From the President: It seems that the past few months our lives have been filled with nothing but elections and politicians. Earlier this month I went along to the Sydney Writers Festival and was lucky enough to hear historian Judith Brett talk about her book From Secret Ballot to Democratic Sausage. As many of you would be aware, we are the only English-speaking country with compulsory voting but beyond that, many worldwide voting practices originated in good old Australia. We created the secret ballot, which other nations sometimes call “the Australian Ballot” and we were among the first in the world to ensure that elections are run by a non-partisan electoral commission.
Women’s suffrage, the polling station, the individual booth, Saturday voting, even the pencils we use and the little squares for the numbers—all had their origins in Australia. Judith Brett’s book is a fascinating read and I’d recommend it to anyone interested in how Australia led the world in many electoral practices.
Membership Report: Our membership stands at 56 (35 women and 21 men).
Many Happy Returns of the Day for Your May Birthday: Maureen T 01, Jean S 10, and Kevin D 16.
Guest Speakers: Today we welcome Dr. Frenn Aben, who is a Rehabilitation
Physician, addressing the topic of Home Care Services.
Next month, Annette Janic will join us with a talk entitled, "A Refugee Story."
Program of Activities
Probus Walkers Tuesday 11th June 2019: Concord West to Rhodes (via Yaralla and Kokoda Track).
This is an easy and pleasant walk through the grounds of Yaralla and continuing along the Foreshore Trail to Rhodes. After leaving Concord West station we traverse a couple of streets before entering the gates of Yaralla which has a plaque detailing the history of the estate which was the Edith Walker Convalescent Hospital. Lunch/ refreshments either at the Kokoda Café or the hotel at Concord West. Approx. 6.5 klms.
Classed as Easy/long. Meet: Town Hall Station, Platform 2, at 9:15am to catch the next train to Concord West.
Probus Outings:
Tuesday 28th May 2019: The Museum Discovery Centre (MDC) at Castle Hill. This interesting tour, booked for 10:30am, is called the “Visible Storage” collection. The tour lasts for one and a half hours and costs $8, morning tea is $5, and the bus will be $30. The MDC is a collaboration between the Museum of Applied Arts and Sciences (MAAS) and the Australian Museum (AM) and Sydney Living Museums. Inside the MDC you will find millions of treasures, with hundreds on display for you to explore.
Tuesday 25th June was scheduled to be whale watching, but I no longer think that will suit us as on Tuesdays there are only afternoon tours, which return about
4:15pm. I think that is a bit late for many of us, at a time when the weather is turning cold. Also, the price has jumped to $60-70 and does not include lunch. Thus this day is now scheduled to be a mystery at the moment till something else is devised, which will happen!
Meet a Member:
Paul O. Born in London’s East End as WW2 ended, I can claim to be a ‘Cockney’ although I lack the accent! My early years involved living in my grandparent’s house as accommodation was sparse after the blitz. We moved to Ilford, an outer London suburb, just before I began primary school and went on to the local grammar school. I became a huge fan of West Ham United Football Club in their heyday when the likes of Bobby Moore, Martin Peters and Geoff Hurst played, regularly standing on the terraces (seating was only for the rich!). I was also much involved with the Boy Scouts and managed to achieve the Queen’s Scout award. My education continued at Cambridge University (Economics degree) and the London School of Economics (Personnel Management Diploma).
I began work with Esso Petroleum in Personnel (now known as HR!) at Southampton where I met Brenda who was teaching Domestic Science, thence began a very happy 48 years to date of marriage. A career in HR management followed, initially in the oil industry but mainly in the health sector both in the Pharmaceutical industry and the UK National Health Service, culminating in Board appointments in NHS hospital trusts in Newcastle upon Tyne and in Essex. Work has involved six house moves to different parts of England and projects in Continental Europe.
Having encouraged our two children to travel and to have broad horizons, we didn’t expect that they would settle on the other side of the world—however, they both married Australians and have given us five grandchildren with Aussie accents! In retirement, our children said that they couldn’t look after us in our old age if we stayed in England, maybe help with the growing grandchildren may also have been in mind! After sharing out time between Australia and the UK for a number of years, we emigrated in 2016. We have been made to feel very welcome in Sydney and see our emigration as the best decision we have ever made. We have applied and hope soon to obtain Australian citizenship.
Our very pleasant walk around Canada, Exile and France Bays on14th May.
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