A new venture was undertaken in Dec. 1950 with the publishing of a School Paper, " Stella Maris Highlights ". This paper was prepared twice a year and was very well received by parents and pupils. It was one way of having the children of junior and senior grades express themselves in writing, both in prose and poetry. After the destructive fire of 1954 Sr. St . Mary Eugenia ( Louise Gallant ) and Sr. St . Hildebert ( Annie White ) spent hours during many days making plans for the new school. Mr. Downie , Architect from Halifax, who was overseeing the plans, hearing that funds would not be available for the cost of erecting a two-story building, decided that there would have to be only one story and base¬ ment classrooms. The principal, Sr. St . Mary Eugenia , wisely objected to hav¬ ing teachers and pupils spend day after day in a basement. Suddenly the architect had a new idea. "How much land does the school district own?", he asked. With the answer came the decision to spread the building over a much larger area, thus avoiding basement rooms and providing a fine, bright school for the ever increasing enrolment. From the opening of the first Stella Maris School and all through the following years the spiritual welfare of the students was always of greatest concern to their teachers. For close to thirty years the School Board allowed the teaching of Religion Classes to be carried on during the first half hour of school at Stella Maris , and this privilege was deeply appreciated. However, many hours outside of school time were spent working for dialogue participation in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, in training altar boys, looking after the sacristy and the decoration of the sanctuary. The Sisters tried by various means to instill into the hearts of the children true devotion to our Blessed Mother, Mary, Guardian of the Parish under her beautiful title, "Star of the Sea!' The Living Rosary, pro¬ cessions, special hymns, encouragement of family rosary and prayer, meetings with the older students, were among the spiritual activities undertaken. Care of the poor was a very rewarding work during the "hard times" of the parish when large cartons of clothing, new and almost new, were sent by friends of the Sisters, from Montreal. One Sister was named to distribute the clothing privately so that no one but the recipient knew where the gift came from, and in this way many deserving good people, whose hard work brought them little remuneration, were helped. In 1955 the High School boys and girls were given the privilege of attending a retreat under the direction of Father William Simpson of Saint Dunstan's Unviersity. The convent chapel was given over to them during these days of prayer and direction. Thus was initiated a precious advantage that was to become a yearly event. In August 1956, Sister St . Mary Sixtus ( Vera MacLellan ) replaced Sr. St . Mary Eugenia ( Louise Gallant ) as principal. Sister had spent thirty-two years 58