Category: 2025

The speaker on Wednesday 9th November was Mr John Nevin, a retired civil servant whose career had been in the Department of Health and Social Services.  John began his talk by explaining that the concept of “social security” in Britain goes back of the reign of Henry VIII when monasteries doled out alms in the form of food relief.  Old Age Pensions were introduced in 1908, the rate being 5 shillings per week for a single person over 70, and 7 and 6 pence for a married couple.

John entered the social security service as an 18-year-old straight from school, and in the early days very much appreciated the help and guidance he got from older and more experienced colleagues. No-one, he said, likes being unemployed or being made redundant and having to “sign on”.  Back in the day this required a 15-minute face to face interview with a member of staff.  These encounters could at times become confrontational, but he found that the best way to deal with aggression was to be patient, listening, attentive and reflective. His experiences provided plenty of anecdotes of claimants trying to secure benefits while denying that they had jobs.

While most claimants were honest a small minority were referred to the FIO – Fraud Investigation Office.  John reported that although numbers were small (5%) the cost to the public purse was considerable – 5% of £980 million (total budget for 2024 in Northern Ireland) equates to £49 m. Interestingly, some 60% of claimants claim less than their entitlement.

Mr Nevin was warmly thanked for his talk by Club Member Harman Scott

Wednesday 12 November 2025: Club Visit to Terex Finlay Engineering

On Wednesday 12th November 12 members of the club visited the Terex Finlay manufacturing plant on the Drumquin Road, Omagh.  They were warmly welcomed by Clare Johnston who took the party into the Board Room for a briefing before a tour of the factory.  AS part of the briefing Clare gave a short history of the plant, from its beginnings as a block-making venture in the 1970’s to the global company it has become.  Later in the day club member Ivan Brown recalled selling their early block-making machines for Twelve Pounds, Shillings in 1949.
Today one of Terex’s large stone crushing machines would set you back £1.5 million and weigh up to 90 tons. Manufacturing is so efficient that one new machine rolls of the production line every day, it having taken anything from 6 – 10 weeks from start to finish. Each machine it tailored to the specific requirements of the purchaser. The scale of the enterprise and the logistics required to bring it all together begins to register when one understands that each crushing machine has some 62,000 components. Each component has sticky label with a QR code, which when scanned will inform the operator of exactly what needs to be done next. Increasingly Computer controlled machines do the precision engineering that turns raw steel into the component parts assembled to make the finished article.
Members were impressed by the scale and complexity of the operation and left with a feeling of pride in the success and achievements of this local enterprise.

The speaker on Wednesday 5th November 2025 was club member, Mr Kenneth Collins, who brought to the meeting a local history topic, entitled “A Fateful Migration”. While perusing newspaper columns from the mid-nineteenth century his attention fell on a death notice. Elizabeth Andrews, 22 November 1836, late of Omagh, lost in sinking of the ship BRISTOL, with 2nd son and three daughters”. Patient research uncovered the fact that Mrs Andrews had a shop in Omagh and when her husband David died she decided to sell and emigrate to the USA, to join her eldest son who had emigrated earlier.

Their journey began by taking a horse drawn open coach from Omagh to Derry where they took a paddle steamer to Liverpool and from where in October 1836 she and her children boarded the BRISTOL, a ship bound for New York.  By all accounts the 35-day voyage across the Atlantic was uneventful, but fatefully no pilots were available to take the ship on the final leg of its voyage from Long Island 20 miles up the to the New York docks.   While waiting a severe storm blew up which drove the ship aground and Mrs Andrews, her 2nd son and three daughters were among 100 fellow passengers who perished, despite the best efforts of local fishermen to rescue those on board.

Kenneth’s talk included how the story was uncovered, contemporary accounts of conditions on the old Trans-Atlantic emigrant sailing ships and photographs of the memorial erected in Rockville cemetery not far from Rockaway beach where the BRISTOL foundered. His talk prompted much discussion and earned him a well-deserved round of applause.

Wednesday 29 October 2025: Speaker Mr Norman Quinn

The speaker on Wednesday 29th October 2025 was Mr Norman Quinn who shared his life story from school days in Omagh Academy to retirement in Newtownstewart. He began by exhibiting a painting done by a German prisoner of war who had been assigned work in the army post office during the first World War under the command of Norman’s grandfather. On leaving school Norman joined the merchant navy as a radio operator and travelled the world on a succession of cargo ships. His ports of call included Cape Town, Ceylon, Singapore, Hong Kong and the islands of Southeast Asa. While docked in Peru he experienced an earthquake in which 20,000 persons perished.

One particular voyage ended in India where he spent 6 months before travelling back to the UK overland via Pakistan, Afghanistan, Persia and the countries in between, On leaving the merchant he worked in the Reform Stores in Newtownstewart for a time before his skills as a radio operator found a new lease of life with the coastguard service. Norman concluded his talk with several anecdotes drawn from 14 years monitoring shipping off the northwest coast of Ireland and the role he played in relaying message to helicopters tasked with rescuing those in peril on the sea. He was thanked for an interesting talk by club member Oliver Loughran who shared that brother has also been a radio operator in the merchant navy.

Omagh Probus Club, Wednesday 22 October 2025

The speaker on Wed 22 October was Club President, Felim O’Neill, drawn by lot to address members on a topic of his choosing. For his truly fascinating talk Felim dipped into his collection of objects mostly unearthed during outings with is trusty metal detector. He presented members with four pairs of artefacts and invited comment on the age, style and provence of each pair. The first pair were two bronze miniature figurines, one of which was correctly identified as a representation of Lord Nelson, dating from 1806 – the other more likely a recent souvenir from Egypt, in the shape of a temple goddess.

The second pair to be passed around were the pottery bases of two drinking vessels, one made on a potter’s wheel and dating from Roman times, the other built up from coils of clay in a style that was first developed in the Iron age. The third pair were both Norman, one the pommel of a sword, the other a swivel from a dog collar – see photo below. The fourth pair were again bronze miniatures but from very different periods of history; the one shaped like a Carnyx [trumpet] was likely to have been the handle of a Celtic shaving razor; the other, modelled on the neck, head and beak of a heron was possibly Roman and may have adorned the lid an expensive bowl.

Felim’s talk generated much interested discussion and many questions as well as well-deserved appreciation for his presentation.

Omagh Probus Club Wednesday 08 October 20205
Speaker, Club Member Mr Aidan Quinn.  Topic “Reflections”

The speaker on Wednesday 15^th October was Mr Aidan Quinn who reflected on his journey through life, enlivened with amusing stories and anecdotes.  Aidan grew up on a family farm outside Ballygawley.  From Omagh Technical College he progressed to Loughrey Agricultural College. On a visit to the Balmoral show, while still a student, he got into conversation with an exhibitor demonstrating milking machines. Such was his interest that he was offered a job interview which led to a career installing miking parlours in all parts of the UK and Ireland. Aidan illustrated his life and times with a large display of photographs, posters and cuttings, much to the interest of Club members.

OMAGH PROBUS CLUB: 8th October 2025 BUSINESS MEETING

Club President welcomed everyone and thanked them for their attendance. Before opening the meeting, he invited members to stand for a short time of silent reflection on the death of Club member Albert Alle who had passed on Wednesday 10th August. Many tributes were paid in his memory, with those who spoke expressing their sadness at the loss of a long-serving and loyal member of the club. The fortitude and dignity with which he faced terminal illness was very much in the character of a man who was admired and respected by all who knew him.

The business of the meeting was to agree a programme for the Autumn session.  This was accomplished without difficulty due to the willingness of members to assume responsibility for a meeting in the weeks ahead.   Arrangements for the Christmas Luncheon on Wednesday, 3^rd December were delegated to the Club Committee

The meeting ended on a cheerful note with the presentation to David Haddow of his Honorary Member’s Certificate.

Wednesday 1st October 2025: Guest Speaker, Mr Eamon Cunningham

Omagh Men’s Probus Club resumed meetings on Wednesday 1 October following the summer recess. Members were joined in the Golf Club at 10.30 am by the ladies of Omagh and District Ladies Probus Club for a special event hosted by club member, Mr Eamon Cunningham. Both Probus Club enjoy nothing more than having a reputed and respected member of the community share their life story. It is ever fascinating to share their journey from childhood through the trials and tribulations of adolescence into adulthood and hear of the twists and turns of employment, career progression and the rewards of marriage and family life. Such accounts often include reflections of how things might have turned out differently if circumstances had not been as they were.
On Thursday 2nd October the Ladies had their own meeting [men not invited] and had the privilege of hearing Dr Dominic Pinto recount the story of his life as a consultant surgeon in Tyrone County Hospital. Mr Cunningham’s story was one of entrepreneurship and the challenges he encountered along the way in building up Strathroy Dairies into the very successful enterprise which exists today. He was warmly thanked not only for his address but for providing some very tasty refreshments to go with the morning coffee and tea, a gesture which added greatly to everyone’s enjoyment of the occasion.

Photo below.  Members of the Men’s and Ladies’ Probus Clubs 

Omagh Probus Clubs Outing, Tuesday 3rd June 2025
On Tuesday 3rd June 2025 the Ladies and Men’s Probus Clubs participated in a joint outing to Killymoon Castle and Lissan House, Cookstown. To save on the cost of coach hire, transport was provided by members in private cars. The first port of call was Killymoon Castle, which dates from the 17th century and the early days of the Plantation of Ulster. One notable period in its history occurred during the Second World War when it was used to billet American Troops. Today one wing is a private residence, the remainder having been lovingly restored to show off its former grandeur.

Having enjoyed delicious homemade scones served with tea and coffee on Royal Dolton China in the ball room the party moved on to Lissan House, another plantation settlement but with a very different history and ambience. Until recently it was the private residence of the Staples family the last of whom bequeathed it a local trust, the members of which maintain it on a voluntary basis. The house featured prominently in the recent BBC Series “Chronicles of the Sperrins”, and is reputedly haunted by family members of previous owners.

A full history of both properties can be found on Google

 

The speaker on Wednesday 21st May 2025 was Mr Roddy Hackett reflecting on the life and times of the late Stephen McKenna, teacher, councillor and columnist.  Roddy recalled that Stephen’s parents were both from Innisowen in Donegal and his father was a well-known footballer: they came to Omagh and lived initially in Castle Street.  Stephen was educated at the local CBS School and later at Queens University, Belfast. At QUB he overlapped with poet Seamus Heaney and with Phil Coulter founded the Glee Club. He even made an appearance on University Challenge. He was intensely interested in the local history of Omagh and became well known for his weekly Raymond Na Hatta column in the Ulster Herald. Stephen was an inveterate traveller taking many vacations in Europe and trips as far afield as Texas.