Great food!

Great conversation!

Live jazz and blues!

Comedy!

Reserve by DECEMBER 15!

Compassionate Vegetarianism

Sunday, November 21, 2010

11:30 AM

Lion Brewery Restaurant (lower level of Huether Hotel)

59 King Street North, Waterloo

The percentage of vegetarians and vegans in the atheist and philosophy communities is higher than the general public. This may be related to the increased likeliness that a freethinker analyzes the situation methodically and concludes, from a moral perspective, that meat eating is not justifiable. On the other hand, some nutrition studies have shown that vegetarians are no better off  than their omnivorous counterparts, and that for the average person, a mixed diet may be healthier for optimum health. Guest speaker: Michael Sizer-Watt.

Saturday, October 16, 2010 

Humanities Theatre, University of Waterloo

SOFREE always participates in this annual conference as it is a great opportunity to showcase humanism to hundreds of people, dispel biases, present the secular side to important themes, and display freethought merchandise and literature. This year’s speaker is Stuart Bechman, president of the renowned Atheist Alliance International. Notable past speakers representing SOFREE include:

Christopher diCarlo (award-winning professor, philosopher, human rights activist, and 2008 Humanist of the Year);

Dan Barker (acclaimed musician, civil rights activist and president of the Freedom from Religion Foundation);

Jan Narveson (professor emeritus at the University of Waterloo and 2005 Order of Canada Member);

David Koepsell (attorney, author, past executive director at Council of Secular Humanism, professor - currently teaching at Delft University in the Netherlands)

The conference runs 10:00 am to 5:00 pm. SOFREE volunteers to help at our booth would be appreciated. Lunch, snacks and drinks are all complimentary. We will get together after the conference for our traditional post-conference dinner social.

Sunday September 26

WORD ON THE STREET FESTIVAL - Victoria Park (Kitchener)

If you love the written word, you'll love the Word On The Street! The WOTS is a world-famous book and magazine festival that we participate in every year as it allows us to showcase humanism and SOFREE. A diverse range of booksellers, tasty foods, booth displays, music and fun await you! SOFREE volunteers to help manage our booth would be appreciated. Join us for dinner afterward. The festival runs 11:00 am - 5:00 pm. Volunteers should be at our booth by 11:00 am.

Monday September 13

EUTHANASIA: MURDER OR MERCY? - Wilfrid Laurier University (Waterloo). Room 111.

Join us for a daring look at euthanasia and the most prominent case of “mercy killing” in Canadian history by acclaimed speaker and writer, Gary Bauslaugh.

In October 1993, Robert Latimer ended the life of his chronically ill daughter, Tracy, who had severe cerebral palsy. She was 12 years old at the time of her death. Tracy’s death and the charge of murder laid against Robert Latimer set in motion Canada’s most famous and controversial case of “mercy killing.”  The case sparked a national debate about euthanasia and the rights of the disabled that continues today.

Gary Bauslaugh has a PhD from McGill University, and has held various teaching and administrative positions in post-secondary institutions in Canada and served for four years as CEO of a post-secondary educational planning and development agency in British Columbia. He has given presentations on diverse topics, and his work has been published in many different publications. He co-authored a chapter on evolution and intelligent design in a recent book called Universities at Risk and was past editor of Humanist Perspectives (2003-2008)

Saturday August 7

MOVE NIGHT SOCIAL - "SPLICE" (R)

Gifted genetic engineers Clive (Adrian Brody) and Elsa (Sarah Polley) specialize in splicing DNA from different animals to create incredible new hybrids. Now they want to use human DNA in a hybrid that could revolutionize science and medicine. But when the pharmaceutical company that funds their research forbids it, Clive and Elsa secretly take their bold experimentation underground, risking their careers by pushing the boundaries of science to serve their own curiosity and ambition. The result is Dren - a strangely beautiful and intelligent creature with an array of unique physical developments. Then, things start to go awry...

July 24-30

Camp Quest Ontario 2010

Camp Quest Ontario is the only humanist summer camp in Canada. Our unique program combines science, critical-thinking, and humanism workshops, with traditional camp activities. Past favourites: rock-climbing, swimming, Capture the Flag, tie-dyeing, fabric painting, campfires, logic games, debating, and code-breaking. 

June 21

SUMMER SOLSTICE EVENT IN NIAGARA - Drumming Down the Sun

Join our Niagara SOFREE members at the drumming ceremony at Lakeside Park in St Catharines. This is a free family event.

March 28

MORALITY: Natural or Supernatural?

Our lively debate on March 18 at the Bricker Building at Wilfrid Laurier University, MORALITY: Natural or Supernatural? was a success. Over 90 people attended, questions and mini discussions flowed, and many of us headed over to the Lion Brewery at the Huether Hotel for late night snacks and drinks. The debate pitted celebrated Messianic Jew lecturer, Mariano Grinbank (aka Mariano Apologeticus) against our own Michael Sizer, a local atheist activist. Admission was free for SOFREE members and $5 for the public. Thanks again to the LFA for their help!

February 27

Fundraiser for Haitian Earthquake Relief

SOFREE, in cooperation with the Lions Club of Niagara region, was proud to launch our first fundraiser of 2010: BOOMER MUSIC TRIVIA NIGHT on February 27. Proceeds from this fun event, that featured music trivia from the 50's, 60's and 70's, went toward the Humanitarian Coalition. The coalition is a network made up of  CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam Québec and Save the Children, united in times of humanitarian crisis. Combining resources saves costs and can be more efficient and effective in assisting people in disaster areas. Kudos to David Fowler and Janet Hodgkins for organizing this worthwhile endeavour.

February 6

DARWIN DAY 2010

Every Darwin Day we try to do something different. Last year we had a bicentennial birthday bash, completed with catered dinner and wine, at the Cambridge Hotel and Conference Centre in Cambridge. This year, we decided to celebrate reason and humanity by promoting and attending the film, CREATION, at the Princess Theatre in Waterloo. Starring Paul Bettany and Jennifer Connelly, CREATION showed Charles Darwin (Bettany) as a world-renowned scientist, and a dedicated family man struggling to accept his daughter's death. Darwin is torn between his love for his deeply religious wife (Connelly) and his own budding idea of a world where God has no place. He finds himself caught in a battle between faith and reason, love and truth. This is the extraordinary story of Charles Darwin and how his masterpiece "The Origin of Species" came to be. 

7:00 pm. Princess Cinema. 6 Princess St, Waterloo. $10.