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THE RESTON EXPERIENCE BECKONS
By Debbie Halverson, Membership Committee chair

RESTON BY THE LAKE On Monday, my Reston day at OLLI, I start the week in my hometown. I arrive about 9:15 and have no difficulty finding a parking space in the large lot that serves the Village Plaza. Mothers are dropping off their kiddies at a day-care center, business people are grabbing a quick coffee, and some folks are just basking in the sun glinting off the lake, or strolling, perhaps with baby strollers, or reading newspapers.      Our yellow and green sign brightly points to our classroom at the Washington Plaza Baptist Church. The aroma of coffee hits me as I enter and  engage in the bustle of people already there. Anne Youngren is setting up chairs in rows if the class is lecture/discussion, or tables in the round if the class requires even more give and take.  If two classes are scheduled, she’ll separate the large space with a pull-across partition.      Between classes, I often stay and visit with my fellow classmates, although some of them may duck out to the bank or the tiny post office that is ensconced within the drug store across the plaza. After the second class, I could join others at one of the excellent lunch spots on the plaza or enjoy a fabulous bowl of soup next door at one of the coffee shop’s outside tables. I can sit on the bench by the lake where a full-size sculpture of Bob Simon, an OLLI member and founding dad of Reston, is also enjoying the view [photo by Michael Coyne].      I’m looking forward to Gloria Sussman’s 2:00 class of classical music accompanied by tea and cookies, my eyes probably closed but, mind you, not in sleep. This class is the mainstay of my schedule as it is for many others.      Thursday will be my Tallwood day. I’ll be seeing my south Fairfax friends and that’s something else again.

TWO EVENTS IN MARCH Gloria Sussman is giving a class on Mon, Mar 6 at 2:00 on Julia Migenes. She will be discussing Julia's career as a world-class opera singer. Migenes starred in Francesco Rosi's film version of Carmen with Placido Domingo. Gloria will supplement her talk with recordings and film clips. The class will be held at the Reston Community Center, Lake Anne. On Sun, Mar 26, at 8:00, Julia Migenes will appear in  "Diva on the Verge" at the Reston Community Center's Center Stage series in Hunters Woods. She started her stage career as the child in Madame Butterfly and became a globe-trotting opera singer. She has created a theatrical treat  with enormous wit, range, and hilarious send-ups of some of opera's best known heroines and gives an impressive performance.      A bloc of tickets are being held for OLLI members at the Reston senior rate of $12.00. To reserve your seat, please call the box office at 703-476-4500, press 3 and mention that you are part of Gloria Sussman's group. For further information, call Lillian Justice at 703-758-9466 or Joan Kenney at 703-620-6373. Editor's note: The above notice was contributed by OLLI member Lillian Justice.

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FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
By Dick Chobot, OLLI Executive Director
OLLI IS ASSISTING MS. ANJALI MISHRA, AN HONORS GRADUATE STUDENT, in collecting data for a study on positive emotions across the life span. The goal of the research is to better understand the nature of positive emotions and experiences and their role in individual personality and behavior.
     Volunteers 60 and older are being sought within the OLLI community to participate in the study. Participation entails completion of a 45-minute questionnaire. The goal is to secure at least 100 participants within the next 30 days.
     The instrument will be mailed to you or be available for pick up at OLLI. Dr. Todd Kashdan of the George Mason Psychology Department is closely supervising the research. The University Human Subjects Review Board has approved the study design and instrument. OLLI member Mel Gottlieb and I have met with Dr. Kashdan and Ms. Mishra to review the study design and instrumentation; we commend the study to you as worth your consideration. 
     Support for University research is one way in which OLLI can give back to George Mason University for its support of our program. If you are willing to participate or have questions, please contact Ms. Mishra directly by email or phone (703-967-1239).

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CLASSIC FICTION BOOK CLUB'S SIGRID BLALOCK
By Luci Martel, OLLI E-News photo editor

SIGRID BLALOCK
Photos by Luci Martel

ONE OF SEVERAL BOOK CLUBS THAT OLLI OFFERS is the Classic Fiction Book Club, which is led by Sigrid Blalock. This club concentrates on fiction classics over 50 years old that have “stood the test of time.”
     Sigrid’s goal is to expand and enrich each member’s literary knowledge. Carol Ferrara, then LRI Program Coordinator, asked her to start the club in January 2003. Sigrid views her role within the group as a facilitator rather than instructor. 
     The group (shown in photo at left) meets monthly, makes selections through group consensus and rotates discussion leaders. Members analyze the plot, characters, symbolism and the content of the story in relation to other authors and the period in which the book was written. Ideas and perspectives are shared within the group. Selections this semester include Turgenev’s Fathers and Sons and E. M. Forster’s Howards End.
     Born in Philadelphia and raised in Maryland, Sigrid says that books have been a part of her life since the age of five, when she began to read. She received a B.F.A. in Art and Design from Syracuse University and an M.A. in Art History from American University. Her work career included 24 years as an art teacher with the D.C. Public School System, another position as exhibits designer for the Smithsonian Institution as well as a part-time instructor position in Drawing and Painting for the Smithsonian Associates Program. 
     When asked about her philosophy for the book group, Sigrid replied, “I believe that learning is a continuing and enriching experience and that sharing ideas, as we do in the book club, enhances that experience.”
     Two books that have especially inspired her are Anna Quindlen’s How Reading Changed My Life and Ruined by Reading by Lynne Sharon Schwartz.
     The club members share Sigrid’s enthusiasm. Oftentimes, college students who are not the author’s intended audience read classical fiction. The Classic Fiction Book Club affords one an opportunity to revisit these books and gain a different perspective of the author and the book's characters and to share this perspective with the book club.      
     In addition to two sons, Sigrid has two grandsons and a new granddaughter whom she loves to spend time with. You can bet she will pass on to them her love of reading and books. Lucky grandchildren!

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NEW VIDEO: "COPTIC CHURCH ICONOGRAPHY"

THE RECENT OLLI WINTER-TERM COURSE, "ICONS: WINDOWS INTO HEAVEN," included a final class visit to a nearby Coptic Church to view icons 'written' by instructor Evelyn Avery Rophael.      OLLI member Charles Meyer, an attendee in my OLLI class on video editing some time ago, had videotaped this visit and created a six-minute movie to share with class members and other OLLI members who are interested. At my request, he created progressive-download versions of his movie in Windows Media Player and Real Player formats so you can watch them right away without waiting for them to fully download. He gave me the files and I posted them to our OLLI Web server.      We thank Charlie for sharing his movie with us, and we welcome similar contributions of OLLI-related movies from other OLLI members (please email the editor).

OLLI VIDEO NEWS Coptic Church Iconography The Fall of the House of Tallwood Ancient Ephesus A Day in Istanbul OLLI 2005 Holiday Party WATCH NOW