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OLLI
E-News #16-07 of Apr. 20, 2007
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FLASH
>
MON, APR 23,
11:45 AT LAKE ANNE: HEAR BOARD CANDIDATES SPEAK. |
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ALERT
>
BOARD MEETING
NEXT FRI, APR 27. 10:00, Tallwood. All are welcome to attend.
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| ARTICLES AND
NOTICES
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DEPARTMENTS
> LETTERS
TO THE EDITOR. Two members write about the upcoming
election.
> CENTER FOR THE ARTS.
Upcoming arts and music events at Mason. By Jan Bohall
>
MASON
HIGHLIGHTS. Other events at nearby Mason. By Barbara Kyriakakis
> COMING ATTRACTIONS. Upcoming
OLLI non-class
events for the next two weeks. |
MORE
WAYS TO MAKE FRIENDS
Notes from the final spring mini town
meeting
 By Debbie Halverson, President
THE LAST OF OUR MINI TOWN MEETINGS for
the spring 2007 term brought out a
variety of ideas about how to enhance the social advantages of
belonging to OLLI.
We started by identifying current, clearly social, activities like
large parties such as the three we had within this last year. We talked
about small friendly classes that tend toward special interests like
Singing for Fun, Readers' Theater, watercolor, French class, and many
others. We really would like more lunch bunch gatherings, like the one
at Bamian’s last month, that drew about 50 people. And, of course, very
important, the trips arranged by the special events committee and our
several clubs. All of these are places where people meet and greet
their friends.
We all agreed, however, that we cannot forget
that we are at OLLI primarily for the academics; the social connections
only enhance that. Still, we do know OLLI is providing vital social
connections for many members: for those who live alone; for men seeking
male associations and women for women; for all of us who are looking
for people we can talk to about those matters that we share in common.
But should we be doing more, and what, we
posed to the group, might that be?
Here are some of the ideas that emerged:
- More
special interest clubs like the bridge club, history, reading and
others. Why not start pinochle, Mac users, ballroom dancing (much
interest in that one), walkers, photography, stamps?
- Someone
suggested that the special events trips include a "getting to know you
period" instead of people only sitting with people they already know
and then sticking with the same at the destination. Some LLIs,
especially start-ups, include in their programming small study groups
that explore specific questions in such areas as grand parenting, aging
issues and widowhood or lighter topics like movies we never tire of and
why.
- We
talked about how to make Friday programming more interesting and
appealing, even if we should consider activity on Saturdays.
- We now
have available to us a map of our area showing where each OLLI member
lives, sort of a bird's eye view of our various communities. We talked
about how we can give members access to this for car pooling purposes
or social purposes.
- An
important suggestion was that the board consider setting up a special
committee to be in charge of social life at OLLI.
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We’d like to keep this dialogue open and
to
continue collecting interesting ideas to explore while following
through on those suggested. We hope all members will feel free to join
this discussion. Contact me or Dick Chobot with anything that strikes
you as a good way to make friends at OLLI. And maybe in that way, I’ll
get to meet more of you myself; I’d like that.
ELECTION
About the annual meeting & board
election
REMINDER: THE OLLI ANNUAL
MEMBERSHIP MEETING will be held two weeks from today on
Fri,
May 4, at 10:00 at
Tallwood and will feature reports from president Debbie
Halverson and
executive director Dick Chobot and brief speeches by the candidates for
election to the Board.
Last week, candidate statements/biographies
were emailed to the membership. Should you misplace that information,
the candidate statements/biographies and photos may be viewed on the What's New
page
of the OLLI Website at any time during this election season. Also
see the posters at Tallwood and Lake Anne for the same photos and
statements/biographies.
For
more details about the annual meeting and the balloting process, please
read the Annual Meeting Notice that was mailed to
you or read the online version
of that notice. You should
have received your ballots by now; mailings to members without email
included candidate
statements/biographies.
You are
strongly encouraged to attend the Apr
23 candidate speeches at Lake Anne and/or the annual meeting on May 4 so that
you
can hear the candidates speak before you decide how to vote. Remember,
you have two weeks to vote after the annual meeting (until noon on May
18), so there is no
need to vote before the meeting. |
Back to top
ARE YOU ONE OF THE ELECT?
Don't forget to complete the survey!
 By Dick Chobot,
Executive Director
OLLI'S
SALVATION COMES (in part)
through good data!
Last Monday, you received a letter from Debbie
Halverson asking you to fill out the first of two OLLI membership
surveys. The letter contained a link to the survey. This link is
repeated below.
If you have not yet completed the survey
please do it now. You can get to the survey right from this article
(just click the link immediately above). The survey will take you 10
minutes and represents a real contribution to OLLI and its
future.
If you have completed the survey, thank you!
We will be reporting preliminary findings at the Annual Membership
Meeting on Fri, May 4.
 DON'T
HAVE A WEDNESDAY CLASS?
Reston senior movies
 By Ben Gold,
Reston Program Resource Group chair
IF
YOU DON'T HAVE A WEDNESDAY CLASS, then try the
free senior movies at the Reston Town Center Multiplex on the fourth
Wednesday of each month (that’s the 25th of this month). Refreshments
and
door prizes are provided prior to the movie. Doors open at 9:15;
show time is 10:00.
For movie titles, visit the Reston
Association Website or call 703-435-6577. (This coming Wednesday's
movie is The Pink Panther.)
Moscow State
University
| SPECIAL RUSSIAN GUEST SPEAKER |
 DR. OLGA
ZINOVIEVA, a native of Moscow and SUNY (State University of New
York) Program Director at Moscow State University, will discuss
“Stalinist Symbolism in Moscow Architecture” next Fri, Apr 27, at
3:30 in TA-1.
Dr. Zinovieva will describe the extensive
building projects that took place in Moscow during Stalin’s rule.
Moscow lacked the infrastructure to be the capital and major city of a
large industrial power. Under Stalin’s direction, many of Moscow’s
narrow streets were widened, a vast subway system was built, and the
city was filled with massive government buildings, apartments, and
monuments. She argues that Stalin used architecture as both a monument
to himself and a means of propaganda for Soviet ideology. The size and
grandeur of the buildings symbolized the power of the state and the
Utopian future that the Soviet people were striving toward. Today,
Stalin-era structures include some of Moscow’s best-known monuments and
most prestigious addresses.
The presentation is open to all OLLI members
and to the Russian language department at Mason. Members attending
either course 403 (Russian Culture) or course 703 (Russia: An Overview)
are particularly encouraged to attend.
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HISTORY CLUB
Talk on American involvement in the
decline of the British role in Africa 1939-1965
| NEXT MONTH'S HISTORY CLUB MEETING |
  THE NEXT HISTORY CLUB MEETING at OLLI
will be on Wed, May 2, at 2:00 and will feature a talk on American
involvement in the decline of the British role in Africa 1939-1965.
OLLI’s Jim Hubbard notes that in 1939 Britain
held numerous African colonies; by Nov 1965 with Rhodesia’s declaration
of independence, it held almost none. In 1939, the U.S. was one of
several regional powers; by 1965, the U.S. was one of only two world
powers with dedicated interests around the globe. Jim’s presentation
will explore the relationship, if any, between these two fundamental
changes in world history during the second half of the twentieth
century. Did the British leave Africa voluntarily over the 1939-1965
period of decolonization or were they pushed out of their colonial role
politically, economically or for other reasons?
Also the Club is pleased to welcome Bob
Persell as coordinator for 2007-2008. We will have an opportunity to
discuss ideas and topics for the fall. All are welcome! For more
information, see the History Club newsletter
(pdf).
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| Contributed
by History Club coordinator Bob Bohall |
LETTERS
TO THE EDITOR
A forum for members to voice their views
on OLLI matters
WE
WILL
PUBLISH your brief letters about OLLI and, if
applicable, we will try
to include follow-up information from the relevant officer, committee
chair or staff
member in the same or a subsequent issue. Submit your letter via email to the editor or
submit it as a "letter to the editor" via
the online
suggestion box or the suggestion box in the Tallwood Social Room. Letters can be published
anonymously but you must include your name and email address or phone
number so we can verify that you are an OLLI member.
Importance
of hearing candidates before voting
Dear Fellow OLLI Members:
As you know, the ballots for the election for board members have
already been mailed out. Do not lose your ballot as it will not be
replaced!
Unfortunately, the opportunity to officially
meet the
candidates and hear them speak will not come until April 23rd (Lake
Anne) or May 4th (Tallwood).
Some OLLI members may have a tendency to vote and return their ballots
as soon as possible.
I URGE YOU NOT TO DO THIS! Please, take your
time. Make a point of actually meeting and talking with as many
candidates as possible. Ask them pointed questions about issues of
concern to you as an OLLI member. For example, if you were concerned
about the large increase in dues this year, ask them if they would vote
in favor of a similar large dues increase next year. If you wonder why
OLLI needs to open facilities in Loudoun, ask candidates what their
feelings are concerning expansion.
Your INFORMED vote is very important, now more
than ever. You can make your voice heard and influence the future of
OLLI.
-- Susanne Zumbro, a concerned Board member
Hearing
candidates speak; cost of executive director
Dear Editor:
In last week’s mini town meeting, members raised concerns that ballots
would be received and votes cast before we hear candidates’ viewpoints.
One member noted that last year she received the ballot, cast her vote,
later heard the candidates speak, then realized she should have voted
differently. Several members asked Debbie to arrange something to
alleviate the situation. She indicated she could not do that since she
thought it could be a conflict of interest with her running for
reelection.
Candidates speak at a meeting in TA-1
(capacity 80) and Reston (capacity about 74). So, there is no room for
about 80% of the more than 750 members to hear candidates at the
scheduled times. Consequently, much of the voting may be based on
name-recognition rather than the issues. Coincidentally, just the other
day we had Debbie’s letter emailed to all members. It is fortunate the
incumbent can reinforce name-recognition before the election. That
might be construed as more of a conflict of interest than would be
arranging for all candidates to be heard before votes are cast.
A significant issue facing us is the
cost-effectiveness of a full-time executive director. From what I’ve
observed during my membership, I cannot see the benefit in day-to-day
operations since an executive director was hired. Accordingly, I
suggest all candidates address the cost-effectiveness of having a
full-time vs. part-time individual to run the day-to-day operations of
OLLI. With over 750 members, there may even be someone who is
qualified and interested in taking the position on a part-time basis at
an affordable cost until we can better afford the full-time executive
director. With another dues increase imminent, I believe it only fair
that the critical issues should be addressed prior to the election.
-- Dan Feighery, OLLI member
Comments/questions/suggestions about OLLI?
Here's how to express your views--
- Privately--
- Contact any Board member
or the Executive Director;
- Send an email to the entire Board
(email the editor or the office to have your
message forwarded to all members of the Board);
- Submit a suggestion online
or in the box in the Tallwood social room or on one of the "parking
lots for ideas" in classrooms; or
- Contact the office by email
or phone (703-503-3384).
- Publicly
(if you would like your comments to be seen by other members, including
the Board, and the Executive Director): Email a Letter
to the Editor or a Letter to
Ms. Ollie Ettakit for publication in OLLI
E-News.
|
 COMING EVENTS AT THE CENTER FOR THE ARTS
Something for everyone at nearby Mason,
Apr 20-30
By Jan Bohall, OLLI
E-News staff writer
For tickets, call 888-945-2468 (phone orders are handled by tickets.com)
or visit the Center
for the Arts Box Office, Tue–Sat, 10:00–6:00.
Fairfax Symphony Orchestra
John
Ferrillo, oboe
William
Hudson, conductor
Mr. Ferrillo, now with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, is a former
member
of the Fairfax Symphony. On the program is Bach’s Concerto for Oboe and
Violin, the new Oboe Concerto by Jennifer Higdon and excerpts from
operas by Wagner and Richard Strauss.
Sat, Apr 21, 8:00
Admission: $55, $45, $35, $25
Concert Hall
American Youth Philharmonic Orchestra
Sun, Apr 22, 1:00
Admission: $10 seniors/students/$14 adults
Concert Hall
Young Artists Musicale
Sun, Apr 22, 6:00
Admission: Free
Concert Hall Lobby
Keyboard Conversations with Jeffrey Siegel
Liszt –
The Devil Made Me
Do It!
Mr. Siegel concludes his series of Keyboard Conversations with
Totentanz (Dance of Death) and Mephisto Waltz, among other works by
Franz Liszt.
Sun, Apr 22, 7:00
Admission: $38, $30, $19
Family Friendly: Children 12 and under half price, with an adult
Concert Hall
GMU Chamber Ensembles
Sun, Apr 22, 7:00
Admission: $7 seniors/students, $10 adults
Harris Theater
Tuba
Euphonium Ensemble
Tue, Apr 24, 8:00
Harris Theater
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GMU
Players—Mainstage
The
Cripple of Inishmaan
Thu & Fri, Apr 26-27, 8:00
Sat, Apr 28, 2:00 & 8:00
Sun, Apr 29, 2:00
Also May 3, 4, 5, 6
Admission: $8 seniors/students, $12 adults
TheaterSpace (From Level 2 of Parking Deck take the bridge. Enter first
door on the left and follow hallway; go through gray doors and
downstairs).
Susan Shields Ballet Cocktail
An
Evening of
Contemporary Dance
Bringing a unique blend of contemporary ballet and modern dance, Ms.
Shields is showcased in a group of outstanding regional companies
performing her work: the Washington Ballet, Boston Ballet II,
Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre, American Repertory Ballet and Richmond
Ballet dance companies. She has shared the stage with Baryshnikov and
Mark Morris, and is now a distinguished member of Mason’s dance faculty.
Sat, Apr 28, at 8:00
Admission: $44, $36, $22
Concert Hall
Come early for an artistic discussion at 7:15 in the Grand Tier Lobby.
GMU Music Scholarship Concert
GMU
Symphony Orchestra
GMU
Chamber Singers and
University Chorale
Prof. Anthony Maiello will conduct the Symphony Orchestra and Dr. Lisa
Billingham will lead the Chorale and the Chamber Singers. The
University Rector Sidney Dewberry will appear as special guest
conductor. They will perform Haydn’s Mass no. 11 in D Minor “Lord
Nelson” and Camphouse’s Symphonic
Fanfare. Also, featured winners of the 2007 Dept. of Music
Concerto Competition will perform works by Mozart, Boehm, Sarasate,
Falvo and Catalani.
Sun, Apr 29, 7:00
Admission: $8 seniors/students, $15 adults
Concert Hall
Vision
Lecture Series
Legacy
of Life: Creating
Healthy Futures
David Anderson, Professor, Director, Center for the Advancement of
Public Health
In this last Vision Series lecture of the season, the speaker
challenges us to imagine a society with ideal circumstances for
individuals, families, organizations and governments. He believes that
we can create healthier futures if we focus on a personal legacy
incorporating practical strategies for individual and collective
action, and emphasizing root causes of behaviors of concern.
Mon, Apr 30, 8:00
Admission: Free, tickets available at www.gmu.edu/cfa/vision/ or
at the CFA Ticket Office during the hours above and on the evening of
the lecture.
Concert Hall |
MASON HIGHLIGHTS
A brief listing of other events at nearby
Mason
 By Barbara Kyriakakis, OLLI
E-News assistant editor
- Innovations
2007 - Wed, Apr 25, from 11:00 to 4:00 in Dewberry Hall in the
Johnson Center. Student submissions include writing, art, and science
projects, web pages and inventions. Free and open to the public.
- Astronomy
Observing Sessions – Thu, Apr 26, 8:30 pm in the University
Observatory in Research I.
- The Center for
Global Studies Presentation - "African
Transitions: The Challenges of Peacebuilding" - A continent that
defies easy generalizations, Africa has crucial transitions in
progress, with the potential for advancing peace and democracy or to
exacerbating conflict and authoritarian rule. The Center for Global
Studies invites you to a special symposium to understand key cases and
to discuss what they may mean for the larger question of the continent
in transition. Mon, Apr 23, from 6:00 to 7:30 in the JC Cinema.
- Fenwick Fellows Lecture - "The
Making of Black Intellectuals" -
University Libraries' Fenwick Fellows Lecture will be held on Thu, Apr
26, at 3:00 in the Johnson Center, Room 228. Rutledge M. Dennis will
present his work on the socialization processes through which
minority-group individuals become intellectuals with attention given to
the
question of how particular social structural forces operating within
subgroups and throughout the larger society either advance or hinder
intellectual development. Free and open to the public.
COMING
ATTRACTIONS
Non-class events at OLLI for the next two
weeks
The following
list covering the
next two weeks is extracted for your
convenience from the more
complete OLLI
Staff Forecast of Non-Class Events. Board, committee, resource-group and
'membership-type' meetings/events are highlighted
in bold. OLLI members are
welcome at all Board, committee and resource-group meetings (except
executive sessions).
APR
20 Friday 8:00 AM
Spec Event E: Maymont Estate Bus Trip Fair
Oaks Mall Parking Lot 44
9:30 AM Drama
Club TA-3
10:00 AM 112
Recorder Workshop TA-2
10:00 AM
Classic Fiction Reston
11:30 AM
Recorder Group TA-2
1:30 PM Homer
Book Club Annex
23
Monday 11:45 Presentation of BOD Nominees at Lake
Anne Reston
1:30
PM
Bridge Club at Lake Anne Reston
24 Tuesday 8:15
AM Walking Group Lake
Anne
25 Wednesday 1:30
PM Bridge Club TA-3
2:00 PM Spec
Event F: Celebrity News TA-1
2:30 PM Sign
Language Club Annex
27 Friday 9:30 AM
Drama Club TA-3
10:00
AM Board of Directors' Meeting TA-1
10:00 AM 112
Recorder Workshop TA-2
11:30 AM
Recorder Group TA-2
1:00 PM Spec
Event G: Senior Transportation TA-3
1:30 PM Homer
Book Club Annex
3:30 PM Teacher
Appreciation Reception GMU CFA
3:30 PM Guest
Speaker: Dr. Olga Zinovieva TA-1
30 Monday 1:30 AM
Bridge Club at Lake Anne Reston
MAY
1 Tuesday 8:15 AM
Walking Group Lake Anne
1:00
PM Publications Comm Mtg TA-3
2 Wednesday 1:30 PM
Bridge Club TA-3
2:00 PM History
Club TA-1
2:00 PM Spec
Event H: French Cheeses at Unitarian Church
Reston
2:30 PM Sign
Language Club Annex
4 Friday 8:30 AM
Spec Event I: Mount Vernon Bus Trip Fair Oaks
Mall Lot 44
10:00 AM 112
Recorder Workshop TA-2
10:00
AM Annual Membership Meeting TA-1
1:30 PM Homer
Book Club Annex
8:00 PM Spec
Event J: The Dark Lady of the Sonnets
GMU-Harris Theater |
Back to top
Rod
Zumbro
Editor
Karen
Hamilton
Deputy
Editor
|
About OLLI
E-News. OLLI
E-News, OLLI's weekly newsletter, is emailed to OLLI
members with email addresses on Fridays. When classes are in
session, printed copies of this newsletter are distributed in
classrooms, primarily for members without email. We encourage OLLI
members and
staff employees to submit news items and write articles; deadline to
the editor is 7:00 PM Wed for that week's issue. Comments,
suggestions or complaints? Please contact the OLLI
E-News editor or the
Publications Committee chair, Gordon
Canyock.
Note
about HTML graphics. If
you do NOT see
photos and
clickable links in this message, you might want to ask a teenaged
grandchild or a neighborhood teenager or college student to fix things
for you. Or you could change your
email settings yourself. Here's how to view html-formatted messages
like this newsletter in
three popular email systems:
- Outlook
Express.
Click Tools; select Options; in the Read tab, uncheck "Read all
messages in plain text."
- Yahoo
Mail.
Click Mail Options/General Preferences; under Security, uncheck "Block
HTML graphics in email messages from being downloaded."
- AOL.
Upgrade,
if possible, to an AOL version above 5.0.
GMU Webmail.
If OLLI E-News is being sent
to your gmu.edu email address, we recommend against
using GMU Webmail
(i.e., iPlanet "Messenger Express") to read this newsletter
because it
is normally impossible to view the newsletter in GMU
Webmail
as a single
integrated
document, with text and accompanying images. You could forward the
newsletter to your Web-based email account such as Yahoo Mail or
Hotmail and read it there ... or just read it online at
the OLLI
Website after it is posted
each week.
Perhaps the easiest solution for those of you with GMU email accounts
is to configure your desktop email system such
as Microsoft Outlook Express or Mozilla Thunderbird to retrieve mail
sent to your gmu.edu address. To do this, see these
instructions.
Finding
the Latest
Issue Online. The
new weekly issue of OLLI E-News
is
usually posted Thursday evening. Here's how to read the online version
right after
it is posted:
- It is identified by
the next number in
sequence for that year -- e.g., if last week's issue number were
enews1-07, the next issue number would be enews2-07 and could be found
at www.olli.gmu.edu/enews2-07.htm.
- Thus, go to the list of the last 12
issues, click the most recent issue (probably last week's), change
(in the address field of your browser) the enews number to the next
number, and then press Enter.
|
OLLI
E-News Editorial Staff
Assistant
Editor, Database Manager
Barbara Kyriakakis
Assistant
Editor
Arleen Richman
Photo
Editor
Michael Coyne |
| Copyright
©
2007 Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at George Mason University.
Materials in this publication subject to OLLI-GMU copyright may be
reproduced for noncommercial educational purposes as long as credit is
given to OLLI-GMU. |
|
Updated:
April 20, 2007
Copyright © 2007 Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at
George Mason University. Materials in this publication subject to
OLLI-GMU copyright may be reproduced for noncommercial educational
purposes as long as credit is given to OLLI-GMU.
Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at George Mason University
4210 Roberts Rd., Fairfax, VA 22032-1028
Phone: (703) 503-3384; E-mail: olli@gmu.edu;
Fax: (703) 503-2832
Original site design and construction by OLLI-GMU member Rod Zumbro. |
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