Remembering Six Plus 50 years on
In the fall of 1974, Lennoxville Elementary was the first elementary school in the region to introduce a French immersion class, known as Six Plus.
Over the weekend, a group of graduates from the first ever Six Plus class gathered in Lennoxville to reminisce.
The following account of the reunion was submitted by Janice Vaudry Carey, one of the graduates.
“Do you remember the metal slide on the playground?” “How about the hot lunch ticket lady?” “Or the tunics we had to wear?” “The gym rompers were the worst!” “Separate stairwells for the boys and the girls.” These are just a few of the memories that were shared this past weekend.
It started as an online conversation between a few ‘girls’ just prior to Covid that we were turning 60 and that this milestone should be celebrated. We began to make loose plans to get together and then the lockdown for Covid hit. Still, we continued to plan.
We realized that tracking people down via the internet and Facebook was possible. We also used the old system of asking who was in contact with whom. As time continued along with Covid, the first date set for the celebration was postponed. We then decided to spread our net wider and include ‘the boys’! We also recognized that Grade 6 had been the last year many of us had been together as a group before high school, and so the invitation was sent to include, not just our French Immersion (6+) gang, but also those who had been in Mrs. Maclean’s and Mrs. Stefano’s Grade 6 classes.
Planning began again in earnest about two years ago and culminated this past holiday weekend with 19 of us getting together here in Lennoxville. Monthly Zoom calls were organized by Colin Mcgregor which continued over the two years. Although the number of participants varied month to month it was a great way to touch base and begin the reconnecting process. We plan to continue this and to include our teacher Mme Luce Turgeon on at least one of these calls.
Since we were scattered across North America the planning fell to a couple of those still living in Lennoxville, namely Sandy Mccaskill-davidson and Janice Vaudry along with chief organizer Joanne Kobelt of Nova Scotia. On Friday, May 17 we collected at the main doors of Lennoxville Elementary School where we enjoyed a tour conducted by principal Tara Mccully. We reminisced along the hallways and noted the many changes made since our days. In the evening, we met up at The Golden Lion to continue memory sharing and catching up. Golf in the rain on Saturday morning was experienced by a hardy few. Others visited Uplands Museum Saturday afternoon. We then enjoyed a pizza party with cake at supper time. The weekend culminated with brunch at Pizzaville on Sunday.
Along with reconnecting with old friends and recognizing the important decision our parents had made 50 years ago to enroll us in the first ever ETSB French-immersion class, we wanted to give something back to the school. Part of our registration fees were designated towards that end. Several alumnae who
Row 4: Doug Coulter, Jim Davidson, Barb Drew
were unable to attend, sent generous donations and Jerry’s Pizzeria sponsored the venue rental and supplied the food which was an unexpected and generous gesture. All of this has allowed us to make the amazing donation of $1,518.41 to Lennoxville Elementary School which will be spent partly on the Grade 6 classes and partly on other programs for the whole school.
This weekend speaks volumes about the importance of community and friendship. And as we say, “A good time was had by all!”