Issue: 03 April 2008
Title: Time of Your Life
Search Publication Extracts
Publication: Times&Transcript, Moncton, NB
Issue: 03 April 2008
Title: Time of Your Life
|
Time of Your Life by Linda Hersey Cassie Trenholm still very active at 96 "When Dad run the fish factory and they hauled the green herring up to put in the tanks to salt, I used to team out the little mare to pull the four barrels of fish up each time that they were loaded and emptied in the tank," says Caissie Trenholm of Cape Tormentine about her chores as an 11-year old. Born at Cape Spear, when Cassie was 15 she moved with her family about three miles up the road to Capt Tormentine, where she still makes her home. They also lived for a short time in Amherst during World War II, where her father was doing "war work". The eldest of six children born to Alfred and Katherine (Katie) Trenholm, there was always plenty of work to be done, and Cassie helped her mother as well. In fact, Cassie has worked hard all her life, usually at the lobster factory in Cape Tormentine, and for a short time at Reid's Restaurant. "I brought my nephew (Carl) up from a baby, because his mother left him on my bed over home and went out and we never seen her since. He was just a baby." She also helped her sister Anita (both her sisters are now deceased) when she was ill, and often looked after her son Howard. Carl and Howard are very dear to her (she's been to Garland, Texas to visit Howard) as is her niece Loretta. She's very proud of all three. Now 96, Cassie has treat memories to look back on - such as playing the Hawaiian guitar at old-time dances, accompanied by her father on the fiddle and her mother on the piano. They also played in Borden, P.E.I. "Right on!" she laughs. "Mama played the autoharp and we got a guitar so I watched her and I listened to them play. I used to take the guitar and go in her bedroom and sit on the bed. Edson (brother) was just about six months old, and I'd put him on a pillow, sit on the side of the bed and sing and play and he'd drop off to sleep." Cassie used to play the organ as well. She has seen Cape Tormentine change drastically over the years to what is today a very quiet community, and gone is the bustle of ferry traffic (people used to use her washroom facilities while waiting). However Cassie Trenholm remains an icon, known for her delicious bread and cooking. She still embroiders some, and keeps house (Carl helps). "I will be 97 this August 23, and I'm not using a cane," she states. "I go up and down stairs. I walk just the same as I always did." T this truly amazing 96-year old, longevity is pretty straightforward. "I always was active and ate well," she says, "and I never smoked and I never drank." |
Extracts: