This newsletter is brought to you by Human Resources.
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Cornell COVID-19 Service of Remembrance
Monday, April 19, 2021
12:00 pm – 12:45 pm, prelude begins at 11:50 am
Over the past year, close to 550,000 people in the U.S. and 2.8 million worldwide have lost their lives due to COVID-19. Restrictions on gathering have deprived countless survivors of chances to mourn, heal and grieve losses, whether from COVID-19 or unrelated causes, with family and friends.
To honor these losses and provide opportunity to mourn as a community, the university is hosting this virtual event which is open to all retirees, staff, faculty, and students.
The service is intended to bring Cornellians together in community, in an inclusive, comforting, and hopeful atmosphere. The event is nonsectarian and nonpartisan, and will be hosted by Oliver Goodrich, associate dean of students for spirituality and meaning making, and Catherine Thrasher-Carroll, mental health promotion Program Director.
Mental health resources and other grief supports will be provided at the end of the event. A recording of the service will be shared publicly.
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Future Events for Cornell Retirees:
Tell us what you're interested in!
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Cornell Human Resources normally sponsors two or three large events for Cornell retirees each year. Past events include the Annual Retiree BBQ Picnic, Retirees Rock Lynah Rink, and Breakfast with the Birds. The COVID-19 pandemic put a pause on large gatherings, but the desire to connect as a community hasn’t gone away!
Please tell us about the types of virtual activities and events you may have interest in with this 2 minute survey.
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Estate Planning Webinars with Cornell Law School
Register: Sunday, April 18, 1:00-3:00 pm
Register: Tuesday, April 20, 2:00-4:00 pm
Register: Friday, April 30, 12:00-2:00 pm
Estate planning is thinking about and documenting what matters most to help safeguard your health and finances. The process includes designating people for certain decision making roles, reflecting what matters most if you’re unable to speak for yourself. Students from the Cornell Law School will present general information, answer questions and assist participants in preparing a living will and health care proxy.
The webinar will cover:
- Estate Planning Basics
- Key Estate Planning Documents (will, healthcare proxy, living will and power of attorney)
- Key Roles (executor, fiduciaries, proxy, agent, guardian, advocate, etc.)
- Organizing Important Legal and Medical Documentation
Once registered, you will receive helpful information and sample documents.
For questions call 607-255-4196 or email Susan J. Tosto. Sponsored by Cornell Law School in partnership with Cornell Work/Life, Human Resources.
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Golf Lessons Available
Cornell Wellness has teamed up with Matt Baughan, head golf pro at the RTJ designed Cornell Golf Course, to offer golf lessons to the Cornell community (open to Wellness Recreation Members, non-members, staff, faculty, spouses/partners, retirees). Any level of ability can register. Lessons will cover all aspects of the game (from putting to full swing). You do not need to bring clubs to participate (there are sets at the course), but you can bring clubs if you have your own set. Wear comfortable golf shoes or sneakers to the lessons.
Cost is $240 for a 5-lesson package; cost is reduced to $200 for 1-year Wellness Recreation or CPHL Wellness Recreation Membership holders. Classes must have a minimum of 6 registrants to run and will cap at 8 registrants.
- Package 1 (5 lessons): Mondays, beginning April 19, 5:00-6:00 pm
- Package 2 (5 lessons): Wednesdays, beginning April 21, 5:00-6:00 pm
- Package 3 (5 lessons): Thursdays, beginning April 22, 5:00-6:00 pm
- Package 4 (5 lessons): Saturdays, beginning May 1, 9:00-10:00 am.
For questions regarding the lessons, please email Matt Baughan. Prior to your first lesson, Matt will email you with information on how to pay. Note: As we are still in a pandemic, all lessons may be cancelled or postponed by the University at any time.
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Cornell Cinema to Premiere Two Documentaries
Cornell Cinema will be premiering two documentaries as part of its free virtual screening program this Spring.
First up is Our Time Machine, a moving meditation on art, the agonies of love and loss, and the circle of life. The film follows Chinese conceptual artist Maleonn as he undertakes a monumental theatre piece, Papa’s Time Machine, performed by life-sized mechanical puppets. He uses this as a way of connecting with his father, Ma Ke, the former artistic director of the Shanghai Chinese Opera Theater, after his father is diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. Request a virtual ticket to watch between Friday, April 23 and Thursday, April 29.
Next up is The Spy Behind Home Plate, an engrossing documentary about the enigmatic, charming and brilliant Moe Berg. Berg was a Jewish baseball catcher behind the plate in the golden age of the major leagues who joins the OSS in WWII to spy on the Nazis’ atomic bomb program. Filmmaker Aviva Kempner, who previously made the Peabody award-winning The Life and Times of Hank Greenberg (2000), will participate in a virtual discussion about the film, moderated by Senior Lecturer Elliot Shapiro, on April 29 at 7:30 pm. Request a virtual ticket to watch between Tuesday, April 27 and Thursday, April 29, and to register for the discussion here.
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Celestial Mirror: The Astronomical Observatories
of Jai Singh II
Tuesday, April 20, 2021, 4:30 – 5:30 pm
In the early eighteenth century, Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh II of Jaipur constructed five astronomical observatories in northern India. The observatories, or "Jantar Mantars" as they are commonly known, incorporate multiple buildings of unique form, each with a specialized function for astronomical measurement.
In a live, virtual Chats in the Stacks talk, Barry Perlus, associate professor emeritus of art in the College of Architecture, Art, and Planning, discusses his photographic exploration of the Jantar Mantars in his book Celestial Mirror: The Astronomical Observatories of Jai Singh II (Yale University Press, 2020). Perlus’ images show breathtaking, 360-degree panoramas, while his explanatory text and diagrams describe the observatories and their workings, providing historical context and insights about the scientific and architectural innovations involved—all to provide a delightful immersive experience that brings the observatories to life.
A live Q&A session will follow the talk. Audience members are encouraged to submit questions for the author to the Chat box in the webinar during the presentation.
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Verdant Views: Global Climate Stories
Thursday, April 22, 2021, 3:00 to 4:30 pm
Our changing climate poses great challenges for humanity around the world: extreme weather events, sea-level rise, flooding, drought, wildfires, and more. How are countries in areas most affected by climate change responding to these and other challenges? In honor of Earth Day 2021, this special edition of Verdant Views will feature current Fellows in Cornell’s Hubert H. Humphrey Fellowship Program, sharing stories of the challenges and choices they face in their home countries, and actions being taken in response to this global crisis.
The webinar will be recorded and available for viewing online after the live broadcast. Participants in the live presentation will have the opportunity to pose questions.
Verdant Views is a monthly webinar series hosted by Kevin Moss of Cornell Botanic Gardens. Each episode focuses on a different topic related to plants, gardens, conservation, sustainability, and the vital connections between plants and peoples around the world. For more virtual events, please visit the Cornell Botanic Gardens web page.
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Cornell Caregiver Support & Education Network
Caregivers come together monthly to share the challenges, joys, and resources of caregiving as well as listen to occasional speakers presenting on topics of interest specifically to caregivers. Caregiving workshops and webinars will be made available through Zoom so you can join in the privacy of your own office or home.
This month we’ll be engaging in a conversation around: transitions with COVID protocols (for you as well as your loved one), spring/summer activities, local activities and events, resilience and avoiding burnout. The next meetings will be held on April 22, 2021, from 12:00-1:00 pm.
For additional information, visit the group web page.
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Johnson Museum Book Club: Among Stone Giants
Wednesday, April 28, 2021, 4:00 pm
Our spring reading series about travel continues! Join Nancy Green and Maryterese Pasquale-Bowen for a discussion of archaeologist Katherine Pease Routledge, her times, and the controversies she incited, which still resound today.
Among Stone Giants by Jo Anne Van Tilburg is a biography of Routledge who, with her husband, led the Mana Expedition to Easter Island where they were the first to conduct excavations of the island’s stone statues. Their work was unprecedented, ambitious, and ultimately contentious, and Katherine’s story is one of hope, determination, and tragedy.
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Grounding and Centering Care with Meditation & Gentle Movement
Tuesdays, through May 11 at 12:00 pm
These sessions are designed through an equity and social justice lens, centering the needs of the Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) community. Open yourself to this consciously inclusive approach to wellness. Join meditation/movement teacher Lissa Edmond as they guide you through 30-minute guided meditation practices and 45-minute gentle mindful movement sessions, with additional time before and after the sessions for checking in and connecting. The gentle movement sessions will integrate practices from qigong, yoga, mindful movement, and breathwork.
The type of offering will alternate each week between a 30-minute meditation and a 45-minute gentle body movement class. There will be an additional 15 minutes of optional time to check-in and connect with one another following each session.
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Local and Virtual Offerings |
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Emergency Readiness 101
Wednesday, May 5, 2021, 2:00 -3:00 pm
In this virtual webinar presented by Finger Lakes Independence Center, participants will learn:
- How to be prepared in an emergency for up to 72 hours.
- How to prepare to shelter in place or go to a shelter in an emergency.
- How to build and connect with a support system.
- Other considerations & recommended resources.
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Finding Forgiveness: Healing After the Loss of a Parent
Thursday, May 13 & 20, 2021, 7:00-8:30 pm
The focus of this two-part workshop, facilitated by volunteer Mara Alper, is to help adult children heal through forgiveness after the loss of a parent. Forgiveness can be an on-going process, even after death. Learning to forgive our parents and ourselves opens positive possibilities.
Participants must commit to both sessions. Registration is required by May 10th. For more information contact the Bereavement staff via phone at 607-272-0212.
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2021 Spring Garden Fair & Plant Sale
Friday, May 14 & Friday, May 21 @ Ithaca Farmers' Market
- 2:00-3:00 pm for seniors/compromised
- 3:00-7:00 pm open to the public
This year, because of COVID restrictions, the Plant Sale at the Ithaca Farmers' Market Pavilion will be held with check-in entry to ensure the event does not get overly-crowded. There are no tickets this year, but new Friday hours have been set aside for seniors and those who are immuno-compromised. Visitors are encouraged to bring carts or wagons to aid in transporting their plant purchases to their cars.
The Garden Fair & Plant Sale features a wide variety of vendors who offer specialty plants and gardening advice on topics ranging from growing rock garden plants to selecting native species for the garden. Plants for sale include organically grown and heirloom vegetable transplants, colorful annuals, fragrant herbs, hanging baskets, small flowering shrubs, hardy roses, fruit crops, trees, evergreens, and specialty perennials.
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Love Living at Home Trial Membership
Love Living at Home (LLH) is a local community that helps forge new social relationships, helps older adults to stay connected to the broader community, as well as benefit from the many services their volunteers provide. We hope you will choose to continue living life to its fullest in our community of "neighbors helping neighbors."
Trial Membership allows new members to join for up to 6 months at no cost. New members will have full access to LLH programs and services as well as a 25% discount for a YMCA membership. Over the first few years many have thought of joining, but have not for various reasons. The Trial program hopefully provides incentive to experience the benefits of our great community and then become long-term members. Perhaps you, or someone you know, have an interest in trying out LLH and meeting new people. This is a great opportunity for you and your friends to give LLH a try.
To join or for more information, contact the office directly by calling 607-319-0162 or email the office.
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Golden Opportunity Tutoring and Mentorship
Golden Opportunity (GO) is currently seeking tutors and mentors to join its team of dedicated and experienced educators for fall 2021. GO is a local not-for-profit tutoring and mentorship service that supports students in grades 2 through 8 in the Ithaca City School District. GO matches tutors on a one-to-one basis with second-grade students in need. Tutors meet twice a week with their students after school and on-site serving all eight elementary schools.
Currently, meetings are on zoom; in the fall, meetings will be in person. Tutors must be available to meet regularly during the GO year (September to May) and attend additional training sessions as scheduled. GO follows the ICSD calendar for school breaks, holidays, and closings due to inclement weather.
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Miscellaneous Articles & Webinars |
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