SilverLights Newsletter Vol 19 Number 4 · work that went into making the Silver Lights’ oat an award-winning entry! We welcome our newest members to the Silver Lights Club and

President’s Message

Gerry BowersAnother Christmas has passed, this onewas white and weather wise arrived with avengeance. In the midst of all this I hopethat all loved ones who traveled to spend timewith family and friends made it to their des-tination on time and safely.

A brief review for 2013 shows your SilverLights Club held the following events:

• A pre-retirement seminar for existingemployees in St. John’s area which wasconducted with help from HR;

• A highway cleanup completed in thespring and fall;

• A labour day outing to Twillingate; and

• A Christmas float which it won first prizein the Holyrood and Mount Pearl pa-rades.

My short story begins:

For the Bowers’ household 2013 was also aneventful year. My wife, Heather, retired inJune and my daughter was married in Octo-ber. During September, Heather and I left forLondon in the UK for a week visiting some re-lations. We met another couple of friends inBarcelona, Spain for four nights then all fourof us went on a twelve night Mediterraneancruise.

In Barcelona, we rented an apartment andshared the expenses which were half that of ahotel. After arriving at the apartment, wewent for a 45 minute walk to get oriented

to our new surroundings. We returned tothe apartment to find we had been robbed.Gone were two iPads, two cell phones, jewelryand cash. Fortunately our passports werenot stolen. At eight o’clock that night inthe dark and with limited Spanish vocabu-lary we found an electronics store and pur-chased a pay as you go cell phone. We re-ported the theft and police arrived within thehour. The police commented that a similarsituation had occurred two weeks prior to acouple from Australia. There being no signsof forced entry it looked like an inside job us-ing a key to gain entry. The apartment man-ager arrived and offered us another location,however it was not as convenient. There wasnothing left to steal, so we agreed to stay putif the lock was changed which he agreed to.

The following day, less than 24 hours, thepolice had recovered our two iPads. We hadto go to the police station and file a re-port and claim the iPads. We returned tothe apartment to discuss any possible insur-ance claim with the manager who was alreadythere. He informed us that the door was notproperly locked. This door had a knob in themiddle of it that did not turn, it was usedjust to pull the door shut, and like any NorthAmerican hotel door would spring lock. Inaddition to closing the door we turned thekey to engage the dead bolt and then backedoff the key one half turn to remove it fromthe lock.

The correct way to lock this door was toturn the key three times and then back off onehalf turn. Here is what happens if done prop-erly. Turn one engages a set of three fingerlike dead bolts near the key hole one half inch.

Vol 19 Number 4 Dec 2013

SilverLights Newsletter Vol 19 Number 4 Dec 2013 2

The second turn extends this set of dead boltanother half inch. The third turn engages twomore sets of three fingered dead bolts, one setat the top of the door and another at the bot-tom. Then back off the key one half turn toremove it from the lock. This meant that ourinitial locking procedures had never engagedany dead bolts, hence all a thief needed wasa strip of flexible film or plastic to insert be-tween the door and the door frame and springopen the door.

We now felt a little guilty and remorsefulabout thinking that the theft was an insidejob. This however was short lived because wewere informed that on day three of our staywe had to go to court and testify against theperson the police recovered the iPads from.We testified with the aide of a translator and45 minutes later we were returned to ourapartment to resume being a tourist. Of thefour days in Barcelona I figure we lost a halfday between going to the police station andto court to testify. We were impressed withthe swift response to our situation. Nothingelse was recovered, but we put it behind us,grateful that we were not mugged or injured.The 12 day cruise was a positive experience,then we arrived home the end of Septemberto prepare for our daughter’s wedding earlyOctober. Home owner insurance back in St.John’s did cover some of the loss for thoseitems not recovered.

In closing here is wishing you and yoursa Happy New Year and all the best for 2014,and if you travel to Europe verify how to lockthe door.

Regards,Gerry Bowers

Editor’s Message

Janet Calver

Brrrr! Winter has arrived! The tempera-ture keeps on dropping while the snow pileson either side of the driveway get higher andhigher. Sometimes I feel that I would liketo hibernate for the winter and not poke myhead outdoors until the buds start to form onthe trees again in the spring. But then we geta beautiful sunny day and all thoughts of thewinter blahs disappear. Out come the crosscountry skis or the snowshoes and away wego! By the time we get back to the house,I’ve got lots of energy and a completely dif-ferent outlook on winter. Will it last? Onlyuntil I have to shovel out the bottom of thedriveway for the umpteenth time!!

Meanwhile, Christmas has come and goneand we are now approaching a whole NewYear. Can you believe it? By the time youread this newsletter, we’ll be a few days into2014 and probably have another snowstormor two under our belt. If you are tired ofshoveling snow or lugging the snow bloweraround, then this newsletter is a perfect ex-cuse to kick the boots off, grab a coffee, sitdown and have a read.

The winter newsletter takes on a slightlydifferent look than the others. I like to thinkit’s a bit more relaxed and somewhat nos-talgic. Ken is here with another great arti-cle, full of retiree news and entertaining anec-dotes. He has a wonderful “interview” withHarvey Young and you won’t want to miss hisdescription of Christmas Eve dinners in thewarehouse at Bishop’s Falls! Thank-you Ken


for another wonderful article! Chris Schwartzhas provided a reflective piece about 10 In-gredients for Retirement Bliss. We all needto read that one! Thank-you Chris! We haveupdates on the Fall Team Gushue Highwaycleanup and the people who took part. Wealso have some fabulous pictures from the St.John’s Santa Claus parade and all the prepwork that went into making the Silver Lights’float an award-winning entry!

We welcome our newest members to theSilver Lights Club and meet our recent re-tirees.

We have a look back at December 24, 1955.Was it much different than December 24,2013? Read on. Finally, we have a littleChristmas story that will bring a smile toyour face.

There are many people to thank - our con-tributors who bring something special to thenewsletter every time, Amanda from HumanResources who goes out of her way to get allthe retiree information to us in time to pub-lish, our volunteers who are always there tolend a hand with our activities and finally,our Silver Lights executive, who are alwaysthere to help me out and answer all my ques-tions. Couldn’t do it without any of you!

Finally, I hope you all had a lovely Christ-mas time with your family and friends andthat the New Year is filled with that sameChristmas spirit of love and thoughtfulness.


SilverLights News

Out and About with Ken Ball

I got my snow blower ready for winter butI’m still trying to convince myself that win-ter won’t soon be here. I don’t know aboutyou, but the older I get the more I hate thethought of shoveling and blowing snow.

As a boy back in Rencontre West, winterwas something to look forward to; skating onthe pond, sliding on moonlight nights withthe girls and knowing Christmas was com-ing and the men would be back for the win-ter. Maybe this year we won’t get much snoweven though the trees are loaded with dog-wood berries, and that according to old folksmeans a bad winter. I must take the time tosee what it says in the Farmer’s Almanac forthis winter.

I have a new technical assistant at my beckand call whenever I get into trouble, andthat’s whenever I sit down at this contrap-tion. Anyway thanks to Bob Hobbs, I’mstarting to get the picture for what I want;That’s turn the blasted thing on and type afew paragraphs. Sending pictures, well that’sanother thing.

I sometimes think a lot of us are from an-other world, not just another age. My tech-nical requirements when I was young were tostart a 3 horse power Acadia engine, screwdown the hard grease cups and have a sparewindow blind spring aboard the dory in casethe trip spring broke. At home we had a 9volt Ray-O-Vac Battery that operated our ra-

dio, that was it. Now I’m not saying I haven’tcome a long way but I know I’ll never bewhere I should be with computer skills.

After a great summer I visited my son andthe grand kids in Orangeville, Ontario thismonth (October). We had a great visit, butI’m not so much impressed with up-along asI used to be. I really believe we don’t have totake a back seat when it comes to restaurants,stores and conditions generally, and I thinkwe are starting to catch up weather wise.

I’ve had a scarce season for spottingretirees but I managed to see a few whichmakes my day whenever that happens.

Bill FlynnI was waiting to board my plane at the

Toronto Airport when I see this man comingdown the aisle. Usually names don’t come tome, but right away I knew Bill by name, andwould you believe it? He could call me byname.

I had not seen Bill since I retired in ’96.Bill was on his way back from visiting fam-

ily in Edmonton and Fort MacMurray.Bill has finally retired from jobbing around

and except for the occasional lending a handto a friend or family member he is officiallyfinished working. Bill spends most of his win-ters in Florida.

It was a good touch to my vacation. I’malways glad to see all retirees because mostof them are friends.

Bill was an electrician with Harold Bartlettand the Terminal Station Crew in Central.

Bill is in fine shape and hasn’t gained apound. How the hell can he keep the weightoff?


Don TuffI was at the Avalon Mall the other day and

met an old friend, Don Tuff. I always enjoymeeting Don because we have a chance toreminisce about our days with Hydro.

Don has not been to the breakfasts thissummer because of a busy schedule. He’sbeen visiting family in Ottawa and spendingtime up at his cabin when he gets the chance.

If you want to hear some stories about thegood old Hydro days you should talk to Don.

Don worked as Transportation Supervisorat Hydro Place in St. John’s.

Looking good Don.

Hughie ButlerI mentioned in the last bulletin that Hughie

had been sick with an unknown virus of somesort and that he had lost 25 pounds. Now,after many scans and tests, they still don’tknow what he’s caught.

I saw Hughie in the Avalon Mall recentlyand not much has changed. He’s trying toput back the weight, as per his doctor’s sug-gestion but the results are very slow. He’seating bars, chips, candy (all the good stuff)and still not gaining much weight. His energylevel is very low but he thinks it is comingback gradually.

Hughie is still visiting doctors regularlyand please God they will soon discover thecause of his trouble.

Like a true Bell Islander, this glitch is notstopping him and they plan to visit their sonin Ontario for Christmas.

All the best, friend.

Lewis ClarkeI saw Lewis at the food court in the Village

Mall the other day. Now before you start withthat “all he does is eat”, I’ll have you knowwe were there planning a pre-Christmas din-ner that we do every year at one of the localrestaurants. I’m not sure if that statementhelped me or not. Anyway as I was saying,Lewis is looking great and planning anothercruise. I think this will be his 19th. This timethey’re going through the Panama Canal andall that includes.

The other year Lewis had problems withblockages but that is all fixed now and helooks fit as can be.

I don’t understand how a person can go onall those cruises and not gain at least someweight. There’s food available 24 hours a dayand I would probably be eating 23 of thosehours.

Lewis was an Accounts Payable Supervisorat Hydro Place in St. John’s.

Don CullI was at a local Christmas fair recently at

the Glacier in Mount Pearl and ran into an-other retiree/friend, Don Cull. Don was in toawait the arrival of a grandchild who was duethe next day.

Don hasn’t changed a bit and is still veryactive in golf and anything that tickles hisfancy.

I don’t know if he still curls but I would sayhe does. I won my set of booster cables at aHydro tournament with Don. He skipped theteam and we won the B Section. I was leadfor him and we won in spite of that.

I remember the first time I met Don; It


was just after we moved into the new ware-house in Bishop’s Falls and Don was testinga big control panel. I think it was for theplant in Bay d’Espoir. We wondered howcould anyone possibly know what was sup-posed to be going on inside that contraption.Remember, we were very new to this type ofequipment and were amazed that anyone wassmart enough to actually check it. I’m stillamazed 40 years later.

Don was Supervisor of Protection & Con-trol in Central and later transferred toChurchill Falls as Superintendent of Protec-tion & Control and Communications.

Hope you and Guy Roy and all the otherwest coast retirees will be golfing for manymore years Don.

Bill BoydeI saw Bill at McDonald’s the other day as

I was availing of their free coffee. Bill looksfull of energy and rearin’ to go.

Bill and his wife recently returned from aBritish Isles cruise. The trip took him to Lon-don, Dover and Liverpool where he ran his33rd Terry Fox run. While at Dover, they vis-ited the Dover castle and all the tunnels un-der the castle. This castle was once the head-quarters of prime minister Winston Churchillduring the War. They saw the white cliffs ofDover and visited the Guinness factory for afew sample swalleys of the whiskey.

Because of a storm, they couldn’t get toNorway so they diverted to Ireland and vis-ited Dublin and then Scotland. They touredEdinburgh, Glasgow and Inverness, the placeof the Loch Ness Monster. They ended up inParis and on his birthday went for a picnic

under the Eiffel Tower. Who said romance isdead?

They didn’t take advantage of the plannedtours. Instead they used train and bus to gowhere they wanted.

The way Bill described his trip you couldtell he had a most educational and enjoyabletime. Bill has spent 60 days on 11 differentcruises.

They are going to New Zealand in January.Back home Bill and his family had another

occasion to be proud. His granddaughter wasthe youngest Newfoundlander ever to fly solo.She was 14 years old.

Bill ran the Tely 10 for the 8th year andfinished in 1 hr. 30 min.

Unfortunately, time never permits to havea good yarn and when youre taking notes ona crumpled napkin something could get lostin the transcribing of said notes.

I do see Bill occasionally because he workspart time at the Dominion Store where Ishop, but I can’t disrupt his work. Like hiswife said: “ Bill’s a Wrapper”.

Bill worked as a Technician in Telecon-trol Maintenance with Lorne Babb, StevePacquet, John Curran (deceased), and CyrilFrench.

You’re an inspiration to all of us “stay-at-home” retirees Bill.

Hans ZahnI saw Hans this fall while I was waiting for

the boss to do some shopping. We had a greatyarn for the little time we had. Hans looksgreat so I know retirement is agreeing withhim.

Retirement may be a little overemphasized


in Hans’ case because he is in fact very busywith his magic show. He goes around theprovince putting off his magic safety show inschools and his regular magic show whereverhe lands a gig.

There’s also travel associated with familywhich helps to keep him hopping.

Hans worked with Systems Operations atHydro Place.

John ButlerI saw John at the Avalon Mall food court

recently. He looks terrific and is enjoying hisretirement.

John worked as a Safety Supervisor in FortMacMurray after leaving Hydro. He has nowretired from that job and has settled into theFlorida circuit. Golfing in the winter andgolfing in the summer back home. Not a badjob if you can get it.

John was the Safety Supervisor at Hy-dro coordinating the Loss Control Programthroughout Hydro and CFLCO. Great to seeyou again John.

Seeing John again reminded me of thetime we went to Central for a meeting. Wewere traveling together. When we wentto check into the Mount Peyton in GrandFalls, the clerk at the front desk asked if wehad a reservation. I asked her if she hada reservation for the “James Boys”. Shelooked and asked what were our first names.“Frank and Jesse” I answered. After lookinga little longer it dawned on her. She wasnot amused, but John came to the rescue byinterjecting the famous line “don’t mind himmy dear; he’s nuts”.

Des ButtI saw Des a few weeks ago while I was

waiting for an appointment at the Health Sci-ences. Des was walking by and stopped whenhe saw me. He must have been there visitingbecause he looked as fit as a fiddle.

I only had a moment to say “Hi” and Iwas surprised when he told me he had soldhis construction company and was workingwith the Muskrat Falls Project. That wasthe extent of our conversation.

Des worked in The Transmission DesignDepartment with Harvey Young .

Wish I had more time to talk to him butsometimes circumstances dictate otherwise.

Ian MacPhersonI had a pleasant surprise the other day at

my Avalon Mall hangout. I ran into Ian. Ididn’t really run into him because I saw himgo into a store and I followed him. I had notseen Ian since I retired in 1996.

He is still in fantastic condition and hasno medical complaints whatsoever. He at-tributes this to his exercise routine. He walkshis dog for an hour daily, rain or snow. I ad-mire dedication in anybody because I don’thave what it takes to do anything for a pro-longed period, especially something that’sgood for me.

Ian usually gets away 3-4 times a year toplaces like St. Lucia or Portugal. He’s goingto London, England in January for a familywedding. He also visits family in Calgary.When asked if he goes to Florida, Ian let itbe known that once with the children yearsago was quite enough and he has no intentionof going back.


He still sails and has his boat in the LongPond Boat Club. You will find Ian sailingduring the summer months. Ian worked fromHydro Place as Transmission & Administra-tion Supervisor.

Here’s a little anecdote: I once gave Iana cigar that was given to me by my brotherwhich in turn was given to him by Fidel Cas-tro, prime minister of Cuba.

My brother was part of a delegation fromOttawa and Nova Scotia to try and drumup business with Cuba for the Port of Hal-ifax. After meetings were concluded, dele-gates were invited to Castro’s mansion fordinner. After dinner each guest was pre-sented with a box of cigars from Castro’s pri-vate stock.

I had a cigar that was of no use to mebecause I didn’t smoke and I didn’t valueCastro’s or anybody else’s cigars. One timeIan had told me he used to go home everyevening after work, pour himself a drinkand smoke a cigar. I figured that here wassomeone who would appreciate a good cigar.I gave the cigar to Ian but I can’t for the lifeof me remember if he liked the cigar or notand I forgot to ask him the other day. I mustkeep that in mind for the next time I see him.

Trevor (Tom) AtkinI saw Tom in the Avalon Mall attending a

Salvation Army Christmas Kettle. At first Ipassed by thinking that I had seen him some-where before. I turned back and recognizedTom. He looks great.

A few years ago Tom started the PROBUSClub. A Club for Professional and BusinessPeople. Its membership has grown from 10

to 150. Not too smatchey.Tom told me he does not do much travel

because his dog has diabetes and has to haveregular care, so he doesn’t want to leave himfor prolonged periods. How is that for loyaltyand dedication?

Tom was Manager at the Holyrood Gener-ating Plant.

Another Blast From The PastRecently I sat down with Harvey Young

and talked about his work with Hydro and lifebefore Hydro. Harvey’s father was a teacher,and like many of their day, teachers, rangers,clergy and magistrates were often posted inNewfoundland and Labrador outports. Mr.Young’s first school was in Lance au LoupLabrador in 1936.

Harvey was born at the Grenfell NursingStation in Forteau.

His father was in Lance au Loup from 1936to 1942.

In 1942, he went to university in St. John’sfor a year. Harvey and his mother went toTwillingate to live with his grandparents.

The next teaching position was in Flat Is-land, Bonavista Bay until 1946. That waswhere Harvey started school.

In ’46 his father went back to university foranother year, so it was back to Twillingate forthe family.

His next teaching position was at Fogo onFogo Island from 1948-51. They were hereduring confederation period. Harvey’s fa-ther was a pro-confederate and his grandfa-ther was an anti-confederate. I can imaginesome conversations they had around the sup-per table. Harvey’s father agreed with join-


ing Canada because he saw how well off thepeople of the north shore of Quebec were inrelation to the people of Lance au Loup inboth living conditions and cost of living.

The next teaching job was in Bay Robertsfrom 1951-53. Here, Harvey had running wa-ter and electricity for the first time.

In 1953 the family moved to Millertownand this is where Harvey finished school atMillertown Academy. A classmate of hiswas Bob Whitehorne. He was here until’56 when he went to Memorial University todo engineering. After getting an engineeringdiploma at MUN, he continued on at NovaScotia Tech, obtaining a bachelor of engineer-ing degree in electrical engineering.

After graduation he worked with the IronOre Company of Canada (IOC) where he hadworked as a student. In May of ’62 he joinedIOC in a permanent capacity and stayed untilFebruary of ’63.

In ’63 he went to work with Nfld Light &Power as a Distribution Engineer and wasthere until October ’64.

He joined Beothuck Engineering in Octo-ber ’64. Here his work involved construct-ing diesel plants and distribution lines forthe outport communities. Two communitieswhere they put in electricity were Gaultoisand Francois on the South West Coast. Therewere umpteen others.

In May of 1966 Harvey joined the PowerCommission and another Hydro retiree, DonFrench joined at the same time. Don leftin August of 1967 and went with Foulis En-gineering, a supplier of cables & equipmentused in utilities and paper mills. In April of’68 he resigned from Foulis and returned to

the Power Commission.It is interesting to note how he came back

to the Commission. He was at a cable man-ufacturing plant in St. Jean, Quebec. He re-ceived a phone call from the chairman of thePower Commission, Mr. G.P.Hobbs, askinghim if he would come back and to meet himin his St. John’s office when he returned tothe province. He had heard that Harvey wasinterested in coming back. Much the sameformat as today, isn’t it. Now let’s find outabout his life with Hydro.

Ken:When did you start with the Power Com-mission this time?

Harvey:I returned in May of 1968.

Ken:What was your job?

Harvey:I came back as a Planning Engineer re-porting to John Fitzgerald.

Ken:What was your next position?

Harvey:I went as Transmission Design and Con-struction Engineer and started as a Hy-dro representative working closely withShawMont, who built most of the trans-mission lines.

Ken:Who did you report to?

Harvey:Leo Cole. During this period, I hadthe privilege of working with Jim Long,Frank Beaton, Vince Peddle (deceased),Norm Parsons and many others associ-ated with the transmission system.


Ken:What was your next position?

Harvey:I was seconded from Hydro to Gull Is-land Power as Project Engineer on theHVDC Transmission Lines and Subma-rine Cables across the Strait of Belle Isle.This was in 1975.

Back in those days Gull Island was go-ing to be developed before Muskrat Falls.Two ±400KV lines were to be broughtto the island, one terminating at Sol-dier’s Pond and another at Stony Brook.

When the plug was pulled on this plan Iwent back to Hydro in 1977 as Managerof Transmission Design, which at a laterdate included Properties and Survey.

Ken:Who was in your department at thattime?

Harvey:Des Butt, Dan Pike, Peter Linegar,Terry Gardiner, Neville Codner, KevinWilliams (deceased) and Brian Martin.I was in that position until 1990 when Iwas promoted to Director of Engineeringand Design.

This department was responsible for allthe Engineering Design in Hydro as-sociated with Transmission, Mechani-cal, Electrical Protection & Control andDrafting.

The personnel heading up these depart-ments were:

Civil John CarnellMechanical John MallumElectrical Gordon HoldenP&C Chris WalshTransmission Dan PikeDrafting Graham Wells

Ken:Who were you reporting to at this time?

Harvey:I reported to Sam Banfield, VP of Engi-neering and Construction.

Ken:What was your impression of Hydro?

Harvey:It was a wonderful place to work, es-pecially during my time. There was somuch being built. You had the sense offamily. The cooperation and work rela-tions were superior. We weren’t at odds.The people you worked with were morethan working acquaintances; They werefriends. I worked with Hydro for approx-imately 30 years. I retired in 1995.

Ken:Was there anyone in Hydro that youwere especially impressed with?

Harvey:I was impressed with David Collett.Dave was a good friend and was well re-spected throughout Hydro and CFLCO.

I enjoyed working at Hydro very muchand I think it’s important that you enjoyyour work. I’m a firm believer in givinga day’s work for a day’s pay.

Harvey and I had a great yarn. I couldhave stayed talking to him all day, but


we both had some trivial things to do. Ihad to pick up my wife at the Mall.

Harvey had a lot of historical documentsassociated with Hydro, including a travelclaim from day one when he started withHydro. There were binders of mate-rial that I would have loved to browsethrough, not that I would have under-stood much of the contents.

Here are a couple of samples from travelin 1968:

Trip to Montreal to meet with Shaw-Mont personnel:

Hotel Room $12.96Meals $8.00

Course at the University ofSaskatchewan:

Lodgings $8.50Taxi $1.50Meals $8.00

Here’s an account of one of Harvey’searly projects:

I went to Change Islands with the con-tractor (Hussey Contracting) to find aplace to locate a diesel plant. There wasa lack of level land, and we wanted tolocate the plant somewhere near the cen-ter of the community. The place we se-lected was next to the school. Noise andpollution were not major factors in thosedays.

Trips on the road were always an expe-rience with its 10 cent drinks (later 25cents) and $2.00 steaks.

Ken:Good Lord Harv, look at the time; I’m ahour late. The wife will not be a happycamper. Gotta go. Thanks Harvey.

Harvey Young

Recalling Former Times

I was going to write about Christmas inRencontre West by way of getting you all inthe Christmas spirit, but I was afraid thatsubject would have the opposite effect. Toomuch of a good thing you know?

I’m going to change this year and recallthe dinners we had on Christmas Eve in thewarehouse at Bishop’s Falls. This was alwaysone of my favorite times in life at Hydro al-though it did leave me bloated to the point ifyou tried to slew your head the next day youwould be still giddy.

The celebrations started around 10:00 AMdepending on the demands from operationspersonnel. We would have the roast of beefcooking since 8:00 AM. The cooks were inthe kitchen peeling vegetables and generally


making the tables look festive. At the timestated above someone went in the yard andtold Andy and Harvey to come in. Dick putthe inside forklift on charge, the Christmascheer came out, and the party started.

People from other departments dropped byto exchange greetings of the season and havea little nip. Our crew visited the main of-fice, had a drink, exchanged pleasantries andwatched Joe dance with the girls.

Back in the warehouse we all proceeded upstairs and sat down to a delightful repast.Our cooks always did themselves proud. Thedinner was roast beef, all the vegetables, athick gravy, and desert. The wine was usuallysupplied by Dave Abbott; Dave made goodhomemade wine. After the blessing, we alltucked in. It always took me 2 days to getover it.

I don’t think you could get much betterChristmas Spirit than what we had there to-gether.

A lot of our friends are gone now, but thememories still remain for a lot of us.

Here’s a little side story: One of our valuedemployees/friend was Dicky Kelly. Dick wasa world war two veteran. Dick loved hisdrink and a game of cards at the Legion inBishop’s Falls. On this particular occasionDick and his friend had purchased a ticketbetween them on a car. That night the ticketwas drawn and Dick and his buddy won.The friend suggested that they sell the carand split the winnings but Dick was havingnone of that. “We’ll cut the cards”, saidDick, “highest card wins”. Dick lost!!!

Bits & Pieces

Last year I reported that Allan Parsonshad taken up skating and was learning fairlywell. This month, he practiced falling, noton his tail bone like everyone else but on histhumb. I have no idea how you could dis-locate your thumb skating but Allan did it.Nice one Allan; Dont give up! You could stillmake the Maple Leafs.

Allan was Traffic Officer with the MaterialsManagement Department in St. John’s.

For some time now I have been trying toget some stories for Janet’s bulletin but I’mnot getting much response. Who am I kid-ding? No response whatsoever. Now it’s timefor more forceful action. I’ve put together alist of all the locations of Howard Oldford’sbest berry picking spots. For one of your Hy-dro stories I will divulge this information toyou.

Half of the engineers and other profession-als that worked with Hydro over the yearsstarted out with George Burge on the spraycrew. Imagine the good anecdotes that couldbe told about that. I’m well aware that alot of these stories could not be put in print,but there are some of them that our retireeswould really love to hear.

How about emergencies in the diesel plantson the Coast of Labrador or getting damagedlines back in service? There’s a lot of storiesout there people, so let’s share them with ourSilver Light members before these stories be-come just a memory for a few.

This offer applies to all retirees. Give me astory and I will show you where Howard getsall his berries. I ask only one thing - keepthis a secret because if Howard gets wind ofmy plan he could be vexed.


They never told me the things I would haveto do when I took this job.

Seasons Greetings

From the Jerry Mark’s Breakfast Club, mytechnical assistant Bob, and myself, have aMerry Christmas and a Happy and Prosper-ous New Year. Please put your Hydro safetyknowledge to good use this Christmas andplease don’t drink and drive. When youdo drive, drive defensively like Dennis Mc-Carthy, Bob Larson, Horace Pye and RayO’Neill taught us.

REMEMBER!!!!!!!!!!!

You don’t have to drink in the morningsafter a party to be impaired. The alcoholremains in your system for 24 hours. I some-times wonder if this would account for thenumber of impaired drivers on our roads to-day. Don’t become a statistic for MADD tobe talking about.

I know I’m preaching again so forgive mefor caring.

Bob and Ken at the nerve center.

25 Year Club

Below are the names of the employees whohave joined the ranks of the 25 Year Club.Congratulations to all!Janet BrushettKen HaywardRobert CaterScott SimmsAlex Lau

Membership Fees

We remind any of you who have not paid yourSilver Lights Club Membership fees that wehave converted to a one-time lifetime mem-bership of $80, less any fees paid previously.Please send your cheque to the SecretaryTreasurer at the address indicated on the let-terhead of this Newsletter.

Also Available!! Silver Lights members whoare still active employees can now pay theirfees through payroll deductions. If this isof interest to you, please contact the SilverLights Office for a form to have the deduc-tions started.

Club Service and Support

Part of our mandate is to support club mem-bers when needed. If you have a family mem-ber in hospital and would like us to visit,


please give us a call. Visitations and otherhelp is extended to all club members andtheir families, but it will be done on a familyrequest basis only.

Team Gushue Highway Cleanup

Silver Lights has committed to cleaning up aportion of the Team Gushue Highway. Twicea year, in the spring and again in the fall, ateam of volunteers arm themselves with lotsof enthusiasm, not to mention garbage bags,and head off to do battle with the litter. OnOctober 30, Silver Lights’ members, togetherwith Gerard Piercey and some of his staff,met at Hydro Place. Reg White was thecoordinator of the cleanup. He made surethere was a good supply of bottled water andgarbage bags for our 17 volunteers and thatthey each had appropriate safety gear on. Allthat was left was to assign each of them to anarea and then they were off to conquer thegarbage and litter!!

As the morning progressed, the “litter-busters” piled the filled garbage bags alongthe side of the highway for pickup by theHighway crews later on that day. After thecleanup was finished, the team met back atHydro Place where they enjoyed lunch com-pliments of Silver Lights.

Many thanks to our cleanup crew for a jobwell done!! Below are some pictures from thecleanup.

The next highway cleanup will take placein the spring of 2014. If you would like to par-

ticipate, stay tuned for the advance notice inthe newsletter or contact Silver Lights. (Seethe contact information at the end of thisnewsletter.) We’d love to have your helpinghands next year!

Ewart, Aubrey and Vern preparing forthe cleanup

Gerard Piercey and his staff


Doing a great job

Getting the job done

Lots of litter going into the garbage bags

The cleanup continues

Those sides are steep

What is this doing here?


Lunch back at Hydro Place

Congratulations on a job well done!

Well deserved lunch in the cafeteria

Santa Claus Parades

There’s nothing better than a good SantaClaus parade to get everyone in the moodfor Christmas. For me, and the hundreds ofother people who lined the parade route forthe St. John’s Santa Claus parade, it’s theunofficial start to the Christmas season.

This year, the theme for the Christmasparade was “Christmas Around the World”.Our enthusiastic team of volunteers (carpen-ters/drivers/safety walkers) included GerryBowers, Reg White, Dennis Jones, Bill Day,Vern Penney, George Fowler, John Mallamand of course, our team captain - CindyMorgan. It takes a tremendous amount ofwork to get the creative idea magically trans-formed into an actual float. Once the ideafor the float has been agreed upon, it’s offto get materials, tools if needed, and otherprops. Cindy looks after all the paperworkand red tape associated with the parades andkeeps a watchful eye on overall constructionprogress. If we need families to man thefloat for the different parades, it’s Cindy whomakes that happen and she sees that theyhave appropriate costumes to wear. We oweher a big “Thank-you”!! We would also liketo say “Thank-you” to George Warren (Hy-dro Place) and his wife, Elsie, and two sons,Thomas and Michael, for manning the floatfor the St. John’s parade and to Stella Fowlerand grandson, Wyatt Fowler, for being on thefloat for the Holyrood parade. According toall accounts, both families had a great timedespite the cold. A special word of “Thanks”to Nalcor for once again supporting our par-ticipation in the parade through their finan-


cial support.

The Silver Lights’ float was once again anaward winner. This year, our float took tophonours for best float for the Mt. Pearl andHolyrood parades! Well done everyone!

Below are some pictures from the St.John’s Santa Claus parade. We hope you en-joy them!

PreFloat Construction Think Tank

Drills, Hammers, Nails, Ready to Start

Tools of the Trade

Lots of Progress

The Float Starts to Come Together


This Looks Like a Roasting Pig!

Yes It is a Roasting Pig!

No Doubt About It. It’s a Pig!

Dennis Keeps an Eye on that Pig

Wires Everywhere

Work Crew Takes a Much Deserved Break


Finishing Touches

Palm Trees?

Gerry Drives the Precious Cargo

“Christmas in Cuba” Leaves Holyrood

What More Can You Say?


Bill and Gerry Waiting for the Parade toStart

Bill Day is our Safety Walker

The Warren Family: Elsie and Georgewith the Straw Hats on and Their Sons,

Thomas and Michael

George Keeps a Close Eye on theRoasting Pig!


Everyone is Ready Including the Pig

Gerry Drives the Lead Vehicle

Getting Ready for the Parade to Start

Lots of Dogs Sporting Christmas Hats

Minnie and Mickey are Always Favourites

Palm Trees instead of Spruce Trees


RNC Horses at St Johns Parade

City of St Johns Float

Roating Pig over Flames

Some of the Dancers in the Parade. SeeBill in the background?

Stockings Hung by the Fireplace


The Float Moves off and the Pig isRoasting Nicely

The Keystone Cops Have their Man

The Keystone Cops Having a Great Timein the Parade

The RNC Keeping an Eye on theKeystone Cops


Everyday Life

10 Ingredients for RetirementBliss

Chris Schwartz

With the start of a new year, everyonetakes time to reflect on the past and look tothe future. While this quarter’s article is notdirectly related to improving your finances, itlooks at different ways to live the best retiredlife possible - whether you are getting readyto stop working or well into your retirementyears. Not all points are relevant to everyone,but most provide some thought to enjoy yournon-working years.

The day is coming when you may decide todepart the working world and join those luckypeople living in retirement. You have paidyour dues, and now it is time to relax andenjoy the fruits of your labor. Retirementcan be a time to do what you have alwayswanted to do with your life.

Once you make the move, you want to getthe most out of those days by living a secondact that stimulates your senses and gives youa reason to get out of bed each morning. Ifyou call it quits at 65 your retirement couldlast for 20 or more years. Here are some im-portant ingredients that can help you live thebest retired life possible:

A healthy balance between activityand relaxation. Few retirees would

be satisfied with a retirement made upentirely of doing nothing. Sure, aftera busy career the first months or ini-tial year of retirement may involve catch-ing your breath a bit. But what aboutthe many years to follow? A life filledwith only relaxation can lead to bore-dom. The best solution can be to seek abalance between activities to keep busyand downtime to take it easy. Findingthe right combination that meets yourpersonal tastes can help to keep the daysinteresting and exciting.

Meaningful moments. At the end of theday, it can be rewarding to look back andsee that you have accomplished some-thing of worth. It may be as simple ashelping a neighbor in need or as muchas dedicating a day at the local shelter.Retirement can begin to lose its luster ifyou fill the hours without helping others.

Meaningful moments and achievementscan help give substance to your dayand perhaps even inspire you to greaterthings.

Energy to keep at it. Things get tougheras we age, and slowing down is a naturaloccurrence. But we dont want to watchlife from the sidelines. Though its notalways easy, if we can push ourselves alittle bit each day to get moving and stayactive we will enjoy better health in thelong run.

A happy spouse. After many years to-gether making it through the good andthe bad, the ability to bring on a smile orlaugh with our partner never grows old.


What brought us together so long agohas matured and evolved, and hopefullywe are learning to accept the inevitablechanges that come with the years to-gether.

Remembering the life lived. One of thecruelest parts of aging can be memorychallenges. Thoughts of our most vividlife moments may dim with time. Somepeople are blessed to have sharp mindsthat are able to recall distant days andevents in great detail. But rememberingspecial events and the people most cen-tral to our lives is not guaranteed as weage.

Maintaining independence. In an idealretired life, we will be able to remainin our own home in relative safety andhave sufficient money to pay our billsand maintain a reasonable quality of life.But sometimes it becomes necessary toincreasingly rely on others as we age.

Being a good grandparent. In the roleof grandparent, we have the rare oppor-tunity to be the good guy virtually allof the time. When trouble rears its uglyhead, we can call in the reinforcementsotherwise known as parents. Our jobis to spoil, love and instill happiness inthese joyful little people. We all wantto be the favorite grandparent who theyoungsters look forward to visiting. Thegood news is all it really takes is somelove and attention with a dash of pa-tience and a good sense of humor.

Living according to a personal retire-ment plan. Whether you want to ex-plore things you have never done be-

fore or take it easy, having some idea ofhow your retired life will look before youquit your job is a great way to focus onthe things that can maximize your re-tirement happiness. Think about whatactivities, hobbies and events will makeup your days, who you will choose tospend your time with and develop a planto maintain good physical and mentalhealth.

Sharing love. Whether its a spouse, goodfriend, family member or even a fluffypet, we all need a recipient of our love.We know how happy we become whensomeone makes the effort to show theylove us. And for many people it can beeven better to give than to receive.

Not being a burden. In the role of par-ents, many people have been the personwho children could rely upon. We tookcare of their needs for school, security,health and support. Now in retirementwe hope to avoid reversing those rolesand becoming a burden on their busylives.

Revised from “Retirement - Only the Begin-ning” Blog.

About the Author

Chris Schwartz, CMA is a Wealth Advi-sor with ScotiaMcLeod and works with theMYW Group. He can be reached at 576-1387or [email protected]

mailto:[email protected]


Christmas From the Archives

Janet CalverI’ve mentioned before how much I enjoyscrolling through the Centre for Newfound-land Studies at Memorial University just tosee what’s there. The other day I randomlypicked a year, 1955 and happened upon theDecember 24th issue of the Daily News. Al-most sixty years ago! It’s true what peoplesay though some things change but otherthings stay the same. There were storiesof tensions in Israel and Jordan, fightingbetween Algerian rebels and French troops,flooding in California and Nevada, and 11,000layoffs at the Ford plant in Oakville, On-tario. But all was not bleak. There werelots of make-you-feel-good stories that reaf-firmed the Christmas message - taking careof those less fortunate, extending the hand ofkindness, and spending time with family andfriends. Below are just a few gems I found. Ihope you enjoy the walk back in time!

Editor’s Message (Daily News, Satur-day, December 24, 1955)

Christmas

One may often hear people at this time of theyear complaining of the great preparation forthe celebration of Christmas Day. All this,they say, for just a few hours of one day. Butthese are people who miss the real meaning ofChristmas, people who have lost the capac-ity to feel deeply and to make out of the sea-sonal chores part of the joy of its commemo-ration. All the work that goes into it should bea labour of love else the real spirit of yuletide

is absent.There is not a great deal that can be said

about Christmas that has not been said be-fore and said much better. There is little thatcan be said that is not trite and platitudinous.Who does not love to hear Charles Dickens’Christmas Carol read aloud and what is triterthan some of the writing in that self samestory? But it breathes the spirit of Christ-mas, the love that can fill even the stoniestof hearts, the countless sacrifices designed tobring pleasure and happiness to others, thegenerous thought and the open hand and fi-nally the family reunion and general good fel-lowship.

The toil and effort that may go into prepa-rations for Christmas may bring a measureof weariness but ought never to cause agrumble or complaint. It should all be part ofthe fun, of the great satisfaction to be derivedfrom thinking and working and planning notonly for oneself but for family and friendsand for the poor and friendless as well.The actual celebration on Christmas Dayis simply the grand climax to a wonderfulseason. And what a season it is to be sure.Scott expressed it well when he wrote,“England was merry England, whenOld Christmas brought his sports again,’Twas Christmas broach’s the mightiest ale;’Twas Christmas told the merriest tales;The poor man’s heart through half the year.”

Times have changed a great deal sincethis was written. But if the preparationsfor Christmas involve today greater com-plexities than was the case a hundred yearsago, in essence nothing has changed. The


fundamentals of Christmas remain, thepleasure of giving, the joy of receiving tokensof affection from others, the happy familyaround the Christmas tree and the pleasureof the Christmas table, the age-old charm ofancient and joy-filled carols, the continuousrepetition of “Merry Christmas” and thefeeling that all the world has come brieflytogether to share a common happiness, thesethings are timeless. They harbour greattruths and enduring sentiments that changesin the outward trappings cannot harm. Maythat spirit prevail and may this be a happyand joyous Christmas for all.

The radio continued to play a significantrole for entertainment back in the 1950’s.Check out the ad for this Boxing Daybroadcast.

Annual Folk Song Broadcasts

The Annual Boxing Day broadcast of New-foundland Folk Songs which is presented withthe compliments of Gerald S. Doyle will beheard this year on CBC Nfld. Network at 8:00- 8:30 pm on Monday, December 26.

Included in this year’s program will besome of the old favourites, as well as two newsongs which have been recorded locally for theFolk Song Programme. Each year, GeraldS. Doyle Limited brings us this enjoyablehalf-hour, featuring our own songs and weare happy to see that once again, this year,our Folk Songs will be aired in the AnnualBoxing Day Programme.

There were advertisements for four differ-ent movie theatres and the movies that werecurrently playing:The Cornwall showing “The Bridges atToko-Ri”The Paramount showing “Seven Cities ofGold”The Star showing “Father Brown, Detective”The Capitol showing “My Sister, Eileen”

It seems that you could see these moviesfor .50 for a matinee or .75 for an eveningshow - children were half price!

VOWR, VOCM, CBC and CJON-TV hadfull listings for Christmas Eve, ChristmasDay and Boxing Day.

If you wanted to go dancing, then theCrystal Palace was the place to be. TheCrystal Palace was open Christmas Eve,Christmas Day (at 7:00 pm) and BoxingDay, while The Piccadilly Club would beopen only on the 26th and 27th.

If skating was more your thing, then theStadium would be open on Boxing Day forgeneral skating (2:00 pm to 4:00 pm)

There was a full page of church announce-ments and service schedules. Churches of allfaiths had services scheduled for ChristmasDay.

The Woman’s Page (sorry men - therewas no page devoted to you!) was whereyou found out exactly who was doing what


(sounds a lot like Facebook!). It included achit-chat column of who was moving to anew home, who was getting married, whowas going away on vacation, who was havinga birthday and who was coming home forChristmas.

Finally, there was a short story on howone family had gotten rid of their TV setand had “reclaimed their lives”. How doesthis compare to today’s addiction to tablets,iPads and texting?

The Smiths’ have gotten rid of their TVset. And they claim they wouldn’t have itback if the rabbit ears were gold tipped withdiamonds. They have recaptured a way of liv-ing that TV drowned out in loud commercials,blaring music and stale jokes. The drastic de-cision that their TV set was expendable cameafter Mr. and Mrs. Smith sat down one nightand confronted all the changes it had broughtin their home.

Nobody listened to their collection of beau-tiful records anymore.

Evenings of games and family fun had dis-appeared as parents and children sat eveningafter evening before the one-eyed monster.

Reading for pleasure was a thing of thepast. The printed word casts its spell in peace-ful quiet and there is no peace and quiet in ahome where a TV set blares forth program af-ter program.

Even dinner table conversation was af-fected. Either the family watched some mem-ber’s “favourite program while they ate orhurried through dinner so as to get to theireasy chairs in time for a half-hour play or

30 minutes of watching a comedian earn hisweekly fortune.

Few plans were made for the family to takeadvantage of the music, plays, lectures, etc.,that were available. It was so much easier tosit at home and watch TV.

About all that we and our children were get-ting out of our leisure time is what the TV sethas to offer. And that is a mighty “slim diet”the Smiths decided. The TV set had to go.

They say they occasionally miss somethinggood they would have enjoyed. But the timethey have gained for more enjoyable familyliving by being freed from TV watchinghas more than made up for the occasionalworthwhile programs they have missed.

Then there was the comic section. Fea-tured in that day’s newspaper were: Pricilla’sPop, Freckles and his Friends, Archie, Bootsand her Buddies, Alley Oop, Bugs Bunny,The Story of Martha Wayne, Sir ArthurConan Doyle, Wash Tubbs and Vic Flint.

My favourite part of the paper has to bethe advertisements. Throughout the paper,there were pages of advertisements from var-ious stores. I’m sure some of the names willbe familiar to you. They included:

Bon Marche

Men’s bomber jackets for $3.95Men’s windbreakers for $5.95Ladies’ and Mens’ Wool Gloves for .75 eachMen’s Elastic Braces for .39 and .65 pairMen’s Belts for .75 eachLadies’ Sweater for $2.45


Tooton’s (reminding you to pick upyour film and flash bulbs)

Ayre & Sons

The Royal Stores Ltd.

The Royal Stores advertised Dinner Dressesand Formal Dresses, various sizes, variouscolours, now 33 1/3 off

Parker & Monroe The Shoe Men

The Great Eastern Oil Company, Lim-ited

Their slogan was “Let Her Remember it asthe Year you Gave Her... a Marconi life-testedtelevision or a President washer or a Gilsonrefrigerator

Musical Clock (Water Street oppositethe Court House)

Milley’s

Children’s Fur Mitts for .97 pairBoys’ Leather Mitts for $1.10 and $1.30Childrens’ Wool Caps for .75Girls’ Plaid Dresses for $2.10 and $2.30Rayon and Cotton Tablecloths for .97Girls’ Black Hose for .50Ladies’ Angora Gloves for $1.25Gift Soap, Boxed 24 cakes for .75

The following businesses sent generalChristmas greetings and best wishes:

Christmas Greetings from:

Capital TaxiMax Lawlor - ButcherFoster’s Meat MarketR. H. Trapnell Ltd. JewelersSimon Levitz & SonHUB TaxiA. G. BarnesP. J. Lewis Meat MarketErnst Clouston Ltd.Coveyduck’s SupermarketKing’s Bridge Service StationMurphy’s Drug StoreLar’s Fruit MarketConnor’s Snack BarBelmont TavernRoyal Garage LimitedFlower Hill GroceryW. J. MurphyMcDonald’s Fruit StoresCity Fish ShopHouse of FlowersLeMarchant Drug StoreO’Mara’s Drug StoreMcKinlay Motors Ltd.Snow White LaundryCanada Packers LimitedGuards Bowling AcademyBrown’s Service StationCottage Gardens Tea RoomsBen Tulk Ltd. The Key House

Just before I started to put together the


articles for the newsletter, I came across thisbook called “Twelve Tales for Christmas”,written by J.S.S. Armour. For twenty-oneyears, Rev. Armour was minister of St.David’s Presbyterian Church in St. John’s.In 1983 he and his family moved to Montrealand he was minister of The Church of St.Andrew and St. Paul from 1963 to 1998.Today, he still serves as minister Emeritus.During his time there, CBC Radio starteda Christmas sing-in from the Church. Themusic included Christmas music for theorgan and choir as well as general congre-gation carol singing. During the sing-in,Rev. Armour would tell a Christmas story.The “Twelve Tales for Christmas” is acompilation of those stories. I hope youenjoy the story I have picked out

Miss Burry’s Christmas Din-ner

(Printed with permission of Rev. J.S.S.Armour. 1999 The Church of St. Andrewand St. Paul; ISBN 0-9685857-0-1)

Once not too many years ago in the ancientport city of St. John’s, Newfoundland therelived an old lady by the name of Miss Burry. Isay “Miss” advisedly, for although I know fora fact that her Christian names were GraceElizabeth Mary, no one dared to address herby any of these names, for Miss Burry was avery proper lady, as befits one who taught in

a one-room school for a great number of yearsat Herring Harbour, Bonavista Bay.

But that was long long ago. Miss Burry hadcome to reside in a boarding house on Hamil-ton Avenue, not far from Patrick Street.

At first, she had stayed in one of the spa-cious downstairs rooms but as time went onand money ran short, she moved up in thehouse, until, at length, she occupied a smallroom on the third floor back. Mr. and Mrs.Albert Hodder, whose boarding house it was,were quick to assure Miss Burry when shepaid her rent each week that because she wassuch a good tenant - “a real credit to the house(not like some that could be named)” - therent would stay just where it had been thesetwenty years, and would Miss Burry not dothem the great kindness to stay and have hertea with them this very night?

But Miss Burry would reply quite stifflythat she already has had her tea, and quicklystart up the stairs to her room.

“Honest to God, Bert, what does that littlebird of a woman live on? Tea and toast anda boiled egg.” But no matter how often or howkindly she was asked, the answer was alwaysthe same.

“I have had my tea, thank you. Perhapsanother time.”

The exception was Christmas. Miss Burryhad a nephew who lived with his wife inMount Pearl. Every Christmas Day - for aslong as anyone on Hamilton Avenue couldremember, the nephew would arrive in hiscar at precisely 11 o’clock, and pick up MissBurry, who waited for him at the door dressedin her Sunday best, returning her in theevening, after what she could only describe to


Mr. and Mrs. Hodder as a most sumptuousfeast.

“Quite the best Christmas dinner ever,”she would say. It was the highlight of MissBurry’s year. Indeed, last Christmas, whenMiss Burry returned from Mount Pearl, shemissed her footing on the stair and sat downquite unexpectedly on the bottom step. WhenMr. and Mrs. Hodder rushed to her aid, shewaved them away with a rare burst of laugh-ter.

“Too much rum in the Christmas pudding,I expect,” she said, as gathering her dignityabout her, she continued her uncertain way tothe third floor back and the sanctuary of herown little room.

“You could have knocked me over with afeather. Our own Miss Burry - tight as a tickshe were.”

But, alas, this year would be different. Thenephew had died on St. Patrick’s Day and hiswidow had moved to be with a daughter in theBoston States. It was now nearly Christmas.What was to be done about Miss Burry?

The Hodders, of course, had invited her- as had one or two friends in the UnitedChurch Women of Wesley Church. BrideMurphy and the Catholic ladies of PatrickStreet assured Miss Burry that there wasmore than enough room at their tables for herthis Christmas.

To one and all, the answer was a firm andfinal “No”.

Miss Burry was most grateful for their kindinvitations, but this year she was going tohave her Christmas Dinner at GovernmentHouse!

“Government House! My God, Bert, the

poor old soul! She has starved away her san-ity, right enough. All that tea and toast hasquite done her in. It’s The Mental for hershortly, just you mark my words.”

Now to understand the consternation of theHodders, indeed of all Hamilton Avenue andhalf of Patrick Street - one must know some-thing of Government House - the grandestresidence in all Newfoundland.

A splendid stone mansion set in its ownpark, reached through impressive iron gates,up a sweeping drive to a porte-cochere en-trance, it quite puts Ottawa’s Rideau Hall inthe shade.

It was built in the last century for HisExcellency The Governor, who arrived fromEngland in a warship and lived in much statewith equerries and fine ladies and only ap-peared in public wearing a plumed hat and auniform shining with medals.

Things were somewhat less grand sinceNewfoundland joined Canada. The post wasnow His Honour The Lieutenant-Governor,and was held by a Newfoundlander, but themystique of Government House remained.An invitation to dine within its walls wasa rare honour reserved for Queens and vis-iting dignitaries, its long mahogany tableset amidst gilt-framed portraits and twinklingchandeliers, its polished silver and gleam-ing crystal, its monogrammed china andlinen napkins like tiny bishops’ mitres stifflymarching down the table.

You can be sure there was much talkover the teacups at the next United ChurchWomen’s meeting at Wesley Church andmuch concern expressed at the Legion ofMary at St. Patrick’s and the houses and lit-


tle corner stores around Hamilton Avenue atPatrick Street. What was to be done aboutpoor Miss Burry? A delusion of grandeur,no doubt. T’was the nephew’s unexpecteddeath... And of course, there was the mat-ter of her age. “Old as Buckley’s goat, sheis!”

The Hodders set an extra place for Christ-mas Dinner. “Why,” they would say, “thegrand folks of Government House must haveforgotten. Never you mind. Just march rightin here, Miss Burry, my dear, and take yourplace at our table. Not to fret. They mustsurely meant that old levee on New Year’sDay - when the Premier and his crew, HerWorship the Mayor, His Grace and the LordBishop and the President of our own blessedConference, go to show their respects...”

On Christmas Day, at precisely 11 o’clock,Miss Burry appeared at the door. She wasdressed in her Sunday ‘best’, wearing hermother’s black bugle beads. Miss Burrywaited in the cold and all the houses onHamilton Avenue at Patrick Street held theirbreath. Of course, nothing happened. Noth-ing could possibly happen - but still MissBurry waited, her face all expectation.

The street was quite empty. The onlythings that stirred were the lace curtains be-hind which lurked many an anxious face.

“When in the name of Fortune is FlossHodder going to step out and lead the poorold soul indoors?”

And then suddenly, a long black car ap-peared - a gold crown at the front - a smallofficial flag snapping briskly on its hood. Itdrew up to the house and a uniformed chauf-feur jumped out and held the black door open.

“Miss Grace Burry?”Miss Burry nodded.“His Honour is expecting you.”As the car drew away from the curb that

Christmas morning, you could almost hearthe cries of astonishment from every houseon Hamilton Avenue at Patrick Street.

But if anyone had bothered to read thecurriculum vitae of the new Lieutenant-Governor of Newfoundland and Labrador,they would have noted that he was born inHerring Harbour, Bonavista Bay, and hadsaid quite publicly that he owed all his suc-cess to a certain wonderful teacher who haddedicated her whole life to her pupils.

“Happy Christmas, dear Miss Burry.White meat or dark?”


Health & Wellness

Over the past few weeks, Canadians in gen-eral have suffered through severe ice stormsand winter weather. It never hurts to have areminder or two about how to prepare yourhome for the inevitable. (This information,together with the hyperlinks, was found onthe CBC website: www.cbc.ca)

Power Outage Tips:

1. The federal government warns that peo-ple should always be prepared for 72hours without electricity while emer-gency workers focus on those in urgentneed. That includes preparing an emer-gency kit and an emergency plan.

2. Check on vulnerable people such as se-niors and people with mobility issues.

3. Do not use generators or barbecues in-doors as this will create a carbon monox-ide hazard. Also, ensure that batter-ies are working in carbon monoxide andsmoke detectors. ”I can’t stress enough,”Toronto Deputy Fire Chief Mike McCoysaid. ”Any appliance in the home thatburns whether it’s a barbecue, whetherit’s a gas appliance if the home staysclosed and there’s no way to bring infresh air, oxygen, you’re going to run intoa CO issue.”

4. Do not burn trash or paper or in a fire-place, as flaming paper can travel up thechimney and land on the roof.

5. Prefer a flashlight to a candle. If youmust use a candle, make sure the glassshade is higher than the flame to protectagainst burning loose clothing. Blow outthe flame when you leave the room andkeep candles away from children.

6. The Canadian Food Inspection Agencyadvises that a full freezer will keep foodfrozen for about 48 hours after it losespower, a half-full freezer for about 24hours. An unopened refrigerator willkeep cold for about four hours. Afterthat, try to relocate the food somewherecold like just outside your front door,if the temperatures are frigid. When indoubt, throw it out.

7. Keep a few taps turned on to a trickle toprevent pipes from freezing.

8. You may find that your cellphone is youronly remaining means of communicationwith the outside world, and if so youshould conserve battery life. You canmake the most of a limited resource byturning down the screen brightness andturning off power-hungry functions suchas Bluetooth, WiFi and location ser-vices.

9. Avoid internal wires or fuses that mayhave come into contact with water.Leave those to an electrician if you haveconcerns.

10. Keep appliances unplugged or turned offto avoid problems when the power re-sumes.

www.cbc.ca

http://www.getprepared.gc.ca/cnt/rsrcs/pblctns/yprprdnssgd/index-eng.aspx

http://www.getprepared.gc.ca/cnt/rsrcs/pblctns/yprprdnssgd/index-eng.aspx

http://www.inspection.gc.ca/food/information-for-consumers/fact-sheets/food-handling/emergency/eng/1331578972167/1331579901110


Ice Storm Tips:

1. If you have to go outside after an icestorm, watch for branches or wires thatcould break or fall due to the weight ofthe ice.

2. Don’t approach power lines or movedowned trees. Any hanging power linecould be charged. Stay back at least 10metres from wires or anything in contactwith them.

3. Avoid driving if possible. Freezing raincan make roads extremely slippery. Waitseveral hours after freezing rain endsso road maintenance crews have enoughtime to spread sand or salt on icy roads.

10 winter driving tips

4. Freezing rain and strong winds increasethe chances for hypothermia. Dress forthe weather with boots or shoes withrubber soles. If you live on a farm, movelivestock to shelter where feed is avail-able. Forage is often temporarily inac-cessible during and immediately after icestorms.

5. Stay tuned to local televisionor radio stations for weatheradvisories, and check http:

//weather.gc.ca/warnings/

EnvironmentCanadaforweatherwarnings.

Sources: Government of Canada, TorontoHydro, Canadian Food Inspection Agency,Toronto Fire Services

http://www.cbc.ca/ottawa/features/winter-driving/

http://weather.gc.ca/warnings/ Environment Canada for weather warnings




NALCOR News

Retirees

The Silver Lights Executive would like towish all new retirees congratulations and allthe best in your retirement.

Kevin Ricketts

Mar 30, 1979 - Started temporary ServiceMay 11, 1981 - Hired as Draftsman with the

Engineering Department in St. John’s2000 - Became Technologist - Drafter/CADDec 31, 2013 - Retired

Leonard Patey

Jul 29, 1985 - Hired as Diesel Plant Operator‘A’ with Power Distribution District in

St. Anthony. He was a relief/temporaryemployee and returned annually

Feb 8, 1988 - Accepted Permanent appoint-ment as “Operator” at a fully attendedplant in St. Anthony

Sep 11, 1989 - Appointed to MechanicalMaintenance ‘A’ with P.D.D. NorthernRegion in St. Anthony

Aug 1, 2005 - Appointed to MechanicalMaintenance ‘A’ (Heavy Duty Repaid)in Stephenville with Generations andTeminals

Dec 31, 2013 - Retired.

Charles Learning

Jun 5, 1989 - Hired as Mobile EquipmentOperator with CF(L)Co.

- Returned seasonally to the role of MobileEquipment Operator

Dec 31, 2013 Retired

Joan Penney

Jun 15, 1998 - Hired as General Help withCF(L)Co

- Continued to return to work with CF(L)Cofor the duration of her career taking po-sitions as General Help and Labourer

Dec 31,2013 Retired

Dwight Howell

Nov 27, 1978 - Hired as Line Apprenticewith a start in L’Anse au Loop

- Progressed through Apprenticeship andspent time in various areas includingStephenville and St. Anthony.


May 31, 1982 - Appointed to Lineman Awith PDD in L’Anse au Loop

- Continued his career there and has beenlead head in area.

Oct 31, 2013 - Retired

Eldon Emberley

Jun 4, 1990 - Hired as Auxiliary Operatorwith Holyrood Thermal Operations Se-cion

Dec 28, 1998 - Became thermal Plant oper-ator

Aug 14, 2006 - Appointed to Shift Supervi-sor with HTGS Operations

Oct 31, 2013 - Retired

James Lambert

May 16, 1977 - Hired as Station OperatorApprentice in CF(L)Co

- left for a short time

Jan 19, 1987 - returned as Station operatorin CFLCo

Nov 6, 2006 - Appointed to Sr Station Op-erator

Dec 31, 2013 - Retired

Charles Morris

Dec 5, 1983 - Hired as Electrical Tech-nologist with PDD in Happy Valley,Labrador

- Progressed through Technician and didrotations in province including Bishop’sFalls

Jan 14, 1988 - Appointed to DistributionTechnologist with Technical Services inBishop’s Falls

Apr 29, 1991 - Appointed to P&C Technol-ogist in Stephenville

Nov 8, 1993 - Appointed to DistributionTechnologist in TROC.

Nov 31, 2013 - Retired


The Lighter Side

Here is a little something to hopefully bringa smile to your face as you contemplate allthat snow and what to do with it !

One Christmas, a parent decreed that shewas no longer going to remind her childrenof their thank-you note duties.

As a result their grandmother never re-ceived acknowledgments of the generouschecks she had given.

The next year things were different, how-ever.

“The children came over in person tothank me,” the grandparent told a friend tri-umphantly.

“How wonderful!” the friend exclaimed.“What do you think caused the change in be-havior?”

“Oh, that’s easy,” the grandmotherreplied.“This year I didn’t sign the checks.”


Contacting the Silver Lights Club

The Silver Lights Office is located on the second level of Hydro Place. Our telephone numberis 709-737-1378. You can also contact the Executive directly:

President Gerry Bowers 722-6471Vice President Cindy Morgan 744-3700

Ex Officio Reg White 368-5200Past President Dennis Jones 368-2351

Secretary Treasurer Vern Penney 745-0705Silver Lights Editor Janet Calver 745-1343

Silver Lights Fax: 737-1231Silver Lights Email: [email protected]

Best Wishes for a Very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from your Silver LightsExecutive Team, your Editor and their Husbands and Wives! From left to right: VernPenney, Linda Penney, Glenn Morgan, Cindy Morgan, Brian Gamberg, Janet Calver,

Heather Bowers, Gerry Bowers, Reg White, Phyllis White, Dennis Jones, Patricia Jones

Documents

SilverLights Newsletter Vol 19 Number 4 · work that went into making the Silver Lights’ oat an award-winning entry! We welcome our newest members to the Silver Lights Club and