Well I hope you are all surviving these “dog days of summer”!
Interesting little trivia for you. Did you know that this expression did not come from watching Fido lazing around on a hot day but actually refers to
the brightest star in the constellation, Canis Major, that we see clearly at this time of year? The ancient Greeks dubbed it the “dog star” and named
him Sirius.
Back to ASA news. Karie has now completed the Aurora Seniors Centre Membership and Activity Guide. It details all the programs, events, outings
and activities at the Centre. It is a comprehensive outlook of what is available through the ASA and the Town at the Centre. There are hard
copies available at the Centre for our new members. It will also be available on our upgraded website come September.
Speaking of new members, we had the first Lets Get Acquainted meeting on August 3rd. These meetings had to be postponed during Covid
so it was nice to get them started again. We had 14 of our new members attend this session where they were given information about the ASA and
had the opportunity to ask questions. I think it was a success and I am happy to say that we will be holding them every sixth Wednesday from now
on.
Duplicate Bridge has returned. It will take place every Monday afternoon from 12:30 till 4:00 P.M. Everyone in attendance at the first session
seemed very happy to be back and I encourage all you Duplicate players to join us.
Besides all the regular programs that are returning we have some exciting events coming up. Here a short list:
- August 12 – 5:00 pm – ASA quiche dinner
- August 17 – 12 pm – Summer BBQ
- August 26 – 7:30 -10:30 – Friday Night Social Dance
- Every Thursday throughout August from 9-10 am we’ll have Muffin Mornings
There are exciting things to look forward to in September. From the 6th – 12th we will be having an open house and membership drive. Some of the
events planned are the Active Living Fair, the Try It Week, an open house and an activity fair. Make a note of the dates and bring your friends along
to see our wonderful Centre. See the Website and Newsletter for further details.
As you may be aware due to our reduced membership and reduced participation in activities the ASA is having trouble covering our expenses. This brings us to our Fund Raising committee. They have been very busy over the last two months and through such efforts as the chocolate bar sales and the bottle drive they have already raised $2,700 to date. Our sincere thanks go out to Carol Palmer and Pat Varney for heading up this committee and for all the volunteers that have helped. You will be happy to know that the chocolate bars will be back in September and I am told there will be dark chocolate available. The bottle drive will continue as well.
More events are planned for September and onward. Here are some of the Fundraising things you can look forward to:
- Sept. 17 – Colossal Sale will take place both in the Centre and the parking lot.
- Sept. 28 – Carol MacDonald will give a presentation on the world famous artists the Group of Seven.
- Nov. 21 – Author and Journalist Ted Barris will give a presentation of his latest book “Battle of the Atlantic”.
If you are interested in volunteering to help with any of these events or have any ideas for a fund raising initiative please speak to Reception. We
need lots of help to get the Centre back to pre Covid days.
I would also like to remind you that if you are interested in donating to the Centre a Tax receipt will be issued for any donation over $20. All
donations go directly to the running of the Centre and you can be assured it will not be lost in bureaucracy. However it’s not all about raising money. Volunteering can be very rewarding. It helps you meet fellow members and may make you feel like you are really a part of the Centre. So come on out and give us a hand.
In closing I’d like to mention the website one more time. The website committee are working very hard at improving it. We hope to launch the
new platform in September. Keep an eye out for an announcement when it’s ready. I think you will be impressed.
That’s it for now. I wish you many more happy summer days and wonderful starry nights.
Take care… Dave LeGallais
