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Alumni News

The Spirit of Giving … Back: Celebrating Excellence at NT

’Tis the season: a time imbued with the spirit of giving. And for us at the Foundation, it’s all about the spirit of giving back. We have many opportunities throughout the school year to meet NT’s current students and to experience their amazing dynamism, intelligence and abilities. Please help us support these incredible young people as we wind up our Celebrating Excellence fundraiser for NTCI student scholarships. There can be no better way to provide for the future than by investing in our students.

We will be increasing the amounts of Foundation-funded scholarships by 10 per cent next year, bringing NTCI awards recognizing academics, athletics, arts and leadership more in line with current costs. Please consider helping us do this; 100 percent of donations to the Celebrating Excellence campaign will go directly to the scholarship fund.  

The Foundation truly appreciates your contributions to this campaign. Generous donors will be acknowledged on a plaque on the trophy case itself and may qualify for a year-end bonus (see below for details)!  All contributors will receive tax receipts (over $25).

  • Pentagon Patron: $1,000 and above
  • NT Norseman: $500 to $999
  • Spirit Sponsor: $250 to $499
  • Naming rights for the trophy case: $8,000. This is available to an individual, family, team or a graduation class.

Please mail your gift to: The NTCI Foundation at 17 Broadway Ave, Toronto, ON, M4P 1T7. Specify the Celebrating Excellence campaign. If you have any questions, please email Nancy McFadden at nancyanddoug.mcfadden@gmail.com or call (647) 351-2850.

Thank you so much. We cannot support this legacy of excellence without you.

With sincere wishes for your health and happiness in the coming year,

The NTCI Foundation

Year-End Bonus:

NT Pop Socket
NT Pop Socket

Gifts of $100 or more qualify for a free concert t-shirt (specify size), an NT pop socket or a copy of Hail! North Toronto: Celebrating a Century, our 2012 centennial history. If you donate $250 or more, you may select two. For Toronto residents: These NT heirlooms can be picked up in Room 412 at lunch and after school from Mark Kinoshita. Please contact Mark at mark.kinoshita@tdsb.on.ca to make the arrangement, and then check in at the office before going up. For those of you who live farther afield, call Nancy McFadden (contact above) to make arrangements.

Alumni News

Remembrance Day Assembly At North Toronto

Remembrance Day 2: Lt. Col. Michael Clarry (’81/’82) with NT students.

On November 10, North Toronto held a very meaningful and moving Remembrance Day service. The assembly began with a video featuring Terry Kelly’s “A Pittance of Time,” a song  that revolves around the two minutes of silence we hold for war veterans on November 11. This was followed by an entry parade of NTCI veterans and the NT Cadet Flag Party.

Principal William Mack opened the assembly with some brief remarks, and from that point on the NT students took charge. Four students told stories of former NT war veterans who had served. This helped to personalize mere names on a list. This was followed by student-made legacy slide show that once again told stories and humanized the lives of former NT students who fought for our country.

Remembrance Day 1: Lt. Col. Michael Clarry (’81/’82) addressing the assembly.

Lt. Col. Michael Clarry (NT ’81/’82) addressed the student body with a motivational talk, basing part of it on  John McCrae’s lines “To you, from failing hands we throw / The torch: be yours to hold it high.” The assembly continued with the presentation of a video outlining Canadian involvement in peacekeeping.

The final part of the morning involved some memorable artistic performances by NT students: the poem “Dulce et Decorum Est,” the song “Mother’s Pride,” and a beautiful choral rendition of “Un Canadien Errant.” After the “Last Post” was played, followed by a minute of silence and “Reveille,” the students all joined together to sing our national anthem with fervour.

The NTCI Foundation is honoured to fund this event every year and was gratified to receive warm thanks for this from John Taylor, staff advisor. The assembly was truly a special day in the life of our student body and highlighted the respect and high regard our students still have for those who went before them.

 

Alumni In The News

Diana Bishop (’71)

After a highly successful career in Canadian media and now heading up The Success Story Program, a personal branding business, NT alumna Diana Bishop has published her memoir, Living Up to a Legend: My Adventures with Billy Bishop’s Ghost. As the grand-daughter of WWI flying ace Billy Bishop and the great-great-granddaughter of Timothy Eaton, Diana grew up in a home that was far from ordinary. In her highly readable and often poignant book, she shares her grandfather’s powerful legacy and, although he died when she was only three years old, the profound influence he had on her life as well of that of her father.

The book and Diana’s story has been featured in both the Toronto Sun (http://torontosun.com/2017/06/04/living-in-the-shawdow-cast-by-first-world-war-hero-billy-biship/wcm/d095d36b-8544-42e8-959c-918d8f648a9a) and the Globe and Mail (https://beta.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/careers/leadership-lab/billy-bishops-grandaughter-we-have-never-been-hungrier-for-responsible-focused-authentic-visionaries/article35356583/). Published by Dundurn Press, Living up to a Legend is available at Chapters-Indigo, Amazon and directly through Dundurn Press.

Obituaries

Gordon Stanley Davies  (’53) (1933-2017)

Born in 1933, Gordon lived a rich and full life. He attended North Toronto in the glory days of Jack Dow and played violin in the school’s fledgling music program, although science ultimately proved to be his passion. After completing his PhD in marine biology at the University of California, he returned to Canada and accepted a position at the University of Waterloo in Canada’s first Environmental Faculty. He played a significant role in preparing Canada’s first Environmental Assessment Process, worked with Thomas Berger on the McKenzie Valley Pipeline inquiry and headed up Kenya’s Wildlife Planning Unit, which was responsible for establishing new national parks in that county.

Gordon had two sons – Erik (born in Nigeria) and Ben (born in Vancouver) – with his first wife, Anita D’Aoust. In 1989, Gordon suffered a life-altering stroke but, although partially paralyzed, continued to teach, work and travel. In 1996, he attended the Maytime Melodies 50th anniversary concert at Roy Thompson Hall and reconnected with Kay Smythe (née Charles, also ’53) – his first girlfriend at NT! – whom he had not seen since graduating. Kay and Gordon were married in Muskoka at a ceremony enhanced by a stirring rendition of John Rutter’s “The Lord Bless You and Keep You,” which had been performed at the 50th Maytime Melodies concert.

In living with a stroke-related disability, Gordon realized that there were no books written from the perspective of survivors. He took on the challenge of filling this void by interviewing other stoke survivors. Using a single finger to type, he documented their stories and his in What’s Your Handicap? A Guide to Stroke Recovery, published in 2014.

Known for his gentle humour and quiet wisdom, Gordon passed away peacefully on June 9, 2017, with his wife, sons and stepson at his side.

Alumni News

Alumni Are Always Welcome

At the end of the 2016–2017 school year, two alumnae from the class of ’63, Virginia Gibb and Marilyn Kidd, came back to visit their alma mater. They were pleased to see that their names were still displayed as Ontario Scholars in the hallway. In a letter of thanks, Marilyn remarked, “It was wonderful to see all the changes in the school as well as all the souvenirs of the past. It’s great that the school keeps its treasures and passes on a sense of history of the place for future generations. NT inspires a lot of loyalty in its students past and present. ‘True, ever faithful,’ as the song goes.

Alumni In The News

Nancy Steinhauer (’88) Pushing the Limits

When educator Nancy Steinhauer (’88) reconnected with a fellow NT alumna, editor Martha Kanya-Forstner (’87), who knew that the result would be an exciting new book? Pushing the Limits: How Schools Can Prepare Our Children Today for the Challenges of Topmorrow was co-authored by Nancy and lawyer and educational researcher Kelly Gallagher-Mackay (who attended NT before completing high school at Earl Haig) and edited by Martha Kanya-Forstner. The book draws on Nancy’s years with the Toronto District School Board as a teacher and principal and Kelly’s work as research director for People for Education to provide “a vision of what schooling can and should look like in our rapidly shifting world.” Highly readable, and of particular interest to parents and educators, the book highlights success stories of diverse and sometimes marginalized students and their innovative teachers in classrooms and schools where the future is now.

Nancy is currently principal of the Mabin School, one of Canada’s first Ashoka Changemaker Schools; Kelly is an assistant professor of law and society at Wilfred Laurier University. In 2016, Martha took on the role of editor-in-chief of McClelland & Stewart and Doubleday Canada and vice-president of Penguin Random House Canada.

The book and its authors have been featured:

Pushing the Limits is available in bookstores and through Penguin Random House (http://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/258497/pushing-the-limits-by-kelly-gallagher-mackay-and-nancy-steinhauer/9780385685382/).

Alumni In The News, Awards, Obituaries

NTCI Music Department & Foundation at Elvino Sauro Celebration

On September 30th, a celebration was held at the Toronto Skating, Curling and Cricket Club to remember the life of Elvino Sauro, who graduated from North Toronto Collegiate in 1952. Ron Wakelin, chair of the NT Foundation, spoke of Elvino’s involvement and the love he held for his high school. North Toronto was such an important part of Elvino’s life, and he always remembered a loan he received as a student to buy a trumpet and take music lessons.

In the past few years, he showed his gratitude by giving very generous endowments to our music program through the Foundation. After the speeches, 16 NT students, led by music teacher Liz Monteith, played some themes from movies. This was a fitting tribute to a man for whom film had been a lifelong love. After their performance the band played the school song, and over half of those in attendance rose to join in.

One interesting fact that emerged among the many tributes to Elvino was that he had a keen interest in gardening and planted a vegetable garden every year for over four decades. In some ways, this may be an apt way to remember Elvino: a person who planted seeds, cultivated healthy crops and lived to enjoy the results of his efforts.

While Elvino is no longer with us in body, the seeds he has sown will continue to bear fruit for generations to come. Many have benefited from the life of Elvino.
He will not be forgotten!

Awards, Fundraising

NT’s Dragon’s Den – October 2017

Last week the Foundation hosted our Semi-Annual Dragon’s Den, where students ask for funding for their various clubs. The Foundation gave out a total of $3500.00 to a variety of clubs.

As usual, the Foundation was happy to support Grafitti, the student newspaper – a long-established publication at the school. The Foundation also saw the merit in donating to the Prom Committee, who will set aside a lump sum of money to help those students who need financial assistance for this costly but memorable event. The Robotics Team received support for the cost of building their robots, as well as subsidizing the cost of attending competitions around the GTA.

For the first time, the Foundation donated money to the Archery Club. This club, affiliated with the NTCI Archery Team, received funding that will go towards the purchasing of bows and arrows, which often need replacing. Archery is currently one of the fastest growing sports in high schools around the province, and the Foundation is happy to promote its growth at the school.

In keeping with a long-standing tradition, the school’s annual Remembrance Day assembly, which is funded wholly by the Foundation, once again received support.

Awards

2017 Commencement Award Recipients

At this year’s Commencement on October 6th, the Foundation was pleased to present the following awards:

  • Betty Bealey Laureateship in English: Cassidy Bereskin
  • Hal Brown “Triple A” Award: Jocelyn Rough        
  • Kerr Trophy for Young Women: Katherine Aw
  • Sifton Trophy for Young Men: Jake Ballantyne
  • R.R.H. (Bud) Page Valedictory Award: Jake Ballantyne
  • Senator Keith Davey Award: Joshua Chong               
  • Gibbons Prize in French: Alice Liang        
  • NTCI Foundation Centennial Scholarship: Oceana Sinkovic

The total amount awarded was  $3,525.00. Thanks to all who donated and made this support for our students possible.

Alumni Events, Alumni News

Homecoming Concert – First in Every Way!

HOMECOMING CONCERT – FIRST IN EVERY WAY!

For those of you who were able to attend the inaugural Homecoming Concert on October 14th, you know just how lucky you were to be there. Alumni and guests were treated to an intimate concert with Jim Cuddy (’74) and The Skydiggers, including Andy Maize (’78) and Josh Finlayson (’82), along with special guests Devin Cuddy (’05) and Charlotte Cornfield (’06).

The evening started with music by Charlotte Cornfield, who mused that in Grade 10 she had been asked “not to return” to the NT Orchestra, after she’d missed a Kiwanis Festival event for a recording gig instead. Devin Cuddy, son of Jim Cuddy, and talented artist in his own right, played some soulful songs on the piano, and thanked a teacher at NT for encouraging him to follow his passion and pursue a degree in music.

After a long intermission, where NT alum gathered in the atrium to reminisce and catch up with old friends, alumni were treated to a lively concert by The Skydiggers that included some top-notch dancing in the aisles, and wonderful tales by lead singer Andy Maize. Maize recalled a bus ride to the Santa Claus Parade with the Marching Band, where music teacher Mr. Krueger had repeatedly reminded the musicians not to take their cases off the bus, as there would be nowhere to put them once the parade started. In typical Grade 9 fashion, Maize had ignored the repeated requests and ended up with his trumpet case on Bloor Street. While he couldn’t remember exactly what he had done with the case, he did remember Mr. Krueger’s choice words in response to his stupidity.

For the final act, Jim Cuddy took the stage with The Skydiggers to perform his own music, as well as some of his popular Blue Rodeo tunes. Cuddy, probably one of NT’s most famous alumni, confessed that he wasn’t really open about his musical talent in high school. In fact, Grade 11, when a friend he ran into in the “alley” on his way to audition for Maytime Melodies challenged him (“You?!”), he chickened out. Luckily, he eventually mustered up the courage to share his talent with the rest of us. In the final number, surrounded by The Skydiggers, Cuddy laughed that he never would have hung out with these “minor-niners” in high school, but that time had allowed them to finally come together.

No doubt, it will be the great music that most of us remember about the evening. But beyond that, it was the stories – the shared stories – that meant something to all of us. Because even if we didn’t all turn out to be rock stars, we all remember what it was like to be a minor-niner, afraid to walk up the alley, and in trouble with Mr. Krueger, or someone else, because we did something just a little stupid.

Special thanks to all of the artists, as well as Tammie Presnal Jennings (’82) and Lisa Pen (’82) for designing the logo for our swag, Phil Presnal (’85) for being our amazing sound technician, Peter Bombaci (’85) for being the awesome MC, and Principal William Mack for allowing it all to happen!