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More memories of Christmas concerts

Ruth Anne Hollands RobinsonBy: Ruth Anne Hollands Robinson  December 19, 2023
More memories of Christmas concerts
I am sure that Robin Hilborn’s story of a rural school Christmas concert stirred up happy memories for many of you as it did for me. The excitement and enthusiasm with which we practised songs, drills, recitations and skits still remain with me.

There were decorations to be made; mothers were busy supplying props and creating paper costumes; fathers hung the curtains (we had proper brown ones, not just bed sheets), set up benches, even planks for extra seating and, of course, procured the huge cedar tree which rose to the high ceiling, at least in my eyes.

Unforgettable memories pop up from here and there. Since our attendance was quite small at S.S. No. 3 Kincardine, recent graduates of Grade 8 were responsible for presenting a longer play than we could manage. Among the actors, I remember Marion and Howard Orr and perhaps their older siblings, Catherine and Audrey Stewart, likely their brothers and Eddie Owens.

At one such event, a chocolate cake was needed as part of the props; so, Mum had baked and iced a delicious-looking one. One of the actors came on stage carrying a big piece on a plate. Looking around for a place to set it down before having to go off-stage, he/she left it on the couch. In came Ed Owens and promptly sat down on it. This unplanned action raised a chorus of laughter, both on stage and from the audience.

Here is Eddie (right) a few years later with his wife, Georgia Lee.

Mum’s memories remind us that concerts were sometimes whole day affairs with all members of the community arriving in the morning to visit. A bountiful potluck lunch of sandwiches, pie and cake would be shared at noon. Then the concert was held in the afternoon.

This was the custom at S.S. No. 7 Huron, the French School, on Boiler Beach Road. That is the school the Pollocks attended and Grandpa always took his girls there. I just finished reading an excellent description of a concert held there, written by Mervyn Cameron, in the History of S.S. No. 7.



S.S. No. 7 in later years

Mum’s family also went regularly to the concert at S.S. No. 15, on Concession 10, where Grandma (Sara Farrell) went to school. One year, when folks were ready to leave, they found themselves in the midst of a howling snowstorm. Visibility was more or less nil.

Grandma’s cousin, Doc (Secord) Graham, and his wife, Beatrice, who lived almost across from Bethel Church, had gone in Grandpa’s car. Doc was a big man. He decided that he should walk in front of the car and attempt to keep it on the road. By the time they reached the highway, he was a veritable snowman; but they all arrived home safely.

When you go to a program at your grandchildren’s school, be sure to tell them about the concerts in which you took part.
 
-- Ruth Anne Hollands Robinson
December, 2023
 
Ref: History of S.S. No. 7, 1997
Huron Township and its Hub Ripley, 1975

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