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CHAIRMAN’S REMARKS It is a great privilege for me as your Chairman to greet you all at the beginning of our Newsletter. I am pleased to say that the Association continues to thrive under the leadership of Iris Armstrong, our President, and pivots around our Secretary Dorothy Eccles, with help from the Committee and her nephew. I am glad of this opportunity to thank Dorothy for all she does on our behalf. Kathleen Welshman continues to play a key role with her knowledge of the members and long experience of the Association, and I would like to thank her for the hospitality she gives the Committee at our meetings in her home. Miss Pike unfortunately is no longer able to attend our meetings, but continues to show great interest in our 'goings on' Finally I would like to thank the Editor of this Newsletter, Linda Ballard, and would encourage you all to support her with your contributions. Carole Stewart
SECRETARY’S REPORT 2002 - 2003 It gives me much pleasure to present my report as Association Secretary. First and foremost, congratulations and thanks to Iris Armstrong and Carol Stewart for accepting the offices of President and Chairperson respectively.
We have a membership of 152 ladies. Many of our members continue to contribute generously to our Charities, Masonic Victoria Fund, Children’s Sunshine Home and to our chosen Charity which this year was Alzheimer’s Society. Despite the fact that we have 152 paid up members, only 30 attended the Spring Supper. However, this event which took place at Rockmount Golf Club was a social success and judging by the lively atmosphere many friendships were re-kindled. As usual grace was sung “lustily”!
The lunch at Bewley’s Hotel in Dublin attracted approximately 48 Old Girls and was a great success. We thank the management of the hotel for making us so welcome, and providing an excellent Xmas lunch and beverages. Many thanks to Jennifer and Leslie for continuing to organise this popular event.
Many thanks also to our Treasurer, Lorna Magowan who balances the books so successfully, and to our Committee, for their support throughout the year. Thanks go to Linda Ballard, who produces our Newsletter, and to those who contributed articles. Special thanks to Chairperson Carole for her excellent contribution to the Newsletter. Last but not least I wish to thank Trevor – my nephew-in-law for his continuing computer skills help. We continue to be grateful to Kathleen Welshman for the use of her home for our Meetings. Many thanks too, to Irene Acheson for the use of her home for one of our meetings.
The Masonic Old Girls Association continues to thrive and thanks to you all for keeping it “alive”.
Christmas Lunch 2003 – Our annual lunch will take place on Tuesday 2nd December, 12.30 for 1pm., at Bewley’s Hotel, Ballsbridge, Dublin. The Cost is 25 Euro – please forward this to Jennifer Moffett by post or in person at the AGM on the 18th October 03.
CONGRATULATIONS from all MOGs to two members, Mrs Sheila Prentice and Mrs Myrtle Verso, both of whom celebrated diamond wedding anniversaries during the year. Edna Gribben (nee Prentice) recently had this tribute paid to her by Masonic Old Boy Robin Arbuthnot, on becoming President Elect of the Ulster Women's Hockey Union from May 2003 to May 2005. She will serve as President of the U.W.H.U. from May 2005 to May2007. Edna played for Leinster Schools when she was at Masonic. When she came to college in Belfast she played for Ulster Juniors for a few years. She was Chairperson of the Mini Hockey in Ulster for about 15 years until she took early retirement from teaching. She was also manager of the Ulster Junior team for 12 years. Edna is very dedicated to the sport and fully deserves this great honour that has been bestowed upon her. I am sure you will all join with me in wishing her every success in her role. She also plays a mean game of golf. Those of us who remember Edna’s ability as a member of the First XI at school will not be surprised at this excellent news, and we all join with Robert in his congratulations. Good wishes to Heather McClure (nee Field) and to her family on the recent arrivals: Heather has become proud grandmother of twins, a boy and a girl, born to her second daughter during July.
IN MEMORIUM Dorothy Ferguson (nee Rea) herself an Old Girl, has sent this moving and warm tribute to her mother, Kathleen Rea (nee Fulton) It is with deep sadness that I write this appreciation of my mother, Kathleen Rea, who passed away on 24 April and who was also a former Masonic Old Girl. Kathleen and her identical twin sister, Dorothy, were born in 1914, and were only three months old when their father died. At the age of eight years, they were sent to Masonic for their secondary education. After leaving Masonic, Kathleen trained as a nurse, gaining her S.R.N. and S.C.M. in the Belfast City Hospital and Jubilee Maternity respectively. When she married in 1939, Kathleen gave up her nursing career to work with her husband on a small farm they had purchased near Downpatrick. After the death of her husband early in 1954, Kathleen continued to farm, and when she retired from farming she served the community in many ways, including by being a ‘meals on wheels’ lady.
Kathleen was a active member of the Old Girls’ Association, in earlier years being closely associated with running the frequent Whist Drives to raise funds for the Association. Many of the Old Girls perhaps never realised that mother was an Old Girl herself, and I think it may be unique in the history of the Association and of the Girls’ School itself that both a mother and a daughter received their education there.
I have many wonderful memories of my mother and of the stories she told of her life in Masonic. At family gatherings, her favourite party piece was singing ‘Danny Boy’ in Irish, which she learned at Masonic and never forgot..
We offer Dorothy and all the family our condolences on their loss. We also remember with affection and respect the following past pupils of the Masonic Girls’ School who passed away during the year, sending our condolences to their families: Mrs. Elizabeth McBurney (nee Boreland), Miss Etta Latimer, and Mrs Phyllis McFarland (nee Kerr). As this newsletter was in preparation, we heard the sad news of the death in South Africa of Irene McGivern, who has always supported MOGA activities and who gave a generous subscription towards the picture of School which was presented to Bewley’s. We send our sympathies to her husband, Gerald and to the family. Our thoughts are with Marie Tinsley (nee Scott ) on the death of her twin sister, Madge and with the family. We are thinking too of Naomi Hanna and the family on the death of her sister, Rosemary Murray (nee Meyler). We send also send condolences to Jennifer Moffett and to Jayne Pollock on the deaths of their mothers, to Joan Warren on the death of her son, Dr. Paul Warren and to Olive Marshall on the death of her brother, Bill Wilmot, a Masonic Old Boy who graduated in medicine from Trinity College, Dublin and who lived in Perth, Australia.
GOOD WISHES to Ruth Murray, daughter of Sheila Walker (nee Hewitt) on her ordination as a deacon, which took place in St. Anne’s Cathedral, Belfast, on 22 June. Ruth is now Curate-Assistant for All Saints’ Parish, Antrim.
MOGS IN SPRINGTIME The Masonic Old Girls' Association Spring Event took place on Friday 9 May in Rockmount Golf Club. Our Chairman, Carole Stewart, welcomed everyone and commented on how good it was for us all to be together again. It was a lovely evening, and the room, which was beautifully decorated with many flower arrangements, looked extremely attractive. Heather McCaw is an obviously talented flower arranger, and her work was particularly spectacular. Heather has trained in this art for many years, and Deirdre McCrory's mother-in-law was one of her instructors. Heather’s arrangement on 9 May for Eva Patterson, who had recently been in hospital but was now at home. Avril Farmer and Jennifer Moffett kindly offered to take the arrangement to Eva, along with a card signed by all those present.
As Iris, our President was on holiday with her husband Kevin, and Meta was unable to come, unusually, only one of the Scott sisters, Amy, could join us. Amy brought along photos of her daughter Ingrid's wedding. Olive Kirk had come over from England for the wedding. Amy told us her other daughter Andrea would soon be teaching in Alexandra College in Dublin. We also missed Margaret Kerr, who had recently celebrated her 60th birthday with a party hosted by her brother David and his wife Eileen, to which Carole Stewart had been invited. Good wishes form us all to David, who is shortly to retire.
Pauline Allen looked well in spite of having been involved in a head on collison in her car, which was a write off. Fortunately Pauline was uninjured, but (through no fault of her own) has had to buy a replacement car - one capable of towing the horsebox containing her horse.
It was great to see Lynn McGlade, and it is hard to believe her son Michael is doing his GCSE's this year, how the time flies! Lynn is one of our youngest members and was one of the last girls at school before it closed.
Irene Acheson told us of her daughter's Lyn's progress at Queen's University and Irene said she was going on a cruise of the Baltic in the summer. Lorna McGowan our Treasurer, (pleased to accept subs,) was not looking forward to the return of her daughter Gida to Australia, following a visit home with her Brazilian boyfriend.
Moyra McCandless said she and her sister Eileen had raised £1,000 for a Methodist Mission clinic in Uganda holding a fashion show that included some of the magnificent bridal wear made by them. The gown worn for her wedding by Tara, Carole Stewart's younger daughter, wedding was included in the show.
Hilary Stevens was awaiting the immediate birth of another grandchild, and we can now report that Christine had a daughter, a sister for Jack, and send congratulations to the family. Hilary was not long returned from her latest trip to Philadephia to see her son James and his family.
Kathleen Thallon was her usual glamourous self. Unbelievably she has 19 grandchildren and 8 great-grandchildren. Kathleen has four sons and a daughter, her oldest son brought up 12 children - 9 of his own and three step-children!
It was wonderful that three visitors made it up from the South. Leslie Penney was staying with friends in Dundonald, Jennifer Moffett (whose daughter Wendy is engaged), was as usual staying with Avril Farmer, and Edna Clark, shortly to be celebrate her 80th birthday, was over from Sligo staying with Kathleen Welshman. (Edna's son Desmond, held a party in Manknee Castle Hotel in Sligo, to which some of her old school friends were invited). Kathleen, who always makes her home available for our Committee meetings, had recently had her son John who teaches in Methody, and his family to stay with her while building work at their own house was completed.
It was the season for birthdays - Avril Farmer and Pauline Allen were about to become OAPs - Pauline the next day and Avril on the Monday! Kathleen Welshman was warmly congratulated on recently celebrating her 80th.
Irene Acheson sold the ballot tickets and Rosemary Henson, over from Southampton for our get together, drew the ballot. We were very grateful to those MOGs who were unable to attend but who sent donations to be included in the proceeds raised by the evening. Dorothy Eccles and Lorna Magowan's hard work in organising this event was greatly appreciated by all present, and everyone agreed it had been a very successful evening.
(Thanks to the author of this interesting and comprehensive report)
ON SAFARI With daughter Eimear safely back at university in Warwick, where she’s enjoying her second year, Ronnie and I decided 2003 was the year for a trip to Kenya. We (for which read I) booked the holiday in mid 2002, and changes in world events made me ponder the wisdom of the choice as time went on, but nonetheless, we looked forward to the adventure. I have to admit it didn’t start auspiciously. There was snow on the ground as we headed to Belfast City airport for our flight to London, and just as we approached the airport, we heard the radio announcer say that Heathrow was closed. Next, we learned that our London flight was cancelled. Were we being told something?
Some quick discussions with airline representatives, who were very helpful, ensured that we caught a plane to Heathrow, which was leaving at almost the same time as our scheduled departure. (Don’t ask, you know how these things go, and yes, there was more snow and another delay, but we got there.) We made a dash through Heathrow. Have you ever left from Terminal Four? Suffice it to say that we found it a challenge, but we made it on time, and someone even confirmed that our luggage, checked through from Belfast, was on the plane. Although in fact it wasn’t, which caused me some consternation next morning in Nairobi. It did turn up the following day, though, when we found it forlornly sitting in the middle of the airport. In the meantime, I’d had a fun if unscheduled shopping trip to ensure we at least had some basics if we were never to be reunited with our things.
Nairobi seemed an astonishing place, although we saw little of it. Our hotel was an amazing, and it seemed a well fortified, oasis, but we had a glimpse of another world outside. Someone driving rather thin cattle on dry ground near the city, animals grazing on grassy patches at roadsides and on traffic islands. Tin shack shops. Very, very hot.
After recovering from out flight and the associated surprises, we were off to Samburu, north of the equator. We stayed in a lodge by the Tana river, and it was exactly my image of the tropics. Very, very humid. Crocodiles came up from the river and lounged like enormous and not too pleasant lizards just outside the bar, waiting for bones from the kitchen. They turned up like clockwork every evening, slithering over one another in an unceremonious way to reach the treats. There were other lizards too, in an interesting purple and red livery. Very, very poisonous. Monkeys roamed around freely. Local dancers gave us an idea of their history and traditions, announcing proudly that they are cousins to the Masai. Making a living at Samburu is even harder than on the Mara, however.
Safari drives were incredible. We were up very early in the morning, to see herds of antelope, leopards casually stalking, a cheetah chasing breakfast, and a lioness lying down with a lamb. There is a fabled lioness at Samburu, who occasionally adopts an oryx kid for company. She is known to have done this several times and had done so again this season, so we were told, although I have to admit to scepticism. One afternoon, we were out for a drive when our fantastic guide, Ismael, received a radio message that the lioness had been spotted. He knew and took us to the location, where we waited patiently, and in time, first the kid and then the lioness herself emerged from under the bushes were they had sheltered. When we returned to the Lodge, we were feted, and everyone, including locals, came to ask if it was true we had actually seen the lioness and the kid.
From Samburu, we travelled to Treetops, stopping for lunch at Outspan, once home to Baden Powell. Outspan, with Mount Kenya its backdrop, is like an English garden you might glimpse sometime in a dream. Treetops is amazing: I even had the chance there to chat with a Kikuyu warrior. Elephants come to dig up salt sprinkled for them on the ground, and there is a hide where you can watch them right at ground level. Huge creatures pass inches away from your nose, but thankfully on the other side of well reinforced glass. A rhinoceros arrives to quench his thirst. There must be a strong sense of social order among elephants, for one family arrived at the water hole and was sent on its way in no uncertain terms. In Samburu, we watched a large group of them cross the river one morning, a huge bull out in front, another taking up the rear, the very tiny baby safe, right at the centre of the procession. Yes, they did link, tail to trunk, and the noise and splashing made sure the crocodiles kept well out of the way.
We travelled on via Nakuru and Naivahsa, travelling out on a lake to visit some hippopotamus families. Hippopotamus, I discovered, are very shy, ducking down in the water as humans approach. They’re also very protective of their young. One mother suddenly emerged from below the surface of the water, feet away from our boat, as she wasn’t pleased at our proximity. I quickly realised why the boatman had insisted we wear lifejackets for the journey. The flamingos are unbelievable, so many that when they are at rest, the water appears pink, and when they are in flight, the sky too changes colour.
Next, it was the Masai Mara, the place I’d longed to visit for so many years. I’ll never forget the sight of the young, red robed herd boys at the side of a shallow stream, waving to us as the cattle drank. Or stopping in a town, feeling like a female Indiana Jones as I went into the trading post, discovering banks of African masks from all over the continent, bargaining for the sun mask that now hangs in my living room. (Irene visibly jumped when she saw it. She reckons it’s hideous, but I love it. It’s studded with little pieces of metal to catch the light, and is one of the type people hang on the walls of their homes to reflect the sun, and no doubt encourage good fortune.)
By now, I was completely in love with Kenya, although we were both quite tired, so we were glad to head to Mombassa, and travel further south to the beach, where we relaxed for a while. But what a journey. Traders by the roadside in the dark, bustling stalls lit by oil lamps or candles, a sense of adventure, sometimes of danger. Groups of people sitting outside, cooking food and no doubt swapping news or telling stories. Mysteries opening up and vanishing again into the darkness as we passed. Then we were at the coast, the sound of the Indian Ocean loud in our ears as we made our way to our room.
Next morning, we saw the ocean for the first time. Huge swathes of unbelievable sand, so white and fine. The water calm and deep blue. The dug out boat waiting to take us to the coral reef. So we went, under the guidance of Captain Mohammed, who explained to me that dug outs are still made from the trunks of mango trees by an old man who is teaching the craft to his son in the nearby village. Captain Mohammed jumps overboard now and then, into fairly shallow water from which he takes a bright red starfish, a huge sea urchin, or something else that catches his eye, shows it to us, and then replaces it safely back on the sea bed. On the reef, he wades in rock pools, the water reaching his neck, to find and show us creatures living in shells or concealed in the rocks. Again, they all go back safely into the water afterwards. And on our return journey, we watch the amazing skills of fishermen, heading in dugouts to beyond the reef, where the water is much less calm, the open Indian Ocean is not a friendly place. One boat particularly catches the eye. The technology is the same as for the one in which we make a leisurely way, but the craft is streamlined, and is carved to resemble a large fish. I’m writing in the present tense, because once again it’s as if I’m there, and I’d so like to be back. We planned to return in July, which is the best time to see the animals, as the wildebeest migrate then, and the associated spectacle is, I’m told, unequalled. We had hoped to take Eimear with us, but with warnings about travelling to east Africa, I’m sad it won’t be this year. Another time, maybe.
(report by newsletter editor.)
EDNA’S ARTISTRY Congratulations from all MOGS go to Edna Sinton, who recently staged a solo exhibition of her landscape paintings in Comber Library, Co. Down, as part of the programme for Comber Civic Week. Edna’s paintings were also featured in the Beyond Words annual arts celebration in the Ards. Edna was present at the Press Launch and Reception for this festival, which was held in Holywood Library on 24 April, where she found the history of MGS, Two Hundred Years of a Future through Education displayed on the shelves. Edna recalls affectionately the encouragement she received from Miss Ross Todd when she was at school, and perhaps this influenced her as a lover of flowers as well as of art? Edna’s gorgeous Comber garden was also opened to the public as part of the heritage celebrations in the Ards.
MASONIC MEMORIES How many of us remember this rhyme, enthusiastically recited as the holidays approached: This time four weeks, where shall we be? Outside the gates of misery Kick up tables, kick up chairs, Kick the teachers down the stairs. No more spiders in my bath Trying hard to make me laugh. This version was recalled by Mattie Cadden (nee Stuart) from her school days, 1934-1941. Many thanks to Mattie, and to Dorothy Eccles, who recalled another two lines: No more cabbages, no more slugs No more drinking out of handless mugs. Can anyone else add any more lines or provide alternatives. The rhyme must have stayed in circulation for quite a time, so maybe we can add to this recollection? And on the subject of memories of school, can anyone else remember singing to a cherry tree in the garden at school during the summer term, and if so, can anyone explain why or remember the words we sang? Incidentally, memories of Donabate picnics are also being sought for the next newsletter.
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