Month: October 2019

Meeting of Wednesday 30 October 2019
Speaker: Clare Johnston from Terex – Finlay

Clare is based at the company’s manufacturing plant in Omagh where she is Group Operational Training Manager.  Having explained that TEREX is a global company headquartered in the USA with sales in 2018 of 5.1 billion dollars, she showed slides to illustrate its reach. More than half its income is from sales of Arial Work Platforms [cherry pickers], the other big product line being machines for crushing, screening and washing.   The Omagh plant manufactures some 600 crushing machines per year.   Members of the club recalled how it all started when John Finlay began making block-making machines in 1953, priced at £14/10 shillings in Scarffe’s.   In 1976 a specialised screen production unit was opened in Omagh and the first tracked mobile crushers were produced in 2005.  Since then the history of TEREX in Omagh has been one of continuous improvement and development.   “Telematics” were introduced in 2016; this enables the company to keep track of all its machines wherever they may be working in the world, monitoring performance and wear and tear.   Clare’s fascinating account of her work generated much interest, many recollections and lots of questions.

Meeting of Wednesday 23 October 2019
Speaker, MS Sonia Slevin. Topic “Drink wiser – Age Well”

Sonia began by distributing evaluation sheets to determine if knowledge about, and attitudes towards, alcohol changed during session. Her over-arching message was that healthy ageing requires a controlled approach to diet, exercise and alcohol use combined with varied social activities to stay outward looking and mentally alert. Starting with the current recommended Government guidelines of 14 units of alcohol per week for both men and women, she challenged members to guess how many units there were in a number of popular measures, for example, a pint of beer, a glass of wine, a single measure of spirits.   Sonia further explained that it takes one hour for a unit of alcohol to clear the body and it is not speeded up by cups of coffee, eating a meal or an Ulster fry for breakfast the morning after the night before. The reasons for alcohol consumption rising with age were examined, as were rates of dependency and sources of help.   Sonia’s talk provided  scope for lots of witty banter but members nevertheless took seriously the importance of her message.   She was thanked for an engaging talk by Probian Eamon Cunningham

Meeting of Wednesday 16 October 2019
Speaker, Ms Amy Burns, RSPB

Amy is the RSPB’s Estate Manager for Fermanagh and South Tyrone.   She heads up a team of seven who collectively manage the bird life on 43 of Lough Erne’s 154 islands along with 210 hectares of wetland and 400 hectares of forest.   Essentially the work is about habitat management and maintaining a variety of environments for the particular needs of particular birds.   Lapwings, also known as Plovers and Peewits, thrive in hay meadows which these days are artificially created by strimming.   Curlews need longer grass in which to nest and hide their chicks and wetland in which to forage. Sadly, their numbers are in steep decline due to habitat loss.  The RSPB owns a herd of Highland Cattle which it moves from island to island to graze and keep the vegetation short.   Amy showed slides and played recordings of the calls of several species monitored by the RSPB including Snipe, Redshank, terns and gulls.   RSPB in Fermanagh also manages 600 hectares on Cuilcagh Mountain, home to Red Grouse, Skylarks and a few Hen Harriers.    Amy’s work brings her into daily contact with all sorts of wildlife including huge array of butterflies and moths. Her talk prompted many questions and much interest, for which she was warmly thanked by Harman Scott.

Meeting of Wednesday 10 October 2019
Speaker, Ms Donna Harbison and the team from Spec Savers

On Wednesday 9th October, Omagh Men’s Probus Club welcomed a team of speakers from Spec Savers in Omagh. Introduced as Donna, Cathy, Emma and Glen they began their presentation by briefly describing the range of services available.  These included Eye-tests, Eye Health, Glasses – frames and lenses – Hearing Tests and Domiciliary visits.   Not all eye problems are sight- related and Spec Savers advise on and treat conditions such as Dry Eye, Sticky Eye, Streaming, Red Eye and “Floaters”. It was explained that the top four causes of sight loss are AMD [Age-related Macular Degeneration] Glaucoma, Retinopathy resulting from diabetes and Cataracts which cause cloudy or hazy vision. Having discussed the range of tests and treatments now offered by optometrists, Donna introduced Glen, an accredited audiologist, who tests hearing and advises on hearing aids. So many issues related to hearing and sight loss were raised that a lively question and answer session ensued. Leaflets were distributed to provide more information and encouragement offered to visit Spec Savers in Market Street for individual assessments of eye and hearing health. The team was thanked for a most interesting visit by Probus Vice-President, Michael Cooney

Meeting of Wednesday 2 October 2019: Speaker, Mr Mickey Harte

On Wednesday 2 October Omagh Probus resumed after the summer recesss, and following a welcome back President, Oliver Loughran, congratulated member Bob Lingwood on his 101st birthday. He then paid tribute to two members who had sadly passed away since the club had last met on 29th May, namely Mr Ron Burch and Mr Wilbour Knox. The guest speaker was Mr Mickey Harte, best known as manager of Tyrone GAA but someone whose outlook on life which stretches well beyond football pitch. In fact Mickey surprised some members by not mentioning Gaelic games once in a talk in which he shared his philosophy for life and the values he had acquired along the way. Beginning with his childhood in Ballygawley where he was the youngest of 10 children, Mickey described how the church was the centre of community life and family prayers were said at the close of each day. Mickey married Marian in 1978 and together they had four children – three boys and a girl. The loss of Michaela in 2011 was an tragedy which tested the family’s faith, strength and courage. Mr Harte spoke movingly about what motivates him and how he has used his convictions to motivate and inspire others. Throughout his talk Mickey’s sense of humour surfaced time and again in stories, anecdotes and one-liners that captured the wit and wisdom of a man who commands respect and admiration across the community, the county and the island of Ireland.