What a pleasure it was to have resident Noni’s friend, Irene Pfeiffer, come and talk to us about her amazing life. Irene has, as she puts it, “always been in the right place at the right time or the wrong place at the wrong time”! She spoke to us about growing up in Canada, speaking French and English (or sometimes Frenglish!) She graduated school at 16, university at 20, and went on to work for the oil and gas industry. Irene broke many glass ceilings in her work, not least integrating the bathrooms at the large company where she was to become one of the only women on several senior executive teams. Her parents taught her the value of travel, and she has had some incredible experiences. She travelled to Tanzania and Kenya and climbed Mount Kilimanjaro. She went to China a week after Tiananmen Square and worked in Hong Kong for a while. Irene and her husband were in Iran when the Shah of Iran was overthrown, and they were in East Germany when the Berlin Wall came down. Irene was given the honour of the Order of Canada for her work with women on the streets of Canada, and she has been involved in numerous charitable works. Her philosophy is “how can I be retired if I’ve never been tired?” She is a member of several boards, is a citizenship judge, and is a marriage commissioner. It was a really interesting talk, and many residents and friends came to hear her speak. The next day Irene told us that she had forgotten to mention that she’s met the Pope and the Queen! Perhaps next time she’s in Australia we can hear part two! A huge shout out to resident Eva who organised the event, and baked some beautiful Hungarian treats for the occasion. Thanks to Irene, Eva and everyone who came.
