Condolence From: Linda MacDonald
Condolence: Ah, Miss Black ... or as we students of the 60s tried to convince her, MS Black.
I remember hippie-style long dresses (which I later copied), a neat long braid around her head, and a no-nonsense manner, but always a twinkle in her eye.
When we had her for first period after lunch, she was FAMOUS for ALWAYS saying, "Have you washed your greasy fingers, girls and boys?"
In my Grade X, MISS Black was frustrated with the large number of typing students who could not keep an even beat ... so I came up with a very unconventional (for the times) solution, whereby I brought in a portable record player and several drum-heavy singles. We went through them together and she picked a few. From then on, there were many students stopping dead in their tracks, and teachers' heads poking out of their classroom doors, as the halls filled with the sound of Roy Orbison singing, "Pretty Woman"! And would you believe, everyone passed typing that year, while Ms Black grinned like the cat who caught the canary.
It's 50 years later and I still remember ... as do the dozen or so others I contacted about the passing of a great and memorable lady. Teachers came and went, but MISS Black remains in my heart forever.
Fondly, Linda
Monday April 20, 2015
