St Johns Ravenscourt School - Eagle Yearbook (Winnipeg, Manitoba Canada)

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EAGLE STAFF We, the staff of THE EAGLE, take this opportunity to thank our subscribers and advertisers for their generosity. Without their co-operation this annual would not have been possible. Also, we are deeply indebted to various individuals too numerous to mention here for their aid in preparing the material. We further trust the errors and omissions are not too outstanding. May you enjoy looking through the pages of this yearbook. Four EAGLE

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Headmaster ' s Foreword It is a pleasure for me to write a Foreword to this, the first edition of THE EAGLE, which has risen phoenix-like from the ashes of THE BLACK AND GOLD and THE RAVEN, a fitting symbol of the development of the school. The newborn school is now a healthy baby. It will still have to meet wdth many difficulties, but it comes of healthy parents, and I have no doubt of its power to survive and to flourish. It is quite true that, because of the economic situation, the independent school is facing a difficult future. But because of the world political and social situation I think it is fair to say that at no time has there been a greater need for sound learning and the development of good character based firmly on principles of individual freedom, initiative, and responsibility. St. John’s Ravenscourt School is a place where boys can learn to live these principles and to value them: In our halls is hung Armoury of the invincible Knights of old; We must be free or die, who speak the tongue That Shakespeare spake; the faith and morals hold Which Milton held. The eagle is a traditional symbol of freedom: not a weak and passive freedom, but a soaring, active, and powerful freedom. The eagle of St. John is the symbol of the highest inspiration and conveys the idea of spiritual mission. As this publication sets forth on its first flight, and as the new school continues on its course, so, I trust, will the qualities symbol¬ ized by the eagle become soaring realities in our lives. —J. 0. Turner, Headmaster. EAGLE Three

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EDITORIAL ☆ The first year of the amalgamated school has been successful in manv ways. The following pages contain the record of such events as the Cadet Inspection, the Gym display and house competitions in all fields. The social life of the school was highlighted by the Father and Son banquet and the visit of St. Paul Academy. The boarders had their own special programme of activities. However, there is one thing which will not be recorded any¬ where as a separate event, but which is most important to us. This is the daily association with the masters and with one another. The masters who used to fill us with awe when we were little have become good friends in our graduating year. It is through our daily contact with them and with the other boys that we learn an attitude to life which is, after all, the real purpose of the school. One important feature of a good attitude to life is learning to be self- reliant. When we enter school we are almost wholly dependent on our teacher and do little on our own initiative. By our final year we have learned to be self-dependent and confident. The independence is gradually instilled in us by giving us more and more to do with little guidance or exact precedent. Another purpose of school life is to prepare us for a job. This is the most obvious and probably the least important objective, for it is felt that if a boy is healthy and has a good outlook on life he will succeed at whatever he chooses as his work. A more important purpose of school life ' is to make a sportsman out of the boy. By sportsman we mean a good sport rather than one who is good in sports. A good deal of emphasis is placed on sportsmanship at St. John’s-Ravenscourt; boys are told that the im¬ portant thing is not just to win, but to play as well as possible, to be good losers, and what is harder still, good winners. Perhaps the most important part of a good attitude to life is the ability to get along well with other people. This does not mean being well liked or having a lot of personality. The man who gets along well with others must be tolerant, considerate and friendly. In a school where the boys come from all parts of Canada and live together in close contact there is a good opportunity to learn co-operation and understanding. These are some of the things which we the graduates feel we have learned from our school life. It is going to be hard for us to realize that this June will not be the same as other Junes, when we knew that Septem¬ ber would bring us all together again in the same familiar places. This year school closing for us means school leaving. No one knows how far apart another year will find us. However, neither time nor distance will break the bond formed during these years spent together. To those boys who are climbing the ladder which we have now topped, and to the masters who teach them, we would offer our best wishes for the future. COLIN LAING. EAGLE Five