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Hilda Mayo was born in 1922 and lived in London during the blitz of the Second World War. She came to British Columbia as a War Bride in 1945, to Brunswick Beach with husband and family to build a summer cottage in the late 1960s, and to take up permanent residence there in 1984. For 12 years she was Secretary to the Board of Trustees of the Water Improvement District, until its dissolution in 1999 when Brunswick Beach and Lions Bay became one Municipality.
Hilda and family on a recent cruise in the Caribbean on the
"Freedom of the Sea", taken by son Warren (not shown). From
left to right: granddaughters Bronwyn, Danielle, grandsons Darrell,
Connor, Gareth, and son John. Hilda is center stage.
Some 100 or so years ago, a small "weekend" coastal community, accessible only by boat, began to take shape on a shoreline of Howe Sound in BC, forming what was to become the idyllic setting of Brunswick Beach. About forty lots of very modest dimensions were laid out along mile or so of the waterfront and the immediately adjacent hinterland. Beginning as an unincorporated settlement of peaceful, rural cottages, the "getaway" weekenders developed a community joie-de-vivre that persists to some extent to this day. In due course the British Columbia Railway (1954) and the Howe Sound Highway (1958) were built. The community evolved from Unincorporated to Water Improvement District (dates), becoming a part of the Village of Lions Bay in1999 following a detailed Restructuring Process.
One long time resident of Brunswick Beach, Mrs. Hilda Mayo, has provided me with glimpses of early Brunswick life, as well as generous tea and cake! Hilda, an only child, was born and grew up in the large city of London, England. She was 17 when war broke out in 1939. The next few years saw the family exposed to the wail of sirens and explosions of the bombs of warfare. Many Londoners abandoned their homes at night, trundling their bedding to the relative safety of underground railway stations, to sleep on newspapers on the concrete platforms in a few square feet of dedicated space. If you had a "lilo", that was a godsend! An "underground society helped maintain morale, there were trolleys of hot cocoa and sandwiches, and friends at different undergrounds could meet one another and travel free on the trains between stations. During the day, there was often no electricity or gas or water - we would take buckets to a fire hydrant at the end of the street. Rationing allowed 2 oz butter, 4 oz margarine, 1 egg, 8 pennyworth meat per week, plus bread, milk, vegetables and fish. Times were difficult, but people were absolutely wonderful."
Meantime, in the late 1930s, the Mayo family were forced by the depression to move from the small town of Wapella in Saskatchewan to Vancouver. Warren (Hilda's husband to be) walked the streets for many months, looking for work. He joined the Territorial Army in 1938 and the Royal Canadian Engineers of the regular army in 1939, where military pay would keep body and soul together. His pay as Electrician equaled that of Sergeant, to the chagrin of some at that rank! Warren was posted to England in 1940, and he and Hilda were married in 1944. Later, in Vancouver: "Weren't you lucky to marry a Canadian", to which came the retort "Warren was damned lucky to marry an English lass!"
Warren's job of detecting and defusing mines on the dykes of Holland cost him part of one leg and he was returned to Canada (1945). Hilda and 350 other War Brides, together with 1,000 repatriated troops, followed in March 1945, some months before the War was over. "We (the War Brides) were pampered beyond belief. We wore Red Cross pins. I was given a temporary special Army Transfer passport. A soldier was delegated to every Bride, to carry luggage, to help with Customs formalities, and to show us to our cabins. The food on the "cruise" was much better than the rations at home".
Hilda's ship, the "Franconia", was in a convoy of vessels escorted by a destroyer. The ocean crossing was mostly in the bleak North Atlantic. Unknown to passengers, however, there were several U-boats waiting to sink the ships as they approached Halifax Harbour. The convoy wisely made a detour south into the pleasant sunbathing region of the Azores until the Harbour was made safe to enter. Soldiers again helped with luggage, customs formalities and escort to the trains. Five days and six nights later, Hilda was in Vancouver, her husband having corrected a worrisome error for her to de-train in New Westminster. The Brides were dispersed all across Canada. One Glasgow girl would find herself in the lonely mining outpost of Britannia Beach. All in all, Hilda's introduction to the new country was good.
The late 1940s and early '50s were difficult times for the Mayo family. Warren's injuries in the War made heavy manual work difficult to impossible, restricting job opportunities. He registered as a War Vet at UBC, completing a four-year Double Honors degree in Maths and Physics in only three years. The couple returned to England (in 1948), where Warren taught at S.E. Essex Technical College for a year. It was here that he was obliged to teach himself Euclidean Geometry and keep one step ahead of the students! In 1957 Canada called the Mayos back to Vancouver. Warren took a one-year Teacher Training course at UBC which lead to teaching posts in North Vancouver and ultimately the Vice Principalship at Carson Graham. Hilda soon found a "lowly" job in the office of a lumber broker, a man of ascerbic religious convictions. An incident involving Hilda's bottle of Harvey's Bristol Cream Sherry - a Christmas treat brought to the office, caused concern at the upper management level (it had gurgled in the elevator, revealing its presence of the Boss!). The offence was to be expunged by the typing of many copies of a restorative document entitled "The Sins of Drink".
An offshoot of Warren's injuries set in motion a series of events that brought the Mayo's to Brunswick Beach. The injuries meant that Warren's clothes had to be adjusted to his needs by a tailor at Joe Bolen's Men's Store. Joe and Warren became good friends, and, in the late 1960s the Mayos were invited guests at the Bolen's cottage "in the country" - not a day's trek into the wilderness, but only an hour's drive along scenic Howe Sound.
The Mayos fell in love with Brunswick Beach, a sanctuary among grand trees bordering a pebbled shore, against a backdrop of imposing high mountains. A lot adjacent to the Bolen's might become available. Mr. Bolen arranged an introduction to the owner, and hopes began to rise - but be cautious! - there is a tense 2-3 year wait for a lien to run its course. On an appointed day in 1968, Mr. Mayo met with Mr. McNeil, the owner of the lot. The handshake deal of three-years ago was honoured despite the rise in local lot prices in the area. Mr. McNeil even refused to accept re-imbursement for a portion of the full year's property taxes that he had paid. "The family was overjoyed". Like pioneers before them, the Mayos set about clearing the lot, son Warren (17) bringing friends to wield dangerous machetes, while younger John enjoyed less severe "chores". Hilda reflects on the generosity of people, especially the Bolen's, whose home they used while establishing their own cottage - a three-year project. Warren senior drew the plans for the cabin and did all of the interior work, choosing different wood panelings - mahogany, elm, cedar, hemlock ...... for the different rooms.
In 1984 the Mayos sold their home in town and moved to Brunswick Beach as permanent residents. About this time the cabin was moved on rollers on to an adjacent lot that the family had acquired. Convinced of his ability (and presumably the integrity of the building), the contractor insisted that there was no need to move any items from shelves, guaranteeing, "If a single drop spills from this saucer I've put on the table, the move will be done for free". No water was spilled, the Mayos appreciatively paid the moving bill. Warren Sr. wielded the camera to record the historic event, but the least said about the potential pictures the better!
In 1987 the Chair of the Improvement District asked Hilda to take on the role of Secretary to the Board, "in desperation, no one wanted to do it. I was his last resort!" The previous Secretary, Myrna Gates, who had served the Board for 30 years and as community 'paper boy' for 40 years, was retiring. Warren said "Take it, you will know what is going on". Apparently Hilda thought that the business of the community was controlled by an independent card-playing contingent of ladies! Despite initial reluctance, Hilda filled the role for the next 12 years, until Brunswick became part of the Village of Lions Bay and the Water District was dissolved.
Warren died in 1992. The "boys" followed in father's academic footsteps, Warren junior completing degrees in Honours Maths and Medicine at UBC, while John's degrees are a Double First Class Honours in Chemistry and Physics and also in Medicine. Mother is justifiably proud in her home in Beautiful Brunswick Beach (see photo).
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