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She Moved North at 20… and Married the Neighbor · Ranch Wives Unsupervised

• Episode 30- Grandma Thompson: Did you ever have like a crazy cow or anything like any stories like that? let's see. Well Yes. There were those Yes. Every farm has them. It doesn't matter where you go, every farm does have one. The ones that they say, Okay, she's going on the truck And then she doesn't get on the truck. I know. Next year. Next next year. We'll try again next year. Yeah. She didn't quite make it. All right, friends. Okay, so we have a bit of a different episode for you this week. Trin is sick and down for the count. So we have roped in Grandma Thompson to come give us a hand. so she is gonna tell us some good old stories. And what was like when she was our age. That's right. So excited. I'm super excited too. Well, I hope I can yes, come up with what you're looking for the way. I don't think the expectation is high. No, okay. We're just here for a chat. Yeah. We're just here for a chat. Yes, and I know it's it's fun looking back at young people now, you know, and thinking, yeah. I was like that once too with little kids running around the house and things like that and yeah. So it was a lot different though for you raising kids. Yes. Even when I I came to Cecilake in nineteen sixty my friend Doreen Davies, she was then and I, we wanted to go somewhere exciting, somewhere adventuresome. Not some city school or something like that to teach. So we got a a job at the Trans Pine Two Room School. wow. And she taught the grade one to four and I taught five to eight. I know when I got here at that time the school education system was grade one to six. But there was no grade eight or grade twelve? Yeah, and then you went to junior high school and then to high school. So what we were taught in teacher college was basically one to six. When I got here I realized that out of the twenty six pupils in my class, thirteen of them were in grade eight. No. However, I thought, it's not that long since I was in grade eight. I should be able to handle this. I think I can figure this out. How old were you when you moved up? twenty. And where did you move from? I was born in Armstrong, BC, which is North Okanagan, very North Okanagan, sort of blending into the Shushwap country. And my friend was from Victoria. For her this was a real change. I at least was used to farms. Right. Although here the farms, the houses there was no running water and Yeah. no electricity. So we were behind the times is what you're saying. Up here was very behind the times. We were in our own little bubble. It was, yes. However, there were perks to it. It was we thought one of the highest paid teacher places in the province. Because nobody wanted to come here to teach here. Maybe, yeah. I know there were those who came though, just because they thought, Hmm Right. There were a lot of young couples because and singles because at that time there were a lot of one room and two room schools in in this area. Yeah. For example, here at Cecil Lake there was the Transpine School, which was already an amalgamation of the Cecil Lake School from the West End and Transpine. Pushed the two buildings together. Together. North Four miles was the Arenley School. That was a one room school. And then there was one at Flat Rock. There was one at what we called simply Schmelic because I'm gonna fix your mic really quick. There you go. Yeah. There you go. Because a lot of Schmelicks lived there. But that's out Nicola's call that was called that. And then further past that was the Elsas school, where you're starting to drop down to the Peace This is going out through Galata Creek. In the other direction there was a school north of Goodlow. There was not a Goodlow school, but one north of Goodlow at Moose Creek. And I think it was populated by two families. But anyway. Then there was one at Clayhurst. Okay. As well. So there was quite a few out here. They're just really small. Yes. Probably because the kids couldn't like you can't go very far the long distances, right? Right. There had to be a school close. Close. Yeah, 'cause there were we had a bus here for this amalgamated school. One bus. He went east in the morning and got the east kids and then they came first, then he went and got the west kids and then he came and at night then he took the east ones home first. Or I think that was the way it was. Anyway, they yeah. They After school we had the West kids. So we could we had kids here from I know the first morning we're very nervous, 20 year olds. Of course. Thinking about this is now an adult job. I am the adult job. I am now the one in charge. Yes. And suddenly we thought we're over in the teacherage. There's already kids over there. no. So we ventured over to discover, yes, that yes, there would be kids there. And after school only half of them would go home. We would still have the other half for a while. So they'd the bus would go one do one. It probably didn't fit all the kids in it to start with? No, I think they thought that yeah, that's true. It might it likely wouldn't have. And this way he could just go this way, back, and then pick up and then he didn't have them all. Yeah. It's probably easier on him not to have everybody crowded in there for the ones that had come back the other way. And one interesting thing, I think it was only in the very first month, one of the girls in grade eight told me, and there were kids who in those days you could fail a grade, so there were kids there perhaps a bit older. And she said, I won't be at school. For the next week, the thrashers will be at our place. It was definitely a time of thrashing machines. Yeah. And the crews would go around So they'll be at our place. So I said, well, you'll get a holiday from school. She looked at me with this look that said, Yeah. Anyway School was a holiday for her. Yeah, people say school sounds like the holiday. Afterwards, when I'd hear I me who I married later, he would tell me about yes, when we went to Gooding's place, boy they had pies and they had food to galore and they had all this stuff and I thought Yes, and I imagine Irene was up at four in the morning too and hauling water and washing dishes and peeling potatoes and making pies. So And there was no power. No. No. No running water. No. Okay, so when you first got into it and get all these kids and you're teaching, how did you find Cecil Lake on a map? Like how did this appear? Well, I have to admit when we got the job and we were recruited in Victoria by school board yeah from the north who are of course looking for someone to fill up all these schools up here. Mm-hmm. And so then I guess we knew it was near Fort St. John, so you just and we had applied to the district simply because we wanted to go somewhere. Far away. Adventuresome. Yeah. You know? Pick and choose where you can go. Yes, the things that you do when you're twenty twenty. Yeah. So did you meet your honey, your husband, here in Cecil Lake? Yes, yes. Okay, tell us about that. Okay. His parents lived just down the road from the school, a mile and a half or so. She had his mom did not have her teacher certificate, but she, because of the lack of teachers, had been teaching herself on a letter of permission. Really, so she such different times. I feel like you could not get away with that now. No. There were a lot of them. Who simply well you can read and write and you look intelligent and you're a good teacher. So here, it's a job. my goodness. So she had taught I think yes, several years. And the school was like on your quarter, right? It's on the quarter we live on now, yes. Yeah. Like it was like by the church. Yeah. Is now? Yeah. right? Yeah, that's where the school was. Yeah. Yeah. It sat right there. That had been the Transpine School. The building that was the original Transpine one was built from when the American army was here for the building of the highway. They left a lot of buildings, of course. So it would be Did it get it got moved up? Yeah, there was a lot of stuff around here built out of like the old Cecil Lake Hall, I think was built from From old army buildings. And then the Cecil Lake one, it had more of a plan. It had been built as a school. As a school? Yeah. And and then they had they had amalgamated it likely about six years previous to us coming. wow. And so those two schools were together. And then was there a little house that you lived in by the school? Yes. Yeah, there was a teacherage there that that we had. Yeah. I I was thinking back to the one thing again and I'm sure all young people starting on first time jobs will feel this, that the girl I mentioned who was staying home to help her mother with the thrashers turned sixteen and I thought, I'm twenty. She's only four years younger than I am. no. So was it common back then for kids? to miss school due to like the busy season 'cause this is a farming community. Yes. There w there were times, yeah, when, you know, well I have to stay home and help right now. Right. And I also knew of course that at that time you could legally quit school at grade eight or when you turned fourteen. So you know that you're looking at some kids that this is it. Yeah, this is it. Yeah. So you wanna make it as practical and and And one feels very inadequate somehow, so you hope you get through it. And and certainly we've some of those people are still here and they seem to have they made survived all the different teachers they had. How many years did you teach for? Just the two. Just and then you got married. Yeah. in in the second year I got married, yeah. Yeah, I met my husband, as I said. His parents lived down the road and they were one of the first ones to stop in and say hello. You know, I see your new teachers are here. So and at that time, just as it is right now, there was a provincial election. And of course this is our first time to be old enough to vote. And of course we don't know a soul up here. Yeah. So his mom and dad took us in to meeting in town where the candidates speak so that we at least have some idea of what who you're voting for, what you're voting for, what you're doing. Exactly. And then on the way home, it was well the it's the old hi road anyway, the one that comes down the other side of the hill. yeah, the Baldonald way. Yeah. And so on the way out that way there was a little restaurant and we had stopped there for Coffee or whatever. And I guess Wayne, who became my husband, was going by with his cousin. They were just coming in from the rigs somewhere and working. So Okay, to our audience, if there's a lot of cuts in this, we've been having nothing but technical issues on the audio side. So I'm really sorry. Shout out to Trinity. She's our tech lady. Yeah. This is what happens when Trinidad. Trin isn't Trin isn't here and it shows, okay? So I had to cut Grandma off in the middle of her story. and so we're gonna just kind of re-ask and go from there because that's yeah, we're having issues. We're having technical issues. Anyways, I'm not too sure where we are leaving off. I think I told you we went to this political meeting. Yeah, we're talking And on the way home stopped at a restaurant. That's where you met Grandpa. That's where you met Grandpa. And then his cousin came in 'cause they saw his dad's car there. And what I remember is they had they had no headlights and of course this is September and so I can't remember whether they asked if they could go ahead of of you know you guys to that your headlights. Yeah. to light up the way. Or if they were following us, I forget. And of course we still weren't used to that road which didn't have any abutments on the edge and sort of hung over the edges and so we were very happy to Yeah. I bet you were. So you guys met at this restaurant, you d they follow you home and was it love at first sight or was it we had to like see each other a few times? W we love a good love story, so do tell all the information. Well he showed up with his cousin who had been courting the teacher from the year before. Uh-huh. He showed up one night with him. And after we left they left, I remember my friend and I discussing Well, obviously it's not Vincent. He's already got a girlfriend. But Wayne looked so nervous. And That's a Thompson for you right there. Scared of women. So anyway then that was they just came to the house and then I think I don't know, I think you invited out to a movie or something and I know on my twenty first birthday we went to see I think it was called North to Alaska. Does that sound like something? Sounds like a movie. Sounds like it could be a movie. It sounds like there was a guy sang a song in it too. yeah. Okay. Yeah, Johnny Horton or something. yeah, no, there is there's a hundred percent a song about that. Yeah, there is. My husband sings it occasionally as a joke. So yes, yes, there is. So yeah, and and like I say, we we we got Because he he still had a younger brother in the school. Mhm. Neil is fourteen years younger than Wayne. wow. And so he was in grade one. So so of course we see would see his mom, you know, at PTA meetings and yeah. Things like that. So yeah, we had a lot to learn. There was a whole lot they didn't teach you in Teacher training. Yeah. Probably especially for rural schools. Yeah, it's a whole different breed out here. Exactly. It's time to build an ice rink. really? Okay. Thankfully the older kids remembered how you had to do it. So you know, they would tell us how you did this. And yeah, and for the spring track meet, because we had the two room school. All the other one room schools came here. you guys were the bigger We were I thought Really? We're supposed to be running a track meet with people we don't know. So again the big girls told us, Well, I think if you look in the attic, there's programs. yeah You know, all laid out. And you just get, okay, the teacher from Schmelec, you're in charge of broad jump and you are in charge of the high jump and you are That's so funny. Just you over here and you over here everybody's just fumbling around and making it work. That's right. And when we're done we'll all go up to the ball diamond by the hall and play ball. That's what you did. Yeah. That's what you seem so you you you learn to fit in with with whatever. And for myself, I came from a farm background, although as I say, we did have power and running water and stuff like that. That was different. yes. So but for my friend it was very different. I bet. Especially if sh yeah, you've got all of that and that's just a whole new world out there. Yes. And she came from Victoria, so there was no very different Yeah. So when you grew up as a kid, what did you guys what did you farm? We had a farm it was one of the oldest in the district there because it was settled by the Schuberts who were famous for having come to the Caribou Gold Rush as overlanders. I don't know if you've ever heard of them. Rather than getting on a ship and going around the whole world and coming in through Victoria. Yeah. These people came by train a certain way, by Red River cart from Winnipeg. to Fort Edmonton and on horseback into the mountains and then down the rivers. wow. Into Kamloops basically. so totally different then. Yes. wow. And the Schuberts were known because Mrs. Schubert, a feisty Irish woman said, You're not going without us. And so her and the three children came too. Really? I feel like that's like unheard of of that time. Yes. Like normally the guy went ahead, got things sorted, and then they'd send for the family. Yes. But she said, you're taking me too, and you're taking these kids as well. Oof. That would be something. That would be such a trek. It would be. And I I remember w at Edmonton I think they all got on horseback. So the boy rode, I think, the bigger boy. behind his dad and the two younger ones were in sort of duffel bags hanging off the behind the saddle for with the mom. Then when they got to they came down the what would be the North Thompson mhm and in the fall they were hungry because many of the native villages had been struck by disease and stuff and they were reduced to eating things like rose hips. Anyway, when they arrived in Kamloops, She had her fourth child. my goodness. And called her Rose. So and there's a mountain there by Armstrong that's called Rose Swans, and that was her married name. Right. To this day. Wow. And there are still descendants of them there. But anyway, this the original farm that they took up, because yes, they did go to the gold rush. But then, you know, all that glitters is not gold and lots of people thought, I think think there's a good place back there we could farm. Yeah. And it it was a place it was called Round Prairie because it actually was an area of sort of like prairie okay stuff in the midst of all the trees, sort of so yeah, I grew up on the farm there. My grandfather bought it in nineteen twenty. And yeah, so that's why it I mean it had running water from a spring up the mountains and it had one of the first power and telephone lines that came up. So so way ahead of a lot of other people there too. yeah. But yeah. So we had dairy cattle and I love a dairy cow. Jerseys. Okay. So I don't have but I do love They're very good. Very good. So did you grow up milking or anything like that? I didn't because I also had three brothers. okay, here we go. Yeah. We still had horses. Yeah. Like we were still using horses and I loved the horses. So as I got into chore things, it was always pigs and chickens and stuff like that. But I got the horses and the calves. You see, because of course dairy calves right away are pulled off. Pulled off. So that was my job. whilst you're out there feeding feeding calves. my goodness. So how many were you feeding? Did depend on we had about twenty Milking cows And you milk them all by hand. No, you didn't? No no we had electricity there. so they had a machine. I think when I was first born, I was born in nineteen forty and I think maybe hm the first number of years there, yes, it was by hand. Right. And basically there would be a hired man on the farm and hired boys. These there were lots of families up the road that had lots of boys and who could work but they either their parents wanted them to go to school too. Right. You see. So what they wanted is a job that Okay, you can stay there, you milk cows in the morning, you milk cows at night, and middle of the day you go to school. You go to school, yeah. You're still getting your education, but you're also going to work. So you're still doing some. You're making some money. Yeah and that helps the family and Of course. Yeah. Wow. We also had quite a number of pigs and like I say, chickens. Mixed farm, I guess you call that. Yeah, absolutely. But I feel like in especially in that era They were it was more mixed farms because everything was smaller, right? So like you didn't have these big operations with hundreds of head and things like that. Like it was a lot smaller operations. I mean we had couple hundred acres and that was one of the big farms. Yeah. There were lots of little farms around that, you know, would have a milk cow. Yeah. And they would sell cream and and they would come down the road because we had a bull, of course. So then, you know, they bring their cow to bring their cow to be b to be bred. Yeah. So yeah. So it it was different farming, but it was a farming community back. Farming community. Yeah. It was pretty well just farms everywhere. So what what made you decide to go teaching? Well, again when I was, you know, finishing school, I was a good student. I liked school and think I would have liked to have farmed, to be quite honest. But I mean you've got three brothers who are I've never I've never even driven the tractor and we did have a tractors by that time. I realized it wasn't something I was prepared for and and jobs for women were mm there just weren't many the cheese factory you can still buy Armstrong cheese. It's not made in Armstrong anymore, but I'm sure it's They likely brought bought the brand name. Yeah. Yeah. There was a big cheese factory. Wow. There that did make cheese and butter and all that sort of thing. So is that where most of your milk sold to? Yeah. It was sold yeah. It would be put in milk cans, ps put out on a stand by the road and the milk truck would come by, pick them up, leave some empty cans, and we would order our butter, for example, from the cheese factory too. So on hot summer days you you knew to get out and Otherwise you have a milk can full of melted butter. So they'd take the cream off, obviously, and make butter. Yes. And then the milk they'd use for cre for cheese. Cheese. Yeah. Wow. And and I know that Well, I guess I was five years old when the war ended. Butter was one of the rationed things. I'm sure a lot of women made their own butter. Yeah. As mother said she had enough to do without making butter if she could get it back from the cheese factory. Yeah. Fair enough. Well, and it was in one of those times where you eat you had to pick and choose so if you could do it, you were just you know what I mean? Like if you you could do it, you were doing it, but if you didn't have the time to do it then somebody else was gonna do it, right? But we also at that time Through the rationing, if you took what was called whey butter, okay like W H E Y. Yeah. It's made somewhere further down the cheese process. I'm not sure. If you took whey butter, you could get two pounds for every one. it was cheaper. Like on the rationing. Like you had rationally. Yeah, you could get you could get twice as much whey butter as what you could butter butter butter butter. Yes. that's interesting. I've never heard of way butter. No, either have I. I need to look at We're gonna have to look it up. Yeah. And I remember mother saying too, of course, just you get hired man and of course, sh off goes the butter and like So I grew up, we had all these little butter trays. they were just little round dishes. So mother just put everybody's Ration She rationed the ration. Exactly. Okay, so did you eat way better? Yes. What did it taste like regular? Well I I I likely didn't know the difference. I mean I was only a kid, so probably didn't realize anything different. That's true. Interesting. wow, yeah, I never considered that. I didn't even know that was a thing. No. But we did have rationing. I can remember mother at the grocery store pulling out the cards. Yeah. ration things for but I'm not sure what was rationed even right just I remember my great grandma, I think it was. we went to visit her when I was a kid and like this lady ate jam like nobody's business. And I remember her saying I have been I wasn't allowed and couldn't eat jam for so many years, so if I want to eat jam, pushing up underneath my nose. I'm gonna be eating jam that's pushing up underneath my nose. Nobody's gonna stop me. Fair enough. Well, that's the thing though. That that generation, your generation, would have seen things that we couldn't even we couldn't even fathom today. Like the idea of rationing is not even considered. Speaking of old things, you gotta check out grandma's washing machine because grandma still has like an old washer. heck yeah. heck yeah. We'll have to take a video of it. That's ten out of ten. I would love that. That's great. No, I thing is though, is it probably is never bro you can fix it if it has break, but it's probably never really broke down. Well, right now it it's not it didn't empty last time. I thought not only did the Yeah, anyway, it was not our day yesterday. And of course I think it's a fairly new thing. I mean better than the washboard. We were all ra yeah, that's true. And we were raised with your ringer washers. Yeah. You know. yeah. Of course. And yeah. Wow. It's modern for grandma. Yeah, she's really going up and above these days. Well, when I came here and we got married and yes we had the ringer washer, but of course we had no electricity, so they were run with motors. Motors and Although I do remember one time in high school about grade ten science we had to a test on motors. Well I simply memorized what was in the book, put it back on the thing and got an A. Killed it. Did great. And I remember some of the boys saying, You got an A? And I'm thinking to myself, Yeah, but if I ever have a motor that breaks down, believe me, I'll be at your door. I won't be doing it. Because I have no idea how it actually I don't know how I got this A. It looked really good on paper, but I couldn't actually fix it. Yeah. Yeah. So but when we were first married, of course, we had these motor driven things and so I did learn that's one place I did learn something about motors. Even down to hanging clothespins on the throttle somehow here to keep it going. Interesting. That's a new one. Yeah. So how long? Were you married before you got power? When did Power come to Cecil Lake? Likely about power came. See, we were married in nineteen sixty one at the end, sixty-two. I think in the Cecil Lake Hall, the wedding dance they had for us. We were married back in Armstrong, but they had a dance up in the old hall. Yeah. And I think that was the last One that they that they didn't have power in there. Really? Yeah, that was in nineteen sixty two in January. However, the power only came basically on the main road. if you were off you wouldn't have it power. Not unless you had lots of people down that road. Where they could they would plummet in if there was enough households but to pay for it. But for example Wayne's mother and dad were the only ones a mile and a half down there. It was just out of the question. Yeah, they weren't done. And then of course we lived on that road too, so but it still was wasn't enough. Yeah. So it was it would be nineteen sixty six. wow. Yeah. It was the year our son Ken was born and I went to town and bought an electric washing machine. Ooh! She's fancy. Anyway, that seemed to be a a g a good thing. But I too would listen to the older ladies in the district and think I can see why you ladies had your kids trained, potty trained by the time they were barely whatever, because you had to s wash all those diapers on a tub with a scrubboard and yeah. That would motivate me too. yeah. D yeah, yeah. Absolutely it would. Especially if you've got two, three or four, you're you're getting those kids trained early and soon. Yes. Yeah. Because sometimes I would think, dear, if my kid's not trained yet and here's these older ladies that had their kids trained, you know, at ten months old or something. You're falling behind if your kid hits twelve months and then Not trained. Exactly. Simply because they didn't want to do the laundry anymore. I mean, that's valid. I mean, I don't blame them. Yeah. That's that's a rush. yeah. Yeah. Yeah, I'd hear them talk about that and I'd like, well that's that's that's why that's why we're training these kids. No, these motorized ringer washing machines are just great. So That's neat. So when you guys got married, were you guys farming? Did you Were you guys working out? What what was going on? Well, I was still teaching and so for the first six months we were living in the teacherage. Okay. Yeah, and then then we moved down onto this property here and Wayne had he had worked in a sawmill and so he got lumber and built that. That's when you built this house? No, you built over there. The little one over there. Yeah. wow. Okay. Okay, so you guys have lived on this quarter then. Yes. Wow. Grandpa was born on this quarter over. On this quarter? No. No. He was born the quarter over? No. Well, his f folks lived there. The one the one where Kenny is. yeah. Okay. But that house is their original homestead. Yeah. Okay. Okay. And but he was actually born in the Red the Red Cross had an outpost hospital here. Yeah. You know where the log church is? Yes. Yeah, just there. Just to the I guess it's the east of the log church. Okay. There was a little outpost. really? And so he was born there. wow. Okay. Like you said, he never got very far from home. He's hanging out here. He was here to stay. Yeah. Well, they did move away actually because his next younger brother was born with a clubbed foot. Okay. And of course in those days, well there wasn't even a highway to Vancouver. You had to go by train to Edmonton and then down to Vancouver. Yeah. But so they just They did they move they move the family moved out. That makes sense because otherwise it's such a long track. If you ought to get that kind of help you're really far away from anything, right? Exactly. And it and he's just I don't know what he was, just ye less than a year old likely. wow. When they went for the first treatments. Yeah. So basically they moved out there and Because it was war time his dad got a job on the railways. So many men were in the army that there was jobs. Yeah, absolutely. So they lived out there till well they c Wayne actually started school there in Port Coquitlam and but they moved back the year he was in grade one. Okay. Huh. So then so okay, that's so interesting. So this has been in the family or this quarter has been in the family then. Well Or kind of. Kind of we took it, yeah. Yeah, okay. Yeah. Yeah. It's had a lot of people whose names have been on it, who never proved up on it. R so Right. That makes sense. That's so in so then okay, so you guys come out here, your husband's working on the sawmills and then Well then he went to the rigs. He figured there was a lot more money on the rigs than in us all. Well, especially up in this area. It was so busy. It was so busy. Yes. Yeah. So he was working on the rigs then. Wow. Yeah. So was it camp work back then on the rigs? or not as much? Some. Some. It all it all depended how far away you were. Right. Yeah. Right. Similar. So sometimes he would be gone on yeah, far off somewhere, but And sometimes he was just just down the road or at night. Gosh. So how many kids did you raise in this house then? well, not necessarily in this place. No, I guess it was on this place, yeah. The smaller. We we had we had four children naturally by birth and then you know, I got thinking about you know, I've thought about at that time they were looking for adoptive homes a lot and Although right about that time was when abortion became legal in Canada and it definitely dropped so many newborn babies being for adoption. Yeah. But in talking to a social worker at one time she said, but we do have children and so we had adopted our one son, he was eight months old. Yeah. And yeah, he came. And at that time we had built a bigger house here. And but then a year well it was Not much longer. Then it caught on fire and burned down. my god. Like like the first house that we built. Yeah. A big house. Yeah. Burned down. Burned and no. Yeah, so in the end, you know, it I know I made about one phone call and to someone I knew would have a man at home. But you know, I mean it burned good. Grandpa was away. He was a burnt. He was away, yes. gosh. Yes. And even that to get a hold of him was probably couldn't. Yeah, it's not like you could just call up on a cell phone. Either call a boss or somebody. Yeah, the tool push would have a phone on the roof, so you'd have that number. So I had phoned because I thought, I don't want him to come home and find nothing here but a heap of ashes. So did you move back into the little? Yes. The original? Yes, we first of all Pius Dershwiski offered us the place I'm not sure if the house is still there over where what's her name lives. Wes Wes and Jolene? Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, that place over there. Okay. There was a bachelor's house there. Yeah. With well it had two, three rooms in it, three, four rooms. So we moved over there for a number of months and then we moved back into this house. Yeah. my goodness. And then that's when you built this house. This one here. Or when did you build this house? Yeah, then then of course we s built this one again then. Or I mean we built a little bit different pattern, but that's when we built it, yeah. Yeah. And then later on we you asking about the family, we adopted another son. He was six at the time with some ha physical handicaps. And then we also fostered a lot of children. Yeah. And one of them we adopted as well. And one we were not allowed to adopt, but he stayed with us till tell as long as he could. Yeah. He was here till He grew up here? Yeah, he grew up here, yeah. That's neat. So at that time it was yeah. Was it tricky at that time to get into the foster care s like to help in that way or to be a foster home? Not not too much. No. They they you know, they would check the place out, see what you wanted. Yeah. Generally I I said, you know, younger children. Yeah. I didn't really take babies per se, occasionally the odd one. Yeah. Not too much. Not too many. Sort of between two and twelve mostly. Wow. So what made you want to open the d like what what opened that in your heart to become to adopt or to foster? 'Cause I feel like That's a really I think it's a very important thing for one, but also I feel like not everybody is equipped to do it, right? Do you know what I mean? So Exactly. I don't know. I d I don't know. Do you just figure sometimes you know what God has given Or interests. think I I can fit into this, you know, meet and need and yeah. Sometimes it's only for a few days, but sometimes longer. you know, the the kids that come t come to us. So anyway, I just yeah. And I felt it was something we could do. Yep, absolutely. We we didn't usually take teenagers because I always said I don't want some teenager being sent out here going I'm stuck out here on the farm. Fair enough, yeah. So mostly they were younger, and shorter, but some of them stayed for a year or two or so. So So how was that for you? 'Cause I imagine I don't know for me, like I I like the idea of it, but I'd be worried to get attached and then have to see them go. Like not that I d wouldn't want them to go to their their original home or whatever, right? Do you know what I mean? Like but that still has to be a little bit tough sometimes. It is there. It's sometimes hard to let them go. Mm-hmm. I know the first little girl that we fostered was She was about four, had pretty well grown up in the in the hospital because of her poor heart. And so we we took her because I don't know they yeah, I'm not sure why they transferred her from the foster home she had been in in town and came here. Well, we I know one thing was the other place. I don't think ever she went outside and she had just a ball here. sitting out in the dirt and dropping it in her hair. All kids love dirt. yeah, dirt kids are bored, it doesn't matter, they're going for it a hundred percent. yeah. So but Yeah, I mean, for her to walk the distance of the driveway to the road, she'd be puffing, panting and wow. She had a very bad heart. Yeah. So anyway, she was with us but someone had adopted her the brother. And so they had made arrangements to adopt that too. So we only had her I say I suppose maybe half a year or something. So we had said, Well look, we have to go south anyway. Can we take her? So she's not just being ch passed around. Yeah. Yeah, passed around and kind of prepare her that she's gonna be with her brother and and you know, but these people now will be a forever family and stuff like that. So yeah, so it was hard to say goodbye to her. Yeah. I think we got really attached to her, so and later we were at the at Vancouver when she had an operation done and I know the adopted mom is saying, Yes Her fingers are pink now, not blue and she can you know, like I don't sure what they did with the heart, but somehow had managed to help and and fix it. To give her more more. Yeah. But she she shared a room with our daughter. Yeah. And she had a doll. That she called baby. And she would talk to baby and she would and so talking to the nurse in town that had helped look after her too all the time she's in the hospital said yeah, she was like that. Just carrying on these great conversations with baby. Chatting away. That's cute. Yeah. So what have you seen out in this area? Because you were out here in such the early times, what has been like the biggest change would you say out here? Or have you seen? lot of big changes out in the Cecil Lake area? I think I think now that I'm definitely older is I don't know anybody a lot of people out here. there was a time when you knew everybody, you knew exactly where they lived and Yeah. That's where they were. People visited more. Yes. Just dropped in and visited and you know you always had a cup of coffee or tea or and if you didn't have any cookies, well there was always cinnamon toast. Classic and stuff like that. I would say that has been sort of that has been a difference. Yeah. And and people People aren't as neighborly anymore. And we had a store that provided anything you needed and if it wasn't in the store you had a catalogue and it came in the mail. You could get it. And so people didn't go as often to town. Yeah. The the road was not as good. I mean it's still not great, but it's probably an improvement compared to what it was. Yes. So so that that makes a difference. Yeah. Yeah. Absolutely it would. I remember like Do you remember as a kid you'd get the like Sears catalogue, the Christmas catalog? And it was like a big thick catalogue. That was my favorite thing as a kid. We'd gather around like all us cousins and like flip through and like circle it or like dog ear it or you name it. Put your initials in the one you wanted. Yes, I remember our kids doing that. yeah, that was a big thing. Interesting. So did you have a like did you and grandpa have When you over the years we we had Sure when we got the milk cow. That's when I did learn how to milk cow. To milk, okay. Yep. Didn't learn it growing up, but we got back and we found a way around it. Yes, so we and then Was it a jersey? No, actually our first cows were Half beef, but somehow it got bred to an Ayrshire bull. gosh. So they were sort of half a little half breeds, yeah. But they were big. yeah, I bet they were. Yeah. We did get a jersey later on. Yeah. And yeah, one of our sons was in the four H club and so he had this jersey calf and it grew up and one day we found it sh I think someone thought it was a deer. by the dugout dead. No somebody shot it. I think somebody shot it, So no, that's terrible. That's so sad. Yeah, then we had another one we got from well, from your husband from the Lehmans yeah. Yeah. From got from the got from Gotlieb Yeah. Helans it yeah. Yeah. And yeah, 'cause I guess they're like right across they're not far. They're literally like off and skip. Yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Quite neighborly. Quite honestly your neighbors. Yeah. Then we did know. I remember Helen telling me that when they came here north. Yes. First they came to the Fraser Valley to a job and then they came up here. And people wanted them to settle in the Baldonnell area. Mm-hmm. Because the milk truck went out. Went there. Yeah. But she said, here we've got really good neighbors. We're staying here. Yeah. So I believe it. I've heard stories that their house, like they were always like they had neighbors that, you know, stop in for coffee, do this, like say hello, that kind of thing. Like I've heard I mean, I don't know that, but I've heard a bunch about it. So pretty cool to see that so they just ship cream for years and moved to town until they got the milk truck would till they could get it, I know. That's crazy. And I know by that time there was a Sunday school started, you see, and and through that I remember we had a special special Thanksgiving service at Lehmans Barn. that's when they got there. when they got their fluid milk license. Yeah. It that was exciting. yeah, absolutely. Definitely something to celebrate for sure. Yes, it was. That's pretty cool. So how did you like milking? Well, I did it until it got kids big enough. To do it. Yeah. Yeah. That's what I was thinking about this one Holstein one we got Richard by that time our fifth child was milking and it was his pet. and one time it followed him up up the road to school. Like they got on the bus off and he said, it just kinda was there, you're leaving me and That's so funny. So after that we had to try and make sure that She didn't leave with us. Yeah. She stayed behind. I actually that's funny that you mentioned that 'cause just last night I was I was walking and my cow, we normally milk the mornings, but her calf had jumped the fence. And so I had her out so that I could milk her last night. And so I went for a walk quickly before dinner. Well, she's trying to follow me, thinking, excuse me, we're like completely out of routine. Kept having to chase her back home. I had to put the gate up and everything 'cause she she was just walking with me like it was the dogs and I was like, no, no, hold on. If you get in with the main herd, I'm never getting you back out. So you gotta stay home. You gotta stay but yeah, it is funny though, they get attached and then they literally act like they're a dog. They're doo do do do like boop boop, I'll just come with you. I'm like, no, nope, please don't come with me. You already have a personality plus I don't need you following me. Yeah, so we so we had and we did have when the aga again, you know, the kids are getting bigger, so we did make a corral and had some pigs for a while. But They're harder to how many beef cows did you have? That gradually yeah, I don't know. We started with just a couple. Yeah, and then that grew too, yeah. 'Cause Wayne took some like got some out of his dad's herd and then and then we basically had them ourselves, yeah, around. And and then yeah, so then I don't know how many we would have had all together. We had the like his dad had the lease over the hills on the Beaton So that was good. You could put them down there. But that of course took lots of fencing because the neighbors on this side had cows and the ones on that side had cows and it's hard to build fences. Straight down. yeah. No, I can only work there too. Checking on things. Did you guys have enough land to put up your own feed or did you guys have to buy feed? What did that look like for you guys? Mostly I think We had enough hay. That's nice. Yeah. And yeah, and and grain grew the grain as well, yeah. I guess you'd have to have Wayne here to No, that's fair, that's fair. All the all the all that farming aspect. I was just thinking of hearing on the news about that terrible fire at Wainwright and moving in the grass that fire. Yeah that went through the grass. Yeah. And one time I guess one of our sons had burned the garbage and he had this brain wave, you know, I should burn a little bit around the barrel so it won't spread. Well of course it spread before no. And there was enough breeze and it's going up and and what I remember thinking, that's where our bales of hay are up there and we don't want it going there. So Well, we had the pickup truck and the kids were here. I told our older son, I said, Get the wash tub and fill it up and grab some old coats and anything you can get. Blankets, towels, whatever and and tried to stomp it out. Told my one daughter, I said, Phone the neighbors to come over. Well that's just it. In this area you don't have fire departments. So your neighbors are your best hope, in quite in all honesty, at getting things under control because there's nobody else to come. and help you fight it You got it out though? Yep. And right at that time the oil companies had put a pipeline cross there, I was so thankful for so then it was dirt yeah. Over this way, a couple neighbors came from those phone calls. And they managed to keep it from going that way too. Yeah. And yeah. Off 'cause it it moves. It does. And especially if that wind gets in there. Dinah. Golly, you're just chasing it. Yes. Fire is I know. I feel like I'm a bit like fire shy. We've had enough fires in this area that I could go without for quite some time. Right, because you've had We Yeah, we've had but yeah. Just but in general the last few years, I mean not last year, I suppose, or this this past summer, but prior to that, it's been so dry. Yeah. Seems like everything's lightened up left, right, and center. Mm-hmm. Exactly. You learn lots 'cause it's like that wet blanket stuff on the on grass fires. But as I told the kids, don't get right in front, just come in from the side. Yeah. You know. Yeah. Yeah. And I remember putting the two younger kids 'cause it was slowly creeping backwards against the wind. Yeah. Against the shed. So I put them there. I thought, okay, that's just a slow fire. I just beat it out with this wet stuff here and yeah. So good thing for neighbors and blankets and washbans, my goodness. Yes, sure. That is stressful. But that's one thing I did think of was those hay bales. I thought, well it's one of those things. It takes a lot to put it up. And then if nobody else has extra, you're what are you gonna do, right? Like you do have to protect it because if it gets in there it's you're gonna feed your cows for the winter. Well that's just it, right? Yes. Definitely feed is big. Big thing. Yeah. Did you ever have like a crazy cow or anything like any stories like that? let's see. Well Yes. There were those Yes. Every farm has them. It doesn't matter where you go, every farm does have one. The ones that they say, Okay, she's going on the truck And then she doesn't get on the truck. I know. Next year. Next next year. We'll try again next year. Yeah. She didn't quite make it. Yes, the kind Yeah. And I know one time and of course we'd always tell our kids too. Just, if you're out on a cow just stand still. they're not going to, do you in or anything. So the one time we had them in the corral and and I forget what this one was, but I remember thinking, I that's a lie. That's a lie. That one will indeed get you. I'm going over the fence here right now. Nope, that was a lie. That one's coming for me for sure. She's got my number. In spite of me telling my kids, they won't it's all bluff I got told that a lot as a kid. It's just bluff It's just bluff, do you know how many times I was run over? It was not bluff. it was not bluff I guess cows can get yes, and then I do remember some that you know, they'll have the calf out there and you wanna go and put an ear tag in it or whatever and Nope. No way. Guess we'll we'll get that one in the fall, don't worry about it. Or the ones where they chase you around and around and you just hope you can get get yourself away. Later on, I I well yeah, we weren't ha ha as many kids then and so we got some sheep because I said, Well sheep I can handle you know I can handle sheep. What can go wrong? Well, sometimes they're funny too, because I remember the one time who was that that got caught? We had them in a pen. Well where one sheep goes, all sheep come. Yeah. Just like no. Person in there, psh, okay. Whoops. But they were they were good. Yeah. Yeah. You enjoyed Yeah. Did you do anything with their wool? Or with their fleece, I guess. You sold it. there was some kind of company that came around and bought Really? Yeah, I feel like that is not a thing anymore. I feel like people who have sheep say they a lot of are just chucking the fleeces because there's no market for it, which is so sad. Yeah. Because it is such a it is such a good commodity and yet people don't Yeah, there was some company for it was out of Alberta somewhere and they would just send a truck around And pick it all up. Yeah. When they knew people were done shearing and David stuck in the sheep pen 'cause he does not want sheep. So maybe he's traumatized. Nope, I'm not dealing with that. He's the one that got run over. Well they definitely will do that, that's for sure. Which is nice if they're going the way you want them to go. Unfortunate when they're going the wrong direction. Yes, I had Some neighbor tell me too about they thought one time they would just go out and gather the sheep with a pail of oats, you see, or something and they said, man, they all came running and then pretty soon I'm practically riding on their backs and trying to get out of this massive sheep. That's hilarious. Yeah. They're little but mighty. They will get you. They are. Yes. the first sheep I bought was from well, no, we we bought two used from somebody up the highway and my daughter in law and I went and got them and we put them in the back in the back of the van of the van. And so we stopped at I think what's the kitchen up the highway there. Shepard's Shepherd's In Shepherds In. Yeah. Yeah. We stopped there and I said, well if we smell like sheep because you know, I thought we need the windows open, but it was kind of chilly. And And the guy laughed. He said, don't worry about that. He said the last wasn't that long ago. People came by. They had an old school bus and they were hauling pigs. my gosh. I could never. And so he said I mean the stock trailer when you got an old school bus. I guess. Just load in. Just just haul in there. It's no problem. They can take a seat. Yeah. So he said, so he said if we can handle that smell, we can handle sheep people coming into the restaurant. I bet you that stop Shepherds Inn sees so many redneck redneck and wild things because they're on the way down from the middle of nowhere, really. And they're kind of just like this little stop where people don't have gas. Whatever. It's a great checkpoint. However, they probably see all sorts of things. Not only from like Farmers, but like hunters too, like that kind of thing. I think so. golly. Yeah, you would I bet you some of them just stink, like, haven't showered in twenty one days. Yeah. I could I was so thankful key when he went on his sheep hunt up north, they stopped at like Toad River or somewhere like at a lodge to shower. And I was like, Thank goodness. Like I could not imagine. I mean, I'm so glad you're home. You probably wreak you probably stink. So ten out of ten. But yeah, some of those lodges have got to see all sorts of I'll bet they do, yes. Nothing will surprise them. Yeah, no. gosh, no. Be funny as like a young twenty year old who went on an adventure at one of those to like, you know, see what's out there and then see what's coming in, like, what have I done? Where what have I done? That's true. Well, it's turned out good. That has been that's exciting. I like to hear. So before we before we end this, what has been your what was your favorite memory from teaching? Do you have a favorite memory? Wow, so many memories, but I don't know if I have a favorite. I I think perhaps some of it is just Knowing them later as grown ups. Yeah. You know? Seeing how their life turned out. Yeah, to talk to them and see how things went for them. I think one of the most rewarding ones came from a mother who told me and she's talking about her girl that school was not easy and and was inclined to not have much confidence in herself and she said, Thank you for what you've done for my daughter. Because I do remember talking to her and saying, you know, math right now is just Frustrating. It's it's out of the question. And I said, But you know, you have so many good things going for you in your attitude, you know, your helpful attitude, your cheerfulness. School will be over. Yeah. And you will be out in life, you'll be doing whatever you're doing and getting married and having children and or whatever. Yeah. You know? Yeah. You know, yeah. You'll do just fine. Don't worry about the fact that Math is hard. But you're stuck on math. So I I think that for me was rewarding and especially as I remember one time I'm working this Math question, grade eight math on the board and suddenly I realize I'm doing this is not gonna turn out My math is not correct. Trying to teach This is not going to turn out It's just no anyway. So after that I would work all the things out the night before. She she prepped it. You prepped it beforehand. Math is not my favorite subject either. But I know for some of those kids it was And grade eight was a fairly tough year because I think in that time you realize this is it. Yeah. Yeah, you got profit and loss and you got All the things. Yeah, everything. You know, all your fractions and decimals and profit and loss and going in this and that and and a lot of a lot of life sort of things in it. Yeah. Right. That you need to know. Yeah. That it helps if you do, but if your brain isn't wired for math. This is just I'm sure you'll learn. Yeah. What's practical. Yeah, a hundred percent. In the end. Okay, then I have one more question. Okay. What was your what's one of your favorite farm stories when you were growing up as a kid? Something crazy, something funny, something that just sticks out in your brain. Okay. A favorite farm story. let's see. Well, I remember I had a I had a a mare, a horse and she had a foal and I had taken them to the Armstrong exhibition, which is the second biggest agricultural show in British Columbia by the way, it's a big deal. And I had brought them home and right at that time my cousin had come with her kids from Vancouver. They always came to spend time there. And I'm leading this mare with the f fold about six months old behind. And through the yard when Donald, who's about six, comes running out. he's so excited to see me and the horse. And he comes running and I can see him running behind this this foal and I'm just Donald, no, don't don't come up behind when whack goes a little hoof out and poof goes Donald on the ground. I let both horses go and like I had the mare on a on a rope and I thought And I d I see my cousin walking over. My grandpa lived on the same farm and she would be staying with him. Right. And I said, Shirley, get grandpa. He was a doctor. good. and so I remember picking Donald up and we rush over with him and anyway, grandpa got him, you know, but he got him right in the temple and I knew that was a bad spot, you know, and I no no. And it's hard 'cause th he's just a kid, right? Like it was something so innocent I guess he grew up and he's fine. Did yeah, he didn't have any la lasting things. But but I what I do remember about that too is my cousin as I yell at her and get grandpa. She got grandpa first. She didn't come running. I it was me that picked him up and got him moving. my goodness. And carried him over. So that was one of the scary farm stories. Yeah, no kidding. Yes. Well, that's good. Well, thank you for letting us interview you. This has been great. I've really enjoyed this. I love a good old timey story and hearing different people's history, I guess. Different different things. I think that's great. I know, as I say, my grandfather was born the year of Confederation, so he was an old man by this time, and he himself had grown up on a Bush homestead in Ontario and I mean, he took a three month course how to teach school because as he said, there's no way you can gonna put yourself in university on a farm from a farm in those days. And so he taught school to make enough money, to go. He graduated in eighteen ninety five, he He came to Revelstoke for five years and then he came to Vancouver for twenty years where he was a very well known surgeon. But his dream had been, believe it or not, to be a doctor for twenty five years and then buy a farm. yeah. Yes. Wow. That's when he bought the farm that I grew up on. That's great. So he had this goal. I will be a doctor for twenty five years, I will get it under my belt, I will have the money, and then I will buy the farm. Yes. Wow. Yeah. That is so cool to see that come come to life. Wow. Yeah, and so basically he quit practicing, although the doctors in Armstrong, it was just a one doctor town. Right. They probably still use it. Over the years, yes. My brother was just telling me the story about he said one time we were out chopping corn and it was all cut down by hand. yeah. in those days. And car came by and is the doctor out here? 'Cause people still called him the doctor. Yeah. Right. And So anyway, afterwards he said I I asked grandpa, I said, So what was all that about? He said, that was the doctor from town. He's got this really tricky what do you call it? Appendix. Really tricky appendix and he thought, I don't know if I'm up to this. But grandpa was a surgeon as well, you see. So he thought So he went and So he went and did it. my goodness. Just out there chopping allowed nowadays. No, probably not. By the way. just out there chopping corn. Yeah. Sorry, can you just finish what you're harvesting or just hold off on that and come on in for the surgery? So then he said, I remember when I graduated from high school, because I graduated with this one boy, David, and David's dad saying to to us, if it wasn't for your Grandfather. Yeah. He said, I wouldn't have a son David. I wouldn't even have been alive. He said, 'cause he was the guy with the appendix. my goodness. yeah, doesn't that scream small town though? Hey, like and totally different times too, right? Like that's so cool. That's actually such a good story. I will be a doctor for twenty five years. I will buy this farm and we will go from there. And then to think too, like the generations that outlived his dream. On that farm. Yes. They're still farming. Your your brothers are still farming that. Yeah. wow. It's down to their kids now. And I know the discussion is where will it go from here in the next generation? 'Cause I don't see a farmer in Declan. He's more into doing what you just did. the techie stuff. good to know. We'll have to give him a call the next time we're having all these issues. Well, I have enjoyed it too. Well that's good. Thank you guys. That was good. Very good. Well thank you. Okay guys, we'll catch you next week.