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"Where Are They
Now?" is a regular feature in the Lancer Newsletter. If
you would like to be included in a future "Where Are They Now?",
simply forward a short bio (approx. 150 -250 words) along with a
picture of yourself to your class rep. A picture from your LHS
days would be fine if you don't have a current photo.
If you don't
know who your rep is
CLICK HERE to find out.
"1945 - 1949"
BRUCE FORREST WESTWOOD
1949
I can remember all of my favourite teachers & they taught me
well which helped me greatly upon entering the workforce. While
at LHS, I enjoyed being on the sports teams, especially all
intramural sports & interschool sports. Presently retired with
my wife, Pat. We are happy & content with our lives.
Bruce
"1955 - 1959"
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Steve Cornforth
Tom Irwin |
Al Van Dusen, Bob Dawson
Peter White, Al Pounsett |
Greg Kasparian
Janet Holmes |
The power of a reunion is amazing, especially when it celebrates
over 50 years of friendship. Since meeting in August at the home
of Sel and Anne High Shields, then a pub get-together in the
fall in Toronto, cyber space has been buzzing as friends from
the '57 graduating year reconnect with each others’ lives. Helen
Currie, in Victoria, is happily anticipating a visit from her
school days' best friend, Sue Purdy. They lost touch many years
ago, and discovered email addresses at the reunion. Neal Fisher,
who had serious surgery in the fall, received many notes of
support from friends of the past. Several “old timers”, (what a
dreadful phrase,) began comparing memories of life in South
Leaside. One thing led to another. Tom Irwin, donating many
hours of blood, sweat and tears, overcame a bout of pneumonia
and has compiled a collection of these memories. It has been
sent out to some of you via email. If you have interest in
reading it, and hopefully adding to it, or sending in photos, we
would love to receive your contributions. Contact me or Tom, and
we will proceed from there.
Can You Name These Ladies?
Send your answers to pwhite@sympatico.ca
and we'll provide the names in the next Lancer.
This group of 10 "Leaside Ladies" pictured above gathers two or
three times a year for an Order of the Garter Belt Lunch. Two of
the members live in BC but came east for the OGB Lunch last May.
They celebrated the 65th birthdays of most with cake, candles,
and lots of laughter and fun -- as you can see. They are
graduates of Northlea PS and have been friends now for 60 odd
years, some friendships date back to Northlea's kindergarten
classes.
It was wonderful to hear from Sally Bambridge Ravindra (58). She
is living in Halifax, and is still very busy (and successful)
with “her pots”. You can see some of her smoke fired work on the
web site of
Secord Gallery. Sally’s son, Kabir, is a lawyer who is
working in Toronto, while her daughter, Munju, is an aspiring
writer. Sally directed me to Munju Ravindra’s website, where one
of her award winning short stories can be found. Reading “Blood
Orange” brings us oldies in touch with the wonderful work
and commitment so often found in our young people.
Stay well, all you Leasiders, and keep connecting.
Seas gu dileas!
"1960 - 1964"
BOB STRACHAN '61 & BONNIE
APPLETON '62
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After graduating from LHS in 1961 I headed off to
Rensellaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) in Troy, New York
and spent four years playing for the Varsity Hockey Team
and obtaining a BSc in Civil Engineering.
Bonnie and I married in 1965 and I worked for Imperial
Oil for 3 years in Ottawa before becoming Roads
Maintenance Engineer for Ontario County (now Durham
Region) in 1968. |
In 1973 we relocated to Perth, Ontario when I became County
Engineer for the County of Lanark – a position I held for 24
more years. We were responsible for designing, constructing and
maintaining all the upper tier roads and bridges within the
County as well as additional project management assignments for
the local governments. In 1997 I left the County to become Vice
President (Eastern Ontario) for the Miller Group of Companies –
road construction, paving and waste management. As I approached
retirement I spent some time working in the City of Kanata and
as a self employed consultant.
During these years Bonnie became very proficient at ‘dealing
with drugs’! For over 20 years she spent her ‘spare’ time, while
raising 3 children, working in a pharmacy dispensary that
supplied the local old age homes with their prescriptions.
Perth is a small town of 6000 people and is located within an
hour of Ottawa and Kingston so we became a part of this vibrant
community- Rotary Club, minor hockey/ baseball coach, swim team
executive and referee, church volunteer positions etc. - and
raised three sons who have all grown up, graduated from
University and are now married. They have made our lives
exciting with 7 grandchildren.
In 1993 we designed and constructed a new house on the shores of
the Big Rideau Lake and relocated 15 km from the Town to the
lake. It has since become a ‘magnet’ during the summer for
grandchildren!
Travel is now on our agenda and we’ve skied in Austria,
Switzerland and B.C. and seen the sites in Ireland, France,
Malta and China. We have spent time in the last few years
visiting in southern California during November with former
Leasider Kevin Floyd (White Rock B.C.) and catching up with the
news of other Leasiders who moved out west such as Don Graham
and Dave Warner. We also get together once a year or more with
former LHS students Gail (Liddiard-1962) and Dr Ron Beveridge
(1961) as well as Mavis (Sheppard-1962) Bailey.
Our e mail is
noblebay@xplornet.com
Bob & Bonnie Strachan
"1965 - 1969"
MARY (MACDONALD) KETTINGHAM, 1969
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I graduated from LHS in ‘69, then attended Univ. of
Guelph from 1969 to 1971, took off to attend
McMaster Univ. earning a diploma in Early Childhood
Education, then finished my BA at Univ. of Guelph,
graduating with Majors in Psychology and Philosophy
and a Minor in English.
I began a Writing/Editing/Proofreading career in
Marketing at CIAG Insurance Co. in Guelph. In ‘75,
as Asst. Mgr. of Media Services at the University of
Guelph, I managed the Language Learning Labs and A/V
Libraries, facilitating the instruction of studies
in French, German, Spanish, Italian, Chinese and
English as a Second Language. |
In ‘76 a promotion to Coordinator Audio-Visual Dept. gave me
the responsibility for all the Audio-Visual and TV
production requirements of the University’s professors and
students. One year later I was promoted to the position of
University Job Analyst with the task of re-writing and
performing salary re-evaluations for every staff position at
the University.
In ‘80, I moved to Memphis, married and in ‘84 had a son,
Brandon, then in ‘86 had a daughter, Drew. For 12 years my
husband & I built a thriving retail/wholesale/catalogue
leather craft business contracted to Wal-Mart stores in the
US.
Never one to rest, I began modeling professionally in 1991
in Memphis while earning further College Diplomas in
Journalism and French Later I began a lengthy career as a
Journalist, Reporter, Feature Writer and Photographer for a
large Mississippi newspaper.
In 2001, after a 28 year search, I was successful in
locating my lost brother & sister. At short time later, we
re-located in Victoria, BC. I'm a happy "Granny" since
Sept '05.
My passion is writing & I have begun writing my memories as
"memoirs" in stories and poetry and regularly publish these
stories on my blog site: "Memories To Memoirs" which may be
found at:
http://memoriestomemoirs.blogspot.com. My dream
and goal is to eventually publish these collected memoirs.
"1970 - 1974"
PETER LARGE, 1972
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After graduating from Leaside in 1972, I attended
University of Toronto and graduated in Civil
Engineering. My initial job was with the Toronto Transit
Commission, where I spent 2 years working on the Spadina
subway extension from Bloor to Yorkdale. In 1978 when I
had the opportunity to join IBM Corporation, I decided
there was more of a future in silicon than concrete and
took the leap. I have worked for IBM for 30 years in
Canada and the US in various marketing, services and
management jobs.
Over the years I have lived in Calgary, North Vancouver
and now Cary, North Carolina which is just outside of
Raleigh. I am married to Catherine Devins, from
Bradford, Ontario and this year we will celebrate our
25th anniversary |
We have two children, Kaitlyn 22 and Curtis 19, who both attend
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Kaitlyn will
graduate this spring and is going to spend 2 years with the
Peace Corp in South America. Curtis is a sophomore and seems to
spend most of his time trying to get tickets to the next Tar
Heels basketball game.
We have lived in the US now for fourteen years. Although family
is still in Canada, I feel North Carolina is home. There is no
doubt when you move south your blood thins out and you adapt to
the long hot summers. The golf season goes on forever and we are
fortunate to have some of the best golf courses in the country
close by. The other good news is we have ice hockey. When we
moved here there was one rink in the area. Now there are over 10
and a good men's league, which keeps me occupied a few nights a
week. You may have heard that we have an NHL team that won the
Cup a few years back. That was a memorable few months,
tailgating in 80 degree weather and being there when they won
the Cup ..... you can't beat it!
So that's 35 years in a few paragraphs. Leaside was a long time
ago, but I still return a few times a year to visit family and
catch up with friends ..... maybe I'll see you at Originals. I
look forward to all emails.
Peter Large
plarge@us.ibm.com
TERRY FALLIS (’78)
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Terry Fallis
www.thornleyfallis.com |
Ever since Mrs. Lyons grade 13 English class, I’ve had
the urge to write a novel. Well, as a serial
procrastinator, it has finally happened nearly 30 years
later. After Leaside, I graduated from McMaster with an
engineering degree and a growing interest in politics.
Instead of pursuing engineering as a career, I headed
into politics and worked on the political staff of
various Liberal Cabinet ministers on Parliament Hill and
at Queen’s Park. I loved it but needed a bit more
stability in my life than politics could offer, so for
the last 20 years, I’ve been consulting in public
affairs and communications, first for an international
PR agency, and since 1995 with the agency I co-founded,
Thornley Fallis. |
In 2005, I finally decided to put fingertips to keyboard and try
to write the novel that had been rattling around in my brain for
many years. So late on weekday evenings, early on weekend
mornings, and whenever business trips left me with long flights
and empty evenings, I wrote. It’s a satirical novel of Canadian
politics called The Best Laid Plans. It’s intended to be
an easy and amusing read while raising some important questions
about the state of Canadian politics and democracy. It was
published in August 2007. I podcast the novel, chapter by
chapter in 2007 and it’s available for free through iTunes and
many other podcast directories. You can also download it and
read more about the novel and my publishing experiences at
www.terryfallis.com. You’ll find the novel in several
Toronto and Ottawa bookstores including all Book City outlets,
Nicholas Hoare, Ben McNally Books, Indigo (Yonge and Eglinton
for those of you who are still Leasiders), and The Sleuth of
Baker Street on Bayview. Of course, it’s also available online
through
www.chapters.indigo.ca and
www.amazon.ca.
Love to hear any feedback you have. You can reach me at
fallis@thornleyfallis.com.
ORILLIA, Ont. — Books
from two Calgary writers, two from Toronto and one from
Vancouver are competing for this year's Stephen Leacock Memorial
Medal and $10,000, which will go to the one deemed the funniest
when the final award is announced April 30.
The shortlist of
nominees:
-"The Gum Thief" by
Vancouver author Douglas Coupland, an account of two co-workers
with nothing in common who ultimately have very much in common.
-"The Best Laid
Plans" by Terry Fallis of Toronto, about a cranky and reluctant
political candidate who consents to run in a federal election
based on the fact that he is certain to lose.
-"Spanish Fly" by
Will Ferguson of Calgary - who already has two Leacock medals
for his work - a story about a team of swindlers on a crime
spree in the 1930s.
-"King John of
Canada" by Toronto writer Scott Gardiner, about how through a
series of accidents Canada ends up with a king chosen by
lottery.
-"And God Created
Manyberries" by Ron Wood of Calgary, which pokes fun at the
political leadership and small-town foibles of Canada.
The award will be
decided by five anonymous national judges and 11 readers.
Calling all grads from 1975 to 1979!
There have been several inquiries regarding holding a 30th reunion for
alumni from the latter half of the 1970's. If you are interested
please complete the form below. At this time we are looking to hold
this reunion sometime in May 2008.
You can also email
1975-1979@leasidehighschool.com
"1980 - 1984"
LISA JAMIESON
(1981)
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My name is Lisa Jamieson
and I graduated from LHS in 1981. Despite the fact that
the MATH says 27 (gulp!) years have passed, I am in
denial. It seems like just yesterday…
However, the years don’t
lie and I’ll try my best not to as well! My proudest and
most noteworthy accomplishments since leaving LHS would
have to be my 20 year old daughter and my 18 year old
son. They are both really amazing kids who always find a
way to make me smile, laugh or just feel good about life
in general. By the way, did I mention how eternally
grateful I am that none of my “wayward” teen traits were
hereditary? Phew! Guess I dodged a bullet there…
My 2nd husband and I have
been married for 12 years now (first time around was the
“starter” marriage – it didn’t take) Went to Vegas for
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nuptials and a fine time
was had by all. No Elvis
and Priscilla wigs, but we did get a casino voucher good
for the “all you can eat dinner buffet” – 1st class all
the way for this gal!
For the record, lots of
other semi-interesting stuff happened over the years as
well, but space here is limited. You’ll just have to
wait for the book to come out (of course names will be
changed to protect the innocent!).
Hi to all my friends and teachers who made my high
school experience truly memorable. Those years will
always be the “good old days” to me.
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"1990 - 1994"
MEG KRAWCHUK
1991
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Hi LHS people. I graduated from Leaside in 1991. I took
the expected path through an undergraduate program at
the University of Guelph, and graduated with a B.Sc. in
Zoology in 1995. By the end of this program, I had
discovered that my enjoyment of science and love for the
outdoors could be combined through research. After
working for a bit as a research technician I decided to
go back to school. I completed my M.Sc. in Ecology at
Acadia University in Nova Scotia, worked with Gros Morne
National Park in Newfoundland, and then headed to
Edmonton for my Ph.D. in Conservation Biology at the
University of Alberta. |
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Note, this was not all so linear as is appears here; not
surprising. I am now working at the University of
California, Berkeley as a post-doc in the Department of
Environmental Science, Policy and Management. Holding
true to my active-but-nerdy beginnings at LHS, I run,
climb, ski and hike when I’m not sitting at my computer
generating statistical models of ecological data. At 35
(ack!), I am still happily wondering what I will be when
I grow up. |
A NEW YEAR AND FRESH THOUGHTS OF LEASIDE HIGH
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By Nick Mitchell
January 2008
When I think of the expression "cabin fever" I envisage our
early pioneers holed up in their rustic homes waiting for
spring. I left Los Angeles on December 30th and arrived in
Queensland on January 1st. I was therefore denied a new
year's celebration, but an enticing Qantas attendant did at
least present me with a small bottle of Jacob's Creek
sparkling white wine at an appropriate moment. When I
arrived it was raining hard and the Pacific Ocean was
pounding The Gold Coast relentlessly, and so it continued
for 6 days.
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This was when I saw the expression "cabin fever" on the
front page of the local paper. Australians were stuggling
to entertain their children in the middle of their school
holidays. The beaches were empty and the malls were full and
I felt an empathy for all those parents keeping their
children occupied and perhaps craving the start of a new
school term.
But let us consider the new year and a fresh start for Leaside High
School. I still enjoy my role as an occasional teacher at my old
School and meeting the children of my former students. It is clear
to me that all is well at Leaside. There has been concern lately as
to whether the amalgamation of the six School Boards ten years ago
was beneficial or not. I do feel a sense of nostalgia for our old
"East York Board" and the intimacy we all felt with each other and
with our leaders. It seems that there is a move to break down The
TDSB into smaller units. I will be interested to see the outcome.
I know that you will all be impressed by the new Leaside High School
website, largely designed by students. It will tell you everything
you need or want to know about the School. Just click on the link
below and enjoy. The site has all kinds of links, including our own
Alumni network.
http://schools.tdsb.on.ca/leasidehigh/Home%20Folder/new%20home%20Frameset-1.htm
I was particularly interested by the work of "Oolagen", a service to
help students who feel stressed and need counselling. I liked their
initiative to promote "bully busting". Bullying has been a problem
in every school and in every era and Leaside obviously addresses
this problem.
One group of students for whom I have always felt sympathy are those
with red hair. I recall youngsters being cruelly taunted with
expressions such as "copper knob", "carrot top" and "ginger". Such
epithets might seem harmless, but they surely must make some young
people uncomfortable and marginalized. In addition, there are many
traditional prejudices directed to those with red hair. We often
hear that "red heads" have volatile dispositions and are prone to
bad tempers, a supposition that is not founded in fact.
The solution surely is for The School Board to establish schools for
red haired students, preferably run by red haired teachers. In this
way, the students can learn and appreciate their heritage with
studies of significant red heads who have contributed to Western
Civilization. For example, Eric The Red was the father of Lief
Erikson, Canada's first European tourist. Let us also remember Henry
V111 and his second daughter, Elizabeth. More recently, Nicole
Kidman, Red Adair, Cate Blanchett and John Kearns have also left
their mark. Such studies will surely raise the self esteem and
confidence of our red haired youngsters. As a wise man once said, "a
man should be judged by the content of his character and not the
colour of his hair".
Well, this is just a suggestion; but of course I jest. I mean no
disrespect to any student who might feel "different". Indeed, I hope
that harmony will prevail throughout all our schools and that every
student of every culture and hue will learn and grow together
without prejudices and bullies.
The sun
came out today, the sky is blue and the ocean beckons.
A happy
2008 to you all. Best wishes, Nicholas .
EMAIL NICK:
musings@leasidehighschool.com
LEASIDE MYTHS
In the last issue of the
Lancer we introduced "Leaside Myths".
The response was fantastic! Lot's of alumni
responded with their recollections of RUSH playing
LHS. Slightly more than 60% of the alumni who
responded were aware of this myth and it would
appear that we can snow safely say that "yes indeed,
RUSH did play LHS". Nothing like photographic
evidence from page 80 of the '74 Clan Call.
That's original drummer John Rutsey on
the kit.
Below are some of the
responses from our mini poll.
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As God is my witness, RUSH played at
LHS. Possibly before Neil Peart
became the full-time drummer. But,
hey, graduated shy on 28 years ago.
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Yep...they sure did play Leaside.
I believe it was 1973 or maybe '74.
As I recall, four or five really bizarre
groupies spent the night dancing in a
circle directly in front of Geddy Lee.
Great dance, it ranked up there with
"The Stampeders".
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It's not a rumour. I was there.
It was a Friday night dance.
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I'm sure it was a Friday night dance.
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Not just a rumour!! I was in grade
nine and am sure I went to that Dance!!!
didn't like them much then....still
don't 'cept a couple of mainstream songs
that weren't bad. So it would've been
1972-'73 ....I can't believe Rush has
never mentioned Leaside on one of their
album covers as the day they were truly
discovered.
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No eyewitness accounts, I was '79 to
'84. So, it (slightly) predated
me. It can't be an "Urban Legend,"
can it?
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I have promoted this rumour many times
since 1972.
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I attended LHS from 1972-1976 and think
I recall not only Rush but also Teenage
Head and April Wine playing at the
school. But I stand to be corrected.
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I not only heard the rumour, but seem to
recall being there. However, I
graduated in '78 and things were
sometimes a little fuzzy during my time
at Leaside.
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It was around 1973.
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I can just remember the rumour
circulating in the late 70's.
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I believe that there is a picture in a
Clan Call from the early 70's of Rush
playing in the LHS auditorium (Same
curtains as there are presently).
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It's not a "rumour"....I was there!
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I thought it was the Rolling Stones!
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Yes and so did Lighthouse, garage bands
at the time Who knew?
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RUSH ??? What the hell is Rush ?
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I think it's true!!
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It's not a rumour, it is true! Judy and
I attended the dance and I distinctly
remember leaving early stating that the
band 'stunk!'
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I never believed it for a minute!
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Since I have not heard this rumour I
have no eye witness account but it still
sounds good to me!!!!
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Definitely! It was the GAA, being an
ex-president, that hired them to play,
for 1 of the best dances of all times!
Was it a Sadie Hawkins?..help.. Barbara
Young,1975 (hint - Willie & Chicken's
buddy & an official member of the Black
Dragons & Scuttlebuck Lodge.
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Put the rumour into the "truth" box.. I
was there!
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However, I know for a fact that David
Wilcox played the LHS gymnasium! I
still have the set list and autographs!
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I actually SAW RUSH at LHS!!!!! A
long time ago.. probably the mid to late
70's. It was a good time and I was
allowed to walk home (as long as it was
with friends)...since I was only 14.
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Yes they did play at LHS and I was a
staff supervisor at that dance. I
am not sure about the year but it must
have been early in my career because I
did not act as a chaperone for many of
those dances. W.W.
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As far as I can remember it was a Battle
of the Bands and Rush was one of the
bands, I was there but can't remember
what year it was, sometime between 1972
and 1976.
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Geddy Lee's RUSH did indeed play in our
beloved LHS. I remember just how
cool it was that this was happening in
our own little gym. They set up at
the south end. I did not have time
to get any of the groups autographs at
the time because I was dancing with LHS
chicks!
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But, David Wilcox and Jeff Healey did
play at LHS when I was there.
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What's the Rush? We had Ron
Nigrini!
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I thought it was April Wine that played
LHS
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Something I always believed all through
high school. I still tell that to
my younger friends who are just
discovering RUSH.
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Its no rumour, I saw them for myself, it
was my first High School Dance in Grade
9 and was quite an unusual show for the
time
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Here is our new myth to
bust:
The
small gym was supposed to be a pool but the pool sank during
construction due to the underground river going through the
valley and past the school. The gym was constructed on top
of it?
Please click just once
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Wildfire Evacuees Forced To Make Quick
Decision On What To Take With Them
We all watched in horror as the wildfires spread throughout southern California
last October and our hearts went out to the many people
we saw interviewed just after they had been forced to evacuate
their homes. When asked what they brought with them, almost every evacuee answered “family photos and memorabilia". This
clearly shows the importance we all place on our precious family memories.
You probably have your own flickering memories on ancient 8mm film, or perhaps you have VHS videos stored in a box somewhere? What about those rare vinyl record albums in your collection that never made it to
CD? You can protect these irreplaceable memories now by transferring them to DVD or CD and bringing them to life in the digital world.
Manic Media can make copies from any format to DVD,
Blu-Ray or CD. Save your memories today!
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Financial Support
A HUGE thanks to those of you who have made donations.
It's great to receive financial support from alumni who believe in what we're
tying to do with this web site. So far the response for donations has not
quite been what we
expected. The
original concept was for leasidehighschool.com to be a membership site with
annual dues of $15.00. That idea was scrapped in favour of asking for
donations. Perhaps because members see some advertising on the web site, the perception is
that we are funded and that there is no need to donate.
Advertising revenue does help offset some of the costs, but it by no means
covers everything.
We want to continue growing the web site, adding
new features etc. and to be in a position to fund a scholarship. This
can't happen without the financial support of our members. We have some
incentives for members who make a donation, please see below.
GREEN LEVEL DONATION
Alumni who make a donation of $10.00 to
$49.99 will receive a coupon for a 20% discount on a meal at The Fox and Fiddle Leaside location.
GOLD LEVEL DONATION
Alumni who make a donation of $50.00 or
more will receive a coupon for a 20% discount on a meal at The Fox and Fiddle Leaside location plus their choice of either
"Leaside High School the First Fifty Years" or
"Reunion 2005" DVD or VHS.
Click on
Donate Online
for credit card donations or on
Donate
by Mail to send a cheque.
We are grateful for financial support
from these local businesses
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W W W . L E A S I D E H I G H S C H O O L . C O M |
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