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This is the house that I came home from the hospital to in March, 1953. It was my parent's first home- the one they bought in November, 1951 after 12 years of marriage. The district was called Killarney and it was one of the first districts built after World War Two. I lived in this three bedroom house until April, 1962.

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I attended Ernest Manning High School from 1969-1971. It was here that i had a chance to devlop my musical theater interests. I was involved in three musicals- Oklahoma, South Pacific and Anthing Goes. I graduated in June, 1971.

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I entered Grade 1 at Melville Scott School in September, 1959. I remember being very afraid that I would remember where my desk was when I returned the next day. Each day, I walked by myself to school- it was two blocks away form my home. I'm amazed how things have changed- I had to cross a busy street (with lights)by myself, something few Grade 1 students would do these days. I don't recall any patrols helping us across- we were on our own. In Grade 2 I began after school piano lessons at Melville Scott. My teacher, Mrs Davies taught a group of 4 or 5 students in my classroom.

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This little corner grocery store is where our family did most of our grocery shopping. I can remember my dad driving mom here on Thursday nights to shop but I also remember walking to Jenkins during the day to pick up a few bags of groceries. I loved these daytime shopping trips with mom because she'd often buy me a candy treat for the walk home- "Wagon Wheels" were my all time favorite!

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I never attended Alex Ferguson Elementary School but I have an interesting memory about it. The summer between Grade 1 and 2 there was a neighborhood club taking plac eone week in Killarney (I think it was sponsored by the City of Calgary Parks and Recreation). Any kid could attend (at no cost) and there would be arts/crafts and games for the afternoon. I heard about it and decided to go. We were to meet at Alex Ferguson School after lunch. The arts and craft activities were to take place inside the school and the games in the schoolyard. That first day I arrived and there was a mix up and the club leaders didn't have a key for the school. Not only that but a bad rainstorm roared in right when we got there. The poor club leaders had all these kids (probably 20 or so), a pouring rainstorm and nowhere to go. We all piled under the awning to the main doors of the school and stayed there during the storm- we sang, the leaders told jokes and stories- I thought it was a great adventure. We stayed there quite a while- I can still picture us all huddled on the step in this picture. I even remember where I was standing...

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One morning (when I was around 4 years old) while my mom and I were walking to Jenkins Grocery Store, I ran ahead of her and darted across the street at the intersection of 17th Aveenue and 26A Street. I remember doing that a number of times- Mom would always called after me to stop and wait for her. This time I kept going and the next thing I knew I was hit by a car. It was going quite slowly but I was knocked down. I remember my frantic mother standing over me and the driver asking me if I was OK. I seemed to be so we continued on our way the grocery store. I remember having quite a head ache after!

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This is the park where my dad would take me skating in the winter time. I also remember my family sitting on the edge of this hill one night for the 24th of May fireworks. In my memeory this is a steep hill but when I took the picture it was eveident that the hill wasn't steep at all! A child's perspective! Sitting on that hill in the dark with my fmaily while fireworks were being set off below, is a magical memory me. I remember we went home afterwards and my dad set off a few fireworks in our backyard while my mom and sister and I sat on the clothesline stoop.

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Mrs Wilkinson was my second music teacher and this is her house on 29th Street SW. I was her student for two years. She had a special music studio built in her basement and you accessed it through a front entrance that had an interesting "music" railing in front of it. The huge wrought iron treble cleff railing looked so cool and announced to the neighborhood that this was a musical home. Mrs Wilkinson's hands were very "veiny" and I remember asking my mother if this would happen to me if I kept playingt the piano. She assured me that veiny hands had more to do with age than piano playing!

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This alley looks pretty rickity but it was the site of many adventures and events. At the end of this alley lived our fmaily friends the Swinburnes. The day i came home form the hospital, Patti Swinburne and her mom walked up this alley to see the new baby (me!). Patti was 4 years old and she still remembers peering into the bassinet at me. Fifty four years later Patti and I are still dear friends. The was a great big rock at the end of this alley. The kids in our neighborhood called it "The Goldmine" and aroudn that big boudler we'd pretend we were pirates and explorers.

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I attended St Matthew's United Church until I was 18 years old. I was baptized here by Rev Douglas Walker in 1953 and I attended and later taught Sunday School here. Each Christmas Eve my family would pile into the car and go to Christmas Eve Service here. Quite a few of our neighbors and my friends attended this church. My sister sandra was married here in 1978.

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Riley Park had a wading pool and the best playground equipment in the district. There were wooden horse swings that were incredibly fun to ride on. Occasionally my dad would take me to this park to play. At the end of Grade 2 my teacher, Mrs Miller took our class to Riley Park for an end of the year playday. On the way back to Melville Schott, (we walked) we stopped at the little strip mall near Jenkins and she bought all of us ice cream cones. Field trips were VERY infrequent in 1961 so a day at Riley Park with my class was a memorable event!

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Laura Anderson lived next door to me and she was my very first best friend. Laura moved in when I was 3 years old and we were inseperable until she went to school, the year before I did. 31st Street was crawling with kids close to my age. I remember I hated going to kindergarten (few kids went in those days) because no one on 31st Street went except me and I felt like I was missing out on all the neighbothood action when I went off to kindergarten each afternoon. One of my favorite memories of 31st Street is the Hide and Go Seek games we'd play in the summer when, without any street lights (we didn't get street lights until around 1961), we'd play Hide and Go Seek with only the porch lights to find our way around. I remember hiding in my backyard raspberry bushes with my friend, waiting to be found (or not!). Eventually our parents woudl all come out on the front proches and call "It's time to come home" and one by one we'd reluctantly head off to bed...

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My mom and I walked down 17th Avenue (31st Street to 24 Street) many, many times. Mom was used to walking (she often told us about her 3 mile walk to school each day!) so she thought nothing of walking to get a few bags of groceries.

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Dot and Bill Swinburne (and their children Kent and Patti) moved to their house on 17th Avenue and 32nd Street in 1950, about a year before my parents. Their house was the exact model of ours (except reversed). Dot and Bill and Annie and Alf Pettersen were fast friends for almost 50 years. Their daughter Patti and I continue the "fast friends" tradition to this day. Patti remembers scurrying up the alley behind their house to my house one day in March, 1953 to see the new baby- that was me! We've been scurrying back and forth between our houses ever since!The houses on that block (the Swinburne's house included)were torn down about ten years ago to make space for a strip mall. A Dry Cleaners now resides on the Swinburne's lot. Reminds me of Joni Mitchell's sentiments from her song "Big Yellow Taxi":
"Dont it always seem to go
That you don't know what you've got
till its gone
They paved paradise
And put up a parking lot"