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National Resource Center
for the Osher Lifelong Learning Institutes Newsletter
August 2014
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Greetings from Kali
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Here is our final summer newsletter before the readin', ritin', and rithmetic starts up again in the fall semester. Judging by the wealth of interesting articles and photos here though, the summer months have been full of the 3 R's and OLLI learning adventures. What a wonderful program OLLI is, in all of its many permutations!
This is the last time that I will write the "Greetings" note for the newsletter as I will retire on September 1, after just short of ten years at the NRC. Words fail me to adequately describe what an amazing job this has been!
Thank you to all of you who have been my colleagues and friends, to all of the OLLI members who do such great things, and of course to the people who are the Osher Foundation for all of their support and friendship over the years.
As for me, I plan to finish my MFA in poetry, paint the living room, sleep for a couple of months, get to know my grandsons, take OLLI classes, and do some traveling -- though not necessarily in that order. :-)
Best regards, Kali
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OLLIs -- Toot Your Horns!
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 | "Chasseur sonnant du cor ou L'Hallali"
by Louis Frédéric Schützenberger (1859) |
See below for news stories from the OLLI network.
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Place Matters for OLLI at Sonoma State University
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Wallace Stegner writes "...the knowledge of place comes from working in it in all weathers, making a living from it, suffering from its catastrophes..." In her meditations on the Poetics of Place, Eudora Welty adds "...feelings are bound up in place, and in art, from time to time, place undoubtedly works upon genius..." From architectural regionalism to the notion of terroir, many of our human values and cultural identities are rooted in place. This summer, OLLI at SSU explores place in Sonoma County through its art, history, landscape, food and wine-- as curators, writers, vintners, naturalists, scholars, artists, chefs and historians lead talks and tours both on the SSU campus and in our surrounding community.
 | | Lavender Harvest by Connie Mygatt |
Sociologist Ray Oldenburg, in his work The Great Good Place: Cafes, Coffee Shops, Bookstores, Bars, Hair Salons, and Other Hangouts at the Heart of a Community, shares the concept of "third places" (in contrast to first and second places of home and work). These sites of social activity, where adults gather on a regular basis, triangulate the social, behavioral and cognitive aspects of contemporary culture. In its purest form, OLLI provides a third place for older adults while providing quality pathways for lifelong learning in the context of campus life.
Submitted by - Carin Jacobs, OLLI at Sonoma State University
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OLLI at Denver Class Offering:
Hard Choices in American Public Policy
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A Series of eight lectures offered in DVDs from OLLI at the University of Denver.
Lecturer: Honorable Richard D. Lamm, former governor of Colorado and currently Head of the Institute for Public Policy at the University of Denver.
Governor Lamm challenges his audience to ponder some of the nation's most perplexing public policy issues that we will struggle with for the foreseeable future. One dilemma is the combination of the largest ever senior population depending on entitlement programs which are unsustainable with a larger than acknowledged national debt. Can a democracy reform and reduce its entitlement programs? Do we realize the intergenerational transfer of these costs?
Let's understand the individual and compound effects of Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid along with the new Affordable Health Care Act in light of a burgeoning senior population, a stagnant work force and an unsustainable nation debt. Can the overwhelming cost growth in health care be managed? Will it be possible to distribute the essential benefits of health care more equitably to all while maintaining quality and reducing costs?
Using eye opening forecasts of the national debt being piled up by the Federal government, Lamm asks whether health care rationing can be done fairly. He compares the American system with other countries that might serve as models for the necessary continuing reform.
COST OF SERIES: $50 for production and mailing.
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OLLI at George Mason University host American Girl author Valerie Tripp
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 | | American Girl author Valerie Tripp meets two young fans at OLLI GMU |
The Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at George Mason University hosted American Girl author Valerie Tripp on July 22 for a fun session with members and grandchildren on the writing process and the inspiration for her books. Valerie explained to the star struck audience of both the young and more seasoned girls that she gets her story ideas from her life experiences as well as from the children she meets. Many attendees brought their American Girl dolls and books that Valerie signed after the event. This is the second event that OLLI-Mason has hosted with the American Girl theme. Last summer during "Grandcamp," American Girl fans young and older gathered for a special tea to celebrate the doll collection and book series.
Bringing Valerie Tripp to OLLI-Mason took little effort, and is something any OLLI can do with local authors. OLLI-Mason Executive Director Jennifer Disano first made contact with Valerie when she was the coordinator for cultural arts programs at her children's elementary school. Jennifer contacted the Library of Congress for a list of authors in Northern Virginia and found Valerie Tripp's name. She then reached out to Valerie's website and the connection was made. Many authors are eager to have the chance to meet with fans and promote their work. Check your list of local authors or connect with ones in town for local book fairs. Who knows who you might get for a future OLLI event!
Submitted by - Alice Slayton Clark, OLLI at George Mason University
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Osher Member Testimonials from OLLI at UC San Diego
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 | | Osher Member testimonials 2014 from OLLI UC San Diego Extension |
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OLLI at Florida State University featured in Tallahassee Magazine
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OLLI at Kennesaw State University Gets a Face Lift!
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 | The OLLI Club Room Kitchen
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OLLI at Kennesaw State University is excited to announce the newly renovated OLLI Club Room expansion to their OLLI Suite.
The Revitalizations include renovated and expanded restrooms, a repurposed library relocated in the OLLI Club Room plus an OLLI Club Room kitchen that is available to all OLLI participants.
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The Vintage Years: Finding Your Inner Artist at
OLLI at San Francisco State University
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It was standing room only. The event was a brown-bag lunch-time book talk that captured the interest of OLLI students at San Francisco State University. The speaker, Francine Toder, Ph.D. is a psychologist/writer and she was talking about her new book The Vintage Years: Finding Your Inner Artist (Writer, Musician, Visual Artist) After Sixty. Toder's writing highlights ways to maintain cognitive sharpness after 60 while having fun, building a community of like-minded people and filling the later years with meaningful activity-through learning a fine art form.
 | | Rufus performing |
One of the artists featured in the ebook version of Toder's book is OLLI - SF member Rufus, a gifted baritone aged 79. A perfect example of "finding your inner artist" Rufus began following his passion for singing at the age of 75. As Toder explains: "Retirement left Rufus with unstructured time and curiosity that led him from the role of teacher to student. He took some courses through OLLI at the very college where he had earlier been a professor. This decision resulted in meeting so many new people, also in their Vintage Years, that he unexpectedly had more friends than he'd ever had before! Toder goes on to narrate how: "At seventy-five Rufus found a teacher, even older than himself, with whom he still studies. He then rounded out his musical experience by becoming a member of the Chamber Music Group sponsored by OLLI, San Francisco State.
Following her experience of giving a talk and meeting Rufus, Francine in turn enrolled herself as a student at OLLI-SF. She now sees herself "as a member of the OLLI-SF extended family". It is a bit ironic for her to be back on a college campus since she was also a faculty member at another California State University campus for 26 years. She, like Rufus, has come come full circle and is a student again.
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