Anne (centre) and co-workers on a lunch break

Anne attended Vancouver School of Art on a scholarship one year after high school, but couldn`t continue, for financial reasons. She went to work as a keypunch operator for BC Packers, a big fish-packing company in Vancouver.

A mutual friend introduced Anne to my father, Ray, at an ice skating rink. He drove her and her friend home, impressing Anne thoroughly.  She was somewhat overawed by his more comfortable financial situation and intact family. Some of her insecurities and assumptions about family dynamics have been apparent ever since.

Ray had started university after high school but had to quit when he fell ill with strep throat and then rheumatic fever. In the early war years, he was rejected from the army when called up, because of the rheumatic fever and a heart murmur. (When they met at the rink, he was allowed to ice skate, but not do some other sports, because of that. In the end, he had a long life with physical exertions and no heart problems.)

Getting off the ferry at Gibson`s Landing

He got a job in the classified ad department of the Vancouver Province newspaper.

Ray`s parents sometimes rented a cottage at Gibson`s Landing in the summer. Here`s a photo taken by Ray as she got off the ferry to spend the weekend at the cottage.

Do you see the suitcase in her right hand. I think she still has it!

And here`s a photo of them at the beach.

[This blog series is about my mother, so don’t draw any conclusions about the fact that I’m not saying much about my father. He didn’t have such unusual events in his early life so it is harder to craft a trite but interesting story. He was very intelligent and had a dry sense of humour and an ability to make fun of himself. He died in 2007 – I mentioned his epitaph here.]