50p
To The Ladies
A carving knife slices through the succulent roast beef prepared by Chef Napier and his fantastic kitchen staff as plates are piled high with quinoa, green and Caesar salads, roasted potatoes, beets and carrots, sockeye salmon and fluffy Yorkshire pudding. Women fill the line on either side of the buffet table and they each say their thanks as Mr. Allpress and Chef Napier stack pieces of the freshly cut meat on top of their already full plates. The evening is full of reminiscence of an earlier Brentwood. Whether it be one month or forty years that have passed, everyone has their own memories and stories to tell of the school.
Kicking off the evening is our Head of School, Mr. Patel. After a brief introduction, he quickly handed the mic over to the night’s MC, Laurie (Rutherford) Pederson, Alex ’73, one of the first nineteen girls to attend Brentwood in the fall of 1972. Laurie’s sense of humor and wise words of advice about the success of girls at Brentwood made for an interesting and informative evening.
One of Laurie’s most notable achievements, aside from her solo year of globe-trotting and being the only girl in her Brentwood sky-diving class, was her decision to come to Brentwood. In 1972, when Laurie and her eighteen female classmates chose to become members of Brentwood College, they were the first girls at a boarding school of notable size. No other boarding school in Canada had become co-educational, and Headmaster David McKenzie made ripples when he announced that this was the vision he wanted to make reality. He was not fully supported: his Board of Governors lost three members at the thought of Brentwood and girls mingling, but Mr. McKenzie stood strong, and because of his determination, and the help of Mrs. Andrea Pennells, Brentwood’s Head of School from 2000 to 2012, Brentwood completed its journey to coeducation by achieving a 50:50 ratio of boys to girls in 2010, with the completion of Hope House.
But Laurie Pederson was not the only speaker featured. Megan Toriglia, Alex ‘09, delivered a message from her mother, Brentwood’s first female Head Prefect, Tammie (Morrison) Toriglia, Alex ’79 relating the whirlwind that was her senior year and telling of how much Brentwood has advanced since her years at the school. Mrs. Yvonne Carr shared personal anecdotes about Anne (Holden) Duncan, Brentwood’s first female House Parent, and Mrs. Melhuish spoke about Mrs. Norah Arthurs, Brentwood’s first female faculty member.
Mrs. Pennells took the podium in front of her school once more, recounting her life at Brentwood and her love for what it has become. Although she is not a diva and did not sing any Adele, Mrs. Pennells moved the crowd with her words of wisdom and her passionate tales of her experiences at Brentwood as a young teacher and mother who would become Brentwood’s first female Head of School.
After the speeches was a talented cabaret of Brentwood’s finest female singers. Lexi M retold the history of Brentwood as MC and with her singing, and she was joined by Kira C, Berit B, Jocelyn K and Emily B singing Fun’s “Some Nights”, Natasha Beddingfield’s “Unwritten” and a “Celebration Medley” which got everyone on their feet and dancing.
The night would not have been such a success without the leadership and hard work of Ms. Stephanie Young, Brentwood’s Advancement Associate, and her committee of fourteen faculty volunteers including staff, alumna, and former faculty and staff. “This anniversary really equates to the school’s vision; it was a risk in the 70s for all of these pioneering women to take that step to becoming a part of Brentwood. This is really a celebration of the forward thinking that is Brentwood. It is a celebration of the trailblazers’ contributions to the school as well as the girls who followed them. I really wanted it to be a fun event, a night that focused on the reflection of what Brentwood was and a celebration of what it has become.”
So here’s to the first fantastic forty years of Brentwood’s ladies, and here’s to forty more!
To The Ladies!
Samantha D, Allard ‘13
Kicking off the evening is our Head of School, Mr. Patel. After a brief introduction, he quickly handed the mic over to the night’s MC, Laurie (Rutherford) Pederson, Alex ’73, one of the first nineteen girls to attend Brentwood in the fall of 1972. Laurie’s sense of humor and wise words of advice about the success of girls at Brentwood made for an interesting and informative evening.
One of Laurie’s most notable achievements, aside from her solo year of globe-trotting and being the only girl in her Brentwood sky-diving class, was her decision to come to Brentwood. In 1972, when Laurie and her eighteen female classmates chose to become members of Brentwood College, they were the first girls at a boarding school of notable size. No other boarding school in Canada had become co-educational, and Headmaster David McKenzie made ripples when he announced that this was the vision he wanted to make reality. He was not fully supported: his Board of Governors lost three members at the thought of Brentwood and girls mingling, but Mr. McKenzie stood strong, and because of his determination, and the help of Mrs. Andrea Pennells, Brentwood’s Head of School from 2000 to 2012, Brentwood completed its journey to coeducation by achieving a 50:50 ratio of boys to girls in 2010, with the completion of Hope House.
But Laurie Pederson was not the only speaker featured. Megan Toriglia, Alex ‘09, delivered a message from her mother, Brentwood’s first female Head Prefect, Tammie (Morrison) Toriglia, Alex ’79 relating the whirlwind that was her senior year and telling of how much Brentwood has advanced since her years at the school. Mrs. Yvonne Carr shared personal anecdotes about Anne (Holden) Duncan, Brentwood’s first female House Parent, and Mrs. Melhuish spoke about Mrs. Norah Arthurs, Brentwood’s first female faculty member.
Mrs. Pennells took the podium in front of her school once more, recounting her life at Brentwood and her love for what it has become. Although she is not a diva and did not sing any Adele, Mrs. Pennells moved the crowd with her words of wisdom and her passionate tales of her experiences at Brentwood as a young teacher and mother who would become Brentwood’s first female Head of School.
After the speeches was a talented cabaret of Brentwood’s finest female singers. Lexi M retold the history of Brentwood as MC and with her singing, and she was joined by Kira C, Berit B, Jocelyn K and Emily B singing Fun’s “Some Nights”, Natasha Beddingfield’s “Unwritten” and a “Celebration Medley” which got everyone on their feet and dancing.
The night would not have been such a success without the leadership and hard work of Ms. Stephanie Young, Brentwood’s Advancement Associate, and her committee of fourteen faculty volunteers including staff, alumna, and former faculty and staff. “This anniversary really equates to the school’s vision; it was a risk in the 70s for all of these pioneering women to take that step to becoming a part of Brentwood. This is really a celebration of the forward thinking that is Brentwood. It is a celebration of the trailblazers’ contributions to the school as well as the girls who followed them. I really wanted it to be a fun event, a night that focused on the reflection of what Brentwood was and a celebration of what it has become.”
So here’s to the first fantastic forty years of Brentwood’s ladies, and here’s to forty more!
To The Ladies!
Samantha D, Allard ‘13
75p
