Shawnigan Lake School - Yearbook (Shawnigan Lake, British Columbia Canada)

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Photo J. Gotthardt There is one particular facet of our lives here that calls for special mention today, and particularly now that it is coming to an end. I am referring to the relationship that we have had with Strathcona — this to be our answer to the modern trend towards co-education. I am sure that there is a lot to be said for co-education. I know that there is much to be said against it. While it might be a challenge for some boys to be in competition in the classroom with girls, who mature faster and are very often more industrious, for others this can be a real burden. We and Strathcona have developed a relationship that I like to think of as a happy marriage based on (1) similar standards and values. In our two schools we have insisted that teachers use the authority vested in them, that students do what they are told, that they do homework, that they compete and that they cultivate interests outside the classroom — in fact, we have both been stressing many of the things that some public schools have been drifting away from in recent years. (2) We have respect for one another and confidence in one another, sharing with one another and not using one a nother. I would like to say that I have had the greatest respect for, and complete confidence in, Miss Brown, the Headmistress of Strathcona. Overall it has been a very happy marriage and a lot of fun, but now it has come to an end. Strathcona is closing for financial reasons, which is sad and tragic, especially as it has happened at a time when the school has been, from every other point of view, at its healthiest and strongest. We are going to miss Strathcona. I hate to admit this, particularly with a number of Strathcona girls present today, but like many a man who has been widowed, we too, with almost indecent haste, have been on the look-out and we have in fact proposed marriage, and Miss Glide, on behalf of Queen Margaret ' s School, has accepted our proposal. We are now officially engaged. What I am saying is that we have agreed that there should be, and can be, a co-ordinated programme between our two schools. We have had groups in both schools studying the proposal, with the guidance of a member of staff in each school, and many details have been worked out. If we remember the ingredients of a happy marriage that I mentioned earlier, I am confident that this will lead to a happy relationship for our two schools. Going back to this year that has just finished, which I have described as a very good year and a very stable year, I am stating the obvious when I say that this does not just happen. It could never have happened without the hard work and dedication of so many in so many different areas, not just the academic staff, but I am thinking of them in particular, who are at Shawnigan because they are interested and concerned about young people, who are dedicated to their work and who, by being forgetful of themselves, are demonstrating in the most practical way the value of service. On behalf of the School I thank you, one and all; to those of you who are leaving I wish good fortune, and I would like to thank too the graduating class, in particular the School Prefects. They play a vital role in setting the tone of the School. We have been well served by them at this School and again, on behalf of the School, I thank you, and wish you well. The Headmaster then introduced the School Jazz Orchestra, which had completed a very enjoyable and successful tour of the west coast as far south as Los Angeles, and they played a few selections from their recent record. Dr. Arrott ' s address. Prize Distribution. After the prize distribution, the Headmaster presented an inscribed tray to Matthew Arrott, the Head of School, with the thanks of the School, particularly for what he has been — a good influence, a great sportsman but, above all, a tower of moral strength. The Chairman of the Board of Governors, Mr. Anderson, thanked the guest speaker and the staff. In conclusion, the Headmaster stated, Up to this point we have been thinking of the year that has passed and, in particular, of the graduating class of 1977. In a few weeks those of us who will be returning will be thinking of next year. Looming large in our thoughts will be our leaders for next year. Already I am excited about the prospects as those Heads of Houses have been named. The Headmaster then announced the appointments of Head of House and School Prefect: Copeman ' s Andrew Balshaw Groves ' Richard Jacobs Lake ' s Patrick Halls Lonsdale ' s Peter Olesen Ripley ' s Shannon McMullen School Prefect in Lonsdale ' s Frost Prioleau and, to head the team, as Head of School for the year 1977-78, Peter Olesen. 16

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Annual Closing Day Ceremonies A new format was introduced this year. The Graduation Service was held in the School Chapel at 1 1 :30 a.m. Parents and relatives of the graduating class, in addition to staff and boys, attended, but, because of the numbers, some had to join the overflow outside. According to recent custom, the address was given by the Head of School, Matthew Arrott, the lesson was read by a School Prefect, Bruce Anderson, and the prayers were read by members of the graduating class. After the Service, lunch was served on the lawn in front of the main building. Other parents and friends joined us for the prize distribution which followed at 1:30 p.m. For the first time since the old gymnasium became the Assembly Hall, this ceremony was held outside in the area alongside the Hobbies Building, using the first set of steps as a platform. This provided a lovely setting and made us wonder why we had suffered the stifling heat and overcrowding of the Assembly Hall for so long. In his address the Headmaster said that in any Headmaster ' s report, at the end of any year, in any school, if it is honestly given, there will always be good news and there will inevitably always be some bad news — disappointments. The Headmaster continued, I have decided this year, not even to attempt a report on the year at this time, because I am not convinced that this is the right time, when the predominant question i s ' How soon can we get out of here? ' or the right method, when the kind of statistics that are inevitably produced are not readily digested by ear, so my intention is to speak generally. On the whole this has been a very good year, and in particular a very stable year — morale has been generally high. Numbers. I mention these because in so many years they have been a constant worry. This year we started with 235 boys and finished with 230, which represents less change than in any year over the past ten years. The plan for next year is to increase the total numbers by ten by adding another class in Grade 9. Academics. Overall it has been a good, solid performance. Some who have won prizes have done exceptionally well and will be seen by some to have been the great successes of the year. On the other hand, there are others who came in September with a poor academic background, with virtually no study habits, and who are now producing somewhere near their potential. I would suggest that these have an equal right to be named the great academic successes of the year. Games. Mr. Hyde- Lay has described the year as a mediocre one — from the point of view of results. However, the attitude and sportsmanship displayed have been as high as ever. I would add that it is easy to show sportsmanship when you are always winning, but not so easy when you are on the receiving end. Our philosophy in this area is very simple, but it would be described by some as old-fashioned. We stress sportsmanship rather than winning at all costs, we would rather have participation by all than an elite of winning prima donnas, and we are always concerned about enjoyment. Activities. We have had the usual very varied programme. So often, we have found in our experience that in order to get a boy, to use a modern phrase, ' turned on ' academically, we have got to get him enthused in some other area. At Shawnigan there is surely something to captivate the interest of everyone. In all of these we are always concerned about standards and values, stressing the importance of consideration for others, a pride in oneself. I would hope that this is seen by everyone to be a vital part of growing up, but what I think I would like to say most of all is what was said to me recently by a parent whose son is graduating today — ' When I was lookirig for a school for my son I came to Shawnigan. I saw your facilities and the natural beauty of your campus and I was very impressed, but what impressed me most of all was the three members of your staff whom I met. They all had one thing in common — they all cared — and on the basis of that I chose Shawnigan for my son. Now, five years later, I have never had any reason to change that first impression — that Shawnigan is a school that cares, ' and that, I think, is the label that I value most of all — a school that cares. 15

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Chapel Report The program this year has followed the course of the past two years, indeed the last few years, quite distinctly. The Saturday morning services of Morning Prayer and Holy Communion continued week in week out, as did the early morning services of Communion on Sundays. The Tuesday and Thursday services of Evening Prayer also continued. Attendance at these services was dependent on many factors: if the weather was too bad or too good ; if the Chaplain had been around the houses applying pressure or not. Special services also cropped up throughout the school year. On March 19 Bishop Gartrell confirmed the following in an impressive service: R. Carruthers R. Hope M. Springford D. Consta ble J. Innis B.Terry T. Fairbank A. Keate G. Thompson A. Forster A. Kelman R. Vierra R. Goody J. Reuss M.White W. Richards After the service Bishop Gartrell met with parents and relatives of the boys. The Founders Day service on April 31st. was unique in the year of chapel services. The guest speaker for that morning was Mr. T.E. Ladner, an old boy of the school (1928-31). His address on life at Shawnigan 50 years ago was so well liked that he was applauded as he stepped down from the pulpit. After such a speech all that could be said of the clapping was Why Not? This year, the Chaplain was aided by some 15 boys who acted as servers or sacristans. The highlight of their year in the chapel came at the end of the year when all were invited to the McClelland ' s for an excellent meal, thanks to Mrs. McClelland. Mrs. McClelland is also in line for thanks for the work she and her helpers did with the flowers in the chapel. D. Watt 17