Tidings The University of King’s College Alumni Magazine
Summer 2000
X-posed
Jeremy McCormack reveals the secrets of Canada’s Second World War spy school – Camp X.
ALUMNI MARKETPLACE
SWEATSHIRTS
GOLF SHIRTS
RECYCLED MUGS
LIMITED EDITION PRINTS
Available in crew neck ($42.00), polo ($53.00), zip ($53.00) or grey hooded ($60) Colors are Forest Sand, Navy, Navy Sand & Burgundy Sand.
100% Cotton Golf Shirts available in White and Navy ($38.00).
Recycled plastic coffee mugs ($5.00).
SHORTS
PENS
Peter Bresnen’s watercolor of the Arts and Administration Building ($80.50).
Flannel boxer shorts available in Black Watch and Dress Stewart ($19.50).
Classic black Cross ball-point with the King’s Crest ($60.00). King’s pens (Bic Metal Rollers) with King’s crest ($2.75).
ALUMNI T-SHIRTS 100% Cotton T-Shirts available in Forest Sand, Dark Navy and Dark Navy Sand Teal ($10.00).
100% COTTON T-SHIRTS (NOT SHOWN) Available in Navy Sand, White and Forest Sand, and White with University Logo across the front ($17.50).
SCARVES AND TIES Scarves bearing the King’s crown and St. Andrew’s cross ($19.50). Men’s ties of silk/polyester bearing the same design ($23.00).
SILK TIES (NOT SHOWN) 100% Silk Ties striped with King’s crest ($43.00).
T-SHIRTS
KING’S
MUGS AND BEER STEINS
Long sleeve T-Shirts ($15.00).
NOTECARDS Blank notecards featuring a print of the watercolor by Peter Bresnen ($1.15 each).
HATS Hats available in Tartan, Forest Green and Navy ($15.50).
KEY CHAINS (NOT SHOWN) Pewter Key Chains with University Logo ($12.00).
Ceramic coffee mugs ($10.00). Ceramic beer steins ($26.00).
MOUSE PADS Mouse pads in Blue ($6.00).
LAPEL PINS Lapel Pin with University Crest ($6.00). Alumni Lapel Pin (NOT SHOWN) ($9.00).
MINI PHOTO ALBUMS
DEGREE FRAMES Gold metal frame, blue matte and King’s College crest embossed in gold at the bottom: BJ, BJH, BA, & BSc prior to 1994, 18 x 24 ($75.00); BA & BSc from 1995 and BJ & BJH from 1996, 15 x 18 ($65.00). Dark wood frame, blue and gold double matte and King’s College crest embossed in gold at bottom: BA & BSc from 1995 and BJ & BJH from 1996, 15 x 18 ($85.00).
BACKPACKS Various styles. Contact office.
SWEATPANTS Available in Navy Sand ($42.00)
Mini Photo Album (Navy) ($12.00).
FOR MORE INFORMATION or to order any of the above items, contact Paula Johnson in the Alumni, Development and Public Relations Office at 422-1271, ext. 128. Cheque, VISA or MasterCard accepted. Cheques should be made payable to the Alumni Association, University of King’s College, Halifax, N.S., B3H 2A1. Prices include HST. Shipping is extra.
2
Tidings
Summer 2000
Inside COVER STORY
12
5
ON CAMPUS
X marked the spot ... where Canada’s ultra-secret spy school helped the Allies win the Second World War. TV documentary maker Jeremy McCormack uncovers the story of Camp X.
KING’S PEOPLE
18
Kierans trades ‘irreverent’ news room for curious students
New computerized accounts give staff more time with students J-school teams with Atlantic media to offer minority scholarships Athletics program scores, but not with students ... But more high school athletes are considering King’s, says coach Wardroom smoke forces some students outside
Radio professor takes over from Margaret Daly ALUMNI PROFILE
19
Food critic Maher finds tastier fare since Halifax’s salad days
20 ALUMNI NEWS Ruth Hudson receives alumni honour
For restaurant reviewer Stephen Maher, Halifax is a changed city.
COVER: CAMP X TV documentary producer Jeremy McCormack. Photo: Michael Creagen
Summer 2000
Tidings
3
Alumni association bylaw changes NOTICE OF MOTION At the Alumni Annual General Meeting on September 19, 2000 the following motion will be brought forth: “Be it resolved THAT the changes to the constitution of the Alumni Association of the University of King’s College be amended as outlined in the summer 2000 issue of Tidings.” For your reference, the changes appear in bold. In May 1999, the Board of Governors changed the composition of the Board. The number of representatives from the Alumni Association changed from five and the President to three and the President. The following changes to the association’s constitution reflect this change and increases the number of members at large on the Alumni Executive to replace the two representatives lost as Alumni representatives on the University Board of Governors Article IV Governance A. Executive Board 1. The Executive Board shall be composed of b. Not more than eight Members at Large; c. Not more than three members who shall also be Association Representatives on the University Board of Governors; C. Duties and Responsibilities 2. The President shall e. Serve as one of the four Alumni representatives on the University Board of Governors; and The following changes formalize the process the Annual General Meeting agreed to in 1998 whereby members to the Alumni Executive are appointed rather than elected. 3. The Vice President shall a. Serve as Chair of the Search Committee Article VI Appointments A. Search Committee 1. The Search Committee shall consist of a Chair, who shall be the Vice-President, and at least 2 other members of the Executive Board. 2. The members of the Search Committee shall be appointed by the Executive Board no later than October 31 of each year. 3. The Search Committee is responsible for seeking candidates for the Executive Board and the Association Representatives on the Board of Governors. The original #4, #5 and #6 have been deleted and replaced with the following #4:
4
The recommendation of the Search Committee will be submitted to the Executive Board prior to the Annual General Meeting. b. The recommendation of the Search Committee will be presented for confirmation at the Annual General Meeting. 5. The term of office for all positions appointed by the Association shall be two years. 6. Vice-President c. If the Vice-President resigns during his/her term or is no longer able to fulfill the duties of Vice-President, the Executive Board shall appoint a member of the Association to be VicePresident until the next regular appointment for members of the Executive Board. d. Following the resignation of the VicePresident, the Search Committee will bring forth a recommendation for the position of Vice-President to fill the remainder of the original term as Vice-President. The candidate will become President when the original term as Vice-President expires. e. If the Vice-President resigns during the last year of a term as VicePresident, prior to succeeding as President, the Search Committee will bring forth recommendations for both the position of Vice-President (usual term) and President (2 year term and then two years as Past President) at the next general meeting of the Alumni Association. 7. Incumbent Members at Large and Board of Governors representatives shall be eligible for re-appointment for a total of three terms. 8. Only members of the Association are eligible for appointment. b. Appointment of Secretary and Treasurer c. Vacancies The original #11 has been deleted. The original Section B Voting has been deleted.
Tidings
4. a.
Article IX Repeal All previously existing constitutions are repealed by this Constitution, effective Sept. 19, 2000.
Alumni Assn. Annual General Meeting
Summer 2000 This issue of Tidings was written by secondand third-year journalism students. Tidings is produced on behalf of the University of King’s College Alumni Association.
MANAGING EDITOR TIM CURRIE (BJ ’92)
FACULTY ADVISOR EUGENE MEESE
EDITORIAL BOARD TIM CURRIE (BJ ’92) GREG GUY (BJH ‘87), CHAIR JONE MITCHELL DR. COLIN STARNES
ADDRESS LETTERS TO:
Tidings c/o Alumni Association University of King’s College Halifax, NS B3H 2A1
OR E-MAIL THE ALUMNI DEPT:
Jone.Mitchell@ukings.ns.ca KING’S WWW PAGE:
http://www.ukings.ns.ca
We welcome your feedback on each issue of Tidings. Letters to the Editor should be signed and typed. We reserve the right to edit all submissions. The views expressed in Tidings are those of the individual contributors or sources. Mailed under Canada Post Publications Mail Sales Agreement No. 1493094
formerly held in May is now held annually in September — this year: Sept. 19 6:00 p.m. Senior Common Room
Tidings
Summer 2000
OnCampus New computerized accounts give staff more time with students New software gives staff up-to-the minute access to registration and financial details By Meghan Stewart No more hassles. No more waiting in line. This year, for the first time, King’s students could pay all their fees and get their student loan papers signed without having to venture to Dalhousie’s bursar office. Student accounts officer Rebecca Fraser (BA ’87) helps students every day. She uses the Banner System — a computer program with information shared by Dalhousie University and King’s — to get the job done. The system is still in its early stages of implementation, but so far students have reacted favourably. “It’s a tremendous time-saver,” says second-year political science major Greg Bowley. “Once, I had to wait an hour in line for a signature on my student loan papers. I didn’t have to wait in any lineups this year.” “I think it’s a great alternative to going through the maze of Dal,” concurs second-year journalism student Cathryn Spence. A graduate of King’s herself, Fraser, 33, advises King’s students about tuition, student loans, scholarships and bursaries. “I love being around all the students; they’re so passionate about everything,” Fraser says with a smile. “The actual work isn’t the appeal. It’s the people.” The Banner system allows Fraser to spend more time talking
Summer 2000
“
There’s such an innocence in some of
the first-year students. It astonishes me.”
Rebecca Fraser Student Accounts Officer*
to students and less time tapping on the keyboard, she says. Catriona Talbot, associate registrar and systems co-ordinator for the past 2 1/2 years, calls it a comprehensive “student information system.” Each student has an account, listed by his or her student ID number. Fraser explains that Banner shows students what courses they’re enrolled in, whether payments have gone through or if they owe money. Students ‘green’ in financial matters It also makes the process less stressful for inexperienced university students, she adds. “There’s such an innocence in some of the first-year students,” Fraser says. “It astonishes me.” As student accounts officer, Fraser says she has had to explain to students how cheques work, how to pay tuition and receive student loans. Some students are embarrassed to ask these questions, but Fraser says she is happy to answer them. She also suggests bursaries
Tidings
and scholarships that will help King’s students meet their tuition payments. “I love giving money to students. The looks on their faces,” Fraser says with a laugh. “I hate taking their money, but I love giving it.” Student services co-ordinator Sarah Nettleton also says Banner helps her deal more closely with students. “We like to take care of our own,” Nettleton says. “With this new system, there are fewer administrative cracks for people to fall through.” Although it only started up last August, Nettleton and Fraser say the Banner system may eventually enable King’s to become completely self-sufficient in administrative and registration matters.
Student accounts officer Rebecca Fraser helps second-year student Cathryn Spence. Photo: Meghan Stewart
* Rebecca Fraser moved to the registar’s office in June to become academic student services officer
5
OnCampus
J-school teams with Atlantic media to offer minority scholarships Editors and producers hope financial aid will bring more blacks and aboriginals into regional newsrooms By Jason Smith Beginning this fall, the school of journalism will offer three $6,000 scholarships to African Canadian and Canadian Aboriginal students entering the one-year journalism program. Stephen Kimber, the director of the journalism school, hopes the scholarships will increase racial diversity at the school as well as in the newsrooms in Atlantic Canada. “Journalism is one of those areas where it is part of our role to reflect the diversity of the community,” says Kimber. “If you come from a particular background you raise certain issues or interests in the newsroom that may be different from those of someone from another community. So it’s important that newsrooms be diverse.” The issue of racial diversity was raised during talks between the
“
We’re on a firstname basis in referring to the number of students we’ve turned out from these communities. I probably know both of them, if you know what I mean.”
Bill Donovan Advisory Board Chair
6
journalism faculty and the Journalism School Advisory Board. The advisory board, which formed two years ago, is largely made up of senior editors and producers who represent the major news outlets in Atlantic Canada. Bill Donovan, the chairman of the advisory board and former regional director of CBC Maritimes, says the media industry has always had difficulty finding qualified journalists from the black and aboriginal communities. Industry is not representative of minorities “One of the problems the industry has is recruiting people into the profession who are representative of the population,” says Donovan. “In other words, if King’s is not turning out students from minority groups, it makes it doubly hard for the industry to employ members of those minority groups.” Donovan says the scholarship program was inspired by a similar program to recruit African Canadians into Nova Scotia education programs. Donovan hopes the scholarships will help bring more students from these communities into the journalism program. “We’re on a first-name basis in referring to the number of students we’ve turned out from these communities,” Donovan says. “I probably know both of them, if you know what I mean. And that’s just not sufficient to feed the industry
Tidings
or represent the community.” Donovan says students from these communities are choosing to seek higher education and enrolment in professional schools. However, for various reasons, they are not choosing to enrol in King’s journalism. Donovan feels that part of the reason is King’s has not extended the invitation to these students. “What we’ve been told from within those communities is that if they do not feel included, they feel excluded,” says Donovan. “In other words if they don’t feel an active invitation they feel an active exclusion.” Kimber agrees with Donovan and says the scholarships should send a strong message to black and Aboriginal communities across Canada. “I think the reason it will help
Alumni Assn. sponsors 1 of 3 scholarships King’s alumni association executive agreed at its January meeting to commit $30,000 over five years to sponsor one of the $6,000 scholarships. “The alumni association recognizes a need for this kind of support and we are happy to be contributing to the active recruitment of African Canadian and Canadian Aboriginal journalism students,” says Alumni Association President Judith McPhee.
Summer 2000
IN B
OnCampus RIEF
HMCS King’s award to be displayed
Halifax Herald Assistant Managing Editor Sheryl Grant (BJH ’80) has lent her support for the scholarhsip program: “The King’s School of Journalism has changed the way that journalism is done in the province. The quality of journalism has improved.”
The A&A building staircase will be the new home for an
Photo: Dan Callis
Order of the British Empire donated by the family of
is not simply the money,” says Kimber. “It sends the message to those communities that we are interested in them and that this is a profession where employers will be interested in you when you finish.” Kimber hopes King’s will attract more than just those students who are awarded a scholarship. Spin-off hoped for “Hopefully it will not only attract students coming in on the scholarship,” says Kimber. “But maybe, if we’re lucky, we’ll get other students who qualified but do not get the scholarship but decided to come anyway.” Donovan says the scholarship program has been gaining momentum since September. He says the alumni association offered to fund one of the three scholarships over the next five years. In addition, the university
Summer 2000
volunteered to front money for the other two scholarships this year until local media can raise the additional funds. A $6,000 entrance scholarship was the highest financial award given to incoming students this year. “The university backed it in the strongest way,” says Donovan. Kimber says the reason the scholarships are being offered only to African Canadian and Canadian Aboriginal students is because these communities have been historically the most disadvantaged in Nova Scotia. However, Kimber says the scope of the scholarship could be broadened in the future. “Maybe we could expand it in terms of offering it to other groups,” Kimber says. “But I think that’s down the road. We want to get this thing off the ground first.”
Tidings
former Commanding Officer of HMCS King’s Lt.-Cmdr. Bent Gestur Sivertz. Sivertz established the navigation school at HMCS King’s in 1942, training 4,000 naval reserve officers during the Second World War. Officers’ reunions are still enlivened with anecdotes of Sivertz’s high standards, dedication and dry sense of humour. Sivertz, 95, lives on the West Coast.
7
OnCampus
Athletics program scores, but not with students ‘Lack of student awareness’ leaves coaches struggling to fill team rosters: director
“
At other schools, people get drunk and watch football games. At King’s, people get drunk and watch the King’s
By Amy Smeltzer Lack of student awareness about athletic programs has left coaches struggling to fill team rosters, says athletics director Neil Hooper. “Our weakness is awareness,” says Hooper. “King’s athletics is the best secret going.” Ninety athletes play on King’s six varsity teams: men’s and women’s basketball, soccer and volleyball. Since 1975, King’s varsity teams have won 23 championships in the Atlantic Colleges Athletics Association (ACAA), more than any other college in ACAA history. Last year, King’s picked up its fourth consecutive men’s soccer championship, three academic all-Canadian awards and two Canadian College Athletics Association coaching excellence awards. Despite King’s varsity teams’ successes, this year’s athletic tryouts left half the coaches searching for players. The men’s basketball team, the only team with too many players, cut three of the 20 students who tried out. Dave Douglas, who played for the men’s soccer team from 1984 to
8
1988 and has coached the team since, says varsity tryouts are seldom well-attended. “Numbers are scarce,” he says. “In 16 years, I can’t remember anyone ever being cut [from the men’s soccer team]. Many times, we’ve had to go into the residences to find people.” Lack of publicity Hooper attributes the low turnouts to lack of publicity for King’s athletics. He says he would like more publicity within the school, but, as King’s only full-time athletics staff member, he doesn’t have time to oversee it. Hooper says he would like to see posters advertising events, free pizza at games, even a regular sports correspondent from the Watch, King’s student newspaper. Fourth-year philosophy student Tim Stephenson provides the only internal varsity team publicity by posting photocopied notices to advertise upcoming games. Hooper suggests potential King’s athletes may be intimidated by King’s success. “If you have a high-quality team, you don’t get many people trying out,” he says. “Students see the star players and assume all the players are like that, which is not true. We tend to have a core group of players who are very good and we build the teams around them with more average players.” Rebecca MacKenzie, a secondyear bachelor of science student and women’s soccer ACAA rookie of the year, says most King’s students simply aren’t interested in sports.
Tidings
Theatre Society.” Rebecca MacKenzie Women’s soccer ACAA rookie of the year
King’s attracts students for its liberal arts programs, not its athletics, she says. “At other schools, people get drunk and watch football games,” MacKenzie says. “At King’s, people get drunk and watch the King’s Theatre Society.” Hooper says King’s draws few students whose primarily interest is athletics, although numbers are rising due to recruiting by coaches. “People are more apt to hear about Dalhousie and Saint Mary’s athletic programs,” Hooper says. “Our league suffers from a lack of recognition because people see it as a tier beneath university programs.” Foundation year student Benji Lesczc, one of two sports editors for the Watch this past year, says most students don’t feel connected to the varsity athletic community. No reference in the Watch “I don’t feel that athletic students are a part of King’s,” he says. “They’re not in residence. They’re not in foundation year. They don’t hang around the Wardroom ... I walk into the gym and see faces I never see anywhere else.” January’s Watch sports section contained no reference to King’s varsity athletics. Lesczc’s Athlete of the Month column featured thirdyear history student Heather
Summer 2000
OnCampus
Davidson for her Sony Play Station gaming abilities. “Never once has anyone complained to me about the lack of true King’s athletics articles,” Lesczc says. “It’s my obligation to produce what students want to read ... and it’s my perception that the average King’s student doesn’t care about King’s teams.” “We’ve given up,” Hooper says. “There’s a responsibility for sports editors to come out to games. We need more internal publicity, but not one person has contacted me this year.” Hooper hopes that increased
awareness about the shortage of King’s athletes will encourage more students to try out for varsity teams. “If you try out, it’s very likely you will find a spot on the team,” he says. “In men’s soccer, for the
last three years that means you will go to a national championship. [Several] of those players would never get a chance to do that in larger colleges and universities. And what a great thing it would be to tell your grandchildren.”
... But more high school athletes are considering King’s: coach By Amy Smeltzer As awareness about King’s athletic programs increases, more high school athletes are considering the university for its sports program, says Sackville high school girls’ basketball coach Pat Henneberry. “The word around high schools is that King’s College is becoming more of a place to go,” says Henneberry. “It’s getting out that King’s is a place to come and win.” But students have traditionally viewed the Atlantic Colleges Athletics Association as a last resort for athletes who can’t make Atlantic University Athletics Association (AUAA) teams such as Dalhousie and Saint Mary’s universities. AUAA teams attract more high school athletes than ACAA teams because they are more competitive, have more media coverage and have larger budgets, enabling them to send recruiters to high schools, King’s athletics director Neil Hooper says.
Summer 2000
However, because universities tend to over-recruit, high school all-stars often find themselves warming benches on AUAA teams, Hooper says. On the smaller ACAA teams, he says, almost every athlete gets playing time. In fact, 30 per cent of King’s athletes are transfer students from other universities. “We attract a disillusioned player,” says Dave Douglas, men’s soccer coach at King’s. “Either they weren’t given the training they wanted [at universities] or were made promises that weren’t kept. By the time they find out about King’s, they’ve lost a year or more.” Increased competition and improved coaching over the past five years have made ACAA schools more attractive to high school athletes and coaches, Henneberry says. “Ten years ago, the ACAA was like an enhanced intramural league where you played just for fun,” Henneberry says. “I know one coach who used to tell his players, “If you can’t play AUAA, you’re wasting your time.” King’s has emerged as a leading ACAA
Tidings
school, Henneberry says. In the last five years, the men’s soccer team has won all five ACAA championships and the women’s basketball team has had a 94-38 win-loss record, culminating this March in the ACAA championship, the team’s first since 1986. Douglas says many high school athletes still don’t know King’s exists or assume that King’s degrees are worth less than Dalhousie or Saint Mary’s degrees. “It’s pretty sad that I have to keep both my Dalhousie and King’s diplomas in my desk so I can show students there’s no difference except a little King’s stamp,” Douglas says. But Henneberry says King’s recent athletic successes are making the college a familiar name among high school athletes and he encourages his students to consider King’s. “Do you really want to go to universities, putting in thousands of hours practising and going to games where you don’t get to play?” he asks. “Or do you want to go to King’s, have fun and play the game?”
9
Wardroom smoke forces some students outside By Sara Nics It is noon and fourth-year day student Steve Sharam is reading alone in a small alcove outside Prince Hall. Other day students are socializing in the Wardroom and the Day Student’s Lounge (DSL). But Sharam is avoiding the DSL because he is sensitive to the cigarette smoke there. He thinks the Wardroom stinks. “My body just kind of shuts down when I get exposed to some chemicals,” says Sharam. “Cigarette smoke is the biggest problem for me.” He is frustrated the social centre of campus isn’t accessible to him. “When you’re a day student, where else do you go?” he asks. “Everyone congregates in the Wardroom.” “During the day the DSL is nonsmoking, while the Wardroom side is smoking,” explains Amanda Margison, Wardroom manager. “In the evening it’s all smoking. But, as you can tell and smell, it doesn’t make much of a difference.” The Wardroom and the DSL are one long basement room separated by a low divider. The smoke from the Wardroom passes freely over the wall and into the DSL. The smoke then permeates the entire building when the door to the A&A staircase is open. Pamela Herod, administrative secretary for the journalism school, says when the Wardroom is busy, the smoke rises to her third-floor office. Robin Barrett, owner of Healthy Workplace Solutions, a company that focuses on air quality in the workplace says the effect is like that of a hot air balloon. “Air gets drawn in at the low level, gets heated and rises. So if you’ve got a problem in the basement, that air will typically rise through the rest of the building.” Margison says she has had many complaints about the air quality. “People complain all the time and I don’t blame them,” she says. “It’s rotten down here. It smells like an
10
old ashtray, but there’s not a whole lot we can do about it.” Although the King’s Student Union has given the Wardroom $10,000 for improvements, Margison says major renovations to improve air quality are out of that price range. The Wardroom rents its space from the university. Margison says King’s would have to pay for renovations. Margison says one student suggestion for improving air quality in the Wardroom was to put fans in the windows to exhaust the smoke from the room. Although she says this lowercost solution would probably be within the Wardroom’s $10,000 budget, Margison says the KSU’s money will likely be spent on new furniture and bar appliances. The cheapest option for improving the air quality would be to make the Wardroom and the DSL completely non-smoking. Dalhousie has used this tactic since it brought out its first smoking regulations in 1988. First the university had smoking in designated areas only, says Dr. William Louch, head of the health and safety office at Dalhousie. Between ’91 and ’98 the university closed those areas. People got fed up with the smoke, says Louch. But Margison doesn’t think King’s can eliminate all indoor smoking. “For the vast majority of people here who smoke it is important to have an indoor space,” she says. Steve Sharam recognizes the importance of an indoor smoking space to smokers. “A lot of my friends who smoke don’t like being in the Wardroom because it’s a disgusting environment, but it’s the only place they can smoke in the middle of winter,” he says. But until the air quality improves Steve Sharam says he’ll avoid the Wardroom and the DSL. “It’s not worth the social aspect for how it makes you feel,” he says.
Tidings
IN B
OnCampus RIEF
Roch Carrier visits King’s library King’s Library staff welcomed Roch Carrier earlier this year as part of the National Librarian’s 10day trip across Canada. Staff gave Carrier a tour of the library and displayed some its rare book collection. Carrier became Canada's fourth National Librarian on Oct. 1, 1999, succeeding Dr. Marianne Scott. He is a prolific Québecois author who has written several novels in both French and English that are considered classics, including The Hockey
Sweater and Other Stories (1979), La Guerre, Yes Sir! (1970). Carrier was named an Officer of the Order of Canada in 1991.
Summer 2000
Capital Campaign update WATCH THIS SPACE!
P CO HAS E M JAN PLET 1 . 2 ION 00 1
Construction is visibly progressing every week now. The view from the quad has been substantially altered with the three-storey structure rising between Radical Bay and North Pole Bay. The first photo, taken in July, shows the footprint of the building taking shape with completion of the first-storey skeleton. The second photo, taken in August, shows concrete poured for the second storey, and work beginning on the third. Seventy-five per cent of the structure is now complete and mechanical and electrical work is beginning. The new building is being built directly behind North Pole Bay. These photos look south-west from behind the A&A building. Keep watching for more photos as construction progresses. JULY 2000
T
he Building on a Strong Foundation capital campaign has reached close to $5 million, over 73 per cent of the campaign’s overall goal of $6.7 million.
As mentioned in the last campaign update, a number of areas have already surpassed their goals, and donations for the new building continue to come in daily. The Building on a Strong Foundation capital campaign office is currently contacting alumni and asking them for their support. The overall goal of the alumni is to contribute $800,000 towards the campaign. If alumni reach this goal, they will have the naming opportunity for the lecture hall in the new building. “I’m sure King’s alumni will meet the $800,000 goal,” says Cynthia Pilichos, Alumni Co-Chair of the campaign. “In fact, I’m hoping we surpass it and reach our stretch goal of $1,000,000 so we are able to name the entire building.”
✁
What’s
New?
Send us your news and we will pass it along to your classmates in our next issue. Mail it to the address at right or (better still) e-mail: jone.mitchell@ukings.ns.ca NAME DEGREE (EG. BA ’63) OR YEARS AT KING’S
AUGUST 2000
(MAIDEN NAME AT KING’S) HOME PHONE E-MAIL ADDRESS ADDRESS
YOUR NEWS
Summer 2000
Tidings
11
COVER STORY
X marked the spot the spot
... where Canada’s ultra-secret spy school helped the Allies win the Second World War. TV documentary maker Jeremy McCormack uncovers the story of Camp X.
By Sarah Anne Mcginnis
I
It is a story the Canadian government kept hidden for 50 years. But it’s one Halifax filmmaker Jeremy McCormack (’83) knew Canadians wanted to know — the real story about a secret World War II spy training camp called Camp X. McCormack brought this story to life in a one-hour documentary aired on History Televsion Jan. 9. It’s a story that reads like fiction. Over 2,000 intelligence agents from around the world, including Ian Fleming, author of the James Bond books, trained at the spy camp just outside of Oshawa, Ontario. There, they learned how to create and use propaganda films, how to decode messages and how to kill silently. The joint British, American and Canadian training camp was the first commando school in North America. It was created by Canadian Sir William Stephenson, who would later be known by his
Summer 2000
code name ‘Intrepid’. Camp X was so secret that Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King was not originally informed of its existence. “I was reading about Sir William Stephenson, who is, to my mind, a great Canadian who packed about three lifetimes into one,” says McCormack, the 35year-old filmmaker who wrote, produced and directed the documentary. “He played a huge role in WWII in defeating the axis powers, and part of his story is Camp X.”
“
There’s been a 20-year pattern in Canadian documentary films to knock down heroes or look at what was wrong, rather than to tell a positive part of the story.”
An ‘unifying’ story McCormack says he also wanted to tell this story because it is one Canadians can be proud of. “There’s been a 20-year pattern in Canadian documentary films to try to knock down heroes or look at what was wrong rather than what was a positive part of the story,” McCormack explains. “I saw the Camp X story as an opportunity to tell a story that is unifying
Tidings
because Canadians of every nationality were involved.” Telling this story, however, was almost impossible. The original documents and film footage were lost or doctored. It seemed all that remained of Camp X was a small non-descript plaque erected at the insistence of veterans. To uncover information about Camp X, McCormack set up a team
13
“
It’s probably the hardest thing I’ll ever do — telling a story about something that happened 60 years ago, that was destroyed by the government, and of which there is no material in any archives.”
of five PhDs to scour Canadian, British and American archives. He says he was surprised by the lengths to which all three governments tried to keep this secret. “There’s almost nothing in the archives,” McCormack says. “What information is in the archives is largely false, which is a curious thing to discover that our official histories are doctored, are incorrect or have huge holes in them.” A dead end Through the Access to Information Act, McCormack came across a piece of paper from the British foreign office instructing the Canadian government not to release any information about Camp X during the war. The statement also said Americans would want to pre-approve any released information related to their involvement in the camp. McCormack says even with this document, which proved the existence and importance of Camp X, all of this searching lead to a dead end. “All of the work that we did still didn’t offer us much of the story of Camp X or its role in the war,” McCormack says. “So I had to go to first-hand testimony of the story. And, really, that makes it a
14
much more valid story.” Breaking new historical ground, McCormack tracked down and interviewed hundreds of surviving graduates of Camp X. Most of these graduates were between the ages of 77 and 94. He spoke to so many people that his files on them fill the bottom drawer of his filing cabinet. McCormack says he had difficulty getting these veterans to talk. “Almost all of the people I interviewed had never talked about Camp X before,” McCormack says. “There was a husband and wife team who were both at the camp. While I was interviewing them, it became really, really clear that they hadn’t even talked to each other about what had gone on.” A cinematic journey As McCormack began interviewing camp graduates and gaining their trust, he managed to track down file footage and still photographs shot at the camp. He began framing his documentary by combining these images with the interviews. Because he was relying on firsthand testimony, McCormack made sure every fact was corroborated by
Tidings
at least two sources in the documentary. The film begins as a mystery. First the audience is introduced to the location of Camp X and to letters from organizations saying they had no information about the site. Then the audience embarks on a journey, similar to McCormack’s in making the film, ending with testimonials, documents and file footage. When Camp X premiered on History Television on Jan. 9 it was the highest-rated documentary ever aired on the channel. Approximately 257,000 viewers tuned in to the program. While he was thrilled so many viewers watched his work, McCormack says he was even more pleased that most of those interviewed in the documentary were happy with the results. Unfortunately, he adds, some of those involved in Camp X died while the show was being prepared. Feature film a possibility McCormack and the motion picture company he founded, Victory Motion Pictures Limited, are currently developing more documentaries. They are also looking to expand the Camp X documentary into a feature film. McCormack says he will never forget working on this documentary. “It’s probably the hardest thing I’ll ever do,” McCormack says. “Telling a story about something that happened 60 years ago that was destroyed by the government and of which there is no material in any archives.” He adds, “after all, its about spies that are trained not to talk.” T
Summer 2000
Encaenia
2000
Clockwise from top left: President Colin Starnes presents Sarah Dingle with the King’s Medal; the Class of 2000, Carl Lem gives the valedictory address; Scott Shutt gets his hood in position; friends and family members greet the graduates entering the Cathedral Church of All Saints; President Colin Starnes awards Danielle Stone the Governor-General’s Silver Medal; Marcy Clark, President Starnes and Cheri Haley pose for a photo; the academic procession leaves the King’s quad. – Photos by Kerry Delorey
Summer 2000
Tidings
15
University of King’s College Stewardship Report The University of King’s College is fortunate to have so many committed alumni, such as those listed on the following pages, who realize the importance of supporting higher education, especially in these critical times. This lists all alumni, friends, corporations and foundations who gave to the University between April 1, 1999 and March 31, 2000, except those who wish to remain anonymous. Every effort has been made to list names accurately. If your name has been omitted, or displayed incorrectly, please accept our apologies, and notify King’s Development Office, 6350 Coburg Road, Halifax, Nova Scotia B3H 2A1 or call (902) 422-1271 ext. 128 or e-mail Jone.Mitchell@ukings.ns.ca.
$600,000 Other $45,723.05
$500,000 Annual Fund $56,698.28
Bequests/ Gifts-in-Kind $41,517.63 Capital Campaign $1,155,825.04
$400,000
$300,000
$200,000
$100,000
0 Special Friends/ Parents
Alumni
Family
Corporations
Foundations
$540,453.26
$51,286.52
$37,220.88
$321,483.34
$349,320.00
Who donated
A Lewis Abbott Trevor Joseph Adams Agar & Elizabeth Adamson Air Nova Inc. Alberta Weekly Newspapers Association Alexandra Society All Saints Chruch, Wynnewood Frances (Gomery) Allen Bob & Cathy Allison Terri Lynn Almeda John Alward Don & Kathie Anderson Glenn Anderson Harry Annear Morley Annear Kell Antoft James Archibald
16
Peter Armstrong Ash Temple Ltd. Geoffrey Atherton Atlantic Community Newspapers Association Atlantic Lottery Corporation Peter Aucoin B Phoebe Baker Bank of Montreal The Bank of Nova Scotia Diane Barker Keith & Barbara Barrett Rod & Wendy Barrett Barrick Gold Corporation Judith & Stephen Bates Jonathan Bays Beacon Securities Limited
How they donated
Robert Bean Bebb Publishing Limited Thomas Bell Michael Belmer Susie Belton Paul Bent James Bessey Anne Blakeney David Blom Alberta Boswall Margaret Bourne Bowater Mersey Paper Company Limited Wayne Bowley Cheryl Boyd Malcolm Bradshaw Donald Brod Stephen Brooke Brothers Two Restaurant & Pub
Tidings
Derek & Margaret Brown Fred Bruun Elaine Burke Quentin & Ellen Burke C Chantal Caille Andrew Calkins Murray & Carol Campbell Canada Post Corporation Atlantic Division Cariboo Press Ltd. Heather Carr-Kinnear John Carruthers Carman Carson Christine Carter Carthy Foundation Helen Cassidy Patricia Chalmers
David & Joan Chandler Elizabeth Chandler Paul Charlebois Gail Chiasson Christopher & Gillian Childs Choice Tobacco Inc. CIBC CIBC Charitable Foundation CIBC Truro The Claddagh Room Olde Dublin Pub John & Lynn Clappison David Clare Dolda Clarke Mary Clarke Clinic Pharmacy Ltd. Ian & Barbara Cochran James & Charlotte Cochran Peter Coffin
Summer 2000
Daniel Colson David Connell John Cook Paulette Coolen George Cooper Gordie Cooper John Cordes Wanda Corey Cundill Foundation Thomas & Jane Curran Brian Cuthbertson D Gwendolyn Davies Carl Davis R. MacGregor Dawson* L. Ann Day Melville Deacon Derksen Printers Ltd. Kenneth & Marged Dewar L. George Dewar Larry Dewar A. Fraser & Marilyn Dewis Consiglio Di Nino Diocesan Synod of Nova Scotia Susan Dodd Bill Donovan Dr. R.O. MacGregor Family Dentistry Ltd. Dr. Simone E. Abbass Inc. John Duncan E Elizabeth Edwards C. Russell Elliott Robert Estabrook Estate of Dorothy Heighton* Estate of Dorothy Ward* Estate of F.C. Manning* Estate of George Gabriel* Estate of Mr. Forrester* Estate of Robert Morris* Estate of Susanna Almon* Christopher Eyton J. Trevor Eyton F Fair Isle Ford Judy, Bob, Judith & Jamie Ferguson Leonard Field Constance Finck Brian Flemming Alfred Fraser J. Roderick Fraser Kathie Fraser Linda Fraser Mr. & Mrs. Burt Freireich F. Melvin French Marion Fry G Stewart Galloway Gas Equipment Supplies George W. Verge Enterprises Ltd. D. Kenneth Gibson Ed Gigg Joan Gilroy Dorota Glowacka Graduating Class 1999 Mr. & Mrs. Bryan Gransden Grant Thornton The Great Eastern Corporation Great-West Life Assurance Company Roselle Green Beverley Greenlaw & Sylvia Hamilton The Guardian Charles & Anne Gunn Brian Gunter
Summer 2000
H J.David Hambly Geraldine Hamm John Hamm Steve Harper Frank & Jean Harrington David Hartry Harvey’s Oil Limited Lillie Haworth C.William Hayward Ross Hebb Peggy Heller Ian Henderson Henley Publishing Limited Pamela Herod John & June Hibbitts Alan Holman Home Hardware Bert Honkoop Neil Hooper Robert & Sandy Horowitz Dennis House John Houston Ronald Huebert I Imperial Manufacturing Group Imperial Oil Limited Industrial Environmental Services Inc. Beatrice Ingham Eric Ingraham Inland Technologies Inc. Scott Inniss Island Press Ltd. J J. O’Halloran Inc. J.R. MacNeill Medical Corporation Ltd. Kathleen Jaeger Roland Jamieson Philip Jefferson Paula Johnson Angus Johnston & Sandra Haycock David Jones K John & Mohini Kellum Glen & Glenda Kent Kenneth & Kim Kierans Stephen Kimber Laird King John Kinley Stephen Knowles L Allen Lambert Ross Landers Mary Lane Catherine Langille A. Raymond & Barbara Latta Brian Latwaitis Caleb Lawrence George Lemmon W. Ralph Lewis Susy Lewis-Giddy Lighthouse Publishing Limited Matthew Lister Ruth Loomer Bill & Stella Lord M Charlotte MacDonald Gordon MacDonald Kate MacDonald MacDougall’s Restaurant Linden MacIntyre Ian MacKenzie Alan MacLeod John MacLeod Lorne MacLeod
Susan MacMillan Betty MacNeil Calum MacNeill George & Isabel MacNeill Robert & Annie MacNeill Shirley MacNeill Heath MacQuarrie Heather MacQuarrie Don & Kathryn MacVicar Susan Mahoney Adrienne Malloy Manulife Financial The Maritime Life Assurance Company William Marshall John May G.Wallace McCain The McCain Foundation Fiona McCall Robert McCleave Richard McCord Duncan McCue Michael McDonald J.Brendon McGinn Lois McKay The McLean Foundation John & Margaret McLeod R. Leonard McNeil Alison & David McNeill Gillian McNeill Kathleen McNeill Paul & Marie McNeill Gordon McOuat Jim McPhee Nicholas Meagher David Mercer Brian Merrett Louise Merritt Beverly Miller Michael Miller Judith Minard Lorraine Miner J.W.E. Mingo Jone Mitchell Mobil Lubricants Canada Limited Mollins Gas ‘N Variety Terry Monaghan Moosehead Breweries Limited Keith & Elizabeth Morley Morley Mossing John Mullowney Elmo & Reta Munroe J.Elmer Murphy Robert Murphy Robert & Virginia Murray Stephen Murray N N.D.H.A. Hilroy Nathanson Peter Nathanson National Life NB Tel Stephanie Nolen Barry Norris North Atlantic Petroleum Northern Telecom Ltd. Nova Scotia Power Nova Scotia Rowing Team William Nycum O Megan O’Brien Harrison Ocean Contractors Bruce Oland Juliana Ott P Elizabeth Page Dianne Parker Owen & Elizabeth Parkhouse Parrsboro Metal Fabricators Richard & Joan Payne
Tidings
David & Louise Peddle Pepsi-Cola Canada Beverages Gordon & Wendy Peters Drake Petersen Andreá Pilichos Harold Pippy Sally Pitt-Campbell Post Office Staff David Precious Kathy Pritchard Pye Chev Olds Ltd. R Rankin & Associates Limited RBC Dominion Securities Everett & Marion Read John Reynolds Heinz & Margaret Rieger Riello Burners Tim Rissesco Mark Roald Lynn Robertson Neil & Patricia Robertson Ron & Sheila Robertson Mr. & Mrs. E.A. Robinson Morris & Lorraine Rotbard Rothmans, Benson & Hedges Inc. John Roy Royal Bank of Canada Charitable Foundation Michael Rudderham Denis Ryan S Tim Sanderson Sangre de Cristo Chronicle Marsha Sawler Gary & Verna Schroeder ScotiaMcLeod Inc. A.Winifred Scott Shelley Sears Vern & Dianne Shaffner Margaret Shaw Clifford Shirley Brian Silver & Family Gerald Smith Ian Smith Larry Smith Ronald & Mary Smith Dana Snowdy Frank Sobey The Sobey Foundation Elizabeth Sodero William Spencer Peter Sprague St. Mary’s Anglican Guild Nancy Stapleton Colin Starnes John & Helen Starnes Detlev Steffen Ian Stewart Kevin & Janice Stockall T Catriona Talbot Kelley Teahen The Daily News The Freedom Forum David Thompson Judith Thompson Stephen Thompson Rachel Threlkeld William Tidmarsh Shirley Tillotson Beatrice Tingley Elizabeth Toporowski TD Bank Financial Group Lew Turnquist & Jennifer Inglis
V V.I.P. Retail Nancy Violi W Bruce Wark WBLI Services Limited Partnership Wentworth Ski Racing Club Linda Wheeldon The Whim Inn Ltd. Evan & Elna Wiles Elmer Williams Glenn Williams Michele Williams William Williams Blair Wilson Rose Wilson Steven Wilson The Wood Family Blair Wood Doug Wood Brian Worrall Charles Wurtzburg Harry & Barbara Wylde Y Elizabeth Yeo John Yeo Bob & Bette Young Z Dale Zinck
and those donors who wish to remain anonymous
* deceased Donations were also given in memory of the following people: Noel Andrews Otto Antoft James Balfour Susan Dexter John Hebb Alma Houston Michael Elliott Althea Graven Jennifer Harper Luba Kolber Jim MacNeill Shirley Miles W.S.H. Morris Diana Naimark F. Hilton Page Escott Reid Mr. Skinner Watson Sodero Peter Wilson
U UKC Alumni Association UKC Students’ Union
17
King’sPeople Kierans trades ‘irreverent’ newsroom for curious radio journalism students Radio professor takes over from Margaret Daly By Jennifer Hourihan
Kim Kierans goes over a script with BJ student Melissa Friedman. Photo: Jennifer Hourihan
When Kim Kierans (BA ’82, HC ’83) listens to the work of one of her radio students, she closes her eyes and leans towards the tape recorder in concentration. When she talks about radio, her eyes light up and her voice takes on an excited tone. “I like the ability to tell stories,” says Kierans. “To meet and interview fabulous people. And the immediacy. In radio, it happens now.” This is Kierans’ third year teaching radio journalism at King’s. Her trademark saying — “radio is fun, folks” — has become well known to her students in that time. Kierans’ involvement with radio stretches back more than 20 years. In
1977, she was working as a newspaper reporter in the Charlottetown bureau of the Summerside (P.E.I) Journal Pioneer when CBC opened a new station in Charlottetown. Despite having little radio experience, she applied for a job and on March 1 — her 21st birthday — she was hired. “They were looking for people who knew the island,” she says. “They hired me for my little black book, not my radio skills.” After years honing those radio skills in various positions at CBC in both Charlottetown and Halifax, Kierans got a job as a desk editor at CBC Halifax. In 1997, Margaret Daly, a fellow CBC journalist and thenradio professor at King’s, decided to take a year’s sabbatical from the university. Daly recommended Kierans to fill in for her. “It sounded like fun,” says Kierans. “And I do things because they’re fun.” Course run like a newsroom She says teaching was a “natural progression” from her desk editor job, since that position had involved coaching and teaching other reporters. “I run my course like it’s a newsroom,” she says. She worked at King’s three days a week that year, while working four days a week at the CBC. The following year, when Daly took a second year away from King’s, Kierans took a leave of absence from the CBC to teach full time at the college. Later that year, Daly decided she
18
Tidings
would not return to King’s. After competing against three other applicants, Kierans was awarded the job. What she likes best about teaching is the students themselves. “They’re smart and curious and they have a real desire to do journalism,” she says. “I learn a lot about storytelling from my students. And they keep me sharp in my editing skills.” For Kierans, teaching at King’s is coming full circle. She had taken foundation year at King’s and studied classic and political theory here. She had been a don in residence and had worked on Tidings, all while working 30 hours each week at the CBC. “I don’t know how I did it,” she says, and then adds, “I’ve been blessed with high energy.” That high energy helps Kierans now. In addition to teaching at King’s, she works for the CBC Radio shows Weekend Morning and Maritime Noon, and the CBC-TV show Country Canada. She writes a column for the Sunday Herald, visits elementary schools to speak about journalism, and volunteers for her church. This spring Kierans helped organize the conference of the Canadian Association of Journalists. She is married to contemporary studies program professor Ken Kierans and is the mother of three children. Although she enjoys teaching, Kierans says there are some things she misses from her CBC days. “I miss being irreverent,” she says. “I have a wicked streak in me and in this office I don’t have a chance to do that.”
Summer 2000
ALUMNI PROFILE
Food critic Maher finds tastier fare since Halifax’s salad days By Jessica Block Cheese, orange juice, dark rye bread, four different kinds of mustard and marmalade are the only foods inside Stephen Maher’s fridge. Yet the restaurant critic for the Halifax Chronicle-Herald loves food. He just has little time to cook. Convenient then that his job, besides being an editor at the Herald, is to eat food and write about it. “I don’t think anyone can complain about eating at restaurants and getting paid to write what they think,” says Maher, sipping on a cup of black coffee in Cafe Mokka. “I think it’s got to be one of the best gigs in the world.” Dressed in a crisp white shirt, black pants and a tie, Maher looks more like a waiter than a restaurant reviewer. Maher goes incognito to restaurants he reviews. He explains later that a lot of people dislike him because of the column. “Sometimes people are not very happy and I can’t blame them,” says Maher. “I do try to be fair but I try to say what I honestly think about a place...I take the responsibility seriously and I try to consider what I say quite carefully. People save up their money and open restaurants. That represents their livelihood, but ultimately I’m not serving them, I’m serving people who buy the newspaper.” An “air force brat,” born in France, Maher moved to Nova Scotia with his family in Grade 6. Maher eventually graduated from King’s in 1988, with a BA in international development. He then went on to work for various newspapers, until, he says, he felt like doing something more creative. Maher wrote a recipe column for the Daily News and his
Summer 2000
“
Traditionally, I think Nova Scotians have been conservative eaters, but people have opened their minds to new kinds of food.”
restaurant review column for the Herald followed. Maher reviews every kind of restaurant from fine dining to diners. In late spring he was working on a piece about Halifax donairs. “Traditionally, I think Nova Scotians have been conservative eaters, but I think that has changed a lot in the last 20 years,” says Maher. “Now there are five sushi restaurants, Korean, Vietnamese...I think people appreciate it. People have broadened their tastes and opened their minds to new kinds of food.” Maher needs no prodding when it comes to trying new foods. “I’ll eat just about anything,” Maher says, who grew up in a meatand-potatoes kind of family. “I have a keen interest in Asian food. I’ve eaten Nova Scotian food all my life. [Asian food] is a different experience. It’s arresting...the new flavours, textures, they’re shocking and startling.” Among the stranger foods Maher says he has eaten, is a dish he enjoyed while he lived in Japan for a year — horse meat sushi. The meat was served as little medallions in a soy sauce with diced green onions. “It’s tasty,” says Maher. “There’s something about it, such a fresh flavour. If you overcook a piece of meat, it loses its flavour.” There’s a lot of room to have fun
Tidings
in his newspaper column, Maher says. He writes in a casual, conversational tone, as if speaking to the reader over dinner. “I try very hard to make them entertaining,” Maher says. “It’s one of those things in a newspaper that can be fun.” Although Maher enjoys writing about restaurants, he says he would never open one. He says the restaurant business is too difficult and he likes the newspaper business. “Ever since I got over wanting to be a professional hockey player, I’ve wanted to be a journalist.”
19
AlumniNews Ruth Hudson receives alumni honour The alumni association recognized Ruth Hudson (BA ’61) at its annual alumni dinner with an award named for her former husband. It was a fitting tribute to a lifetime of volunteering and support for the university. Presentation of the Judge J. Elliott Hudson Distinguished Alumnus/a Award was the highlight of the dinner held on May 16 at King’s. The award is the alumni association’s highest honour. Ruth Hudson has been a long-standing supporter of the university alumni at its meetings and reunions. She enjoyed a long career as a elementary school teacher and principal in the Halifax neighbourhood of Spryfield. She is an active lawn bowler and umpire — and was acknowledged this year by Blind Sport Nova Scotia for volunteer coaching. She is also an active member at the Cathedral Church of All Saints, having pursued missionary work in Uganda, where she helped secure a no-interest loan of $39,000 for a truck to transport people to the local hospital. The Judge J. Elliott Hudson Distinguished Alumnus/a Award recognizes alumni who have made significant contributions to their profession, their community and to volunteer work. This is the sixth year it has been presented. Previous winners are Gordon Earle (BA ’63) in 1999, Bruce Archibald (BAH ’70) in 1998, Linda Fraser (BA ’63) in 1997, John Mark DeWolf (BAH ’68) in 1996, and Lois Miller (BA ’65) in 1995.
Alumni association President Judith McPhee, Ruth Hudson, and her son John Hudson. Photo: Tim Currie
Judge Elliott Hudson (BA ’24) was a long-standing member of King’s Board of Governors and past president of the alumni association. The annual dinner is the alumni assocation’s foremost social event.
2000 HONORARY DEGREE RECIPIENTS
Calendar of Events Sept. 19
Alumni Annual General Meeting 7:00 p.m. Senior Common Room
Please call the alumni office for further details
Alumni Association Annual General Meeting formerly held in May is now held annually in September (this year: Sept. 19) 6:00 Mussels & Corn; 7:00 p.m. AGM Senior Common Room
20
Alistair MacLeod
William Joseph Hockin
Alistair MacLeod (Doctor of Civil Law) is the author of No Great Mischief, his haunting tale of the MacDonald family of Cape Breton. It was the second best-selling novel in hard cover this spring. Until his retirement this year, the Cape Breton native was a professor of English at the University of Windsor, Ontario. He has also taught creative writing at the University of Indiana and regularly leads workshops at the Banff Centre in Alberta. A respected author in Canadian literary circles, Alistair MacLeod is also the author of The Lost Salt Gift of Blood (1976).
The Right Reverend William Joseph Hockin (Doctor of Divinity) is Diocesan Bishop of the Diocese of Fredericton and has served with distinction as Dean of Fredericton, as well as rector of several parishes in the dioceses of Huron and Toronto, Ontario. He is a skilled preacher and has been heavily involved in education programs for the ministry. He is the author of three books: God for a Monday Morning (1987); Twelve Stories You and Your Children Need to Know (1994); and When the Wine Runs Out — Hope for the Spiritually Challenged (1996).
Tidings
Summer 2000
AlumNotes the
40s
The Rev. Canon Robert C. Tuck (BA ’48) has a Web site at: www.isn.net/friartuck which old friends can use to contact him.
the
50s
James Burchill (BA ’58) played at the national convention of the Royal Ontario College of Organists in July 1999 in Hamilton and gave a workshop at the regional convention of the RCCO in Halifax in May, 2000. James is an organist & choirmaster at All Saints Cathedral, Halifax. Gerald Curnew (’58) has been appointed Director of Labour Relations for the Newfoundland/Labrador School Association. Leroy Peach (BA ’59) published his sixth book, An Island in My Heart, in November 1999. This collection of his columns first appeared in the Cape Breton Post. Dr. John Phillips (BScH ’56) recently received the Fry Medal for lifetime achievement in zoology and science from the Canadian Society of Zoologists.
the
60s
Terry June Harnish (’65) was the top Nova Scotia fundraiser for the Breast Cancer Research Foundation during the Canadian Cancer Society’s CIBC Run For The Cure last October. She raised over $8,000.
the
70s
Deborah Boltz (BA ’77) is teaching at Astral Drive Elementary School in Dartmouth. Ian Deakin (BA ’70) opened another season at Stratford Festival in Ontario appearing in The 3 Musketeers, Diary of Anne Frank and The Importance of Being Earnest. Michael E. Foley (BA ’74) completed his EdD at the University of Toronto in November 1999. He works for the Halifax County School Board as a supervisor. Jennifer Henderson (BA ’79) became a full-time busi-
Summer 2000
ness reporter with CBC Radio Halifax in July. Dr. Penny Frances L. Moody-Corbett (BSc ’71) is the Assistant Dean of Research and Graduate Studies at Memorial University, Nfld. John Roby (BA ’73) won a Genie Award nomination in December for original score of the movie Beefcake. The Rev. Dr. Kenneth Wissler (BST ’71) is Interim Ministry Specialist and consultant in Roslyn, Pa.
the
80s
James Bain (’86) and his wife Nathalie had a baby boy, Alexander, in October 1999. Dawn A. (Steeves) Breau (BA ’88) and her husband Andrew Breau have a two-year-old son, Dylan. She works as a sales representative for L’Oreal Canada. They live in New Brunswick. Colette Budge (BSc ’87) and her husband Rob Bolduc have moved to Winnipeg with their two children, Brianna, 4, and Caleb, 1. Friends can reach Colette at: cbudge@mb.sympatico.ca Larry Burke (’81) and his wife Kelly designed the Canada Christmas stamps that will come out in November. Andrew Calkins (BA ’88) married Anneke Tucker on May 7, 2000. Brian Cormier (BJH ’86) invites classmates to submit stories about their personal mentors and heroes to his website at: www.lifegiants.com John Craig (DCL ’89) was inducted into the Nova Scotia Business Hall of Fame in June. Susan Crossley (BA ’85) and her husband Harry Crossley had a baby girl on Feb. 9, 2000. They live in Rothesay, N.B. Christine Davies (BJH ’83) was appointed associate producer responsible for history programming, the record library and archives at CBC Radio in St. John’s, Nfld. She will begin a Master of Library and Information Studies program at Dalhousie University in September. Dave Douglas (BSc ’88, BA ’90), received the Coaching Excellence Award in November as top college coach in the Canadian College Athletic Association. Dave is acting coach of the Dalhousie’s women’s soccer team. Rachel Duplisea (BA ’86) married Tim Roberts of Montreal on Sept. 25, 1999. Leslie (Fyfe) Golding (BA ’85) married Martin Golding on May 20, 2000 in Dartmouth. Leslie works for Ask Wright VIP Travel, an American Express office in Kanata, Ont. Mark Hazen (BSc ’85) and Shirley (Wall) Hazen (BAH ’85) are living in South Australia where Mark has arranged an exchange to DSTOSalisbury (close to Adelaide) and Shirley is on leave from her job as a Senior Research Analyst at the N.S. Dept. of Finance. They welcome e-
Tidings
mail at: mhazen@optusnet.com.au J. Kathleen Hogan (BA ’88) graduated from Queen’s University Faculty of Law and is articling with White, Ottenhermer & Baker in St. John’s, Nfld. Joshua Judah (BA ’88) is practising law with David J. Cook & Associates in Bedford, N.S. Julianne (Doucet) MacLean (BA ’87) has sold two historical romance novels to Harlequin Enterprises in New York. The first book, Prairie Bride, will be on sale this month. Laura E. Manzer (BA ’88) had a baby girl, Katherine, on May 30, 2000. Arthur R. Matheson (BA ’87) is engaged to marry Shalini Bakbar on Aug. 26, 2000 in Toronto. Lisa E. Matheson (BSc ’89) and her husband James Ramsay had a baby girl, Grace Elayne Ramsay, on Nov. 2, 1999. Laurette Palmer (BSc ’81) earned a MBA from York University in May. Sherry D. MacKeigan Ramsey (BA ’84) and her husband Terry are pleased to announce the birth of their son Mark Russell, on Jan. 25, 2000, a brother for Emily. Sherry’s latest publication is a short story in the Winter 1999 edition of On Spec: The Canadian Magazine of Speculative Fiction. Lara C. Ryan (BA ’88) is happy to announce the birth of Quinn, born on Aug. 30, 1999. Beth Sheppard (BSc ’89) had a second child, Daniel Richard, on Feb. 23, 1999. Sherry Smith (BA ’88) is working as a parole officer for Correctional Services Canada. She lives with her husband Wade Smith and 15-month-old son, Jayden, in Halifax. Karen Stewart (BA ’88) can be contacted by email at kstewart@fchn.org. (An incorrect email address appeared in the spring issue of Tidings.) The Rev. Stephen Vail (BSc ’87) married Kristen Matthews (BA ’96) on May 13, 2000.
the
90s
Sara Abriel (’97) received her BA from Saint Mary’s University in May 2000. She plans to study law at Dalhousie University in the fall. Tawa J. Anderson (’94) received her MDiv at Edmonton Baptist Seminary in May 2000. Peter Angione (BJ ’94) moved to Edmonton to act as producer for A-Channel’s News At Night. Peter had been working as a producer for The New VR in Barrie, Ont. Contact him at: angionep@achannel.com Margaret J. Astington (BAH ’95) married Gethin Thames Edward (BA ’98) on July 31, 1999. Brent Barclay (BA ’91) attended the Canadian Film Centre’s 1999 Film Resident Programme and then produced two short films through the Canadian Film Centre’s Short Dramatic Film
21
AlumNotes Programme 2000. Brent is producing a variety of projects for Mainline Pictures in Toronto including a feature film entitled Infiltration, written by Michael Melski (BA ’91). Andrew Bauder (BScH ’92) married Pamela Chang in July 1999 and will undertake a MBA at McGill University. Allyson Carras (BA ’98) graduated from Acadia University with a BEd and is planning on teaching in Ontario in the fall. Dr. Robert Cochrane (BSc ’94) is currently living and practicing dentistry in St. John’s Nfld. Richard Dunlop (BA ’96) graduated from Dalhousie Law School and is articling at Stewart McKelvey Stirling Scales.
Brigid V. Garvey (BA ’91) and her partner Stephen Kay had a second child, a baby boy, on May 25, 2000. Karen (McIntyre) Gatien (BA ’90) and her husband Sean are pleased to announce the birth of Kathryn Elizabeth on Nov. 1, 1999, a sister for her brother, Iain. Alan Hall (BAH ’99) is pursuing graduate work at the University of Toronto in the history and philosophy of science. Barbara Hayhurst (BA ’92) married Pat Flynn (BA ’89) (HC ’90) on June 17, 2000. James Hayhurst (BA ’90) and his wife Beth are happy to announce the birth of their son, Quinn, on March 29, 2000 a brother to Statten.
Christina Hicks (’98) is working for Imperial Oil in New Brunswick. Trish (Tervit) Hodgson (BJ ’92) gave birth to her second daughter, Victoria, on March 8, 2000. She is freelancing for The National Post, working parttime at a public relations firm in Toronto and volunteering as Communications Chairperson for UNICEF Ontario. Kimberly (Veinot) Howard (BAH ’91) is working in Switzerland after finishing her MEd at Mount Saint Vincent University. David Kukurin (’94) is now an actor and playwright in Toronto. Rebecca Lamb (’95) graduated from Dalhousie University with a LLB in May 2000.
In Memoriam Dexter was former editor of Tidings
Wetmore was contact for U.S. alumni
By Adrienne Malloy (BA ’76, BJH ’80)
Bishop J. Stuart Wetmore (BA ‘38, LTh ‘39, BSL ‘49, DD ‘70) took the Anglican church’s mission from rural New Brunswick parishes to influential councils in New York City. He died Dec. 28, 1999 in Poughkeepsie, NY. Born in Hampton, N.B., Bishop Wetmore graduated from King’s in 1938 where he was heavily involved in drama, sports and debating. The Rev. Canon Basil Buckland (LTh ’38, Div Test ’38) attended King’s with Bishop Wetmore in the 30s. He remembers Bishop Wetmore as a busy, ambitous young man. The two became wellacquainted while serving as student ministers near each other in New Brunswick in the late 30s. Ordained as a priest in 1939, Bishop Wetmore became a Domestic Chaplain in the Canadian army during the Second World War. He served in three parishes in New Brunswick before moving to New York in 1953 to become Director of Christian Education for the Diocese of New York. He was elected Suffragan Bishop of the diocese in 1959 and served for 28 years as a bishop before his
Susan (Williams) Dexter (BA ’78, BJH ’80) didn’t have far to get to King’s College. She simply walked five minutes from her Oxford Street home and began a 23-year relationship with our college. Like many day students from Halifax, she often hung out with her childhood friends at Dal. Her ties to King’s were initially tenuous. After receiving her BA, Susan’s love of words drew her back to King’s to the journalism school — her real introduction to King’s. Whether it was surviving Harry Flemming’s senior writing class or racing to keep up with George Bain, Susan embraced it all and was relentless when it came to the detail of a story or any assignment. After graduating summa cum laude Susan held numerous journalistic positions in the Maritimes with the Chronicle-Herald, CBC, Dal News, Atlantic Insight magazine, among others. In the early 1980s she edited Tidings, tackling the job as she did everything else — with determination, good nature and finesse.
All of these accomplishments pale against the brilliance she brought to her marriage to Keith and to parenting their sons, Ben and Teddy. Truly in her element creating a home and instilling in her two boys the love of words, she shared her many talents with her community helping to make Seabright a better place. Susan loved to garden, sail, eat chocolate, host great barn dances and was a loyal and courageous friend. Her battle with breast cancer was an intrusion she tolerated but refused to let dominate her life. Like the thousands of women stricken with this insidious disease, Susan’s life ended prematurely at the age of 42 on Dec. 22, 1999. For her family and friends the hole in our lives is cavernous. But we fill it up a little each day with our own wonderful memories, which each time reacquaint us with Susan.
John Norman Brittain, Saint John, passed away July 7, 2000. He was vice-president and director of the investment firm, CIBC Wood Gundy. John graduated from Rothesay Collegiate School and attended King's College and University of New Brunswick. His interest in politics led him to involvement with the Liberal Party of New Brunswick and he served as mayor of East Riverside-Kingshurst, N.B. from 1977 to 1997.
22
Edith Gibson, , 101, Halifax, passed away on May 12, 2000. She was a member of the Alexandra Society and a long-time member of the Cathedral Church of All Saints. John Clifford Moore (BA ’32), Richmond, Que., passed away on May 26, 2000. Theodore Reagh (’52), Charlottetown, passed away June 10, 2000.
Tidings
reitrement to Millbrook, New York in 1986. Bishop Wetmore was known for ecumenical work. He chaired the group that founded the Council of the Churches of the City of New York in 1960 and chaired the committee that created the Anglican Church’s exhibition at the 1964 World’s Fair in Queen’s, New York. He served as a governor of King’s College from 1971 until 1974 and established the Friends of King’s College in the late 1950s so alumni living in the United States could keep in touch. He served as the group’s president from 1959 until 1993. “He did so much for the church in his lifetime,” says the Rev. Canon Buckland. Bishop Wetmore was 84.
David Bryan Roe (BA ’49), Halifax, passed away on May 24, 2000. After graduating from King’s College and Dalhousie, he taught in England, but will be most remembered by his former students in Halifax schools. David also worked for 15 years as a radio and television commentator for CBC Halifax.
Summer 2000
AlumNotes Michael MacMillan (BA ’94) and Cindy (Edwards) MacMillan (BA ’94) are happy to announce the birth of their second child, John Alexander, on June 28, 2000 in Toronto. Catherine Mazeika (BA ’92) has joined Arts and Communications Counselors in Toronto as an account executive. Whitney Miller (BAH ’94) has been living in Mexico City since September 1998, working first as an intern at the Mexican Congress and, since April 1999, at a public relations firm. Whitney met César Volpi Corona in aikido class and they were married on April 14, 2000. The couple hopes to move to Canada early in 2001. Catherine Melvin (BA ’99) is studying translation at the University of Ottawa. She plans to continue her education in Belgium next year. Peter Mitham (BA ’90) authored a book, Robert W. Service: A Bibliography, published by Oak Knoll Books in June 2000. Based in Vancouver, Peter freelances to business and farm publications including Business in Vancouver newspaper, the Wenatchee, and the Washington-based magazine Good Fruit Grower. Chris Mogan (BAH ’89, BScH ’92) and Mary Grise (BAH ’89, BScH ’92) spent July on Baffin Island with their 14-month-old daughter Cecilia. Mary begins a term as Chief-Resident at Ottawa Children’s Hospital. They can be reached at cm@magma.ca Jennifer (Raynard) Rhyno (BJH ’99) married Dave
Rhyno on May 23, 1998 and moved to Yarmouth where Dave is employed at Tri-Star Industries and Jennifer has freelanced for the ChronicleHerald. The couple’s first child, Brandon David, arrived on March 29, 2000. W. M. Rohan Nicholls (’87, ’97) married Jennifer Walker (BAH ’92) on June 2, 2000. Edward Rix (BA ’91, HC ’92) is engaged to marry Sierra Katz of Marion, Pennsylvania. Sabrina D. Roach (’95) is working in theatre production and arts administration in Seattle, Washington. Jennifer Schellinck (BA ’96, BSc ’97), is spending the summer in England and will continue her PhD in cognitive neuroscience at Carleton University in Ottawa in the fall. Ed Sluga (Journalism staff ’92-’94) and his wife Claire are happy to announce the birth of their son, John Christopher Barron, born on June 2, 2000 in Toronto. Ed also launched his first novel, Magnetic North, published by Gutter Press of Toronto, on June 21, 2000. Paul Thomson (BA’90) and his wife Kim are pleased to announce the birth of their daughter, Katherine, on May 31, 2000, a sister to Andrew. The family lives in Halifax. Miriam Toews (BJH ’91) recently published Swing Low, a memoir of her father’s life and his struggle with bi-polar disorder. Kimberly D. Toombs (BSc ’95) graduated with a
Master of Divinity in Christian Missions from the Canadian Theological Seminary in Regina. She became engaged to Rev. Brian Gilary on Sept. 2, 2000 in Charlottetown. Kimberly and Brian will be ministering in either Amherst, N.S. or Missisauga, Ont. before going overseas. Lorna Upham (BA ’90) will marry Terry McSheffrey on Aug. 26, 2000 in Halifax. The reception is to be held at King’s. The couple will reside in Ottawa. J. Melanie Young (BA ’94) had a healthy baby girl on June 2, 2000.
the
00s
Sarah Dingle (BAH ’00) is sailing with the tall ships to Bermuda this summer. Alistair MacLeod (DCL ’00) was elected a Fellow by the Royal Society of Canada in July 2000. He teaches in the Department of English at the University of Windsor. Denise Williams (BA ’00) is the editor/producer of Stomp of Approval <www.stompofapproval.com>, an online magazine devoted to under-publicized books, independent bookstores and publishing industry news and views.
YOU REMEMBERED! We had mixed success with last issue’s photo. There were no discrepencies among our three repondents about the people in the photo. But we still have no idea who #4 is. Granted it’s a tough one — he’s slightly out of focus and in the background. Fortunately, there was no disagreement as to the date of the photo: Orientation activities in September 1960. Thanks to Carol Anningson (BA ’62), and Roland (BSc ’62) and Nicole Canning (’65) for their responses.
3 6
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.
Judy (Kimber) MacKenzie (BA ’63) Nancy (Morrison) Leefe (BA ’65) Don Chard (BA ’64) ? Barb (Aikman) LeBrun (BA ’63) Robert Atkins (’60)
4 1 2
5
Take another look at #4 and send in your guess. Otherwise, let’s move on ... (over)
Summer 2000
Tidings
23
Tidings
Alumni Association University of King’s College Halifax, NS B3H 2A1 (902) 422-1271 ext. 128
Photo: King's College Archives
WE NEED YOUR HELP ...
1
Here is another photo from our archives. Can you help us identify the people in it? The place should be familiar. The date? 2
3
Photos on this page either have no notes accompanying them or are missing key information. Send your letter in care of the office of Alumni, Development and Public Relations. Do you have any old calendars, yearbooks, photographs, theatre programs or literary publications in your basement? King’s archives gratefully accepts King’s material of any kind.