University,” says Tony. Indeed, promotional materials from early in 1975 warn attendees that the Holiday Inn, where some association meetings and events were being held, had already sold out. Other dentists and their families boarded a cruise ship in Montreal, sailed east along the St. Lawrence River and docked in St. John’s for the duration of the convention. The Danish luxury liner, the MS Discoverer, had “passenger comfort and convenience with the intimacy of a yacht and features usually association with larger cruise vessels,” according to a 1975 CDA publication. It had a movie theatre, swimming pool and a “combo for dancing each night.” The total cruise time was ten days. solid. The people who were cooking the banquet spent two days in one of the dressing rooms of the stadium defrosting them all. He said there was water everywhere. A mini flood.” The convention also included an opening soiree at the arts and culture centre and a concert by Ryan’s Fancy, a traditional Irish music trio that had arrived in St. John’s in 1971 to attend Memorial University. The musical group made a splash in the local music scene and a CBC television series, also called Ryan’s Fancy, followed the trio as they played music across Atlantic Canada. The convention also included an opening soiree at the arts and culture centre and a concert by Ryan’s Fancy, a traditional Irish music trio that had arrived in St. John’s in 1971 to attend Memorial University. “Unfortunately, the core people who did the planning for the convention have passed away, including Dr. Charles Daly, but I spoke to Dr. Gary McDonald and Dr. Gary Butler about their recollections,” says Tony. “One of the main events of the conference was a lobster boil at St. John’s Stadium with wine and a band from Greece.” Convention materials said there were thousands of lobsters served. The St. John’s Stadium was a hockey arena on Lake Ave. that would later be renamed Memorial Stadium before it closed in 2001. “It was a big crowd, there was a whole floor of tables and, by the end, all the food and wine was gone!” says Lesley Patey, executive director of NLDA and Tony’s daughter. “Gary MacDonald remembered that the lobsters arrived frozen Dr. Frederick Reid, CDA president 1974–75, accepts his pastpresident pin from Dr. David K. Peters, CDA president 1972–73. The MS Discoverer cruise ship was the transportation of choice for some 1975 convention attendees. Issues and People
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