by Fred Morris
2 July 2026
This story will remember a lot of the 1960s, SJCIers, and a few of school's visitors.
During the spring of 1962, John Waters and Jim Freeman of Rock Rapids, Iowa switched schools for a week in a Canadian US Student exchange. A new CBC Quiz Program called Reach for Top debuted. Teacher Lincolin Lautermilch coached the team.
Several SJCI musicals under the direction of Bob Gardiner, Rose Birse, Mr. Milne, and Miss Moody provided entertainment. These musicals included Hawaii, Hollywood Extra, The Boy Friend, Anything Goes, Courtney Cranstock, The Governor's Daughter, Yeoman of the Guard, and Finian's Rainbow. Roslyn Roberts, Linda Daniels, Ann Atkey, Angela Cholakis, Wendy Kellet, Judy Northcott, Bruce Tallman, and Gerald Rose were some of the star student performers.
During the mid-1960s, snow scuptures decorated the snowy Portage Avenue SJCI Lawn. Miss Merleveds Room 11 won the 1967 Manitoba Carnival Snow Sculpture Parliament Buildings. Harry Paul's Room 6 Grade 12 class won the Manitoba Winter Carnival Fantasy Snow contest with a replica of Bonnie and Clyde's car.
In 1962, Bob King became the youngest person ever to win the Canadian Five-Pin Open Bowling Singles. Over the 1961 Christmas Holidays, the SJCI Girls Basketball team won the Cloverleaf Championship. The team included Judy Bartlett, Jane Tullman, Joanne McMillan, Barb Thomson, Lynne Killberry, Judy Elliot, Kathy Pinkerton, Cathy Charleson, Cheryl Slobodzian, Sandra Leach, Elaine Dunn, Judy Wismer, and coach Esther Jeffrey. In 1963, the rink of Wayne John, Don Finkbeiner, Bruce Grant, and Eddie Taylor became the first SJCI team to represent Manitoba at the National School Boys Championship. In 1965, Carol Betker won the Carl Peterson Manitoba Junior Athlete of the Year records. Several SJCI students were reported student activities to the newspapers. Sharon Townsens and Sharon Silver reported to the St. James Leader. Catharine Shipley and Judy Morton were late 1960s correspondents for the Winnipeg Free Press.
On 22 January 1966, the Bantam B Provincial Championship Deer Lodge Community Club Hockey Team played an all-star team from other St. James Community Club teams in the first ever hockey game at the St. James Civic Centre. Many of the players on both teams attended SJCI in the later half of the 1960s. The Jimmies included Jim Johnston, the first St. James Civic Centre goal scorer, Al Lowen, Doug May, Gary Frost, Walter Barg, Gary Beauchamp, Bud Harden, Doug Titterton, Ed Forrest, Terry Wilson, Murray Sykes, Gary Yelland, Ross Baxter, Lorne Hilton, Rickey Stevenson, Allan Plesh, Bruce Spencer, Malcolm Jackson, Terry Taylor, Wayne Hodgins, Ron Hamilton, and Doug McDonald.
After their high school years, many 1960s SJCIers accomplished great things. During the 1967 Pan Am Games, Maureen Dowds, then a recent grad, won a Bronze Medal in the Shot Put. Carol Black was Miss Manitoba during Manitoba's 1970 Centennial. Ingrid Roh was the 1972 Miss Manitoba. Ingrid and Carol were classmates in Terry Bailey's Grade 10 class. Ann Waters was the 1965-66 Governor General Medal Recipent. Ann went to the University of Winnipeg and was named the Woman Athlete of the Year for her success with the fencing team. Linda Campbell won the 1973 Women's Singles at the Manitoba Tennis Open. Tom Thompson won a Stanley Cup as a scout for the 1988-89 Calgary Flames and a 2003 Calder Cup as an Assistant General Manager with the Houston Aeros. Don and Doug Finkbeiner (1976) and Gord Sparkes (1979) played on Manitoba teams in the Brier. Vince Orchard's lacrosse team is in the Lacrosse Hall of Fame. Larry Bolonchuk, a Manitoba Hockey Hall Famer, played in the NHL and was a member of the Hardy Cup 1983 championship. In 1994, Karen Burgoyne (Crerar) won the YM/YWCA Peace Medal. Carol Vivier (White) received the Order of Manitoba and the Order of Canada for her work in the film industry. Carol helped bring the 2005 Juno Awards to Winnipeg. Howard Curle taught theatre at the University of Winnipeg and coedited a book called Vittorio De Sica.
In the 1992 Winnipeg municipal election, the 17-person contest for Mayor was dominated by a couple of SJCI: alumni Greg Selinger and Susan Thompson. Thompson won. Selinger later became Manitoba's Premier. Both Thompson as Mayor and Selinger as Premier served six years and had to deal with major floods while in office. Bruce Alexander and Eric Jonasson served on the St. James School Board. Irwin Kumka became a Councillor in Victoria Beach.
History teacher Norm Larson went onto a career as a lawyer. Norm was the first staff lawyer for Manitoba Legal Aid. Jim Goodridge went on to a 30-year career as an administrator and educator at the Keewatin Community College in the Pas. Principal Ron McIntosh finished her education career as Manitoba's Deputy Education Minister.
Laurie Mustard, Gordon Sinclair, and David Sinclair became media personalities. Also, Gordon. a baseball pitcher. is perhaps the only SJCIer ever to play professional baseball in the United States.
Visitors, especially disc jockeys Bob Bradburn, Jim Paulson, Bob Burns, and Boyd Kozak, visited SJCI. Bands including Chad Allan and the Reflections, the Devrons, and the Quid performed at SJCI. CBC's Fred Davis of Front Page Challenge, along with politicians Doug Stanes, Steve Patrick, Ben Hanashak, and Sterling Lyon, visited SJCI.
We lost several SJCIers much too early. Bruce McNish the 1964-65 Student Council Vice President, Roland Madson, and Glen Gibson died in accidents. In July 1969, Leonard Shakespeare, then an alumni and a St. Boniface police officer, died in the line of duty at the age of 26. A Windsor Park Street is named in Leonard's memory. In 1972, Elinor Ivanoff, age 49, a SJCI teacher for a decade and a half, died. She had successfully lobbied for an in-school Library.
In the fall of 1969, Rick Ranson and John Van Landeghem, a couple of recent SJCI grads, went on a slightly more than three-month canoe trip from underneath the Assiniboine Park Foot Bridge to New Orleans.
Whenever a Canada team plays a USA team in football, an American victory is almost certain. During the 1961 football season, the Jimmies Football Team were once again forced to only play exhibition games. On Saturday, 21 October 1961 at the baseball field part of Winnipeg Stadium, the Jimmies played a football team from Rugby North Dakota. The game attracted 1,000 fans. Maurice Hogue, a recent SJCI alumni, worked on the Rugby radio broadcast. After falling behind earlier in the game, the Jimmies rallied for a 25-21 victory. The key play was Mal Symon's 98-yard fumble return for a touchdown and a pick 6 by Herb Cooper. Let us put our ELBOWS UP and celebrate this FOOTBALL VICTORY.
Full disclosure: I attended SJCI during the later half of the 1960s.
Page revised: 4 July 2026
