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Grace Brown Gardner by Gertrude A. Pratt SO MUCH HAS been said and written about Grace Brown Gardner by her friends, townspeople and school associates. I would like to present my impressions of her human interest characteristics, beginning with her school days in Nantucket. Grace was a fine student, attaining a high scholastic level. However, singing was not one of her, shall we say, better subjects as she could not carry a tune. One day the music class was singing in chorus and there was some discord noted by the teacher. The source of the trouble was found to be Grace lustily singing - off key. In telling the story, Grace said that the teacher took her aside and diplomatically stated: "Grace, some people have a little bird in their throats to help them sing, but unfortunately, you and I do not have that bird to help us." The explanation was accepted and Grace thereafter stopped singing. Grace told of another of her teachers who announced one day that all the candy, apples and oranges brought into the class room must be shared with all the pupils. As these goodies were, at times, a rarity in several homes the pupils decided, upon consultation with Grace, that they eat them on the way to school and thus solve any problems of distribution in the class room. If this might seem a bit selfish on the part of Grace it will be remembered that surely, in later years, she gave of her vast knowledge freely to all who came to her for it. There were other school day experiences but these seemed to remain in her memory, and she always chuckled as she related them to me. In later years, Grace herself was a teacher in the 'Sconset School. She often rode back and forth to the village and return by bicycle, and on one trip a veritable gale sprang up. Grace reported that she could truly say that she was literally "blown" to 'Sconset. These trips were an achievement as there was then no bicycle path - only the paved highway. Upon her retirement to her Island home Grace introduced a course in Nantucket history in the Nantucket schools, and often declared it was a proud accomplishment as she was a graduate of the Nantucket Schools. Of special interest was the native flora and fauna, and the birds of the
