imes T RETIREMENT
A Newsletter for Honeywell Alumni
Volume 24 Number 11, November 2013
ADDRESS LETTERS AND COMMENTS TO:
Honeywell Retiree Club, 85 Enterprise Boulevard, Suite 100,
Markham, ON L6G 0B5. Or phone 289-333-1214 or e-mail us at
Make your newsletter more fun by
sending your contributions. Don’t
worry about writing ability. Just send
your stuff. We’ll do the rest.
A Letter From The President
Club Returns To Shaw Festival Af ter A Long Absenc e
“Over the years, I have seen this
show three or four times. This is
one of the best productions!”
That was just one of the very
favourable comments heard from
Club members and guests after the
performance of “Guys and Dolls”
at the Shaw Festival, October 15.
Thirty-nine participants boarded
a luxury coach (two self-drove
and joined the group later) for the
trip to Rockway Glen Golf and
Country Club for a lunch of honey
mustard ham or grilled chicken
with all the trimmings. During
lu nc h e ve r yo ne ha d a n
opportunity to sample three wines
compliments of Rockway, which
is also a winery. After lunch there
was a chance to visit the winery’s
museum with artifacts of wine-
making and a history of wine. All
p a r t i c ip a n t s r e c e iv e d a
complimentary bottle of wine to
take home.
Then it was on to Niagara-on-
the-Lake and the Festival Theatre
for the stunning performance of
“Guys and Dolls”, the musical
fable of Broadway based on a
story and characters of Damon
Runyon. This perennial favourite
had its world premiere on
Broadway in 1950 and starred
Robert Alda (father of Alan Alda
of M.A.S.H. fame), Sam Levene,
Isabel Bigley and Vivian Blaine.
The film version, released in
1955, starred Marlon Brando as
Sky Masterson, Frank Sinatra as
Nathan Detroit, Jean Simmons
as Sister Sarah Brown, Vivian
Blaine, again, as Miss Adelaide
and Stubby Kaye as Nicely-
Nicely Johnson.
Attending this event were:
Nives Re, Bill and Gloria
Seeley, Sean and Olive Carey,
Sheila Sidlo, Helen Van Hoof,
Ben and Pat Greenaway,
Maureen Telford, Al and Adel
Shearer, Tamas and Judith Vepy,
Bill and Enid Wilson, Eric and
Ann Howes, Ray and Joyce
Atkinson, Albert and Ruth Lenz,
Madelaine Muller, Audrey Dean,
Kay Bradford, Anna Fedor,
Colin and Audrey Randall-
Smith, Dorothy Adams, Lil
Turner, Greg and Betty Smith,
Molly Gray, Dave and Kathryn
Raybould, Lorraine Ware,
Carolyn Salazar, Evangelia
Romas, Helen Bartlett, Mary
Williams and Joan Baker.
Credit for this outstanding
outing goes to Social Committee
member BILL WILSON with
an assist from ENID.
by John MacMillan
Most folks who have a smart
phone seem to be using texting as
t he p r e fe r r ed me a ns o f
communication these days, as it
is faster and, more importantly,
cheaper than actually making
phone calls.
Then we have people who have
a Twitter account and use
“tweeting” to communicate but
have a message limitation of only
140 characters. This has led to
alphabetical shortcuts such as “u”
for “you”, “ur” for “your” or
“you’re”, “BTW” for “by the
way” and so on. You get the idea.
“LOL” has a lot of usage. I used
to think it meant “lots of love” but
my grandchildren tell me it means
“laugh out loud”.
Of course, in our previous lives
at Honeywell, we used some
shorthand too. We called it
a c r o n y m s , m a k i n g u p
abbreviations using the initial
letters of a sequence of words.
W he t he r w e wo r k e d in
Engineering, Manufacturing,
Marketing, Accounting and so on,
we all had our own acronyms and
jargon which we used to
bamboozle the other parts of the
organization to good effect. This
was called job protection! (see President’s Letter on Page 2)
P ag e 2
(President’s Letter from Page 1)
But you need to be careful when
acronyms are created as it may
have an unintended effect. For
example, in Germany, a software
company called System Analysis
and Programming shortened their
name for marketing purposes to
SAP! One of my favourite
golfers, Ernie Els, actually sports
the SAP logo on his hat. Not a
good idea Ernie!
But back to Honeywell and I
hope my friends from IT
(Information Technology) will
forgive me but they were probably
the most significant users of
acronyms and jargon. When we
were introducing new systems
into the factory, I left the planning
meetings utterly mystified. My
favourite acronym was “wysiwyg”
which apparently means “what
you see is what you get”. In the
context of information systems I
have no idea what they meant but
they seem to work OK anyhow.
You may have your favourites.
Let us know. TTFN!
from the Journalism School at
Ryerson University in Toronto.
“Other than a summer, prior to
my graduating year, as acting
editor of The Whitehorse Star
weekly newspaper in the Yukon,
a nd t w o b r i e f s c ho o l
assignments on two weekly
newspapers, t he Leaside
Advertiser and the Dundalk
Herald, Honeywell is the only
company I ever worked for. I
jo ined Honeywell as an
Industrial Editor, editing the
company paper and writing press
releases, product announcements
and speeches for senior
management personnel.
“I was appointed Advertising
Manager for three of the
company’s then divisions,
Electronic Data Processing (later
Information Systems), Military
Products and Photographic
P r o d u c t s , a n d t h e n
Mer cha nd is ing Ma nager ,
responsible for the advertising,
sales promotion and public
relations for all of the company’s
six divisions at the time.
“In 1973 I was becoming
restless so I initiated a career
change by applying for and
getting a position as Training
Manager in t he Human
Resources department. I ran
management and supervisory
training and development
sessions for all divisions and
departments from coast to coast.
I retired from Honeywell in 1993
as Director, Human Resource
Planning and Development.
Following official retirement, I
had a two-year consulting
contract with Honeywell running
training programs, mostly for
factory personnel. Following that,
I had another two-year contract as
Industry-Education Liaison with
the Sectoral Skills Council, a tri-
partite organization, made up of
representatives from the federal
government, management and
labour, responsible for training
and deve lo pment in t he
electronics industry.
“After that, I joined the Retiree
Club’s Board of Directors as
editor and publisher of the
monthly newsletter, a position I
have held ever since. I also
volunteer as a guide and exhibit
interpreter at the Toronto Zoo, and
have previously been a volunteer
for Doors Open Toronto, an
annual event where city buildings
and facilities, not normally open
to the public, are on display.
“Adel, who is secretary of the
Club’s Social Committee and the
newsletter’s eagle-eyed proof-
reader, and I have three children
and five grandchildren, all of who,
as do we, enjoy our cottage in
Muskoka as often as we can. We
also enjoy attending the many
hockey, baseball and soccer
games in which our grandkids
take part. Our son is the owner of
the California Closets franchise
for the Greater Toronto Area, our
oldest daughter runs her own
company which specializes in
performance management and the
design and facilitation of training
(like father like daughter?) and
our youngest daughter is senior
manager of customer service for
A l l s t r e a m , a m a j o r
telecommunications company.
For the first time in 38 years, we
are without pets. Within the last
couple of years, we lost our two
beloved Labradors and two cats.
Meet Your Social Committee and Board
of Director s
This is the fifth in a series of
articles in which Retirement
Times will feature profiles of the
members o f your Socia l
Committee and Board of Directors
as written by themselves. This
month we feature...your editor.
“My name is Alistair (Al)
Shearer. I was born in Aberdeen,
Scotland, in 1933 and emigrated
with my family to Canada when I
was 15. I attended North Toronto
Collegiate Institute and graduated
The Honeywell Retiree Club
YEAR 2014
Membership Fees Are Now Due
It’s time to renew your membership in the Honeywell Retiree Club. Or
maybe you know someone who hasn’t yet joined and would like to meet with
fellow retirees at our monthly social events. If so, give her or him a copy of
this registration coupon. Members regularly receive our monthly newsletter,
Retirement Times, for news of their friends from Honeywell days, along with
details of upcoming social events, important updates for retirees and news of
Honeywell. Members also save money on our two major banquets, Spring
Roundup and the Fall Banquet.
To renew your membership or join the club, complete the coupon below and
send it, along with your cheque, to the address shown. The membership fee is
still only $5 for each member...the best bargain in town! When you send your
cheque, make a note below and retain for your records.
On_____________(date) I paid the Honeywell Retiree Club $___________
for my/our 2014 membership(s).
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All returns complete this section:
Surname_____________________________Retiree’s first name___________________
Phone ( )_________________Spouse/Partner’s First Name___________________
E-mail address____________________________________________________________
Please indicate if you wish to receive your newsletter by e-mail □ or regular mail □
NEW members or CHANGE OF ADDRESS complete the following:
Address__________________________City____________Prov._________Code______
NEW MEMBERS complete:Year of retirement___________Dept./Div._____________
Mail coupon and cheque for ____memberships at $5 each = $_______________to
Honeywell Retiree Club, 85 Enterprise Blvd., Suite 100, Markham, ON L6G 0B5
The Honeywell Retiree Club Presents
“The Snow Train”
Saturday, February 8, 2014
$106 per person includes deluxe motor coach, tickets for the Credit Valley Explorer
“Snow Train” with lunch included, and all taxes and gratuities.
Convener—Bill Wilson 416 519-0863
Our luxury coach will leave the Honeywell parking lot at 85 Enterprise Blvd. at 9:30 am
sharp. By 11:00 am will be enjoying a leisurely scenic tour aboard the Credit Valley
Explorer “Snow Train”. Experience by rail the beauty of Mother Nature’s winter cloak
spread graciously over the rolling hills, deep valleys and rivers of the Hills of
Headwaters. Passengers will enjoy the large picture windows and comfortable seating all
climate-controlled for complete pleasure. A hot turkey lunch will be served on the train.
At approximately 3:30 pm we will arrive at the Magnotta Winery for three tastings and
shopping. Magnotta is Ontario’s third largest winery and the only company of its kind in
Canada licensed to produce and sell wine, beer and distilled products. With over 3,500
awards to date for product excellence, Magnotta is Canada’s most award-winning
winery.
REGISTRATION/CANCELLATION DEADLINE IS WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 22
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Please reserve space for me/us for The Snow Train, Saturday, February 8, 2014
SURNAME_________________________________________FIRST NAME__________________________
PHONE ( )____________________SECOND PERSON_________________________________________
If you need assistance (wheelchair, special seating, transportation, etc.) check here □
Cheque enclosed for ______tickets at $106 each = $___________________
Return to Honeywell Retiree Club, 85 Enterprise Blvd., Suite 100, Markham, ON L6G 0B5
The Honeywell Retiree Club Presents
“Boeing-Boeing”
At The Herongate Barn Theatre
Sunday, March 9, 2014
$65 per person includes bus, lunch, seats in the first three rows and all taxes/
gratuities
Convener—Adel Shearer 416 291-4750 or 416 427-6507 (cell)
Our bus will leave the Honeywell parking lot on Enterprise Boulevard at
11:15 am sharp. After a delicious lunch at the Herongate Barn Theatre, we
will sit back, in the first three rows, to enjoy “Boeing-Boeing”. It’s the 1960s,
and swinging bachelor Bernard couldn’t be happier: A flat in Paris and
three gorgeous stewardesses all engaged to him without knowing about each
other.
But Bernard’s perfect life gets bumpy when his friend Robert comes to stay
and a new and speedier Boeing jet plane throws off all of his careful
planning. Soon all three stewardesses are in town simultaneously, timid
Robert is forgetting which lies to tell to whom and catastrophe looms!
Registration/Cancellation deadline is Thursday, February 20, 2014
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SURNAME___________________________________FIRST NAME___________________
PHONE ( )_______________SECOND PERSON_________________________________
If you need assistance (wheelchair, special seating, transportation, etc.) check here □
Cheque enclosed for_______tickets at $65 each = $____________
Send to Honeywell Retiree Club, 85 Enterprise Blvd., Suite 100, Markham, ON L6G 0B5
Please remember to mark the name of the event on your cheque and please don’t postdate