Vivi Petersen, VHS 1960  Miss Victoria 1959

Vivi’s family immigrated to Victoria in 1955 from Denmark. Her Grade 11 year at Vic High she was Class President and a member of the Vic High Cheerleaders. “She always said she really enjoyed being a cheerleader,” said her husband, Mike Heppell. In May 1959, still in Grade 11, she was invited by the Victoria Junior Chamber of Commerce to enter the Miss Victoria pageant. The Jaycees, as they were called, sponsored the annual BC Products Fair at the original Memorial Arena. Saturday, May 16, 1959, she was crowned Miss Victoria after performing “I Whistle A Happy Tune” from the musical The King and I as her talent. Her princesses were Patricia Pye, aged 18, and Valerie Parker, aged 20.

“She went on to win the Miss PNE pageant held annually at the Vancouver exhibition,” says Mike, “which qualified her for the Miss Canada Pageant in Toronto where she was first runner-up.” Vivi returned to Victoria with considerable fanfare, and a few weeks later was called by the Miss Canada Committee and requested to fill in for an ill Miss Canada at the Miss USA Pageant in Atlantic City. While Vivi was rehearsing in Atlantic City the reigning Miss Canada recovered and claimed her right to compete. Vivi was invited to remain for the Pageant and assisted Miss Canada in preparing for the competition. During this time a Danish seaman suffered serious burns from a fire aboard a ship near the US coast and was transported to an Atlantic City burn unit for treatment. He didn’t speak English and the hospital was unable to find anyone who spoke Danish. A public appeal was broadcast and Vivi was asked to attend and assist the injured man communicate with his caregivers.

Vivi married Vic High grad, Tom Wyatt, a star member of the 1959 BC Championship Vic High Totems basketball team, wearing her stunning Miss Victoria gown.  They had two children, Pia and Peter. Pia works in drama production in Louisiana. She and Tom divorced after 20 years together, and Vivi married Mike Heppell, Victoria Fire Chief for 17 years, who also served in the Canadian Armed Forces and with organizations like the Red Cross. Her family donated her Miss Victoria gown to the Vic High Archives and Museum and when not on display, it is preserved in a special acid-free box to protect it.

 

Vivi became a Stewardess (now called Flight Attendant) with Trans Canada Airlines (now Air Canada), when she returned from the Miss Canada pageant. She had had quite the adventure for a 19 year old girl who had only been in Canada four years at the time.

Joan Huddleston, VHS 1964, remembers Vivi very well. She and Vivi’s sister Lone were good friends. “We used to dress up in Vivi’s clothes,” said Joan. “It was great fun.” Joan didn’t love school. Actually she said she hated it!  But she had a group of friends there and they remain friends still.

Vivi passed in 2015. Tom Wyatt passed recently. Mike Heppell is alive and well and helped greatly with information and photos for this story, and for the Miss Victoria display at Vic High. It remains in place until February 10, in the southwest corner of the Main (1^st) floor of Vic High.