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Volunteers skitter back and forth inside gift depots, preparing packages for families around the city for the Toronto Star’s Santa Claus Fund. An air of compassion and dedication fills the spaces.
The depot at 1 Yonge St. is where Lynne Munro, the former Toronto Star vice-president of promotions and partnerships from whom those virtues bled, worked on the fund. Munro died in August from a rare form of cancer, but her empathy and devotion to the cause continues to mould the 116-year-old fund. In this, the first Santa Claus Fund drive since Munro’s death, her dedication to community lives on in the hundreds of Santa fund volunteers.
“So Santa Claus lives at the North Pole, Lynne Munro lived and worked at 1 Yonge, and she was Mrs. Claus,” Toronto Star publisher Jordan Bitove said. “Her love for her job, her passion that she brought, her enthusiasm that she’d share with everyone, day in and day out, was remarkable. And it was infectious.”
In her trademark platinum pixie cut and dashing black outfits, and with a laugh that carried across a room, Munro’s presence was felt as soon as she entered the room. What followed was gentleness and affection, especially in the depot where Santa Claus Fund toys and clothes are bundled.
“She wanted to make sure there were quality items in the boxes and items that were on trend. The hoodies, the hats and gloves needed to be items that kids would actually wear,” said Brian Cordingley, director of promotions and partnerships. “She didn’t want to just give them something. She wanted to give them something that she felt they’d want to wear around their friends and to school.”
Her devotion was abundant, even if it sometimes came with a little bit of barbed humour. When Torstar chief client officer Michael Beckerman joined the Santa Claus Fund, Munro had been heading it for several years. He started as most volunteers do, in delivery, and Munro had something prepared.
That morning in the depot, “she waves. She takes me aside. She introduces me to some people that I wouldn’t have known. She made me feel so welcome,” said Beckerman. “And then she had written out both a map and individual instructions in terms of where I should go and how I should handle each of the interactions. And it was customized for me. It was unbelievable.”
But he made a crucial mistake as he drove off from the facility to make his deliveries — without the map.
“So then I load up the packages in my car and I’m driving in the general direction where I’m supposed to be going, and I’m 10 minutes in and I start looking for the instructions that she gave me. I’m checking my pockets, checking the floor, and I can’t find them. So I pull over and, just as I pull over, Lynne phones me. And she said, ‘Do you want me to take a picture of the map that you left on the floor in the warehouse? Or do you want to come back and get it?’”
Munro had a tremendous sense of empathy, but she wasn’t afraid to sometimes apply biting humour. She truly was an iron fist in a velvet glove. Going out of her way was her way, even if it meant driving there personally, volunteering her time at the depots, ensuring things were in order. She led by example.
Ed Cassavoy, director of content partnerships and strategy, recalls an instance early in the pandemic when the fund received a six-figure donation.
“She actually drove down to, I believe it was the west end somewhere in Mississauga, and this is during COVID, to actually find the person who (made the donation),” said Cassavoy. “And she actually wanted to confirm and make sure that the sizable donation was correct.
“She cared deeply. And she kind of kept an eye on all these things … and she would weigh in and she would do the work to make sure all the i’s were dotted and the t’s were crossed, because she cared.”
To Munro, the Santa Claus Fund was all-encompassing year-round. December was just the highlight. From the start of the year to the end, ideas for the Star’s charities occupied her mind. She was always pushing to take them to the next level. Munro’s position also meant she was the connection to important people inside and outside the newsroom to bring gravitas to the fund.
“There was a Christmas carol concert at St Paul’s Church on Bloor. Every year we promoted it and the tickets were complimentary, and we accepted donations to the Santa Claus Fund at the concert,” said Cordingley. “So one year, she had the idea to bring in a surprise guest. She arranged to have the Tenors come in and perform a couple of songs at the end of the concert.”
Even nearing the end of her life, Munro stubbornly lived and breathed Santa Claus Fund, showing the selflessness it takes to be a part of the campaign. Project consultant Pat Surphlis remembers her and an exhausted Munro’s last day together at the depot as a documentary was being filmed for the campaign. They were close friends for decades. The day was an emotional one.
“She asked me to take her that day and she really wasn’t feeling well, but she just wanted to make sure that everybody was getting their packages, and making sure everything had been sorted in the trucks and what have you,” Surphlis said. “As the day went on, we had a bit of a lull and I found her wrapped in a blanket in a corner in a chair. And we just, we had a good cry and I took her home.”
Munro’s time as Mrs. Claus had ended.
“But she was a very loyal friend and a very emotional person … She was great. It’s really difficult for us to believe that she’s gone, to be honest,” Surphlis said.
Correction — Dec.. 14, 2022: This story has been updated to correct the spelling of Lynne Munro’s surname and correct Brian Cordingley’s job title.
GOAL: $1.5 million
TO DATE: $910,166
How to donate
With your gift, you can help provide holiday gift boxes that inspire hope and joy to 50,000 underprivileged children.
Online: To donate by Visa, Mastercard or Amex, scan this QR code or use our secure form at thestar.com/santaclausfund
By cheque: Mail to The Toronto Star Santa Claus Fund, One Yonge St., Toronto, ON M5E 1E6
By phone: Call 416-869-4847
To volunteer: scfvolunteer@thestar.ca
The Star does not authorize anyone to solicit on its behalf. Tax receipts will be issued.