Spotlight feature:
Roy and Evelyne Holenski:

Manitoba Softball’s Heroes
Winnipeg, Manitoba

By Scott Taylor

Roy and Evelyne Holenski

Back in 1975, all Evelyne Holenski wanted to do was coach a softball team with a group of 11-12-year-old girls who attended Harrow School.

Funny, isn’t it, how things turn out?

Little did she know at the time, but the well-liked teacher was about to create the most successful women’s fast pitch team in Western Canada and, as a result, Evelyne and her husband Roy would eventually be honored by the Manitoba Softball Hall of Fame.

It’s been a 36-year journey, and it’s still moving ahead at full speed.

• • • • •

When people mention women’s softball or “fastpitch” anywhere in Canada, the first name that always springs to mind isn’t the name of a great player, but the name of a great team, Winnipeg Smitty’s. For those who aren’t aware, Smitty’s record is absolutely incredible.

The original team, which was a community club squad that played out of Grant Park Harrow in South Winnipeg, went on to win the Manitoba championship for four straight years – two as a bantam team and then two more as a midget team. Comprising 10 girls from Evelyne's Grade 5/6 class at Harrow School, the team started slowly, learned the game from Evelyne and Roy and seldom ever lost. This group of young women represented Manitoba at the Western Canadian Championships in Calgary (1976), Saskatoon (1977), Brandon (1978) and Campbell River, BC (1979), finishing either second or third in each of those four years.

“It was pretty hard not to fall in love with those kids,” Evelyne remembered fondly. “We took the nucleus of this group all the way through the provincial Masters. Karen Doell, Juanita Clayton, Jill Mathez (all members of the Manitoba Softball Hall of Fame) have been with us for a long, long time.”

As they continued to coach, the Holenski’s reputation grew. Not only were they thought of as great coaches, but also caring and empathetic team managers. Players from all over Manitoba wanted to play for Smitty’s so by keeping the original nucleus together and then adding a few new players each year, the team continued to win and to stay fresh and exciting.

The nucleus of the original Smitty’s team from Grant Park represented Manitoba at three Junior National Championships in Milverton, Ont. (1981), Kitchener, Ont. (1982), and Lloydminster, Alta (1983). The team won bronze in 1983.

“Our only policy, I guess, was that we wanted to recruit good players with great attitudes,” Evelyne said. “It was the great attitudes that made our team. Players with great attitudes, players who just love to play and play properly, will beat more talented players without great attitudes any day. We always looked for good players who loved to play.”

Into 1984, Smitty’s stepped up to the senior ranks and didn’t miss a beat. They won Manitoba championships in 1986, 1987, 1989 and 1990. They represented the province at national championships in Vancouver (1986), Memremcook NB (1987), St. John's NF (1988), Brampton ON (1989), and Vancouver (1990).

“Roy and I believed that even though Manitoba had not done well at the nationals in the 70s and 80s, that one day we could compete with the top teams in the country,” Evelyne said. “We just needed more competition at home.”

In the mid-1980s, Roy and Evelyne helped for the Manitoba Ladies Super League, a multi-structured league that was designed to provide Manitoba’s growing number of elite teams with the best competition possible. As Smitty’s played better teams at home, they became stronger against national competition. So strong in fact, that they started to leave the “participants ribbons” behind at national championships and began taking home gold medals.

In fact, Smitty’s, a team that has boasted such international stars as Doell, Clayton, Deb Sonnenberg, Heather and Sandy Newsham, Leanne Scott, Brandi Chammartin, Rhonda Denbow, Katie Rosentreter and Ashley Lanz, has won 10 national senior women’s championships – 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2007 and 2008.

“We were able to find a unique group of young women who were great athletes and great people,” Evelyne said. “The teams were all very close and always worked well together. Although we had some very good individual players – national team players and even Olympic team players – the important thing for all of them was team first and individual accomplishment second. All of the players possessed great leadership qualities and they were all loyal to each other. It’s been an honour to be part of it.”

And it’s not like Smitty’s – or Roy and Evelyne – are going anywhere. Now 75, Evelyne is not only managing the Smitty’s program, she’s also coaching the Senior A team again this year. And she’s quite excited about it.

“We have a whole new crop of great young pitchers,” said Evelyne, who grew up Evelyne Olafson on the family farm south of Morden. “It’s great to have (national team player) Ashey Lanz back again this year. She’s also our pitching clinician right through the entire organization.

“Roy and I still love doing this. It keeps us young.”

It’s not like it hasn’t been hard work. With the other coaches in the organization, the Holenskis have spent countless hours fund-raising, just to have enough money in the bank to send the young women all across Canada and the United States for tournaments and championships. And this summer, Smitty’s will play host to the Canadian Bantam and Midget Fastpitch Championships at John Blumberg Park from Aug. 14-20.

“We never thought that it would get as big or as successful as it has been,” Evelyne said of the program. “But from that little team of girls at Harrow School Smitty’s now has six different programs and for the last two years we’ve been provincial champions in all of them – Squirts, Peewees, Bantams, Midgets, Juniors and Seniors. That means, for the past two years, Smitty’s has won every provincial championship in Manitoba.

“We never would have dreamed that it has become the program for young women that it has become. But we’ve been blessed. We get to spend so much time with so many great people.”

(Read more in the May 17 - June 14/2011 issue of Senior Scope)

Fraud Prevention:

The Cost of Mass Marketing Fraud

Mass Marketing Fraud, known as fraud perpetrated through communication media, continues to target Canadians in a variety of forms. In 2010, the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre received over 41,000 complaints from Canadians regarding Mass Marketing Fraud. Approximately 25% of the complainants failed to identify the fraud before parting with their money and reported a combined loss of $35,622,889.00. By comparison Manitobans made 2,600 complaints of which 382 were victimized for a total monetary loss of $986,316.00. It is estimated that only one in 20 victims report fraud to the police due to shame and embarrassment. The top three scams are lottery, service, and emergency.

For more information on current scams and frauds visit www.antifraudcentre.ca or www.rcmp.ca.

Cst. Ben Doiron
Winnipeg RCMP
Commercial Crime Section
204-983-7633

(Read more in the May 17 - June 14/2011 issue of Senior Scope)

CNIB urges Manitobans to get eyes examined, wear sunglasses

May is Vision Health Month

This May, CNIB embarks on its second annual Vision Health Month to raise awareness about eye health and help eliminate preventable sight loss. From coast to coast, Canadians will be reminded about the importance of eye health – with CNIB in Manitoba organizing local awareness and fundraising activities for Manitobans.

“Few Canadians realize 75 per cent of vision loss is preventable or treatable,” says Delcy-Ann Selymes, Executive Director. “During Vision Health Month, we’ll be calling on Manitobans to take control of their eye health, starting with getting their eyes examined.”

“Simple lifestyle changes like wearing UV-protective sunglasses year-round and eating a diet rich in dark, leafy greens can also have a big impact on your eyes”, says Selymes.

Vision Health Month wraps up with the Shades of Fun Day fundraising campaign on May 26.

“Vision loss can happen to anyone, at any time,” says Selymes. “It’s not life-ending, but it is life-changing. This is why these kinds of events are so important in helping raise awareness about vision health and supporting Manitobans who’ve lost their vision and have turned to CNIB for help.”

Shep Shell has had limited vision—only 1%—for most of his life. Doctors were amazed at what Shep could do with only 1% vision. He could use a cane comfortably, ride a bike, cross country ski, and canoe with various adaptations.

Upon coming to Canada in 1950, Shep was schooled at the Brantford School for the Blind in the days when children were not integrated into the mainstream school system. He was gainfully employed for many years and has been retired for the past 10 years. He is an avid Braille advocate.

He has competed in the Boston and New York marathons, also in Seoul, and in many others.

He has volunteered with CNIB for many years in various roles, including past Chair of the Provincial Board of Directors, and also was a Director on the National Library Board, ensuring literacy needs of CNIB clients were met. He also volunteered on the Jewish Child and Family Service and the Manitoba Blind Sports Association boards. Shep’s extensive volunteering was his way of ‘giving back.’

Shep has now lost that 1% vision and isn’t quite as active as he used to be. But he still has two granddaughters to keep him busy, he enjoys making pottery, and enjoys building things like model trains.

With the help of his guide dog, Paige, and the training, skills and support provided by CNIB, he is able to live independently in Winnipeg.

CNIB offers many tools to assist in everyday living such as a colour identifier (great for matching socks), a scanning computer program to convert text to simulated voice, and also stove adapters. Shep has a talking computer, thermostat and thermometer, too.

Apple, with their commitment to accessibility over the last 20 years, has provided innovative solutions for people with disabilities, allowing them to utilize the Mac, iPod, iPhone, iPad and Apple TV. The assistive technology includes screen magnification, and VoiceOver, a screen-access technology, for the blind and visually impaired.

“Vision is a special attribute and you shouldn’t abuse it. Once you lose it, only then do you realize the impact,” says Shep. “If you have trouble seeing, talk to an opthamologist and also the helpful staff at CNIB.”

CNIB is equipped to teach you skills, new technologies and can help you cope and adjust with the changes in your life.

Shep is going to be 65 in September, but he learned Braille at the age of four. He sympathizes with those who lose their sight in their later years as Braille is often more difficult to learn then.

Manitobans can support CNIB Vision Health Month by participating in Shades of Fun Day - www.shadesoffunday.ca

For other info, call: 774-5421, visit: www.cnib.ca, or text CNIB to 45678 to make a $5 donation.

(Read more in the May 17 - June 14/2011 issue of Senior Scope)

Financial Planning:

The perils of chasing performance

Does anyone really know for sure when to hold and when to fold an investment portfolio?

BRIAN G. KONRAD CFP, Financial Consultant

When stock market returns accelerate, it is only normal that most investors want to be involved in what could be the next big bull market that will quickly put them on the road to riches. During these periods, logic does not always prevail and even the most astute investor has been known to abandon their investment objectives in favor of what they perceive to be the latest “hot tip”.

Chasing performance can involve switching between mutual funds for the sole purpose of rapidly increasing the value of your investment. It typically involves an intensive focus on a particular sector trend or investment style. It may also involve moving out of equity funds altogether and into generally less risky assets such as bond funds or real estate, or even funds that invest in short-term securities like T-Bills. Movement typically occurs when a certain market has already begun to rise. For the average investor, these asset movements are generally based on emotion and may even contradict their actual comfort level for investment risk.

The concept of “buy low and sell high” actually makes a lot of sense. The problem however is the uncertainty of where the market low and market high are. This results in a tendency to jump on the bandwagon too late. At the other end of the spectrum, you never know where the market high is until well after it has occurred. The direction of the market has been known to change very quickly and quite dramatically. As a result, irrational decisions can mean a considerable sacrifice of overall return.

Figure 1 illustrates how difficult it is to predict which market will do best year after year as the leadership of various domestic and global markets continuously changes. As you can see, the Canadian large cap market is highlighted as an example of just how quickly an investment market can move from a leader to a straggler. The story is the same, regardless of which asset class you choose to focus on.

Figure 1. Click on image for larger view

Why worry about which market will prevail when it is so much easier to diversify within a number of markets so that you are always exposed to one of the top performers. It may not be as lucrative as picking the top performer each year, but a properly constructed portfolio will reduce your exposure to investment risk, will offer a far more reliable rate of return, and above all, is a reasonable investment solution.

The pricing of financial assets such as stocks or bonds involves so many different fundamental variables. Identifying high or “overvalued” assets versus low or “undervalued” assets is a complicated subject. It becomes even more complicated when the direction of the market is fueled by human emotions; fear, greed, optimism, pessimism, and crowd psychology. Throw in the political climate, economics, revolution, natural disaster and technology change and you begin to see why diversification is such an important factor in investment success over the long term.

Still, for most investors, trying to guess the market winners is too attractive to resist.

Newspaper headlines often entice investors to turn their attention to a hot industry sector. In support of the headlines, the accompanying articles contain data that was produced by so-called experts whose ongoing task is to develop signals that identify what condition a market is in. In doing so they will use a variety of techniques that include technical, fundamental and quantitative indicators and measures.

Can market action be predicted?

It has become accepted wisdom in financial circles that it is impossible to predict the vast number of variables that can affect the markets. That is why many who claim they can beat the markets usually make one or two great predictions before they are hopelessly out-matched.

Can you time entry and exit points?

Only if you have the necessary “insight and discipline to know when to “hold” and when to “fold”. Both of these are very hard to come by.

Over the years, the market has changed quite dramatically. One thing that remains constant however is the unpredictable nature of the stock market. The best advice is to construct a portfolio you are comfortable with and stick with it unless your investment objectives change.
________________________________________

BRIAN G. KONRAD CFP
Financial Consultant
brian.konrad@investorsgroup.com
(204) 489-4640 ext. 246
100-1345 WAVERLEY STREET
WINNIPEG, MB R3T 5Y6
1-888-205-4828

Written and published by Investors Group as a general source of information only. It is not intended as a solicitation to buy or sell specific investments, nor is it intended to provide tax, legal or investment advice. Readers should seek advice on their specific circumstances from an Investors Group Consultant.

Commissions, fees and expenses may be associated with mutual fund investments. Read the prospectus before investing. Mutual funds are not guaranteed, values change frequently and past performance may not be repeated.

™Trademark owned by IGM Financial Inc. and licensed to its subsidiary corporations.

“The perils of chasing performance” ©2009 Investors Group Inc.

(07/2009) MP1022

(Read more in the May 17 - June 14/2011 issue of Senior Scope)

HUMOUR COLUMN:

Lies my pants told me

By Willian J. Thomas
Humour Columnist

I understand when politicians lie to me because in most cases, it’s what they do best. When Prime Minister Stephen Harper lied about not changing the investment rules on income trusts, it cost older Canadians a big chunk of their life savings. I’m still bitter.

I understand when my Subaru dealer lied to me and I wound up with $2600 worth of unnecessary work because that’s how you finance the parts department of a really well-made car. I never went back, but I understood.

So, yeah — online lottery sellers, Nigerian tribal chiefs, RCMP taser cowboys, Fox News commentators, the president of Afghanistan, the CEO of BP — I understand the liars and their motives.

BUT MY PANTS! For years, maybe as long as 30 years, my pants have been lying to me!?!

Apparently the North American manufacturers of men’s pants have been playing fast and yes, very loose with men’s waist sizes and egos. Industry watchdogs recently took a measuring tape to some randomly selected men’s pants and found that all the size 34’s were actually 35”, 36” and 37”. From Club Monaco chinos to Levi Strauss Dockers, not one pair of 34” pants tested, came in at 34”.

They might as well have posted a sign over the pant racks: “Flattery will get your fat *ss everywhere, including into these sleek 34” cargo pants. Wink. Wink.”

Industry insiders became suspicious about these miscalculations when the rock star Meatloaf severed his spleen while trying on a pair of 52” jeans at Macy’s and children near the change room were hit with flying debris.

Since the 80’s the pant people have been falsifying our waist sizes. Put another way, for almost 30 years Levi Strauss and Ralph Lauren have been pulling the wool over our legs.

Robert Ott, a Toronto fashion design expert explained it this way. “The customer cares about a size 34 fitting the same way today as it did five years ago … so the industry has let his pants grow with him, without penalizing him with a bigger number.”

Well, now I get it. The clothing industry was not trying to flatter me with false numbers, they just looked the other way when I should have been given a five-minute major for fattening.

I was always a 32” pant size through college, 34” after that and 36” the last twenty years. Or was I?

Man, if I find out the guy who sells me shoes has been messing with my measurements and I’m not a size 10, but an “extra-wide clown flapper,” I’m really going to be steamed.

I guess we can no longer make fun of teenage boys who wear pants sized “large,” “extra large” and “room to rent.” Turns out their sizing is more accurate than ours.

The manufacturer of women’s clothes was a lot more clever than the pant makers. They did away with inches altogether. A womenswear 24 inch waist used to be a size 4. Now it’s a size 0 or the incredibly-hard-to-believe 00.

Without putting too fine a point on it, apparently men are pretty particular when it comes to size. For example, I always thought Roseanne Barr’s great line about men’s ego would make for a great book title. The main title would read “Only A Man Can Read A Map” followed by the subtitle “Because Only A Man Can Imagine One Inch Equals Ten Miles.”

This fabric flap, feeding us a false sense that we are slimmer and fitter than we actually are is outrageous. In fact, it’s so absurd I can see men rising en masse against North American pant manufacturers and demanding shrinkage!

This is so flagrantly fraudulent; the Fruit Of The Loom boys may be dragged into the fabricated size scandal and asked to wear a wire.

This means some guys have been wearing pants so tight, the wear and tear is on the inside! This means guys walking around thinking they looked like they’d been outfitted by Brooks Brothers appeared to others that they’d actually been decked out by Ringling Brothers.

Maybe that’s how men wound up with double-breasted suits. We outgrew single-breasted suits and instead of telling us we were getting too fat, the manufacturers just sewed on a second breast.

Now that we’re all shrinking, they’ll probably start lying about the length of the pant leg as well.

“The guy who fit a size 34 in the 80’s,” says Ott, “well he still wants to fit that size 34 today.” Ya think?!? Heck, most baby boomers just want to stay awake long enough to watch The National, but Peter Mansbridge doesn’t trick us by telling us it’s only eight o’clock.

How sad is that. Now that our pants are lying to us, the only suit men can really trust is a paternity suit. There’s a test that comes with that one.

For comments, ideas
or a signed copy of
The Dog Rules, go to
www.williamthomas.ca

(Read more in the May 17 - June 14/2011 issue of Senior Scope)

Benny & Gail Karmen
- Farewell -

Bennie had been performing for 60 years, 15 of those years with his wife, Gail, sharing music and laughter and meeting so many new friends.

"We have performed at approximately 200 senior apartments and personal care homes, and also at country festivals and fairs in Manitoba and N.W. Ontario.

We have decided to retire from all of this and we thank everyone for giving us so many pleasant memories, and hope we made some happy memories for you.

We will miss you. God bless each and everyone of you."

~ Sincerely, Gail and Bennie
(the Polish Cowboy) Karman

Join the Push to Make Manitoba Accessible for All

Accessibility would pretty easy to achieve we all came in the same shape, size and condition. The reality that we all not all healthy 35 year-olds with perfect hearing, sight and mobility, however, seems to have escaped many of those who are responsible for our buildings, houses streets and sidewalks, parks, buses and even public services.

Barrier-Free Manitoba has called on Government of Manitoba to table legislation requiring that government and businesses make changes to better meet the needs of persons of all abilities. With the spring sitting of the Legislature (the last one before the fall election) now underway, Barrier-Free Manitoba , in conjunction with seniors' organizations across the province, is urging the government to act now.

Please join the hundreds of Manitoba seniors who have already joined this important campaign. Just complete the clip out action card below and mail it to the Premier's Office.

You can get more information on the push for legislation at the Barrier-Free Manitoba web site at: www.barrierfreemb.com.

Help change legislation for a Barrier-Free Manitoba. Click on image for larger form to print, fill out, sign, and mail.

(Read more in the April 19 - May 16/2011 issue of Senior Scope)