Merry Christmas 2025
If only there was peace on earth…
{again, same repetitive opening, unfortunately}
Hard to believe that about a year ago, Kelti, Suzanne & Brett took me to Oahu to celebrate my 80th… that was a special time, in part because Brett did most of the driving in a neat Jeep (I only got behind the wheel after they returned to AZ and I rented a Smart Car which is somewhat misnamed!!).
But what about this year which has seen considerable turmoil throughout the globe? Generally speaking it has been okay. We did have Mom’s funeral in May which was attended by far more than I expected. It was a very lovely event; the minister was exceptional and Anne & Alex did a marvelous job of designing, developing & delivering it. It was recorded, along with some poignant interviews, and can be watched on this website on the home page!
Here is a quick summary of individual actions:
Pour ST
• a successful dragon-boat season
• same for golfing & skiing
• swimming has become year round again, city pool in the late autumn & winter and Skaha & Okanagan Lakes spring through early autumn
• continuing as a Board member on the South Okanagan Community Foundation (& attended the national conference in Halifax)
• continuing as a participant in the 100 Women Who Care Charity (which significantly outperforms the men’s equivalent)
• going to the CFL’s Grey Cup (in Winnipeg this year) – and also all the BC Lions’ home games (in Vancouver)
• continues as an active member of Rotary (& attended the international Rotary conference in Calgary with 16,000 participants from 140 countries)
• continuing as a super star hostess for visits from Grandkids, kids, neighbours, long-time friends and special groups
For moi
• considerable biking
• a goodly amount of skiing & some golf
• semi-weekly visits to the gym &/or mini-workouts rounded out efforts to stay upright and breathing!!
• enjoyed another Spring/Summer teaching Applied Ethics in the Environmental Health program at CUE (Concordia University of Edmonton)
• continuing as a participant in the 100 Men Who Care Charity
• continue to hold season’s tix with BC Lions (Vancouver) and EE (Edmonton)
• share season’s tix with my long time friend Sandy Ross at Penticton VEES hockey games (now WHL)
• continue to serve as President of our strata (Bridgewater)
Travel again was extensive. ST made a couple of family & friends visits to Montréal et Ottawa and accompanied me on my annual Stratford tour (we also had a good visit with friends Margaret & Allison Lupton this year). She also accompanied me to my SEAC Conference (Society for Ethics Across the Curriculum) at Villanova University near Philadelphia. While she did not come to the actual conference, she did do a good deal of site-seeing around Philly and took in a performance of the Philadelphia Ballet. Included in the trip was a day train trip to New York City: took in some touring and eating, but the highlight was a night at the Metropolitan Opera (something that will remain with me forever). We stayed an extra two days so that we could experience the Philadelphia Symphony in concert, visit the Rocky Balboa special site and also attend First Presbyterian which is a congregation almost 300 years old with a building built in the 19th century. She also traveled with me to New Hampshire where we visited our grandsons: Brendan who is now enrolled at St. Anselm College (playing NCAA2 hockey & being on the honour role) and Connor who is starting his broadcasting career in New England.
As for me I did fly to Norfolk Virginia for my APPE (Association for Practical & Professional Ethics) Conference. It was a solid learning experience which gave me some new ideas for my teaching gig. After Alumni Homecoming Weekend at the UofA in Edmonton, I also returned to Stratford for some additional plays that I had wanted to see and the Theatre helped by rewarding me with reduced prices for my long-time attendance (going as far back as the Tent in 1954).
In April we accompanied our special friends Bonnie & Sandy Ross to Jamaica to visit their youngest & his wife (Andrew & Rachael). This was a special time – not only because they have a beautiful estate in the mountains, but they also arranged for a weekend at a delightful resort on the south shore (Treasure Beach: which was entirely destroyed by the recent hurricane). This meant I was able to visit the unique bar I had seen in Appleton Estates rum commercials – Floyd’s Pelican Bar (we also visited the Appleton Estates distillery). In August, Brendan and his girlfriend Emma came to visit us in Penticton – this too was a special time that included Brendan and I biking from the Smethyrst Station to the recently re-opened ADRA tunnel on the KVR Trail (old Kettle Valley Railroad). The third special moment came near the end of September when ST’s younger sister (& her daughter) came from Montréal for a wee visit after the unexpected passing of her husband. They are solid francophone Québécois so challenged me in my inadequate French.
Do have a wonderful Christmas and may 2026 bring you good health, new adventures, many smiles, occasional fits of laughter, and hugs from surprising sources.
ST et gw