Elmwood School - Samara Yearbook (Ottawa, Ontario Canada)

Page 25 text:

SAMARA 23 AGAIN this year we are lucky to have Miss Philbrick for our games mistress. Our big sports event has been our basket- ball match with Hatfield Hall. It was doubt- ful if we were going to be able to go because of lack of transportation, but Mrs. Southam, Mrs. Curtis and Mrs. Buck very generously lent their cars, and we started out at 8.00 a.m. for Kingston, where the match was played. The Elmwood team emerged victorious from an extremely hard game, the score being 14-4. We arrived home at 6.00 p.m., after having had lunch at the La Salle Hotel with the Hat- field team. A4iss Philbrick gave up much of her free time to coach us, and we should like to thank her for her enthusiasm and interest. Sports Day Last year, 1948, Sports Day was held on June 7th. It was a successful day for Nightin- gale, who romped off with the prizes. The weather man was in a good humour and we had neither rain nor mosquitoes, so often un- invited guests at the ceremony. Nightingale won the Inter-house Sports Day Cup. The other winners were: Inter-house Relay — Nightingale Senior Sports Cup — Elizabeth Paterson Intermediate Sports Cup — Mavis Hothersall Junior Sports Cup — Shirley Thomas Preparatory Sports Cup — Lee McKay Basketball Our inter-house basketball matches took place as usual, and this year we have some very promising players among both the inter- mediates and new girls. Fry was the lucky winner of both Senior and Intermediate matches. We had an innovation this year — a game between the day-girls and boarders. The day-girls put up a very good fight but the boarders won by a fair margin. After Easter we hope for a match with the Old Girls. Ski-ing and Skating The boarders have enjoyed many good Saturday ski-ing trips both at Wakefield and Mountain Lodge. The weather has been very temperamental this winter, and although our ski-ing has been successful (except for a few bruises), the skating rink has been either very well insulated with snow or else swamped by the numerous thaws. Tennis This is the first time in three years that we have been able to have the tennis matches. The weather, however, proved excellent in September and October, and much interest was shown in tennis, apart from the matches. Fry was fortunate in winning the Senior games, but Keller won the Intermediate matches.

Page 24 text:

CANDID CAMERA SHOTS

Page 26 text:

24 SAMARA Badminton Our badminton tournaments were com- pleted early this year, being finished before March. If you pass through the hall during the winter months, you are sure to see sev- eral couples batting a poor bedraggled bird back and forth. The winner this year was Fry, who won both the Senior and Intermedi- ate tournaments, although by the very nar- row margin of one point over Keller in the latter. Gym and Drill Another successful and enjoyable year un- der Miss Philbrick has almost come to a close. We have used the apparatus for all our vari- ous exercises, and have learned to vault over the horse in all kinds of queer positions, do- ing wolf, front, thief, twist, box and water- fall vaults! How Holland Was Saved By Water ONE morning when the early June sun was rising and the first birds were sing- ing, Peter got up because he heard a ' plane flying very low. He looked out of the window and saw that the ' plane was British. It was flying so low that it nearly touched one of the sails of the old mill. Luckily the Germans were out of ammunition, for other- wise they would have shot the ' plane down. When Peter had finished his breakfast he went outside. On the road he saw a slip of paper, which he picked up, and read: I am very sorry to let this be done to this beautiful island, but we have to bomb the dyke in order to liber- ate the rest of the country. Signed, Queen Wilhelmina. (She still was queen then.) Pe- ter was shocked to hear that awful news. He looked around the landscape, the trees and everything he loved so dearly. Why did this have to happen? Peter thought I should not be looking around. I should go and help my mother move the bedclothing and the food, to the attic. He told his mother the terrible news. Pe- ter ' s mother was a brave woman and she did not cry but she thought, We will build the Island again as long as we Dutchmen may live. She picked the few potatoes from the garden and all the food she had and brought it up to the attic as well as a lot of extra bed clothing for the people who lived on lower ground, and might be flooded earlier than they. They hid the food in case the Germans might want it, along with all the valuable things they possessed. Peter ' s father had dis- appeared because the Germans wanted young men to labour for them; but all of the young men refused and kept hiding, or tried to help their country in espionage. The next morning they already heard the zooming of ' planes and the falling of bombs. Most of them fell on the dyke, but unfortu- nately some fell on the little village of West Capelle by accident. Peter and his mother looked for the last time over the Island and tears came into their eyes. But what did they see in the distance? Wasn ' t that the glittering of water far away? that horrible sea water? Yes, the water was coming, first slowly but then quicker and quicker, and it already had flooded the kit- chen floor when the people came from West Capelle. Peter ' s mother took care of many people, amongst them a little boy who screamed at the sound of a ' plane or bomb, because when a bomb fell on their house his mother and his sister had been killed, and the little boy did not know how he was saved. On the water everything was floating — pigs, cows, rabbits, mice — all looked disgust- ing. But what did the people see one morning? Weren ' t they the ships with the Allies? All the people put out their flags and Holland was liberated. It was lovely to see our own flag flying in the breeze above the water. And already now a few shrubs are growing on the Island. Tina van Roijen, IVA Fry