EPISODE 833 THE NIGHT DANCE WHERE I NEARLY GOT PUNCHED OUT OR WORSE
alan skeoch
June 2023
In 1963, Jameson Avenue was lined with tall elm trees…very dark at night. The boys in the picture are not the boys who mouthed off to me, but look like them.
My first high school dance. The first dance i was the teacher in charge.
Tihisdid not go well. A bunch of older boys arrived and lit up cigarettes in the
hall of Parkdale C.I. A challenge.
“Get rid of those cigarettes.,” I said loudly but nervously.
“Why?”
“No smoking in the school.”
(mumbling response with the “f” word used liberallly or so I thought.)
“OK boys, get out of here. You are not Parkdale students.”
“We would like to see you make us leave….paid our money.”
“Get out.”
“Big tough teacher. All talk.”
“Out you go!”
(This was my first school dance. My first year teaching. I was not much
older than the boys who were joking and mouthing off to me.”
“Think you are a tough guy, don’t you.”
“Get out!”
“Bet you haven’t got the guts to come out with us to Jameson Avenue.”
That was where I made a big mistake. I escorted the tough guys out
to the dark street where they began to encircle me. This spelled trouble.
I was about to get mugged and could do nothing about it. The encircling
was nearly complete when a wonderful thing happened.
“Having any trouble Mr Skeoch?”, came the voice of Ted Spencer who knew
I was in over my head. He had a couple of other big guys with him.
They were prepared to back me up should push come to punch.
Rescuers.
The tough guys melted into the darkness of Jameson Avenue. I have never
forgotten that evening.
Another new teacher, Alison Petrie, and my wife Marjorie were also present
and had their own kind of trouble.
Two boys struck up a conversation. “So Miss Petrie, you came to Ontario from
New Brunswick…how do you like teaching?”
While one boy talked the other stood behind Alison and slowly un zipped her dress.
Not completely unzipped but down enough to see her brassiere straps. She was
scared but remained calm. These boys were just kidding around but it
seemed far worse to Alison and Marjorie.
Hard to forget that first night dance in October 1963.
alan skeoch
Ted Spencer was a member of Parkdale football team in 1963.