Cte.

' ries,

All letters and articles
for this page should
be addressed to the
Women’s Page
Editor.

E-mainly for Women
conducted by Winnie Williams

Strathcona School, seeking new
Quarters, asks financial

By WINNIE WILLIAMS

My introduction to the Strathcona Day Nursery and

Street was a drowsy afternoon last week as I watc
eyed after their midday nap, scuffle into a room w
to delight any youngster’s heart.

hoe Jean Bird, the nursery’s
iprelaaaad or ‘teacher’ as she is
ta €d by her charges, and the
oman I had come to interview,
Urried over to the center table
ee distributed cookies, milk and
Toad to the children. A few
€r ones who had skipped the
Nap were now beginning to make
3 €ir presence heard by starting
‘elo game at the other end of
e large room, :
eo have to be a diplomat at
x iy game,” said Mrs. Bird as she
turned to where I was sitting,
- ring averted a ‘rubber ball’
Misis that threatened to cloud
an otherwise beautiful day.
tim guess it’s quite a job some-
€s,” I countered.
xk k *

aenen I asked her how many
i dren attended the school, Mrs.
Arad told me: “There are eighteen
i re today, but sometimes we
ave twice that many. Actually,
€ average attendance is 30 to
ren anywhere from two to
Sheena And when I think what
be taken away from this
community if we have to close
©wn at the end of June .,. .” '
or es, I heard there was a threat
& shut-down here. Something
(20 with the grant, wasn’t it?”
segen no,” she hastened to cor-
b me. “We are administered
=, Community Chest at the pres-
time, who pay our staff sal-
our housekeeping budget

give a stipulated sum to
&enera) palate

mo maintenance. Although
Aung nursery schools; such as
ad are administered by Cont-

Unity Center boards, as are Gor-

on House and Alexandra Neigh-
Orhood House, we have not yet
£en able to find an agency to
€ us over on our terms of

ontinued independence in run-
ng our school.

th But Community Chest realizes

oa heed of a school such as this
this district, and will maintain

- a We also have the backing of

Stewart Murray, Metropoli-

nN Health, Children’s Aid Society
and Family Welfare.
KK ok

our main problem is ac-
ing modation. We are now us-
Cc rsd about half of a First United
urch, run by Dr. Roddan, and
© is planning to take over our
ms at the end of June. We
must find other and larger
Quarters to expand our activi-
©s, or we shall be forced to
ut down, and we need the
€lp of the people in this com-
aunity to solve our problem.”
th What about funds to maintain
© school?” I asked.
é Well,” said Mrs. Bird. “Our
Wipment is very poor. In the
We have raised money in
US ways to keep us going.
Gn we were first organized—
ee. years ago—some trade un-
&& 8, particularly the Boilermak-
8 Union, donated $300 to put us
pour feet.
meen now,” she added, “the
= ers of the children here are
Sanizing a bazaar for next
Lae to raise more money for
€ded equipment.”
Ror skia

Vario

cen nat support have you re
I ved in the community here?”
asked,

Rete Main support has been
°m the mothers themselves.
fact, we are now going ahead
2 forming a PTA group, for
i © feel in this way we will have
Yen more backing. The branch

FRIDAY, MAY 16, 1947

help :

Play School at 500 Powéll

hed a score of children, still sleepy-
hose wall decorations were designed

No school today
Federation of Teachers (AFL) are on strike for higher
pay. Here they are shown asking students not to cross
their picket line.

These East Detroit school teach-
ers affiliated with the American

.

will be set up this coming
week, and incidentally, it will be
the first pre-school PTA group
in this province.

“We also plan to institute more
services through the PTA, such
as a regular movie program every |
two weeks. This will not only
provide entertainment for the
children, but we can also see.
that suitable films are shown to
them—not this ‘gangster’ fare that
seems to fill the market.

“T think this is one of the
unique features of our school,”
she added proudly. “The parents
realize that they cannot do with-
out it and are doing all they can
to see that it is carried on.

Kak

“We did not organize because —
of the war, to merely accommo-
date working mothers. We or-
ganized because of the poor
housing conditions and _ these
conditions have not improved.
So it’s important for us to carry
en our work.”

“You mentioned Metropolitan
Health a few minutes ago. I'd
like to hear a little more about
that.”

“Yes, they have been very help-
ful to us, too, especially consid-
ering the very inadequate staff
they have. A school nurse comes
in every week to check over the
children. All new children are

checked over immediately and
they all have a doctor’s physical
examination every six months.

“Here we rely a lot on correc-
tion methods. We try to keep all
the children healthy and happy
all the time.”

As I left the building, I felt
that here was a very practical
example of what can be accom-
plished through united action on
the part of working mothers.

Son for Mickleburghs

An eight-pound two-ounce baby
boy, who ‘has been named Roder-
ick Bruce, was born to Mrs. Brita
Mickleburgh in Vancouver Gen-
eral Hospital on May 3.

Both parents are well known
in the labor movement on the
Coast and both are members of
of the B.C. Teachers Federation.

Bruce Mickleburgh, now Van-
couver. city organizer for the
Labor-Progressive Party, was
LPP candidate for Skeena in the
1945 federal election and contest-
ed the Prince Rupert provincial
seat in the last provincial elec-
tion. :

Mrs. Mickleburgh is the former
Brita Vesterback, eldest daughter
of Victor Vesterback, chairman of
Aldergrove LPP club.

Women in Soviet zone

are winning new freedom

By GLADYS NELSON

“Equal pay for equal work and the complete elimination
of discrimination against women is our goal. And we’re fast
achieving it,’ Mrs. Friedel Malter, head of the women’s
division of the Free German Trade Unions (FDGB) in the

Soviet-occupied zone of Germany,
told me when I interviewed her
for Allied Labor News in Berlin
the other day.

To women whose _ productive
role during Nazism was limited
to childbearing or ruthles exploit-
ation under slave-labor conditions,
the hope of industrial equality is
a major step forward.

A survivor of a death march
from Sachsenhausen concentra-_
tion camp that claimed 8,000
lives, Mrs. Malter experienced
the suffering meted out to anti-
Nazis when Hitler stalked her
land, Six years of prison and
forced labor camps have taught
her that democracy is worth
fighting for, and that’s what
she’s doing—with equality for
women as a key point on her
agenda,

Breaking down the barriers of
discrimination that had become
the accepted pattern of German
life hasn’t been easy. Many wo
men lacked the self-confidence ne-
cessary to speak up and demand
equal rights and privileges. Others
were convinced-that men were
entitled to higher wages as their
natural right.

“And many men, of course,”
Mrs. Malter remarked smilingly,
“accepted this false notion and
made the most of it.”

Kerk ok

As soon as the equal pay for
equal work order of the. Soviet
military administration became
effective last August, an orienta-
tion campaign began. And it has |
borne fruit as more and more
women became active recruits in
the fight for equality.

In Berlin the 4power control
commission has accepted the pro-
gram. Wages of all women street-
car conductors and subway work-
ers have been raised to conform
with men’s wage levels.

Granting equal pay to women
has led to a number of necessary
qualifications. Special regulations
concerning their employment as
night workers have been set up.
Women have been barred from
engaging in trades that might en-
danger their health. “The fact
that women are women has not
been overlooked,” Mrs. Malter
pointed out.

When the question of working
housewives came up, she explained
they. have a ‘Housework Day’—
one extra day off with pay every
four weeks for women ‘who have
a home to take care of in addition
to a job. Already the Berlin town
council has introduced ‘House-
work Day’ in all its agencies as
has the Post Office department
in the Soviet zone. The regular
work week is 48 hours..

coke ok,

As part of the tremendous task
of building an effective demo-
cratic union movement out of the
shattered remnants of 12 years of
Nazism, an extensive educational
program is being conducted.

Mrs. Malter cited some fig-
ures to illustrate the special em-
phasis that must be placed on

educating women workers. The
total working population in the

Soviet zone is 614 million. Of
this number three million (42
percent) are women. But out of
21,000 shop stewards only 4,200

(20 percent) are women.

“So you see,” Friedel Malter
added with emphasis, “we women
have a long way to go. But we'll
get there.”

\Pro-Rec gives

new schedule

Following is the summer sched-
ule announced by the Provincial
Recreation Centers this week:
MONDAY

St. Margaret’s, 8 pm; IOOF
Hall, Kamloops and Hastings at
8 p.m.; St. Augustine’s, Marpole,
8 p.m.; Southern Slope’ Commun-
ity Hall, Jr. 6.30 p.m., Sr. 8 p.m.
(indoor and softball).
TUESDAY

South Burnaby Recreation Cen-
ter, Jrs. 630 p.m, Srs, 8 p.m..
Renfrew Community Centre, 8
p.m; Steelworkers Hall, 8 p.m.;
Softball, Model School, 6.80 p.m;
Heywood Park Community Hall,
8 pm, (indoor and outdoor).
WEDNESDAY

Sea Island, Jrs. 18 a.m. or 6.30
P.m.; Bowling, Commodore Alleys,
7 p.m; Swimming, Crystal Pool,
2 pm, 8 p.m.; Outing Club—
Weekly trips to beaches, parks,
North Shore and mystery trips.

Sunrise Community Hall, 8 p.m;
cout Hall, North Vancouver, Re-
creation’ Evenings, mixed square
dancing, tumbling, softball, and
trips to beaches, 8 p.m. Bowling,
Commodore Alleys, 7 p.m.
FRIDAY

Citizens’ Rehabilitation Hostel,
8 p.m. (outdoor trips when fine) ;
IOOF Hall, 30th and Main, 8 p.m;
Softball, Renfrew Park, 7 p.m. ¢

[Sunrise

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