Note from a reader ... John Kelly

(Old St. Joes as it appear today)

Note from a reader:

Hi Ken:

I chanced upon the blog, and immediately a couple of hours were lost in a sentimental trip down memory lane. Thank you ever so much for the work that you put into documenting St. Joseph's High School and Oshawa Catholic High School.

Perhaps other than the teachers, the most memorable character was the custodian and crossing guard Mr. Kelly. He would stop the cars on Simcoe Street, and then start chanting "On you come and Over You go" in his Irish brogue. I often wondered what happened to him.

Thanks again for the memories.

Thanks for taking the time to drop me a note. I certainly do remember John Kelly, and his peculiar mantra that he sang out while we were crossing the road.

He was there the whole time that I was at St. Joes. He was a small man, and his clothes were rather loose on him, and he did have big galoshes in the winter time.

However, he once shocked me greatly. I became an altar boy, and one year the Archbishop came for Easter Mass. The weather was warm, and we had a procession that originated in the sacristy, wended its way outside the church, around to the front doors and through the church up the aisle.

The choir was belting out a hymn that could be heard for a few blocks away. The carillon was pealing its bells. The procession started with the crossbearer, then the acolytes, then came the legions of altarboys, followed by the retinue of the archbishop that included seminarians, priests, an actual Carmelite monk was in the mix, then came the Monsignors and finally ended with the Archbishop. In my surplice and soutane, I walked beside him. I was the thurifer. I carried a smoking thurible, hanging by its silver chains with the incense smoke perfuming the air. As we crossed the narthex of the church, the Archbishop handed me his crozier, so that he could bless the crowd.

At the entrance to the nave, stood the honour guard of the Knights of Columbus. They were magnificent in their black morning jackets, the heraldic baldric or sashes, their magnificent 4th degree Chapeaus with the shock of white feathered plumes coming from the top of these cavalier hats and their white gloves. As we passed they gave His Grace the salute with polished silver swords. As we crossed under swords, I looked closely at the Grand Knight, and it was none other than own our John Kelly. He looked magnificent and not at all like the little Irish gnome that crossed us every day with "On you come and over you go!".

Thanks again for the note and the memories that you triggered.

Grade 11 Class from 1966 Continued

Top Row: Susan Dobby, Marinus Vandermeer, Maureen Evans, Frans Van Iersel, Mary Ellen Duquette

Middle Row: Shayne Armstrong, Maria Valic, Stephen Horvath, Bernadette Van Hoof, Adrian de Laat

Bottom Row: Paul Scott, Cathy Mc Caffrey, Bruce Locke

Man, with the hair styles and looks, I swear that these pictures look like some of the cast of the movie "American Graffiti".

More Grade 11's From the First OCHS Yearbook, 1966

These are more clips from the very first OCHS yearbook in 1966. These Grade 11's are:

Top Row: S. Driscoll, J. Dyl, C. Lambourne

Middle: J. Curry, Larry McAvoy, A. Winterink, S. Jarrell, P. McAllister

Bottom Row: Betty Ann Yanch, B. Van Veghel, L. Paulocik

I was just a youngster in 1966, but here are a few sporting events that occurred that year:

• March 12 – Bobby Hull sets the record for the most goals in an NHL season.
• Grey Cup – Saskatchewan Roughriders win 29–14 over the Ottawa Rough Riders
• Stanley Cup – Montreal Canadiens win 4–2 over the Detroit Red Wings

A Rare Color Shot from the 1970's

Almost most of my archives were shot with black and white film. In the 1960's and early 1970's colour film and processing was extremely expensive compared to black and white. I could process my own black and white film, and working in the Eaton's camera department at the Oshawa Center all through my high school years, gave me access to film with an incredibly generous employee discount.

However, by the late 1970's, black and white was going out of vogue. In his 1973 hit song Kodachrome, Paul Simon announces that "everything looks worse in black in white". (It was also the song with the opening lyrics: "When I think back on all the crap I learned in high school, it's a wonder that I can think at all").

That aside, pictured above in multi-splendorous colour, Bev Smyth is pictured outside, in the snow on Camera Day. Ironically for me, almost every day was camera day.

Some Grade 11 Students ~ 1966

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This is again from the very first OCHS yearbook that Adrian de Laat is digitizing for me. It is quite appropriate on this the 50th Anniversary year of the school. Be sure to visit the website:

http://www.pauldwyer50th.com/

and sign up.

For this series, rather than just reprinting the whole page, I did some cropping to make the pictures larger on the blog. Here are the student names:

Top Row: Matt Gimpelj, Audrone Zelvys, Dan Matthews, Mary Anne Kilistoff, Benny Witteveen

2nd Row: Judy Aasen, Joe Marks, Carol Coulter, Otto Zavesiczky, Patsy Brockman

Bottom Row: Omer Dupuis, Rosie Palumbo, Cornelius Oortwyn

Tuition Receipt ~ 1971

Back in the day, the province of Ontario didn't pay for Catholic education beyond Grade 10. Hence students in Grades 11 through to 13 had to pay tuition. It was pathetically inexpensive considering the quality of education that we received. It was a $60 payment three times per year.

Stanley Karwowski was a year or two behind me at OCHS, and his brother Roman was a year ahead in my older brother's class. Stan is now a school board trustee. Recently he was going through his father's effects and he found the above receipt for OCHS tuition. It was signed by Mrs. Smegal, the secretary at OCHS.

In my case, my tuition was covered by the Saint Gregory's Catholic Women's League through scholarship, and I am grateful to that organization for that.

1966 Grade 12 Class

I find these 1966 pages fascinating. In the old style of the yearbook, each student gets their own section wit descriptive words for each category. The structure is this:

• Name
• Main Interest
• Main Problem
• Probable Fate
• Extra Curricular

(Click for Larger Image)

Some of the predictions are amazingly accurate, from what I know of these people by knowing their siblings.

Yearbook Staff ~ 1966

Seated: Judy Aasen, Susan Driscoll, Mary Kirkland (Editor), Richard Zukowski (Associate Editor), Shane Armstrong

Standing: (Christine Shaw, Betsy Lamers, Betty Anne Yanch, Carol Coulter, Omer Dupuis, Tom Pryde, James Dyl,

Absent: Frans Van Irsel, Barbara Gibbs

Jim Lamb, Gary McCormick at the Halloween Dance

Jim Lamb doesn't have a costume at the Halloween dance on the left. Gary McCormick is dressed as a surgeon. I don't recognize the student on the right. If you do, leave a comment.

Update: The guy on the right is Gary Lawless. Thanks Joan.

Teachers ~ 1966

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On the last blog entry, I profiled the teachers for the year 2000. Here are the teachers for 1966. There is quite a difference in numbers. I see that they had folk dancing, Choral and an Editing Club. The editing club intrigues me, as does the folk dancing. What did they edit? Was it a paean to the dictionary? And what genre of folk dancing was it? Oshawa is a polyglot of all sorts of folks from all sorts of countries. Interesting.

Update. Adrian says: The editors club edited the school newspaper called the Spectrum which was published monthly.

Millennial Teacher's Roster ~ The Year 2000

A few people have written me saying that it would be fun to have a series of teachers' photos down through the years. That would be a huge undertaking, and it may eventually get done as this blog progresses through the years and I don't lose my marbles, inclination or ISP connection.

However, I decided that we would do a teacher gallery of a "significant" year. I am sure that Adrian de Laat will provide me with the original teachers gallery from 1966. So the next big year is the Year 2000 or the Millennium. I asked Maureen Moloney to provide me with the gallery, and she graciously did.

(Click on photos for a larger image)

Wow, there were more teachers in 2000 than students in 1966. It was good to see that some of the faces from my era were still there (Blair Morris for one, and of course GMAC or Mr. Macchione, and Mr. Alfa Romeo Pace). And of course we have some of the students of my era coming back to teach, but Debbie Micheli suspiciously looks like a cardboard cutout in this series.

It's hard to believe that the year 2000 was already 12 years ago.

The Nun's Contribution to the School

Until I read Maureen Moloney's history of the school, I was unaware that the Sisters of St. Joseph contributed half a million dollars to build the school from their own savings. That fact astounded me.

In the very first yearbook in 1966, the Sisters of Saint Joseph were honoured with this page with pictures of the Superior General and Mother Superior.

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Here is an excerpt from Maureen Moloney's history of the school:

The Sisters of St. Joseph were an educational presence in Oshawa since 1858. The Sisters taught at three elementary separate schools and played an important spiritual role in the community. The story of Monsignor Paul Dwyer Catholic High School cannot be told without detailing the major effort of the Sisters who were willing to accept teaching positions at the newly formed St. Joseph’s High School, on Simcoe Street North in 1962.

With the original start-up class of just Grade Nines, Sister Mary Sheila (principal) and Sister Constance faced the growing pains of the beginning of this new vision for Catholic education in Oshawa. With Monsignor Dwyer and the Oshawa Separate School Board’s assistance, they prospered in growth and support from the community. They remained at St. Joseph’s H.S. for an additional two years until Oshawa Catholic High School opened in September 1965.

At O.C.H.S. the Sisters of Joseph – Toronto Archdiocese, willingly agreed to finance half of the $1 million construction cost of the school. The local parishes were responsible for the other half. The Sisters functioned as principals, teachers, secretaries, cooks and cleaners. They totally re-invested their salaries into the school to keep it from severe debt, yet it operated it at a loss. Still they remained committed to Catholic education regardless of the on-going challenges that they faced.

It was the Sisters’ hope that the high ideals and academic excellence which were implemented and nurtured through the years would continue to motivate all involved at Paul Dwyer Catholic High School. Sr. Mary Sheila visited the school many times after 1967 and was joyful to “have seen these ideals fostered, encouraged and achieved.”

The work of the St. Joseph’s religious community continued through principals, Sister Conrad Lauber (1967 – 1979) and Sister Anne Schenck (1979 – 1988) leading the way in Catholic education, especially through the lean years.

The Sisters are being honoured again at the 50th Anniversary celebrations. In the contact box of this blog, you will find the link for the 50th Anniversary website, or see the blog entry below.

50th Anniversary Website

NOTE:  THE ANNIVERSARY WEBSITE IS NOW DEFUNCT!

Joe Szekeres sent me the URL of the 50th Anniversary Website:

Here is his note:

Hello all,
Oshawa Catholic High School/Monsignor Paul Dwyer Catholic HS' s 50th website is now launched. It is www.PaulDwyer50th.com. Please visit often and help spread the address around to many graduates.

www.PaulDwyer50th.com.

Please spread the word to the OCHS community. Thanks

1978 Student Council

1978 Student's Council. Front row: Anne Nave, Cathy Murrant (President), Maureen Moloney Back: Lisa Bishop, Patti Smith, Lavinia Infusini, Dave Komel (Missing: Mary-Jo Cole, Diane Boehm and Tony Essey). Some of the events run by the council that year included...fund raising of course - with chocolate bars (prizes include Dwyer 'tams', milk mugs....Carnival Week with a day off of school to ski and skate.) Carnival King was Kevin Duigan and Carnival Queen was Lisa Lack.

Shirley Smegal Turns 80

Just got a note from Maureen Moloney saying that Mrs. Shirley Smegal's picture was in the Oshawa paper last month on the occasion of her turning 80 years old. Congratulations Mrs. Smegal. Maureen says that she looks fabulous for 80 years old.

Here is a pic that I snapped of her in the 1970's. She was the glue of the school and ran the office.

1966 Yearbook ~ Dedication Page to Monsignor Dwyer

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The first yearbook ever of OCHS already recognized the efforts of Monsignor Paul Dwyer to establish the school. This dedication appeared in the 1966 year book.

Witch at Halloween Dance, 1971

A student dressed as a witch appears at the 1971 Halloween Dance. With that costume, she was probably practicing to become a teacher. If you know her name, please leave a comment.

Priests of Oshawa - 1966 Yearbook

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The 1966 yearbook from OCHS had pictures of all of the parish priests in Oshawa. This is a blast from the past. I noticed that Father John Pereyma's (later Monsignor and a school named after him as well !) name is spelled wrong.

Rain ~ Playing at a Dance at OCHS ~ 1970

As previously stated in other entries on this blog, we had some amazing live bands and performers play at our school. Some of the best music around came out of the late 1960's and early 1970's, and we had front row seats to the vibrant music scene.

Pictured above is the Canadian band "Rain" that played a dance in 1970 at OCHS. Here is there biography from the Canadian Band Website:

Hailing from Kitchener, Ontario in the late 1960s, the group was centered around Phyllis Brown on lead vocals, along with Bill McLaughlin on guitars, drummer Chris Woroch, Charley Hall on organ, and Ron Hiller on piano.

With Brown and Hller sharing piano duties as well, tight harmonies holding together a complex and varied backbeat was the backbone of their sound. They wrote a few pieces of their own material, but didn't incorporate them much while doing the circuit through the end of the decade.

Greg Hambleton was starting up the new Axe Records label, and caught one of their shows in the spring of 1970. He agreed to manage them, and worked out a distribution deal with London. Booking some studio time, he brought in outside writers over the next few months to help with the project, including his brother Fergus, who had recently himself just signed a solo deal with Capitol, and David Lodge.

Hambleton knew Lodge because he was also flirting with him, eventually signing his group, Major Hoople's Boarding House (later Janis Joplin's backup band). Helping out in the studio were Bob Lifton and Terry Brown, who'd go on to production success with Rush, Max Webster, Klaatu, and many others.

THE RAIN ALBUM was released in the spring of '71, and with the exception of Hiller singing lead on "I'll Write A Letter," the album was centred around Brown's vocals. The first single "Out Of My Mind" didn't make waves on the charts, but along with "Reason For Living," comparisons to the likes of Debbie Boone and Karen Carpenter were instantly drawn. "Got To Get Away" was one of the more experimental sounds the band toyed with. With a bass lead and a funky feel, Brown sounded more like Joplin. And "Sad Colours Blues," with its BB King styled guitars and organ undertones, and Hall's organs on "Child of Mine" further explored their vesatility.

A pair of singles, "Stop Me From Believing" and "Find Your Love," both hit the radio stations by the summer of '71, but bounced right back off. Coupled by differing opinions on where the group should be headed, Brown, Hiller, and McLaughlin were all gone by the following spring.

A revised line-up that featured Brian LeBlanc and Bernie LaBarge both handling vocals and piano and guitars, respectively. They recorded some material, and after lining up some dates around the Toronto circuit, "Make Me," with Woroch on vocals was released as a single. The flip side was LaBarge's first vinyl vocal offering, "Catwalk."

The band officially called it quits by that fall, and everyone went on to other projects, as had previous members. Brown signed in the mid '70s with A & M, reinventing herself as one of Canada's most prominent disco/Motown artists - Charity Brown. Hiller later joined Copperpenny, and LeBarge went on to become one of Toronto's most sought-after studio and stage players, working with everyone from Bond, and Zwol, to Kim Mitchell, Long John Baldry, David Clayton-Thomas, The Irish Rovers, David Cassidy, and Sass Jordan, among others. He also earned a reputation for his production work, having studied under Daniel Lanois and Jack Richardson. LeBarge has also written or performed for other cleints as varied as the "Fraggle Rock" and "Smith & Smith" TV shows, to Coke, Pepsi, Nissan, and Ford.

Basketball Squad 1966

The Senior Basketball Team from 1966 is pictured.

Rear Left to right:

Jim Varrall, Jim Dyl, J Carroll (Coach), Don Jones, Adrian de Laat

Front Row:

Bill Edwards, Larry McAvoy, Terry O’Neil

Nicole Gaboury in Class

Nicole Gaboury is pictured in class in 1973. (Unfortunately, the negative has an imperfection in it causing the light splash). Behind in the background to the left is Candace Knox and to the right is Sue Vitali.

First Ever OCHS Yearbook Cover and Autograph page

This is what the very first yearbook looked like for OCHS. The year was 1966. Autographs that I can make out include:

• Stephen Howath
• Sister M. Concepta
• Cathy McCaffrey
• Mary Ellen Duquette
• Barb Gibbs
• Susan Dobby
• Bruce Locke
• Suzanne Weeks,
• Nancy Nicholls,
• Mike Driscoll
• Shayne Armstrong
• Marinus Vandermeer

Adrian de Laat Contributing

Adrian de Laat was one of the first graduates of the school in 1967. He has generously offered to contribute to this blog to bring memories of the early days.

Below are scans from pictures that his parents took on graduation day. There is a whole different generation of cars in the parking lot.

Thanks Adrian for these and for those you are to send.

Pat O'Brien Running The Track

Gym teacher Pat O'Brien is photographed running the outdoor track around the football field. Benny Winterink (RIP) is in the background.

Nancy Legree on the Bus

Nancy Legree is pictured on the bus, on a class trip to Toronto. The year is 1972.

1974 Hockey Champs ~ The Miracle Team

OCHS Saints Hockey captured the LOSSA championship and then the COSSA title. They went to Windsor to represent OCHS at the All-Ontario Hockey Finals. Only 9 teams participated. Most of the players were newcomers with very little experience. Coaches O'Brien and Lehman were really impressed with rookie goalie Mike Montgomery. Jim Nemish was the outstanding veteran. The captain of the team was Danny O'Neill.

Faces that I recognize in the back row include Brendan Lehman, Marc Adams, Bert Hoefs, Bob Hickey, Jim Nemish, Rocco Ambra and Peter Gibbs. The middle row sandwiched between coaches Lehman and Pat O'Brien are Terry Hopkins and Danny O'Neill. Goaler is Mike Montgomery.

Help me with the other names by leaving a comment.

Sister Mary Buckley's Class

I fired this shot in my older brother Ed's math class with Sister Mary Buckley in the background. I can't remember the name of the central student . However between here the Sister Mary Buckley is Nick Novak. If you click for a larger view, you will see Wayne Stovell in the background and Liz Schillings is in the back at the furthest right. The year was probably 1971.

Yearbook Staff ~ 1979

The year was 1979. This was the yearbook staff. The picture was taken in the library, aka resource center aka learning commons aka book place. If you know the names of any of the student carbon units depicted above, please leave a comment.

Update from reader: Hi Ken - Top row - 4th from left I think is Paul Moloney and next to Paul is Leonard Pietrow. Second row third from left is Rita Van de Pol;

Front row: 6th from left is Theresa Kramer and next to Theresa is Sister Mary Anne McCarthy.


Another Update From reader: Front row, third from left: Shirley Losier 

Library Club ~ 1969

The nun pictured is Sister Gonzaga. The club is the Library Club. I don't know what the library club did, but I bet that they did it in the Library. According to Maureen Moloney, the library is no longer called the library. It is some sort of resource center now. The minor niners of today call it the room where they have all of those boring web pages printed out on paper with a cover.

The year of this pic was 1969.

1973 ~ Gardens in Traffic Circle

This is how the front of the school looked like in 1973. What is not shown in the picture, is the weather station that the geography club operated. Maureen Moloney tells me that the gardens now have all gone to weed.

Update: A certain teacher was quick to point out that the word "weed" was not used in the entheogenic sense.