Faculty Club

Fall is a wonderful time of year to explore the city – beautiful foliage serves as the background for all the events that play out over the month of October.

Mark the end of the harvest season with a Thanksgiving feast, celebrate the spooky and the grotesque for Halloween, appreciate Canadian choral music or find your new favourite spot.

With so much going on this month, what will you discover?

Oct. 2

Journalists discuss the policy issues that matter in the upcoming municipal election and how changes in today’s media landscape affect reporting on the city. Behind the City Beat: A Pre-Election Media Panel is co-sponsored by the Institute on Municipal Finance and Governance at the Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy and the School of Cities at U of T.

Hear from author Ali A. Rizvi at the annual Snider Lecture at U of T Mississauga as he speaks about The Muslim Enlightenment: The Rise of Secular Thought Among Young Muslims. His wide-ranging talk will include topics such as his life as a young Muslim who lost his faith and the consequences of coming out as a non-believer in the Muslim community. The talk is followed by a Q&A session.

The Zero Waste Farmers’ Market, at U of T Mississauga, will run today and tomorrow, with tree planting scheduled for Oct. 4. It's all part of DisOrientation Month, held by the U of T Mississauga Students' Union, that runs until Oct. 13.

Oct. 3

Ever wondered what goes on in the greenhouses perched atop the Earth Sciences Centre on the downtown Toronto campus? The Environmental Students Union has the answers, providing an interactive tour of some of the exotic plants and experiments.

Oct. 4

Whether you’re missing your family’s Thanksgiving feast or celebrating the holiday for the first time, Hart House’s Traditional Canadian Thanksgiving Dinner serves turkey and all the trimmings, with a vegetarian entrée, too. Make sure to buy your tickets early, as they sell out fast.

Celebrate culture and diversity at ARTSIDEOUT, the one-day multidisciplinary arts festival at U of T Scarborough. This year’s theme is rebirth – examining the stories that shape us through installations, exhibitions, performances and film screenings.

Oct. 11

Who’s going to be crowned the mac n’ cheese champ this year? Taste all the cheesy goodness that U of T chefs have to offer at the Mac N’ Cheese Smackdown VII.

‘Tis the season of college book sales. If you missed the annual book sales at Victoria College and the University of St. Michael’s College, there are still more on the downtown Toronto campus. Hunt for fun reads and literary treasures at the University College Book Sale, running until Sunday.

Oct. 15

What does urban beekeeping look like on campus? The Environmental Students Union and Beekeeping Enthusiast Education Society invites you to join one of their hive visits at the Faculty Club. All students and community members are welcome to attend – just be sure to arrive dressed for the occasion.

Oct. 18

Line up on opening day for Trinity College’s 43^rd Annual Friends of the Library Book Sale. Seeley Hall at Trinity College is transformed into a spectacular matrix of books, containing thousands of volumes in both academic and popular categories. The sale closes on Monday.

Oct. 19

Ulli Krull, vice-president and principal of U of T Mississauga, leads the Principal’s Walk – a fun stroll around campus highlighting some of the interesting research and teaching that happens there.

Oct. 21

Celebrate the music of Canada with Voices of the Land and Sea, a performance by the Faculty of Music’s MacMillan Singers and Women’s Chamber Choir at the Church of the Redeemer. Special guest Jenny Blackbird of the Centre for Indigenous Studies collaborates with the choir to focus on Indigenous voices of Canada.

Oct. 22

Seeking Justice Amidst Complexity: Sea Otters, Poachers, Kelp, and Coastal Communities is the name of a talk by Kai Chan, a professor at UBC. It is hosted by U of T's department of ecology and evolutionary biology.

Oct. 24

Learn about some of the Indigenous histories on the downtown Toronto campus through a walk with First Story Toronto. Hear the stories of Tkaronto and consider how they are still relevant and shape our lives today. Read about a past tour here.

What does decentralization in health systems look like and is it good policy? Hear from Thomas J. Bossert, director of the international health systems program of the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, as part of the North American Observatory on Health Systems and Policies lecture series. Stay for the reception, where the inaugural Comparative Health System Award will be presented to Professor Leslie Boehm. Held at the Faculty Club, this event is free and open to everyone.

Oct. 25

Join the week-long celebration of the 200^th anniversary of Frankenstein that starts today and is organized by the University of St. Michael's College. Events take place across U of T and Toronto, with lectures, readings and special exhibits. All events are free and open to the public.

Oct. 31

Lace up your skates and put on a costume: MoveU’s Scary Skate is back again for some spooky fun both on-ice and off-ice. All welcome, including beginner skaters.

It runs all month and until Dec. 21, but Halloween is the perfect time for De monstris: An Exhibition of Monsters and the Wonders of Human Imagination at the Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library. Explore the history of monsters in texts, both in literary tradition and in illustration.

Seven secret things about the Faculty Club at the University of Toronto

lanthierj — Fri, 21 Sep 2018 12:31:44 +0000

Seven secret things about the Faculty Club at the University of Toronto lanthierj Fri, 09/21/2018 - 08:31

The Faculty Club at the University of Toronto has played an important role over the years – but not just for faculty.

For two young opera students from the Faculty of Music, it was where they met and fell in love – and where they held their wedding, singing to their guests from a balcony in the ballroom.

For Chef Harold Ramos, it’s where he encountered his first – and second – ghost.

For Tuan Vuong, who runs the dining room and house, it’s where he has worked for 37 years, beginning as a dishwasher when he first arrived in Canada from Vietnam. In the early years, he lived in one of the upstairs rooms, guarding a precious pile of Group of Seven paintings under his bed, while renovations were underway downstairs.

The Faculty Club holds the stories of thousands of alumni, staff and community members – as well as faculty, says General Manager Leanne Pepper.

“It’s a home away from home for so many people,” Pepper says. “In many ways it’s also a hidden gem – but we want everyone to discover it.”

Tucked away on a quiet block of Willcocks Street in the heart of the downtown Toronto campus, the Georgian revival building has been undergoing painstaking renovations for months. The interior scaffolding is gone and the once-faded dining room has been transformed into a dazzling Wedgwood ballroom, its intricate plaster mouldings hand-painted in bright whites and blues.

Whether you’re already a member – or you decide to join in time for the “grand unveiling” on Sept. 25 – here are seven secrets you should know about the Faculty Club:

Not just for faculty

Despite its name, the club is open to staff, faculty, grad students, alumni and community members. This isn’t technically a secret – they’re working hard to get the word out.

“Our alumni membership is growing, our community membership is growing – and now we’re home to the University Women’s Club as well,” Pepper says.

In recent years, many former ‘faculty clubs’ across North America have opened their doors to non-faculty members and adopted more inclusive names like University Club to encourage others to join. Pepper says no name change is in the works here (and in Toronto the University Club name is already taken) but the club welcomes staff from across the three campuses. And once you’re in, you never know who you’ll met: Sir Peter Ustinov, Sir Edward Heath, and astronaut Chris Hadfield are just a few of the boldface names who’ve visited.

Breaking down walls long before the renovation

Inclusivity at the Faculty Club goes back a long way. Until 1960, U of T hosted men’s and women’s clubs in separate locations. But all that changed when artist and U of T Professor Barker Fairley and his wife, activist Margaret Fairley, offered the club a spectacular collection of Group of Seven art on the condition that men and women both be welcomed on the premises.

You can see the paintings today in the Fairley Lounge: works by Lawren Harris, A.J. Casson, J.E.H. Macdonald and more.

Over the years, the club’s art collection has grown – the happy legacy of a dark chapter in the club’s past.

Years ago, daring thieves made off with some of the Group of Seven works donated by the Fairleys. Luckily, insurance covered the loss and the club acquired new paintings. But when the original paintings were eventually recovered, the club found itself suddenly owning a lot of art – and owing the insurance company a lot of money.

Members rallied to raise the funds to repay the insurance company, allowing the club to keep all the art.

Hosting your party – big or small

Weddings, bar mitzvahs, bat mitzvahs, anniversaries, retirement parties, memorial gatherings – the Faculty Club hosts them all. Pepper says the opera singers’ wedding, some 15 years ago, went off without a hitch, but not every event is drama-free. One frantic bride called the club from the steps of the church, desperate to find her missing groom.

The club confirmed he was already there – he'd headed straight to the reception after the ceremony with the best man, leaving his new wife behind.

“Let’s just say there was a bit of a gap between them at the head table,” Pepper says.

Knowing which fork to use

Worried about how to behave at your shindig – or at your first business meeting or interview? Pepper (pictured above) is a certified etiquette and protocol coach and has held workshops for hundreds of faculty and students over the years. Back in 2015, at the club’s annual holiday buffet, she was approached by a young alumnus, who thanked her for helping him become the youngest professor at his university.

The recruitment process had included a reception and formal dinner – and the alumnus said he used what he learned in her etiquette seminars to make a good impression.

“After offering him the position, his new employers confided that they had been hesitant to hire him at first, given how young he was,” Pepper says. “Only after interacting with him during the reception and dinner did they know that he was the perfect person for the job. They had been able to witness first-hand how mature, respectful, and professional he was.”

That buzzing sound coming from the roof

There are bees, bees and more bees living happily on the roof of the Faculty Club. Why are they happy? For starters, they have easy access to a rooftop garden, installed by students from the Dig In student group. Also, they’re maintained by the charming volunteers of U of T BEES.

Watch Release the Bees

Their honey is said to be among the university’s finest. It will be for sale at the reception Sept. 25 – and appearing in dishes created by Chef Ramos this fall.

About those ghosts

Chef Ramos says he has encountered two ghosts during his years at the club. The first, about 15 years ago, was a cranky older man who tossed potatoes at him in the cellar. Ramos admits he was cursing to himself before it happened – it was a busy night in the dining room and things had gone awry in the kitchen. He believes the ghost was protesting the noise Ramos was making that night.

Although he didn’t actually see that ghost, Ramos says he felt his presence – and he definitely saw the potatoes tumbling along the hall.

“There was no one else down there except me,” Ramos says.

Ramos first saw the second ghost about seven or eight years ago. This time the encounter took place in the hallway upstairs. The chef describes an older woman in a white dress, who kept her face turned away as she walked into the main lounge.

“At first I thought she was a guest, and I followed her to see if she needed anything,” Ramos says. But when he reached the lounge it was empty. The woman in white had disappeared.

The era to which each ghost belongs is unclear. The club is located on land granted to William Willcocks in the early 1790s and a succession of wealthy families inhabited premises there during the 1800s – but from 1919 until 1959 it was the site of the Primrose Club, a private club for the Jewish community. (Originally open to men only, the club later admitted women, who used a separate entrance.)

The woman in white is wearing a cocktail-length dress, Ramos says. He’s seen her a few more times since that first encounter, but now he doesn’t try to engage her in conversation. In fact, he gives her as much warning as possible of his presence.

“If I’m the first one into the club in the morning, and it’s quiet and dark, I start singing as soon as I turn the key.”

Staff and faculty at the retirement party for U of T's Paul Fraumeni get a sneak peak at the renovated Wedgwood ballroom (all photos by Nick Iwanyshyn)

Faculty Club

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