Annual Report 2021-22
Despite the ongoing disruption due to the pandemic restrictions, the Alumni Association of Beaconsfield High School has had an interesting, active and positive 2021-22 corporate year.
As usual, we started with a $200 grant to the school’s yearbook publication in late spring 2021, and on the back pages our Alumni message was again printed.
For the convocation event, the Fund created in the first half of 2021 supported $150 bursary grants to the three recipients of the Robert Needham, Wendell Roberts and Aileen Proudfoot awards. Congratulations to the 100+ alumni members who have donated just over $15,000 – an endowment that will support these three award grants for well over a decade to come. As well, thanks to 1975 grad Chuck Beattie and his BGIC company, bursary grants in 2021 and 2022 totalling $2,000 were distributed to the recipients of the Governor-General’s academic bronze medal, the Lieutenant-Governor of Québec’s Medal, the Bruce Walker Cup and the Eric King Citizenship Award.
On November 18th, 2021, at the Crowne Plaza on Côte de Liesse, the BHS staff held a grad reception & dinner party for the grads of 2020 and 2021, whose “prom” had been cancelled due to the pandemic. The AABHS acted as event sponsors, and arranged event insurance. The School Board, which normally oversees the event, could not sponsor in fall 2021 since the attendees were no longer registered at BHS.
As a result of that arrangement, we now have been given a list of the 2020 (112) and 2021 (87) grads who
attended, and their emails have been sent to Doug Brown to register on our self-directed mailing list. Each
former student will be given the normal opt-out digest sent to list members, and if future AABHS reunions and events are planned, notices will be sent as usual. Work is still needed to create a mailing list for grad years in the years between 1995 and 2019.
Starting in 1983, twenty-five years after BHS opened in the fall of 1958, an all-year, face-to-face reunion has been held bringing together grads and former staff members. This has been a quinquennial gathering, the last having occurred in October 2018. The outstanding success of the weekend resulted in a generous surplus being realized, and a commitment was made again to donate it to the BHS community. With the guidance of the Principal, Rachel C. Wilson, three donations were made in 2021-22 – for 10 picnic-style tables and benches placed in the inner courtyard, a replacement stage in room B106 and a dishwasher to assist student life event clean-up. The AABHS grant totalled $16,206 for these initiatives.
In carrying out these ventures, the Executive Committee met via Zoom six times, with an AGM on May 9, 2021 and regular meetings on June 13, September 5, December 19, and in 2022 on February 13 and April 21st. Meeting kits and minutes are available upon request from the AABHS Secretary.
A new Executive Committee is in place following the Association’s May 26th AGM, headed by 1985 grad
Henriette Geerlings as President. Among the first tasks to be accomplished is the convening of a committee to consider the next all-year reunion event. This celebration has been held every five years since 1983, and marks the anniversary of the school’s opening in fall 1958.
Your participation in organizing the 2023 reunion, either at your own class level or on the central planning
committee, would be welcomed.
Alumni Association of Beaconsfield High School (AABHS) alumni@beaconsfieldhighschool.ca
Alumni Association of Beaconsfield High School / l’Association des anciens et anciennes de l’École secondaire Beaconsfield
