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Response to 'Among the deep-sea fishers'
Bill Hutton*

Two years ago it was suggested to me that a suitable subject for an article in the Newsletter would be the link which used to exist between Glasgow Dental Hospital and the Grenfell Mission. As more than two dozen Glasgow graduates worked on the Labrador Coast and in Newfoundland surely some attempt should be made to collate their stories. I set down some thoughts which appeared as an article in the November 2004 Newsletter (No. 14). A copy was sent to the offices in St Anthony of the Grenfell Regional Health Services which publish a quarterly magazine "Along the coast". It used to be called "Among the deep sea fishers" which had a much better ring to it! Extracts of my article appeared in their January-March 2005 issue.
Since the article appeared, the following have contacted me:
James Dyce Lumsden BDS (Glasgow) 1955, who worked with the Grenfell Mission 1955-1958; he now lives in Suffolk.
Chris Allan BDS (Glasgow) 1972, with Grenfell 1976-77, now a Consultant inRestorative Dentistry in Dundee.
Dr Marion Dyke. She is the daughter of lan Swan B.D.S. (Glasgow) 1952, who went with Grenfell to Cartwright, Labrador 1952-1953, then set up his own practice in Clarenville, Newfoundland, retiring in 1987. He and his Australian wife Elizabeth (they met during the war) brought up their three children in Newfoundland and were both very active in the community - Ian was Mayor from 1961-1969. He died in 1997, aged 75.
Martin Wrate BDS (Newcastle) 1969, with Grenfell 1972-73.
I thoroughly enjoyed hearing from the above and thank them for taking the trouble to write to me. The article has recently appeared in an American journal(1), which might result in some additional contacts but so far that's it! I don't have enough material to proceed any farther, which surprised me because I still meet people who are Grenfell alumni, or who know someone who is, and who have tales to tell. Let's hope that is not the end of it!

* Bill Hutton, retired dental practioner, Lanark
(1) Journal of the History of Dentistry, Nove,ber 2005, Vol 53; p.86.

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