Chris Stillar is a medium from Alliston, Ontario. Although he acknowledged that his job is atypical, Stillar explained that he has a normal home and family life: “I’ve been married 35 years. I have four children and I have seven grandchildren, with number eight on the way!”
As the author of Pennies from Heaven, Chris stated that the main message from the book is “love lives on”.
“When we lose somebody that we love… or even if we lose somebody that we hate, it doesn’t matter. Love lives on. The ones you hate and the ones you love and the ones you just kind of liked, they’re all okay on the other side! It’s all connected. So that’s probably the takeaway. I would want people to know that you don’t have to pay my fee or any medium’s fee to know that your loved one is okay. They absolutely are—regardless of how they died or regardless of how they lived their life….”
When asked to describe what a medium does, Stillar replied, “A medium is an individual who is—for one reason or another—able to receive access from those who have passed. They can get mental images, emotional or physical sensations or audible sensations from people. Everyone in life communicates differently and some are better than others. Spirit is no different. So whether it’s through clairvoyance, clairaudience or clairsentience, I receive messages through all three formats. Which combination they use is up to spirit.”
For the past 27 years, people have visited Chris in his office or reached him by telephone in order to connect with their departed loved ones. However, as of June 1, 2023, Chris will no longer be doing in-person office readings. Readings done by phone will still be available in addition to virtual readings on Zoom, which is something new for Stillar.
His main goals are to eliminate the expense of long-distance calls for his international clients and to make readings more accessible for people who may have had difficulties getting to his office:
“Now they can do it through Zoom and still receive their recording. We can still see face-to-face, which I think is nice. I enjoy doing it on the telephone too, but I do think it will make it far more accessible. To have a family in my office, the most I would do would be four. Stretching it would be five people. It’s a tight space. Whereas with Zoom, if they have family in The States and Canada, and maybe somebody in Holland, four or five people can all join in on the session. It just makes it that much more accessible. Nothing is lost in translation as far as the ability.” He added that he is “really excited to work from the cottage periodically”.
Currently, there is about a three-month wait for a reading. Clients are asked to call and leave a message for Kim. They should only provide their first name and a phone number at which they can be reached. Prior to the pandemic, Chris’ wait list was at least 12 months long:
“So, it has really decreased for whatever the reason. It’s not quite as long of a wait, but for people who are in dire need, three months is still a long time.”
Despite having decades of experience, Stillar admitted that there have been many curveballs along the way in terms of interpreting signs and symbols.
“Working every day with strangers and clients that come through my door is a learning curve…. So it keeps you on your toes. Every person that you sit with has a different need or desire. What I find works best is if you’re working with someone that has genuine need. Not someone who is looking for entertainment. Not somebody who has extra money in their pockets to burn or anybody that’s out to prove that there is no afterlife. That’s a waste of money and a waste of my time. It’s just best to work with people who have a need.”
That being said, skeptics are more than welcome to join in on a reading: “I think people that come should have a healthy skepticism and I think they should use their own good judgement. I don’t want to sit and work with anyone that’s totally closed off but I don’t necessarily enjoy someone who is so fully open, they believe everything. You need to use discernment and common sense…. If someone is coming to prove me wrong or to prove to a family member that it isn’t real, it would be because they are living in a place of fear…."
Chris works five days a week, but outside of those hours, he said that spirits do not interfere with his daily life:
“Not at all! I just came from Zehrs! I raced into M&Ms and then I raced home! So, when I’m not working, I don’t even think about what I do for a living or what I’m capable of doing. Maybe when I first started 27 years ago... but now I only do it Monday through Friday. I always say, ‘It’s what I do, it’s not who I am’”.
Chris’ experience with spirits outside of work seemed to contrast with television programs such as Long Island Medium. For example, Theresa Caputo was often shown entering a grocery store or other establishment. In nearly every episode, she would immediately connect with the loved ones of another customer.
As Chris explained, “….Long Island Medium with Theresa Caputo is made for TV. There are producers behind the scenes. Let me tell you this. In today’s day and age, legally, she’s not able to walk into a public place with cameras and start filming. These people need to know ahead of time that she’s coming to film…. I’m not saying that her ability isn’t real, but it’s all directed.”
While Stillar is able to connect with spirits, it is even more important for him to connect with the living through his work. He said that overall, the most rewarding part of career has been knowing that he has made an impact on people’s lives:
“Like when you can somehow see the light go on when they came in broken. They might still leave broken, because you know, you just don’t get over death! But knowing they feel better. They feel different. They maybe now know that their son, their daughter, their spouse, their sibling, their parent is okay. Even though they are physically absent from their life…. You might give somebody the hope that they can go on after they’ve lost their son or daughter, or sometimes their whole family. That is powerful. That is probably why I do what I do.”
Finally, Chris Stillar offered the following advice to parents of children who might also have psychic abilities: “I tell the parents, ‘Try not to be fearful.’ ….All that I’ve told parents that have come to see me or that have brought their child to me is, ‘Support them. You don’t have to understand them, but listen to them, and keep reassuring them that they’re safe.’ It’s not something to fear or to worry about. Just see where it goes because more times than not, the child will lose the ability. As we get older, life has a way of kicking it out of us…. Whether they tell you that they’re psychic or they’re gay, just support them!”
For more information, please visit www.chrisstillar.com. You can also follow Chris on Facebook.
Photo courtesy of Chris Stillar.
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