The Rotary Club of Barrie welcomed its newest member at a recent meeting; Abi Giwa was officially inducted into the Club, bringing with her a background in Conflict Resolution and Government, a classification that speaks to the kind of thoughtful, community-minded perspective that Rotary thrives on.

Membership in a Club like this one is both an opportunity and a commitment, and Abi came in understanding both. Welcome, Abi. We are glad you are here!

Some Classification Talks are informative. Arkady Spivak’s was a full performance. Introduced by Arlette Utton, who described him as intelligent, funny, and daring, Arkady arrived at the podium with a story that spans continents, cultures, and at least one very lucrative wallet business.

Born in 1975 to Russian Jewish parents in the Soviet Union, Arkady lost his father to cancer when he was five. In typical Arkady fashion, he responded by scheduling an appointment with a neighbouring family and proposing that their father become his stepfather. The man was already married. Arkady was undeterred. He spent much of his childhood backstage at his mother’s theatre, started his own theatre company at twelve, and toured orphanages. When Gorbachev allowed travel in the late 1980s, the family visited Canada, and his mother filed emigration papers the moment they returned. There was a brief stop in Italy, where Arkady cleaned squid, offered translation services, and sold handmade magic wallets, a venture that became considerably more profitable when he added naked lady stickers. He regrets not seeing it through to this day.

The family eventually settled in North York, where Arkady attended Glendon College to study French, got distracted by a theatre course, and ended up needing a job at the end of the school year. The only opportunity was at Gryphon Theatre in Barrie. He found a screwdriver to get the ignition working on his old Mazda, drove to Barrie, and never left. Twenty-five years later, he is the Artistic Director of Talk is Free Theatre, a Globe and Mail Arts Hero, and the recipient of Barrie’s inaugural Arts Award. PP Brian Galbraith won the arm-wrestling competition to thank Arkady for his talk.

Every year, the District Governor makes the rounds to visit Rotary clubs across the district, and when Drew Markham came to the Rotary Club of Barrie, he brought a message worth hearing. Introduced by Jim Williams, who traced Drew’s Rotary journey from joining the Huntsville club in 2014 to helping start a satellite club, to becoming a charter member of another club while living abroad, Drew arrived at the podium with the kind of Rotary resume that speaks for itself.

Drew shared this year’s Rotary International theme, “Create Lasting Impact,” and challenged the Club to approach new ideas with curiosity rather than judgment. He touched on district finances, membership trends, and the growing focus on forming new types of clubs, including satellite, companion, and cause-based models, reflecting how Rotary is evolving to meet people where they are. Beyond the numbers, Drew has stayed active in dentistry through the Health Outreach program, treating Haitian refugees in the Dominican Republic, a reminder that service is always personal.

He closed with a simple but resonant reminder: there is a place in Rotary for everyone, especially those with a little extra time and energy to give. Arlette Utton thanked Drew on behalf of the Club.

Rotary’s commitment to ending polio is one of the longest-running and most impactful initiatives in the organization’s history. Since 1985, Rotary International has been working toward a polio-free world, and the progress has been remarkable. At a recent meeting, PP David Tisch reminded the Club just how close that goal has come, with only 22 new cases of polio known globally at this time. That kind of progress doesn’t happen without dedicated people putting their money where their values are.

The Polio Plus Society recognizes Rotarians who have made sustained contributions to the cause. Members donate to the Rotary Annual Fund or Polio Plus, and those gifts go directly toward funding the global eradication effort. Our own Club has 39 members who have donated over $8,000 combined, a number that reflects a genuine collective commitment. At this meeting, the Club was proud to add one more name to that list.

President Jeff McCuaig was inducted into the Polio Plus Society, recognized for his ongoing commitment to one of Rotary’s most important promises. Kate Venn presented the honour, and the plaque says it all. Congratulations, President Jeff.

Not every presentation leaves a room sitting with its own assumptions. This one did. Sue Cook introduced Debbie Opoku and Lisa Harripersad from Georgian College, two experts in unconscious and hidden bias, for what turned out to be the final segment of a year-long exploration of the theme “rethinking.” The timing felt right.

Debbie leads the Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging Centre at Georgian College and is nearing completion of her PhD in counselling psychology. Lisa manages well-being and care, with a focus on student mental health and holistic care. Together, they walked the Club through how bias works, not as a character flaw, but as a function of how the brain processes the world. Mental shortcuts shaped by family, media, culture, and experience develop without our awareness, and without examination, they can shape how we perceive leadership, ability, and behaviour in ways that lead to discrimination.

Debbie shared a personal example of crossing the street after seeing a hooded man, only to realize later that her reaction was rooted in unconscious bias. The point was not to generate guilt but to generate awareness. The key message was that bias is automatic but manageable through compassion, accountability, learning, and open dialogue. Participants were encouraged to pause, question assumptions, seek evidence, and remain open to complexity. David Bell and President Jeff thanked both speakers for a presentation that was as thought-provoking as it was necessary.

For more than 25 years, Christian Kamara has worked to empower young people and strengthen communities across Sierra Leone. As Chief Executive Officer of the YMCA of Sierra Leone and a longtime member of the Rotary Club of Freetown, Christian has been with his organization through civil war, Ebola, and COVID-19, and kept building through all of it. He visited the Rotary Club of Barrie recently as a guest speaker, and the Club was better for it.

The centrepiece of Christian’s visit was an update on a vocational training centre currently under construction approximately four hours from Freetown. The centre will provide young people with practical training in solar energy, electrical installation, construction, and entrepreneurship, and is expected to serve 50 to 60 students at a time. Young people from the surrounding community have already participated directly in the construction itself, carrying water, assisting with labour, and helping bring the project to life. The goal is to complete construction and equipment installation by December so classes can begin in the new year.

The YMCA of Simcoe/Muskoka has partnered with the YMCA of Sierra Leone for more than 20 years, contributing approximately $100,000 annually to support operations, school expansion, and emergency relief work. Christian described himself simply as a “Rotarian for life,” and around his organization, difficult questions are sometimes answered with a simple phrase: “What would Christian do?”. President Jeff presented Christian with a Rotary Club of Barrie banner. Jim Williams introduced the presentation.

Jill Tettmann has led the YMCA of Simcoe/Muskoka as President and CEO since 2020, guiding the organization through pandemic recovery and into one of the most ambitious chapters in its history. She visited the Rotary Club of Barrie recently to share what that chapter looks like, and it is significant.

The centrepiece of Jill’s presentation was a new $70 million community hub coming to Barrie, a 77,000 square foot facility designed to serve more than 10,000 people each year. The hub will bring together health, wellness, and recreation spaces; youth transitional housing; inclusive community gathering spaces; and future child care services. Key partners include Royal Victoria Regional Health Centre, the Regional Cancer Centre, and the County of Simcoe. To date, $48.3 million has been raised, and the facility is on track to open in the summer of 2027.

The YMCA of Simcoe/Muskoka currently serves one in five people throughout Simcoe County, the District of Parry Sound, and Muskoka, with 1,358 staff, 331 volunteers, and programs ranging from child care and employment services to immigration support and outdoor education. Twenty percent of participants receive financial assistance. Kate Venn thanked Jill on behalf of the Club, and President Jeff announced a donation to the Kids Pantry program run by the Pavlik Foundation in recognition of Jill’s visit.

The Royal Canadian Legion has been a cornerstone of Canadian community life since 1926, and the Barrie branch has been part of that story for 97 of those years. At a recent Rotary Club of Barrie meeting, Dave Mills introduced keynote speaker Fern Taillefer, who took the Club through the Legion’s rich history and the vital work it continues to do for veterans and their families today.

The Barrie branch was founded by prominent local leaders, including Dr. W.C. “Bill” Little, and built on profound personal sacrifice. In fact, 13 local families took out second mortgages on their personal homes to secure the land the Legion stands on today. At its core, the Legion exists to serve and advocate for veterans through mental health assistance, benefit claims, housing, and regular visitation. Last year alone, the Barrie branch assisted 89 veterans in distress. 

Fern shared one story that captured the Legion’s immediate impact: a local veteran living out of his car who, within days of reaching out, had his vehicle payments covered, secured an apartment, and found a job. His mother visited the branch two weeks later in tears to thank them for saving her son’s life.

Remembrance Day remains the Legion’s largest annual fundraiser, with 100% of proceeds going directly to veteran support. Annual membership is $75 and open to anyone who wishes to support the cause. The Legion’s partnership with the Rotary Club of Barrie has flourished over the past six years, and events like this presentation are a reminder of why that relationship matters.

Kempenfest is one of those events that needs no introduction in Barrie. Every summer, the waterfront comes alive with artisans, food, live music, and the kind of community energy that reminds you why this city is worth showing up for. This year was no different. The Rotary Club of Barrie was back at the Beer Garden, and the weekend was amazing.

This year’s festival featured approximately 300 artisans and was expected to generate between $9 and $11 million in local economic activity. A new free shuttle service was introduced to ease parking along the waterfront, running from Park Place through the downtown and festival areas. Drink tickets remained at $10, and debit machines were available for the first time to reduce the amount of cash being handled.

None of it runs without people. Paul Markle led the charge on operations, and the volunteers who showed up, worked their shifts, and kept the Beer Garden running smoothly deserve every bit of the applause they received back at the Club. Thank you to everyone who made Kempenfest 2026 another one to remember. See you on the bay next year.

Some Classification Talks stay with you longer than others. Camelia Marica’s was one of those. Born in Transylvania, Romania, Camelia grew up under communism, where food was rationed, opportunities were limited, and dreaming of a different future meant watching the television series Dallas and imagining what life could look like elsewhere. She earned her first pair of jeans at 17 and a degree in Textile Engineering not long after, before making one of the most courageous decisions of her life: immigrating to Canada in 2001 with $600, limited English, and a determination to start over.

Starting over meant working in construction, cleaning homes, and serving at banquet halls while studying English every day. It meant rebuilding a career from scratch, eventually finding her way to Combined Insurance, where she overcame language barriers, earned her insurance licence, and steadily advanced over more than two decades. Along the way, she also navigated deeply personal losses: the loss of both parents, years of infertility, and the end of her marriage. Rather than allowing any of it to define her, she embraced each new chapter with the same optimism and persistence that carried her across an ocean.

Camelia found her way to the Rotary Club of Barrie after her divorce, looking for a way to give back. She spoke with genuine warmth about the members who welcomed her, particularly Bruce Shipley, who introduced her to the Club, and Noreen, whose friendship made her feel at home from the start. Her presentation was both moving and uplifting, and a reminder that resilience and service are choices made daily. Welcome to the story, Camelia.