FALL 2017 We value your input. Please follow the contact information on
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Editors: Mary & Don Checkley Contact us at: calgaryretiredteachers.org
2017-2018 CRTA Board of Directors President: Linda Manwarren Vice-President: Denis Espetveidt Vice-President: Brian Scott Past President Greg Chitrenky Secretary: Myrna Eichhorn Treasurer: Paul Demers Director: Liza Bennett Director: Marg Brucker Director: Don Checkley Director: Mary Checkley Director: Gordon Cumming Director: Margaret Espetveidt Director: Elizabeth Galatiuk Director: Marlys Glass Director: Sandra Grassick Director: Mary McDougall Director: Joesph Manchurek Director: Gordon Marconi Director: Rolande Parel Director: Lynn Rule Director: Barb Smith Director: Helena Smith
President’s Message Linda Manwarren Hello to all of you. As you read through this newsletter you will see for yourself we have in-deed been busy. Thank you for supporting our events. We plan them with you in mind but sometimes we do not know how they will be received. To that end, I am inviting you to send us your feedback, either to my email directly or to the event organizer’s email or using the Contact drop down menu on our website. We would also appreciate ideas for future events or learning opportunities you would like us to explore. We welcomed three new Board members at the AGM! As a Board, we took time to pause and reflect. We met for the day with Barb Pedersen who lead us through this retreat, Working Successfully Together. It was time well spent as we reviewed what we are about and what we want to achieve. Congratulations to all who participated in the ARTA Walking Challenge. As winners of the Branch participation award we received 30 copies of the cookbook, Healthy Cooking for Two (Or Just You) by Frances Price, RD. to distribute to our top 30 walkers. Everyone who walked, however many steps, is a winner in the world of paying attention to our health! This is the time of year when I can share news from the Calgary Foundation. The Calgary Teachers Memorial Fund was established in 2011 as an endowment fund managed by The Calgary Foundation for Community, Forever. On our behalf, the Fund seeks charities that would benefit seniors or provide scholarships for those in the field of geriatrics. This year the grant went to Father Lacombe Care Centre to support the construction of a specially designed “healing garden”. The garden is being built to appeal to all five senses which research has proven to be beneficial to the physical, social, psychological, and spiritual health of those with dementia. As the calendar turns toward December we anticipate the annual trip to Rosebud Theatre for their seasonal presentation. It is also the month of the Winter Solstice. Although we see win-ter as a season of dormancy and cold, the Solstice actually marks the days slowly becoming lighter and longer. Celebrations of the lighter days to come and the use of light to dispel the darkness of December are common in festivals throughout history. I wish you joy bright enough to light the dark days of December and love to keep you warm. Merry Christmas. Happy Hanukkah. Joyous Kwanzaa. And may 2018 be a time of good health and peace of mind.
Linda
CRTA AGM September 7, 2017 Don Checkley The Annual General meeting for the CRTA was held prior to the fall luncheon. Linda Manwarren gave a short President’s message to start the meeting. Paul Demers presented the Budget report as approved by our auditor, the Board of Di-rectors and the members at the AGM. Greg Chitrenky as the Past President then conducted the election of the new Board of Directors for the 2017 – 2018 year. The board members are listed on the first page of the newsletter. A thank you to all the new board of directors for letting their names stand and we look forward to the contributions of the new and returning members of the board.
Linda Manwarren giving the President's Report to the AGM
After meeting discussions
Fall Luncheon September 7, 2017 Marlys Glass The weather outside was rainy and cold, but a warm and happy group of retired teach-ers gathered on September 21 to eat a delicious lunch, and get information on the CRTA at the Annual General Meeting. The event was held at the Coast Plaza, where we were treated to tasty food and gra-cious hospitality. Thank you as always to our wonderful sponsors for the door prizes:
A barbecue set from TW Insurance won by John Terray A hand painted scarf made by Catrina Loman won by Marjorie Weerstra A travel credit from Merit Travel won by Sandi Grassick A Thanksgiving Centre piece won by Rebecca Aizeman
And three coffee table books donated by CRTA and won by Marlene Sorenson, Norma Ellis, and Marilyn Shoults. We had four brand new retirees join us, and several new people join the Board of Di-rectors, and this is exciting. Welcome to all these energetic and inspired new people, and of course, thank you to all the hard-working returning members of the Board who led so many wonderful activities in the past year. The most amazing thing is the generosity of retired teachers! We raised $250.00 for the Boys and Girls Clubs of Calgary to support their work in providing needed services for the children in our communities. Thank you to all for your generous contributions! Mark your calendars for the annual Christmas Luncheon at the Carriage House: November 29, 2017.
The Whyte Museum
Lunch at the Old Spaghetti Factory
CRTA Banff Trip September 12, 2017 David Peyto On Tuesday September 12th, fifty-one members and guests of the CRTA spent the day exploring Banff. In the morning we visited the Whyte Museum of the Canadi-an Rockies. After lunch at the Old Spaghetti Factory, the group accompanied Da-vid Peyto on a walking tour past some of Banff’s historic buildings.
Banff’s history dates back to 1883 when a group of Canadian Pacific Railway workers discovered what we now know as the Cave and Basin National Histor-ic Site. In 1885 the Federal Government established the Hot Springs Reserve. Two years later, this reserve was expanded and became Rocky Mountains Park, Canada’s first National Park. In 1886 George A. Stewart was appointed as the first superintendent of Rocky Mountains Park. One of his tasks was to design a townsite that would attract the wealthy and well-travelled tourists of the Victo-rian era. Over the years Banff has changed from being an exclusive resort com-munity to a popular tourist destination. The park name changed to Banff Na-tional Park in 1930.
The Mather cabin located behind the Whyte museum
The Masonic Cascade Lodge
Peter and Catharine Whyte created the Wa-Che-Yo-Cha-Pa Foundation in 1958. Their vision was to construct a museum that would serve as an art gal-lery, a historical archive and a public library. The foundation had been given this name by Stoney Nakoda Chief and medicine man Tatanga Mani or Walking Buffalo. The name translates as “everything you do and see is per-fect and creates influence and education.” Catharine reinterpreted the name as “where the good, the wise and the beautiful come together in harmony.” Catharine had an extensive collection of archival material that was originally housed in the attic of their home. The collection was moved into main muse-um building after it opened in 1968. The library was later moved into the building next door. In 1979 the foundation was renamed the Peter and Cath-arine Whyte Foundation.
In addition to the photographs, journals and records housed in the Whyte Museum, the Foundation owns a collection of Banff heritage homes and cabins. In the summer months the Peter and Catharine Whyte House and the Moore House adjacent to the museum are open to visitors.
The Moore Cabin Located on the Whyte Museum property
Mary Schaffer Warren’s Residence known as Tarry-a-while
On the walking tour after lunch we viewed about twenty historic buildings or lo-cations. Each August, Doors Open Banff provides an opportunity for participants to step inside some of the buildings we walked past. Other historic buildings or locations in Banff include: the Administration Building and Cascade Gardens, Sign of the Goat Curio Shop, Buffalo Nations Luxton Museum, Bow River Bridge, Byron Harmon Residence, Margaret and Henry Greenham Residence, St. Mary’s Catholic Church, Sibbald Residence, Crosby Residence (Abegweit), Bankhead Train Station, Walter S. Painter Residence, Canadian Pacific Railway Station, Belmore Browne Residence, Banff Upper Hot Springs, Cave and Basin National Historic Site and the Banff Springs Hotel.
Banff’s Presbyterian church
Cst Duchesney
Fraud Awareness Presentation September 27, 2017
Steve Manwarren
On Wednesday, September 27 the CRTA hosted an anti-fraud presentation to 42 participants by Cst. Carter Duchesney of the Calgary Police Service. Cst. Duchesney covered several main topics relating to fraud as they pertained to the seniors in his audience. The first and foremost was awareness. Seniors, he told us, were more vulnerable and targeted more often than other groups. In fact, one in twenty is victimized by fraud artists, yet only one in nine ever report the in-cident. He asked that we, as leaders in our community, help increase awareness of the need to report any questionable behavior. To help with this, he advised us of several ideal resources: a.) the Calgary Police fraud reporting line: 403 705 3250. b.) the EART, or the Elder Abuse Response Team, which can be reached at the above number.
c.) support & counselling through www.antifraud.ca
Awareness includes not just knowledge of fraud scams, but also being sensitive to the people to whom it happens. Be wary of signs of abuse: fear, anxiety, depres-sion, unexplained injuries, improper use of medications, loss of assets, etc. When one notices these symptoms, they are encouraged to call the police at the above number and report the signs.
FRAUD AWARENESS WORKSHOP continued One of the most common frauds today is identity theft. This type of fraud is usually derived from accessing one or two pieces of personal information and then sold on the “dark web,” a part of the internet hidden from laypersons. The important point here is to limit as much as possible the personal information given out on social media sites such as Face Book. Sites such as Kijiji or oth-er sites are also mined for personal information. Another suggestion was the importance of paring down your wallet; especially important if you should ever misplace it. For example, there is no need to carry around your SIN card. We all know our number by now. Maintaining a list at home of all your wallet contents and contacts for credit cards etc. is a wise practice. One of the best bits of advice was to generally be wary of any type of uninvit-ed solicitation, door-to-door, telephone, or internet (especially email). If it’s too good to be true, it probably is. Promises like guaranteed high annual re-turns are simply not possible, so don’t be drawn in by the promises of great and immediate return. This area of fraud also includes telephone calls from phony credit bureaus who ask for personal information. Be suspicious of an increase in all strange and unsolicited mail, phone calls, emails, etc. because it means you’re being targeted. If you notice this happening to you or to a friend or family member, report it to the police at the number above.
Fraud Awareness continued. Avoid giving private information over hotel computers and wifi networks (say, at a Tim Horton’s), because they’re easily cracked into by hackers and scammers just looking for personal information of any kind. It doesn’t take much for them to choose you as their next target. A particularly interesting bit of advice, given how much legitimate business is transacted over the internet, was to look for “https” in the URL of any website be-fore sending information on line. The “s” means the website is secure. If you don’t see it, it’s best not to use it. It’s also important to shred all documents with financial information, receipts, any personal information – even envelopes with your name and address. Finally, there was a handout for attendees (all of which were quickly picked up), called The Little Black Book of Scams. This booklet is both informative and free. A personal copy can be obtained at their website: http://www.competitionbureau.gc.ca It may be viewed on line and/or downloaded to be saved at home. In closing Cst Duchesney re-emphasized the importance of awareness, watching out for and helping others, and being suspicious of uninvited solicitations.
CRTA Body Composition Clinic September 28, 2017 Mary Checkley CRTA hosted their third Body Composition Clinic on Sept. 28, 2017. There were thirteen initial participants and three follow up participants from previous clinics. CRTA would like to thank Peggy Strass from ASEBP, who was our health care professional and did a wonderful job, testing, discussing results and giving sug-gestions for life style changes. Each participant filled out a questionnaire after their session to help with the planning of future clinics. The test results and infor-mation given are private and the only copy of the test results is given to the cli-ent. We ask that participants bring back this result sheet to their follow up ap-pointment, approximately six months later, for comparison purposes.
Participants
Ron and Joyce
CRTA would like to thank TW Insurance for again sponsoring a door prize for the initial participants of this clinic. Congratulations to Diane Murray who was the lucky winner of a Fitbit, which will no doubt help her “walk the walk” on her wellness path. These body composition clinics are available to all eighteen branches of ARTA and the inbody machine and heath care professional are provided by ARTA as well as grants that can be applied for to help offset branch ex-penses when organizing these clinics. CRTA would like to acknowledge and thank ARTA for giving our members this opportunity to become more aware of their health and life style. Diane Murray
ANNUAL ARTA WALKING CHALLENGE Results DON CHECKLEY
At the ARTA Annual General Meeting on October 3, 2017, the results for the Walking Challenge were announced by the Wellness Committee chairperson just before the con-clusion of the first day of the AGM.
ESTHER DYCK of the Foothills Retired Teachers’ Association (FRTA) won the Individual Award for the most steps with 1,813,700 steps.
CRTA won the Branch Award for the highest number of steps from its 30 top walkers with 17,832,461 steps. ARTA FACTS incorrectly stated that we had 32,319,603 steps which was our total steps for the entire 72 walkers in our participation group. We still won the award by over 3 million steps.
Okanagan Alberta Retired Teachers’ Association (OKARTA) won the Branch Participation Award with 44 % of their branch membership participating in the Challenge.
The top 30 walkers in the CRTA group, will each receive a copy of “Healthy Cooking For Two (or just you)” by Frances Price. Our entire group of walkers and their results were posted in the Summer Newsletter.
Of special note, Gordon Jasper who is an Alzheimer Patient at the South Campus Hos-pital was our ninth highest walker. His compulsion to walk added 641,185 steps to our top 30 total. He is an inspiration to us all. A picture of Gordon and his wife, Marilee re-ceiving his copy of the book is posted below.
CRTA DEAF AND HARD OF HEARING CLINIC October 11, 2017 Mary Checkley
Thirty-nine people attended the CRTA Deaf and Hard of Hearing Clinic on Oc-tober 11, 2017 at the Brentview Baptist Church. Marlys Glass and Marlynn Kennedy were the lucky winners of the two door prizes. The speakers were Sharon Nixon from Deaf and Hearing Alberta and Kristine McLellan from Hearing Life Canada.
Marlynn Kennedy
& Marlys Glass
Sharon Nixon
Sharon noted that hearing loss is more common than we realize. 7% aged 19 to 39 , 20% aged 19 to 79 and 47% aged 60 to 79 experience hearing loss. Difficul-ty with high pitches and the letters S, Sh, H, F, CH, and C are often signs of the beginning of hearing loss. Other signs include, difficulty in noisy environ-ments,needing a high volume on the TV or radio, having trouble in group conver-sations, often asking people to repeat themselves and hearing people talk but not understanding them. Deaf and Hear Alberta provide mentorship, social support groups, assistive technology, speechreading and help with funding applications. See their website for details-www.deafandhearingalberta.org
Sharon & the
EAR
CRTA members
Kristine suggested that 60 years of age was an appropriate time for a hearing test, as over 50% of those 60+ have some degree of hearing loss. The free appointment would include the taking of a case history , examination of the ears and the hearing test itself. Research has shown a connection between hearing loss and depression, as one tends to retreat so-cially due to the embarrassment, frustration and fatigue of impaired hearing. See the websites www.CampaigneForBetterHearing.org and www.hearinglifecanada.com for more information.
CRTA is most appreciative of these two organizations for sharing their time and expertise with our members.
Kristine McLellan
CRTA Grants Linda Manwarren Recently I met Reanna Arnold. She is the recipient of the CRTA Award for 2107. Once again my faith in the future of the teaching profession is renewed. I would like to share her words of appreciation with you.
Dear Calgary Retired Teachers Association, I would like to take this opportunity to thank you for your generosity in funding the Calgary Retired Teachers Associa-tion Award. I am honoured to have been selected as the recipient of this award. Your support is helping me accomplish a lifelong dream of becoming a teacher. It motivates me to continue to perform to the best of my ability. I am currently enrolled in my 4th and final year of the Bachelor of Elementary Ed-ucation. I also play on the Mount Royal Cougars Women’s Hockey team. Aside from school and hockey, I work for the Tutor Doctor and volunteer at my previous practicum placement, Louis Riel School. I was nominated for this award based on my success in my 3rd year practicum. It inspires me to strive for matching ex-cellence in my upcoming practicum. Thank you for this support. Reanna
Endowment Fund Information Linda Manwarren As you may recall the CRTA has an endowment fund established at University of Calgary which provides the funds for awards to students in the education faculty there. We continue to work towards developing endowment funds at Mount Royal and St. Mary’s universities. Please review the ways you can help make this happen. Tax receipts will be sent by the uni-versities. MOUNT ROYAL UNIVERSITY How to Give to develop the Mount Royal University Endowment Fund Give online – Your donation can be directed to the Calgary Retired Teachers' Association Award and a tax receipt will be sent to you via mail. Please visit www.mtroyal.ca/giving and complete the online form. Select Calgary Retired Teachers Association Award from the drop-down menu. • By phone – 403.440.7700 • By cheque – Please send your donation with an accompanying letter naming the Calgary Retired Teachers Association Award as the recipient fund to:
Mount Royal University Foundation 4825 Mount Royal Gate SW Calgary, Alberta T3E 6K6
ST. MARY’S UNIVERSITY How to Give to Develop the St. Mary’s University Endowment Fund Donate online. Your donation will be designated to the Calgary Retired Teachers’ Association
Award and a tax receipt will be mailed to you. Please visit http://www.stmu.ca/crta-award-donation/.
By phone. Please call Heather Hadden at 403.254.3739 and specify that your gift is in support
of the Calgary Retired Teachers’ Association Award. By cheque. Please send your donation with an accompanying letter naming the Calgary Re-
tired Teachers Association Award as the recipient fund to: St. Mary’s University Advancement Office 14500 Bannister Rd SE Calgary AB T2X 1Z4
CONGRATULATIONS to Vera Goodwin
7over70 was founded by Calgarian Jim Gray to celebrate the unique contributions and achievements of Calgary's Senior population."
The winners of the Top 7 Over 70 awards were announced at an exclusive gala event hosted by Dave Kelly on Monday October 7, 2017 at the Hyatt Regency "I am struck by the dynamic contributions I see Calgary seniors making in every facet of life, adding to the richness of our community," says event Founder Jim Gray. "That's why I thought it is time to celebrate the unique achievements of seniors by recognizing the Top 7 over 70.
CRTA would like to congratulate Vera Goodwin for being named one of Calgary's "Seven over Seventy" Award Winners, for her ongoing commitment to literacy develop-ment through her 'Reading Wings' program.
IF YOU ARE NOT GETTING INFORMATION
Please note, if you know people who are not getting email blasts or online infor-mation please pass on the following information to them. This includes people who do not get to register for activities because they don’t get current infor-mation earlier enough.
If you don’t have a computer or an email connection find a relative, or good
friend who could receive email notices for you. Contact the CRTA website and
register your name and the secondary email address so that you can receive the
notices and email blasts.
If you have an email address and are not receiving email blasts please contact the CRTA website and pass on the alternative email address.
Lunchbox Theatre November 1, 2017 Linda Manwarren
On November 1, 2017 forty CRTA members attended the Lunchbox Theatre production of Flight Risk and enjoyed a box lunch. Each year Lunchbox creates a play under the arch of Remembrance Day. Flight Risk, an original tale of an RCAF tail gunner from the Second World War and his nurse, explores pain, secrets and coming to peace. This poignant tale touched us all and a closing phrase, “through adversity to the stars”, will be long remembered and pondered.
CRTA members in the audience at Lunchbox Theatre
Cast members From left to right Christopher Hunt Kathryn Kerbes Kristen Padayas
TRAVEL OPPORTUNITIES FOR CRTA MEMBERS China Tour $999 for CRTA members and friends SNA tours has led our tours to China for five years. Their tours have been well organized and enjoyable. This year, SNA tours is offering CRTA members and guests two incredibly priced tours to China. Both tours leave Calgary or Edmonton on March 29, 2018. $999 for 9 days including flights and accommodation, most meals and guides, and transporta-tion. $1699 for 14 days including flights and accommodation, most meals and guides, transporta-tion and Yangtze River cruise.
All groups will ride on the bullet train which travels at 450 mph and the cruise group will also travel by high speed train to the boat on the Yangtze River.
Go to our Website www.calgaryretiredteachers.org to see the complete itineraries and Regis-tration Form documents. Click on TRAVEL. Registration and payment forms can be printed out and sent in. Click on SNA Application Packet. When you book, you will be requested to pay in full so that the airline tickets can be sent to you directly. When the available airline tickets run out, the tour will be full.
COSTA RICA December 29, 2018 until January 6, 2019 Spend New Year’s Eve on a Pacific beach in Costa Rica. Discover the history of coffee in Costa Rica at a coffee plantation. View breathtaking scenery surrounding the Arenal Vol-cano and indigenous wildlife on a Cano Negro riverboat cruise Enjoy a guided walk in the vegetation in the cloud forest .Visit the whimsical topiary garden in Zarcero COST: $ 3,649 CAD per person ( double occupancy) 9 days – 13 meals (8 breakfasts, 5 dinners) Includes Round trip airfare from Calgary hotel transfers & Air taxes and Fees Hotels Doubletree Cariari Hotel – San Jose Esplendor Tamarindo – Guanacastle El Establo – Monteverde Arenal Springs Resort – Arenal PLUS: Optional 4 day – 3 night Jungle Adventure post tour extension in the Tortuguero National Park 8 meals and accommodation $ 745 CAD per person ( double occupancy) If interested contact Don Checkley at 403-271-1193 or email [email protected] .
CRTA PARTICIPATION IN REMEMBRANCE DAY CEREMONIES
The CRTA participated in the 2017 Remembrance Day Ceremonies in Calgary on November 11. Board of Director volunteers laid wreathes at three ceremonies on behalf of the CRTA. Ena Beunder participated in the ceremonies at the Jubilee Auditorium. Rolande Parel represented our organization in the ceremonies at the Military Museums. Helena Wilson was our representative in the ceremonies at the Cenotaph in Central Memorial Park.
The CRTA would like to thank our representatives for their participation in these solemn ceremonies recognizing the supreme sacrifice of our soldiers, sailors and air force personnel.
Helena Wilson at the Cenotaph
CRTA visit to the Military Museums of Calgary Rolande Parel
On November 15th, twenty-nine, eager CRTA members toured two exhibits on the site of the Military Museums of Calgary, Alberta, an institution dedicated to preserving the memories of the thousands of Canadian men and women who proudly served their country through numer-ous wars and conflicts. Our first stop was the Naval Museum of Alberta, the largest Canadian naval museum in the country, which houses the most complete collection of major ship weapons systems in Cana-da, as well as meticulously detailed models of the great ships that took part in the Battle of the Atlantic.
The exhibit also includes a replica of a Second World War wheelhouse, as well as a working periscope from the Canadian Submarine Ojibwa, and an original German Enigma machine.
Naval Exhibit
Learning about life in rough seas on a corvette bridge
Military Museum Visit continued Following our guide’s informative exposition on all three, we proceeded to our next and final destination, the Military Museums of Calgary’s Cold War Exhibit, which commemo-rates the contributions of the Royal Canadian Air Force during the years between the end of the Second World War and the fall of the Berlin wall. Highlighted were vivid descrip-tions of the attributes of the RCAF’s CF-18, and the Canadair CF 104 as well as several other jet fighters in relation to this conflict, The visit concluded with an invitation from the Museum staff to feel free to browse through the exhibits once again, after we had eaten our excellent, catered lunch served in the comfortable board room of the Museum!
Cold War Exhibit
CF 18 Hornet
CF 104 Starfighter
Let Us Take A Moment To Remember Those
Colleagues Who Passed Away
Brenda Harrison Williams September 23 Diana Karol Sargeant September 22 Ann Proden September 26 Sharon Rose Johnsson September 30 Jeanette Maxine Veale October 2 Bernadette Janine Marie McGowan October 15 Amy Troyer October 13 Ines Farmer October 15 Marylynne Dianne Howard October 26 Marilyn Slater October 21 Elaine Barbara Whitehead October 28 Janet Caswell November 1 Raymond Ernest Huot November 3
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