Wallaceburg District Secondary School - Actiana Yearbook (Wallaceburg, Ontario Canada)

Page 74 text:

GLEE CLUB .... Music has the power to mold Character. That being so, it is an indispensable study for our young people. . . . . Aristotle. We are very sorry to report musical activities have been very limited during the 1954-1955 term. No, We have not lost interest and we are very for- tunate not to have lost our Musical Director, Mr. Von Ayres, who met with a serious accident and has been incapacitated for over two months. I spent a pleasant hour with Mr. Ayres discussing possibilities for a musical rendezvous to be held sometime in the spring. Yes, the Glee Club will be heard in the school auditorium before the end of the term. We certainly appreciate the efforts of Mr. Ayres and also the results of his work. All of us realize music is becoming a way of life and part of everyday living. It fills in leisure time and is a creative, participating recreational ac- tivity without equal. Music helps all of us spiritually, mentally and morally. Possibly we do not stop to realize that the part music plays in everyday affairs as radio, television, church and social functions, the theatre, dancing and ball- et. We take these things for granted, which we could not enjoy without the mus- ical scores. By way of encouraging musical appreciation and offering excellent en- tertainment, the Rotary Club presented the Don Wright Chorus in the school auditorium on Dec. 7. They presented their programme in three parts and cov- ered a wide variety . Some of the most popular of the 22 numbers presented were: Come to the fair , You'll never walk alone , Lullaby, by Brahms , Bless this House , Sylvia , I Believe , and Louisiana Hayride . -72-

Page 73 text:

M SIC .... W. D. H. s. BAND .... Students and staff of W.D.H.S. should be proud of their band. In spite of many ups and downs. the band carried on its regular Thursday practices, ap- proximately forty minutes in duration. As in previous years, our capable di- rector, Mr. E. V. Ayres, conducted the sessions and succeeded in teaching the band many new marches and overtures. New music and new instruments have been added to the organization through the efforts of Mr. Ayres and the school board. Our greatest achievement was in the issuing of new uniforms. The uni- forms a1'e a kiltie style and have a smart military jacket gaily coloured with brown, green and gold. At the 1953-54 Cadet Inspection, the band received many congratulations from the inspecting officers and the citizens of the town. Due to Mr. Ayres' unfortunate accident, Gary Cooper took on the respon- sibility of supervising the annual march to the Cenotaph on Nov. 11th. Gary also was largely responsible for the issuing of the new uniforms. Other events such as Commencement, Athletic Night were presented with a great showing from your W.D.H.S. Kilties. EXECUTIVE: Hon. P1'es.- Mr. Earl Rupert. Pres.- Edward Davies. Vice Pres.- Paul Kilbreath. Secretary-Treasurer- John Burnett. Head of Music- Barbara Hende1'son. Ilead of Social Committee- Kaye Mathany. Head of Uniforms- Gary Cooper. -71-

Page 75 text:

PUBLIC SPEAKING TEAM .... Henk Hart. Tom Fox, Iune Gonyou, Marie Huige. ORATORICAL CONTEST .... The winner of the Senior Oratorical Contest was Henk Hart, whose top- ic was the Futility of War . Maria Huige who spoke on The Modern Ad- vances of Medicine placed second in the contest. Other speakers were- Mary Stevens whose subject was Einstein , Jack Burgess who spoke on The Futil- ity of War , Tom Brunt who chose as his subject Sir Winston Churchill , and John Burnett who spoke on Juvenile Delinquency . The first place speakers among the girls and boys went on to the Kent County finals. Henk Hart came home with the Rotary Club Trophy for win- ning the K.C.S.S.A. Oratorical Competition. He placed second in the semi-final W.O.S.S.A. competition at Essex. DRAMATIC CLUB .... The 1954-1955 Dramatic Club got under way in September with Mr. Ball, and Mrs. Heslip as directors. Jack Burgess and Janice Peterson held the offices of president and secretary. In November, a dance was sponsored by our Club which turned out to be one of the social events of the season. This year the club Cno longer a pioneer in W.D.H.S.l made tremendous strides. Again a three act comedy was produced. This year's project was That Brewster Boy which proved most successful, also While the Toast Burned, a one-act comedy performed at Open House, completed the year's activities. With the money from the play we hope to buy various types of equipment for other clubs in the school as well as make-up, and permanent lights at the back of the stage, for our own department. Next year when the Drama Club begins, we hope to have more members-- not only actors but people who are interested in all phases of acting, such as production, props, and scenery, to mention only a few. -73-