Anne-Marie Robinson

Episode 7, The Club No One Wanted to Join.

Episode 7, The Club No One Wanted to Join.

I hand over a coffee cake, grip my microphone. I plan to keep recording for the next several hours. Today, we get to meet, chat, and eat cake together.

I hand over a coffee cake, grip my microphone. I plan to keep recording for the next several hours. Today, we get to meet, chat, and eat cake together.

No, I'm good for now. This is Ollie's cozy 1930s-era home with original wood trim. As a real estate agent, these are the kinds of things she'd notice. An upright piano sits on one side of the room, a fireplace on the other. The women are here from all over.

No, I'm good for now. This is Ollie's cozy 1930s-era home with original wood trim. As a real estate agent, these are the kinds of things she'd notice. An upright piano sits on one side of the room, a fireplace on the other. The women are here from all over.

These are the four founding members, but other affiliates will connect soon. Anne-Marie Robinson, with her dark hair no longer hiding her green eyes, is finally with her people. Jeannie, JM, is the first survivor Anne-Marie and I tracked down. Then we met Jackie, the diary keeper and opera singer.

These are the four founding members, but other affiliates will connect soon. Anne-Marie Robinson, with her dark hair no longer hiding her green eyes, is finally with her people. Jeannie, JM, is the first survivor Anne-Marie and I tracked down. Then we met Jackie, the diary keeper and opera singer.

Ali, whose home we're in, came into the picture after my investigation was published a couple months ago. The fact these women are now together is a marvel. But here they are, face to face, catching up and taking stock. Jeannie and Anne-Marie still find it odd the police didn't connect them before I did.

Ali, whose home we're in, came into the picture after my investigation was published a couple months ago. The fact these women are now together is a marvel. But here they are, face to face, catching up and taking stock. Jeannie and Anne-Marie still find it odd the police didn't connect them before I did.

Anne-Marie went to the police in 2017. She had no idea Jeannie had already gone to another force in the greater Toronto area about 10 years earlier. But Anne-Marie did know there was another victim. She knew someone had gone to the Ontario College of Teachers. The name on the public document is blacked out. Anne-Marie thought the police could find that woman. We now know that woman is Jeannie.

Anne-Marie went to the police in 2017. She had no idea Jeannie had already gone to another force in the greater Toronto area about 10 years earlier. But Anne-Marie did know there was another victim. She knew someone had gone to the Ontario College of Teachers. The name on the public document is blacked out. Anne-Marie thought the police could find that woman. We now know that woman is Jeannie.

That's the coping mechanism. They've come together with one main thing in common, and it's not pleasant. So laughs are a reprieve. There are four women in this room, aside from me. Sometimes they talk over each other, interrupt or change the course of the conversation. Don't worry if you lose track of who's talking. The message will be clear. So we're in Ali's home. The warm-up act is over.

That's the coping mechanism. They've come together with one main thing in common, and it's not pleasant. So laughs are a reprieve. There are four women in this room, aside from me. Sometimes they talk over each other, interrupt or change the course of the conversation. Don't worry if you lose track of who's talking. The message will be clear. So we're in Ali's home. The warm-up act is over.

It's time for Ali to share her story with us. I'm not using her last name to protect her privacy. She's already spent years trying to get beyond the shame of what happened in high school.

It's time for Ali to share her story with us. I'm not using her last name to protect her privacy. She's already spent years trying to get beyond the shame of what happened in high school.

Ali is now in her early 50s, the youngest member of the club. In May 1987, Ali was 17, strawberry blonde with the perm. The Markham District High School band was on its spring trip, five days in Montreal. Just like Jackie, Ali kept a journal. She still has it. She wrote about the music teacher too.

Ali is now in her early 50s, the youngest member of the club. In May 1987, Ali was 17, strawberry blonde with the perm. The Markham District High School band was on its spring trip, five days in Montreal. Just like Jackie, Ali kept a journal. She still has it. She wrote about the music teacher too.

And just like in Jackie's diaries, Ali's journals reveal a teacher who insinuated himself into the teenager's orbit.

And just like in Jackie's diaries, Ali's journals reveal a teacher who insinuated himself into the teenager's orbit.