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By Gwendolyn Ebbett
 Dear Friends:
I will begin with an update of WURA's move into its new location. Renovations to the Odette House are currently being completed to make it an accessible space with an office and a meeting space where retirees can get together both formally and more casually. We are presently working on programming initiatives as well as the more mundane questions regarding furniture needs. The renovation is expected to be completed by September, at which time WURA will move in. Please stay tuned for details about a “Grand Opening” event sometime this Fall.
Further to the above-noted move, the Age Friendly University Campus Faculty Hub Committee, chaired by Dr. Erika Kustra, Associate Vice President Academic, continues to work towards the University becoming a member of the Age Friendly University Global Network. One of the principles of being an AFU Member is to be welcoming to All Retirees. Since, at the present time, WURA represents retired faculty, librarians and senior administrators exclusively, the University is exploring how to involve other retiree groups in this initiative.
I attended the Zoom version of the CURAC/ARUCC Annual General Meeting which was held in Waterloo on May 22, 2024. The new officers voted in at the meeting are: President Walter Archer; Vice-President Sandy Hu; Treasurer, Jim Boyd; and Secretary, Janet Kaufman.
The work of the University Ad hoc Committee struck to study the Ontario Pension Plan (UPP) has been completed. Please see Ihor’s report further on in this e-Bulletin for more information.
As well, we sadly note the passing of retired Psychology Professor, Jerry Cohen. At the time of his death, along with colleague Siyaram Pandey, Jerry was actively engaged in a 20-year research project focused on the mitigation of Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia. Other faculty who recently passed away include Roger Thibert (Chemistry), Jatinder Bewtra (Engineering), and the much beloved George Stewart (Law). Details are in the Memoriam webpage.
I wish everyone a very pleasant rest of Summer and for those who have signed up for the Stratford Theatre Experience, have a wonderful day!
Gwendolyn Ebbett
President
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| ("Holiday Luncheon" by DALL-E, Abstract, October 2023) |
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The Social Corner
Social Committee News
By Christina Simmons
Klezmer Musical Event
 On Tuesday, May 28, percussionist Nick Papador, Professor in the School of Creative Arts, presented a lecture on the content of his recent book, Vessels of Song: A Collection of Klezmer Suites for Mallet Ensemble. Then he along with several current and former students played some of the music noted in the book. The session was well attended both in-person, as well as online, and was very much enjoyed by everyone. The history was fascinating and the music lively. We wish we could have gotten up to dance!
( Editor's note: Although this is not the presentation that Nick did on May 28 the content is essentially the same. Enjoy!)
President’s Tea
On June 19, from 2 - 3:30 pm at the Freed-Orman Centre, President Gordon hosted an afternoon tea for retirees. It was a delightful social occasion, and the food was outstanding. President Gordon spoke briefly to the group to update us on several things, including the University’s striking rise in various university ratings and efforts to make us an Age Friendly University. WURA also presented a Friend of WURA Award to Heather Pratt, Executive Director, Research and Innovation, for her years of helpful work with our Association. Unfortunately, Heather was unable to attend, but Jake Soderlund announced the Award.( Editor's note:: Please see Jake's article on Heather further on in this e-Bulletin.)
Summer Events
WURA is not formally sponsoring any activities this summer, but we can recommend some events that you might like to attend with friends. The Windsor Symphony Orchestra will be playing a Concert at Leamington's Sunset Amphitheatre at Seacliff Park on Saturday July 27, from 7:00 to 8:30pm. Also, as part of the Lakeshore Summer Concert Series, local folk artist Allison Brown, along with Mike Houston, will be singing at Millen Park in Woodslee on Friday August 30, from 7:00 to 8:30pm. Both should be great shows!
September Trip to Stratford
There are still a few tickets available for our trip to Stratford to see London Assurance on September 19. More information is available on the London Assurance website. Tickets will be available until the end of the month or whenever they sell out.
Fall Events
We will offer another For the Love of Reading event (date, time and theme to be announced later) and also will host a Grand Opening of WURA’s new on-campus headquarters – Odette House (on Sunset, next to Kerr House) – when renovations are complete. This building will be part of the Age Friendly University program. It will be shared with Uni-Com, the long-standing group that organizes courses for seniors in the community. WURA hopes to use it for some meetings and possibly as a drop-in centre on campus for our members.
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 Alan Phipps: Articles in Refereed Journals
In comparison with a normative criterion, a consumption criterion predicts less affordable owned housing for the minority experiencing this in two mid-sized Canadian cities, Saskatoon, SK, and Windsor, ON, from 1987 to 2020. This is in Alan Phipps's new article entitled ‘Compared predictions of a consumption and a normative criterion of housing affordability in two mid-sized Canadian cities over time’, published in the International Journal of Housing Markets and Analysis on https://dx.doi.org/10.1108/IJHMA-03-2024-0042.
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("A Fanciful Stratford Festival Theatre" by DALL-E, Abstract, July 2024)
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STRATFORD THIS SEASON:
Some Early Reviews
By Lloyd Brown-John
You may or may not be planning to visit the Stratford Festival this Season. And, as we have little in the way of local reviews, let me offer the following comments on four (4) performances we attended this past week . And one note: Performers are, without exception . . . excellent. We’ve never seen a bad performance at Stratford in over 30 years but we’ve seen a few strange plays!
1. “Something Rotten”: I’ll wager that this humourous, well choreographed and very funny musical will be the Hit of the 2024 Season.
 Imagine Shakespeare as a “Rock Star” – wiggling his hips and scattering autographs to adoring fans. Then, imagine two brothers desperately looking for a means to challenge “Bill’s” popularity. Nostradamus (not that one!) A soothsayer who just misses conjuring the correct title for - can you believe it – a Musical. The title “Something Rotten” comes, of course, from Hamlet’s reference to Denmark. But if your soothsayer gets it wrong and mispronounces Hamlet as ‘Omelet’ and you add a Puritan (who wears a funny hat in a funny place) and his daughter, Portia, and lines borrowed from numerous musicals, eg. “Les Miserables”, and some naughty bits and words interspersed with fantastic dance (I love tap dancing), you have a wonderful mélange of song, dance, comedy and even a bit of romance. In this musical, Donna Feore has excelled. Oh yes, there is a chap named Shylock to whom the Bottom Brothers are indebted but who is willing to avoid foreclosure as long as he gets a role in their musical.
Almost every person we chatted with about plays at Stratford agreed that “Something Rotten” was destined to be the hit of the Season. We gave this a 10+ out of 10.
2. “Twelfth Night”: This is always a bit of a delightful romp and it does not fail at Stratford this Season.  Seana Mckenna delivers a unique version of this romantic comedy of encounters and mistaken identities. The contrast between darkness and light –darkness, Olivia’s perpetual state of mourning. It is a fun play, well- performed and – may it be said – somewhat held together by the character Feste, the Jester. Indeed, at the opening of the second act Feste (Deborah Hay) appears with Bongo drums and, thereafter, as folks settle in after the interval, she engages the audience in a bit of drum-clap hands-interaction. This sets the tone for the much more entertaining second act.
An enjoyable production with some laughs and some poignancy. We Gave it 8.4 out of 10.
3. “Cymbeline”: This was the third occasion wherein we have seen "Cymbeline". And still, even after a third attempt to understand its often convoluted set of plots, I still find it confusing and often ponderous. Held at the new Patterson Theatre, the stage is often  overloaded with performers what with Brits and Romans. Veteran Stratford performer Lucy Peacock plays Cymbeline. Betrayal, banishment and – for me the best part – the beheading of Cloten! A great and very well choreographed battle scene which the Brits win (did Julius Caesar get that message?). But it runs for almost 3 hours and as the plot thickens and slithers, it can become burdensome We noticed that several people did not return after the interval. We gave it 7.1 out of 10.
A Note on the Patterson Theatre: We were in attendance last season on the day it was officially opened. It is a gorgeous venue and you can even order hot meals prior to evening performances. BUT,: as we require handicap parking, there is virtually nothing available unless you pay the $25 parking fee. We probably will endeavour to avoid future performances at the Patterson simply because of the difficulty finding parking.
4. “Hedda Gabler”: One of Ibsen’s darkest plays. Without any exception all 7 performers were at their best. Director Molly Atkinson suggests the secret to Hedda Gabler is her pursuit of her feminine identity in a society where women performed routine domestic service. Somehow that theme never cam e through very clearly. Hedda is bored in her brand new marriage to a husband intent on his research and becoming a Professor (God help us!). She is the object of a seduction but her second love is another aspiring author and maybe competitor to her husband. An excellent group of performers including Sara Topham as Hedda and Stratford veteran Tom McCamus as the “on-the-make’ judge.
Fortunately, Hedda’s real love ends up shooting himself with a gun Hedda provided. But where he shot himself –- in the presence of a red head – turns Hedda’s disposition into fury; she burns his book manuscript and then – what a plot! – her new husband and dead guy’s wife try to re-assemble from notes the dead guy’s manuscript. And Hedda, who by this time might best be described as a “Bitch” shoots herself. So all’s well that ended the play. We gave it two ratings: First, for Performance 8.5 out of 10; and as a Play: 7 out of 10.
A Note on La Cage Aux Folles: it is currently being performed. We have it booked for our Autumn few days at Stratford along with “Salesman in China” and “London Assurance” and probably “Sylvia and the Goat”. We may, also, endeavour to see “Something Rotten” again.
We met several people who had seen “La Cage” and all offered “you must see it” comments. We have seen it performed on two previous occasions but suspect that Stratford’s presentation will far exceed expectations.
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There are just six seats left!
Ticket sales must end by July 28.
Come Join Us
For A Fun-filled Day
at the
Stratford Festival
on
Thursday, September 19, 2024
to see
London Assurance
The daytrip includes:
* round-trip chartered bus from Windsor to Stratford
* tickets to see London Assurance
* buffet dinner in the Festival Theatre reception hall.
* special guests, educational presentations and a great time.
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Walking for Parkinson’s --
A Retirement Activity
By Stuart Selby
 Many of us think of university retirement as the opportunity to spend time doing things we always wanted to do such as reading more or delving more deeply into academic areas we pushed aside or playing golf and travelling to places we’d studied but never visited. One thing I had never contemplated was doing the Walk for Parkinson’s, the major fundraising activity of the Parkinson Society of Southwestern Ontario (PSSO). Of course, I also never imagined that my wife, Suzanne, would develop PD and that our retirement years together would become limited. Some of you knew Suzanne as a Faculty Field Instructor in the School of Social Work and some as a faculty wife, but for most of her career she was a child and family worker at the Regional Children’s Centre.
How could an hour-long walk become big enough to be termed an activity? Though the walk itself is at most about an hour long, it takes three months from my first contacting all my friends and family, through writing all my interim reminders and thanks, until my final report to everyone who sponsored me through their donations to PSSO. I even learned how to create an Excel spread sheet to keep me organized. At 91 years old, to keep fit enough to complete the Walk and to keep well enough to enjoy these retirement years, I walk daily along the river in decent weather and up and down the hallways when the weather is foul. This physical activity also allowed me to recently walk with my children and grandchildren through the streets of New York revisiting the Columbia University environs and soon to walk in their family orchards in the Yakima Valley of Washington State.
This is my 13th year of walking for Parkinson’s and, though Suzanne died almost four years ago, I am grateful to be able to continue walking in her memory. When I began the Walk, Suzanne’s Parkinson’s symptoms were manageable with medication, and we walked together. As the years passed, she was able to do less and less until she could only wait for me at the finish line. Now, as I walk in her memory, my friends’ sponsorship and words of support encourage me and make my retirement years meaningful in a different way.
I am grateful to university friends who have been supporting my Walk over the years, some of whom I’ve lost to death. If you would like to know more about the Walk or to sponsor me, please email me on my UWin address: selby2@uwindsor.ca.
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WURA Extends Its Appreciation To Heather Pratt
By Jake Soderlund
 At the President’s Tea on June 19th , I had the honour of presenting the “Friend of WURA” Award to Heather Pratt, Executive Director of the Office of Research and Innovation Services at the University of Windsor and long-time supporter of retiree research activities.
At the time, when Covid-19 struck in March 2020, while doing her main job - which, by the way, saw research funding nearly double over her tenure at Windsor, and this year we ranked in the top 25 percent of universities globally in terms of research impact - Heather took the time to sort out what, for WURA, was a very important problem. Specifically, WURA had a $10,000 yearly University travel grant for retirees to present their research at academic conferences. The question was, in the new circumstances where travel anywhere was no longer possible, what was going to happen to this grant? Within a day, Heather came up with a solution that saw the expansion of the terms of the Retirees’ Travel Grant to include attendance at online conferences. In addition, she modified the terms of the grant to include other charges related to “dissemination of research” as eligible for possible funding — problem solved. Later that year, when a WURA “Research Support Group” was approved by the Executive Committee, its creation was enthusiastically supported by Research and Innovation Services.
In summary, while in no way can WURA be considered a main engine of research and innovation at the University, neither are we neglected. When, what are in the scheme of things, undoubtedly small problems, Heather responds positively. And for this, we are thankful, and, therefore, award Heather Pratt the designation as “A Friend of WURA”.
Thank you Heather, for all your help over the years – much appreciated!
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Pension Planning by Dall-E, July 2024
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Update
University Pension Plan (Ontario) – Should we join it?
By Ihor Stebelsky
The UPP Joint Ad-hoc Sub-committee was created jointly by the University of Windsor Administration and the Windsor University Faculty Association (WUFA) to study the advisability of joining the University Pension Plan (Ontario) (UPP). Its membership was evenly divided between the administration (4) and the faculty association (4), and one WURA member, later amended to add a second WURA representative, Dr. Gordon Drake. Here is a summary of its work and findings up to its final meeting on Tuesday, June 18, 2024.
At the inaugural meeting (July 21, 2023), we reviewed the potential opportunities offered by the UPP in comparison to our present plan.
We noted two main differences between the University of Windsor ‘Retirement Plan for Faculty and Certain Employees’ (Restated Faculty Text 2003 (uwindsor.ca)) and the UPP (Plan Basics - My UPP).
- Ours is administered by the University of Windsor, which also serves as a fiduciary..
The UPP is based in Toronto; it is a Jointly Sponsored Pension Plan, which means that its viability rests with both the sponsoring Universities and their employees.
- Ours is a hybrid plan consisting of two components: the Money Purchase Pension and the Supplemental (if necessary) to reach the Minimum Guaranteed Benefit – at least a Defined Benefit Pension. It also allows for Additional Voluntary Contributions.
The UPP is strictly a Defined Benefit Pension Plan; Additional Voluntary Contributions are not allowed.
The Sub-committee’s goal and guiding principles for the project were established: to analyze our pension plan versus the opportunity (UPP) and assess what the stakeholders might lose or gain in the move.
At the second meeting (September 12, 2023), we discussed and allocated tasks: our subcommittee terms of reference (Heisz/Lanoszka), governance analysis of UPP vs U of Windsor (Yeung), and actuarial support for the committee’s cost/benefit analysis and assessment (Heisz/Grondin).
At the third meeting (Friday, October 6, 2023), we reviewed and compared the UPP Service and Operations to those at Windsor, with presentations from Mr. Yeung (on UPP) and Ms. Paglione (on Windsor).
The UPP member service model indicated 2 primary channels and 6 limited secondary channels, with in-person appointment as last resort. At the University of Windsor, in-person appointments were routine until COVID forced participants to remote (Teams) meetings.
Regarding the UPP governance, Mr. Yeung circulated his questions to UPP for us to supplement or amend.
Visit of the UPP team to Windsor (Friday, October 27, 2023).
The UPP team, including the UPP President and CEO Barbara Zvan, presented the competencies and advantages of the UPP. It was a glowing sales pitch. We asked some questions of concern which were addressed in general terms, but details required follow-up inquiry.
Our fourth meeting (Tuesday, December 5, 2023) focused on the follow-up from the UPP visit (October 27). We were disappointed that our follow-up queries were answered with marketing information instead of documents. Mr. Yeung managed to ferret out documents, summarized the UPP Plan Design and Provisions in comparison to ours and outlined the UPP Investment Capabilities and Environmental, Social and Governance Initiatives.
At our fifth/final meeting (Tuesday, June 18, 2024), Thomas Grondin guided us through his 2 summary tables estimating transition costs and valuation from the Windsor Pension Plan to the University Pension Plan. The first table used numbers based on the Mercer assumptions (Brad Duce, Actuary, Mercer [was available online]). The second table was based on Grondin’s assumptions.
Whichever assumptions one makes, it would require employee increase in contributions to move to a richer plan. Since there would be some increases and some decreases in benefits, this would not be a pure loss.
Further discussion emphasized two points. First, there was general agreement among the WUFA and WURA representatives that the loss of the hybrid structure with its money-purchase component (an additional benefit to the retiree, if and when it rises above the guaranteed minimum) would be a serious concern. Second, that a move to the UPP would mean a loss of local control of the plan.
The next step will be the production of a final ‘discussion paper’ for deliberation at a ‘town hall’ meeting, to be scheduled in Fall, 2024.
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It’s Not A Sprint -- It’s A Marathon
By Stuart Selby
 Running the 100 meters in less than 10 seconds is a remarkable achievement, and we salute Andre DeGrasse for doing that in the name of Canada. But it’s all over in, well, less than a minute -- actually 9.58 seconds! Even running the marathon, the foundational event of the modern Olympic Games, is only a matter of hours. It may mean exhaustedly crawling over the finish line, but just doing it brings honour. Running the Windsor University Retirees Association for over twenty years doesn’t earn any of its committee members even a Crackerjack box free prize, but lots of us have served in many ways over the years. What we need to keep WURA representing and serving retirees is your commitment and at least your modest dues dollars. This your current reminder!
If you have participated in our events, you know that these WURA events give us the opportunity to get together in-person or online with old friends and colleagues to share memories of good years and companionship. But even if you have not, WURA committee members are there to represent you in safeguarding our benefits and relationships with the University administration and the Faculty Association. You can find the details of these activities in the pages of these e-Bullletins.
Please send your cheque for 2024-25 dues made out to WURA for $25.00 to our Treasurer:
Norman King
#103, 1935 Normandy St.
LaSalle, ON
N9H 1P9.
You may also make a direct deposit if you prefer through email to: nking@uwindsor.ca.
If you wish to save yourself some time and avoid being late next year, you may also pay for more than one year (for 2024 + 2025 if you missed a year). If you have forgotten your present dues status, please send an email message to nking@uwindsor.ca, or write to him at the above address.
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