2025 May/AGM meeting

 

Location: Banbury Center
Date: Sunday May 25, 2025

Organizing Committee:

• Robert B.
• Marlene & Bill M.
• Andy N. & Don R.

Theme: Summer!

Due to the cancellation of the March meeting, the AGM will take place in the May meeting.

1. Display
• the theme is "Summertime activities"
• Because Department 56 is mostly associated with Christmases and Halloweens, the challenge for everyone is to come up with a display using 1 or more Department 56 items that captures what one may do during the summer season.  
• Participating in a sports event, watching a parade, or attending a wedding are some possible activities.


2. "Who's the Collector?" activity
• So, exactly how well do you know your fellow collector friends?
• this game/activity is for everyone in the audience to figure out who collects what
• we will have everyone writing down a number of non-Department 56 collections he or she owns on a piece of paper (make sure to leave out your name!).  
• A collection can be huge, such as stamps, buttons, seashells from vacation spots, etc or small, like 3 vintage Rolls Royces.  
• We draw from papers collected and everyone guesses who the collector is


3. A "Word Search" game where everyone is given a grid of letters to locate a list of given words associated with TVCC.

2025 March/AGM meeting

 

Location: Banbury Center
Date: Sunday March 30, 2025

Organizing Committee:

• Lucy H.
• Gail & John H.
• Bonnie M.

Theme: TBD

• Meeting was cancelled due to poor weather condition

2025 January meeting

 

Location: Banbury Center
Date: Sunday January 26, 2025

Organizing Committee:

• Cherie S.
• Dennis & Ruth T.

Theme: New Beginnings/Time

1. Display
   • Everyone is asked to bring a display that fits in with the theme of the meeting: New Beginnings/Time.  That can be a display with a clock in it or something more abstract that indicates a fresh start or new ideas.
   • Many members brought their A game and came up with various wonderful and imaginative displays that heed to the theme of “Time”.
   
   
2. Display Demo
   • "Pick Parade" – how can you use picks in your displays?
   • Cherie, as usual, did a fantastic job in showing everyone what one can do with various picks and crafting material you find in craft stores to enhance your display
   
   
3. Bingo Game

2024 November/Christmas/30th Anniversary Meeting highlights

Location: Banbury Center
Date: Sunday November 24, 2024

Organizing Committee:

• the club executives

Theme:  Nostalgia ... happy memories from the past

1. Annual Christmas pot-luck
   • one of the popular activities for our November meetings has always been the pot-luck lunch as all club members showcase their culinary skills and bring in delicious food items to share with everyone
2. 30^th Anniversary celebration
        
3. “Nostalgic displays”
   • note that some of these displays reference our club’s 30th anniversary by including items, such as special signages and pearls; the latter being the symbol for a 30th anniversary representing purity, honesty and wisdom
4. Gift exchange (aka White elephant game)
   • following the rule of the White Elephant gift exchange party game, each club member drew a number to determine the order in which he/she would be picking a wrapped gift
   • when your number is called, you could either pick 1 gift from the pile of gifts collected or steal a gift that was previously picked by someone else
   • the best part of the game is obviously the unwrapping after all had picked their gifts
5. Gift card donations
   • the club selected the organization YOUTH WITHOUT SHELTER as the recipient of our gift card donations this year; it is a charity offering shelter and support for youth facing homelessness in the Toronto area
   • click on this link to learn more about this wonderful organization
   • our club members responded generously as always and more than $130 of gift cards were collected
   • Yvette graciously delivered the gift cards on the club’s behalf