Branksome Hall - Slogan Yearbook (Toronto, Ontario Canada)

Page 30 text:

28 The Branksome Slogan Branksome Notes THE NEW BUILDING How true it is that no group of people can stand still — it must move forward or decline. It is a foregone conclusion, therefore, that Branksome as usual forged ahead this year. Probably the most no- ticeable sign of this progress was the slow but sure erection of a new building to house the first and sec- ond forms. It is a long low structure at- tractively tucked behind Harrogate House facing the garden (lucky people!) The rooms are very mod- ern with the latest type of ceiling insulation, lighting, and arrange- ment of windows. Everything is glisteningly new and trim. Alto- gether it is an addition of which Branksome may be justly proud. DID WE GET USED TO IT? Your editor has been reading an article in last year’s “Slogan,” optimistically entitled, “We’ll Get Used to It.” “It” refers, of course, to the new traffic artery, the Mount Pleasant Extension, which has extended itself between two of our school properties. Well, the mud is gone, and the pneumatic drills. The explosive sound of machinery has been replaced by the dull roar of cars, the irate blast of horns, and the scream of tortured rubber as a rush-hour driver loses his duel with the motorist next to him. The “cheerful gangs of workmen” have been replaced by cheerful gangs of policemen ; motorcycling about in the maelstrom, waving their little black books. When the “perilous passage” was finally opened and the pack of machines unleashed, something obviously had to be done about the street crossing. Miss Read’s battle to get the traffic lights, her conferences with the Traffic Department, her trips to City Hall, will long be remembered by the contending parties. We complain about waiting for the lights to change, but think of the good practice for the mathematics students, in trying to calculate how many vehicles go by per minute. Seriously, what has the new road meant to Branksome? The Junior School has acquired a new home on the spacious Readacres property. Forms I and II are housed in a new and up-to-date building. Advantages, really, and the disadvantages are negligible. “Getting used to it” has been no problem at all. We can sincerely agree with last year’s “Slogan” that there is no reason why changes necessary to progress should affect “Brank- some’s traditional tranquility.”

Page 29 text:

27 The Branksome Slogan Vice-President, Marilyn Chamandy, Secretary-Treasurer, Gail Gowie, and Library Representative, Isobel Long-field, did a great job throughout the year and we thank them very much. Margaret Ann Riley, President of Five Commercial, and her supporters, Vice-President, Joan Evans; Secretary-Treasurer, Joan Ashworth; and Library Representative, Barbara Redpath; will always be remembered for the last words each day: “Don’t forget to clean up the classroom, and DON’T forget the wastepaper baskets in the Typing Room.” They were wonderful Form officers, and we wish them luck always ! It goes without saying how much our Form Teachers have contributed to make this year such a success. Mrs. Partridge deserves a medal for her great patience and understanding, and most of all for her most helpful guidance. Our lives depend on ourselves most of the time, if we succeed, but it will be through her guidance, that our success will last. Mrs. Perry, with her “Bit of Wit”, her accent, and most of all her understanding, has made this year a most enjoyable one for us all. Many thanks go to her from Five Arts. Miss MacMurdo as Form Teacher of Four Arts receives most hearty “thanks” from one and all. FIFTH FORM REPORT Let us catch a glimpse of the Fifth Form class room at Branksome Hall during the lunch period. The room is like a beehive . . . Buzz, Buzz, Buzz. Two people argue vehemently about the Basketball Team. Two other kilt-clad lassies recoil painfully (result of gym class), as they are approached with an appeal for funds. The stampede of boarders released from lunch brings girls absorbed in letters, who are interrupted by the Head Girl, popping her head through the door to remind the class of a meeting. Yes, we are a busy group, but not only at lunch time. The play, “Little Women,” produced under Ruth Pidgeon’s able direction, was supported by various up-and-coming actresses of the Fifth Form. Our Basketball Team was defeated by only a slim margin in the semi- finals. Elsewhere in the field of sport, Marg Wansbrough and Eve Cassels shone brightly as badminton stars. Mary Lue Farmer and Carol Jean Merritt were first-rate debaters in the contest against University of Toronto Schools. Mary Morgan shone in the Verse Speaking Contest, and with other members of our class made us proud of the school play. From far away places come Peggy Fitzmaurice, Betty McNiven, Barbara Goodyear, Betty Lapointe, and of course our two favourites, Lena Liu and Stella Chang. We have two very capable Presidents in Audrey Budgeon and Cate Findlay. Under the guiding hands of Miss Phillips and Miss Sime, and with the co-operation of the ever-ready staff, we have had a happy year that we shall not readily forget.

Page 31 text:

The Branksome Slogan 29 A VISIT FROM THE LAUREL SCHOOL At 7.45 on Friday morning , April 23rd, a number of sleepy but enthusiastic volunteers from Branksome stormed Union Station to greet the eagerly awaited visitors from the Laurel School of Cleveland, Ohio. When the train finally came in at 8.40, our worries about missing our guests disappeared. There they were — en masse. We introduced ourselves and drove to school, where the visitors were welcomed by Miss Read and a cheering crowd of girls, waving the omni- present Clan standards. The Laurel girls, accompanied by a staff member, Miss Maude Tomlin, were introduced individually to the school at Morning Prayers. At noon, the Robert Simpson Company gave a group of Branksome Fun With the Laurel School girls and their visitors lunch in the Arcadian Court. After dinner at the school, there was a basketball game between hostesses and guests and the dancing of Scottish reels, in which “The Dashing White Sargeant” figured prominently. With the Branksome Honours the evening’s fun was over . . . but not entirely. “Feasts” were held in Sherborne and Main Houses. Features of Saturday’s entertainment were tea at St. Andrew’s College in Aurora, and dinner and a sing-song at the school farm. Sunday morning was our usual one, with attendance at church and dinner at the school. Mrs. Gilday, our Head Girl’s mother, gave a delightful tea for the Laurel School girls and the Branksome seniors in the afternoon. After the Sunday evening service, our guests left to return to Ohio. Our worries about missing them arose again. We would miss them.