Page 57 - RSCDS Toronto Golden Jubilee Book

Connections
"I danced with a group, mainly University of Toronto professors, at Falconer Hall, and the leader of that group was Donald Fraser, the first Chair of the Toronto Branch. I taught the group at Don Mills at the IBM Country Club for well over thirty years. The first group I taught was at Glenview Church prior to moving to Don Mills. Georgina Finlay took over the group when I retired.
"I taught a demonstration team, mainly from my group in Don Mills. We were a bit out of the mainstream of the branch but we were loyal, though we didn’t really take part in the running of the dances or the branch. I was far more active in the Teachers’ Association when I succeeded Bill Clarke, and I con- tinued as Chair for about eight or nine years.
"Miss Milligan always said, ‘I expect my teachers to keep up the standards,’ and so we would get together. At first, Hamilton and Toronto were the only active ones, and the teachers formed TAC in order to do precisely that.
"When I met Miss Milligan, I heard about how in 1923 she and Mrs. Stewart of Fasnacloich got together in Glasgow and weren’t sure how it would all work out. Miss Milligan had a pres- ence that was unusual, you know. I had the scariest time, as nervous as a cat. I’d gone through doctorate examina- tions, but in front of that lady, man I was scared as a kid - I was all shaky trying to teach in front of her.
"Scottish Country Dancing cuts across all levels of society. It was a wonderful form of getting away from your own work and your own group. I’d be tired on arrival and afterwards I wasn’t tired anymore because I completely relaxed with the group. They were my friends
- a wholly different kind of friends. They weren’t all Scots either; didn’t matter, it’s for anybody. They let loose in a new environment, and that was the strength and the glory of Scottish Country dancing."
Professor Wevers received the Award of Scroll in 1983, the first North American dancer to do so. When asked what he thinks is needed to attract more people to Scottish Country Dancing, he said:
"It has to be done through members who are excited about Scottish Country
Dancing. I think that the emphasis on children’s groups is good, because you get them enthusiastic and when they grow up, they’re potential members. But it has to be through members who enjoy it and bring their friends."
Jean Hamilton
[Ed. note: Jean Hamilton’s involvement with the Toronto Branch over the years is well known. Her many roles include orga- nizing the Ceilidh Demonstration Group, working with the Erin Mills Hogmanay dance committee, she helped initiate the West Toronto Workshop, and she has been actively involved in the West Toronto Ball. Jean has taught Branch classes, served on the Teachers’ panel, and taught at out-of- town workshops. She has taught the Erin Mills Friday group for over twenty-five years. In 2007, Jean received the Award for Outstanding Volunteer.]
We were fortunate, as new arrivals
in Canada in July 1966, to join the Lakeshore Group in the Fall of 1966, and to be introduced to and instructed in the delights of Scottish Country Dancing by the late Jean Anderson, half-sister to Bobby Brown and an excellent and prominent teacher.
Like many of today’s dancers, we sub- sequently joined additional groups
and benefited from the experience
and expertise of many, including Jess Bryden (Bloorlea and Mississauga),
Bob Blackie (the Lothian Dancers), Bob Campbell (Oakville), Wesley Clindinning (Erin Mills) and Les and Elaine James (Islington).
It was a few years before we felt confi- dent enough to attend the Tartan Ball, an event of some magnificence which drew great numbers of dancers and, for me, necessitated visits to bridal salons
in search of dresses suitably formal but allowing freedom to dance comfort- ably! These were the "glory days" of the Toronto Branch and as such, merited the attention of people of prominence.
The Guest of Honour was usually the current Lieutenant-Governor of Ontario, representing the Royal Scottish Country Dance Society’s Patron, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Second.
Protocol was adhered to very strictly but this added to the elegance and the tradition of the event. A small dais was placed in the ballroom, where the hon- oured guest and party could observe the dancing in progress after the formal dinner. It was not unknown for the band and dancers to bid farewell to the Guest of Honour with a rendition of "Will Ye No’ Come Back Again?" as the party left the ballroom.
We have happy memories, in particular, of the Hon. Pauline McGibbon, who participated in several dances, having been " tutored" by Frances Gray, and
of hurrying to the foyer with a small group of admiring dancers, to "wave her off" as she left the Royal York Hotel.
The Honourable Lincoln Alexander, too, was a gracious and impressive head table guest. Gordon was Chair of the Branch at the time and both of us were very nervous and anxious that all would go well. His Honour drew me aside before we assembled to enter
for the dinner, and murmured that all eyes would be directed at him and that I could relax. He had quite a sense of humour! When invited by Gordon to address him as Gordon rather than
Mr Hamilton, he declined, saying that Gordon might then be tempted to address him as "Linc." We were very unsophisticated but, fortunately, these very important people were also very "human."
It seems, of recent years, that, as our numbers have dwindled, so, too, has the opportunity to share our premier event with the lieutenant-governor of the day.
Many tire of the expression "Those were the days!" but we certainly appre- ciated being part of them and feeling that the RSCDS Toronto Branch was rec- ognized and acknowledged as a pres- ence of value within the community.
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