Class Notes

35th Alumni & Friends Hockey Tournament

The beginning of March Break for our students signalled the relished return of our annual event. With the 2021 edition canceled, our hockey alumni were eager to lace up their skates and get back onto the Memorial Arena ice they love. With a mix of the usual suspects AND some new teams, a fantastic time was had by all!

Mark Tame, BCS’93 Mushmen

“It was indeed a great weekend and a big shout-out to the BCS crew who hosted us so warmly. Can’t wait ‘til next year, boys!”

Nick Scheib, BCS’91 GMFS

“GMFS once again fielded a capital ‘O’ Old Boys team for the nth year running. And once again, the fates conspired against our efforts to take the cup by hook or by crook. Despite an all-star lineup, it was all for not in the end—but only on the scoreboard, as we had an awesome time and scored another true GMFS victory when it came to attendance at the Lion afterwards!”

Alec Taillon, BCS’17 Les Benders

alumni tournament was an event the whole team has been waiting for. It’s always great to come back on campus, a place we called home for a couple years, and enjoy the weekend with friends who’ve become brothers over time at BCS.”

Gabriel Aucoin, BCS’14 The Beauties

“The annual tournament is always highlighted on my calendar. Coming back and seeing my second family (The Beauties) is always a special moment. Being able to play with them just like the old days is something I am really grateful for. We also get the chance to reconnect with older alumni and walk around the campus. I think what makes the alumni group such a unique community is our shared love for BCS.”

Patrick Bzdyl, BCS’11 Quebecers

“Coming back to BCS for the alumni tournament brings back all these amazing memories. It’s really the moments that I forgot about that get brought up in the dressing room by some of my old teammates that make it so special. We’ve all been blessed to be a part of this amazing program and makes me extremely proud to see what heights it has reached, and the amazing talent that has come out of it.”

Bradly Wheeler, BCS’17 The Flying Elbows

“The highlight of my year always seems to be when I assemble with all of my best friends at the BCS alumni tournament. To top off all of the great years we have had so far, we have the privilege of being the big winners this year! Congrats to my teammates and thanks to all who made the tournament possible.”

Coming up…

Homecoming Weekend 2022 Celebrating 50 Years Together

October 1 - 2

After two years without our beloved Homecoming Weekend, we are back with a vengeance! If you haven’t been on campus in a while, now is the time to return to Moulton Hill with classmates and other members of the BCS & KHC community.

This edition is extra special, kicking off a full year of celebration around the 50th anniversary of co-education. Don’t miss the unveiling of the KHC Bell in the Quad, take advantage of the rink to enjoy a free skate, bring your tennis or squash gear, tour the Tunnels and/or your House, and then shift gears with a celebratory cocktail at Centre Stairs prior to a banquet in Ross Hall. A few members of the community are also pulling together a comedy show for all to enjoy afterwards with the now infamous Purple Cocktail!

Of course, no visit to the campus is complete without the legendary BCS brunch on Sunday morning.

We have everything to keep your kids busy (caricature artists, children’s playland, photo booth, mini golf) to ensure you can enjoy your time with old friends and participate fully in what is sure to be a memorable weekend.

Keep Troth

Some of us were lucky enough to have known Mr. and Mrs. Gilpen Brown (the ‘GBs’), a retired couple whose white clapboard house could be seen from the driveway of the school, just beyond the soccer field and a short hop across an unmowed field. Sometimes a few of us would be invited for tea or even supper on a Sunday. Mrs. GB usually made scones for tea, and supper would We can’t wait to see you! be something delicious and unlike anything we had at school. We would sit on the floor in front of the fire and have wonderful philosophical discussions about life and books, and funny things too. They were our escape hatch, our salvation, our confidants, and our friends. I often wonder if they had any idea, when they first moved to Compton, of the role they would play in the lives of many teenage girls hungry for the kind of open-hearted companionship and understanding they provided.

BCS Class of 1972, also known as ‘The Super VIIth,’ are celebrating their 50th reunion with a return to campus in October!

Check out the classes who have already begun planning their big celebrations and reach out to us if you want to get involved or plan for your year. alumni@bishopscollegeschool.com

1972 - 50th Class Reunion 1980 - 40th Class Reunion 1981 - 40th Class Reunion 1982 - 40th Class Reunion 1990 - 30th Class Reunion 1992 - 30th Class Reunion 2010 - 10th Class Reunion 2012 - 10th Class Reunion

Keep Troth

After being in the infirmary, the rule was that before returning to the gym, one had to get permission from Miss Jenkins to do so. I vividly remember standing outside the infirmary and asking Miss Jenkins, “Can I take gym,” and her response was, “It depends on where you want to take him!”

50 Years Together

The upcoming 2022-23 school year marks the 50th anniversary of BCS and KHC coming together as one.

The fall of 1972 was the beginning of a new chapter for our community. It brought about a profound change in the bond between KHC and BCS that continues today, providing a superior education that guides and challenges our students to achieve academic, athletic, and personal success.

October 2022 will see the start of a year-long celebration of the 50th anniversary of the KHC & BCS amalgamation with a series of fun, interesting, and story-driven events. Some of these initiatives will include a 50th anniversary of coeducation Homecoming Weekend, KHC luncheons in Montreal and Toronto, and an alumnae community-focused Stoker Arts Festival.

The 1972-73 prefects pose with Headmaster John Cowans, BCS’54.

Dani happily accepts a kiss on the Winter Wilderness Dogsledding trip in La Tuque, QC.

claSS noteS

bcS bulletin Spring 2022

Clockwise, from above left: Bart MacDougall, BCS’54, Marian (MacDougall) MacFarlane, KHC’56, and Gael Eakin, KHC’56, hit the slopes in Whistler; Anne (Evans) Belton and Diana “Di” (Russel) Blakely, both of the KHC Class of 1963, reconnected in Fernie, BC.

John Stewart-Smith, BCS’50 Some tongue-in-cheek memories of work and play at BCS Preparatory School and of surprises on the way getting there in World War II by John, who arrived with his brother Michael Stewart-Smith, BCS’44, from England.

“Delayed by zig-zagging on an unusually far northerly track across the Atlantic in June 1940 and slowed by thick fog and titanic sized icebergs off the coast of Labrador, we eventually reached Quebec City 13 days out from Liverpool. Ours was a lucky ship, a single funneled Cunard passenger liner carrying some freight built in 1921. It survived the war.

Hardly a minute after safely tying up the chocks, releasing the forward hatch cover, were sledgehammered out. When the opening was clear, the ship’s crane hook was lowered to the bottom of the hold. We would never have guessed what came up! To our great surprise it was pallet after pallet of gold bars dusty with sawdust. Every load was landed on the quay at the feet of one watchful Mountie in a red tunic but no horse. Tons and tons of gold bars were in urgent transit from the Bank of England to Fort Knox?

The old QCR steam train took us down to the Eastern Townships and then on road to King’s Hall, Compton. There we were billeted for six or eight weeks during the school holidays whilst our future was sorted out. As we interacted with the resident teachers and staff, my late brother Michael and I would like the Alumni Office to consider our proposal to be registered as Honorary Old Boys of this former school for young ladies. Would that be in order?

We both arrived at BCS Prep at the beginning of the 1940 September term. Just how BCS bent the rules to accommodate us was truly remarkable. Michael was only six, and they created an extra Form at the bottom of the school—I suppose it was designated Form 1b because they could hardly call it Form 0. This was for two boys actually, Barker and my brother. An example of BCS’ tolerance on his first written test, the exam paper asked: ‘In what year did Christopher Columbus discover America?’ Michael’s answer was 1942. It was marked correct, believing he knew the answer but just got it muddled!”

Gael Eakin, KHC’56 “Bart MacDougall, BCS’54, Marian (MacDougall) MacFarlane, KHC’56, and I were all skiing at Whistler in March 2022!”

Anne (Evans) Belton, KHC’63 “In Fernie with family and met up with a high school classmate—such fun to reconnect with Diana “Di” (Russel) Blakely, KHC’63. What a coincidence this was—we are both here (BC ski resort) with our families. I am most impressed with Di as she is skiing…I am not!!”

BCS Class of 1964 Submitted by Doug Patriquin, BCS’64 “Don Buch, Peter Nixon, Doug Patriquin,

Peter Schmidt, James Stewart, Ian

Taylor, Ian Weir—these Class of 1964

Left to right: James Stewart, BCS’64, on his last day as the Deputy Prosecutor at the ICC in The Hague: “Heading to work on my last day—note the BCS tie!”; The KHC Class of 1971.

BCS grads went their separate ways and followed diverse paths through 50 years, some keeping in touch frequently, others occasionally. They have had distinguished careers in law, mining, hospitality, manufacturing, IT, and government and are spread out geographically, living in Arizona, Maryland, Ontario, Quebec, Spain, and The Netherlands. A core group came together when they turned 70, and have kept in much closer touch since then.

When David O’Keefe’s book, Seven Days in Hell, was published in 2019, we learned to our astonishment that three of our fathers fought together in the bloody Black Watch invasion of Europe in 1944, an extraordinary chapter in the lives of many BCS men of the time. These war experiences were never discussed or even thought about when we were at school in the 1960s. Each of us found BCS helpful in many different ways, one describing it as ‘a trampoline for the future, though I didn’t know it then.’ The funny stories that are told when we get together touch on those special BCS themes—dorms and house life, teachers, and the classmates we enjoyed but have lost touch with. It would be great to hear from any of our contemporaries who read this.”

James Stewart, BCS’64 Submitted by Doug Patriquin, BCS’64 “On March 7, 2022, James completed a nine-year assignment as the Deputy Prosecutor at the International Criminal Court in The Hague, Netherlands. He took on this assignment as second-in-command of the ICC, which prosecutes war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide, at an age when most of us were retired or ready to do so. Congratulations, and thanks for your work, James.” Ian Taylor, BCS’64 Submitted by Doug Patriquin, BCS’64 “In January of this year, Ian and Lynda Taylor’s son-in-law, Alex McKinnon, hosted a four-part CBC podcast entitled “Sorry about the Kid,” a heart-wrenching story of Alex’s brother, who was killed by a police car in Montreal 30 years ago. The podcast is also getting good reviews in the US, especially from Vulture, the entertainment arm of New York Magazine, and the LA Times.”

KHC Class of 1965 Submitted by Margot Mary (Grant) Kyle, KHC’65 “There will be 12 of the KHC Class of 1965 at our reunion in Victoria from September 17 to 20. It will be our first reunion out west, and though we have some tours and activities planned, we are all just looking forward to sharing time together and catching up (and not just on Zoom, which we have been doing every month for the last two years).”

KHC Class of 1971 Submitted by Barbara (Skelton) Bellingham, KHC’71 “The graduating class of 1971 had many claims to fame.

Being a class of 37 girls, we represented over one-third of the student population of 99. And we ruled! Most of us were ‘lifers,’ having been students at King’s Hall for five years, so we knew every inch of that school and every trick we could come up with to amuse ourselves for the three-month periods of time being solely in our own company. We also got to know our teachers after so many years of living together, and I think many turned an affectionate blind eye to our exploits.

It didn’t take us long to figure out how to remove the windows from the new residence so that we could sneak out after dark. We never went very far from the building, but it gave us a devilish high. As seniors, we had a special room in the basement of the old building just for ourselves called ‘chez’ which gave us easy access through the tunnels everywhere, including to the kitchen freezer full of ice cream…. Ah, the memories resurface in abundance each time we reconnect. There’s nothing like having special secrets to bond people together, and we certainly did.

We were the last class to experience the decades-old tradition of the graduation ceremonies and not only had to bid farewell to our classmates and teachers but to a lifestyle that would exist no more. It was a day that was embedded forever in our hearts.

We have had five official reunions over the past 50 years since graduating from Compton, and for the most part, we have seen or heard from 80% of our classmates. Quite a testament to our bond, considering we stretch across Canada, the US, South America, and parts of Europe.

Last year, in 2021, we met through Zoom for a 50th celebration, thanks to Susan Cook from the BCS Alumni Office, and were thoroughly delighted to see a live walk through our old stomping grounds courtesy of Head of School, Michel Lafrance. We have not lost enthusiasm for another get together once we can feel safe, healthy, and secure.”

BCS Class of 1979 Submitted by Stephen Kouri, BCS’79 “The class of the decade, in our opinion, met up in Montreal in December.

Stephen Tabah, Doug Mitchell, Alain

Dumais, and Robert Setlakwe were all in attendance.”

Clockwise, from top left: Robert Setlakwe snapped a photo of Stephen Tabah, Doug Mitchell, and Alain Dumais in Montreal during their mini BCS Class of 1979 reunion; Fernand “Fern” Turpin, BCS’88, connected with our Director of Advancement, Charles de Sainte Marie, BCS’93, during his visit to campus with his daughter; Members of GMFS (Nick Scheib, BCS’91, Nic Côté, BCS’89, Rob Allatt, and Mike Stearns, BCS’82) celebrated a well-played Alumni & Friends Hockey Tournament with pints at The Lion; Julie Duquette and Michelynn Poirier, both of the BCS Class of 1991, celebrated St. Patrick’s Day together; Rogelio Torre Medellin, BCS’94, bumped into a fellow BCS Old Boy, Juan Pablo Andrade Villar, BCS’17, at the gym; Amanda Stewart Loney, BCS’97, works in the entertainment industry.

Lindsay Hausner, BCS’87 “I am and will be forever grateful for the experiences and education I received at BCS that have led me to a life in thoroughbred racing.”

Fernand “Fern” Turpin, BCS’88 “We just happened to be in the area; my daughter was competing in the Quebec provincial championships for skiing at Orford, so we thought we would swing by after her afternoon run.

Bianca was very impressed with the campus—much has changed since I was there, but you could still feel the history walking through the halls.”

GMFS Submitted by Nicolas “Nic” Côté, BCS’89 “After two years without playing hockey,

it was great to get together at this year’s BCS Alumni & Friends Hockey Tournament. GMFS lived up to its name and we thoroughly enjoyed the après hockey beverages being poured at Le Lion Pub!!”

Julie Duquette, BCS’91 “St. Patty’s Day celebration with Michelynn Poirier, BCS’91, in Hudson. Love this gal—so great that we’re in the same town and have rekindled an old friendship that started in our BCS days back in the 80s.

I have also started a new business, Frankenweenie. It’s a place where you can giggle, relax, and shop our well-made Canadian goods. You can always shop us on quinceyandsyd.com.” wherever he goes. He just recently changed gyms and found a new friend, Juan Pablo Andrade Villar, BCS’17, who attended BCS in 2012/2013.

Amanda Stewart Loney, BCS’97 “GREETINGS, EVERYONE! How I miss you all. Just a brief update. Since leaving life at BCS I’ve graduated from McGill with a B.A. in Communications & Culture. Found myself at front reception for CBC Vancouver (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation). Continuing on with celebrity interviews where I found myself a niche with FRIENDS (the TV show). Cast & crew. Such a delight. I thank you for everything, and I hope all is well.”

The more things change...