The Christmas party, organized by the Master of Ceremonies John Beales and the Activities Committee, was the usual success and the Atrium put on an excellent dinner for us.

As part of the entertainment John persuaded Liz Gorski to come to the microphone and lead us in the carol singing; her beautiful voice encouraged the rest of us to do our best.

Several members brought to my attention an obituary which had appeared in the Globe And Mail that morning , which I also had noticed. It was a long obituary of John Reynolds Morris who, on a trip to Australia and new Zealand in 1981, was introduced to the Probus Club concept. He was an active member of the Rotary Club and in 1976-77 was Governor of Rotary District 79 covering South Central Ontario and part of New York State. He persuaded Rotary to sponsor Probus Clubs and the first one established in Canada was in Cambridge. We were – and still are – number 5. There are now 217 clubs in Canada with some 30,000 members.

John served as President and Executive Director of Probus Centre-Canada for eleven years to 1998 and afterwards remained on the Board with the title “Founder and President Emeritus”. An award was created in his honour to deserving members who create new Probus clubs in Canada.

Speaking of clubs, I have met with presidents of the Old Oakville and North Oakville clubs to exchange ideas, in particular of activities and speakers, and attended a meeting of the former at the Oakville Club. Both have much larger memberships than ours (but, contrary to what we had heard, with no waiting lists) and it is important that we start to catch up. We have an interesting schedule of speakers lined up and Robin Davison and his committee are working hard to organize an outstanding schedule of activities that should appeal to prospective members. If you know someone who might be interested invite him to a meeting to check us out.

I am pleased to report that Brian Taylor has agreed to take over from me as chair of the Speakers’ Committee. Paul Nelson, who handles our Web site, will be spending the winter down south but with conference calls etc will be able to continue doing so. He would, however, like to have a member to serve as an understudy that he could train to keep it up to date in case of an emergency. So if any member wants to learn how to navigate the Web here is your opportunity.

Gerry

In Memoriam

ERIC STEIER passed away peacefully with his wife Eva by his side on November 7, 2012.  Eric was born September 9, 1925 in Regen, a small town in central Transylvania to Elsa (nee Lurtz) and father Stefan. Eric immigrated to Canada ending up in Toronto.  Eva followed and they were married in 1953.  In 1957, working for Canadian Pittsburg Industries, Eric rose to the position of Senior Auditor and retired in 1990 as Manager of Administration.  Eric was a member of the Jaycees, The Administration Management Society and was a member of Probus Club of Oakville for the past ten years

Members Activities Survey

We had a 47% return of the Activities Survey or close to 50% of our membership.  It appears that responders are members who at one time or another participate in the events.  The other 50% are either unable to attend the organized activities, are not interested, or were away during the survey.

The conclusions are that a majority of the membership are interested in plays or musical events, visits to industrial or historical sites and lunches or dinners with entertainment. Very few members showed inclination to attend a BBQ or go on an organized hike.  Almost everyone would attend an activity with a price tag of under $100 per person, over $100 there was a split depending on the event.  Most members would favour events with other Probus Clubs, but overnight trips got thumbs down.  75% had no problem with using a school bus for short trips and most said that they are not willing to pay extra in all cases.  Almost everybody is willing to drive to a nearby event; and believe it or not, on member said that he was not interested in any event! With the results in hand, our Activities Committee is now working to organize events and activities responding to members’ wishes and thus increasing overall participation.

Constable Carla Draper Discusses Crime Prevention with Probus Members

November – Constable Carla Draper delivered an excellent and most informative presentation on protecting our homes. She outlined almost every method thieves use to determine if residents are at home, how to enter a home unnoticed, what to look for and what to take. Robbers are experts, knowing where people are, where valuables are hidden and how to empty a house of all valuables in just a couple of minutes. Thieves are indeed very experienced in their “trade”. Paula then went on to tell us how to protect our homes, ourselves in our homes and how to make our homes almost impregnable. Constable Draper provided a basic primer on how to keep our homes safe, which  included deadbolt locks, three-inch screws to secure locks into door frames. plastic covered windows so that panes when hit will not shatter, locking your bedroom door at night and having an easy exit and securing sliding windows. Her advice: stand in front of your house or condo and think like a burglar on how to break in

At our October Meeting, the speaker was Brian Cole – Director of Transit at Oakville Transit, who told us that volume had increased by 25% over the past 4 years to annual number of 3 million passengers.  He reported that the new bus/administration facility which was financed 1/3rd each by the Federal, Provincial and Oakville governments will be sufficient for many years to come.  Only 32% of passengers use the transit system to access the GO Train.  Brian reviewed reasons why there are limited possibilities for use of smaller buses on the low volume routes

Helmut Erxleben reviews the book:

Willpower

Willpower by Roy Baumeister and John Tierney deals with one of the main issues facing human society today: the lack of self-control. The authors use some of the latest psychological research as well as examples from human celebrities like Oprah Winfrey, Eric Clapton, the explorer David Livingstone and others to illustrate that willpower in a human being is a finite resource. It is actually dependent on the sucrose level in our brain which gets depleted as our day wears on.

In other words, we can only make so many effective decisions during the day.

Because much of our life is consumed by resisting temptations, Willpower offers some practical and helpful suggestions on how to make our lives more enjoyable and successful. Over the years religious doctrine has had a lot to say about that, except that in this book the scientists have confirmed that a person with self-control (not self-esteem as previously thought) is ultimately a happier person. Baumeister summarizes his research: “Our willpower has made us the most adaptable creatures on the planet and we’re once again discovering how to help one another use it

Helmut Erxleben reviews the following Movies:

Argo

ARGO – The story is about the 1979 Iranian Revolution when the Revolutionaries invaded the American Embassy and captured 52 American hostages.  They were held for 444 days.  Unknown to the revolutionaries was that 6 Americans had escaped through the back door. After being rejected by three neutral embassies they found refuge at the Canadian Embassy and stayed at the Ambassadors home.  The movie states that this story is “based on” actual events.  Great liberties were taken to make a successful story.  The movie is an exciting  suspense thriller and totally enjoyable.  The tension keeps rising and the white knuckle last scenes will have you on the edge of your seat. It is a good movie with great acting and directing. It could win Oscars for best movie and direction. But, it is not the truth.  The Canadians  put themselves in jeopardy in the rescue operation and their part was greatly diminished while the American role was greatly embellished.  Ken Taylor, the Canadian Ambassador, led the Americans out and even bought the airline tickets from his own pocket.  He is the real hero.  As it so often happens, the Hollywoodenheads made the Americans the heroes. Remember, according to Hollywood, John Wayne won WW II.

Arbitrage

ARBITRAGE –  This is a gripping tale of high finance and low morals. You first meet Robert Miller, well portrayed by Richard Gere, at his 60th birthday party.  He is a portrait of success in business and family life.  But the actual situation is far different.  He is over his head financially, has committed fraud and is having an affair with a much younger woman.  His life is further complicated after he has an auto accident in which his mistress is killed.  Gere gives an excellent performance in this suspense thriller.  The ending will surprise you.  We loved it

Probus Tour to Oktoberfest in Kitchener Oct. 11, 2012

On the Oktoberfest Bus

After a scenic tour through the Ontario country side we ended up at Bingemans in Kitchener for a Bavarian lunch and refreshments, some old time Polka tunes, yodeling and cowbells, and Manfred hammering away at the beer keg

An Aviation Announcement

THE PROBUS CLUB OF OAKVILLE – In a moving ceremony which took place at the Canada Science and Technology Museum on November 21, 2012, in Ottawa, Honorary Air Commodore, The Honourable John Alexander Douglas McCurdy, Canada’s First Pilot and the first man to fly in Canada and the British Empire, J. A. D. McCurdy, was inducted into the prestigious Canadian Science and Engineering Hall of Fame.

McCurdy graduated from the Universityof Toronto in 1906 in Mechanical Engineering where he was the youngest student to be admitted to the University. Capping a brilliant career in aviation, McCurdy was appointed Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia from 1947-1952. Known as one of the Principal Fathers of Canadian Aviation when he died on June 25, 1961, in Montreal, Quebec, he was the world’s oldest living pilot. J. A. D. McCurdy was buried in his birthplace, Baddeck, Nova Scotia with full military honours facing the waters of Bras d’Or Lake from where he made his historic flight in The Silver Dart