Music at St Columba's - St Columba's School

THE COLUMBAN ISSUE 28 FoRMeR PuPILs | 17
Photo
Competition
We are delighted to announce that the
winner of the photograph competition
(Issue 28) is Anne Findlay (nee Smith).
The photograph was of the cast of
the 1950 production of ‘A Midsummer
Night’s Dream’.
The competition elicited some lovely
emails from former pupils. Amongst
them, one from Kirsteen Scott (Taylor)
who vividly recalls her school days at
St Columba’s 1946-50:
I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw
in The Columban that old photo of
Midsummer Night’s Dream. There I
am – a rather tall Oberon, King of the
Fairies with the Queen, Jean Wallace. I
can still put names to some of the fairies.
Fiona McAdam was a ‘born’ Puck! And
I see Mairi Crawford there – or Mairi
Hedderwick as she is now.
My father farmed in mid-Argyll; there
was no school to take pupils up to 6th
year so I had to leave home.
I sat the scholarship exam for a place
at St Columba’s – and won. I was dying
to go. Then the list of essentials, the
trunk, name tapes, a panama hat and
knicker linings. Fighting back tears as
my mum and dad drove up to the front of
Shalott. We unloaded the trunk and said
‘goodbye – see you at half term.’
And my world grew. I arrived knowing
why blackbirds pattered on the grass,
how a raised beach came about and
how to grub for earth nuts in Spring.
Now I learned about what it was to have
parents in India or South America and
not being able to go home for holidays,
about perms and hydros. That first term
was hard.
As boarders, I think we thought we WERE
the school. Daygirls came and went but
we were always there. Saturday we got
our pocket money – all of half a crown
– and were allowed into the village. The
Barnshake Farm Dairy… and a small shop
which sold haberdashery. We bought
what didn’t need clothing coupons –
hanks of darning wool which we knitted
into gloves. From our pocket money
we had to keep enough to put in the
collection plate on Sunday and perhaps
this is the place to reveal my own creative
accounting. We each had a notebook in
which we were expected to mark down
how we had spent our money and there
were occasions when I noted sixpence
for collection and only a penny was put
in the bag. I really didn’t think God would
mind.
What did I learn? All the subjects one
would expect to learn when the aim was
university. Who do I remember? Miss
Sheriff with her wispy white hair and
her love of Maths ; Miss Reid who taught
Geography, for which I had no aptitude,
but who still encouraged me in my
whims about a career, which included
at that time joining the Grenfell Mission
in Labrador or becoming Governor of a
women’s prison! Miss Haggart in History
and Miss Walker in Latin – both so softly
spoken. And of course, Dr Macdonald,
in whose class I grew to love French.
A special mention for Miss Sutton,
House Mistress in Shalott, who saw my
homesickness that first term and called
me to her room. I don’t remember her
words, but in that short visit she taught
me to value who I was and everyone
else around, no matter how different we
might all appear to be on the surface.
How hard did I work? For gym stripes
and the joy of a long fly over the horse
with Miss Havelock catching; for the
coveted white girdle of the lacrosse team
and that one winter Saturday when, for
the only time in my life, I outran Joan
MacRobert going for a ball in a match
between the School and Glasgow Ladies.
Later I went on to play lacrosse for
Scotland – due much to Joan’s teaching.
I live now in Edinburgh, by way of
Glasgow, Washington DC and Dundee.
My children and grandchildren are all in
Scotland and it is a delight to see them
grow up. I write – for the pleasure and
surprise of where words take me – and of
course, still love the theatre!
Classnotes
Becky Marshall (2009)
Becky Marshall, former captain of the
1st XI, has continued to play hockey at
university. Earlier this year she achieved
an Oxford Blue for playing in the Oxford
vs Cambridge Varsity match.
stuart Buchanan (2006)
On the 31 August 2009 at 8am, having
set out at midnight, I and seventeen
other students from the University
of St Andrews made it to the summit of
Mt Kilimanjaro, the highest point in
Africa. It is one of the proudest moments
of my life, and all of us felt a great sense
of achievement sitting next to the old
wooden sign that marked the end of our
ascent. The climb, up and down, took
six days and each was filled with its
own challenges both personally and as
a group.
I signed up for the climb at the beginning
of my third year, when the charity
Childreach International came to
the university looking for volunteers
to attempt their ‘Climb Kili 4 Kids’
challenge. In order to take part in the
expedition each of us was required to
raise a minimum of £2200. With the
help of generous donations from friends
and family I was able to raise £2542.
This money and the money raised by
all the other participants from several
universities has been spent improving
local primary schools and vocational
centres in the Kilimanjaro area. I was
able to see how the funds were used
firsthand when we were given the
opportunity to visit projects funded by
the charity after we completed our climb.
During my three-week stay in Tanzania
I was able to see what an incredibly