Signs of the times: messages of hope, solidarity spring up around London
Even as businesses shutter and people avoid crossing paths, people are sharing messages of hope and inspiration in London during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Signs of hope are seemingly everywhere in the city, all you have to do is look for them
With many businesses closed and people stuck at home during the COVID-19 pandemic, messages of support, love and thanks have started to appear in some unusual places around the city.
Even as the number of cases continues to grow, there are still signs of hope, you just have to know where to look. Luckily we've found many of them for you.
The Hyland Cinema offers a Wizard of Oz-themed message during the COVID-19 pandemic on Wharncliffe Road South. (Colin Butler/CBC News)
Handmade signs of love and thanks hang in the window of this home in Hunt Club. Crafty messages of support made by children have become common sight across the city during the pandemic. (Colin Butler/CBC News)
Fear of contracting COVID-19 is leading some businesses to advertise 'contactless' services that use physical distancing tactics, such as this pizza joint on Dundas Street East. (Colin Butler/CBC News)
With businesses closed and people stuck at home, messages of hope and solidarity have started to appear all over the city. (Colin Butler/CBC News)
A sign outside the London Mosque on Oxford Street offers a message of solidarity during the COVID-19 pandemic. (Colin Butler/CBC News)
London's YMCA Centre branch offers a message of goodwill during the COVID-19 pandemic. (Colin Butler/CBC News)
A grocery store on Highbury Avenue thanks customers and staff for weathering the storm with them after an unprecedented surge of stockpiling by shoppers during the COVID-19 pandemic. (Colin Butler/CBC News)
A west-end Anglican church offers a message of solidarity on London's Riverside Drive. (Colin Butler/CBC News)
A sign of the times during the COVID-19 pandemic at Forest City Surplus in London, Ont. (Colin Butler/CBC News)
Some London businesses have a punny sense of humour, like this make-your-own-wine store on Huron Street near Highbury Avenue. (Colin Butler/CBC News)
A sign reads 'praying for London' outside the Salvation Army London Village on Dundas Street and Highbury Avenue. (Colin Butler/CBC News)
A sign offers helpful advice during the COVID-19 pandemic on Dundas Street East, urging Londoners to 'help each other' by physically distancing, washing hands and cleaning high touch surfaces. (Colin Butler/CBC News)
A 'thank you' sign written on cardboard hangs on Valetta Street across from the Oakridge Arena, one of two COVID-19 assessment centres in London. (Colin Butler/CBC News)
It might not be pretty, but it works. A makeshift sign tells customers that while they can't walk in, they can still get their double-double even in a pandemic at this Tim Hortons on Dundas Street East. (Colin Butler/CBC News)
Many of the signs of inspiration during the pandemic are homemade, like this one on Kairns Road in London's Riverbend area. (Colin Butler/CBC News)
Someone tied a bedsheet with the message 'thank you healthcare workers!' to a fence outside Oakridge Arena, one of the city's two COVID-19 assessment centres. (Colin Butler/CBC News)
Workers inside this downtown London building affixed a message of hope to their office windows. (Colin Butler/CBC News)
A sign in front of church on Dundas Street East reads 'thank you essential workers' in London, Ont. (Colin Butler/CBC News)
Children's messages to healthcare workers hang in the front window of this house on Logan's Trail in Riverbend. (Colin Butler/CBC News)
Colin Butler covers the environment, real estate, justice as well as urban and rural affairs for CBC News in London, Ont. He is a veteran journalist with 20 years' experience in print, radio and television in seven Canadian cities. You can email him at colin.butler@cbc.ca.
