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| The Wilderbeats performed such hits as The Yak Song and Gus, Gus, Gopher Tortoise, about the Museum of Natural History鈥檚 best-loved inhabitant, for the crowd of children, parents and caregivers. (Nick Pearce Photo) |
Remember when Tropical Storm Christobel blew through? Torrential rain and wind didn鈥檛 deter more than 100 people who showed up for a rockin鈥� anniversary party at Peter Green Hall on Tuesday.
There were guest speakers and live musical performances鈥攖hough sometimes hard to hear through the squeaks, giggles and gurgles of the聽 gathered throng. Of course, it鈥檚 difficult to contain your excitement when you haven鈥檛 yet hit double digits.
The Peter Green Hall Children鈥檚 Centre is marking 40 years as an integral part of student residence Peter Green Hall. Its establishment marked the first time a university residence in Maritime Canada provided students with childcare services.
Opened in the late 鈥�60s, Peter Green Hall was created by a number of married students at AV俱乐部 who saw the need for a family-oriented residence. They worked hard to meet this demand, and when it opened they had enough applications to fill not just one building, but four!
The residence was based off of a model at the University of Toronto. However, the Dal students made adjustments to that model, and while the U of T residence was forced to close within three years, Peter Green Hall lives on today.
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| Peter Green: proud.聽 |
鈥淎ll children should have this kind of opportunity in life,鈥� said Alexa McDonough, who also spoke at the celebration. She was a student at Dal when the hall was just getting started. In retrospect, she noted the remarkable creativity and advancements that came out of Dal at that time. She extolled the virtues of the children鈥檚 centre, describing it as a 鈥渏ewel鈥� and a 鈥淐anadian prize,鈥� declaring that the care provided there should be used as an example of 鈥渨hat every family deserves.鈥�
Throughout the festivities, well-deserved congratulations, thanks and watermelon were offered all around. As warm smiles welcomed all who wandered into the tent, it was easy to see how the Peter Green Hall Children鈥檚 Centre gained international recognition. 鈥淚n every organization, it鈥檚 the people involved that make it a success,鈥� commented a former head of the Halifax Student Housing Society, upon taking to the microphone. Looking around, it was impossible to disagree.