HILLCREST HIGH SCHOOL CLASSES OF 1961-65 5050THTH REUNIONREUNION Hillcrest 50th Reunion Website: http://www.hillcrestottawa50th.ca INSIDE: 2 & 3 — My VOLUME 1 ISSUE 3 AUGUST 2010 Memories of Hillcrest—1964 by Diana Usher 4—Hi-Lites 1962 Gossip Column Yes we can! Yes we will! with photos!! 5—Who is this Here’sIssue 3 and grads from any year, to sign on but it just Head Boy and we’ve had many, many but particularlythe older helps the planning Head Girl? wonderful commentson grads from Hillcrest’s committee get ideas, 6 & 7—1960 World the first two from a first four years(61-65). feedback, and an idea and Ottawa News number of our fellow of where people are. 8—Those who studentsfrom the ‘60’s We have been trying to So, Hillcresters, let’s left in 1962 aswell asmanyothers trackthem down via see if we can rise to the 9—1962 Teachers and, needlessto-say, “Google” and occasion and get as & Administrators you’ve made usblush— “Facebook” aswell as manyof our gradsto 10 & 11—Your 1961-62 Teachers if you can believe that! “canada411” and it has come back to the 12 & 13—Your turned out to be a hard school upon the crest 1962-63 teachers And, I haven’t done it slog, so if you can help of the hill. We’d love to 14—Who is this all myself asI’ve got us, we would be very, see you at the Reunion teacher? Plus- the world’sgreatest verygrateful. in May2011, as we Grads after 1964! assistant editor— haven’t seen most of 15—1962 Public Lynne MundyBowes. Don’t forget to register or you in nearly50 years, Speaking Club sign on to the website. so sign up now. 16—Library Club And, once again, (See the masthead and Art Club 1963 we would like to ask above.) The place to It will be an experience 17—Girls & Boys all of you reading this sign up is now called of a lifetime, no matter 1964 Athletic ‘Reunion Newsletter’ to “Remember Me!” the year in which you Associations passalong anycontacts graduated. See you 18—Girls 1963 or contact hints on You don't have to be there! Volleyball & 1964 where or how to reach coming to the Reunion GrahamGrahamGraham Basketball Teams 19—Boy’s 1963 Bantam, Junior and 1964 Senior Basketball Teams Plug into grads—after 1964! 20 & 21 — Clint Hierlihy and As we get you going at: at a foot pedal sink after The Esquires plugged into Hillcrest’s www.hillcrestottawa.50th.ca showing you some of 22—Ode to Andy; first years and the gang Take a look at his chums from 68-69 Plus—Andy the that shared Grade 11 the great photo albums as well as some 66-67 master technician and—for some of you- at: www.hillcrestottawa50th. photos that might 23—Four 1964-65 12 and 13 back in 61- ca/3/gallery.htm include your younger grads we all know 62-63-64 with this siblings. (He even —Then and Now You’ve got: Jan monthly newsletter, we Cook’s memories; the shows us the unofficial 24—1962 Dress- hope that you are look- smoking room — aka up Day with a few late 1960s with a very ‘Now’ faces! ing at the wonderful young Ross Baylin who the girls’ washroom!) website that the reunion even takes you into the Then there are organizers have got boy’s washroom to look (Continued on Page 14) My Memories of Hillcrest—1964 By Diana Louise (Usher) Simpson I'm prettysure I wasin grade 11A at Hillcrest; had Mrs. Constance Ferrigan for English so didn't have Mr. Benoit until grades12 and 13. He wasan awesome English teacher, though I had difficulty with the literature and creative part of the course. Math waseven a greater struggle, though myDad helped me a lot to get through. I'm not sure I have detailed memoriesbut do remember when our homeroom classin grade 12 had a partyfor Mr. Byerswhen he got married. I waspetrified of having to go to the blackboard to solve a geometryequation when there were a lot of strong math studentsin the class. Mr. Manale had a fancycar and cannot remember the name of the student who actuallydrove a fancyBuick(*) to school. No one else had a car to drive to school in those daysbut we walked when the weather was good or tookthe OTC. (* - That student wasAndrea Truckwho onlystayed at Hillcrest for one year.) I enjoyed phys. ed. classesuntil we had to do folk/square dancing so never looked forward to the springtime when I felt asthough I wasso awkward. One year, we had a hootenanny, but it took place in the school gymnasium. Mr. Peterson created an interest in history, though he wasdefinitely not politicallycorrect with one of hisfavourite expressions, "when men were men, and women didn't count!" Two other memoriesconcern the political and international state of affairsin those days. I really feared there would be a nuclear war during the Cuban Missile Crisis. Close friendswere posted to Washington from 1961 to 1965 so we knew how terrified they were while living in Bethesda, Maryland. Then there wasthe assassination of President Kennedy, an event that I will never forget. We heard rumoursin Mr. Benoit's English classabout 12:00 noon and then received the awful newswhile in botanyclass. When I walked home from school that afternoon feeling so sad, we were so afraid the Soviet Union might somehow be involved since it wasjust a year after the Cuban Missile Crisis. Unfortunately, I do not have anyphotosof school activities. MyDad likelytook photos at graduation time but we have lost some of them and myparentshad trouble with sewer backupsso their basement-recroom filled with water, thankfullyclean water, several timesuntil the problem was solved with sewer reconstruction when so manymore homeswere built on Pleasant ParkRoad. I live in Hanover, Ontario, a small town of 8,000 in GreyCounty, with Owen Sound further north and Kitchener-Waterloo or Guelph asfavourite shopping destinations. If you're wondering how I ended up living so far from Ottawa, it'sbecause I wasassistant librarian at Merivale High School in Carleton County, with Andy Peterson asthe principal. There I became good friendswith Brian Simpson, Allan, myhusband'sbrother. So some match-making tookplace! Allan taught French and later French Immersion here in Hanover. We spent a wonderful year in Nantes, France, while he had a teacher exchange in 1977-78. We've lived here since 1974 and now I trulylike living in a small town. However it wasquite an adjustment after living in Ottawa, Montreal where I went to McGill for LibraryScience, and also Toronto for teaching qualifications. 2 DIANA LOUISE (USHER) SIMPSON—CLASS OF 64 With flowers from her Aunt Edna in England for her 64th birthday last November, Diana Louise Usher Simpson—Class of 64—is a retired teacher and librarian, married to Allan with two adult children, who has posted the following on the Reunion website: “Thank you for organizing this important event. I am especially looking forward to seeing former classmates after so many years. “I recently met my grade 11 and 12 math teacher, Mr. Bob Byers, wasassistant librarian at Merivale High School while we and our spouses shared a meal during a Caribbean Cruise in March, 2010. “We had not seen each other for 48 years!!! It was during that conversation that we talked about the upcoming anniversary.” The "NOW" photo (at right) is of her sister, Judy Usher Brown, and herself, taken in May, 2008, at her son’s wedding. (Editor’s note:- For those of you who may not remember, Diana was a member of the Senior Girls’ Volleyball Team. See page 18.) 3 THE 1962 GRADE 11A AND 11B GOSSIP COLUMN [Editor’s note:- We present this excerpt from Hillcrest Hi-Lites 1962—as it was printed—and will let you figure out whose initials they are. And, of course, we have a few, well-placed comments to help you out as well as some snaps from the1964 yearbook to help you figure out the initials.] It seems the spring love bug is buzzing around already. D.C. or better known as Howdy Doody isn’t content to stay in his own territory of 11B (you know that 11B had a fabulous addition of ten charming, not to mention brave young civilizers). [That’s “girls” to those of you who either can’t remember that day or can’t figure out what the editor meant.] Brainy, M.C. of 11A has a hold of his strings — but good. J.H. of 11A has caught the fancy of that pert grade niner, C.J. —we’re on your side C. Our gossip column wouldn’t be complete if we didn’t mention that smiling ham, R.J. You’d better watch him B.B. —he might lay off and look at you. [If you can’t figure out those two, then you really are getting old and losing your memory!] Tall, lanky R.G. will soon have a fan club list pages longer than “Elvis”but don’t fret H.D. you’re at the top. L.M. our surprising basketball hero has been well and truly matched with T.S. Not hard to understand at all is it? [Even I can figure out this one...but then, I have had help from L.M.] Our budding skier S.B. loves to go to Camp Fortune. Funny though, she doesn’t ski. M.A., I think must have something to do with it.