Tributes to Eardley Samuels

The following are tributes to Eardley Samuels – March 16, 1932 – January 21, 2020. One of the saints whose spirit lives on in the lives and memories of those who knew him.

We met in 1969 at a Shell Canada purchasing getaway at a fishing resort on the French River called Lift the Latch Lodge. I remember it so clearly because as the new guy on the block, I was astounded by this fellow who rose after dinner without much encouragement and sang in the most incredible voice, “When the red red robin comes bobbin’ along.” We lost track of each other as I was being moved throughout Shell for exposure and Eardley continued in Purchasing with a storied career taking him to Australia, New York and Houston. Coincidentally, 35 years later, we were both in Lorne Park and he sponsored me into PROBUS South. What you may not know is that Eardley was the ‘Godfather of PRISMS’ – PROBUS Responsible Investigators of Single Malt Scotch. In addition to starting many PROBUS clubs, Eardley introduced PRISMS in many clubs as far away as Australia. Credit River has two such groups, Mississauga South has three. He was a most dedicated and loyal individual with old-fashioned discipline and values the world seems to lack these days. He will be sorely missed and I can assure you every PRISMS group will raise a wee dram in his honour! He is now enjoying a well earned rest, and peace. I will miss him. Wayne Robinson

In the summer of 2011, Eardley invited a group of ten folks (most of whom are still members of CRP) to his home to talk about starting a new PROBUS club. By the time we all went home that evening, Eardley had assigned each one of us a job/role/position in the new Club, and off we went from there! In 2013, when a group of us crafted our Constitution and Bylaws, we incorporated two special classes of membership: Honorary Member for outside dignitaries, community luminaries, admired persons, etc, AND Lifetime Member for our own members who made outstanding contributions to our Club, both of which were restricted to only 2% of our membership total. Eardley is the only one from either category ever bestowed with the honour of Lifetime Member for his work in founding our Club. Judy and I have known Eardley and Celine for over 30 years, mostly as fellow members of Christ First (formerly Christ Church) where he and Judy sang in the choir together for many years. Along with many others I enjoyed sharing time and drinks with Eardley as he founded our CRP chapter of PRISMS. Lastly, Judy and I worked with Eardley for many years assisting him in organizing his annual PROBUS Sing-Alongs. We will miss Eardley very much. A finer gentleman is not likely to be found. Rick Scott

It does seem like a slightly darker world without Eardley. Not only did he have a wonderful voice and sang regularly at church, but he also got us all up and going to do projects for others. I remember us all painting together at Armagh House under his leadership. He also had travelled and worked around the world. Heather McGillis