Stuffed With Love - The Window Cleaners Bears

Diena and Claus Abel are known for the elaborate teddy bear displays in front of their home beside County Road 93 in Waverley.

Couple brings joy to drivers by 'bearing' all - Elaborate displays of teddy bears have become a popular roadside sight (Waverley). – Not every house gets courier packages with bills of lading addressed to the “Bear Place in Waverley.” But Claus and Diena Abel have built up quite a following for the elaborate teddy bear displays in front of their Waverley home beside a busy stretch of County Road 93. “This is a simple way to bring joy into people’s lives,” explained Claus as he and Diena, his wife of 35 years, peruse their most recent “bears on bicycles” offering. The couple’s bears are so popular that cottagers, area residents and even tour buses and tourists from other countries often stop to have photos taken in front of the tableaux that depict a wide variety of holidays and life events, including Christmas, Easter, Thanksgiving, Canada Day, Victoria Day, back-to-school, and summer and winter vacations. “Sometimes, we can’t get in our driveway,” Diena said with a smile. “It’s been a joy and a challenge. The hardest thing is switching from Christmas to Valentine’s Day because everything’s frozen in the ground.”

Bear house. Claus and Diena Abel are known for the elaborate teddy bear displays in front of their home beside County Road 93 in Waverley.

The Abels, who are both 58, operate Alpha Enterprises Corp,. a window-cleaning company. They met while attending school in Penetanguishene, and now the former high school sweethearts have a 31-year-old son (Joshua), two daughters (Natasha, 25, and Tatyana, 22), two young grandchildren and a large collection of pets. Natasha, who has travelled extensively, said she has met people in other countries who have actually seen her parents’ displays while visiting Canada. “I was working in China and somebody had seen the bears while going to a cottage up here,” she said. “Despite what people might think, we are a normal family.”

The Abels even delve into major historic events, such as the time they created a scene complete with a windmill, wooden tulips and bears dressed in traditional Dutch clothing to recognize Diena’s Dutch roots and commemorate the 60th anniversary of the Canadian liberation of Holland during the Second World War. “We try to come up with ideas to make it more interesting,” Claus said. “For Father’s Day, we have identical bears, big and little, canoeing together.” They even had to build a large storage shed to house their animals and the many props – from canoes and barbecues to bicycles and desks – needed for the displays.

Diena’s favourite display celebrates Thanksgiving “because it’s more intricate and we can use our own corn and gourds,” while Claus enjoys the back-to-school offering. “The blackboard behind the teacher in the display has a real math problem and a real solution,” he added. “I also have all the desks filled except one, and in the background you can see a bear on a bike with a backpack rushing to get to school because he’s late.” The Abels’ foray into the world of bear displays began innocently enough 12 years ago, as Claus was driving home with then 10-year-old Tatyana. “There was a giant polar bear in the garbage for bulk pickup, and she begged me to stop and get it,” Claus recalled. “It took two weeks to dry and, by then, my daughter didn’t want it, so I put it out for my garbage.”

“The blackboard behind the teacher in the display has a real math problem and a real solution,” he says. “I also have all the desks filled except one and in the background, you can see a bear on a bike with a backpack rushing to get to school because he’s late.”

Some time passed and the bear still hadn’t been picked up, so Claus decided to dress it up as Santa Claus pushing a wheelbarrow full of presents. The positive response from that simple display led to more elaborate offerings that have become the couple’s trademark. The Abels regularly receive “gifts” of stuffed animals affixed with notes like: “I need a home. I hope I fit in.” They’ve also received countless thank-you notes over the years from passersby who enjoy the cheerful lift their displays provide. “It has been fun, and I do enjoy talking to the people at end of the driveway,” Claus said. “As well, we’ve sort of become an adoption agency for unwanted stuffed animals.”