Beaver Valley Probus Club

President's Message
Brian Cromie

Despite the ups and downs in our weather recently, it seems like Spring might be just around the corner. People are out walking, biking and enjoying the great outdoors. Your PROBUS Club offers over 40 different Activity Groups, many of which kick off in spring and keep us engaged until late fall. This past week we had an excellent turnout for the annual Activity Fair at the Community Centre and membership of many groups is expanding daily. Please remember to register online for the activities in which you’re interested.

We are so grateful to the Beaver Valley PROBUS Club volunteer Activity Leaders who organize and lead our indoor and outdoor activities. This year there are five new activities to enjoy, with something for everyone. Thanks also to all the members of the Management Committee, who carry out the business of the Club, and particularly Ilene Rushefsky Charland, who completed her term as President at the March 27 AGM. As the new President, I am confident that we will continue to benefit from the strong, dedicated leadership of the Management Committee and the active participation of the entire membership. 

This month, to honour National Canadian Film Day, and based on an overwhelming vote by the membership, we will be presenting the film “The Grand Seduction”. Please come out on April 23 and enjoy this wonderful story of life in a Newfoundland outport as we celebrate Canada and the Canadian film industry.

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Membership
Pam Weaver & Kathy Mercer

At the Activity Fair, we were happy to have several members stop by the Membership table to visit and pick up their club badges. Please know that we still have badges from the last several membership drives, as well as replacement badges that were specially ordered. We bring all these orphaned badges to every meeting just in case their owners show up. Please come and collect your badge.

If you need to reach us, please contact us at membership@beavervalleyprobus.com

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April Membership Meeting - April 23, 2024
Kirby Philp

In honour of National Canadian Film Day, we will be featuring the film (as voted by the membership) “The Grand Seduction”. The film length is 113 min. We will have a short 5 min intermission at the halfway point. This year we have teamed up with Events For Life and they will be opening up their Arena Cafe for us—making and selling Pop Corn at $3 per bag. Please go into the Arena and grab some Pop Corn prior to the movie start time of 1:30 pm and also support a great cause.

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Social Events 
Don Collins-Williams - Social Convenor

Thank you to all of you who stopped by the Social Table at the Activity Fair. Your suggestions and comments were appreciated. The John Sheard Homeward Bound event in September is now sold out, but if you are still interested, please put your name on the wait list, as there are often late cancellations, making tickets available again.

SAVE THE DATE: On Thursday, August 15, we will be returning for another lunch and musical at Meaford Hall. This year it will be Billy Bishop Goes To War, with a lunch in the Meaford Hall Terrace before the afternoon matinee. Watch your email later in April for the invitation.

Social Events Committee—Volunteers Needed! We are looking for a group of volunteers to form a small committee to help with organizing our PROBUS events. No significant experience is needed ( just enthusiasm), and you can work from home! As an added perk, you would have first crack at signing up for events, before the invitations go out!!! This is your chance to be part of organizing the fun and getting more involved in our Club. Please contact me if you are interested.

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King's Wharf Theatre Event - June 12, 2024
Vicki Kellar

Fans of ’80s arena hard rock music will dig this awesomely hilarious musical comedy that wails with big chords, big hair… and an even bigger heart.

We have tickets available—some couples who have registered are no longer able to attend. Please JOIN WAITLIST and contact Vicki Kellar for details.

It’s 1987, and aspiring rocker Drew Boley meets and falls madly in love with Sherrie, a fresh-faced Midwesterner who has recently moved to Los Angeles to chase her movie star dreams. Will their stars rise? Will their love last? Find out in the worldwide phenomenon featuring 28 classic rock tunes like “Don’t Stop Believin’,” “We Built This City,” “The Final Countdown,” “Wanted Dead or Alive,” “Here I Go Again,” “Harden My Heart,” “Can’t Fight This Feeling,” and “I Want To Know What Love Is.”

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Annual Golf Tournament - June 18, 2024
Golf Tournament Organizing Committee

Save the Date: The 2024 Beaver Valley PROBUS Club Annual Golf tournament will be held on Tuesday, June 18 at the Shelburne Golf and Country Club. Details and sign-up information to follow in April.

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Georgian PROBUS Travel Group
Gloria Thompson

For PROBUS members, family and friends who would like to travel with local people and create new friendships—GPTG, your travel group—is proceeding with the following 2 trips:

Circumnavigation of Newfoundland:  June 16 - 27, 2024. For those who love learning, small ship travel, and unique experiences. We still have space with no single supplement and a group discount. Please contact Brenda Chapman at Marlin Travel 705-444-1161 with any questions.

Norway Coastal Voyage: September 17 - 27, 2024. From Bergen to Trondheim. We also still have group pricing and space. Most of the members booked on this trip are travelling early, to experience the fabulous train program from Oslo to Bergen...then taking the train back from Trondheim to Oslo. For more information please contact Gloria at 705-429-9455.

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Activity Groups Update
Ilene Rushefsky Charland - Activities Convenor

Our 2024 Activity Fair was a huge success. Thank you to the many activity leaders, who went above and beyond our expectations in their table displays. You could see the care and effort made to show off their activity and entice members to stop and have a chat. Thanks to the many members attending, asking questions and taking the opportunity to chat with friends. Our offerings of activities is second to none. This is what makes our club so much fun. Check out the Activity Fair Slideshow to see photos of the event!

Please make sure you register ONLINE for the activities in which you are interested.

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 at our email address: help@beavervalleyprobus.com

Bridge anyone?
Don Collins-Williams

Would anyone be interested in forming a PROBUS Bridge Activity Group? I have had a couple of enquiries, and suspect that we have a lot of bridge players out there!! If so, please contact me. If there is an enthusiastic response, I will see if we can get some co-leaders together, and give it a go!!

E-Bikes + Others
Terry Kellar / Mikael Schaltz

Spring is here and the bikes are coming out, our group is open to all bikers (e-bikes and petal power) that can do a distance of 20km+. We bike on trails and quiet sideroads on Mondays. Our season will start in early May so sign up now to receive our invites.

Casual Dining with Friends
Sallie Kedwell, Shellie Smith

It was a pleasure meeting so many of you, both regulars and potential new members, at the activity fair and we look forward to a new season of our dining groups. Our next get-together will be at 6:00 pm on Thursday, April 25 and we hope to have many of you participate. As usual, we’ll be meeting in small groups at the homes of our volunteer hosts and each guest will be asked to contribute to the menu, likely an appetizer, salad or dessert, as requested by the host. You will also be asked to provide your own beverage of choice. Again, as always, we will be requesting members to volunteer as hosts for this event. Look for an email invitation on or about April 8. Looking forward to April 25!

Dining Around Town
Hank Bouwman

Invitations for our Monday, April 15, Wednesday, April 17 and Wednesday, April 24 Luncheon at 11:30 am at The Mill Restaurant in Thornbury were sent out on April 1 to those members who have signed up for Dining Around Town. It’s not too late to join us…just go to our website and click on the Dining Around Town Activity Page to sign up. Please see our future dining dates below:

Wednesday, May 15: Dinner – Match Casino Restaurant, Wasaga Beach
Monday, June 17: Family Style Dinner – Marilynne Restaurant, Markdale
Friday, August 16: Annual Pizza Party – Justin’s Oven, Kimberley
Wednesday, September 18: Buffet Dinner – Walter Falls
Wednesday, October 16: Dinner - The Huron Club, Collingwood
Wednesday, November 20: Luncheon – Katherine’s Chateau, Collingwood

R.O.M.E.O
Bill McMurray

Romeos are back in action with 47 members signing up after the Activity Fair. We will be having lunch/brunch at The Pottery on April 10. Look for the invitation coming out this week.

Euchre 1
Elaine & Hank Bouwman

Our next Euchre 1 tournament will be on Tuesday, April 9 at 1:00 pm – 4:00 pm at The Far Hills Clubhouse in Thornbury. Our March 12 tournament was enjoyed by 28 members (7 tables) with Terry K taking home bragging rights with a score of 55 after 56 hands played.

Intermediate Euchre
Elaine & Hank Bouwman

We have reserved The Far Hills Clubhouse in Thornbury for the 2nd Tuesday of each month from 1 – 4 pm. Our next Intermediate Euchre tournament will be on Tuesday, April 9. Hank B. claimed top spot for the afternoon on March 12 with a score of 43 after 48 hands played.

Euchre Lessons 
Elaine & Hank Bouwman

Interested in learning how to play euchre or just need a refresher session?  Register online for sessions starting in April.

French Club
Caroline Bacher

Parlez-vous francais? The French Club has had a very good time meeting this past season. We usually begin in September, however, there has been some discussion of getting together during the summer months as well! The days we meet will be dependent on the host—we shall keep you posted! We meet once a month at each others' homes. The host decides what the topic will be so that participants can prepare ahead of time. We are a friendly bunch who want to improve our French conversational skills in a cooperative and supportive environment. So please join us if you have  knowledge of written and oral French! A bientot!

Hiking
Vicki Kellar

A lot of interest at the Activity Fair translated into 104 members (so far) signing up for the Hiking Group. You can still join by registering on the Hiking Activity page. We anticipate starting our hiking schedule the first week of May, depending on the weather and if the ski season is still open at Blue Mountain (yes, we’re still skiing in April!). Currently, there are 4 volunteers to lead hikes but we have many more dates to fill. The leader decides which day of the week and time to hike so it varies every week. Each participant is encouraged to lead their favourite hike. Guidelines for leading are found on our Hiking web page. We hope to hike weekly until the fall, if a sufficient number of leaders volunteer. See you on the trails!

Ramblers
Nancy Dixon

Wow! Thanks to all of you who registered for this Activity. We are currently 87 Strong. Don't worry, I have been leading our group for almost 4 years now and we never have more than 25 members for our Rambles. Hoping the weather will let us walk on April 5 along the Collingwood Harbour and part of the Georgian Trail. If not, we will reschedule and Ramble as usual.

Stitch & Bitch Crafts
Sheilia Churchill

Our Stitch & Bitch group wishes to invite interested members to our May 6 meeting to be hosted by Sylvia R. I know there are members like myself who had not knitted or crocheted in a while but are looking for a PROBUS group to connect with—that was ten years ago for me and l am now knitting projects l never thought l could. Why not give our great group of gals a try? We can get you restarted. We encourage you to join and meet up to share in the conversation, tea or coffee, dessert and perhaps get back into a craft. Only a few hours once a month on the first Monday. If interested in attending our Open House, please contact Sheila or Nancy for details of where to attend on May 6. Nancy Dixon

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PROBUS Canada Newsletter
Shared by Martin Buscher, PROBUS Canada
Director Ontario District #7

Please see the PROBUS Canada Connections March newsletter!

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All Club's Bonspiel
Submitted by Cheryl Ross

This team of Beaver Valley Probus members curled together on March 16 at Meaford Curling Club. Skip Lorne W, Vice Cheryl R, Second David A and Lead Marge A had a great day and were only 1/4 of a point away from being the champions of their draw! Our first game was against the Meaford Lawn Bowling Team #1 and our second game was against the Meaford Apple Harvest Craft Show Team. Lots of fun was had by all!

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Photo Corner
Shared by Lucie Desjardins 

Red-headed Woodpeckers are rarely seen in our location and in particular at this time of year. 

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The Master Gardener’s Corner
John Hethrington, Master Gardener Emeritus
Past President, Master Gardeners of Ontario

Click on the photo to see what you need to be doing in your garden in April!

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In Memorium

Bill Hamilton passed away on Wednesday, March 20. Bill and his wife Wendy had been members of our PROBUS Club since 2006 and were involved with the Euchre 2 activity group and attended many theatre events. Our sincere condolences to the Hamilton Family.

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Support Group
Lucie Desjardins, Maureen Lalonde, Mary Ann Collins-Williams

Do you know of a BVPC member who is having a difficult time (health issue, accident, hospitalization, loss of partner, etc.) and would benefit from receiving a card or a call from our team? If so, please let us know. We will be happy to follow up and/or get in touch with them. 

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The Last Word
Shared by  Nancy Dixon

Find something you are passionate about and keep tremendously interested in it. Julia Child