OLLILife

A community of learners over 50

December 2023 | Vol 4, No. 2

A Time to Celebrate

As the winter winds weave through December, we find ourselves reflecting on the incredible journey of learning we’ve embarked on together this year. Your dedication to expanding your knowledge is truly commendable and serves as an inspiration to us all.

This festive time, may the spirit of curiosity continue to illuminate your path, and may each new piece of information be a gift that enriches your understanding of the world.

I hope you will join me in celebrating 30 years of OLLI-USF at our Holiday Gathering on December 12 at 4 p.m. at The Temple Terrace Golf & Country Club.

In the coming year, we eagerly anticipate delving into even more subjects, fostering a community of lifelong learners who thrive on the joy of discovery. Thank you for being a vital part of our educational family. Wishing you a joyous holiday filled with intellectual fulfillment and the warmth of shared knowledge.

Dec 12, 2023 - OLLI Holiday Party

Jan 10, 2024 - OLLI Open House



Jan. 31, 2024 - Membership Drive Competition ends.

OLLI-USF Holiday Party

Tuesday, Dec. 12, 4-6 p.m.

Temple Terrace Golf and Country Club

200 Inverness Ave., Temple Terrace

RSVP by Dec. 8

Call Charise, (813) 974-5848

Join us as we celebrate 30 years of lifelong learning at our Annual Holiday Party!

Dress in your holiday best and bring your holiday spirit!

We will be collecting donations for the USF Feed-a-Bull Food Pantry. Please consider bringing one or two non-perishable food items with you.

You can find out more on USF Feed-a-Bull below in a separate article.

It's The Winter-Spring Open House!

A new Open House is coming up, and you and your friends are heartily invited to attend.

Mark your calendar for the OLLI-USF Winter-Spring Open House on Wednesday, Jan. 10, 10-11:30 a.m., at the Shanna and Bryan Glazer JCC, 522 N. Howard Ave., in Tampa. 

Feel free to bring a friend to this fun and informative event. Nosh on complimentary coffee and snacks while learning about the more than 175 liberal arts and technology classes and lectures that will be offered in person and on line in the upcoming winter-spring semester.

You will be able to meet many of the outstanding faculty as well as leaders and members of our various Shared Interest Groups. And you'll be sharing your time with OLLI's many seasoned lovers of lifelong learning.

A Special Guest Speaker

Our keynote speaker will be USF President Rhea Law, who will share her vision for the university's future. Law will discuss USF's unwavering commitment to promoting lifelong learning.

The Winter-Spring Open House is the perfect event to introduce you and your friends to OLLI-USF. And it's free.

To register, click here.

Winter/Spring Registration

Winter/Spring Registration is now open. Click here to view the online catalog and register for upcoming classes.

OLLI Honors Mayor For Her Service

Y

OLLI-USF took the opportunity to show our appreciation to Tampa Mayor Jane Castor at a special presentation at the mayor's office on Nov. 30.

During the event, OLLI Director Veronica Maxwell presented Mayor Castor with a certificate of appreciation for serving as keynote speaker during OLLI's Fall Open House in September. In her speech, the mayor looked back on progress the city has made so far and discussed next steps for Tampa.

The mayor was also given a lifelong membership to OLLI, a gift she promised to use fully when her term ends in three years.

In the above picture are Advisory Board Chair Linda Feeney; Board Treasurer and Finance Committee Chair Bruce Gobioff; Tampa Mayor Jane Castor; OLLI Director Veronica Maxwell; At-Large Member Kevin Chittim; and Educational Programming Manager Joseph McAuliffe.

--Sandy Buckley

OLLI Helps Feed a Bull

Did you know that every semester 7-15 percent of USF students experience some form of food insecurity while attending the university?       

Have you heard of the Feed-a-Bull Pantry, which provides supplemental food, nutrition education, and resources to USF students in need?   

OLLI members are now stepping up to help this worthy organization. 

It all started when members of the Food! Glorious Food! SIG brought food donations to their meeting last September. Afterwards, Jane Applegate, who had been co-leader of the SIG with Becky Heimstead for the past five years, delivered the donations to the Feed-a-Bull Pantry. She said the students who helped her bring in the items were extremely grateful for the assistance. Jane noted the dire need for more donations to fill shelves in the food pantry.

Since then, Jane and Becky have turned over the leadership of the Food! Glorious Food! SIG to a five-member steering committee. Our committee thought more could be done to help the Feed-a-Bull Pantry stock its shelves to keep up with the demand. We don’t want to see students going hungry while trying to concentrate on their studies. 

We contacted SIG Liaison Nancy Baily-Williamson to ask if the SIGs might be willing to bring donations for the Feed-a-Bull Pantry when they meet.  As a result, several SIGs have begun collecting donations for the food pantry at their meetings and programs.  This is an issue that OLLI will be exploring as a long-term effort to support our community service goal.

During the last month, a Lunch Bunch gathering from the Food! Glorious Food! SIG brought donations with them to a Puerto Rican luncheon at Pal Campo restaurant in Tampa; the Operatunity and Games SIGs collected items at their monthly meetings; and members of the China and Food! Glorious Food! SIGs brought donations to their joint luncheon and museum tour in St. Petersburg. 

Helping Feed a Bull – one trunkload at a time!

Click here for more information on the Feed-a-Bull pantry and how you can help.

You can also make a tax-deductible donation to Feed a Bull by clicking on this link.

--Kathy Palmer

--Photos, Grizelle Aldea and Nancy Baily-Williamson

Neither rain, nor sleet, nor snow will stop the Games SIG from donating to Feed a Bull.

Feed-a-Bull Pantry student volunteers bring in items collected at a recent Operatunity SIG meeting.

Helping stock Feed-a-Bull Pantry, one trunkload at a time.

A Taste of Puerto Rico

Sixteen members of Food! Glorious Food! enjoyed a taste of the islands on Nov. 8 during a Lunch Bunch get-together at Pal Campo Restaurant. The menu included an array of traditional and modern Puerto Rican dishes, good enough to declare, Delicioso!

Cruising For Marine Mammals

Members of OLLI's Marine Mammals of Tampa Bay class prepare to launch into Hillsborough Bay from the Florida Aquarium on Nov. 9 The cruise was provided during the first of two sessions that focused on dolphins and manatees.

Lunch With A Peruvian Twist

Thirteen adventurous diners from Conviviality and Celebrations enjoyed a variety of Peruvian delicacies at Cazador Grill in Temple Terrace for their November luncheon meeting. 

This group of OLLI members and guests meets on the fourth Wednesday of each month at various eating establishments in the Tampa area to celebrate and recognize birthdays and other special occasions.

The next luncheon is scheduled for Wed., Dec. 20, at 1 p.m., at Jesse’s Steak and Seafood, 524 W. Brandon Blvd, Brandon.

All OLLI members are invited to join in the fun. Email Kat Hanscom for more information.

China SIG/Food! Glorious Food! Joint Event

A group of 23 members from the China and Food! Glorious Food! SIGs recently spent an afternoon enjoying lunch and a museum tour in St. Petersburg. Kun Shi and Nancy Stuart, co-leaders of the China SIG organized the event and invited members of the Food! Glorious Food! SIG to join them for lunch and the tour.

The group met at Hawkers Asian Street Food where they enjoyed authentic Asian delicacies such as spring rolls, roast duck baos, chow gan, and lo mein.

After lunch, the group was treated to a tour of the special exhibit From East to West: The Chinese American Frontier at the James Museum. The tour was led by Kun Shi, who is on the Docent Team at the museum. The exhibit takes visitors on a journey through the history and contributions of early Chinese Americans in transforming the landscape and character of the American West. 

Chinese American artists Hung Liu, Mian Situ, Jie Wei Zhou, and Benjamiin Wu take guests back into what life was like for early Chinese immigrants who helped build the American West with their contemporary paintings. Kun Shi provided the translations from Chinese to English on the descriptive posters for each piece of art in the exhibit.

The exhibit runs through January 28, 2024.

--Photos, Kun Shi

Catalog Distribution Help Wanted

Winter/Spring Catalog distribution is now afoot. We need two to three volunteers willing to help get our material to designated locations around Hillsborough County.

Circle Three (Lutz-Odessa). We need OLLI members from the Lutz-Odessa area to help organize a mid-February OLLI public event at the North Tampa Unity Church.

Text Pam Tyler at 575-779-1382 if you can assist in either of these projects, or email her.  

Famous People

The "just for fun" poll last month asked our readers if they had ever met a famous person. The reponses were as follows:

• Yes - famous actor/actress - 29.4%
• Yes - another kind of famous person - 23.5%
• Yes - popular athlete - 20.6%
• Yes - brilliant-minded person everyone knows about - 11.8%
• No - never met anyone famous - 14.7%

These three readers have submitted their encounters with someone famous:

Jimmy and Rosalyn Carter

I met Jimmy and Rosalyn Carter when I went to Plains, Georgia, to attend Jimmy Carter's Sunday school lesson, which was held in the sanctuary of his church. I arrived early to get a good seat and sat in the middle of the front pew, so close to Mr. Carter that I had to pull my feet in so he wouldn’t trip over them as he delivered the lesson.

Afterwards, he and Mrs. Carter held a photo session outdoors. The Secret Service had my mother leave her walker a few steps away. Mr. Carter took her hand and assured her he wouldn’t let go. My mom was probably 94 at the time and had met a number of famous people, but that incident remained a highlight of her life.

We had been instructed not to touch the Carters and I dutifully obeyed. However, Mrs. Carter put her arm around my waist.

---Mary Parent

Editor's note: starting from the left in the above picture are Mary's mother, Polly Parent, President Carter and his wife Rosalynn, Mary Parent and her husband Les Kline.

*****

Rudolf Nureyev and Truman Capote

In the late 1970s (in my early 20s), I was invited by a girlfriend to a movie premiere extravaganza that was being held at the Piers in New York City. 

There were many celebrities in attendance, but two encounters made the most impact. 

My friend, Mary and I were hurrying across to the other side of the room and I quite literally ran into a gentleman so hard (not on purpose!) that we both fell to the floor. 

He immediately jumped up and offered his hand while apologizing to me at the same time in his very thick accent. Not having a clue, who he was, I took his hand as he pulled me from the floor. My friend, with mouth open kept saying, "Do you know who he is?" over and over. As I was still not aware of his importance, she proceeded to inform me that he was Rudolf Nureyev! 

The other episode was in the women’s bathroom. I entered and took a double take thinking I had walked into the men's room. I had not; washing his hands at the sink was Truman Capote who, immediately upon seeing my confusion, apologized in his distinctive high-pitched voice and quickly exited. 

I had been graced with not just one but two amazing moments! 

---Marian Schneider

*****

Diana Ross

On a trip to New York City a few years ago, my husband and I were having lunch at the Russian Tea Room.

We sat in a booth with me facing the door, when in walked Diana Ross with a man. She walked right past us as she and her escort made their way to a table in the back of the restaurant.

Later, I passed her table on my way to the bathroom. She never noticed me, but I like to tell people I had lunch with Diana Ross at the Russian Tea Room.

 ---Sandy Buckley

From the Membership Chair

Holiday Greetings!

OLLI’s first public event in Pasco County took place in November at BayCare Hospital Wesley Chapel. Despite the afternoon deluge, guests turned out for OLLI superstar speaker Robert Jacob’s riveting mini lectures. BayCare Hospital loved it and welcomes future OLLI classes on site.

We want to know you! Make yourselves known to the Membership Committee. Look for us at the OLLI Holiday Party.

--Pam Tyler

The Membership Committee has an article each month introducing a new OLLI member. Congratulations and welcome to OLLI’s newest members. 

Introducing Pam Seppelt

Pam grew up in the small farming community of Edina, Missouri. She spent most of her adult life in central Illinois, with a stint in Oklahoma City. She spent her young adult years raising her two children and working part-time. She started back to school at Lincoln Land Community College while continuing to work part-time.

After helping her parents with major health issues, Pam was inspired to obtain her master's degree in gerontology. She started her career at a hospital as the coordinator of a colon cancer screening program, and later worked with a couple of other healthcare associations. Pam went on to spend 19 years with US Bank organizing its program for seniors, including luncheons and other special events, newsletters, and resource fairs.

Pam enjoys walking with friends or with an audiobook. One of her favorite reading topics is WWII since her father served during that war. Pam and her husband just took the class The Greatest Generation goes to War, taught at the Regent by Jim Goeb. Pam has also enjoyed some of Howard Kerner’s online classes about heroes during the Holocaust.

Pam is continuing her valuable work benefitting seniors by serving on the Volunteer Engagement Committee for OLLI.

Pam also enjoys traveling throughout the U.S., especially visiting her son in Northern Illinois and her daughter and grandchildren in Boston.

--Shirley Herring

Sail Into the 2024 Holidays with OLLI!

Good friends, Glühwein, and Gemütlichkeit – What more could you ask of a 2024 holiday river cruise touring the spectacular Danube River with visits to Europe’s finest holiday markets! Enjoy the holiday spirit with this nine-day excursion to the fabled cities of Central Europe just when they’re all decked out in their Christmas splendor.

After arrival and an orientation day in Vienna, we sail upriver on the M/S Amadeus Brilliant to the Wachau Valley, home of the historic Melk Abbey; through picturesque towns of Emmensdorf and Dünstein; and through the scenic riverside towns near Passau. Then on to romantic Regensburg and historic Nuremberg.

The trip begins with a departure from Tampa on Dec. 2, 2024, with a return to Tampa on Dec. 10, 2024.

A free preview of this sailing with no obligation will be provided on Fri., Dec. 15, at 1 p.m. on Zoom. However, you must register by Dec. 14 by calling OLLI’s Charise Dixie at (813)-974-5848, or register here for the presentation.

You’re certain to get a great start to the 2024 holiday season, enjoy great food and friendship, find unique holiday gifts and decorations – and make wonderful memories on this great OLLI tour!

The Many Options For OLLI Members

When members join OLLI, they find many options to choose from. There are opportunities for volunteering, becoming part of a Shared Interest Group (SIG), or learning new subjects. Whether you choose one or more, the bottom line is that you are enriching yourself and helping to keep OLLI rolling.

Over the past two months, we've explored the subjects of volunteering and of SIGs. This month, we're winding up this series with a discussion of the many learning opportunities OLLI has to offer.

So Many Classes In So Many Places!

In the upcoming 2024 winter/spring term, which runs from mid-January through April, OLLI- USF will offer over 175 classes and lectures throughout Hillsborough County on a vast array of subjects that, hopefully, will pique your interest.

Our members have expressed support for both in-person and online classes, so we are committed to providing both platforms. Nearly 75 percent of classes and 50 percent of lectures will be in person, while the remainder will be on Zoom. 

We are so grateful for the volunteer faculty who will be teaching this term and for you, the students who take these courses. Teachers frequently tell me it is the attentiveness and appreciation of students that motivate them to keep volunteering for our program.

Permit me to spotlight several of this term’s offerings and the venues that will host them. Unfortunately, space limitations constrain me from promoting each class and each teacher. 

Classes on the USF Tampa Campus

In 2002, when I started working for USF Senior Programs (pre-OLLI name), all classes were held on the USF campus. That remained constant until 2004, when parking issues compelled us to form community partnerships with venues in Hillsborough County that were compatible with our programming and had good parking.

We still have a vital presence on the USF campus, anchored by the outstanding technology courses led by OLLI Technology Coordinator Jeanne Dyer. The university’s NEC building is home to the OLLI-USF offices and to several classrooms that host our classes. Two of those classes include Windows 11 for Beginners taught by new instructor Patrick Murphy and Fun with Apple Pages with Louise Kienast and Joan Frantz.

Most of the liberal arts courses are offered in our five retirement community contractual partners and 13 other strategically located host venues. I am grateful for the excellent work of our onsite retirement community contact representatives: Marcy Ross from Allegro at Hyde Park, Veronica Barnaby of Arbor Terrace in Citrus Park, Luis Manzi of Canterbury Tower, Kyara Ortiz of Concordia Village, and Nancy Vincent and Michelle Cronin of Unisen Senior Living. These wise and caring individuals are sensitive to the safety and comfort of our members and often provide special displays of hospitality, with snacks and beverages at their cost.

Classes in South Tampa

Let’s take a geographical tour of a few classes to be held next term throughout Hillsborough County. In south Tampa, Allegro at Hyde Park will host 13 classes, including three that will feature the debut of three instructors: Bruce Johnson’s Murals of Tampa, Susan Guidi’s What if Wonder Woman was 66! and Shirley Arcuri & Elaine Holmes’ The National Popular Vote.

Canterbury Tower will feature seven classes including Third Political Parties with historian Don Greene and Shakespeare’s Timeless Magic by the engaging Karen Roberts.

The Shanna and Bryan Glazer JCC on Howard Avenue will host several classes, one being The Earliest Jews in America taught by former Hillsborough Community College Dean Barbara Goldstein. The downtown Florida Aquarium returns with four superb classes including popular instructor Matt Allen’s Simple Fishy Photography and Animal Enrichment by Ashley Chambers.

Classes in North Tampa

In North Tampa, Unisen Senior Living near USF, will host 15 classes and three lectures including Ancient Sicily by USF Professor Davide Tanasi, The Dreyfus Affair with Board Member Bruce Gobioff, The Fab Four in 1964 with outstanding researcher Michael Hayes, and America’s First People by new instructor Buddy Van Wagoner.

Concordia Village on Fletcher Avenue will feature Spiritual Questions in a Secular World with Membership Chair Pam Tyler, Line Dancing with the dynamic John and Gail Carleo, Ancient Greek for Beginners with new instructor Bradley Maleh, Poetry Writing by USF Professor Ryan Cheng and Diversity Equity and Inclusion with Ron Weaver.

Arbor Terrace in Citrus Park will feature 10 classes, including Women in Medicine Who Didn't Make the History Books with Sheryl Long and Maestros of Movie Musicals by the popular Beth Davey.

At Lettuce Lake Park, Ann Paul and Tammy Lyons will present Natural Hillsborough. The Uptown Stage at University Mall features Nora Paine’s introductory Acting class. In the Carrollwood area at the Lake Magdalene Church you will discover The Mysteries of Agatha Christie with Diane White, Baseball in the 1920s by Michael Martin, One Big Book by OLLI board member Kevin Chittim and Better Aging Through Research with Jane Applegate and former OLLI director Ara Rogers.

Classes in Eastern Hillsborough

Heading out to eastern Hillsborough County, the Regent in Riverview presents Fulvia Fiorani’s Cosmology and Jerry Noland’s A Long Wait!

Jerry will also teach Learn to Love Poetry at the First Presbyterian Church in Brandon. The Brandon Senior Center offers Canasta with Janice Perelman and Peter Terzian’s Go Brew Yourself.

I hope this thumbnail tour of OLLI in Hillsborough whets your educational appetite for the upcoming term. You can access more information on all OLLI classes by accessing the winter catalog here. 

--Joseph McAuliffe

NEW SHARED INTEREST GROUP IN THE WORKS

Outreach SIG Brings OLLI Into The Community

At this time of year, we are always encouraged to be generous to others by giving the gift of time and donations of toys and money.

OLLI members do have big hearts, so here’s an opportunity to expand our generosity even more.

We could band together to do some group volunteer work in the Tampa Bay area. For example, we could work as a team to help the city put on an event or adopt an elementary school to help wherever they need it.

Whatever we decide to do would be stamped with OLLI’s name, creating more presence in the community.

Do you have ideas you would like to share on how we could become more active in the community? 

If you’re interested in helping start this Outreach Shared Interest Group, contact Linda Schatz.

--Linda Schatz

PROFILE OF THE MONTH

Meet The Catalog Team: 2023 OLLI Exemplary Teamwork Award Winner

They Bring OLLI To Your Mailbox

The OLLI Catalog – Three times a year this beautiful and interesting publication arrives in our mailbox filled with pictures and information about all the classes, SIGs, instructors and other events coming up in the new semester.

Behind all those pages are 12 volunteers and three staff members who dedicate numerous hours to put it together. That commitment to the publication was recognized this past May with the 2023 Exemplary Teamwork Award.

This Is How They Do It:

Even before the catalog is published, Educational Programming Manager Joseph McAuliffe and Technology Coordinator Jeanne Dyer are continually looking for instructors to teach OLLI classes. About three months before the catalog comes out, instructors for the upcoming semester are identified and assigned dates, times and locations for their classes.

Then, under the coordination of Operations Manager Cath Mason, the volunteers start writing descriptions of all the new classes that will go into the publication.



Describing Classes

Using information provided by the instructors, the volunteers work in teams of two -- Linda Schatz and Sandy Buckley, Linda Tournade and Diane Russell, Ashley Bennington and Ann Sofia, and Delia Palermo and, again, Diane Russell – to describe each class as fully as possible within a 500-character limit, including spaces, and while following AP Style and USF Style guidelines.

Their goal, Cath says, is to “to make sure the instructors will have people in their classes by giving a description that will pull people in."

Meanwhile, Mary Ettinger is writing biographies of the new instructors and updating bios when needed, each within a 250-character limit.

This stage takes two to four weeks, impressive considering, for example, the 154 new classes and lectures in the catalog that recently arrived in our mailboxes. Those are among more than 175 OLLI classes and lectures that will be offered in the winter/spring semester.

It's a labor of love, says Ann Sofia. “It’s my way to give back for all the wonderful friends I have made and courses I take through OLLI,” says Ann, who worked as a tax and legal copy editor for Prentice Hall before becoming a high school English teacher for Hillsborough County.

bios need to go into two places– the printed catalog and the registration system.

The registration system is the bailiwick of volunteer Nancy Baily-Williamson, who works with Cath to get all information about the upcoming semester into the registration system and ensure that the details are correct.

Meanwhile volunteers Bettina Harvey and Brenda Uhlich check printouts from the system against Jeanne’s and Joseph’s spreadsheets to identify errors that need correcting.

Working on the catalog is not only satisfying, but it has other advantages, says Brenda.

“It was great to work with Cath Mason and get a first look at all the classes,” she says.

The catalog is more than a listing of classes. There are photos to gather and columns by Jean, Joseph and OLLI Director Veronica Maxwell, a map of class locations, and information about the Open House, the Annual Fund, day trips, travel opportunities, and Encore classes to collect, a project that involves all OLLI staff members.

Proofreading The Drafts



Finally, when everything is ready, it goes to a professional graphic designer to put into a printable piece. When the first draft comes out, it’s up to Fran Darrach, Diane Russell and Mary Ettinger to proofread.

Fran retired as president of Tampa Travel Service before becoming a business technology instructor

for the Hillsborough County school system. “I think OLLI is a wonderful contribution to our community,” she says. “Cath is the best. I’m so honored to be part of this team.”

Until recently, Diane spent the past four years as co-chair of OLLI’s Volunteer Management Committee. In addition to her work with the Catalog Team, she’s also a proofreader for the OLLI blog, OLLI Connects.

“I love working with the Catalog Team,” Diane says. “It is exciting to see what courses will be offered in the next term.”

It usually takes several drafts of the printed piece and, frequently, last-minute changes to classes and schedules before the process is finished. It’s both interesting and intense, Cath says.

And not too long after the catalog arrives in your mailbox, the process begins all over again.

If you’re interested in joining the Catalog Team, there are openings for people to help write the course descriptions. Please contact Cath to volunteer.

--Sandy Buckley

ESIGnificant EVENTS FOR DECEMBER 2023

Nancy Baily-Williamson, SIG Liaison

PEOPLE NEWS

Farewell to Maynard Nort

OLLI-USF lost a formative member this year. Maynard North passed away in September at the age of 99. A member of the Greatest Generation, Maynard was a veteran of WWII and the Korean War who later earned advanced degrees in German and language arts. After a career in education, Maynard retired as dean of humanities at Monroe Community College in Rochester, New York in 1979.

Maynard and his wife, Lois, first spent summers in Vermont and winters in Tampa. He served as a board member, historian, and instructor at OLLI-USF. Maynard was quite a character. He was a composer of humorous doggerel for the many plays and programs he participated in with OLLI and the University Players at University Village (now Unisen). He was witty, modest and had a self-deprecating humor that endeared him to us.

Maynard loved classical music and taught classes for us on the subject. He hated the emphasis on the familiar "war horses" and sought to introduce us to deeper cuts from the Romantic period. In his capacity as program historian, Maynard hung out at the OLLI offices frequently and despite his gruff demeanor, we will remember him fondly as the curmudgeon with a heart of gold.

--Ara Rogers

Carolyn Clark is our Goodwill Ambassador, sending notes of support, congratulations and comfort on our behalf. If you or another OLLI member have a significant personal event, please let Carolyn know.

Send Us Your News

OLLILife wants to share topics of interest that pertain to OLLI-USF and other OLLIs in the country.

Send your article to ollinewsusf@gmail.com to reach your editors Sandy Buckley, Pat Dodge, Veronica Maxwell, and Kathy Palmer. If possible, please send a picture along with the article as pictures help tell the story.