Lord Selkirk School - Maroon and Grey Yearbook (Winnipeg, Manitoba Canada)

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♦ ART In Midwinter ” —Vera Jennings, VIII-15 No. 2. ■Tiger’’ —Anne Yewusz, Room X-17. Wendy —Edith Close, Rm. X-17. • 21

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MR. GODIAS BRUNET At the end of June, Mr. Godias Brunet will terminate his teaching career after hav¬ ing spent twenty-seven years in Lord Sel¬ kirk Junior High School as teacher of French. His name is familiar across Canada due to the well-known radio broadcasts of the French Choir of this school in pro¬ grammes of French Folk Songs. This has been an annual occurrence for the past twelve years and these broadcasts have been highly appreciated, not only because the choristers are entirely English speaking children, but also because they have set a splendid example in helping to create mu¬ tual understanding and amity between Canada’s two great races. Mr. Brunet was born in Quebec City on Sept. 30, 1881. As a prelude to his course at Laval University, where he obtained his B.A. degree, he attended schools in Mon¬ treal, Beauharnois and Valleyfield, Quebec. From his early days he was interested in Penmanship and became a well-known ex¬ ponent of this art, winning an award in this work at the Paris Exhibition in 1900. The urge to come west resulted in his migrating to Manitoba in 1908, where he taught a rural school at Haywood for three years. In 1912 he married Alice Jutras of Letellier, Mani¬ toba. They have been blessed with a family of ten children, all living at the present time. From 1911 to 1919 he was a School Inspector during the days of Separate Schools. This was followed by a term at Wesley College, where he was Professor of French in the 2nd Year Arts. In 1920 he was appointed to the Lord Selkirk School, where he has remained until the present time. In 1925, he wrote a book, “Le francais par le conversation,” which, at the request of the late Dr. Daniel McIntyre, was a text used in the Winnipeg Schools for three years. For his sincere interest in French he was made an Officier d’Academie from France in 1929, which was a signal honor. Upon his withdrawal from teaching he plans to do some artistic work in commer¬ cial penmanship and in this venture the teaching fraternity and the students whose lives he has helped to mould, wish him success as well as a long and happy period of well-earned retirement. MR. WALTER HALL In September, 1946, Mr, Walter Ball re¬ tired from active service as engineer of our school. For thirty years he had been em¬ ployed by the Winnipeg School Board, twenty-four of those years having been spent in Lord Selkirk School. During those years nothing was ever too much trouble for him, even though that may have meant arriving at school at 6 a.m. instead of 8 on some cold winter morning. His quiet, kindly interest in all members of our school family, whether teacher or student, and his constant thoughtfulness will not be forgotten. We regretted to see such a faithful helper leave us but we rejoice that he is enjoying a well-earned rest in Vancouver. His home at 848 Nootka overlooks the race track, where he can keep up on what the horses are doing without too much effort. Happy days to you, Mr. Ball. 3tt iHrmortam - iRr. 3- N. iGmng With deep regret we record the untimely passing, on August 27, 1946, of Mr. J. N. Laing, formerly a member of our teaching staff. Valued for his inventive mind and respected for his amiable co-operation with his fellow workers, Mr. Laing, for many years taught in the Industrial Arts Department, where he, because of his delight in skilled workmanship and his excellence in the leadership of boys, made a lasting and praiseworthy contribution to the enrichment of the lives of those about him. Residing in Charleswood, Mr. Laing was an active and highly esteemed member of the church there, and joined with quiet enthusiasm in the life of the community about him. Always a keen lover of nature and an ardent sportsman, he and his many friends enjoyed fishing and hunting while his love of animals and his knowledge of their habits contributed to the outstanding success of his mink ranch. To Mrs. Laing and to Mac. is extended the deep sympathy of the staff, students and former-students of Lord Selkirk School, who miss his cheerfulness and his wholehearted co-operation, knowing full well that as he passed on his way through life, he left undone no good thing that lay in his power to do. • 20

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♦ LITERARY ♦ Mourning Flower Ong ago, before you or I were born, there was a black flower. Nowadays we laugh at such a thing, but this flower was quite common, growing in every field, in good soil or bad. One of these little flowers was very un¬ happy. All about it were white, mauve, and pink honeysuckle, snowy wood anemone, gay red columbine, silvery morning glories, azure bluebells, and many, many more such beautiful plants, for this was before the time that man put flowers in his garden. There were red, red roses and purply thistles, but the coat of the little black flower was always dull, and drab and dreary, as if its owner was in mourning. So the other plants called it the mourning flower. One day, in the late fall, on an extremely hot afternoon, the little flower was feeling sorrowful, as usual, but it was so hot, that towards evening it fell asleep at last. So it was that the first tiny moonbeam found it, and, taking pity on the little black flower, she stooped low, and dropped part of her sparkling, silver load into the centre of it. “That will keep you a little happier until I speak to Jack Frost about you,” she whis¬ pered, and then sped off across the moonlit plains, threading her shining way north¬ ward, to the domain of Jack Frost! When the flower awoke in the morning it felt very, very happy to see its gleaming, silver centre. Now it had the most beautiful heart of any plant! But although it had a lovely heart, there were still the dull petals and leaves and stem to be grieved over. One cold night it heard a strange voice calling: “Little flower, little mourning flowe r , wake up! Wake up!” Mourning flower looked up, and saw Jack Frost skipping across the yellowing grass. “What do you want?” came the answer, in. a frightened voice. Jack Frost moved closer, and whispered, “Do not be afraid, but listen to me closely!” “Tonight I came at the request of a moon¬ beam, to paint you gay colours, but there were so many withering leaves that needed doing, that I have used up all my paints. It will be impossible for me to come again, but I shall tell you what to do. “When the warm air blows that marks the coming of Mistress Spring, you must get up quickly, and then wake up the other flowers. If you are up in time to see her go by, then you shall have the beauty you so desire.” Whereupon Jack Frost fled off across the meadows as swiftly as he had come. The mourning flower awoke next year with the first breath of warm air. Far across the fields, it could see Mistress Spring ap¬ proaching. Quickly the flower roused the other plants,.who were somewhat reluctant about getting up so early. Spring stopped when she saw the little black plant nestling in the dead grass. “Little flower,” she said gently, “I know what you want, but remember, your beauty can be bought only at a price. If you wish to be lovely, both you and your ancestors shall have to submit to being torn from the native soil, and replanted in men’s gardens whenever they wish to do that to you.” “I should consider it an honour to be thought beautiful enough to be moved to a place where people might look at me,” answered the flower. Mistress Spring smiled sweetly, and then turned to the other plants, saying, “I will give you all permission to bestow upon this dull little thing who has never known beauty, one of your own gifts.” There was compete silence for a moment, and then: “I shall give it petals like the whitest clouds, lovely as my own,” murmured the morning-glory in her low voice. • 22