Britain’s Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, Gave British Child Migrants an Apology on February 24, 2010 The November 8, 1941 Party L-R: Joyce Dean (cut off)?, Ada Thain?, Hugh Taylor, Clement Gray, Irene Richards, Peter Mein, Mary Redshaw, May Bean, Clifford Cooper, Brian Tibbles, Louis Field, Roddy Mackay, Eric Foster, Leon Field, Christina Smith?, Roy Myhill. Photo Courtesy of Hugh Taylor Fairbridge Gazette Page 2 Inside this issue: Laugh of the season Laugh of the season 2 A young monk arrives at the monastery. He is assigned to helping the other monks in copying the old canons Committee Members 3 and laws of the church by hand. Message from the President 4 He notices, however, that all of the monks are copying from copies, not from the original manuscript. So, the Message from the Vice President 5 new monk goes to the head abbot to question this, point- Message from the Past President 6 ing out that if someone made even a small error in the first copy, it would never be picked up! In fact, that er- Spring Greetings from Pat 6 ror would be continued in all of the subsequent copies. Britain’s PM Gordon Brown’s Apology 7 The head monk says, “We have been copying from the copies for centuries, but you make a good point, my Corresponding Secretary News 8 son.” Canadian Child Migration Timeline 8-13 He therefore goes down into the dark caves underneath the monastery where the original manuscripts are held as Letter from the Treasurer, Barry Hagan 13 archives in a locked vault that hasn’t been opened for Phil McColeman letter & Motion 14 hundreds of years. Hours go by and nobody sees the old abbot. Year of the British Home Child 15 The young monk gets worried and goes down to look for Reg Corns letters to Brit PM & MPs 16 him. He sees him banging his head against the wall and wailing, “We missed the ‘R’, we missed the ‘R’!!” The Operative: Children’s Friend Society 17-18 His forehead is all bloody and bruised and he is crying uncontrollably. The young monk asks the old abbot, Rhodesian Fairbridgians 19-20 “What’s wrong, father?” Golf Poem sent in by Ernie Hodge 20 With a choking voice, the old abbot replies, “The word was… CELEB ATE!!!” Kingsley Fairbridge—short biography 21 R 2009 Reunion Photos 21 Chapel Facts by Ron Smith 22-23 Mick and Paddy are reading headstones at a nearby cemetery. 2009 Reunion Photos 23 Mick says ‘Crikey! There’s a bloke here who was 152!’ Book News 24 Paddy says “What’s his name?’ Mike replies ‘Miles December Concert: Fairbridge Chapel 25 from London!’ (Jokes sent in by Peter Gould, a former Rhodesian Fairbridgian, Those Who Passed 26 now living in New Zealand) Does Anyone Recall the Cave? 26 Fairbridge Alumni Bursary Society News 27 Attendees at the September Dismantling the Fairbridge Day School 27 Fairbridge Canada Association Back Page News 28 BGM voted to raise the Hiking with Membership Dues for 2010 Miss Endicott Membership dues will be increased by $5.00, Photo courtesy as of January 2010 the dues will be $30.00. of Ernie Hodge The cost for just the Gazette: $15.00 Spring 2010 Page 3 Committee Members President John Hardy 250-701-0447 Past President Ron Hancock 604-732-1880 Vice President Roddy Mackay [email protected] 2nd Vice President Jean Conlon [email protected] Recording Secretary Jean Conlon Treasurer/Memberships Barry Hagen 250-751-2086 5549 Clipper Drive, Nanaimo, BC, Canada V9T 5M7; [email protected] Corresponding Secretary / Newsletter Editor: Pat Skidmore NOTE Change of Address c/o #306 400 Capilano Road, Port Moody, BC Canada V3H 0E1 [email protected] FCA Directors: Jock Bennett [email protected] Stan Blake Bill Cockburn [email protected] Doreen Hagen [email protected] Eric Lewis [email protected] Send Pat Skidmore your change of address NOTE my change of address NOTE: the Fairbridge Alumni Bursary Society and the Send material for the Fairbridge Fairbridge Canada Association have two separate account- Gazette and correspondence to: ing systems. If you are sending a donation to the Bursary Pat Skidmore Society, please send them to the Bursary Treasurer, Bill c/o #306 400 Capilano Road, Cockburn, FABS Treasurer. If you are sending donations Port Moody, BC or FCA Membership fees, please send them to Barry Canada V3H 0E1 Hagen, FCA Treasurer. [email protected] Fairbridge Canada Associa- DONATIONS to the DONATIONS to the Fairbridge Fairbridge Alumni Bursary Chapel should be sent to: tion Membership Fees should be sent to: Society should be sent to: Fairbridge Chapel Heritage Barry Hagen Bill Cockburn **NEW** Society 4791 Fairbridge Drive FCA Treasurer FABS Treasurer Duncan, BC 5549 Clipper Drive 5 -1548 Mackay Crescent Agassiz, BC V9L 6N9 Nanaimo, BC V9T 5M7 V0M 1A3 Please include a return address so we can [email protected] [email protected] send you an income tax receipt. Page 4 Fairbridge Gazette FCA President: brought her mother. Then Pat was called again on Febru- John Hardy ary 11, and was told that funding was available for one more. I was not available for medical reasons, so we Our Reps in Britain called on the V/P of the FCA, Roddy Mackay, to go and fortunately he was able to go with such short notice. We were indeed fortunate in the Fair- bridge Alumni to have three good rep- I have come to admire and respect Pat for her energy and resentatives attend Prime Minister dedication to the Fairbridge story. In fact, without her Gordon Brown’s Apology Ceremony in Britain. pushing our existence to the officials in Britain, it’s a There was very short notice given to us, just a few days, safe bet nobody would have known about us, and nobody so that people from Fairbridge could attend. It almost invited. seems like we were an afterthought on the part of the of- Roddy stands bestride the two Fairbridges, the post and ficials. That Marjorie, Pat and Roddy could go on such pre war, since he came out with a party in ’41. We could- short notice was a great help, and we were well off hav- n’t have got a better choice for a representative. I have no ing these two represent us. doubt in my mind that Roddy would have explained who If you have been attending the alumni reunions these past we are in his usual forthright way, a way that would 20 years you would have realized there were two Fair- serve us all well. bridges: one before the war and one after the war. Our next task should be to get Margaret Humphreys, that Marjorie Skidmore (Arnison) was in the pre war group, remarkable lady, who started all this with “Empty Cra- and went with her daughter, Pat, to represent us. Pat was dles” to visit us here in BC. Let her see first hand the first invited, not as a member of the FCA, but because of Fairbridge school, and the alumni and learn of the Child her relationship with child migrant groups from Austra- Migrants of Ontario and Quebec and to catch us up with lia, New Zealand, and eastern Canada. Australia on the information data, we are all British Child Migrants. When asked if she could bring a “child migrant” she Signing the “Book” after Gordon Brown, lasting proof of his Apology and of his government’s promises. Marjorie Skidmore Pat Skidmore Betty Mackay Roddy Mackay Con’t from page 5 Skidmore Photos gave her a robust old-fashioned British “Hip, Hip Hurrah.” Quite possibly, with her assistance, our own Canadian Gov- ernment would have followed the example set by both the UK and Australian Prime Ministers and delivered an apology to Canada’s Child Migrants. At the risk of sounding ungrateful, I made a point of expressing my views to the organization officials present, that we were disappointed that so few Canadian Child Migrants had been invited to this historic event. To that end, I have re- ceived word from the UK High Commissioner in Ottawa that there is a strong possibility there will be a similar event held in Canada. Pat and I will do all possible follow- up on that concept and hopefully such an event will take place. I will give a complete and comprehensive report at our next board meeting. In closing, all of us should be grateful, for her tireless efforts, the untold hours that our Gazette Editor, Pat contributes day after day, to our FCA organization. Had it not been for her constant communication with the Child Migrant organi- zations in eastern Canada, Fairbridge would not have had any representation in London. Spring 2010 Page 5 FCA Vice President I decided as a representative that besides enjoying the Roddy Mackay trip I would also speak on your behalf to those involved in organizing this event. While Canada’s Child Migrants Many of you may have heard of the recent were included in the official apology, all the Govern- gathering in London where Prime Minister ment speakers, the press, television, etc laid heavy em- Gordon Brown made the well-publicized phasis on the Australian Child Migrant’s scheme. I can Apology to UK Child Migrants who had assure you this was not only my impression, also that of been sent to Canada, Australia, New Zea- many others in the UK. Several friends and family land and South Africa. members who viewed it on the UK news asked me why On February 11, I received an email from there was so little mention of Canada’s Child Migrants.