| | LEVEL OF DESCRIPTION: | Fonds | | No.: | PR2256 | | TITLE: | Vera Bracken Fonds | | CREATOR: | VERA BRACKEN | | DATE RANGE: | 1981-1996 | | EXTENT: | 0.14 m of textual records. | | ADMINISTRATIVE | | HISTORY/BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH: | Vera Bracken (née Ignatius) was born in Warner, Alberta on July 6, 1909. The Bracken family moved to Bow Island, Alberta in 1910 to homestead. The Brackens then moved to Oregon for several years, but returned to homestead in Alberta. After receiving an education in Medicine Hat, Vera Bracken began teacher training. She took her first position in Prospy, in the Winnifred, Alberta area. In 1955, Vera helped to establish the George P. Vanier School for mentally handicapped children. At 55, Vera returned to school and received her Bachelor of Education, with Distinction. Vera retired from teaching in 1974. Throughout her lifetime, Vera made numerous monetary contributions to the libraries and colleges in Medicine Hat, and the Medicine Hat Community Foundation and the New Santa Claus Fund. She also volunteered and canvassed for groups including the United Way, Hatterland Theatre, the Veiner Centre, CanSurmount, and the Canadian Mental Health Association. In 1998, the Medicine Hat College christened their library the "Vera Bracken Library", and in 2003 re-dedicated the new facility in her honour.
In 1942, Vera married L.C. Bracken. Vera Bracken passed away on January 12, 2004 in Medicine Hat.
| | CUSTODIAL HISTORY: | Material arranged according to original order. | | SCOPE AND CONTENT: | The fonds consists of histories written by Vera Bracken in ca. 1996 including "The One-Room School", the "Rural School Teacher", and the "Schools of the Foothills". The fonds also includes reminiscences documenting her experience growing up on a homestead in Alberta written in 1981 entitled, "Real and Romantic Reminiscences of the Early Years of the Daughter of a Pioneer." | | ASSOCIATED MATERIAL: | For more material on Vera Bracken, please see the Vera Bracken fonds at the Esplanade Archives in Medicine Hat. | | GENERAL NOTE: | Information for the administrative history/biographical sketch sourced from the Esplanade Archives' Vera Bracken fonds description. |
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