Dannevirke: Good old days of nuns and canes

The former pupils of St Joseph's class of 1955 together again in their classroom for a reunion on Saturday. Back: John Cullinane and Joan Jameson (McDonald). Front: Pauline Brown (Cummock) left, Carol Haimes, Marie Brown (Prenter) Sue Castles (Reisima) Diane Bowie (Wrenn) Margaret Fisher (McQuillan) and Liz Darlington (Daniell). Photo / Christine McKay

Memories of the days in the old schoolyard flowed freely at a reunion of St Joseph's School pupils from the class of 1955 on Saturday.

The former pupils, now all pensioners, relished the chance to swap stories.

"We were good in those days because we had the nuns who carried the strap," Dannevirke's Diane Bowie said.

Pauline Brown (Cummock) from Palmerston North remembered the day an old cottage owned by the parish was demolished, revealing a hidden secret.

"When they pulled up the floorboards they discovered cut up straps which had been hidden down under the floorboards by the kids," she said.

Carol Haimes of Tauranga returned to New Zealand six years ago after 30 years in the United States, but she's never forgotten her days at St Joseph's School.

"I remember Sister Agnes used to read us Greek stories but then she'd fall asleep. All hell would break loose, but when Sister woke up again once the bell went, we'd all be sitting up like angels."

All the former pupils, who were at St Joseph's from 1955 to 1963, remembered the punishment delivered by the nuns, including getting caned across the knuckles with a ruler or a strap.

"The nuns were tough, so you didn't do anything wrong or you were likely to get a three-foot ruler around the legs," Diane said. "But the nuns had a softer side too, Mother Gregory would come and skip with us."

And John Cullinane arrived from Wellington with some stories his fellow pupils didn't know.

"I nominated myself the prefect of Sister Julian's class and we'd follow programmes on National Radio," he said. "But the kids decided they didn't like singing, so I used to work the valve loose on the radio on days when there was singing, so Sister Julian would get out the art supplies. We all loved art."

Music was at the centre of another of John's stories. "I was in the school choir when I was about 11 or 12 and just before a big performance I had a bad throat. But because we lived out of town and mum had no remedy she gave me a sip of sherry. On the Saturday I had more sips of the sherry and on Sunday I made myself up a medicinal bottle of sherry and there I was in the choir sipping, but when the time came for my solo, I missed it."

The next reunion will be held in 2020.