April/May 2018

The President’s Message I think we are finally through the worst of winter and can look forward to BBQs in the next few months. Maybe now we can expect a return of a number of our members from their Florida retreats.

Our Probus club continues to have enjoyable social activities,  interesting events and informative speakers. In January there was a Pub lunch, and in February a Valentines lunch. In January we had a presentation on Mass Marketing frauds and in February a presentation by a Sports agent whose clients includes many well known  professional hockey players .  Our club  continues to add members with interesting

and often senior positions in Business and Government fields. ( I am continually pleasantly surprised by the breadth and depth of interests and accomplishments that our members have.)   

This spring there are a number of upcoming events. In March  there is a visit to the Guide Dog's facility and in April -Theater Sheridan – Crazy for You . In May we will be able to have a pre-public showing of Our Home and Miniature Land exhibit. In June we will have a lunch celebration of the Club's 30th anniversary which will include momentos and some prizes. Upcoming speakers are also informative and topical. In March the Dean of  the very successful Performing Arts at Sheridan will provide an overview of the Centre's  activities, and future plans.

Besides these events and speakers there are ongoing monthly meetings of our investment and book clubs where members are encouraged to actively participate with their views and opinions. Above all else, these group events are great to make new acquaintances and some new friends.

Alex Murphy (President)

FEBRUARY SPEAKER AND PROFIER

FEBRUARY SPEAKERToday's Speaker was Patrick J. Morris, a Sports Agent with Newport Sports Management Inc. (NSMI).  Patrick was introduced by John Beales and Russell Buckland.Patrick joined NSMI in 1986 after completing his law degree from Queen’s University in Kingston, Ontario.He is responsible for the recruitment and contract negotiations for several of today’s top young players from the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) and US College system. Known as a tough negotiator, Pat has secured precedent setting contracts for players such as Chris Pronger, David Legwand, Brad Richards and

James Neal to name a few.Patrick is a driving force and senior influence for the current success and future direction of NSMI.  Pat knew Dave Gregory in High School and Dave’s father was Jim Gregory, who was the General Manager of the Toronto Maple Leafs at the time (1980s/1990s). While at Queen’s, Patrick tried to arrange a speaker for a course on Sports Management but the original speaker fell through. That turned out to be a good thing, since the original speaker was Alan Eagleson, who was much later disbarred as a Canadian lawyer and removed from the Hockey Hall of Fame.As a replacement speaker, Pat arranged for Donald E. Meehan to speak to his law class at Queen’s. Don Meehan was the founder on Newport Sports Management Inc. in 1981 and represented Pat Lafontaine and Wendel Clark in the early 1980s. Patrick Morris was hired as a Sports Agent with NSMI in 1986 and his first client was Bob Probert. Bob Probert soon fired NSMI and went with another lawyer who got him less money ($200K to $275K annually) versus the $400K annually that NSMI would have likely negotiated.A Sports Agent has to be both a motivator and a Sports Psychologist for clients.Patrick mentioned that he had suffered a serious concussion at the Oakville Tennis Club so he has some understanding of what NHL Players with concussions go through.Patrick took us through the 1991 Ontario Hockey League Draft where MSNI recruited potential clients. The 1991 OHL Draft produced some excellent hockey players including Todd Harvey, Chris Gratton, Todd Bertuzzi, Ethan Morrow, Jason Arnott and Ryan Sittler, all of whom became NSMI clients.Chris Pronger, Brad Richards and Nick Lidstrom are all NSMI Clients and, to date, they are 3 of the 4 highest paid NHL players in total career earnings. Patrick then took us through, in detail, the career of Chris Pronger who was Patrick’s client starting as a 6th round draft choice at the 1991 OHL Draft.

The Peterborough Petes drafted Chris Pronger in the 6th round of the 1991 OHL Draft and he played for them for two seasons. A condition of him signing with Peterborough, negotiated by Patrick, was that they would pay for his university education. Chris Pronger did take 2 courses in economics at Trent University in 1992-1993 while playing for the Petes.Pronger was drafted second overall by the Hartford Whalers in the 1993 NHL Entry Draft at the age of 18. He played two seasons in Hartford, getting 44 points in 124 games and 167 Penalty Minutes. However, he was one of six Whalers players arrested for a barroom brawl in Buffalo in March 1994 and also was arrested for drunk driving in Ohio, 3 days after his rookie season ended leading some to consider Pronger impatient and immature. He was lucky to have Pat Morris, somebody with a law degree, as an agent at that point in his career to help him through these off-ice difficulties. He was traded to the St. Louis Blues prior to the 1995-1996 NHL season with a four year contract extension for big bucks. He spent nine full seasons with the Blues amassing 356 points and 931 Penalty Minutes in 598 games.  He won the Hart Trophy as Most Valuable Player in the 1999-2000 season and also the James Norris Trophy as the Best Defenseman that same season which was a contract year. That netted Chris a 3 Year Contract extension at US$10 Million per year. While in St. Louis, he had major problems due to a wrist injury and improper surgery on it so he required additional surgery to fix the problem. Also, while in St. Louis, he met and married Lauren, a St. Louis resident, in 1999. When Chris was traded to Edmonton Oilers for the beginning of the 2005-2006 NHL season, he did not tell Lauren and, due to the brutal winters in Edmonton among other things, this almost led to the breakup of his marriage. Luckily, once again, Patrick Morris was there to step in and help engineer a trade to the Anaheim Ducks   - originally a trade to the Toronto Maple Leafs was in the works but fell through due to a veto by the Leafs’ upper management – where Chris spent the next three seasons and won a Stanley Cup in 2007.After his stint in Anaheim, Chris Pronger was traded to the Philadelphia Flyers where he got a 7 year Contract at Age 35 for US$36 Million (the first five years at US$7 Million each and the last two years at US$500K each).Chris Pronger suffered a career ending eye injury during the 2011-2012 NHL Season but finished his NHL Career with 1,167 Regular Season Games/ 157 Goals/ 541 Assists and 1,590 Penalty Minutes.His NHL Playoff Career record was 173 Playoff Games/ 26 Goals/ 95 Assists and 326 Penalty Minutes. In 2017, Chris Pronger was named as one of the “100 Greatest NHL Players in History”.

John Beales thanked Patrick Morris for his interesting talk. As a token of the Club’s appreciation, John presented Patrick with a small donation to the “Smilezone Foundation”, led by Adam Graves and Scott Bachly, which aims to assist children and their families facing difficult times.Alex Murphy then adjourned the General Meeting at 12:05 P. M..

MARCH PROFILER The profiler today was Bob Chambers.Bob was raised in Elora, Ontario. As a teenager, he wasn’t too sure about what he wanted to do in life and he applied to various Universities and Community Colleges. In the end, he chose Durham College (he saw and very much liked the Durham College green jacket). He graduated from Durham College after three years with a Diploma in Business.He joined the Bank of Montreal (BMO) in 1972 intending to stay a few years, and as it turned out, he had a 40 year career there. He worked with BMO in Toronto, Mississauga and Brampton.In Brampton, he worked on switching manual ledgers over to BMO’scomputerized systems. He met his future wife at the Bank of Montreal and they were married in 1977 and have two sons.Bob later worked in commercial banking for BMO in Oakville and Hamilton.He retired in 2011 and currently enjoys going to the gym, reading and golfing. Bob and his wife are awaiting their first grandchild.

NEW MEMBERSTwo guests were introduced to the Club today: George Dommen and Pat Heffernan. However,no new Club members were introduced today although we hope to welcome Don Ross and Patrick Joyner to the Club as new members in the near future.With the death of Dick Goulding, the Club now totals 90 members.

FEBRUARY EVENT

VALANTINE LUNCHEON HELD AT THE GLENN ABBEY GOLF CLUB OAKVILLE - SUNDAY 18 FEBRUARY 2018

Our annual St. Valentine’s Day event was again enjoyed by 50 guests at Glen Abbey Golf Club on 18th. February, 4 days after the day, but at our stage of life, it doesn’t really matter because the thoughts are still there! Hopefully we can repeat this next year, but that all depends on what happens with the Golf Club. –Russell Mewse

MARCH SPEAKER

Today;s Speaker was Michael Rubinoff – Producing Artistic Director, Canadian Music Theatre Project and, formerly, Assistant Dean Sheridan College Music and Performing Arts. Michael was introduced by Russell Mewse.Michael’s Subject today was “Success of Sheridan Performing Arts”.Michael Rubinoff earned a B. A. in political science and an LL.B. (Valedictorian) from the University of Western Ontario (UWO). While at UWO he served on the University’s Board of Governors and two terms as Legal Society President. In 1997, on a platform highlighting post-secondary school issues, he ran for Member of Parliament in the riding of North London Centre and was one of the youngest candidates in the country. Prior to being called to the Ontario Bar in 2002, he launched M. Rubinoff Productions Inc., a commercial theatre company producing mid-sized theatre in the City of Toronto.Michael is a 2004 graduate of the Commercial Theatre Institute, Intensive Producing Program in New York and was President of ScriptLab, a not-for- profit organization in Toronto, with a commitment to the development of the works and the artists of the Canadian Musical Theatre.Despite having a legal background, Michael joined Sheridan College in 2011. He had practiced law for 10 years before going to Sheridan. Michael always had a passion for theatre and had attended shows at Sheridan going back to 2002. He started out chairing the Advisory Council at Sheridan College before becomingAssistant Dean.

Michael pointed out that current students’ desire for change is stronger than it has ever been before. This makes for exciting but challenging times for musical productions. It is difficult to do classical musicals such as Carousel, South Pacificand Fiddler on The Roof as many of today’s students have difficulties with thestereotypes in them.Sheridan College serves as an incubator where professional writers work with students to produce commercially successful plays and musicals. Any musical needs a compelling story and a valid reason to set it to music. “Come From Away” (CFA) works so well because music is a core characteristic of Newfoundland and Labrador culture.

Michael originally thought that CFA was a very good show but never thought that it would get to Broadway. After showing it at a festival in New York City, Broadway Producers got into a bidding war over taking “Come From Away” to the next level.There are 41 “On Broadway” Theatres. An On Broadway Theatre has seating for 500 people or more. An “Off Broadway” Theatre is situated in the same theatre district but only has seating for 499 people or less. To be able to stage CFA on Broadway, funding of US$12 Million was necessary. The probability of failure for a Broadway show is very high and some plays or musicals last only one performance.The day after the opening rehearsal for CFA which had New York City Fire Fighters in attendance, the cast received a letter from NYFF with twelve (12) NYFF – 2001/09/11 Baseball Caps saying “Welcome to the family”.CFA is about to become the most commercially successful Canadian musical On Broadway ever. It is approaching US$65 Million in revenue after one year (thefirst performance was on March 12, 2017). CFA costs about US$600,000 per week to stage New York City (Broadway) performances. After opening night, “Come From Away” got critical acclaim. It was a “Critic’s Pick” in one publication and got a great New York Times review. Lots of prominent U. S. politicians, U. S. Judiciary and international celebrities have attended the show.Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Ivanka Trump (her father declined the invitation) attended an early performance which helped publicity for the show immensely.After New York City and Toronto, five more theatre companies will eventually be Performing the show to bring the total number of productions to seven. One will originate in Seattle shortly and it will tour the United States.“Come From Away” will be made into a feature film by Hollywood, filming in Gander, with filming starting as early as August 2018.Michael Rubinoff is working on Performing Arts with the Chinese in Shanghai. He is currently working on a musical about Norman Bethune who is revered in China.Mao Tse Tung gave a eulogy at Norman Bethune’s funeral. Michael has traced some of Norman Bethune’s footsteps in China and has visited his grave there.

Russell Buckland thanked Michael Rubinoff for his interesting talk. As a token of the Club’s appreciation, Russell presented Michael with a book.

MARCH EVENT

On 21st. March, 29 of us gathered at the Guide Dogs of Canada facility in Oakville. We learnt how they trained dogs, not only for the blind but for the deaf and also autistic children. It was also interesting to learn that if the training of a dog did not work out, they were often conscripted to Border Control searching out drugs and explosives. We finished our trip with a visit to Harpers Landing for lunch. The day proved to be very worthwhile and enjoyed by all. – Russell Mewse

Our Activity Chairperson providing a donation comprising the fees charged for the visit. To help enable Guide Dogs of Canada to continue the fantastic job in providing trained animals for those with disabilities.

Ending the trip with a visit to Harpers Landing for lunch – pictures of the visit provided by (David Johnson)

UPCOMING EVENTS

FROM THE EVENTS COMMITTEE

24 May 2018, a visit to “Our Home and Miniature Land” at their workshop in Mississauga. This should be a unique experience.See Toronto and some other landmarks of this country come to life in Miniature. This is going to be a 90 minute demonstration including time to complete a brief survey at the end.Cost of this trip will be $20.005 June 2018, our much anticipated 30th. Anniversary. This will be a very relaxing celebration with music, some great door prizes and the opportunity to win your next year’s Club duesThe venue will be St. Volodymyr  Cultural Centre, Dundas Street, Oakville for a fine catered lunch. Cost of this event will be $55.00. - Russell Mewse

UPCOMING SPEAKERSApril 19, 2018:   Trevor Cole – the author of “The Whiskey Kings” which recounts tales of bootlegging/rum running in and around Hamilton, Ontario;

May 17, 2018:    Tim Burrowes – Will talk about Tesla cars and the future and economics of electric cars;

June 21, 2018: Sal Gualtieri – Senior Economist Bank of Montreal speaking on Economic Update for Canada and the U. S. A. and the Canadian/U. S. Dollar outlook.

Oakvilleprobus@gmail.com Website; www.oakvilleprobus.comMeetings take place on the ThirdThursday of each month at 10 am

At the Quality Suites 754 Bronte Road

Oakville

The Probus Club of Oakville

Management Committee

President Alex Murphy: 327-2924Past President Stewart Bryan; 842-4478Vice President Russell Mewse 827-6007Secretary Jack Rugg 820-1973Treasurer Wayne Gallent 681-3482Speakers John Beales 844-4654Activities Russell Mewes 827-6007Newsletter Robin Davison 339-1702Membership Gunther Lutz 844-0542Liaison Mike Purcell - 845-4097Website Paul Nelson 631-2390

Other PositionsEquipment Andreas Franke 338-5526Member Welfare Grant Gooding 845-8973Auditor Erich Becker 647-556-277250/50 Draw Roy Oldfield 847-2062 Photographer Peter Pretty 338-5583Photographer Dave Johnson 338-6076Greeter Helmut Erxleben 901-9268