Norma Davies - Class of 1942

Duty, commitment, loyalty. These are principles that Norma has represented for nearly four decades within the Elmwood community. It is these values that are her enduring contribution. 

In the 1940s, when Norma Davies was a boarder at Elmwood, she never lost an opportunity to go over the back fence and head for home. An odd beginning, perhaps, to her career as one of the longest serving member of Elmwood’s Board of Governors.

Norma’s mother, Senator Cairine Wilson, was an early patron of Elmwood in the 1920s and a pioneering member of the Board of Governors. "It was a different school in those days," Norma recalls. "More personal. Everyone knew each other. Board meetings were more like social gatherings than business sessions of today."

Long gone are the days when Elmwood was a tiny neighbourhood school. The world has changed for women, and Elmwood has also changed. No one has been better positioned to observe its evolution than Norma Davies.

Norma joined the board in 1965. Lilias Southam and Ethel Fauquier had headed the School since their historic purchase of land and buildings in 1919. In the 1960s, it was time for them to pass the torch to their daughters – Janet SOUTHAM Ritchie, Betty FAUQUIER Gill, Cairine Wilson and Norma WILSON Davies.

Since then, Norma’s voice has been heard on the Board almost continuously, including a stint as chair. When asked about the future, she laughs. "I don’t think they will ever let me go," she says, though she insists that most of the heavy lifting is now done by others. What Norma brings to every meeting, however, is perspective. She has seen Elmwood grow. She has seen it go through highs and lows. She takes the long view. Even more importantly, she brings to the Board the time-honoured values of duty and commitment.

"That is the thing that I value most highly. Value."