September 14, 2023 at 1:30 pm | by Zoom Only

FOLLOWING THE GROUP OF SEVEN by Rob Stimpson

Rob Stimpson is an accomplished professional photographer. Early in his career he started out as a photographer in Basil Switzerland, which laid the foundation for his success. Today, he has photographed for Ontario Tourism, Parks Canada, Ontario parks and many organizations actively supporting tourism. For his work he has received many awards, National and International.

Rob will lead us on a journey of the many locations of the Group of Seven following their migration from Algonquin to Algoma. At the bottom of his bio, Rob writes this: “Creating Experiences through Photography and Story Telling”. Very apt. This will be our first presentation of the 2023- 24 season. Because Rob lives in Muskoka this will be a Zoom presentation.

Tuesday, October 17, 2023 at 1:30 pm | In Person and by Zoom

St. Andrew’s United Church
117 Bloor Street East, Toronto
Wheelchair accessibility via Hayden Street

An Old Man, a Mountain, and the Search for a Hidden Past by Brett Popplewell

Brett will tell us a fascinating true story of a former stuntman on Goldfinger, a marathon-running hermit and a journalist’s quest to solve the mystery at the core of the enigmatic man’s existence.

Brett Popplewell is a bestselling author and associate professor of journalism at Carleton University in Ottawa. He has written for Bloomberg Businessweek,  Mother Jones,  The Globe and Mail, the Toronto Star,  Sportsnet, Maclean’s and The Walrus, among other publications. A winner of multiple National Magazine Awards in Canada, his work has also appeared in The Best American Sports Writing and The Best Canadian Essays.  

November 9, 2023 at 1:30 pm | In Person and by Zoom

St. Andrew’s United Church
117 Bloor Street East, Toronto
Wheelchair accessibility via Hayden Street

Zero Alcohol Cocktails presented by Gail Lynch CEO and Experience Designer

During the pandemic, Gail built a bar and started experimenting with crafting non-alcoholic cocktails and voila, the bespoke outcome of premium crafted non-alcoholic cocktails was born.

As someone who has not drunk alcohol for the past decade and not having access to quality drinking products, it was important that she created a non-alcoholic cocktail bar experience that focussed on community and equity.

December 12, 2023 at 12:00 pm | At the Cricket Club

A Fascinating Career by Dini Petty

Once upon a time a young Canadian Lady, 22 years old, learned to fly a Hughes 300 Helicopter and in her trademark pink jump suit began a career as Canada’s first female traffic reporter.  She flew 5000 hours for radio station CKEY before moving along.  Want to hear more of Dini Petty’s story?  Join us at our December Gala Luncheon on December 12, 2023 and hear Dini entertain us with tales about her career.  Dini established many firsts for all of us women.  Not to be missed.

See our Luncheon Page for details.

January 25, 2024 at 1:30 pm | by Zoom Only

The Secret Marathon by Martin Parnell

Martin Parnell will take us on an inspirational journey into a country known for political chaos and female oppression.  In 2016, Martin went on an adventure that many believed was madness: running a marathon in Afghanistan in a quest to fight for women’s rights and gender equality.   This was not the first time he had been called crazy.  In 2010 he had run 250 marathons in one year and in 2013 he had climbed Mount Kilimanjaro in 21 hours. 

In 2010, following a 25 year mining career, Martin started his “Quest for Kids” initiative.  Over the next five years he completed 10 “Quests” such as setting five Guinness World Records for the 250 marathons.  At the end of 2014 over $1.3m had been raised for the Humanitarian organization Right to Play and 27,000 children had been given the gift of hope.

February 8, 2024 at 1:30 pm | by Zoom Only

If it’s an Invasive Plant, Then What? by Michele Young

Michele will discuss the various terms used to describe plants; what the impact is on the environment of various plants; and some of the simple changes that we can make in our own tiny, big, and in-between gardens.  In the time left, Michele will try to help us decide on plants for our indoor environment.

Michele Young lives in Goderich, Ontario along the shores of Lake Huron. Since 2016, she has held the designation of Master Gardener providing the public with relevant, evidence-based horticultural information. Michele enjoys sharing her passion for the Environment especially promoting native plant and insect species around beautiful and functional landscapes. 

March 14, 2024 at 1:30 pm | In Person at St. Andrew’s United Church and by Zoom

St. Andrew’s United Church
117 Bloor Street East, Toronto
Wheelchair accessibility via Hayden Street

The SickKids Journey in “Women and Philanthropy” by Caroline Huang and Christine Kang

Established in 1972, SickKids Foundation raises funds on behalf of The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids) and is the largest charitable funder of child health research, learning and care in Canada. Philanthropy is a critical source of funding for SickKids – one of the world’s foremost paediatric health-care institutions. Thanks to the generosity of the community, and despite the impacts of the global pandemic, SickKids Foundation generated more than $207 million in revenue in support of child health for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2022. For more information, please visit sickkidsfoundation.com.

Christine Kang works at SickKids Foundation as an Associate Director on the Gift & Estate Planning team.

Caroline Huang is an Associate Director of Major Gifts at SickKids Foundation.

April 11, 2024 at 1:30 pm | In Person and by Zoom

St. Andrew’s United Church
117 Bloor Street East, Toronto
Wheelchair accessibility via Hayden Street

Diamonds – Jubilant Gems by Veronica Di Cecco

Veronica is a mineralogy technician in the Department of Natural History at the Royal Ontario Museum. Here she is responsible for the analysis and identification of minerals, meteorites, gems and other inorganic material. She also maintains the analytical equipment, supervises students in the lab, and is responsible for maintaining safety standards, both in the mineralogy lab and as the ROM’s Radiation Safety Officer. Her primary research interest is the mineralogy of ore deposits.

May 9, 2024 at 11:30 am | At the Cricket Club

Behind the Scenes of Mirvish Productions by John Karastamatis

Director of Marketing and Sales for Mirvish Productions for 23 years, John has the inside scoop of what goes on to get productions ready for the season as well as the history of Mirvish Theatre.  It was 60 years ago that Ed Mirvish bought and renovated the Royal Alexandra Theatre and so much has happened during that time.  Let’s find out the stories of one of our oldest grand theatres.