Scholars and Explorers - Trafalgar School for Girls

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AthleticsA t h l e t i c sElisabeth (Elsie) (Bunny) Lang Little 1928Attended Trafalgar: 1921-1926Olympic Fencer/Foreign ServiceElisabeth (Elsie) (Bunny) LangLittle was the first “Trafite”to be selected to competeat the Olympics. She attended theschool at a time when the principal,Janet Cumming, encouraged thegirls to take more of an interest inathletics and inter-school sports. TheG Badge for excellence in gym andgames was introduced in 1922-23and all disciplines, from basketball totennis, took on greater importancein scholastic life. None of this waslost on Bunny, who became anaccomplished fencer. She was namedto the Canadian Olympic women’sfencing team to compete in the LosAngeles games in 1932 but couldnot participate in the end. WorldWar II saw Bunny enter the CanadianForeign Service, an area wherewomen were rare but beginningto make their mark. Her strengthin languages led her to the rank ofCaptain of an all-male intelligence“named to the Olympicfencing team”unit (MI4). For her athleticism andher part in the Canadian ForeignService, Bunny is recognized as oneof our 125 Women of Trafalgar.Historical Note The Canadian Foreign Service: Throughout the war, women were not eligible to become Foreign Serviceofficers but were hired as clerks to do the same work as junior officers, although for only 60% of the men’s salary. It was anunfair situation, as these women were highly educated and performed their work with dedication and intelligence. However,they were well placed to continue their careers when they were finally welcomed into the Foreign Service in the postwar period.Grace “Rhona”Wurtele GillisIsabella “Rhoda”Wurtele EavesIsabella (Rhoda) Wurtele Eaves, 1940Attended Trafalgar: 1931-1940; Distinguished Alumna Award Recipient 2009Education: McGill Matriculation CertificateOlympic Skier/PioneerRhoda Wurtele Eaves and hertwin sister Rhona accomplishedso much in the field of sportthat a book, No Limits, by ByronRempel, was written about them. Theawe-inspiring and gifted identicaltwins belonged to Canada’s 1948Olympic Ski team – in fact, theywere the only two women membersof the Canadian alpine ski team.Starting to ski at age five, the twinsfearlessly embraced the sport, alongwith swimming and track and field,consistently winning almost anyevent they entered. At age 11, theywent off both the junior and seniorCôte des Neiges ski jumps and landedon their feet! No woman under 18had ever “flown” off those jumpsbefore. In 1945, the Rose Bowl,given to Canada’s Most OutstandingAthlete by the Canadian Women’sAthletic Federation, was jointlyawarded to Rhoda and Rhona. TheThelma Springstead Rose Bowl forBest Canadian Woman Athlete wasalso jointly awarded to the twins.In 1950, Rhoda was named to theCanadian Track and Field team forthe British Empire Games in Australia.Rhoda and Rhona were inductedinto the Canadian Amateur AthleticHall of Fame for both their skiing andswimming achievements. In 1952,Rhoda was named to the CanadianOlympic ski team, winning theHolmenkollen Combined in Norway,and in 1959 was appointed ManagerThe twins were inducted into theUS National Ski Hall of Fame,Canadian Ski Hall of Fame andCanadian Ski Museumand Assistant Coach of the CanadianWomen’s Ski team in Europe. Rhodastarted up the Ski Jays and Ski Chicksski school and club for children inthe Laurentians and was soon joinedby Rhona. In 1964, they started theTwinski Club for women. Inductioninto the US National Ski Hall of Famein 1969 and the Canadian Ski Hallof Fame and Canadian Ski Museumin 1982 were just a few of the manyhonours won by the twins. Wetake pride in naming Rhoda andRhona pioneering Canadian womenathletes, as two of our 125 Women ofTrafalgar.Grace (Rhona) Wurtele Gillis 1940Attended Trafalgar: 1931-1940; Distinguished Alumna Award Recipient 2009Education: McGill Matriculation CertificateOlympic Skier/PioneerRhoda and Rhona were“Canada’s first andentire women’s Olympicski team in 1948”Rhona Wurtele Gillis and hertwin sister Rhoda couldhave represented Canadainternationally in almost any sportthey chose to practise. Although theywere accomplished in swimmingand track and field, skiing was theirpassion and the 1940s and 1950ssaw the sisters pioneering women’sskiing in Canada, as the book abouttheir lives, No Limits, by ByronRempel, makes plain. Rhona andRhoda were Canada’s first and entirewomen’s Olympic ski team in 1948.A head wound and a broken ankleduring the downhill race (whichshe finished) prevented Rhonafrom appearing on the podium. By1945 Rhona and Rhoda had beenjointly awarded the Federation RoseBowl presented by the CanadianWomen’s Athletic Federation toCanada’s Most Outstanding WomanAthlete, followed by the ThelmaSpringstead Rose Bowl for bestCanadian Woman Athlete, also wonjointly. In 1950, while living in theUnited States, Rhona was named tothe USA International Ski FederationChampionship team. In 1953, Rhonaand Rhoda were inducted into theCanadian Amateur Athletic Hall ofFame for their swimming and skiingachievements. The United Statesinducted them into the US NationalSki Hall of Fame in 1969, 13 yearsbefore Canada inducted them intothe Canadian Ski Hall of Fame andthe Canadian Ski Museum in 1982.Rhona joined Rhoda in running theSki Jays and Ski Chicks ski school andclub in the Laurentians. Realizingthat the children’s mothers mightwant and need exercise and freshair, the twins started informalski get-togethers with friends onMurray Hill. Out of this grew theTwinski Club in 1964 and classes,with instructors, were organized forweekly outings in the Laurentians.Both these outstanding womenwere inducted into the LaurentianSki Museum Hall of Fame in 1986,and in 1988 into the Musée de Skide Québec. The Twinski Club wasalso inducted into the LaurentianSki Museum’s Hall of Fame in 2005.Rhona is also an accomplished artist.For being inspirational role modelsfor promoting sports in Canada,particularly skiing for women, Rhonaand Rhoda have been chosen as twoof our 125 Women of Trafalgar.16 | 125 Women of Trafalgar
A t h l e t i c sDorothy (D) Burden Read 1943Attended Trafalgar: 1939-1943Education: BSc, McGill UniversityOlympic SkierDorothy (D) Burden was amember of several schoolathletic teams, but Alpineskiing was her favourite. In 1948,D won the Canadian Downhilland Combined Alpine SkiingChampionship. During the 1960sand 1970s, she coached Alpineskiing at all levels, from 12-andunderto university students, andultimately became coach of theUniversity of Calgary Women’s AlpineSki Team. In recognition of heradministrative leadership qualities,D was appointed Alpine Chair ofthe Alberta Ski Association, BoardMember for Alpine Canada, and aTechnical Delegate of the FédérationInternationale de Ski (FIS). As Chairof Alberta Alpine in the 1980s, DJoan Mingie Binmore 1947Attended Trafalgar: 1945-1947Education: BSc, PE: McGill UniversityAll-Around Athlete/VolunteerJoan Mingie Binmore hashad a whirlwind of excitinglife experiences andaccomplishments – from winning theQuebec Swimming Championshipin back stroke, freestyle andmedley to acting as an Olympicskiing official. After graduatingfrom McGill, Joan took charge ofa hotel pool in Nassau and wasinstrumental in organizing watershows. She was involved in bringingthe internationally known BusterCrabbe Water Show to perform, andoversaw a fair and competitiveprogram for Alberta Alpine racers. In1982, she represented the NationalAlpine Executive Committee atthe Alpine World Championshipsin Schladming, Austria. Whenthe 1988 Winter Olympic Gamescame to Calgary, D, a key memberof the Olympic Alpine RaceOrganizing Committee, served asRace Jury Liaison. She was also aTechnical Liaison to the FIS andSenior Technical Advisor to theAlpine Committee Secretariat forthe Calgary Olympics OrganizingCommittee. She was inducted intothe Canadian Ski Hall of Fame in2001. Her children write that theirmother “was one of the few femaleFIS Technical Delegates duringin one show performed as the onlywoman. Joan moved from a hotclimate to a cool one and took upskiing in the Laurentians, becominga ski instructor. In the summer, Joanworked in various Montreal hospitalsas a lab technician. Marriage tookher to Rochester, New York, where,as a member of the Junior League,“If the opportunity presents itself, grab it.You may never get another again.”she volunteered as stage managerfor a theatre production, putting onplays for inner-city children and fora school for the deaf. After strenuoustraining, Joan became a medic onthe Volunteer Ambulance Corp andalso became a realtor. She later“inducted into the CanadianSki Hall of Fame in 2001”the 1980s and 1990s. Her intimateknowledge of the rules and statutesand sense of fair play gained herinternational respect and opened updoors for other females to assumea more prominent role officiatingthe sport... but her most satisfyingmoments were watching the youngracers just having fun.” Her kidssay she would give this advice toTraf students: “Pursue your passion,take charge and ski, ski, ski!” Foreverything she did for the sport ofskiing, D is one of our 125 Women ofTrafalgar.Our thanks to D’s children (Jan, Ron,Ken and Jim) for contributing to thisarticle.took up golf and had the thrill andresponsibility of being a walkingscorekeeper for Lee Trevino whenhe won the US Open. Meanwhile,with the development of the BristolMountain Ski Area, Joan joined theteaching staff and was a memberof the Ski Patrol for 18 years. Whenthe Lake Placid Olympic Committeeof 1980 was looking for volunteers,Joan trained and qualified as a skiofficial for the course. She sailed onracing teams on Lake Ontario and inFlorida. She says, “If the opportunitypresents itself, grab it. You maynever get another again.” For heraccomplishments, Joan has beennamed one of our 125 Women ofTrafalgar.Edith (Beth) Whittall 1953Attended Trafalgar: 1948-1953Education: B. Pharm., Purdue UniversityOlympic Swimmer/CoachAs a student at Trafalgar,Beth Whittall swam for thedowntown Montreal YMCA,where her swimming talent quicklybecame apparent. While studyingfor her Pharmacy degree at PurdueUniversity in West Lafayette, Indiana,she swam for a local swim club(there was no women’s swim team atPurdue) and broke two Indiana Staterecords, in the 100 Yard Butterfly and100 Yard Freestyle, the first of hermany achievements in national andinternational competitive swimming.In 1954, she competed in the BritishEmpire Championships in Vancouver.At the Pan Am Games in Mexico in1955, she won two gold medals anda silver medal for Canada, all withinhalf an hour. This stellar performancewon Beth the 1955 Lou Marsh Trophy(a Canadian award for outstandingamateur athletes), making her thesecond female swimmer (afterMarilyn Bell) to win it. That sameyear, she was inducted into theCanadian Olympic Hall of Fame. Atthe 1956 Olympics in Melbourne,Australia, she reached the finals inthe 100m butterfly. After leaving elitecompetitive swimming, Beth coachedage group-level swimming inMontreal for many years. In 1973, shestarted the St. Laurent Masters Cluband established the Quebec MastersCommittee, both still flourishing.Beth’s devotion to Masters Swimmingwent with her to Ontario, whereshe was President of the OntarioMasters Committee (1987 and 1988).She composed the first CanadianMasters Rulebook and also producedWavelengths, a Masters magazine,for 16 years. She continued to swimwith the Masters, winning goldmedals in US and Canadian Masterscompetition in 1982 and 1987. In1997, she founded the Georgian BayMasters. She earned several Canadianawards, most recently the 2008 Hud“This stellar performance won Beth the 1955Lou Marsh Trophy (a Canadian award for outstandingamateur athletes), making her the second female swimmer(after Marilyn Bell) to win it.”Stewart Award for her “outstandingcontribution to Masters swimming.”For her achievements and for servingas a role model for aspiring swimmersof all ages, Beth has been selected asone of the 125 Women of Trafalgar.Sources: Masters Swimming Ontario report;Lou Marsh Trophy website loumarsh.ca125 Women of Trafalgar | 17
Page 8 and 9: Caryl Churchill Harter 1955Attended
Page 10 and 11: Joanna (Joey) Nash 1966Attended Tra
Page 12 and 13: Andrea Mandel-Campbell 1985Attended
Page 14 and 15: Tara-Louise Montour (Perrault) 1988
Page 16 and 17: Ilana Weitzman 1992Attended Trafalg
Page 20 and 21: Sally Johnson Ogilvie 1964Attended
Page 22 and 23: BusinessB u s i n e s sPatricia (Pa
Page 24: Tricia Pepper 1987Attended Trafalga
Page 27 and 28: E d u c a t i o nGloria Waters 1970
Page 29 and 30: H e a lt h and MedicineMarion Joyce
Page 31 and 32: H e a lt h and MedicineRuth Simons
Page 33 and 34: L awLawCaroline (Carol) Holland, Cl
Page 35 and 36: L aw - ReligionJulie Greenspoon 199
Page 37 and 38: S c i e n c eDonna Fairservice Berm
Page 39: S c i e n c eKrystyne Blaikie 1990A
Page 42 and 43: Trees in the Wind Circleby Emily Ca
Page 44 and 45: Sherry Daws-Knowles Richardson 1953
Page 46 and 47: Lisa Campeau-Fenzel 1986Attended Tr
Page 48 and 49: Kierstin Lundell-Smith 2007Attended
Page 50 and 51: Scholars and Explorers 2012 by Cate
Page 52: Mission StatementTrafalgar’s miss

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