May 18, 1955. On May 18, 1955, Premier Tommy Douglas of the province of Saskatchewan took time to preside of the opening ceremony of the Saskatchewan Training School (STS) in Moose Jaw. For Douglas, the service marked an important milestone for the proper care and training for people with mental disabilities in the province. It was something that was right in-line with his efforts to revamp the mental health program. At $8 million, the new facility was no small investment for the province. To be sure, the federal government did cover almost $2 million of the cost, but Saskatchewan’s taxpayers financed the majority of bill.

It was warm that early May as Douglas addressed the crowd of 1,000. As he approached the microphone, the crowd fell into a silence, the myriad construction noises stopped as the workers, and the already 40 residents stopped to listen to what the Premier had to say. The opening of STS was, according to Douglas, “The most outstanding event involving this community” (as cited in Training School Opening on May 18, 1955, p.3). He knew that this opening was a tremendous event in the care of people with mental disabilities. He also believed that the province would have a continued need for the institution that would last well into the future. As such, he was grateful for the residents of Moose Jaw and all of Saskatchewan for their support of the training school.

According to Douglas, this school was something for future residents to look back at and see how the past cared for its people. In his speech he remarked, “These are monuments that will tell our children and our children’s children that the people who lived in Saskatchewan in 1955 had a concern for those less fortunate than themselves” (as cited in $8,000,000 Centre for Mentally Retarded Open, 1955, p.1). The objective of the school was simple: teach people diagnosed with mental or intellectual disabilities, but who possessed manual dexterity, essential skills that would help them find jobs that best suit their abilities. To accomplish this, the school would hire 400 staff to teach, watch over, and assist 1,100 students as they learned skills that would help them carve a place in society and the work force, regardless of any conditions they may or may not have.

After Douglas was finished, the mayor of Moose Jaw, L. H. Lewry, stood up the give a few words. He said the people of the city were excited and grateful for STS. While Douglas spoke of the facility helping “less fortunate” people, the mayor, who saw the school a different way, explained that it would be an additional financial stability to the city. He said the institution would “bring to this community a very substantial increase in population and add a great deal to the total volume of spending power that is available to purchase services and goods in the business places of the city” (as cited in Training School Opening on May 18, 1955, p.3). Through their speeches, these men exemplified the different views politicians and people sometimes hold pertaining to institutions of this type.

-Blaine Wickham

• Training School Opening on May 18. (1955, May 13). Moose Jaw Times-Herald, p. 3.

• $8,000,000 Centre for Mentally Retarded Open. (1955, May 19). The Leader-Post, p. 1, 3.

• Wickham, B. (2012, September). Valley View Centre Moose Jaw: Report prepared for the Ministry of Parks, Culture and Sport. Retrieved from http://www.tpcs.gov.sk.ca/VVC