Grab the tissues: WestJet Christmas video brings cheer to Fort McMurray

A WestJet employee and a Fort McMurray resident embrace at an event held by the airline. (YouTube)

As the snow begins to fly and the activity in malls hits fever pitch, we know one other thing is sure to come this time of year: feel-good marketing videos from major companies. No one does it quite like transportation companies who captialize on the “coming home” narrative so common to the holidays, and WestJet has made it an annual tradition to go big with their (hopefully for WestJet) viral hit.

Following up last year’s 31,793 mini miracles around the world, WestJet released its fifth annual Christmas video, Christmas Miracle: Fort McMurray Strong, on December 12. At the time of writing, it had garnered nearly 80,000 views.

Families from around Fort McMurray, Alta. were invited into a studio by WestJet, asked to share stories of how the wildfires from earlier this year had affected them. Then, WestJet had a massive “Snowflake Soiree” for nearly 1,000 of the city’s residents at MacDonald Island Park in Fort McMurray.

Guests got to eat, make crafts, meet Santa Claus (in WestJet blue, of course) and listen to Canadian music superstar Johnny Reid. They also got a keepsake from the night in a very unique way: families each received a giftbox via parachute containing an ornament with a family photo — and a free flight voucher for each member of the family.

“We know this will be a difficult Christmas for the community,” said Richard Bartrem, WestJet Vice-President of Marketing and Communications in a press release. “It’s important for us to show the people of Fort McMurray they are not forgotten.”

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