Opening the Marilyn Perkins - Memorial Hall

I was privileged to be able to make some remarks at the opening of the Marilyn Perkins - Memorial Hall in Scarboro United Church this past weekend.  Some of you who read this blog were there so feel free to skip it. Others, I know, wanted to be there but weren't able to. I thought you folks might be interested in what I said. It was a great evening and the hall was filled to capacity with people who knew Marilyn over the years or who came to celebrate the official opening of this wonderful new space. There were people in wheel chairs and with walkers, people who were in their 90's, people who came from out of town to pay their respects and celebrate the legacy of their former teacher. There were children and young people who are completely at home in the hall although they never met Marilyn. Sorry I don't have any photos of the actual event.  I inadvertently left my phone at home.

Good evening and once again, welcome. Since Marilyn’s death I’ve been the keeper of many of her personal papers and I’m pleased say that her papers now have a permanent home in the library here at Scarboro United Church. In organizing this material the word that surfaced most often in my mind was ‘giving.’ The stories of what and how Marilyn gave are legion. Some of you knew Marilyn longer and better than I did and I hope you will tell many Marilyn stories during tonight’s celebration. As is the way with stories someone has to go first.

Marilyn was my teacher, my mentor, my choir director, my vocal coach, and my friend. Before I retired I taught high school. I had some time during the school day to prepare lessons and mark papers and I looked forward to those periods of quiet. I was less than gracious if someone asked me to give up a prep. Marilyn, on the other hand, regularly filled her preps by working with individual students on vocal technique, repertoire, and interpretation. I don’t know how many people over the years benefited from this generosity but I know I did.

Marilyn was a great problem-solver and if she saw a need she stepped in to fill it. While she taught at Viscount Bennett there was a need for teachers to drive football players to games. Marilyn got her chauffeur’s license, drove the the bus and managed to recruit some of the football players to sing in the mixed chorus.

Tyrone Patterson, now a well-known Canadian conductor and the artistic director Opera Lyra in Ottawa for years, was one of Marilyn’s football recruits. He mused that he was probably one of the few young men who went to university with both a football and music scholarship in his pocket. He also noted that when he first conducted a choir it was much harder than he anticipated. As a student he watched Marilyn conduct and Marilyn, of course, made it look easy.

When one of her students desperately wanted to learn to play the piano Marilyn somehow arranged for the family to have access to a piano. When another student was about to get kicked out of school for being late and absent so often Marilyn phoned her in the mornings to make sure she was up. A number of people say it was only because Marilyn cared that they finished high school.

Those of us who had Marilyn as a conductor retain a persistent voice in our heads. “My tempo!” “ Now don’t get mad.” “Put the consonants ahead of the beat.” As we rehearse pieces we did first with Marilyn we remember her words, dynamics and phrasing. Most of the time that’s a good thing. Once when we were practicing a piece with Liz some of us insisted that the version we were singing had the wrong words. I don’t remember if Liz rolled her eyes or not but, during a break, she managed to dig up the copies with the ‘right’ words. We used that version even though the piano part was quite a bit harder.

Marilyn was a great supporter of the arts. While still quite young she worked as a coach accompanist in the Voice Opera department at the Banff School of Fine Arts. Marilyn conducted productions by the Calgary Theatre Singers where many singers got their first taste of being on stage in front of an audience. She directed many high school musicals. Years later, people with grey hair fondly remember rehearsals and performances of musicals such as The Fantastics, Bye Bye Birdie and Little Mary Sunshine. Marilyn also supported the arts by commissioning paintings and sculptures, attending performances and donating time and money.

Then there are the many, many ways Marilyn enriched the life of this church and helped with social services programs in Calgary. I haven’t even touched on Marilyn’s membership in the Order of Canada. There are many people here tonight who can tell those stories. As we celebrate the opening of this beautiful space I hope you will share your own stories of Marilyn or take a moment to listen to the stories of who she was and the many ways her kindness and generosity enriched people’s lives. I think Marilyn would be very pleased with this hall and the opportunities it offers to this congregation and the wider Calgary community. Enjoy the space, the experience of being here on this special evening, and, if I got a story wrong, feel free to tell the correct version.

Sewing machines and shave horses

Grandma's Bernina

A couple of weeks ago I bought a new sewing machine. I make no bones about my dislike of sewing and I've spent my life avoiding it. I can sew and suffered through the aprons, pot holders, skirts and blouses in Home Ec. When I was in theatre school we had to do a stint in the costume shop and I didn't like that any better. I do remember sewing a dust cover for the sound board and I didn't hate that quite as much.

Shave horse

In the shop the other day I made a shave horse to hold work while I use spoke shaves and the draw knife. The first time I used it the hinge pulled out taking a couple of chunks of wood with it.  I looked at the broken horse and thought, "Well, that didn't really work, did it?" and immediately started planning how I could fix the damage.  I took the hinge off the broken pieces and glued and clamped them back in place.  Then I hit the internet to see what other solutions there were for holding the ramp to the bench. As I worked it struck me how different my reaction is when I try to sew something and it doesn't turn out the first time. I get cross and have been known to fling the offending project across the room.  I don't recall having thrown any woodworking project across the room although I've been plenty frustrated at times. So what's the difference?

When I'm working with wood I'm willing to put up with all sorts of set-backs. I don't enjoy them but I usually keep at the problem until I find a solution.  Sometimes I take a break of a few minutes; sometimes it requires a few hours or even a few days away before I can come back and solve the problem. Sometimes I simply abandon the project and move on to something else. I like the whole process of woodworking and I'm willing to put up with a lot because I do.

Sewing is different.  My tolerance for frustration is very low and I give up easily. I had a sewing machine willed to me by my grandmother. I kept Grandma's machine for 45 years and I used it whenever I couldn't avoid sewing. It was the best sewing machine she could buy at the time and it was built like a tank. The first impediment to using it was hoisting the behemoth onto the table. It was never really good at handling heavy fabric and most of what I want to sew falls into that category. I began to wonder if the machine were easier to use would I dislike sewing less.  It was getting harder to find the eye of the needle and newer machines will do that for you. After thinking about it for a few days I decided to try to find a home for the old machine.  It was in good working order. I donated it to a charity and heard that someone was very pleased to get it. Then I headed for a sewing machine store.

The New Machine

A lot of the machines were pretty intimidating and very expensive. I know how expensive good tools are but I just wanted a basic machine. When I spoke to the sales person she asked how much I wanted to spend.  I told her and she asked me if I could stretch the budget by almost 2/3 more. I told her no, that I hated sewing and I wasn't prepared to spend much more than the figure I gave her. She told me if I spent the extra I'd never have to buy another machine.  I guess she could tell from the look on my face that I had no intention of ever buying another sewing machine - period!

She showed me a very basic model.  It does 14 different stitches which is about 12 more than I will likely use. It is easy to thread and, while I won't say the idea of sewing delights me now, I am looking forward to having the results of sewing.  I went  a little over budget and I'm satisfied with that decision.

One of my curmudgeonly complaints is about the pathetic little pockets they put in women's jeans. In my world, pockets are meant to hold things and I mean substantial things, not just a single key or coin. The first thing I did with the new machine was to extend the pockets in one of my pairs of jeans. I get a little smile of satisfaction every time I put my keys in my pocket and I haven't worn either of my other pairs now that I have 'decent' pockets' in one pair. Other projects have required my time lately and as soon as this current one is done, the sewing machine will come out and I will fix the pockets on the other two pairs of jeans.

I recently crocheted myself a messenger bag.  It's very comfortable; it holds a lot of stuff and it stretches.  I didn't think that would bother me but I've lost a couple of pens out of the holes in the crocheted fabric and it really would look nicer if it retained its shape a bit better.  I'm not looking forward to making the liner although I am looking forward to having a lined bag. I have a fleece jacket with sleeves that are too long. I've been rolling them up for a year and I'd rather have them the right length. I have a pair of pants to turn up and I'll enjoy not having to roll them up too.

I don't see myself actually making clothes or looking forward to sewing but now that I have a machine that is more user friendly I have a smidgen more motivation to get the jobs done. I will thoroughly enjoy having big pockets in my jeans, a bag that doesn't sag,  pants I don't trip on and a jacket that fits my arms.  Who knows, as I do more sewing I might get better at it and hate it less. I'm not holding my breath though.