Beaver Valley Probus Club

President's Message
Ilene Rushefsky Charland

It looks like summer is really over, and the cool weather has arrived. Many of us are busy getting the yard and gardens ready for winter, perhaps having postponed the clean up as the weather was so warm. Others are getting ready to head south, or getting ready for ski season. Whatever your passion, this is a time to reflect on our good life.

A few weeks ago, we learned from an amazing woman, Angie Sandow that “CAN’T’ is not in her vocabulary. What an inspiration! It really shows you that as we age, some things may become more challenging. However, we can still enjoy many of the things we love, maybe needing a few modifications.

Soon we will be honouring those who fought for our freedom and still do today. We are thankful for living in this beautiful country, where we enjoy freedom and relative peace.

The holiday season is quickly approaching. Our holiday lunch is on Dec. 6 at Alpine Ski Club, and we hope to see many of you there. With our wishes for a safe and happy season whether it be travelling, or at home with family and friends.

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Membership Fees 2024-25
Pam Weaver & Kathy Mercer

Our on-line renewal process will begin December 1 and our membership fees for next year will increase to $40, effective February 1, 2024. This is the first increase in fees that we have levied since 2009, but due to continued increase in costs of food for our club-wide events and meetings, as well increase in costs of our website platform, we need to increase our fees to continue to break even. 

For more information on the background for the increase in fees, please see the Membership Fee webpage.

If you have any questions for the Membership team, you can reach us at our new email membership@beavervalleyprobus.com

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Membership Meeting - Tuesday November 28 @ 1:00 PM

Please register if you plan to attend this meeting—so that we have enough chairs and coffee for everyone!

Date: Doors open: 1:00 PM
Meeting begins: 1:30 PM
Speaker: Professor Mark Rector

Professor Rector is a published author, public speaker, and a recently retired Professor of Electronics Engineering with a specialty in telecommunications. He has written many articles, contributed to nationally published textbooks, and released his first book in 2018. Mark will share his passion for inventions and enlighten us about several famous Canadian Inventors featured in his book OH CANADA Our Home Inventive Land.

50/50 Draw: Todd K and Don C each won $59.00 at our October 24 monthly speaker meeting. Our 50/50 tickets are on sale at the beginning of each monthly meeting and during the first break. See Elaine and Hank Bouwman at the table at the back of the room!

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Social Events
Don Collins-Williams

Dec 2: John McDermott Lunch and Christmas Concert
The lunch and concert is sold out, but if you are still interested, please join the waitlist as we often have late cancellations.

Dec 6: Holiday Luncheon
Our annual Beaver Valley PROBUS Club Holiday Luncheon is being planned for Wednesday, December 6, at the Alpine Ski Club. Look for the invitation to be sent out November 8. The menu will be a traditional turkey dinner with all the trimmings.  A vegetarian option will be available. There will be a Cash Bar serving wine, beer and non-alcoholic beverages.

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Decorating Committee - Members Needed

Do you love to decorate for the holidays? We need a few creative members to help our Decorating Committee make table arrangements for our Holiday Luncheon to be held on December 6. If interested, please contact Nancy Dixon at npdixon16@gmail.com for more information. 

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Chi-Cheemaun Cruise
Vicki Kellar

On October 16, fifty-two adventurous BVPC members joined 400 passengers plus crew for the fall Repositioning cruise of the Chi-Cheemaun ferry. Twice yearly the ship, as of 2022 the 3rd largest passenger ship on Lake Huron, makes the transition between Owen Sound, the winter berth, and Tobermory, for the summer.

Our sun dances didn’t work, however the ‘no rain or snow’ pleas were successful. After a choppy start, which did trigger a little seasickness in a few, we turned an unknown corner and the rocking was much diminished. The complementary coffee was a nice start to the cruise and some added a not complementary Baileys. Lunch was a very full plate at the buffet and a few enjoyed the specialty wine in a unique flowered metal wine bottle.

Apart from our Probus members we spoke to a couple who do both the repositioning cruises each year and a couple from Goderich who were celebrating their 50th Anniversary with this ‘cruise’ arranged by the husband. Gord B also celebrated his earlier hole-in-one achieved at Monterra Golf course. Live music by Late Night Radio was a pleasant addition. Check out the Chi-Cheemaun Cruise Photos on our web site and keep your eye out for other unique activity ideas for our Club.

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Georgian PROBUS Travel Club
Gloria Thompson

Circumnavigation of Newfoundland: This is an incredible 12-day adventure out of St. John's June 16 - 27, 2024. Book before November 25 to get the Early Booking Bonus of 25% off the berth cost. Click on the image for the Itinerary and Pricing details!  Please contact Brenda Chapman at Marlin Travel 705-444-1161 with any questions.

Norway Coastal Voyage: Join your fellow PROBUS members from the Georgian Bay Region for an incredible tour of Norway September 17 - 27, 2024. The Hurtigruten ship leaves Bergen and sails north of the Arctic Circle and returns to Trondheim. Optional rail tour available. See details on itinerary and pricing. For more information please contact Gloria at 705-429-9455 or Brenda 705-444-1161.

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PROBUS Canada — Travel, Health, Home and Auto Insurance
Martin Buscher, Director Ontario District #7, PROBUS Canada

Health and Travel Insurance: PROBUS Canada has worked with Johnson Inc., a national benefits provider, to offer plans for PROBUS members. The plans include voluntary benefit options that can be purchased on a standalone basis to meet your insurance needs: MEDOC travel Insurance, Extended Health Care, Dental Care, Trip cancellation & Interruption, Life insurance and more! Visit the PROBUS Canada club reference pages for details.

Home and Auto Insurance *NEW*:  PROBUS Canada has now teamed up with belairdirect to offer home and auto insurance to its membership. For more information, you can visit their website, or call them at 1-833-887-4626, and use PROBUS Canada when prompted for group name. This new offering is in addition to the existing health and travel insurance available to Probus members.

The latest PROBUS Canada Connections newsletter is now available at https://www.probuscanada.ca/news

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Activity Groups Update

Most Activity Group sign-ups are still open!

It's not too late to sign-up! Just a reminder, in order to be on an activity participant list—you must sign-up online—even if you signed up for the same Activity last year. A couple of Activity Groups are closed to additional participants due to overwhelming demand, but most groups are still open. If you aren't sure, please contact the Activity Group leader directly or email help@beavervalleyprobus.com

There is a step-by-step video on "how to sign-up" for Activity Groups. Click on the red arrow to view!

If you need any help with passwords or sign-up, please contact our web team on our new email address: help@beavervalleyprobus.com

Dining Around Town
Hank Bouwman

We had 45 members attend our October 18 dinner at Prime-Seven-Nine and all enjoyed an excellent meal. Invitations for our Tuesday, November 21 Luncheon at 11:30 am at The Curly Willow in Collingwood were sent out on November 1 to those members who have signed up for Dining Around Town. It’s not too late to join us—just go to the Dining Around Town activity page and click on the Activity Group Sign-up button.

R.O.M.E.O
Bill McMurray

We had a successful outing to The Red Door Restaurant in Meaford on October 11. Our next luncheon will be on Wednesday, November 8 at the Alphorn Restaurant. Look for the email invitation sent out on November 1, for the restaurant details and to RSVP.

Euchre 1
Elaine & Hank Bouwman

On Tuesday November 14 at 1:20 pm, Steve D & Mary P  will host for a fun afternoon of cards and snacks. We had an enjoyable afternoon of card playing and snacks at the home of John & Beth W on October10 with 16 members participating in 2 groups of 8 and George C, David Z & Hank B came out on top.

French Club 
Caroline Bacher

We had a very enjoyable first meeting speaking in French! There were many funny stories and lots of laughter too. We discussed our backgrounds and why we want to keep up our ability to speak French. We also talked about our favourite cuisine. The next meeting will be in November. We meet once a month in one another's homes. If you have any questions do not hesitate to contact me.

Golf
Brian Cromie

New member Paul N retrieves his first ever hole-in-one ball on the second green at Tomahawk Golf Course, October 24!  Click on the photo to enlarge! This was the final outing of the Golf Activity Group for 2023, and what a marvellous way to finish! This great new group of friends is already looking forward to next year and more exciting times.

Mahjongg
Judy Smith

New members are invited to join the Mahjongg Group. Any level of experience with American Mahjongg is welcome. During the winter months, we will meet on the 1st and 3rd Tuesdays, 1:30 - 3:30 pm, in members' homes. Training sessions are available on the 2nd Tuesday of each month. If you would like to join our group, please sign-up on the Mahjongg activity page, or contact Judy Smith for additional information.

Ramblers
Nancy Dixon

We have already had quite an eventful fall. We explored the historical Leith Church where Tom Thomson’s memorial plaque is displayed and the Village of Leith, then rushed over to Coffin Ridge where the owners fired up their Pizza Oven for our group. We enjoyed the view of the vineyard and Georgian Bay while sitting outside with warm blankets provided by our hosts. Yes, we did enjoy some wine and cider. I was able to twist some of my RAMBLERS’ arms to come with me on Saturday, October 28 to enjoy a scary walk through Meaford where we met up with an amazing group of goblins out for treats in the downtown core. I can’t wait for the next walking adventure. My mind is whirling. Watch for my next email.

Ski Legends
Chris Mifflin

Are you a downhill skier or snowboarder? Have all your ski buddies packed it in, and are you tired of skiing alone? Do you want to make good use of your 5x7? Do you want to take advantage of great ski trips and social events? Then you should join Probus Ski Legends – where our motto is "Never ski alone!" Check us out here: https://probusskilegends.ca/

To join, go to the Legends website and download the membership form: While you're on the website, make sure you check out all the events and activities: including Ski Days: Tuesdays and Wednesdays at Blue Mountain (meet at 9:30am at the Silver Bullet) and Thursdays at the Private Clubs, Ski Trips and Social events. Dates for Ski Days and Events coming soon. So join us to make new friends and find new ski buddies. Let’s get excited for the upcoming season and Think Snow!

Cross Country Skiing
Glen Downey

This is a new activity group this year! We plan to go out bi-weekly, starting in mid-January. Click on the Cross Country Activity page for more information. Sign-up now to get notified when outings are planned!

Snowshoeing
Ilene Rushefsky Charland

The snowshoeing group will also resume this season. We plan to alternate weeks with the Cross Country Skiing group. We hope to begin in mid-January when there is enough snow. Click on the Snowshoeing Activity page for more details. Sign-up now to get notified when the sessions begin!