Grade levels: Adult

Quebec and the threat of separation, a continuing issue for a multi-cultural Canada. One dramatic flare-up, the Montreal riots – cars overturned; trash baskets set alight; store windows broken, and millions of dollars of damage committed – provides an interesting vehicle to examine Quebec unrest. Rocket Richard’s suspension and the loss of a hockey game symbolized the deep sense of inequality and injustice felt by many French Canadians, and four Quebec seniors recall the feelings leading up to, and the events of that dramatic day.

Before the term was applied to Canada’s downhill skiers, a fearless group of pilots defied constant danger and death to open up Canada’s North. Their exploits are legendary – they were the “Original Crazy Canucks.” Four of Canada’s bush pilots recall their experiences – the thrills; the humour and the ever-present dangers that were constant companions on their flights into Canada’s frontier mining towns.

William Quarrier, a successful Scottish businessman began a program of caring for street children that, in 1874, led to the establishment of the Orphan Homes of Scotland. During the next fifty years, some 7000 of these children were sent to Canada to begin new lives. This program is their story. Four seniors, orphaned children who were part of that emigration to a strange and far away land, recount their experiences. Their memories start with the long boat trip over the Atlantic. It was a voyage that mixed fear and seasickness with the excitement about the adventures to be faced in a strange land.

Compelling stories drawn from one of the centuries most harrowing events – the Great Depression. In this program, four seniors recall the poverty; homelessness; soup lines and relief camps that characterized their lives during this period. However, while circumstances were difficult, often in the extreme, each of the seniors also recalls the sense of community and sharing that helped to make life bearable.