Good-Bye It’s the end of an era. After 36 years serving the Merritton area, the Hartzel Road McDonalds closed at 11:00 p.m. on March 31 st . The bell tolled for Pen Financial Credit Union on Glendale, at the Seaway building, that day as well. Some might remember that this was the former Civic Employees Credit Union. 10 I <strong>MERRITTON</strong> <strong>MATTERS</strong>
A Memorable Man and a Memorable Era at Merritton High School By Phyllis Thomson Do you remember your high school Principal? I do. Although we never met in my years at high school, I remember him very well! When my friends and I were about to enter Grade 9 (known as ‘First Form’ many eons ago) we had been warned that ‘HE’ (nary a ‘she’ back then!) was a dreaded Simon Legree, an ogre who was there for the prime purpose of meting out punishment, to be feared and avoided at all costs. So, being well warned, when he walked down the hall it was like the parting of the waters, we would all flatten ourselves up against the nearest wall of lockers until he passed. And if he happened to know your name, you knew you were in big trouble! The students at Merritton High School during the 50’s and 60’s were lucky – Jim Smith just didn’t fit that stereotype at all - he seemed to enjoy the students and despite the fact that he did know many by name, most of the time you were safe! He could be a stern disciplinarian when needed, but was always approachable and always fair. The students respected him and liked him. Add to that an extraordinarily likeable teaching staff for the most part, and it made for a pleasant atmosphere. Following graduation from Stamford Collegiate, Jim went on to graduate from McMaster University in Hamilton and the Ontario College of Education in Toronto. He accepted his first teaching position in Delhi in l948 where he remained until Thorold High School beckoned in l951. In l954 he moved down the hill to Merritton High as Vice Principal where he and I shared an office for a few years. The students of that era will remember, I’m sure, that tiny little office where we both had our desks along with several pieces of office equipment and, usually, a few students to be found in there as well. In l958, he became Principal of Merritton High and it was a sad day for the students in 1966 when he decided to accept the Principalship of a new school that was about to open in the north end of St. Catharines – Laura Secord. It was a great testament to the esteem in which they held him, when several of our staff members decided to join him there, but it was a tremendous loss for Merritton High School. One of these teachers told me years later, that when they left Merritton to go with Jim to Laura Secord, they started calling the new school “Merritton North”! In 1974 Jim was offered a Superintendent’s position, which he accepted, and where he remained until his retirement in l981. I asked him if he enjoyed this last phase in his long teaching career and he gave me a resounding “very much”. Jim and his wife, Florence, knew each other in high school. While Jim was at McMaster, Florence was in the nursing programme at the Hamilton General Hospital. Jim’s version of how they started dating is that Florence called him up at McMaster and asked him to chaperone her at an upcoming nurses’ dance – they will soon celebrate 61 years of marriage so I think we can now safely say that the rest is happy history! Four ‘little Smiths’ arrived over the years, Moira, Kirk, Shelley and Tara - two have become teachers with the local board of education, while two have chosen other professions, and there are now nine grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren for Jim and Florence. They still spend summers at their cottage north of Kingston and in retirement they have enjoyed traveling around Britain and Western Europe. Jim, and many former Laura Secord teachers, began a tradition which continues to-day – they meet for breakfast once a week at local restaurants – what a great way of keeping in touch! He has enough memories of his years in education to fill a book (now there’s an idea worth pursuing!) and here is just one …..“I remember well the day when ‘Surf was Up’ at Merritton High School. The date may have been the Spring of 1960. Before I went out for lunch, I noticed some water under the vending machines in the cafeteria and when I came back some students were waiting for me at the office door. “Mr. Smith” one of them said, “you’ve got to come down to the cafeteria right away”. A very unusual sight greeted me. Water was spurting up through the joints in the terrazzo floor in a manner similar to water spurting from a perforated garden hose and it was starting to flow down the hall towards the gymnasium. Through the quick action of a group of boys from the Gym and Shop, gym mats were used to block the flow at the end of the hall to direct it into the furnace room where George Wilson, our caretaker, then directed it into the floor drain. Thus the Gym and Shop floors were saved. And what was the explanation as to the source of the flood? A new addition had been built on Merritton High in l954. The footing of the new addition had settled onto the footing of the older building which, in turn, rested tightly against the water main. In time, the added weight of the addition eventually cracked the water main which entered the basement from a spot on Merritt St. opposite the intersection with Oakdale. As you can imagine, the situation required considerable excavation to repair. In this emergency operation to save the Gym and Shop, it was a moment to remember when about ten boys took off their shoes and socks and, as they grabbed the gym mats and ran to put them in place to block the water, all of them were shouting ‘Surf ’s Up’ – which provided a bit of levity to an otherwise potential disaster.” Jim reflected on the many reasons the Merritton Community has an especially warm place in his heart. ......“In the late summer of l953, a terrible epidemic of polio was raging and Florence became infected. Isolation wards at the hospital were full so we, along with our three year old daughter Moira, were placed in isolation for three weeks at home, which at that time was on Bessey Street. During that time, we never wanted for anything - neighbours and parents of students brought us groceries and, often, fully cooked meals until the quarantine was lifted. Merritton was sometimes referred to as a ‘Lunch Bucket Community’ and I fitted into that community very well. A Department of Education official, who had once been my teacher, said “For a good principal, a school should be his second family” and, for me, it was. There was back then an undisputed community spirit which I know still lingers in the Merritton Ward today.” By the time you read this, Jim will have reached the special age of 87, and you will be happy to know that he is still lookin’ good and feeling pretty good. In a recent conversation that I had with a student from that era, Jim’s name was mentioned and the student ended his thoughts by saying “Mr. Smith was just a great guy” - a fitting way to end this small tribute to the man who steered the good ship Merritton High and kept it in calm waters ‘way back then! <strong>MERRITTON</strong> <strong>MATTERS</strong> I 11
Change language