Member Bulletin January 22, 2024 (Jan. 22, 2024)

IN THIS BULLETIN...

At last Friday's meeting, January 19th, Janette Hogan did her Up Close and Personal talk.

The meeting began with announcements. Past President Andrew Johnson gave an update about the club's latest awards from the International Foundation, Marty Fairbairn announced that he will be stepping down as the Chair of Lobster Fest and Randy Wilson will also be stepping down as the back-house organizer for the event. We thank both Marty and Randy for their years of work in these positions! If you are interested in either position, please contact either Marty of Randy. Lastly, President Mohan gave an update about the Board of Directors election. Currently, over 50% of the club has voted. For those who haven't voted, the election will end on Friday the 26th at 5:00 PM.

Peter McSherry introduced Janette Hogan. Peter explained how he met Janette on the campaign trail in 2022. Janette was one of Peter's best volunteers when he ran as the Conservative candidate in the most recent provincial elections. Peter says that he may not have won the election, but he was grateful that it led to Janette joining our club.

Janette grew up on a farm in Huron County and is one of the eight children that came to Guelph after high school to pursue her post-secondary education. Janette has three children and has spent most of her career at the University of Guelph in the Registrar's Office. And for someone who didn't particularly care for higher education, she has two Master's degrees in theology and counseling. Most importantly, she's a very keen gardener. In Rotary, she has contributed greatly to the membership committee and Sparkles in the Park.

Janette thanked Peter for his introduction. She then began her presentation with a slide about her children. Janette explained that her two oldest children, Colleen and David, live and work in Toronto. Her youngest, Hannah, is married and lives here in Guelph. Colleen has worked in the Ministry of education and began with Liz Sandals, but now works in the bureaucratic side. David works in procurement, and Hannah works at Conestoga College.

Janette then discussed her parents and early childhood. Her father was a farmer and her mother was one of the first two women to be an air traffic controller. She worked in Toronto. Her parents had seven children. Her youngest brother was only five months old when their father passed away from encephalitis. So her mother was widowed with a small family on a farm. Her mother continued to run the farm and made business decisions around cropping and harvesting but had other farmers do the physical work. Her mother eventually remarried a man named John. He was an exceptionally good man and a very kind father to Janette and her siblings. For instance, he wouldn't officially adopt them because at the time they would have to take his last name. He felt it was very important that they grew up as Hogan and knew they were Hogan. Janette discussed how much she enjoyed this time in her life. She had the freedom of living on a farm and the joy of a big family.

When Janette was nearing the end of high school, she wasn't sure what to do next. She decided to take nursing because it would lead to a secure future. Janette quickly realized that nursing wasn't a good fir when she got squeamish around needles and blood. Janette eventually left the program and never regretted the decision. Janette would work in a bar for a short while until she was hired for a job in the Registrar's Office. While working in the Registrar's Office Janette finished her undergraduate degree and her two master's degrees. Janette explained how much she enjoyed working at the Registrar's Office because it was a place where people and policy meet.

Janette explained how she loves to travel and how she visited the places where her parents were from. Her dad's family emigrated during the potato famine, and Janette has visited a lot of the areas where he grew up in Ireland at the cemeteries, cathedrals, and other locations. Her mother's family came from Alsace-Lorraine which she always said they left. They emigrated for political reasons, and only in adulthood did Janette come to understand that Alsace-Lorraine was the land that Germany and France frequently fought over. So they emigrated primarily because of political tension. Janette has traveled a lot in Germany. Again, those same motivations often with her daughters.

In 2020, Janette sold her condo and moved into the house she now lives in. Covid hit shortly after and Janette sustained a concussion. Her doctor advised her not to return to work so she decided to retire. During covid, Janette walked and gardened a lot.

Janette concluded her presentation by expressing how grateful she is to be a member of Rotary and how happy she is to work with people from such a diversity of backgrounds.

Tom Funk and President Mohan thanked Janette for her service to the club and her presentation.

The meeting was then adjourned.

Notes taken by OtterAI and edited by Aidan Harris.