Our sympathy goes out to Richard Dickinson on the passing of his wife Rena. She passed away on August 2/17. Funeral services are planned for August 11 at 3:30p.m. at Park Memorial Chapel, 9709 – 111 Avenue in Edmonton. Photos, memories and condolences may be shared through www.parkmemorial.com
We had a total of 28 Gyro’s plus 2 guests attend our windup golf tournament at the Broadmoor golf course On June 7th. 27 golfed and 3 joined us for dinner afterwards. Everyone enjoyed a beautiful day of golf and the competition was fierce. The winners are as follow:
Al Gordon and Jack Beattie both had a score of 77 but Al took the Low Gross Trophy on a count back.
Jack Beattie , Peter Sachatsky and Rick Craddock all had a low net of 66 but Jack Beattie won the Low Net Trophy on a count back.
All 27 golfers received a prize and the first team to go up to the prize table were the team of Rusty Climie, Augie Annicchiarico, Lawrence Zalasky and Bernie Woodkey as they had the highest total par points.
We also had a reverse draw with the cash prize winners as follows:
Bill Austin———$5
Sid Slade———-$10
Bernie Kropp– –$15
Gord Stewart—-$20
John Williams—$50
A big thank you goes out to all Gyro’s who donated prizes for the tournament.
Committee members
Roger Delveaux
Keith Bradley
Gordon Stewart
We wish Keith Bradley a speedy and healthy recovery after some fingers had an altercation with a mitre saw on Tuesday.
Thanks to Bill Austin and Art Merrick for putting forward an excellent slate of members for next years Board to keep our club running smoothly. And thanks to those members that let their name stand for the various positions. It looks like a good group to help incoming President Ken Lesniak to have a very successful year. Long serving members in the positions of Secretary (John Williams) and Treasurer (Eric Braun) help maintain consistency in our organization, Thanks guys. Installation of the new Board of Directors will take place at the club windup June 24th at the Canadian German Club.
See the list of the new Board, click on the link below.
Our Gyro golf windup tournament is being held on Wednesday, June 7th at the Broadmoor golf course. Upon arrival at golf course please check in at pro shop and pay your green fees ( $49 plus cost of golf cart if required ).
After golf we will go to the Banquet hall for dinner and prize presentation. We will be ordering off the menu and to assist the dining room staff please order your meal as soon as you are finished golfing. Everyone is responsible for paying their bill but will receive $25 cash from the Gyro club.
As in previous years , all prizes are donated by us the golfers so we ask again for your continued generosity.
As soon as we have exact numbers of golfers we will make up the teams and provide you with tee times etc.
Jan Bradley’s mother Dorothy Squibb, an elegant lady, passed away on March 1, 2017. She was 95 years old. Our sympathies are extended to Keith and Jan and family.
The Funeral Service have been delayed to ensure all family members would be present for the service which will be held at Glenwood Funeral Home, 52356 RR 232, Sherwood Park, AB at 2:00 p.m. on Friday, May 12, 2017.
It is with a sad heart that I let you know that our friend and fellow Gyro, Rae Graham, passed away on Friday March 17th, losing his 10 year battle with Cancer. Rae’s funeral will be at St. Thomas Anglican Church this Thursday March 23, 2017 at 2:00 PM on Raven here in Sherwood Park.
Our sincere condolences are extended to Augie Annicchiarico and family on the passing of his father. Further details will be posted once they are known.
All members of the Sherwood Park Gyro Club are invited to join their fellow Edmonton Gyro Club members at any or all of these events.
Tuesday Luncheon Meeting, Royal Mayfair Golf Club, November 15th
Time: 12:00 noon
Speaker: Stephanie Perilli, Director Fund Development, Valley Zoo Development Society.
Topic: The “Zoos” vision and transformation.
Contacts: Warren Garbutt and John Mann
GYRO/GYRETTE Christmas Party, Riverview Room, Shaw Conference Centre, Tuesday, December 6th
Champagne and socializing: 5:45, Dinner 6:45
Menu: Carved whole turkey at your table.
Cost: TBA
Guests welcome!
This write up of Founder’s Night is taken from the Edmonton Club GYROLOG and was written by Fred Schulte.
President Peter Carter welcomed 51 Gyros and ladies from the Edmonton Club, 17 Gyros and ladies from the Sherwood Park Gyro Club and our guest speaker Radomir Bilash and friend Lydia to the Annual Founders Night celebration held at the Royal Mayfair Golf Club on October 18th.
Art Merrick led the group in the singing of Cheerio and John Mann presented the Grace.
Past District Governor Gerry Glassford spoke on the birth of GYRO in 1912 when three college friends, Ed Kagy, Paul Schwan and Gus Handerson believed what they had experienced was worth sharing with a friend. The first seeds of Gyro were planted in Cleveland, Ohio and spread across the United States and Canada. “Age has no terror” when friendship is carried on through life. The last man to join the Cleveland group as a charter member was Jimmie Hubbell. His fascination with the Gyroscope and his persuasive arguments led to the adoption of the name GYRO for the new organization. Hubbell likened the Gyroscope to friendship, because “once set in motion, regardless of outside influences, it would maintain its course regardless-not unlike the benefits of friendship.” This concept then evolved into the three defined words which forever cemented the relationship between friendship and the Gyroscope: Power, Poise and Purpose.
In January 1917, the 279 members of the five loosely aligned Gyro Clubs, Cleveland, Chicago, Buffalo, Cincinnati and Philadelphia got serious and held their first convention. Bylaws were created, a letterhead was designed, dues and the first budget were set, a plan to create more clubs was established and a plan for guest speakers was made. Gyro International was born!
Bruce Swanson introduced our guest speaker, Radomir Bilash, a fifth generation Ukrainian, who was born in Winnipeg. He really discovered his ties with the Ukraine when his father showed him some of the older historical buildings in Dauphin, Manitoba. Radomir said that after receiving his degree in anthropology, he was trying to find a path like all of us, but fate led him in the direction of his cultural, historical and language roots.
He has been an Adjunct Associate Professor and lecturer in the Department of Modern Languages and Cultural Studies at the University of Alberta and for the last 20+ years Radomir has presented a course on Early Ukrainian-Canadian Culture. Secondly, he was the organizer and delegation leader of the first Cultural delegation from the Government of Alberta to visit Ukraine on the verge of Ukraine’s independence. For this effort, he received the Order of Merit from the Government of Ukraine.
Radomir gave a power point presentation on the Ukrainian Cultural Heritage Village – An Open-air Museum. In 1969, William Hawrelak, Frank Lakusta and a few others decided that it was important to preserve some of the Ukrainian history and culture in a pioneer park. The first Ukrainian immigrants settled northeast of Edmonton after 1892. Most came from Galicia and Bukovyna in what is now the western Ukraine and by 1930 about 250,000 people had left Ukraine to settle in Canada. Although other bloc settlements were established in Saskatchewan and Manitoba and elsewhere in Alberta, the settlement near Edmonton was the largest, eventually covering about 8000 km2. A sample of some of the settlement villages follows: Luzan, Kiew, Vilna, Andrew, Musidora, Buchach, Wostok, Radway, Bellis, Hilliard, Myrnam, Lamont, Edna-Star, Shandro and Boian.
In 1971, the Ukrainian Cultural Heritage Village Society was formed and relied on private funding. By 1975, the Society was running out of money and they approached Horst Schmid, Alberta Minister of Culture, Youth and Recreation 1971-75 and Minister of Government Services and Culture 1975-1979. By 1976, the province agreed to purchase the pioneer village as a Historic Site for $150,000. The Minister responsible for undertaking the purchase was William Yurko, Minister of Housing and Public Works. Yurko was the grandson of Nazar Yurko from Bukovyna who settled in Boian.
A Master Plan was developed for the Ukrainian Cultural Village to show the lives and experiences of Ukrainian Canadian settlers up to 1930. Homestead records were used along with personal interviews of many of the original settlers. The village depicts life in the rural community, on farmsteads and in a railway-centred town site. The site was cleared of trees more than 100 years ago and as a result it
was important to have a landscape plan so that trees, crops and windbreaks could be developed over time to mimic actual conditions.
Significant site preparation was required before any historic buildings could be moved to the village site. Potable water was not available, and sanitary sewer, water and gas lines had to be installed. The province ultimately committed $8 million to undertake the development of the village.
“The Village” has a very strong commitment to historical authenticity and the concept of living history. The Village uses a technique known as first-person interpretation which requires that the costumed performers remain in character at all times (or as much as is feasibly possible). Actors answer all questions as if it is the year their building portrays. Although this technique is off-putting for some visitors at first, it allows for a much stronger experience of immersion in history than traditional third-party interpretation where the actor acknowledges that he is, in fact, in a museum.
The Master Plan of 1979-2016 is still being followed and to date more than 35 relocated and restored structures including a burdei (sod house), a one-room and two-room school, grain elevator, blacksmith shop and three churches of Eastern Byzantine Rite have been established in the Village.
The Ukrainian Cultural Heritage Village is located east of Edmonton along Highway 16, just east of Elk Island National Park. The 2016 summer season starts on May 21st.
Bill Taylor thanked our speaker for a very interesting and informative presentation.
