A Brief History
The Canadian Club of Hamilton was the first Canadian Club in the newly created Dominion of Canada.
In February 1893, a public meeting was held in Hamilton led by a young Canadian reporter, Charles R. McCullough. The resolution from this meeting read as follows:
“It is, in the opinion of this meeting, a fit and proper time to take definite steps, however humble, to deepen and widen the regard of Canadians for their land of birth or adoption and to increase their interest in matters affecting the welfare of their country.
Be it, therefore, resolved that this meeting proceed to the organization of a society to be known as The Canadian Club, having for its objects the encouragement of the study of the history, literature, and resources of Canada, and the fostering of a patriotic Canadian sentiment.”
National awareness and unity, during the 1890’s, was dangerously low, and few new Canadians shared a strong sense of patriotism. With the creation of the Canadian Club, for the first time, many new Canadians were offered a strong, unifying outlet, promoting a sense of pride in their newly adopted county.
By 1907, nearly 30 Canadian Clubs had been organized from coast to coast, including two Women Canadian Clubs one in Montreal and the other in Winnipeg. 1912 saw the women of Hamilton organize their own Women’s Canadian Club of Hamilton. The Canadian Club movement had begun. Within fifteen years of that first meeting, the movement that originated in Hamilton had spanned across the country and to this day, proudly plays a significant role in promoting Canadian national pride and unity.
Meet the Board
The Canadian Club may be more than 100 years old, but it takes dedication and stamina to keep such an organization vital. The following people have contributed greatly to the re-vitalization of this Storied Club.
Tim Simmons
Chair, Board of Directors
Tim Simmons B.A. Political Science Carleton University
Tim is Owner/Operator of Heritage Weddings and Coordinators here in Hamilton. He was a former public school board trustee and Chair of the Hamilton Wentworth District School Board .
He is the author of Evolutionary Digital Environment Net: A Unified Compromise for the A.I Control Problem and Climate Crisis. His debut science fiction novel, CRUSHING will be published by The Wild Rose Press in 2023.
Tim resides in Hamilton with his wife, Kyoung-Ju and their two children. He has been a member of the Canadian Club for many years and is committed to the continuance of this storied club for many more.
Enzo Galano
Treasurer, Board of Directors
Enzo Galano, B.A. (Honours) McMaster University.
Raised and educated in Hamilton, Enzo is a proud graduate of Cathedral High School and McMaster University.
Enzo has taught at the secondary and post –secondary level and spent a significant time with Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) before opening his own firm offering accounting, taxation and business strategy services
Enzo loves to read books on any topic with a bias towards books on politics and history and claims to have “the best set of books never read’’
Enzo has been active in the community and served as President of the Hamilton & District Multicultural Council as well as President of the Canadian Club of Hamilton (1996-1997). Through financial acumen and a keen interest in the Canadian Club of Hamilton, Enzo will contribute its long-term stewardship .
Clarence Seunarine
Member, Board of Directors
Clarence Seunarine, M.B.A. Schulich School of Business.
Born and raised in Hamilton, Clarence Seunarine has had the opportunity to study, work, and live in different parts of Canada and the world.
He has worked in a number of different sectors from IT sales to political communications.
Clarence has an International M.B.A. from the Schulich School of Business with a specialization in environmentally sustainable business practices and loves sports, music, and politics in particular order.
Nathaniel Barr
Member, Board of Directors
Nathaniel Barr is a Professor of Creativity and Creative Thinking at Sheridan College and an advisor and speaker in the private sector. He earned his PhD and was a postdoctoral research fellow in the Psychology Department at the University of Waterloo.
Nathaniel has published on a wide variety of topics in popular and scientific outlets, including creativity, innovation, bullshit, the intersection of technology and thinking, applied behavioural science, and the connection between global socioeconomic trends and the human mind. His teaching focuses on helping learners develop the knowledge, skills, and abilities needed to thrive in the Fourth Industrial Revolution.
Originally from rural Middlesex County, Nathaniel now resides in Hamilton with his wife, three children, and German Shepherd Dog.
Johnny Malciw Barr
Member, Board of Directors
Johnny Malciw Barr, Honours B.A. University of Waterloo (Anthropology and History) and M.A. Ryerson University (Immigration and Settlement Studies)
Ms. Johnny Malciw Barr’s expertise is Canadian history and culture. Her Master’s thesis centered on the critical role that immigration played in the history of Canada.
Johnny has held numerous positions within both the federal and provincial government, including the Ministry of Community and Social Services, and the Immigration and Refugee Board. She also has extensive volunteer experience with a number of multicultural and immigration centres, oriented toward facilitating newcomers’ transitions to Canada.
Born and raised in Northern Ontario, Hamilton has been home for the last four years to Johnny, her husband, and three children.
Derek Timmerman
Member, Board of Directors
Derek Timmerman B.F.A. (Honours) Graphic Design, University of Illinois Circle and M.F.A. Industrial Design, University of Illinois Champaign/Urbana
Before Moving to Hamilton in 2011, Derek spent 30 years running a very successful National Agency, Timmerman Group, based in Toronto and specializing in Branding, Packaging and Advertising Design. During this period he also taught design and reproduction technologies at OCAD University – Canada’s premier design school.
Derek is an avid art and antique collector and also very much enjoys long-form discussion-podcasts about religion and atheism, politics, philosophy and psychology.
Derek brings his Design and Marketing acumen to the Board and is largely responsible for the Canadian Club Hamilton’s new look.
Kaye Prince Hollenberg
Member, Board of Directors
Kaye Prince Hollenberg, Honours B.A. University of Toronto. M.I. iSchool, University of Toronto.
Kaye is the Cataloguing & Metadata Librarian at Hamilton Public Library, focussing on digital resources and local history & archives. She is also a professional genealogist specializing in Jewish genealogy, and DNA and adoption research.
Kaye sits on the National Heritage Digitization Strategy Technical Working Group, and is a member of the Association of Professional Genealogists and the International Society of Genetic Genealogy.
Although Kaye traces her roots back to some of the earliest UEL settlers in the Hamilton area, she grew up a little further north, and moved to Hamilton with her husband in 2016 following a 14-year stint in Toronto. There she worked with several organizations connected to Canadian heritage, including the CBC.