SISTER ANN, THE YOUNG CO-OPERATORS CLUB AND ME
A heartfelt tribute to an organization that inspired many young, aspiring writers.
In 1975, I joined The Western Producer’s Young Co-operators Club and mailed in stories, poems and letters to be published in the pages of the newspaper. This writing club was first started in 1927 by Violet Mcnaughton, the women’s editor of the Saskatoon-based farm newspaper. Within just a few short months of its startup, the Young Co-operators’ Club pages developed into a writing community where children and teens could debate politics, talk about books, send in their original poems and stories, and discuss other topics of interest.
While the general contents of the pages were influenced by the children, Violet Mcnaughton and her assistant editor, Kit Webb, guided the young writers under their adopted pen names, “Sister Ann” and “Bluebird.” Violet retired in 1950, but both of their original pen names, Sister Ann and Bluebird, continued to be used by the dozen or so editors who oversaw the youth pages right up to the club’s demise in 1994.
Some of the members became wellknown writers in their adult lives. Many wrote under a pen name, as did renowned Cape Breton author Alistair Macleod, who used the pseudonym, “Little Beaver.” Macleod was born in North Battleford and lived in Saskatchewan until the age of five. When he was elected Junior Leader in December 1948, Macleod was 12 years old and living in Dunvegan, N.S.
In June 1983, I celebrated my 100th publication in The Western Producer’s Young Co-operators pages. A recent high-school graduate, and enrolled at the University of Alberta for the fall, I was invited to The Western Producer’s head office to celebrate the accomplishment. I was greeted at the Saskatoon airport and then taken on a tour of their operating facilities and some of the key historical sites in Saskatoon. It was a
big deal for me. I knew then that I wanted to write about my experience in the YC Club someday, but I wouldn’t decide on the proper format until decades later.
Three “Sister Anns” worked as editors during my time as a Young Co-op. The longest-running editor of the three was Elizabeth Wheeler, daughter of Seager Wheeler, Canada’s most significant “Wheat King.” She took over the pen name of Sister Ann around 1967 and continued until about 1980. Early in 2016, I located Elizabeth Wheeler and thanked her for the encouragement when I was a child. She wrote back, in the same distinctive handwriting that can be found in the letters pasted in my YC scrapbook, asking about my writing exploits and even enclosed poems she had written. Elizabeth passed away at the age of 98 in November 2016. In her last correspondence, Elizabeth signed off with, “I trust all is going well with you and your work. Be assured I shall always be interested.”
Editor’s Note: Carol’s historical picture book Lily in the Loft, which is illustrated by Regina artist Val Moker, was published in 2017. It’s dedicated to Sister Ann and Bluebird, whose encouraging words motivated many young writers and editors.