It wasn’t all work while in Norval. The girls did have a social life. Norval United Church had a very active Young Peoples group – as did Mayfield United Church just north of Brampton (Hint, Hint).
There were summer vacations in PEI. A highlight of those vacations was hanging out with their Gardiner cousins -Evelyn and Ruth in Bedeque. It would also involve a deep sea fishing expedition with Uncle Waldo.
Louise explains:
Uncle Waldo was the son of Ellie Lowther and Edward Gardiner (We called him Uncle Ed). Uncle Waldo and Aunt Edith’s daughter, Evelyn MacDougall lives in their house in Bedeque. Uncle Waldo built a bungalow across the road in their later years.
Technically speaking then : Uncle Waldo wasn’t an Uncle at all – he was a son of an Uncle – which by my calculation – makes him a cousin. And, by the way, they would also visit their Aunt Martha and Uncle Wilbert – but don’t waste years of your life trying to figure out how they are related. They were good neighbours and friends who earned their Aunt and Uncle titles.
The girls would stay with their Aunt Anne and Uncle Charles and cousins Beth and David in Fernwood on the South Shore , then head over to the North Shore to Cavendish to see their Grandmother Myrtle. Myrtle was now alone. Grandfather Ernest passed away in 1950.
There were also weekend trips to Toronto to visit their cool city Aunt. Aunt Nete was determined to get some culture into these country girls. She took them to art galleries, museums, movies and Toronto Marlie hockey games at Maple Leaf Gardens.
