EIGHTH and FINAL NEWSLETTER FOR NTCI CLASS OF 1968 50^TH ANNIVERSRAY REUNION FRIDAY MAY 4^TH AND SATURDAY MAY 5^th, 2018 

Canada Day 2018 Edition 

This is the final Newsletter for the NTCI Class of 1968 50^th Anniversary Reunion though perhaps not the final class newsletter (you may not get rid of me that easily).  Sorry for the delay in getting this out but I was waiting on some information, some of us still work full time and I have had medical issues (who doesn’t at our age).   

2018 REUNION WEEKEND REPORT

Below, I summarize what occurred at all the events of the reunion weekend. 

FRIDAY LATE AFTERNOON AT NTCI – MEMORY MINGLE

Again, we met at the new NTCI for two hours of conversations, renewing old friendships and talking about the good old days.  About 50 people attended compared to about 80 people last reunion but there were a lot of new faces.  Part of the reduction in numbers was because many spouses did not attend this time as they felt one reunion was enough.  We had two gate crashers who swore they were in our class but my records showed they never were. But they paid their money so we let them in.  Again, we had special name tags with one’s graduation picture on it to show how little we had changed in 50 years.  Except for my relatively brief speech (reprinted below) we skipped the Class President speeches and just mostly talked and ate.  In the middle of this event a flash dance miraculously broke out. It was led by Claire McFarlane secretly teaching her team of dancers – Ruth Rosen Levkoe, Naomi Siegel, Carolyn Borne Kennedy, Mardi Cornish Hirshberg, Linda Walsh, Anu Pettai Marley, Janet Morrison, Martin Hart and Warner Clarke. They had some nifty moves to two songs. Everyone was duly surprised and impressed. I was supposed to dance and practiced for an hour in my office in Ottawa with Martin Hart trying to teach me but I could not handle the pressure so bowed out at game time. I also understand if Bill Schabas’s plane had arrived on time he would have been dancing too. We have good pictures of this unexpected event.  Anu Pettai Marley also arranged for 6 members of the school orchestra to play the school song. Just in case people forgot the words we had handouts so everyone could properly sing along. It is a great school song. As per my speech below I handed out some prizes and promoted Mr. Broughton latest book.  Unfortunately, Mr. Broughton was the only teacher who could attend this time but he enthusiastically talked to many classmates. There was lots to eat with a variety of pizza arriving on time and lots of drinks, vegetables and dips and people brought some other deserts and goodies to eat. Thanks to Ruth Rosen Levkoe, Carolyn Borne Kennedy, Anu Pettai Marley and Roz Zurkowsky for organizing this event.  

Laurie Pascoe’s Speech at Memory Mingle 

“ Though I did say there would be no speeches at this reunion, I lied, because I am going to say a few words of welcome , give some thankyous and  make some announcements  . If you really have the need for speeches go to our website and read what Garth and Mike our class presidents said last reunion.

So welcome to the 2^nd NTCI 1968 class reunion on the occasion of the 50^th anniversary of our graduating year.

Like at all weddings and barmitzvahs I would like to especially thank those that travelled some distance to get here – my arbitrary criteria for “some distance” is 3 hours from the school by car, in non-rush hour traffic. 

From Eastern Ontario we have myself and Martin Hart from Ottawa, your nation’s capital. From the Unites States we have Mike Guinness from Toledo Ohio , Paul Cohen from the windy city Chicago Illinois and all the way from Kirkland Washington we have oboist Megan Whittingham. But the person who came the farthest is our illustrious web master Bill Schabas who took time off from solving the world’s problems to come all the way from England. 

I believe there are some other who travelled more than three hours to get here but did not identify themselves to me as requested   – so I’ll embarrass them and say they can put up their hand now and announce where they are from -  Anyone  -The Cliffords from Deep River- Glynnis Thomas French from Ottawa. 

We would like to acknowledge and thank those who worked on the reunion.

Thanks to the people in charge of Memory Mingle - Carolyn Born Kennedy and Ruth Rosen Levkoe.   Thanks to Janet Toppin Swann who put together the slide show and Anu Pettai Marley who coordinated with the school and the music department and will be transporting what you don’t eat here to the Humbers.  Thanks to Claire McFarlane our dance director.  

We would like to thank, all the people who volunteered to set up and clean up Memory Mingle, people who baked and worked the registration table especially Roz Zurkowsky on the desk. 

We thank Bill Humber and Mardi Cornish and their respective spouses Cathie and  Haim   for opening their homes and hosting the house parties,  tonight at Bill’s and tomorrow at Mardi’s . 

And at the Humbers tonight we will be entertained again by our classmate Warner Clarke and also by the very talented young singer/songwriter Noah Pascoe. Thanks to them. 

CONTEST WINNERS 

I would like to congratulate the contest winners and award their prizes 

Janet Toppin worked very hard to win the” Name the 7 classmates who lived on Hillhurst Blvd.”  She won not because she was my girlfriend in Grade 8 but because she was the only one who entered the contest and eventually came up with all 7 names.  For that she wins a bottle of Canada’s best maple syrup from Lanark County Ontario, not that cheap imitation Quebec stuff.

I won the “Find Arnie Isaacs” contest as mentioned in the last newsletter so I saved on a bottle of maple syrup

Martin Hart just beat me out for finding the most classmates. He worked very hard at it. It must be that Ottawa public servant work ethic. He too wins a bottle of Canada’s best maple syrup from Lanark County, Ontario not that cheap imitation Quebec stuff . He was previously awarded his prize at a separate ceremony at my office in Ottawa when we practiced dancing. 

With respect to finding classmates.  I did not think I would ever say this – but you can all stop looking - for now.  Though, if you have not written a bio or update yet – there is still time until the end of May because I have one more newsletter in me, being the wrap up edition – and for that I would ask for your final thoughts – even if it is a one liner 

SOME MORE ANNOUNCEMENTS 

Our math teacher Mr. Peter Brouhgton   is available to sign his latest book – I am getting my copy signed – I have already written my inscription out – “to Laurie - my favourite and best student I ever had at North Toronto.” 

I will continue taking your picture with anyone or group you want. 

Doug’s walk time tomorrow starts at 10:00 – at one point we said 10:30 

And remember we also have two house parties – right after we finish here we can head over to Bill and Cathy Humbers’ and tomorrow after the walk everyone is welcome to Mardi’s house – even to drop in for short period. 

Maps to their homes are in your handout.  That is it for the speeches.

And now turn to the second page of your hymn book for the words to the school song.    

FRIDAY NIGHT AT THE HUMBERS 

After Memory Mingle many of the group walked or drove over to the nearby house of Cathy Humber’s childhood now owned by Cathy her daughter now resides. She was on hand to make sure we did not destroy the house with a wild party. 

There the party continued with fresh food and drinks supplied by the Humbers, more baking and left overs from Memory Mingle.  The reminiscing continued and world problems were solved.  

Again for this reunion the entertainment was provided by our own Warner Clarke and the talented singer/song writer Noah Pascoe.  Noah is completing his B’Ed at Queens next month specializing in teaching the arts in elementary schools.  As part of a school project he and three other students and an older professional performer professionally recorded a beautiful children’s album. It would make a great birthday, Christmas, Chanukah , Easter, or any holiday gift for children. The group is called the Harmony Club  and the album “How-to-Be- Awesome” . Check it out at  https://theharmonyclub.bandcamp.com/album/how-to-be-awesome. You can listen for free but cost only $10 to download. No,  I get no commission but I never miss an opportunity to promote my children. Need an Entertainment lawyer – call my son Byron. 

HISTORICAL WALK

On the beautiful Saturday morning twelve of us met at Eglinton Park for a historical walk around the outskirts of the park. Professional tour guide Doug Campbell of our class lead the tour. He was ably assisted by his loyal man servant Bill Humber.  Bill carried picture books which supplemented the tour talk and he was in charge of keeping the private conversations to a minimum so we would listen closely to Doug. Mr. Snell would have been proud of him. 

During the two hour stroll around the streets surrounding the park Doug explained a lot about the history of the park, the area and Toronto and we stopped and saw many old buildings and were told some interesting historical facts. Two of my favourite antidotes were firstly during the 1837 rebellion Thomas Edison’s father, a rebel, had to flee to the United States or otherwise the world’s greatest inventor would have been a Canadian. And the other story was about some poor rebel who tried to escape across a great lake (forget which one, must have been talking) , but the wind kept blowing him back and he was captured .

As we walked around the park teaming with activity, members of the group chatted and told their historical facts about the area.  We saw the condominium built on the land that once stood the church where Bill Schabas and Brian Lauder were pin boys at the bowling alley in the church. They made good money but soon spent it at a candy store nearby. Across from the old RCAF building, now a school I pointed out Stu Peikes’ house where I spent time during my Allenby days and in later years many a card game was played there. When we stopped for a group picture on Roselawn Anu Pettai Marley pointed out that directly across the street was the house she and her family lived in when she went to North Toronto. We could not find a plaque on the house commemorating that she or her family lived there though.  We came near Kevin Kate’s house which bordered on the park. Mike Guinness told the spiritual story that a few months ago out of the blue when thinking about the reunion he thought about Kevin Kates and what a fashionable dresser he was. Later that exact same day he came home to receive the latest newsletter with Kevin’s obituary as Kevin had passed away in the late 80’s.  We went up Duplex Avenue passing a chocolate factory to St. George’s United Church on Lytton Blvd. I was a Cub and Boy Scout there for about six years. Being the only Jew in the Scout Troop I was the treasurer of the troop. But the highlight of the personal tour was the last stop where we saw the old jail where Bill Humber told the story of how he Martin Hart and John Scott had been interrogated and incarcerated for being caught for underage drinking and then Bill dramatically re-enacted the ensuing court room drama where Bill through himself on the mercy of the court.

After the tour many of the group headed back to the nearby Humber house to finish up the still plentiful food from the night while I went to pick up my wife at Yorkdale Shopping Centre where I dropped her off before the tour for her well-deserved shopping expedition for coming to a second reunion. 

The historical tour is a hidden gem of the reunion weekend and I highly recommend you attend it if there is another reunion.   

             

MARDI’s SATURDAY AFETRNOON PARTY

Saturday afternoon the reunion went a little more upscale as (no offence Humbers) . We were graciously hosted by Mardi (Cornish) Hirshberg and her husband Haim at their beautiful home on Alexandra Wood. We had a very respectable turnout which included one of our former class presidents Garth Drabinsky who could not come Friday night and others who could only make this one event. Mystically the first thing Garth said to me was “What happened to Kevin Kates, he was great dresser and he taught me a lot about fashion”. 

Again, we just leisurely talked and ate for a few hours. Some of us were fortunate enough to get a tour of the house (art gallery).  Mardi arranged for a delicious spread of food though I have it from two attendees that my wife Carol’s banana bread was the best they have ever eaten. A class picture was taken for those who were still there at the time. It has been published in the NTCI Alumni newsletter with a short account of the weekend activities. 

Mardi’s party was a perfect ending to a great weekend.

EARRINGS

A pair of earrings were left behind at Memory Mingle. They are now in the possession of Mardi Cornish Hirshberg. You can contact her at mardi@bellnet.com to claim them.

FUND RAISING 

Because of the generosity of some classmates and the careful shopping of the Memory Mingle organizers there was actually a $330 surplus from this reunion according to a statement from our treasurer Carolyn Borne Kennedy from her non-extraditable winter home.  It will be donated to the school we are just not sure how. We donated $500 from the last reunion.  Carolyn is working on getting special recognition for a class who gives over $1,000 so if you donate to the school please tell them it is in honour of the Class  of 1968 or Mr. Hill who recently  passed away ( see obituary below ) and perhaps we will get that recognition. We challenge everyone to give something, even if a very nominal amount especially music students in honour of Mr. Hill to get us over that $1,000. 

DATA BASE

I often get emails from classmates asking for the mail address of other classmates. I reply but unless they are Internet and Excel challenged they should be able to get it e mail addresses from the Class list on our web site at http://ntci68.blogspot.com/?zx=bbbb5ceb75851e64 or Google Class of 1968 NTCI Reunion. Though I like to hear from people please try that first.

PHOTOGRAPHS 

 Many photographs were taken at this reunion which will soon be posted on our web site. Keep checking there to see when they go up.

OBITUARY 

Charles Albert "Bud" Hill

JULY 12, 1929 – MAY 3, 2018

Below is just one of the many letters posted  at https://www.dignitymemorial.com/en-ca/obituaries/toronto-on/charles-hill-7841199

which is typical of the tributes paid to Mr. Hill.  

Nancy Nourse wrote 

June 2, 2018

I am so very sorry that the sad news only just reached me. I, like many others would have wanted to attend the memorial.
No musical mentor in my life has been more formative or enduring than the inspiring, passionate and creative Mr. Hill. It was he who listened to my late plea to begin an instrument during the summer before grade 10 and trusted me to catch up to the class. He helped me get flute lessons, encouraged me to play piccolo, supported me on ear training for an RCM exam and guided me through steps I needed to study music at university.
This was above and beyond the remarkable education he offered all his students. From the early morning marching band rehearsals to the late-night nights he spent hand copying parts (before the computer era), he was truly devoted to us. There were the classroom lessons with not only his skilled and dynamic instruction teaching us how to perform, but also his delving into the great musical repertoire from Bach to Takemitsu, so that we became engaged as listening participants. There were the many 3:30 rehearsals for concert bands and the massive Maytime Melodies chorus. My most lasting memories were those of Bud composing and arranging wonderful music just for us--Ode to Canada, the medleys, Our School, She's Like the Swallow, Back in the USSR, 17th Broadway March, Chant and Dance and what remains my favourite setting of O Canada. His caring to score the right music for his performers has been the impetus and model for all my own musical writing.
Bud offered his students so very much, that many of us have continued through our lives as musical crusaders shaped very much by our encounters with him. Bud Hill was a one-of-a-kind and will be sorely missed.

Editor’s note :  Mr. Hill’s death really hit home for many of us, as music was such a big part of NTCI life for many classmates and many students adored Mr. Hill . We all had our stories about him. For me the answer to the password question for one of the many sites that need passwords “who was your favourite teacher ?”, has always been “Mr. Hill”. It is not the security question for my financial sites so don’t bother trying to hack my computer.  Indulge me while I tell my personal story about the man and not just his music. 

The music gene that my grandfather (a master violinist) , my father ( a piano player) skipped over me and landed on my son Noah( a singer songwriter guitar player)   . I am not a good musician. My marks with Mr. Couke playing clarinet in Grade 9 and 10 were below the class average and I initially took Geography as my option entering Garde 11. But at the last minute I went to the office and changed my option to music – I am not even sure why. I guess just a hunch even though I would have gotten better marks in and did not dislike Geography.  

The year before I entered Grade 11 the Senior Concert Band had done very poorly in the Kiwanis Music Festival. This really bothered Mr. Hill. Yes, he was passionate. So, in the first day or two of school Mr. Hill called a Senior Concert Band practice for afterschool and declared this year we would win big at Kiwanis after a terrible showing the year before. He said this would be done by having a smaller but better band. There were several clarinetists moving up from Grade 10 to 11 – some real good ones like Ted Clifford and Doug Gammage so I was at the lower if not the lowest echelon of the clarinet players’ scale.   But Mr. Hill did not know the abilities of the Grade 11’s as they were taught only by Mr. Couke previously. I guess Mr. Hill wanted to get going quickly so he asked all the new Grade 11 clarinetists who showed up to this first practice (and some forgot to come as it was the first week of school) to play a “C” scale. Ironically besides playing “Stranger on the Shore “pretty well I can also play a good “C’ scale. He then asked only a few of us Grade 11’s to stay and told the others to leave. I remember seeing many smiles from other members of the Grade 11 music class knowing Mr. Hill had just made a very big mistake – they knew I had never made it past 3^rd clarinet in Grade 9 and 10. 

 I then had to take private lessons to improve. It did not help much. I was struggling in class as there was like all our other subjects a big jump between Grade 10 and Grade 11. After a few weeks of music classes Mr. Hill obviously realized he made a mistake choosing me over several better Grade 11 clarinet players. I cannot believe that he was not contemplating firing me from the band something I would have done if I were him and I would have understood.  But then my mother died suddenly on November 1^st. I remember the band sent my family flowers. After that I assume Mr. Hill felt he could not fire me. I was too vulnerable.  Mr. Hill was always nice to me. He chose me to be the Music Editor for the Pentagon. I kept playing in the band in Grade 13 though it was then voluntary. For that last Grade 13 year when he again put me on 3^rd clarinet he said to me “we need good people at every level”. I doubt if that is really true.

Music was the best part of high school for me even though it was far from my best subject. My wife and I are season ticket holders to the National Arts Centre Orchestra, we attend our fair share of concerts and encouraged our children in the arts. They both were in musical theatre. My oldest son Byron is an Entertainment lawyer and represents musicians and my younger son Noah besides being a performer will teach music at the elementary school level.  I credit Mr. Hill for giving me a greater knowledge and appreciation of music and the arts and being more of a Canadian nationalist. The band could never play John Philip Sousa marches only ones composed by Kenneth J. Alford.

By the way, in that Grade 11 year at the Kiwanis Festival the Senior Concert Band won an unprecedented 4 “A” Class Firsts and were asked to play at Massey Hall in “The Stars of the Festival”.  The band’s picture was taken at that event and I believe it is still hanging in the music department at NTCI.  

BIO’S 

John Wainwright

I attended Allenby Public School before graduating to NTCI to be part of the 1968 graduating class. I attended Grade 9 at NTCI but early in my Grade 10 year, my family moved to Edmonton. I completed high school in Edmonton then obtained a Bachelors Degree in Engineering, and a Masters of Business Administration, both from the University of Alberta.

My first employment after graduating university was with the Federal Government, Ministry of Transport as part of a small Project Team which designed and construction managed a new airport in Calgary. I worked for the MOT in Edmonton at this position for five years between 1972 and 1978. When the airport opened in 1978, I was offered a job with the MOT in Ottawa but instead took a position with a marine company in Montreal whose primary purpose was to design two icebreaking ships which would transport liquid natural gas from the Canadian High Arctic to the Maritimes on a year-round basis.  In 1981, the entire company moved to Calgary where we continued the design of these LNG carrying ships. 

In 1983, natural gas prices “cratered” which rendered the LNG project uneconomic. I then transferred to a sister company in Calgary which owned and operated a fleet of icebreakers in the Beaufort Sea assisting oil exploration in the Arctic. I worked at this firm for five years before the National Energy Programme was terminated and companies stopped exploring for oil in the offshore Arctic.

In 1989, I then joined the Canadian subsidiary of a Dutch construction company which became one of the first to offer directionally drilled pipeline installations in Canada. This technique involves utilizing a specially designed drilling rig to drill underneath an environmentally sensitive area, such as a river, and then directionally deviating to exit beyond the sensitive area (i.e. the other side of the river). The pipeline is then pulled through the hole that was drilled so that there is no disturbance to marine life, surface pollution, delicate marshland or whatever the surface sensitivity might be.  I worked at this for about 20 years all in Calgary.

In 2005, I joined an oilfield drilling company in Calgary designing and managing a series of unique electrical drilling rigs. In 2007, I returned to Edmonton joining a pipeline company as a Project Manager.

Along the way, I married and had two children.  This marriage did not work out and I re-married about ten years ago. My wife Michelle and I live in St. Albert, just outside of Edmonton, and we have a total of five grandchildren.   We added beagle puppy “Hudson” to our family last year and he keeps us on our toes.

I am now happily retired and spend my time playing sports such as golfing, biking, curling and recently pickle ball. In the last few years Michelle and I have enjoyed travel to Mexico, Australia, New Zealand, Iceland, London, the Mediterranean and SE Asia  

It was excellent to hear of the 50^th anniversary re-union of NTCI’s 1968 graduating class and I am sorry that I was unable to attend.

Editor’s Note: After Arnie Isaacs John Wainright was number two on my most wanted to find list. I knew John from Allenby and then when we were both in 9 A and 10 A together we became good friends until he moved away in Garde 10.  I never stopped looking and found him in the month before the reunion on LinkedIn. 

SO WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE 

We have had two successful class reunions in the last four years. We have had many classmates who have reconnected with old friends many of whom are now getting together periodically. I finally found everyone in my Barmitzvah picture. Five of them went out for dinner in Toronto last week when Arnie Isaacs came in from California and I plan on attending next year when we hold another dinner.  I am told several girl groups now get together regularly for lunch. We have made several new friends having talked to people we conversed little with or not at all back in high school. We have reminisced fondly (and not so fondly Mr. Sn--l) about our classmates and teachers.  We have found out what became of many of our classmates (many of whom could not attend the reunions but still wrote bios) and we have had a great time doing all these things.  So where do we go from here.  The consensus is that we will not have other full blown 4 event reunions again. My wife says I am not allowed to organize another reunion until the 75^th (2043). But the good news is that Bill and Cathy Humber will host an annual get together – same time, same place.  Bill Schabas will keep up the web site for people to access addresses pictures and updates. As long as there is interest. I will do a once a year newsletter printing updates, achievements and unfortunately obituaries. To do so however I need your help in providing information and articles for me. I cannot like I had done for my friend Fred Fruitman and write your bio. I have to know if someone has won the Nobel prize, Order of Canada, written a book, had a planet named after them or passed away.  I do not get the Toronto newspapers so will not know if someone there has died (I don’t even read the obituaries in the Ottawa Citizen).   

I apologize that for many of the newsletters, except for the bios, being filled with mostly my articles and ramblings but after begging for contributions and help for the first few newsletters for the first reunion I just decided to do most of the writing myself to fill the space.  I appreciate the people like Bill Humber, Sandy Sellers and Karen Allen for providing articles. 

I also apologize for being pretty personal at times but when so many classmates started pouring out their hearts in their bios I felt I had a licence to do so myself. And I wanted other people to feel comfortable opening up. 

I apologize if you were offended by my sense of humour (or worse did not think I was funny). My wife of almost 46 years is very supportive of me and takes great care of me but she likes to remind me that not everyone gets (I say appreciates) my sense of humour – to which I always reply “that’s their problem”. Using humour (or at least trying to be funny) made the many hours I have worked on the reunions more enjoyable for me and hey, you have to admit I had some good lines.

I again thank the many people who participated in some way to make the two reunions a worthwhile experience – it was team effort.  Thanks again to Bill Schabas, Carolyn Born Kennedy, Ruth Rosen Levkoe, Annu Pettai Marley, Janet MacDonald Bowler, Roz Zurkowski, Claire McFarlen, Janet Toppin Swann, Martin Hart, Jan Wolfraim Mears, Doug and Leah Gammage ,  Bill and Cathy Humber, Mardi and Haim Hirshberg, Noah Pascoe, Warner Clarke,vDoug Campbell, Mike Guinness and garth Drabinsky (sorry if I forgot someone). 

This would not be a Laurie Pascoe newsletter if I did not include another plea for help finding classmates and a request for bios from those we have found but have not submitted a bio. If you look at the database you will note there were 439 people in our class for at least one year of which we have only found 140 and have 86 bios.  So there are lots of people to still find and bios and obituaries to obtain.  So please help me and Martin out. Did I not mention Martin by the winning that maple syrup you must keep looking for ever?  Since many of you are retired what else have to do with your life. Look please. 

There also will not be future newsletter if there are no new bios and updates so please send them by April 1 of each year. 

So, thanks everyone for being part of the reunions and now reach out and touch (and  find) someone. 

-       Laurie Pascoe signing off,  maybe for the last time