London South Collegiate Institute - Oracle Yearbook (London, Ontario Canada)

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This makes a total of 31,105.40 during the five years the VVar Services collected pennies at South. Teas As a means of raising money for XYar Services work the committee sponsored several teas. The first, a Blossom Tea , was held in May of 1940. Spring invaded the sober precincts of our audi- torium that day when tulips and daffodils graced the stage and tea tables, and made a bower of the stall where home-cooking was for sale. Friendly chatter to the tinkle of tea-cups was hushed only to listen to the rich strains of the 'cello, as it sang under the touch of Rowland Pack, or to fall under the spell of the lyric so- prano of Shirley Pack in The Clouds 1Yill Be Sunshine To-morrow . Possibly our memory of this first gay and colourful tea party has been sharpened by the contrast it has presented to all that followed. For once the grim hand of VVar was laid upon such commodities as butter, sugar, tea and coffee, our tea parties were considerably restricted. A second tea was held in October, 1942. The mothers contributed baking for sale, and the accompanying musicale did not seem to he ham- pered by war time shortages. By October of 1943 the war was making itself felt. The tea that year consisted of consomme and crackers. The sale of baking was limited, due to the sugar shortage. In October of 1944, the VVar Services tea was cut to cake, cookies and tea. Many of the girls of South assisted the follow- ing members of the staff in these undertakings: Mrs. M. Carr-Harris. Miss J. I. Gorwill, Miss M. K. Macpherson, Miss B. McCamus, Miss bl. L. NlcRobert, Bliss lf. li. Nichols, Mrs. E. NI. Pickett. The XVar Services Committee is grateful to the mothers of the students for their generous as- sistance and support which made the teas the success they were. Matinees Various programmes were planned and per- formed in which talent both of students and outsiders was enlisted. Musical programmes were held during 1941 by South's Orchestra, under the direction of Mr. R. Byles, and the Glee Club under the leader- ship of Mr. R. H. Allin. Donations by the stu- dents to these matinees totalled 3lli39.65. In 1942, with an even greater expansion of musical shows, the Orchestra and Glee Club chalked up 8555.00 for the committee. At this time we were fortunate in having a visit from an artist, a whistling one, who entertained us with many bird calls. He went as far as testing our own whistles, but did not seem overly enthusi- astic about them. However, he was responsible for raising 329.00 for South's Xllar Services Committee. The following year the Glee Club and Orches- tra again put on programmes for our benefit and handed the XVar Service 353.25 Dr. jordan's movies of the Arctic Patrol which netted 3144.28 helped greatly in the war effort. During 1945, our old faithful musicians in the school brought in 3554.20 for the committee treasury, by their excellent singing and playing. From 1941 to 1945 these matinees by the stu- dents and patriotic outsiders made a total of 337693. WAR SERVICES COMMITTEE Back Row tleft to rightbz Owen Spettigue Gerald Robson, Marion MacVicar, Mrs. E. Pickett Cstaffb, Mr. W. T. Armstrong tstaffb, Helen Forbes, Mr. C. J. Burns tstaffl, Jack Noble. Front Row: Jim Hodgson, Beverley Corlett, Miss.M. K. Macpherson Cstaffb, Lorna Wellington, Brock Rachar. Absent: Yvonne Richmond. 21

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VE. Day Letter These letters were sent to all parents whose sons had made the supreme sacrifice. Over fifty letters were mailed to the parents whose ad- dresses the committee were able to obtain. Here is a copy of the letter prepared for the occasion by a committee composed of Margaret Macklin, Lorna KN-'ellington and Mr. G. VVonnacott: It is with mingled feelings of pride and sorrow that the staff and students of South Collegiate wish to express our gratitude for those who have given their lives to make this victory possible. VVe are not unmindful of their sacrifice and it is the thought of this, which must and will inspire us in the future. They fought bravely and well: the inheritance of their noble example will be our inspiration in the months to come as we battle for the peace. VVe are deeply grateful to our boys who fought and died: from their sufferings will rise a new and better world. Abraham Lincoln expressed at Gettysburg the thoughts in our minds to-day. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remain- ing before us-that from these honoured dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave their last full measure of de- votion . Presentation of Discs It was the honour and privilege of the War Services Committee to present identification discs on behalf of the school to the students who left the halls of South after September, 1938, and who had been in the school for a stated length of time. From that day on, every student who joined the Armed Forces was presented with a disc as a token of our esteem. The presentation was usually made in a visit to the home by Mr. W. T. Armstrong. About two hundred and seventy of these were sent to South lads who had enlisted in our Army, Navy, or Air Force. Each was accompanied by this letter: Dear South Graduate: The students and staff of the London South Collegiate, your old school, have noted with pride your enlistment in our Army, CNavy, Air Forcej. We wish you to accept this identification disc as a token of our constant interest in your per- sonal welfare, and in the great cause for which you are fighting. May you often be reminded of your many friends at South! Yours sincerely, COn behalf of the W'ar Services Committeej Presentation of Billfolds On every front in the war, Canadian boys, boys from South, fought to preserve your way of life. Many of these won distinction and were awarded decorations for gallantry. Leather bill- folds with engraved initials were sent by the school to twenty-one boys who had won recog- 20 K nition for their bravery and devotion to duty. It was a great honour for the VVar Services Committee on behalf of the school to send these wallets as a token of our regard. Salvage The South Collegiate can be duly proud of the record it has made in salvage collection. In 1941, under the capable supervision of Mr. C. J. Burns, the following material was collected for salvage, in the school: M ton of paper 150 lbs. of lead and tin foil 300 lbs. of metal 650 lbs. of rubber Numerous old keys For the Oracles previously printed, there were metal plates of the pictures taken. In 1942 these plates were sold as salvage and the pro- ceeds turned over to the War Services Commit- tee. During 1943 and 1944, the Hi-Y Club sponsored the collection of magazines from each classroom. From 1941 to this year there was a weekly collection of paper from school on Friday afternoon. A cardboard carton was placed in each room to hold the scrap paper. Then this was gathered together in the lower hall. The boys who handled this job deserve ap- preciation. However, the ones deserving the greatest recognition are those on the janitor staff. They co-operated to the fullest extent and aided considerably in the salvage collections. Donations of Money The War Services Committee gave the follow- ing donations in money for the war effort from September 1941 to December 1945: Red Cross , ,,., . , 1941-45 - 3528.65 junior Red Cross. .. .1941-43 4 100.00 Queen's Fund... . . H -1941 4 50.00 Navy League ,.,... . ,.....,,........,... . ,. .... 1942-45 - 220.00 Girls' Donation for wool to Red Cross., , 100.00 Money Raised Penny Collections-South Co1legiate's War Services Committee employed various methods of raising money for each year's activities. One system was the penny collection. This was usually carried on in October and November from four to six weeks with each student con- tributing five cents a week. Then in january and February for the same period the pupils were asked to donate two cents a week. Once for four weeks in May five Cents a week was collected. Girls were appointed to collect the money from the bottles which were put in each room. Their collection of the money every night was greatly appreciated by those on the committee. In this way the VV ar Services Committee realized the following amounts: 3216.08 in 1941 3294.96 in 1943 3289.43 in 1942 3221.66 in 1944 383.27 in 1945

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Dances A dance, seemingly enjoyed by everyone, was held in October, 1941, when 359.37 was collected to help defray the committees many expendi- tures. Other dances were held from 1942 to 1945. The committee arranging these dances was ably assisted by Miss bl. MacFarlane, Mr. L. G. Mitchell and Mr. H. B. Dinsmore. The numerous dances netted 3609.82 and were thoroughly enjoyed by everyone who attended. Tax On School Functions Students who sold second-hand text books through the Hi-Y Book Exchange unknowingly perhaps contributed 313.55 to lVar Services Committee. An additional 397.30 was obtained by levying a tax of live cents per person on tickets to junior, Intermediate and Senior parties during 1942 and 1943. Tag and Sales Days One could scarcely believe that the supporters of our 1941 rugby team could think of their stomachs as they watched our hard-fighting lXIaroons pile up the touchdowns, but facts belie opinions. At the 1941 rugby games, 328.58 was made from sales of apples and candy by patriotic students. Also in 1941, two sweaters knitted by Mrs. Clubbe, brought in 332.25 at a sale, bearing all the ear-marks of an auction. Candy donated by the students placed another 311.00 in the treasury. Sports programmes were sold at the games for a profit of 35.34. A sock tag-day was held in 1942 to add 328.85 to the books of the committee treasury. In 1943, South pupils tore up their attics and basements in a search for white elephants. A large variety of books, balls and breakables were auctioned in the auditorium, to give the committee's finances a boost with 33485. The sale of a number of copies of a news letter in 1944, netted a sum of 36l.17. From 1941 to 1944 inclusive, tag days and sales brought in the sum of 3207.74. Gifts Of Money The following gifts of money were donated by organizations who wished to see the work of the War Services Committee furthered: Boys' Athletic Association ...... .,...... 3 600.19 Girls' Athletic Association ,........... .. 234.25 Parents' Association, , . .. 16.70 Home and School Club.. ,...., ,,..,,.,.. . 2.00 Friends findividual giftsj ....... ,......., 4 4.81 Stamp Club ,.,.,.,.,......., ....,,. ,...,....... . . . 5.55 Gung-Ho Club ,.... ..,..,.,.,.,..... .... . 5.00 Home Economics Classes ,....,. ,.,. , ., 10.05 Gift receipts - 3918.55 Total Receipts and Expenses RECEIPTS EXPENSES 34,091.92 34,004.02 The balance still in the War Services Treasury is 387 .90. 22 WIRELESS CLUB It is 4:30 on a sunny summer's day back in '43 and the last echoing footsteps are receding out of the building. In a small room on the second tioor, the noise of clicking keys can be heard. The Wiireless Club is going into action, as it has been doing for the last three years. Wlhat has this to do with the war effort? lfVell, I'll tell you. This group, under the able super- vision of Mr. Jackson, was being prepared for greater things to come. Boys to go down to the sea in ships, boys to go up into the blue, were being trained so that they could go out and fight to make the world free for you. P One of the most outstanding examples is Bob Tufts. Bob joined the merchant navy and rose to the rank of Lieutenant. On one of his trips across, he was Chief Signals Officer for the whole convoy. This is no mean achievement for a young man around 20. I could mention more of such examples, but space does not permit. You people of London South can be proud of this record. I say, VVell done, Mr. jackson and your wireless club! -FXO TOM STEWART, L.S.C.I. '43. THE WIRELESS CLUB The accompanying photograph shows Cfrom left to right? George Scopes, Cameron Steel, Tom Stewart tsecretaryl, Bill Wilkie, Bob Tufts Cobscuredl, Roy Lewis and Harry Lunn, receiving a message being sent by Mr. Jackson tcentrel in the club's quarters in Room 10. WAR SAVINGS AND VICTORY BONDS NE of the most important contributions made by the students of South Collegiate toward Canada's war effort took the form of War Savings Stamps, Certificates and Victory Bonds. The sale of War Savings Stamps in the school commenced in the fall of 1940, and continued until the end of january, 1946. Stamps were on sale in all the rooms one day of the week. The sales were publicized by skits, announcements in the auditorium, and by posters placed in the various rooms. A special committee of students under the leadership of a member of the staff, arranged programmes advertising the sale of