The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
The day Alma graduated from nursing school was the day Hitler invaded Poland. "We didn't think much of it at the time," she stated. Alma's first nursing job was in Nipawin, Saskatchewan at the City Hospital. Then one day she saw an ad in the paper looking for nurses for summer relief at the Vancouver General. The move proved to be the turning point in Alma's life because she met the love of her life, Cy Bloxom, and they were married four months later. Shortly thereafter Cy received his 'call' to go into the service and the family was apart for almost four years with Cy only getting a short leave when his son Perry was born. Alma took her son and moved to Saskatoon where she was able to get a job as a 'special' nurse working part time and saving some money for when Cy returned from the war. When Cy finally received his discharge from the service he came to Flin Flon Ñ as did many others Ñ looking for work. He was hired on at HBMS in 1946. Alma came to Flin Flon, by train, along with her young son Perry, to join Cy shortly after Cy got a job. The family lived in Bob Cassidy's garage for a short time because there was such a shortage of housing. See 'Couples' P.# Con't from P.# Finally, they heard of Bus and Isobel Ketchen putting their house at 21 Grandview up for sale and the Bloxom family bought it. Lots of changes took place over the next 20 years. The house was raised to make way for waterworks and indoor plumbing, and four more children were added to the family: Bonnie, Betty, Janet and Bob. This was the era of the Model T truck and family outings to Phantom Lake. Alma smiles, "When Cy would start up that truck, kids and dogs would appear from all over the neighbourhood for a trip to Phantom Lake. There must have been about 80 kids in the neighbourhood of Grandview, Hillcrest and Fifth Avenue!" The kids' spare time consisted of Phantom in the summer and the outdoor rinks in the winter. As for the adults, the couples would very often have house parties. "We had a piano and Uncle Les played the banjo. Harold Taylor played the harmonica and Bob Cassidy the violin. We got together and had a great time," recalls Alma. There were the Andersons, Krellers, Cassidys, Axtells and McGowans, and the kids would sit at the top of the stairs and "take it all in!" As couples, they would often get together to play cards or go to dances at the old Community Hall, Jubilee Hall, the Lobstick, Creighton Hall, the Legion or the Wigwam at Denare Beach. Alma stated that she got most of her groceries from Eddie's, as they would deliver. Once the Co-op opened she not only got some of her groceries there, but also clothes for the kids or from the Eaton's catalogue. Some clothes were hand made on the Singer sewing machine. Mittens were knitted. Alma hired on part time for Sister Tessier at the Flin Flon General Hospital in the mid-50s. She worked with Millie Njegovan, Frances Sandford, Ethel Brown, Gladys Ulinder, Dettie Gibney/Reles, Laura Imrie and doctors such as Johnson, Wilson, Stephansson, Redpath and McNichol. In those days nurses worked eight hour shifts and the hospital was run by the Grey Nuns, Sisters of Service. Once the kids were old enough to manage on their own, Alma went to work full time at the General Hospital, working mostly on Pediatrics and first floor Medical. A few years later the position of Health Nurse became available when Edra Johnson retired at the Northern Manitoba Health Unit, which was located in the old Terrace School, now Ruth Betts. Dr. N. Stephansson was in charge, and two secretaries by the names of Norma Kennedy and Betty Smith also worked there. The job of Health Nurse also meant that Alma would fly to many communities in the North such as Sherridon, Snow Lake and Lynn Lake with Parson's Airways and pilot Bob Ferguson. As a nurse, Alma said she realized that many seniors were getting together to play cards, so she thought why not do blood pressures and foot care at the same time, and that is how the clinics got started. She laughs, "That's my claim to fame!" Alma states that one day she and Millie Njegovan were going through the immunization records and noticed how many children failed grade one. "No child should fail grade one!" she says indignantly. So they went to their director of Public Health, Mrs. Pancar, who had heard of the Head Start Program. Mrs. Pancar hired a teacher named Nancy Lynch as their first teacher and the program began in the early 50s. "Around the time that Cy retired in 1972, we bought the grocery store in Denare Beach, and we called it Cy's Grocery. I wore two hats because I continued to work as a health nurse as well as work in the store until I retired from Public Health in 1977. I continued to work for the Saskatchewan Homecare program though. We only had the store a short time and we sold it to Margaret and Donavon Schweitzer. We bought a cabin just across the road from the store." Both Alma and Cy were very active in the Denare Beach community. Alma worked very diligently raising funds for the recreation centre. As a result she was recognized as a Saskatchewan Cultural and Recreation Volunteer. She was a member of the New Horizons Seniors Club and had a hand in making many beautiful quilts. At the age of 72 Alma was the second eldest practising registered nurse in Saskatchewan. Alma likes to spend her summers there. Cy passed away in 1998. Alma has 13 grandchildren and seven great grandchildren as well. She spends her time playing cards with friends as well as enjoying visits from her family and friends. She can hardly wait for spring to come so that she can get back out to the lake! She has no plans of leaving this area. Thanks for sharing your story with us Alma!
