Pymble Probus
In the Blue Mountains
Our Club
At Pymble Probus, our aim is to provide regular opportunities to keep members’ minds active, expand their interests and to enjoy the fellowship of new friends – and above all, to get more out of life!
There is a variety of Probus Clubs; some are all male, some are all female, and most are “mixed”. We are a mixed club. Our membership is open to men and women.
We get together at monthly meetings where we catch up with each other over morning tea and lunch. At these meetings we also have guest speakers – experts in a range of different topics.
We also enjoy a range of different activities including outings, walks, golf, bowls, bridge, theatre, restaurants, and a variety of occasional events.
Our Meetings
We meet on the second Tuesday of the month at 10am at the Killara Golf Club. But it is jokingly said that with Pymble Probus if you haven’t arrived 20 minutes before the scheduled time, for meetings and activities, you are late.
So from roughly 9.15am our members start to arrive. This gives us time to chat and meet with the leaders (convenors) of our different activities to discuss and organise our participation in coming events.
Our meetings:
- dress code is “smart casual”
- meetings open with reports from the various conveners about club activities.
- we break at 10.30ish for morning tea until 11am sharp
- then we hear from our guest speaker – the talk and questions take us to 12noon
- then lunch (optional) which currently costs $50 and includes a glass of wine, coffee and mints and runs to 1.30ish or when members choose to leave.
Guest Speakers
The highlight of our meeting each second Tuesday of the month is our Guest Speakers. They address an incredible range of topics, providing fascinating insights. Recent Speakers have been:
“We really do get more out of life belonging to Pymble Probus – It is because of the spirit of the Club, the intangibles. We get to meet interesting people, and the members are so welcoming. Despite our meetings being somewhat formal and well run, they are lively with a great deal of irreverent humour, ensuring a real feeling of camaraderie.”
Activities
Apart from regular monthly meetings, we also engage in a wide range of activities – outings, walks, golf, bowls, bridge, theatre, restaurants, and a variety of occasional events.
Outings are generally one day excursions to places of interest, but can be multiday tours in regions of New South Wales and interstate. One such annual trip is “Playtime”, generally a 3 day/2 night trip with great camaraderie and a wide range of activities including tours.
Walks
We like to explore interesting parts of Sydney. Here are a few examples.
Bowls
Pymble Probus joins other Probus clubs in bowls meetings.
(Temporarily suspended due to a lack of participants)
Coffee Mornings
On the Monday one week before the monthly meeting, we meet for morning coffee at Taste Buds Cafe on Mona Vale Road, Terry Hills. The meeting is very informal; however, we have been known to discuss political issues amongst other topics.
Value Eats
Three or four times a year, usually on a Thursday night, a number of our members gather at a local Restuarant for Dinner. Our convener tries to find an interesting location with an all inclusive menu at a set and reasonable price….. generally $45 to $50 per head.This is always a most congenial evening and is well supported.
Outings
We organize outings during each year to interesting places for our members and their partners. These outings are day trips or multi-day trips. Click here to see examples.
Golf
Probus Golf players come together on 5 or 6 occasions each year at various clubs on the North Shore including Pymble, Killara and Avondale for a day of golf and fellowship. We encourage participation of members and partners along with potential Probus members.
Each year we play a Club Championship event, however, we are more intent on having a pleasant day than winning a prize. We welcome all standards of golf.
Theatre
Theatre is an important part of the Club’s numerous activities. We try to achieve a good mix of concerts, musicals, plays, local performances, etc. and offer an average of 6-8 shows a year.
For example, during 2024, the following performances were offered to our members:
- The White Sheep of the Family at The Pymble Players
- The Wharf Review at the Glen Street Theatre
- David Williamson Play at the Ensemble Theatre
- “The Spook” by the Pymble Players
- Sister Act at the Capitol Theatre
We plan to offer a similar selection in 2025 for our members’ enjoyment.
Bridge
$2.50 Club
Cultural Events
About Probus
Probus is an international organisation operating in many countries around the world. Probus originated in the U.K. in 1965 as an all-male organisation.
A Probus Club is an association of retired and semi-retired people who appreciate and value the chance to associate with others in similar circumstances. The name PROBUS was chosen as an amalgam of the words “PROfessional” and “BUSiness”, reflecting the backgrounds and careers shared by many of our members.
The purpose of our Club is to advance intellectual and cultural interests among adult persons who have retired or are semi-retired from their former occupations.
The Club creates opportunities for our members to maintain active minds, explore issues and ideas within a new social circle, and engage with and expand their interests through participation in Club activities. At a time of life when horizons may be narrowing, Probus Clubs bring like-minded people together in camaraderie and fellowship, and new friendships regularly result.
Probus was founded to meet the need for companionship of peers and mental stimulation for retired business and professional people. Probus Clubs are not service clubs, nor do they engage in fund-raising activities. They are structured as not-for-profit organisations, operating at a minimum cost to members, dedicated only to supporting members getting more out of life!
Probus reached Australia in 1976 when the first Club was founded in Hunters Hill, NSW. The Pymble Probus Club was founded in 1985. All Australian Probus Clubs operate autonomously within the constitution provided by PROBUS SOUTH PACIFIC – for example, while Probus began as a male-only organisation, the membership of each individual Club is free to decide whether to operate as a single or mixed gender club.
Pymble Probus Club: Origins
St. Ives Rotary Club sponsored Pymble Probus Club in 1985. Sir Francis Blackwood convened a meeting on the 1st May at the Ku-ring-gai Businessmen’s Club in Telegraph Road, Pymble. Twenty-eight prospective members of the proposed Pymble Probus Club attended, along with representatives from the neighbouring Probus Clubs – St. Ives, Ku-ring-gai, Wahroonga, Warrawee, Hornsby, Lindfield and French’s Forest.
After opening the meeting, the convenor invited the President of St. Ives Rotary Club, Dr. Brian Florance, to take the chair. In his opening address he “stated his great pleasure at seeing St. Ives Rotary initiating yet another Probus Club.” The Presidential Collar, gong, gavel, and lapel badges for the foundation members were presented by the St. Ives Rotary Club.
The new Club met monthly at the Ku-ring-gai Businessmen’s Club until August 1985, when closure of that Club forced our Club to re-locate. Killara Golf Club was approached and was happy to accommodate our Club – and, as we are still there more than 30 years later, the move has proved very satisfactory!
In December 1987, the Club held a special ceremony prior to the Christmas luncheon at which “a clump” of three sequoia trees (Californian Redwoods) was presented to the Killara Golf Club in appreciation of their co-operation and assistance to the Pymble Probus Club. A further object of the presentation was to mark the Australian Bicentenary in 1988. The “Planting Ceremony” took place at 11.45am near the 10th hole. Only one of the original trees survives, growing some 30 metres short of the hole.
Probus Travel Insurance
A major benefit available to Probus members is excellent Travel Insurance
The Probus Travel Insurance plans are exclusive to Probus South Pacific Limited and can only be accessed if you are a member of a Probus Club or Rotary Club, or their immediate family member. Probus has plans for both domestic and overseas travel.
Travel Insurance Options for Australian Residents:
- Single trip domestic and overseas
- Multi-trip annual insurance domestic and overseas
- Insurance plans for age over 80 and up to 90
- Insurance plans for age over 90 and up to 100
For more information ring 1300 360 488 or email travelinsurance@probussouthpacific.org
Joining our Club
We welcome like-minded people joining our Club
For more information call –
President John Brodie (0411 137 878) or
Vice President Jan Cooper (0418 635 680) or
Secretary Robin Fraser (0432 264 504).
Or email: pymbleprobusenquiry@outlook.com
Frequently Asked Questions
Prospective and Current Members often have questions but don’t know who to ask. Here we provide answers to the most commonly asked questions.
If you have any other question please direct it to our Secretary, whose contact details are in the section Joining Our Club
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