and honour the Home Children — for their achievements, their service in our Wars, and their help in developing Canada."
Lori will share the history of Home Children, along with tips for research. Join us to learn more about these children, including the Barnardo children, what they endured and how they overcame so many hardships.
Click here to register and receive a link to the talks. Or call Monica at 705-326-2159 or email [email protected].
Admission is free, donations to OMAH are appreciated.
Don’t miss our next guest speaker. On Oct. 19 we welcome Jayne Poolton-Turvey with her talk: The Dieppe Raid – 80 Years of Tragedy and Tribulation.
*************************
