PROBUS SPEAKERS/PRESESENTATIONS:
Sept. 8th: Tricia Sexton-Earl, CEO of Beacon Community Services
Tricia Sexton-Earl was appointed CEO of Beacon Community Services in June 2021. Prior to joining Beacon, she led the Canadian Veterans Vocational Rehabilitation Services program on behalf of March of Dimes Canada and WCG Services. Her professional background includes more than 20 years of executive and senior leadership positions in community, employment and vocational rehabilitation services across Canada.
A Certified Vocational Rehabilitation Professional and Registered Rehabilitation Professional, she holds an MBA in Executive Management from Royal Roads University and a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology with a minor in Economics from the University of Victoria. She was also recently appointed Vancouver Island Regional Director for the Federation of Community Social Services of BC.
Beacon Info:
Beacon Community Services was formed in 1974 by the Citizens Advisory Committee to help address social issues in the Saanich Peninsula communities. Today, with nearly 300 staff and 600 volunteers, Beacon serves Southern Vancouver Island and the outer Gulf Islands. A wide range of community programs and services makes Beacon’s portfolio continue supporting people of all ages, while strengthening communities and transforming lives.
October 13th: Chris Kilford
Canada and the Changing World Order
As global power disperses and the familiar architecture of the world gives way to a new, uncharted era, a powerful truth is emerging: the future will not be written by superpowers alone. It will be shaped by the imagination and ambition of nations that dare to see beyond their size — and Canada is poised to be one of them. Our ability to rise to this moment, to spark new forms of cooperation, and to help design a more connected and compassionate world will depend on the strength we cultivate at home: resilient democratic institutions, a diplomatic and development presence that reaches with purpose, defence capabilities ready for a shifting landscape, an economy built for long‑term stability, and citizens who believe in the promise of collective action. As Canadians are rethinking their nation’s role on an ever changing, volatile world stage, this presentation will also address the need for Canada to prepare for the future with a new national security vision and strategy.
Our speaker
Dr. Chris Kilford is a member of the national board of the Canadian International Council (CIC), the former editor of CIC’s online foreign policy magazine Open Canada, and president of the CIC Victoria branch. He holds a PhD in history from Queen’s University and enjoyed a 36-year career in the Canadian Armed Forces including postings to Germany, Afghanistan and Turkiye. He retired from the armed forces in September 2014. Since retiring, and besides sessional teaching at the Canadian Forces College, his book chapters, articles and opinion pieces on defence and foreign policy have appeared in numerous Canadian and international publications.
Photo Credit: P981.7.4 - Aerial View of Sidney & Gulf Islands c.1948. Sidney Museum & Archives.
July 14: Shaped on the Shoreline: How the Salish Sea has influenced the cultural and economic history of Sidney and North Saanich.
Sidney, famously known as Sidney by the Sea, could equally be called Sidney of the Sea. The Salish Sea has had a profound and enduring influence on the town’s founding, economy, and cultural identity. Sidney Museum Director Michael Goodchild will explore this influence. Particulars of the presentation will touch upon the Sea’s ecology, the timeless maritime culture of the WSANEC peoples of the region, early industrial maritime trade and transportation, and Sidney’s subsequent development with attention to enterprises tied to the Sea.
Presenter: Michael Goodchild, Executive Director, Sidney Museum and Archives.
Michael Goodchild has served as the executive director role since June 2022. Under his leadership, numerous major projects and initiatives have been launched, including updating the Museum's collections database, planning and implementing a variety of traveling exhibitions, and renovating the Museum's permanent galleries. Michael previously worked at the Fraser River, Discovery Centre in New Westminster from 2019-2022, and gained museum experience at the Royal Ontario Museum, Ontario Science Centre, and the Royal Canadian Military Institute. He is a graduate of UBC (BA, History), and the University of Toronto (Master of Museum Studies). Michael and his family are Sidney residents.
June 09 (Room 2): We’ve Looked at Books, How About Brew?!
We read that the public’s drinking habits are changing, perhaps with lasting generational consequences, and that the celebrated craft brewing market industry on our Island is being transformed for this reason and others. This presentation will be of interest whether you simply enjoy a glass of beer, have an interest in the
dynamic character of Island business, or just like a good story. Our presenter will share his business and personal experiences in establishing a successful brewery business and piloting it through the wet and dry travails of sustaining his success.
Our speaker will be Christopher Bjerrisgaard - Founder, Co-Owner, and Head of Commercialization of Small Gods Brewing. In addition to founding Small Gods Brewing, Chris has over sixteen years of experience in the craft brewing industry, including roles as Marketing Director at Vancouver Island Brewing, a Founding
Member / Marketing Director at Vancouver Craft Beer Week, and Marketing Manager at Parallel 49 Brewing & Central City Brewers+ Distillers. In the fall of 2025, he was elected to the BC Craft Brewers Guild Board for the 2026 / 2027 electoral cycle.
May 12 (Theatre): Meeting the Wildfire Challenge: The Promise of Ecological and Socio-economic Resiliency
Fire is an essential ingredient for healthy forests. Extensive community and economic infrastructure on the same landscape has required human-induced fire suppression which not only
disrupts nature’s ecology but promotes the potential for catastrophic fires as we build more infrastructure on the landscape and climate change drives drier and hotter summers.
Suppression, as a principal strategy for wildfire management, begs rethinking.
This presentation explores new ideas and approaches in the name of “resilience” that are being actively explored by researchers, policy makers and firefighters to address ever- increasing wildfire catastrophes. “Resilience” is a concept founded in an understanding that fire is both a constructive and destructive force. The challenge is how to manage both realities with confidence so that a constructive balance can be
established.
Our speaker will be Dr. Jonathan O’Riordan, a former Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Sustainable Resource Management in the British Columbia Provincial Government. Jon served 35 years in the public service, focusing professionally on environmental management and land and resource planning. He was an Adjunct Professor with the School of Community and Regional Planning at UBC and Research Director with the Climate Adaptation Team centred at Simon Fraser University. Dr. O'Riordan joined UVic’s POLIS’ Water Sustainability Project as a strategic water policy advisor in 2007; he focuses on provincial water policy reform and the ecological governance of water management in addition to his work on wildfire resiliency.
Here are three publications for more information on the topic.
https://poliswildfireproject.org/publications/learning-to-live-with-fire/
https://poliswildfireproject.org/publications/beneficial-fire/
https://poliswildfireproject.org/publications/cross-government-approach/
February 10 (Room 2): Whither Books and “Booktown”: TheChanging Nature of Sidney’s Book Business and Reading Culture
Sidney has been a member of the International Organization of Book Towns since 1996, in recognition of a large reading public and numerous bookstores. At one time, the town had ten bookstores, but this number has diminished over the years. Sidney’s book business remains vital, yet it operates in a different retail environment than it did thirty years ago—in fact, than it did a decade ago.
This presentation will focus on trends in the publishing and book-selling industry, the forces that are shaping these, and implications for readers and sellers. Attention will be placed on
the unique aspects of the Sidney and Greater Victoria market that is changing in both anticipated and unforeseen ways.
Our speaker will be Cliff MacNeil-Smith, the current Mayor of Sidney, who will speak in his capacity as owner of Tanner Books in Sidney. Cliff has decades of experience in the book selling
business.
March 10 (Room 2): The Saanich Peninsula Hospital and Healthcare Foundation
Our March 10 speaker will be Heather Edward, CEO of the
Saanich Peninsula Hospital and Healthcare Foundation [SPHF]. Heather will speak about the Foundation’s activities, as well as recent developments at the Saanich Peninsula Hospital and related facilities in the area. The Foundation was initially founded in 1985 to raise funds for the fledging Saanich Peninsula Hospital and has succeeded in raising over $92 million for equipment, facilities, and programs at the Hospital in the ensuing years. They recently raised $15 million for enhanced acute care.
Heather has been CEO of the SPHF since May 2024. She has an extensive background in the health care sector, including leadership roles in several organizations in Ontario. Heather earned an MA in Leadership from the University of Guelph.
April 7 (Room 2): Wowed by the Stars: New views of the Universe Through the Lens of Modern Astrophysics
Humankind is making great strides in understanding the universe with numerous astronomical observatories around the world and in space. Dr. James Di Franseco will present five (or so) images that were released in 2025 that together illustrate the incredible scope and breadth of modern astrophysics. These images
prospectively include the spectacular very first ones released by the new ultrawide-field Vera C. Rubin Observatory in Chile of galaxies, stars, and asteroids, amazing shots from the Atacama Large Millimetre Array and Very Large Telescope facilities also in Chile of protostars that appear to be forming planets, stunning new images by the James Webb Space Telescope of a nearby region in our Galaxy where stars are forming, and thrilling images from the Gemini South observatory of the new interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS. It will be a light show to remember.
Our speaker will be Dr. James Di Francesco, Director, Optical Astronomy at HAA and Director of the Dominion Astrophysical Observatory. James earned a Ph.D. in Astronomy at the University of Texas (at Austin) based on research into the circumstellar environments of young stellar objects. He subsequently completed three-year postdoctoral stints at the Harvard-Smithsonian Centre for Astrophysics, and at the University of California, Berkeley, expanding his research. James returned to Canada in 2002 to join the Millimetre Astronomy Group at the National Research Council’s Herzberg Astronomy and Astrophysics Research Centre (HAA) in Victoria. He subsequently assumed directorships at HAA and the Dominion Astrophysical Observatory. This presentation has been made possible through the appreciated assistance of the Centre of the Universe staff
Nov. 2025 Seeking Solutions in (Very) Turbulent Times
The geopolitical challenges today are seemingly endless. Indeed, from Washington, to Moscow, Beijing, Kyiv and beyond, countries are burning the midnight oil as they seek a way out of the turbulent times we live in.
Over the past 18 months, our speaker travelled to Turkiye, Taiwan, South Korea, Japan and Bhutan on official and semi-official visits, where he had a chance to sit down with numerous officials including Canada’s Ambassador to Turkiye, Kevin Hamilton to Taiwan’s Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs, Remus Li-Kuo Chen. Earlier this year, Chris also spent two weeks in Poland and Latvia, meeting officials from both countries and visiting members of the Canadian Armed Forces who are training Ukrainian military personnel and leading NATO’s Multinational Brigade in Latvia.
During his talk, Chris will speak about his various visits, what he learned while on the ground and what are the key geopolitical minefields we should be on the lookout for moving forward.
Chris Kilford, PhD
Chris is a member of the national board of the Canadian International Council, the editor (articles) of CIC’s online foreign policy magazine Open Canada, president of the CIC Victoria branch and a sessional professor with the Canadian Forces College where he teaches courses focused on Canadian foreign and defence policy. He also holds a PhD in history from Queen’s University with a focus on civil-military relations in the developing world.
Chris also enjoyed a 36-year career in the Canadian Army, commanding 4th Air Defence Regiment, followed by various senior positions in the Department of National Defence, including Director, Future Security Analysis and Military Liaison Officer to the Senate Committee on National Security and Defence.
From July 2009 until July 2010, Chris deployed to Canada’s Embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan as the Deputy Military Attaché. On his return to Canada, he commenced Turkish language training, after which he was sent to Canada’s Embassy in Ankara as the Canadian Defence Attaché with cross accreditation to Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Turkmenistan. He was in this post from July 2011 until July 2014. Chris retired from the military in September 2014.
Past Presentations Availabe for Download
May 13, 2024
Thoughts on the New International Trade Order.
Speaker: DR. JEN BAGGS, Professor and Acting Dean, Gustavson School ofBusiness | University of Victoria.
Speaker – Isobel Mackenzie, B.C. Seniors’ Advocate
Topic – Current Issues for B.C. Seniors