Recollections: March 2021

... before crossing the street.

Obviously. But little kids have to be taught basic safety rules like this. In 1947 Toronto introduced Elmer the Safety Elephant to do just that. Elephants never forget, and it was hoped kids would remember the following five basic rules: [1]

Look both ways before crossing the street.
Keep away from the space between parked cars.
Ride your bike safely and obey all signs and signals.
Play your games in a safe place away from the street.
Walk, don’t run, when you cross the street.

Brandon was the first Manitoba city to adopt the safety campaign, in 1952. The Elmer flag would be flown at a school as long as their safety record was good. When an accident involving a student occurred, the flag would be lowered to half-mast, or even removed for several days. Students got the message.

(Fun fact: Elmer was drawn in 1952 by Winnipeger Charles Thorson, [2] known as an illustrator for Eaton’s catalogues, and more famously as an artist for Walt Disney and Warner Brothers Studios. Characters like Snow White, Bugs Bunny, and Elmer Fudd are his creations.)

School patrols pose with their Elmer the Safety Elephant pennant (Elgin County Archives) [3]

Consider the challenge faced by St. Charles School. Many of their students (like the Frasers) had to cross the TransCanada Highway (Portage Avenue in the city) to get to class. Their crossing at the top of St. Charles Street was the first traffic light inside the city limits. Thankfully, Hazel Fraser had been part of a long fight to have speed limits reduced from 60 to 30 mph (see Carnage on Portage), but the highway was still dangerous for little kids.

Clearly, a school patrol squad was especially needed at this spot, and their safety record proved it. A 1967 item in the Winnipeg Free Press quoted Assiniboia mayor J. H. Belows, who boasted that, "There has been no accident involving children from St. Charles school since the school's patrols were organized early in 1965." [4]

More impressive was a claim from the Greater Winnipeg Safety Council in 1967 that "Winnipeg school patrols, established in 1936 as the first in North America, have built a fatality-free record at Winnipeg school crossings since then." [5]

Mom's four daughters served as school patrols, and 1967 was a notable year for the older two in particular. That year, the St. Charles school patrols earned two notable proficiency awards, having been judged "on their regular attendance, attention to their duties, personal appearance and control of the students." [6]

June 12, 1967 was "School Patrol Day" at Assiniboia Downs. Awards were presented at a ceremony in front of the grandstand.

The featured fifth race was the Assiniboia School Patrol Handicap. [7]

The coveted Free Press trophy for best suburban safety patrol was awarded to St. Charles School, beating out schools in West Kildonan, Transcona, and Fort Garry.

The newspaper noted that, "Judging was based on complete coverage of patrolled intersections, attention to duty, punctuality, obedience and appearance." [8]
(Note: Tommy Farrer was mistakenly listed as a Fraser.)

A scruffy photo from the St. Charles School yearbook, but check out the impressive trophy earned as best in Assiniboia for general proficiency. It was the highest award in the municipality for patrol work. [9]

No doubt Constable L. Montford and Chief Constable Ken McCaskill, who supervised Assiniboia school patrols, had nominated the St. Charles squad. Both police officers had worked closely with the patrols, and wrote articles for the school's yearbook congratulating the St. Charles crew.