LAUNCHING THE PROBUS CLUB OF VANCOUVER WEST
The journey leading to the launching of the Probus Club of Vancouver West starts in the spring of 2013 when the Probus Club of Vancouver was approached by two women with business and professional backgrounds who offered to start a combined (women and men) Probus Club in Vancouver. The timing for the development of a combined club was highly appropriate as both the existing women’s and men’s clubs in Vancouver were at or near membership capacity and the majority of new clubs being developed in Canada were combined. We were very receptive to this initiative.
As a member of the Probus Canada Board and Regional Director of the Lower Mainland and Fraser Valley Probus Clubs I met with them to map out a route to the development of a combined club. A small Advisory Committee with executive members from both of the existing Vancouver Clubs was established to oversee the project and to become the sponsors of the new club. After a few meetings with the new club development aspirants and the Committee it became clear that the two ladies envisioned an exclusive singles club of men and women while the Probus clubs in Canada were inclusive with both singles and couples as members. As a result the partnership was dissolved. It was decided that there was a real need for a combined club in Vancouver so we reorganized our approach.
During the summer months we advertised and promoted through the two Vancouver Clubs the development of a combined club and requested that the any Probus members or their friends forward their interest in joining this new venture. The response was overwhelming. From those who were interested in participating in the development of the new club we selected a small group of potential members who would act as a basic club management group to implement the essential elements of a development and management program for the new venture. Our role was to recruit prospective members, establish our financial controls, set membership fees, arrange for a place to have monthly meetings, establish a guest speaker list and develop an outline of future club activities. By December our list of prospective members was close to 80, the name of the club was selected as the Probus Club of Vancouver West, our meeting place at the Marine Drive Golf Club was contracted, our guest speaker program for the first quarter of 2014 was in place, and our date of monthly meetings was decided as the second Thursday of each month. The majority of the members of this accomplished group went on to become members of the first management team of the new club. An information meeting for prospective members was held in early January at which time many members were enrolled.
The Charter Meeting which took place at the Marine Drive Golf Club on February 25, 2014 represents the successful launching of the Probus Club of Vancouver West.