As part of Seniors Week 2025, the Probus Club of Launceston is holding an Open Meeting on Tuesday, 14 October, from 10.00 am to noon, and invites anyone who is retired or semi-retired to come and discover what Probus offers.

Probus Clubs throughout Australia provide opportunities for retirees to stay engaged and connected through fun, friendship, and fellowship.

Probus comes in three formats: Women’s, Men’s, and Combined. Ours is a Men’s Club, but everyone can attend this Open Meeting.

The upcoming Open Meeting is an excellent opportunity for newcomers to experience firsthand the welcoming spirit of the club. Attendees can mingle with current members, learn about the diverse social and recreational activities, and discover how joining Probus can bring new adventures and lasting friendships.

Details about each club in Launceston will be available, and attendees can find one that suits them.

Visitors will hear about Probus activities such as walks, dining, theatre, discussion groups, and lawn bowls. In addition, there is always an outstanding guest speaker at each monthly meeting.

The speaker at the open meeting will be Dr Frank Madill AM, a highly respected former medical practitioner, retired member of parliament, and a popular author. His topic will be Medical Mysteries – Old and New.

The Open Meeting is at the Launceston Golf Club, on Opossum Road, Kings Meadows, commencing with morning tea.

Registrations are essential and can be made on the Club’s website www.probuscluboflaunceston.org.au by 10 October.

The guest speaker for our meeting on 23 September 2025 is cyber security expert Dr Marcus Thompson AM

Marcus is a retired Major General who served 34 years in the Australian Army.

After he graduated from the Royal Military College, Marcus was allocated to the Royal Australian Corps of Signals. He served in a variety of command, regimental, and Special Operations appointments, including:

• Command of the 3rd Combat Signal Regiment;
• secondment to the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet as the Senior Advisor Defence Policy and Operations;
• Director General Special Operations Capability; Commander 6th Brigade;
• and deployments to East Timor, Iraq, and Afghanistan.

His final appointment was as the inaugural Head of Information Warfare for the Australian Defence Force.

Marcus holds a Bachelor of Electrical Engineering with honours from the University of New South Wales, a Bachelor of Business from the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology, a Master of Defence Studies from the University of Canberra, a Master of Strategic Studies from Deakin University, and a PhD in Cyber Security from the University of New South Wales. He was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia in the 2014 Queen’s Birthday Honours List.

On 26 August, club member Wayne Riley will address this issue in detail. Wayne brings direct experience to the discussion from his tenure as the senior engineering planning manager at Australian Paper Manufacturers’ mill at Burnie before becoming the mine manager at APM’s clay mine at Tonganah.

Company operations: APM operated major paper mills at Burnie and Wesley Vale, both located in northwest Tasmania. In addition, the company ran a mine and mineral processing facility at Tonganah, in the northeast of the state. The primary focus at Tonganah was extracting and processing Kaolin clay, used as a filler in producing fine writing paper. This clay provided opacity and improved the surface quality of the paper for writing and printing.

Industry image and fallout: After facing negative publicity regarding establishing a pulp mill at Wesley Vale, the company tried to enhance the public image of Tasmania’s paper industry. However, the poisoning of the Great Forrester River, the resulting death of thousands of fish, and its impact on a local hop farm triggered a strong emotional response from the community. Weeks after the event, a remark made during a phone conversation between the farmer and staff at Tonganah reignited tensions. It threatened to undo much of the progress made in improving the industry’s reputation.

The guest speaker for our meeting on Tuesday, 22 July, will be Hugh McKenzie, Deputy Mayor and Alderman of the City of Launceston. (Image: Mercury Newspaper)

Hugh is a Chartered Accountant by profession, having been a partner in the advisory firm KPMG for 24 years until his retirement in 2011. Since then, he has been involved in governance roles, emphasising those that give back to the local community.

On Tuesday, Hugh will recount stories from his life before retirement and the values that drive him post-retirement.

Our guest speaker on Tuesday, 22 October will be Karen Heathcote, project manager. design and construction for the Launceston City Council.

She will explain why privately owned retaining wall above the Cataract Walkway failed, and the steps the Council took to remove the wall and protect the Walkway.

This was a complex civil engineering project with the potential for environmental and public safety issues. Karen will explain how these problems and the successful solution.

Andrew Truscott  from TasWater, an Environmental Engineer with over twenty years’ experience is the project director for the Tamar Estuary River Health Action Plan. He is the guest speaker for our meeting on 24 September.

The guest speaker for our meeting on 23 April 2024 is Dr Stan Gottschalk. Stan was born in the US in 1946. He grew up in Florida and studied at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) before emigrating to Australia in 1970, finishing his PhD in Fluid Mechanics at the University of Melbourne (1973).

He moved to Tasmania in 1975, where he has worked as Head of Mathematics and Science at Oakburn College, and as a Lecturer at the TSIT/UTAS), before joining the Australian Maritime College where he was instrumental in setting up the College’s professional engineering degree programs in Naval Architecture and Ocean Engineering before his retirement in 2001.

The Arts have always been a part of Stan’s life. Active in the local theatre scene, he has worked as director, actor, production manager, and designer on over 40 productions, and was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award by the Theatre Council of Tasmania in 2021.

Stan is also a Life Member of the Launceston Film Society. He was part of a team that revitalised it in the late 1970s, taking it from about a dozen members to the 1,100 members it has today. He is also a respected folk musician both as a solo performer and with his band The New Holland Honey Eaters.

Our guest speaker on Tuesday, 27 February will be Dr Scott Bell GP.

In 2007, Scott embarked on a three month trip with Sea Shepherd, on their ship the Steve Irwin to interact with the Japanese whaling fleet in the Southern Ocean.

He says this experience, and the company of the folk onboard the ship helped to fine-tune his views and attitudes towards marine conservation, broaden his understanding of the  global climate emergency, and his future role in the world of activism.

Scott’s 31 year professional life as a medical practitioner encompassed a variety of General Practice work, both as an owner/operator of a private practice, a two year stint with the RAN, 7 years as State Director of the RACGP training program, time on remote Aboriginal communities, and seven years in Tasmania as a locum for all rural practitioners.

In retirement, Scott has focused his energy on a 760 acre property in the northeast , obtained a conservation covenant, developed a close relationship with Save the Tasmanian Devil program, become an owner/builder again, spent much time in a variety of volunteer roles (Wildcare, TFS, Landcare. etc) and developed interests and skills in  the environmental and conservation world.

Our speaker on Tuesday, 23 January 2024 is mine geologist, Andrew Millen.

Andrew was born in Launceston and went to East Launceston Public School followed by Launceston Church Grammar School where I first discovered my interest in mines. Here is his story:

“I went for a school excursion to Beaconsfield. I walked around and just wanted to go through and look at everything underground. I finished school in 1995 and moved to UTAS where I finished my science degree majoring in Geology.

In 2000, I moved to WA to start my life in the mining industry as an open pit Mine Geologist/Field Geologist.

In 2001 I went for a job as a geologist working in the oil industry which took me to America. It was very interesting, but I knew I always wanted to stay in the mines. I started in Indonesia before coming back to Melbourne with a consultancy followed by backpacking for a year and a half.

At the end of my backpacking journey, I spent an amazing year gold mining in Mongolia, followed by jobs in Turkey, China, and  Argentina.”

Andrew now lives in Launceston, having taken over the family business.

Our speaker on Tuesday, 28 November is Marion Sargent. Her presentation will cover the history of the Cataract Gorge since 1804. Writers have waxed lyrical about its beauty, but access was limited until the paths and bridges gradually opened the area for all to see. A Victorian pleasure garden emerged from the swampy area of the First Basin.

Marion is passionate about history and loves researching. After working as a librarian with the State Library of Tasmania for 26 years, she retired in December 2014. She has been president of the Launceston Historical Society since 2012, edits the Newsletter, maintains the Facebook and website pages, and co-ordinates and writes for the ‘Our History’ articles in The Sunday Examiner. In addition, Marion has contributed historical articles and essays for publication in books and journals on a variety of topics. She is also involved with other volunteer organisations relating to history, libraries, books, and cycling.