matches, food, and other ‘unmentionable items’ little boys shouldn’t have! We took great delight in telling my parents about the brats’ cachet including one of my Nana’s pies! Dad said to my Mom “You know, Mother, these three sweet, angelic girls’ names should be Thunder, Lightning and Hail. God help us.” A few years later, the Rogers family left Byron, but Shirley and Barb ran into each other and had a catch-up chat. We always managed to keep tabs. In the early 70s, Shirley babysat my son Bill, who was two, and her son Jasun was three. Josh was ten months old. One day, Shirley went into the house to put Josh down for a nap. When she returned outside, the boys were gone! Her husband, Skip, arrived home, searched for the boys, and found them in a back field that led to the village. Jasun told Skip they were only going to get some candy! A close call, but their quest was amusing. Shirley and Skip attended my wedding in 1979. A few years later, she moved to Florida but comes home once a year. Meanwhile, Barb married and moved home to raise her family. Over the years, we always managed to keep in touch. Sandra and I met in Kindergarten. On Saturday afternoons, it was movies at the Byron Optimist Center and during the winter months, we skated on the ice rink there. One night, we went skating after hours with Janet Wilson and her cousin, Don. I was gaga over him and tripped on the ice. My leg landed on one of his skate blades and did I bleed! I cried at the blood on his blade while he gaped at it pouring out of me! Daisy and I also skated on Sunday afternoons at Oakridge Arena. Once she skated with Dennis Bodkin, her heart throb then! Ahh, young love! Sandra was a bridesmaid at my wedding in 1968 and was at Billy’s Christening in 1972. Brenda Welch recalls my 6th birthday party. It was the first birthday party she attended. She was so excited that she forgot to put her panties on! She ran home to complete her attire, came to the party and all had a good time. Brenda lived in the States for some years. For the last twenty years, she has resided in Wasaga Beach. We all still have a strong friendship, keep in touch regularly and gather once a year. “You can take the kid out of Byron, but you can’t take Byron out of the kid.” We want to hear about your long-time Byron friendships. Email barb@villagerpublications.com.
Mary McKelvey and her horse, Dusty, c 1950s
Boler Road South had its’ own little friends network of Georgie, Sally, and her younger sister Andrea McBeth and Mary McKelvey. Mary had a horse named Dusty and later a Palomino named Pal. She rode them often and the girls enjoyed being near both horses. Barb, Shirley and I lived in close proximity and were the only little girls who resided between Lansing and North Street. We formed a tight bond quickly which is true to this day. Barb had two older brothers, Doug and Bob, who became fast friends with the Baseline Road MacDonalds, Rolly, Sandy and Cam. From the beginning, it was war! We girls had no choice but to ‘earn our chops’ at the tender age of five! Those bratty boys tortured us constantly. I wanted a pair of pointed-toe cowboy boots so I could kick them, but Mom said, “NO! You aren’t Annie Oakley or Dale Evans!” I argued that wasn’t fair because there were five of them against three of us. The brats were bigger and stronger than us. Even our male dog sided with them! My Dad said, “But you girls are smarter. Use the brains God gave you.” So we did. There were grapevines and a cherry tree between our place and MacDonald’s. The brats would nearly always get there first and clean the choice ones out. They broke a couple of lower branches of the tree so we couldn’t climb it as well. The Rogers family lived on the other side of MacDonald’s. At the back of Roger’s house was an old deserted barn so we gals’ club had our strategy meetings on the main floor. The brats built a fort on the second floor and no girls were allowed in. So, one day, we raided the fort and found a treasure trove of ammo! Playboy magazines, empty beer bottles, cigarettes,
Sweater Weather is Better Together OPEN HOUSE : Sunday, October 20th from 1 to 3pm Join us for a fun-filled afternoon at Riverstone. Enjoy delicious treats, live entertainment, tours of suites and amenities and be entered to win our grand prize! Please bring a can of soup to help support our local food bank. Experience retirement living amongst friends! 519.474.4410 | LiveAtRiverstone.ca 1951 Shore Rd, London, ON N6K 0K4 By
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