The memories keep flooding back

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 10/03/2021 (820 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Last month’s article generated the most responses I have had in my five years writing for The Lance. That small section of St. Mary’s Road south of Norberry School (current school division offices) sure holds a lot of memories for people.

One of the interesting emails I received was from Lindsay Nawosad. Her parents, Joan and Nick, owned Norberry Shoe Repair from 1945 to 1986. The shop is still in business and I have been in it on numerous occasions. In the ’60s, my brother purchased a pair of blue shoes there. Yes…blue. Those were the days.

Lindsay writes: “In the winter, we sold hockey sticks, tape, white leather moccasins, boots and shoe polish, along with the skate sharpening. The skate exchange for new and reconditioned skates was also popular. One of my jobs, which I really liked, was repainting the used skates to get them ready for resale.”

The Nawosads were best friends with Lillian and Trevor John, who operated the Horseshoe Inn. Based on the emails I received, I was not the only person to play pinball at the Horseshoe Inn.
Lindsay waitressed there after school and remembered the machines, as they were quite noisy. Trevor was always getting after the boys to stop tilting the machine.

Oops… that might have been me.

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I know there are a lot of Facebook fans out there. If you grew up in St. Vital, you might be interested in a new page that has been launched in an attempt to connect people who attended school at Norberry.

This was the brainchild of Bill Buckels who opened the page but wanted me to credit Randy Bohemier and his wife Darlene (nee Olson). I called Randy to ask him how this came about.

He blamed it on COVID-19, as people are at home more and looking for new means to connect. It all started the day Randy posted a picture on his Facebook page on a Throwback Thursday of a track meet from 1965-ish at Memorial Park, which is where Norberry Junior High held its events.

Bill liked the picture and suggested they should do more. Thus, the Norberry page. Since January, 315 people have signed up and more will surely follow. Students and teachers alike are enjoying the old pictures and memories.

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We recently just passed the anniversary of the big blizzard of March 4, 1966. Looking back at my photos, which I have done a lot lately, it is still hard to imagine. The massive snowfall was driven right to the roof of our house at the back, completely covering the entire door. Luckily the wind blew in such a manner that access to open the front door was still available.

We might need more moisture on the fields this spring, but I’ll settle for spring showers and not a storm like 1966.

John Hindle is a community correspondent for St. Vital. Email him at john@johnhindle.com