MY STORY
THE ROLES I FILLED
Hello, let me introduce myself, my name is Faye Smedley. I am a mother, a grandmother, a nurse and a teacher. I love, and loved, all these roles.
I am now 87 and wanting to share what those 87 years involved. As you travel down the page you will follow my life. I am starting with the 3 elementary schools I attended, and the two secondary schools I attended. You will see the nursing school and the universities I completed. You will see how life events directed my employment.
EDUCATION
ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS
MCINTYRE STREET SCHOOL-NORTH BAY, ONTARIO
The first five years of my live and four years of my brother Calvin (Cal) we lived in a variety places all over Canada. My dad was training to be an air force pilot. Click here and you will see the Air Force Bases we lived in. In time when I was 4 or 5, I think my mother must have grown tired of moving so much and moved us to Haileybury. We left my dad to continue his pilots training without us. We moved to Haileybury where my dad was born and grew up. We stayed there for a couple of years. Life was pleasant in this small town. It was full of my dads family. View this video to see this family. This family was so warm and generous to us. We wandered all over the town visiting these relatives. They were my dad’s aunts and uncles, they really felt like brothers and sisters. They were so close in age. Because dad’s mother died when my dad was just 10, he, and his 3 brothers and 1 sister were raised by their paternal grandparents, Antoine and Ann Jane. When I was six it was time to move again, to North Bay, Ontario.
Second Elementary School attended
David Kyle School, on Douglas Street Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario
Third Elementary School I Attended
William Merrifield School on Wallace Terrace, Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario
I cannot find a picture of this school. This is just a random picture.
The Fourth Elementary School I Attended
King George Public School- Gladstone Ave. Sault Ste.Marie, Ontario
SECONDARY SCHOOLS I ATTENDED
Sault Collegiate Institute,MacDonald Ave. Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario
SECOND HIGH SCHOOL I ATTENDED
Sault Technical School
THE GREATER NIAGRA SCHOOL OF NURSING
In 1957 I graduated from Sault Collegiate and Sault Technical School and headed to Niagara Falls. I was accepted at The Greater Niagara General Hospital School of Nursing. I spent 3 years their learning to be a nurse.
The hospital
Another View of the Hospital
The hospital and the nurses residence were both brand new. Designed by a famous architect John B. Parkin. Our first year we lived in the old residence and worked in the new hospital. In order to move back and forth a bus would pick us up. I you slept in or worked late the bus left and you had to walk. This was when you got to wear your beautiful pure wool navy blue cape with a brilliant red lining.
The Nurses Residence
Once the residence was completed our classes were held in a lovely bright class room and lab. Our class time was from 7:AM until 3:PM. Our teachers were Miss Doyle, Miss Bunston and Miss Seubert who got married our first year. The director of the school of nursing was Miss Bell. Miss Wilson was Director of Nursing of the hospital. They all were University educated nurses BSN. Miss Bell and Miss Wilson lived on the top floor of the Nurses Residence.
ABOUT THE NURSING RESIDENCE
Why a month off in summer?
The school felt that a month off was more beneficial than taking the usual holidays offered during the year. This monthly holiday occurred during the summer months. I agreed with their decision. Only one student in my year was from Niagara. A lot of the other students were from Northern Ontario, or areas outside Niagara. After completing the course with a diploma in nursing. I wrote my Registered Nursing Exams and waited in Sault Ste. Marie to receive the results. Wow, I had passed the exam I was a Registered Nurse. I could add RN after my name.
Clinical Experiences
Here I am hard at work.
Unlike today a nurses education ( called training) was taught either in a hospital setting or at a university. Because we were learning in a hospital setting we had a lot of hands on care and worked the three shifts 5 days a week for 8 hours for six weeks. We usually had four patients.
We did not feel that we had anyone really responsible for us while caring for our assigned patients. I am sure the nurses whose patients we were looking after were watching us pretty closely, as was the head nurse.
Yes the head nurse was keeping an eye on how we cared for her patients. One day on the surgical unit where I was assigned to. the head nurse Miss Misner was making her rounds.
After her rounds she called me to her office. Everyone was frightened of her and I was no exception. She was a big lady and a fearsome one. staff and students feared and respected her. So when I heard “Miss Grozelle come to my office I was terrified.
She told me that I coud not give a decent bath with only an ounce of water in my basin. I of course, was offended a I prided my self on the great baths I gave. My defense was that I had finished the patient’s bath and I only needed a small amount of water to do his back before his back rub. I was known for my great back rubs. Miss Wismer accepted that explanation and when I left her unit she gave me a very good evaluation.
During the six weeks we were in the hospital we spent at least 2 weeks or 4 on different units so we would when we graduate work any where we were needed. We even manned the switchboard for a scarry day. when I was assigned there it was busy and the woman manning it left. While she was gone I had to place a long distance call for a doctor. Unless you are new at such a request you will not understand the horror to be all on your own to do it. I succeeded
Another assignment was in the ER. That was easy, just a sore throat, a stomach ache nothing too scarry until I was to go with a gentleman came in who had cut through his boot at the knee. I had to look calm and knowledgeable as I removed his boot and blood was oozing out and all over. I had to clean the wound until the RN came in to relieve me. Talk about empathy, I now know that it is in the pit of your stomach.
My favourite assignment was in the nursery and the infant ICU. Close behind was maternity and pediatrics.
GRADUATION 1960 – A VERY HAPPY DAY
GRADUATION 1060
This picture was taken at the entrance to the nurses residence. Afer graduation I returned to Sault Ste. Marie and was hired at the General Hospital for a couple of months before my wedding in November.
THE GENERAL HOSPITAL
OUR WEDDING DAY
I married Gordon Smedley on November 26, 1960. He like me, had just graduated. He graduated from the University of Manitoba in architecture.
We had a small wedding, at Ste. John’s Evangelical Anglican Church. After a lunch for guests and family in the church hall we left to start our life together. We planned to live and work in London England. We had no return date. A honeymoon was planned before we were going to apply for jobs.
The honeymoon started from the Sault. We were going to travel overnight by train to Montreal. We had the honeymoon suite at the Hotel Champalese. One of our wedding gifts was a meal at the hotels exquisite restaurant. The meal wonderful food, wine and drinks. All was absolutely perfect.
The next day we travelled by bus to Quebec City where we boarded the MS Italia Ship for London England. Wonderful as that sounds I was seasick most of the trip. Needless, to say when we finally docked at Southampton, I could not get off the boat fast enough.
From Southampton we spent a few days site seeing London before we headed to a small town in spain called Torremolinos where we honeymooned for a few days. We left Torremolinos and visited more towns in Spain. We spent Christmas and New Years in Madrid. We celebrated by going to an English movie. Other things we were so lucky to do was see a bullfight in Barcelona. Holland was the last place we visited before we returned to England and reality. Gordon’s parents had friends their who took us on tours of Amsterdam. We left Amsterdam and returned to England.
Gordon applied to an architect firm in a small town called Ipswich. It is located by the ocean and so quaint. The bed and breakfast we stayed in also served us an evening meal. The hosts treated us as if we were royalty. They kept a fire burning in the living room for us and warmed the bed with hot pans at night. The job was no longer available so we reluctantly left and headed back to London.
In London Gordon got a job with an architectural firm in downtown London, England. Then it was time to hunt for living accomodations. That proved very interesting. We were shown apartments with a bathtub in the kitchen, one that came with a cleaning lady and one that we would share a bathroom These places were not very expensive but we were spoiled by our Canadian living accommodations. Eventually we found this wonderful place situated on the Thames.
In a few weeks I managed to get a job at The Hospital for Nervous Diseases Queen’s Square. It was in the Outpatients Department. The hospital was a famous for its education of Medical Doctors from all over the world. My job was to prepare the patients for their assessment by the teaching professor for the students to learn. I worked 9 t0 5 with weekends off. I also became a registered nurse in England for life. I did not have to do any exams just confirm that I was a registered nurse in Canada.
We left England in 1962 as we were about to become parents in May. I wanted to have my child born in Canada. We arrived back in Canada In April. Julie Anne Louise was born May 26. James Julian was born June 10 1964. I was a stay at home mother for 5 years. However, I did volunteer.
A VOLUNTEER
1N 1962 I was a stay at home mom raiding 2 small children. After much asking and encouragement I accepted the challenge to teach a course in hospital services for St. John’s Ambulance Services.
In 2005 I volunteered to work on CAPT’S website. This involved inputting information and sending our emails to their supporters. I am still maintaining their website and sending out emails.
I volunteered in 2011 to go house to house on our street asking for donations for the Heart and Stroke Foundation. I only did that once as I didn’t like the way people responded to the ask.
HOW WORK ENCOURAGED MORE EDUCATION
My working life begins in 1969. The children are now at school Julie Anne full time James half time. I feel like I want to work. My dad saw an ad in our newspaper for a teaching position, he was sure it would be a great job for me. It was a teaching job at Alexander Henry High School an alternate school for students having difficulties learning. The course was Home Care and Hospital Services. I applied for the job and I was hired under a Letter of Permission.
What I Loved About Teaching These Students
I loved teaching these students. At times teaching these students was easy, difficult and confrontational.
Lessons Included
Their classes taught them to do necessary household duties. They learned how to iron, how to read a recipe, and how to leave the kitchen clean after they cooked. Their lessons for hospital services included o how to make a hospital bed, how to give morning care,etc.
After a short period I added sewing to the course as I felt that some of the students would benefit from the skill of sewing.
What I Did When Students Came to Class Stressed!
If I sensed there was stress in a student or the whole class I would take the class to the back of the room where I had a comfortable area to sit and talk. The wood making class had made couches and chairs for my class. My students made the cushions in sewing class.
Extracurricular Activities 1
The Trip to Toronto
Wishing to expose the students to different experiences I, with the permission of the school, offered the students a trip to Toronto. 10 students chose to take the trip. In order for this trip to occur the students had to raise the money. The raised the money by having bake sales and other events. Thanks to Louise Saunders my sister-in-law we had a place to stay for free. In a few weeks we boarded the Greyhound bus and headed to Toronto for a week. The students and I spent the week experiencing museums, Art Galleries and city life. We even had our picture taken on a Moore Sculpture.
Extracurricular Activities 2
Modeling for Stedman’s Department Store
To encourage self esteem in the students I arranged for the students to have a fashion show and be the models.Stedman’s department store were most helpful in this endeavour. As Stedmans wanted children to model in the show I volunteered my children. The experience went very well and the students were very proud of how they got over their nervousness and walked the stage with dignity and pride. They did a fine job. Stedman’s was very pleased with their performance.
A Sad Day
My year at Alexander Henry is Over
Unfortunately, I was hired to teach with a Letter of Permission as I did not have a teaching degree, the school had to advertise my position, at the end of the school year. Alas, a nurse with a teaching degree applied for my job. I must say principal and staff were sad that I was having to leave, as I sure was.
Life After Alexander Henry Highschool!
Working for the Board of Education
After leaving The Henry I did supply teaching for the Board of Education Sault Ste. Marie. I supply taught a lot at Alexander Henry and at several schools across the city. I quite enjoyed it. I had a bag of psychological puzzles I would give a class if the teacher did not leave any lessons.
NURSING CALLS ME
After having experienced teaching and finding that I really liked it, I had a decision to make. Do I explore teaching or do I work at a hospital? In 1968 I started working at the Plummer Memorial Hospital, to see if that was what I really wanted to do.
Much as I enjoyed working at the bedside, I decided that I really wanted to teach. I decided that I should find out what I would need to teach in the nursing programme. To teach in a nursing programme you needed a BSCN degree. Unfortunately, Algoma University did not offer this degree. I felt a university degree would be good for me and in 1969 I was accepted at Algoma University, where after 2 years full time and several years part time I earned my degree in psychology and English. I applied to Sault College to teach in their nursing programme and I was hired. YEH!
UNIVERSITY EDUCATION
ALGOMA UNIVERSITY
Algoma University was a wonderful place to learn for a 30 year old woman. It was affiliated with Laurentian University. The clases were small, the teacher were friendly and helpful to the students. The university was located in the Shinwak Hall. Shinwak Hall, was a residential school for Anishinaabe children.
I started to earn my degree in 1970 to 1971 as a full time student and finished in 1987 as a part time student.
In 1987 I entered Lake Head University in Sault Ste. Marie Michigan to get a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSCN) Degree.
In 1989 nursing was requiring that all nurses have a degree in nursing the BSCN. This required that I go to university. Fortunately Lake State University in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan offered this degree as a two year programme. The courses I choose at Algoma University were accepted, I was able to do the course in one year. They accepted all the courses I had taken at Algoma University. I graduated with a 3.9 percent average. I made the Dean’s List.
MY WORKING LIFE
AS A NURSING PROFESSOR AT SAULT COLLEGE SAULT STE. MARIE
SAULT COLLEGE 2000
SAULT COLLEGE
These two pictures show the variety of my job as a teacher at the Sault College in 1970. I am the one in the blue uniform with my first clinical group at Tendercare Nursing Home. I am doing my duty for Sault College Nursing programme by manning a booth.
INSTITUTIONS I SUPERVISED IN
TENDERCARE NURSING HOME
DAVEY HOME FOR THE AGED
RETIREMENT YEAR 2000
time for friends and sailing
Retirement allowed me more time for sailing and sunbathing on the Beach at our cottage at Batchawana Bay. I now had time to do some research on my ancestry. This is how I found out I have a passion for history research.
I have a passion for history..
Retiring from my nursing career has given me time to examine a very old photograph album with pictures of my ancestors from the 1800s. I have studied these photographs and the relationships of the people in them. I researched them on Ancestry’s and My History’s websites. After learning about these families I wanted to share with my family. This resulted in developing this website.
As there are many talented people in my family and the fact that I have an abundance of pictures of them I have added them to the website.
I am hoping that my family will take advantage of this website and enjoy learning what I have found out about these long gone people.
