We graduated as a class of 39 students in 1975; 34 of our graduates remain, and 18 of 34 – fully 50 percent plus – are here this weekend.

 

We came to Shawnigan at a unique time in the School’s history in the early ’70s. Enrolment is now thriving at around 550 students. I believe it was in the low to mid-100s when we arrived; the School was experiencing serious financial challenges that in retrospect we didn’t fully appreciate. Many of us were very fortunate beneficiaries of some form of financial assistance, centered around BC’s Centennial Year in 1971 – “priming the pump,” so to speak, to increase enrolment.

 

We were pushed beyond our comfort zones while at Shawnigan – recall the 3 A’s: Academics, Athletics, Activities. We were compelled to participate across a broad spectrum of disciplines, learning new things and extending ourselves. Paul, your comments about normalizing and embracing challenges in your address this morning really resonated with me. I think that this was the essence of our experience at Shawnigan: each of us in our own way applied this in other areas of our life after our time here.

 

It’s an understatement to say that we developed a competitive spirit while at Shawnigan. Recall the infamous “tri-weeklies”: our performance – and relative rankings in our respective classes – posted on or around three-week intervals for all to see. And we did our best to be inconspicuous in checking the results. Equally, you could bounce around between rugby XV and the first and second eights in rowing, particularly in our tour years. It seems that competition has now become somewhat unfashionable; participation and maintaining self-esteem are paramount. The reality is, we were going to face a very competitive environment after graduating; the key lesson for us was approaching this, in whatever context, with humility, professionalism, and sportsmanship.

 

We were an all-boys school in our years at Shawnigan, with female counterparts at Strathcona, across the lake. So, we had to be very resourceful and creative in scheming chance encounters with the Strathies. To this day I’m not sure what was fact or legend, but said encounters included sailing outings in Flying Juniors that were sidetracked to the Galley, one of the premiere meeting spots, returning to the Shawnigan docks just in time to sprint for the supper bell (think of the panic that ensued when the wind died!); hotwiring the rowing coach boat on nocturnal visits; and begging off Bernie Dinter’s afternoon work divisions to head over to Strath. As Paul and I reminisced on a recent call, the reality was that we actually had to talk to the Strathies after engineering these encounters – we weren’t necessarily prepared for that! Bottom line, there wasn’t a lot of finesse or subtlety in these interactions; the word pathetic comes to mind.

 

We certainly didn’t graduate from Shawnigan with exemplary table manners. To this day, I’m not entirely sure what we were eating, with various mystery meats and other indiscernible dishes featured in the dining room. Bottom line, eating was a pit stop – a fuelling station as opposed to a culinary experience. Popular meals were consumed at a frenetic pace; for example, hamburgers and fries on Wednesday lunches. If you didn’t get seconds as the table runner for these meals, you faced dire consequences from the seniors at the table. My wife often laments that I approach every meal as if it were a race, that it will be my last. When one of our ’75 brethren, Daryel Gough, stayed with us at one of the past UBC golf tournaments, our children commented after his visit, “Mom, they eat like wolves!”

 

Most of the teachers, Housemasters, and Headmasters that were at Shawnigan during our tenure have since passed away. I’d like to call out a few. Each, in their own way, had profound impacts on our lives and leave lasting legacies within the Shawnigan community: Graham Anderson, who brought history to life and piqued our intellectual curiosity; Derek Hyde-Lay, whose great athletic mind and presence lives on in his son Ian, who is with us today. The Hyde-Lay rugby pavilion stands prominently in memory of Derek. And I would be remiss to leave out the two nurses in my household, not to mention Mary Hyde-Lay, the School’s head nurse and Ian’s late mother. I’ll never forget her kind, gentle, and compassionate demeanour; no doubt she touched many of our lives.

 

Horace McClelland was the school Chaplain, and served as both the Assistant Headmaster and Headmaster; he was a very caring individual, and thankfully was easily distracted during Latin classes with anything rugby related. Charlie’s dad, Pat MacLachlan, was the Headmaster in the early 70’s; he taught mathematics and had renowned prowess on the rugby pitch and golf links. Pat passed away earlier this year at the ripe old age of 97. Charlie, you got the rugby gene passed down, but the golf ability – hmmm, I think that skipped a generation.

 

I don’t want to end on a sombre note, but I do want to respectfully acknowledge those from our year who are no longer with us: Brock Crane, Bruce Maxham, Brian Ellis, Mark Perry, Jack Fuller and Phil Hodel. They all left us at far too young an age. Nick, your father, Dr. Peter Banks’, address at our graduation was prophetic; it was a blunt wakeup call that these passings could very likely happen, that we weren’t invincible, we had to take care of ourselves and rein in the bravado.

 

For those of us here today from the Class of ’75, I think a critical life lesson is the power of connection, how that can help us through both good and challenging times. It’s a key and vital determinant of our own longevity and maintaining a positive frame of mind.

 

In closing, our bond was, and remains, a truly unique one, distinct from other times in our lives, be that in university or college, sports teams, or work settings. We met in a closed environment, we were young and away from our families for the first time, fending largely for ourselves. We shared a multitude of experiences, good and bad. Let’s continue to stay connected and support each other, we’re not getting any younger, it seems like we’ve picked up where we left off after all these years. All the best to you and your families, and Larry, thank you so much for hosting our motley crew.