You were at NDHS in the 60’s if:
- You or someone you know used ice, an orange and a needle to pierce her ears in the downstairs washroom.
2. You have pictures from the bus trip to EXPO ’67
3. You had to relearn all the nuns’ names when they went from “Mother Saint….” to “Sister….”
4. You finally got proof that nuns do have hair.
5. You have no corks or glasses in mind when you hear the words “wine and white”
6. You only ironed the sleeves and collar of your white uniform shirt.
7. You rolled the top of your uniform skirt to shorten it before you went home, or better still wore suspenders under your vest.
Sister St. Charles Maureen
8. You have ever rented a tie from Mother Saint Charles.
9. You still picture nuns with white starched “beards.”
10. You ever bought white socks at Neil McNeil before their sock hop.
11. Your high school only had one building and you weren’t allowed to use the front door.
12. You were part of the Honour Guard for Monsignor O’Connor.
13. Your senior geography field trip was to the ravine across Kingston Road.
14. You ever played in or watched a “Powder Puff” game of football or hockey against St. Joe’s girls before a crowd of Neil guys.
15. You sung in Father Fleming’s choir not so much because you had a good voice but so you could meet the boys.
16. You had John, Paul, George or Ringo written on your binder.
17. You remember which exam you were writing on the day they announced that JFK had been shot
18. You argued that you were wearing the Clark’s desert boots because it was winter not just as alternatives to your black Oxfords.
19. You came to school not on a subway but through the Luttrell or Bingham Loops
20. You built a great relationship in your “homeroom”.
21. You learned about politics and democracy by running as homeroom through the ND student council.
22. You hit the road to play basketball or volleyball against Notre Dame girls in Ottawa or Kingston.
23. You can keep a straight line on a turn when marching at events like Rosary Sunday.
24. You still know how to make creamed salmon and peas
25. You had or were a “big sister”
26. You did the waltz with your dad at the Father Daughter Dance.
27. You poured a “cuppa” for you mum at the Mother Daughter Tea.
28. You couldn’t wait to talk to your friends on Monday after seeing the Beatles on Ed Sullivan.
29. You decided that Mick and the boys were cooler than the Beatles.
30. You went to youth dances at Holy Family, St. Rose of Lima or other parish halls.
31. You had Neil boys in your Grade 13 classes because not too many of you wanted higher Maths and Sciences.
32. You know what a Saddie Hawkins is.
33. You remember when the Neil McNeil Maroons morphed into the “Marlies”.
34. You ever wore your clip on tie hanging off one collar.
35. You went downtown with your friends to one of the Stanley Cup parades in Toronto.
36. You were ever called “licorice legs”.
Challenge:
Can those of you from the 60’s add more to this list? Put your response below and we will added to our 60’s test!
You still remember which of the girls in your year were the Eaton’s and Simpson’s reps.
You remember the doll-dressing contest held for Centennial year in 1967, the Centennial train with its Oh Canada whistle and still know most of the words to Ca-na-da!
You remember the distinctly mixed blessing of spending a year in a portable in St. John’s schoolyard, just before O’Connor Hall was built.
You remember that your parents had to pay fees for you to attend NDHS until the Ontario government adopted full funding.
You remember going to the convent for piano lessons from Mother St. Charles Myriam.
How about the overnight retreats to a grand old retreat home. You went with your suitcase stuffed with snacks. Remember when we had history class with Mother St. Christina (she could be scary)in the basement of the church and running ouat the end of class, slamming the door before she knew who had done it?
Oh and the cafeteria where we ate Joe Louis, fudgicles and yummy chocolate donuts before the first bell? No one mentioned the dumb maroon beret we had to wear…
I remember Sister (Mother) St. Mary Christina who taught French in 1961. She really did scare me! Her very blue eyes always stared right through me!
I hated the bret.
This brought back great memories and a few giggles…and “oh yeah”s. Thanks Jane, Ann and Patty for putting this together. Remember all our card games??? By the way, I still wear my beloved maroon beret….NOT. Remember the bras hanging over the hydro wires between Annex and School…. and a certain nun taking a busload of students to Stratford but forgetting the tickets?? Such wonderful memories of our high school days!
Do you remember
-eating “Chester Cake” (dark cake with delicious white icing) in the cafeteria?
-having to chloroform and dissect a rabbit in biology class? (I nearly fainted).
-thinking that the world was going to end in 1960? (something to do with the the secret of Fatima)
-April Fools Day when someone put Vaseline on the classroom doorknob and the time we hid Linda Brown in the back closet!!? (Sr St Agnes’ home room)
-wearing your hair in a flip?
the annual skating party at Ted Reeve Arena (and yes, I did have to google it to remember the name! sigh)
I remember Mother St. Agnes teaching Chemistry and getting into trouble because I broke a test tube while making sulphuric acid. P.T. uniforms that we would say we forgot at home when we didn’t want to take P.T. Spending grade 10 in the annex with Mother St. Mary Christina as our home room teacher. Actually I loved her because she thought I had writing talent. Such memories!
Yes I do remember Ted Reeve’s Skating parties. I also remember gettting off the streetcar at Ted Reeve’s on my way home to get autograph’s from the Maple Leaf’s because they used to practice in the afternoon . I fell one time on some ice and my books went flying. I was trying to get Frank Mahovlich’s autograph and he went out the back door to avoid us Notre Dame girls! I never liked him after that!
Graduating Class of 1968 – I have pictures of Expo 67 and the log rolling contest.
Because of construction at the school we only had classes half a day that year 1963 with twenty minute periods. On November 22, 1963 around one p.m. I was getting out of that uniform when the announcement came over the radio re: JFK. I remember it like it was yesterday. BTW, It seems ironic to hear the Beatles on the youtube video.