Since 2017, when we first became active, more than 200 individuals (retirees, members, including guests and spouses) have participated.
We are always open to suggestions for tours and other events for 2023 and beyond. Send us a quick email at: kpura@kpu.ca
Fall Free Virtual Events through AROHE
- Trip Preview Webinar, September 11, highlighting our new Travel Institute trips for retired faculty and staff in partnership with Road Scholar
- Virtual Summit, September 18, focusing on the importance of social relationships for a happy and successful retirement
- Cyber Fraud and Personal Security Insights, October 24, focusing on cyber threats and how you can protect yourself, presented by Fidelity Investments.
AROHE Travel Institute Trip Preview Webinar
Wednesday, September 11 - 10-11 am PDT
Learn more about the AROHE Travel Institute’s worldwide learning adventures for retired or current college/university faculty/staff and their friends and family during this trip preview webinar. We will be offering five learning adventures in 2025 in the US and abroad in Canada, Spain, and Portugal. During the webinar, we will review itineraries for these trips and provide enrollment information.
This new collaboration between AROHE and Road Scholar will connect you with former colleagues in academia and introduce you to new acquaintances as you learn and travel together on inspiring trips led by Road Scholar, the leader in educational travel for adults. Details: https://www.roadscholar.org/arohe/exclusive-programs/
Wed., September 18 - 10-11:30 am PDT
AROHE's 2024 Virtual Summit will explore the importance of social relationships in retirement with an engaging presentation followed by a panel discussion. In May 2023, the U.S. Surgeon General issued an advisory titled "Our Epidemic of Loneliness and Isolation," shedding light on "the public health crisis of loneliness, isolation, and lack of connection in our country." Even predating the COVID-19 pandemic, around half of U.S. adults reported experiencing measurable levels of loneliness. Disconnection profoundly impacts mental, physical, and societal well-being. This presentation will help retirees and the organizations that serve them to better understand and facilitate better social connections.
Our keynote speaker is Dr. Julianne Holt-Lunstad, professor of psychology and neuroscience and director of the Social Connection & Health Lab at Brigham Young University. Her presentation will be followed by a panel discussion with Dr. Kaye Jeter, Central State University; Valerie Ventre-Hutton, UC Berkeley; and Dr. Louise Nasmith, University of British Columbia, who will share their personal experiences related to this topic.
Learn More and Register for the Summit
Cyber Fraud and Personal Security Insights
Thursday, October 24 - 10-11 am PDT Cyber threats are everywhere, which is why it’s important to understand what it takes to keep yourself cybersafe. We are proud to team up with Fidelity Investments to offer this exclusive virtual workshop to share important information about common financial scams and ways you can monitor, protect, and safeguard your data.
Presenter: Gary Rossi leads Fidelity Investments Personal Security Insights Program, educating clients about cyber and personal security threats. Mr. Rossi previously worked as a special agent for the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), specializing in white-collar crime investigations, including financial frauds, cybercrimes, and public corruption matters.
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Register for any of our events – either in person or by Zoom – by sending an email to KPURA@kpu.ca
Past Events
2024 to date
Picnic at Crescent Park - September 5, 2024 - we gathered for our annual picnic at the north end of the meadow after 11:30 am. Everyone brought a picnic lunch, a folding chair, and a sense of camaraderie. KPURA supplied cookies for dessert. It was a great opportunity for chatting, reminiscing, and catching up with old friends and colleagues.
False Creek Cruise & Lunch – July 18, 2024 - Aquabus cruise from Granville Island around False Creek with expert commentary. Followed by a group lunch.
Community Day - May 25, 2024, KPU Tech campus - A chance to reach out to other groups and the KPU community.
KPU Day - April 26, 2024, Langley campus - A Session with KPURA on Positive and Active Aging was offered to all interested KPU employees and conducted by members of the KPURA Board of Directors. You can view the slides here: https://www.kpu.ca/sites/default/files/retirees/KPU_RetireesAssoc_Intro_240426.pdf
2024 Annual General Meeting - 10 am to noon April 17th - KPU Langley campus with Keynote Speaker: Leslie Gaudette, President of the Council of Senior Citizen’s Organizations of BC (COSCO https://coscobc.org/) There was time for Q&A after this dynamic presentation. A Social Lunch was provided – thank you! – by KPU Office of External Affairs.
Fraser Valley Heritage Rail Society - April 12 - A terrific tour of the Cloverdale location including rides on numerous pieces of equipment. The morning was well spent! Then we all went out for lunch together and updated each other on what has been happening.
AROHE (Association of Retirement Organizations in Higher Education) held a webinar series: "EXPLORING YOUR LIFE PLAN”, a three-part virtual learning series hosted by AROHE and Fidelity Investments. The sessions are currently archived at: https://www.arohe.org/Reimagining-Retirement where all of the recordings are available to you.
2023 - 8 events
Annual Festive Lunch - December 7th - We gathered for our 7th annual Festive Lunch at the Fort Langley Pub. Good food and conversation and some sensational book prizes from members and authors John Marasigan and Margaret Franz.
Country Vines Winery Tasting Session - October 19, 2 - 4 pm, Richmond It was a wonderful social time with some wine education and then a charcuterie snack in the picnic area. Lovely weather and company
Picnic at Crescent Park, Surrey - September 7, 11:30 am - 2:pm. We had a Picnic!! Crescent Park is a large 52 hectare (128 acre) destination park in South Surrey. The Park offers walking trails through mature second growth forests, with ponds, streams and lots of secret meadows to discover.
Between Blade & Bullet: The Mary Steinhauser Story - July 27, 6-8 pm at the Vancouver Police Museum. Margaret Franz (KPURA Founding Member) wrote a book about her late sister Mary, she presented the amazing life and tragic death of her very brave and beautiful sister.
Armchair Travel to South Africa - June 28. 2023. A virtual trip to South Africa, presented by Joan Barnet on her September 2019 travels to South Africa.
Chinatown Walk and History Talk – June 8, 2023. With our tour guide Maurice Guibord, the group walked through the old and new with a lens on the history of racism in Chinatown – how the colonial government ensured that they got cheap labour when they wanted it, how the white settler population kept that labour where they and those in power wanted them, and how these people could get rid of that labour when they were done with it. Then a discussion of what now?
Isobel MacKenzie, BC's Senior's Advocate - April 17, over 20 years’ experience working with seniors in home care, licensed care, community services and volunteer services. Isobel led B.C.’s largest not-for-profit agency, serving over 6,000 seniors annually. In this work, Isobel led the implementation of a new model of dementia care that has become a national best practice, and led the first safety accreditation for homecare workers, among many other accomplishments. Isobel has been widely recognized for her work and was named B.C. CEO of the Year for the not-for-profit sector and nominated as a Provincial Health Care Hero. Her talk for the KPURA AGM was dynamic and give a lot of good information You can access her PowerPoint Presentation here:
https://www.kpu.ca/sites/default/files/retirees/Isobel_MacKenzie_KPU_Re…
Gwynne Dyer - January 18, KPU Surrey Campus - Historian and journalist Gwynne Dyer came to Kwantlen Polytechnic University with two global topics on his mind. Both have put the planet in grave danger: climate change and the war in Ukraine. The author of seven books spoke eloquently at KPU’s Surrey campus Jan. 18 as part of the President’s Dialogue Series. The recording of the President’s Dialogue with Gwynne Dyer on January 18, 2023 is now available to be viewed on KPU’s Website: https://www.kpu.ca/president/dialogue-series
2022 - 8 events
Seasonal Social Number 1 - Thursday 8 December 2022, 12 noon -2:30 pm at the Fort Pub – 9273 Glover Road, Fort Langley - www.fortpub.com. A very social time was had by all of the folks that came.
Seasonal Social Number 2 - December 15 There was a Zoom room to chat and exchange greetings and festive cheer from 3 pm to 4:30 pm.
Should They Stay or Should They Go? - November 3 - The Great Debate over the RCMP versus a Municipal Force in Surrey explained and elaborated on by Dr. Wade Deisman.
Eternal Witness - September 29 - Jim Adam took us on a gallery 'walk' through his paintings.
North Van Shipyards Tour - September 8 - A ‘theatrical walking tour of the North Van Shipyards’. It was a saunter around the area with a little bit of walking.
Barnside Brewery Tour – May 17 - In person lunch and brewery tour in Delta with a visit to the hop yard.
KPURA AGM - Age Friendly University presentation - April 15 - Special event as part of our AGM 2022 and has led to the KPU planning to apply for Age Friendly University status.
Armchair Italy - February 24 - This saw us virtually travelling to Italy with Monika Tusnady.
2021 - 10 events
Seasonal Greetings by Zoom - December 8 - Online and very cheery way to begin the holiday season.
Festive Lunch - December 5 - Barnside Brewing in Delta was the location for an "under the tent" meet up and very festive lunch.
Francophone Walk in Vancouver - October 7 - A group of us took a brisk walk through some of Vancouver's Francophone history with colour commentary by Maurice Guibord.
Picnic in Crescent Park - September 2 - Meet up in person for the first time in over a year!
Summer Social! Coffee, Tea, and Refreshments - Together while Apart - July 20 - Zoom meet up and socializing
The Deep Web with Dr. Wade Deisman - June 24 - We explored the the origins and significance of the Dark Web including re-tracing some of the formative stages in the growth of the Internet and how cyberspace was thought about at each of these stages. Finally, we looked at some of the means and mechanisms that are being explored to address this darkness.
From History to Fiction by Simon Johnston - May 20 - Novelist, playwright and theatre director Simon Johnston described his research in India, Hong Kong, China and London that resulted in his novel, The House of Wives.PS
KPURA AGM - Impact of the Future of Post-Secondary Education on KPU - By Dr. Sandy Vanderburgh, KPU Provost and Vice President Academic at the 15th April AGM
The Economic Necessity: Education - By Anita Huberman, Surrey Board of Trade at the 15th April 2021 AGM
Armchair Travel to Menton, France - March 25 - Monika Tusnady led our group on a fabulous walking tour (virtual) through the city of Menton France in March. Where old architecture, festivals, and the ever changing seas enchanted us all.
Arches of Chinatown - February 11 - Frank Abbott took us on a fascinating journey through Vancouver Chinatown and the history of its arches. His background in Canadian and Chinese history helped us all examine the question of belonging and identity for Vancouver’s Chinese Canadians in the period 1896-1936, a time known for its anti-Asian racism.
2020 - 4 events
4th Annual Seasonal Festive Lunch - Virtually on Zoom Sunday December 6th at 11:30am, online, armed with our favourite libation. We learned how to sabre a bottle of champagne and shared our drinks and their making / backgrounds. We also shared how we planned to spend the Festive Season – either because of COVID 19 or in spite of it.
A Virtual Stroll around Cedar Cove - September 24, 2020 - The area of Cedar Cove was characterized by very large cedar trees and was long known and used by the Tsleil-Waututh. Non-native settlement began with the extraction of the trees that gave the area its name. Soon, a post office, a brewery and two huge sawmills occupied the cove. Japanese, Chinese, Sikh and other settlers called the area home. On this tour, we explored this diverse neighbourhood and found remnants of the earlier community. John Atkin, a local historian and author, and seasoned walking tour guide presented this virtual tour.
Virtual Tour of the Magdalen Islands - August 20, 2020 - Our gracious hosts, Roger Elmes and Marie-Claire Rucquoy, took KPURA retirees on a virtual tour of the Magdalen Islands. We watched a series of slides, while listening to a description of the many changes that have occurred over the last five decades: receding coastlines (wind and water erosion, and now ocean rise), increases in tourism (more camp sites and other accommodations, many artisans), and the decrease in the mostly francophone population. When coupled with the Knowledge Network ‘Island Diaries’ episode Located at the following link. https://www.knowledge.ca/program/island-diaries/s2/e11/magdalen-islands, this was a most informative presentation. Slides for the session are now available at: https://www.kpu.ca/sites/default/files/retirees/Magdalen_Islands_RA_tou…
KPURA AGM - April 16, 2020 - Due to Covid 19 this was our first virtual AGM with Alan Davis presenting KPU Vision 2023, and Dennis Anderson presenting on the current state of the Municipal and College Pension Plans.
Country Vines Winery Visit - Saturday February 29, 2020. Our last visit was so successful that we decided to do it again and catch up on the latest vintages. It was even more fun than the first time! We met in the wine store. There Eric Urquhart introduces us to their many handcrafted wines and answered all questions about their wines. We enjoyed tasting a selected group while nibbling on cheese and crackers.
2019 - 7 events
3rd Annual Seasonal Festive Lunch - Morgan Creek Golf Course Sunday, December 1, 2019. Once again, we enjoyed a convivial and collegial lunch. Each year we have had a wonderful time re-connecting with colleagues and meeting spouses. The conversation is lively as we catch up on the latest travels and happenings.
Fort Langley National Historic Site Visit, October 24 - The Fort offered many attraction including the White Glove tour in which we got behind the scenes to become curators by examining and identifying mystery historic objects.
A Day at Krause Berry Farm, July 3 - A great outing to enjoy the delights of a Working Destination Farm. There was several types of berries for picking, the option of lunch in the onsite restaurant, a great bakery, and a children’s area.
Vancouver Downtown Walking Tour, June 27 - John Belshaw took us further west into the downtown core to delve into more Vancouver history and was enlivened with John’s insights into historic life in Vancouver.
KPURA AGM, May 13 - This was our first official AGM since incorporating as a Society and was held in the Surrey Conference Centre in the Cedar building for this event. We had speakers on the topics of Pensions in BC
UBC Botanical Garden, April 11 - Located at the University of British Columbia, was established in 1916 under the directorship of John Davidson, British Columbia's first provincial botanist. It is the oldest botanical garden at a university in Canada. The original mission of the garden was research into the native flora of British Columbia. Over the past 100 years, the mission of UBC Botanical Garden has broadened to include research, conservation, teaching and public display of temperate plants from around the world.
Country Vines Winery, Feb 16 - We spent an afternoon of wine tasting and discussion at Country Vines Winery, 13060 Steveston Highway, Richmond, BC on Saturday Feb 16 meeting in the wine store. There Eric Urquhart introduced us to their many handcrafted wines. He really can answer ‘any’ question about wine! This is his passion and he has the technical background to ensure accuracy. This winery is owned and run by a many generation Richmond farm family who have branched out into grapes and wine and located within Richmond Country Farms (south side of Steveston Hwy), just east of the Market building in the old family home.
2018 - 7 events
Six events and our first General Meeting were held during 2018 that were all well attended. There were five tours: Spent Grounds Coffee Roaster - January 20, Wilson Building , Vancouver Noir Walk, Gulf of Georgia Cannery, and Surrey Heritage Rail Tour. KPURA also hosted the second Festive Season Lunch at Seasons in the Park, Vancouver. Attendance at all of these events ranged from 10 to 28, of which 6 to 18 were KPU retirees. Our First GM held at the Richmond Campus in April, 2018 recorded 33 attendees.
2017 - 4 events
Four events were held in our first year.
We started with an organizational meeting in the early spring at the Richmond campus. Pictures of the event can be found here: View KPURA Founding Meeting pictures
To get social we had a wine tasting at Backyard Vineyards August 20, had a boat tour in September 23, and then a Festive Lunch in December. Meanwhile a Steering committee was laying the groundwork for becoming a society.