If you want to see whales, Newfoundland and Labrador is the place to go.

More than 20 species routinely pass through our waters, and the world’s largest population of humpback whales —numbering about 10,000 animals — spends the summer months feeding on our shores.

A humpback whale seen near Eliston, NL in July.

When fall arrives, most — but not all — begin a long journey south. A small number of whales linger into late autumn, and a few brave souls stay through the winter.

In Newfoundland, these holdouts have earned an interesting nickname: Christmas whales.

In 1978, a small group of these Christmas whales — some humpbacks and a lone narwhal — came face-to-face with the harsh reality of a Newfoundland winter.

But they didn’t have to face it alone.

What transpired was a lesson in the good that comes when a community cares.