OLLI Observer
July 21
 
, 2019    
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In This Issue



OLLI Fall Schedule
Sneak Peek and 
Course Descriptions 
Now Available





Important Dates for  College for Seniors
Fall 2019
  • Fall catalog available: August 6, 2019
  • Fall registration: August 15 -22, 2019
  • Fall term dates: September 16 - November 8, 2019
Winter 2020
  • Winter catalog available: November 1, 2019
  • Winter registration: November 6 -13, 2019
  • Winter term dates: January 13 - February 24, 2020

Many thanks to our curriculum committees for gathering courses and working with our instructors.

Thanks to Pascale Couturier-Armstrong for getting the information ready and publishing it on our website.
LAS Government Day with
Mayor Esther Manheimer in City Council Chambers

Leadership Asheville Seniors (LAS)
Registration Now Open

Every fall, OLLI o ffers this learning and civic engagement program, planned and led by its graduates and community members. LAS provides participants with a multi-faceted view of Asheville and Buncombe Count y. Through discussions with community leaders in distinctive venues, newcomers and longtime residents alike can gain new perspectives and consider ways to contribute their diverse experiences and talents for the good of the communit y. Each day of the nine-week program o ffers an inside r 's view of topics concerning our communit y,including histor y,environment, government, food insecurit y,the arts,the econom y,education, health and povert y.
 
When: W eekly sessions, Tuesdays, September 10 - November 12, 2019 (Orientation Monday, September 9)
Cost: $400 (scholarships available up to 75%)

 
Questions?  Call 828.250.3871.


College for Seniors 
Course Proposals for Winter 2020 
Due August 1, 2019

At the heart of the College for Seniors program are dedicated volunteer instructors. While many instructors are retired academics, others with no formal teaching background have successfully facilitated learning experiences centered on their areas of passion, interest, or expertise. 



business_conference6.jpg
  The Forum
Special Interest Group (SIG)
Friday, July 26, 1 - 3 p.m.
Reuter Center Room TBA

TOPICS:
  • July 26: Should we increase the tax rates on the mega-wealthy?
  • August 2: Current events and selection of topics for August
The weekly Forum encourages a free-flowing dialogue designed to enrich and expand participants' thinking on a wide variety of topics; the group frequently focuses on current events. All OLLI members are welcome to attend.

SIG Contact: Beth Johnson [email protected]
Art Market Registration and Information


OLLI's Art Market (to be held Friday and Saturday, November 8 and 9, 2019) is a way to showcase the talent of OLLI members. If you would like to be a part of the Art Market but need more information, contact  Sheila Murphy at: [email protected] 

Already know you want to participate? Great! Please print and fill out the registration form and return it with payment to the OLLI front desk. Display spaces  are limited.  

Familiarize yourself with a few important reminders about the market. 

It's Showtime!
Testing Interest in a 
New Special Interest Group

Calling all writers, poets, singers, musicians, dancers, actors for a possible new Special Interest Group (SIG) in town: It's Showtime!  

This is an opportunity to create, perform and have fun with other fun-loving OLLI members.  Love to write but too shy to perform?  No problem.  Plenty of show-offs will love to hog the limelight. The proposed topic of this year's show is aging.  We'll make 'em laugh.  We'll make 'em cry.  We hope to start this SIG during OLLI's fall semester, with a final performance will be scheduled for spring.  

Dates and times to be arranged.  At this point we're drumming up participants.

For more information or to express your interest, please contact 
MANNA Food Bank Needs Volunteers
Training: Tuesday and Thursday, 
July 23 and 25, 9 a.m. - 4 p.m.
MANNA Food Bank
627 Swannanoa River Road, 
Asheville, NC 28805

Manna Food Bank
MANNA Food Bank is seeking skilled volunteers for two unique job opportunities within the Community Outreach Department;  Helpline Agents and Rural FNS Outreach Volunteers. Volunteers in both of these positions assist MANNA staff in providing information on food resources in NC. They make referrals to local food pantries, and they assist eligible clients to complete a SNAP/FNS application (formerly known as food stamps).

Helpline Agents are offering over-the-phone assistance from our call center, and FNS Rural Outreach Volunteers are traveling to sites within MANNA's 16-county service area and doing face-to-face assistance at food distribution sites. 
 
Both of these volunteer positions require a two-day FNS Outreach Training (group), followed by 2-3 half-day shifts of job-shadow training. The job shadowing will be scheduled on an individual basis.  The next FNS Outreach Training is July 23 and 25 (both days required) from 9-4 at MANNA FoodBank.
 
Please email Carrie Wagner if you are interested in either volunteer
 position:  [email protected]

Creativity Project Workshop
 Friday, July 26, 
10 a.m. to noon
Reuter Center Manheimer Room

For nearly 20 years Carl Nordgren has helped thousands of entrepreneurs and creative professionals, scientists and engineers, military leaders and college students be and become their most creative and entrepreneurial selves. He wants to help you next.

Recently Nordgren learned of neurological research that discovered changes in an aging brain that invite a creative renewal, and he's writing a book and building programs that will help Boomers and our older friends leverage those biological changes so we can recover our natural born creative genius.

This two- hour event is part workshop, where Nordgren will share with you what he has learned about the 55+ brain, and part focus group for participants to share their thoughts about being creative. 

Your participation is free, and a ll participants will receive a free electronic version of Nordgren's book "Becoming a Creative Genius (again)."


The workshop is at capacity, but we will keep names on a waitlist.

Better Angels Debate
Saturday, July 27, 
10 a.m. to noon
Reuter Center Manheimer Room

Something new is coming to UNC Asheville, a new kind of debate, designed to give people a chance to voice their views on contemporary topics. This debate will be produced by Better Angels, a national organization committed to helping depolarize political conversations. Click here to visit the Better Angels website. This debate has a parliamentary style, where many people get a chance to speak and ask questions, rather than a forensic debate or candidates debate, where most people simply watch.

In fact, there are no losers in a Better Angels debate. The goal is to facilitate the airing of a topic that is defined by a resolution, but where the airing is done by the people in the audience. A debate chair helps maintain order and keeps the conversation going, but the "debaters" are the audience. People are encouraged to speak based on their beliefs, rather than craft a wily argument by marshalling facts. And the hope is that, by the end, everyone has had a chance to have their say, some have learned something new, and a few might have actually changed their minds.

Better Angels is planning the first in what might be a series of debates on Saturday, July 27, at 10 a.m. in the Reuter Center's Manheimer Room. To make an engaging debate, we need to find a good resolution that will lead to plenty of discussion. To that end, we would appreciate hearing from you. We would like to know if this kind of thing interests you, and what topics you think might be good ones. If we don't pick yours the first time, there will be other opportunities. 

So, please please click here to fill out a form that lets us know you want to attend and to suggest resolutions for debate. Replying will also help us evaluate interest in these kinds of activities. Once we have a good resolution in mind, we will email again, with information on event details and how to register. The event will be free, but we will need registration to help us plan the room.

Best regards,
Del Kimbler and Cybele Hetherington




OLLI VOLUNTEERS NEEDED

MANNA Food Bank Team
Providing Thousands of Meals a Day to Feed Hungry People

Energy Savers Network
Helping homeowners reduce energy loss

Habitat for Humanity
Changing lives one house at a time

VOLUNTEER NOW...
Make A Difference!


Volunteer Opportunity With 
Read 2 Succeed
The Fall 2019 Training Schedule is available on the Read2Succeed website. Click here.
             
Read2Succeed   Asheville/ Buncombe  is a local  non-profit  whose mission is " to inspire and teach children to read."  The group needs caring, supportive individuals who are interested in tutoring an elementary school student one hour, one to two days a week during the school year. Training and ongoing support are provided. 

  Email:  [email protected]
Phone: 910-619-4313

Dear OLLI Members,
We know many of you will enjoy seeing the "sneak peek" of courses for Fall 2019. Remember that you can read full course descriptions of fall courses, including reading and materials lists and instructor biographies, at our  course website. You can search the site by instructor name, day of the week or topic. We will have our full catalog online on August Tuesday, August 6, and registration will open Thursday, August 15, 10 a.m.; the initial registration period will run through Thursday, August 22, noon. We will be sending information about our membership and parking for this year some time this week. Remember that if you know anyone who would like to teach for the College For Senior winter term (or if you would like to teach), the deadline for course proposals is August 1.

While you are planning your fall schedule, please consider signing up for Leadership Asheville Seniors, a unique way to learn about how Asheville works from the "movers and shakers" who are making a difference by tackling some of our community's biggest challenges and taking advantage of some of our most exciting opportunities.  Click here to learn more about the program.

We invite all of you to join us to express your appreciation for the work of OLLI's Business Manager Ann Cadle on Friday, July 26, 3-5 p.m. Ann has taken a new job working in UNC Asheville's IT department.  We won't be able to replace Ann, but we hope to be able soon to advertise her position.  In the meantime, OLLI's Member Relations Coordinator Frankie Keller will take on some of Ann's day-to-day responsibilities, with support from Pascale Couturier-Armstrong, our College for Seniors Program Assistant.  

Please take advantage of the programs of other UNC Asheville programs, including Leadership Asheville's Buzz Breakfast and on-campus programs of the Mountain Dance and Folk Festival. You may want to start reading now for the appearance of David Isay, the founder of StoryCorps, to discuss his book Callings: The Purpose and Passion of Work. Isay will be on campus on  September 19 to discuss this book that has been assigned as summer reading for UNC Asheville freshmen.

Finally, we hope many of your will turn out to see OLLI storytellers. Chuck Fink will appear at Weaverville Library on Tuesday, July 23 and Mike Sena will be part of Stories on Asheville's Front Porch on Saturday, July 27.  

Remember that this is your community. If you have questions or suggestions or would like to serve on a committee or volunteer, please let us know by responding to this email,
Catherine Frank
Executive Director


 Check the links here to see OLLI and UNC Asheville current events:
 
calendar
Appreciation Celebration for Ann Cadle
Friday, July 26, 3-5 p.m.
Reuter Center Lower Level

Ann Cadle
Please join us to express our appreciation for the work that OLLI business manager Ann Cadle has done for us at the Reuter Center. Ann has kept meticulous records and was instrumental in the implementation of our online registration system.  She has built a reputation for excellence and accuracy within the OLLI community and across campus. We congratulate her on her new job working in UNC Asheville's IT department and want to let her know how much she has meant to us.

Our celebration will include ice cream from The Hop (including a vegan option), wine, beer and light snacks. 



The Gift of Time
Registration Now Open
Tuesdays, August 6 - September 3, 2019, 10 a.m. - noon

The Life Transitions Committee at OLLI is pleased to offer members an opportunity to explore key end of life issues through the Gift of Time Program. 

The workshop will be an extended conversation with trained facilitators as well as outside speakers who will converse holistically on key legal , medical and spiritual issues. We are pleased to announce that our speakers for the 2019 Gift of Time Program will include elderlaw attorney  Caroline Knox, p alliative and hospice care doctor  John Langlois, and Michael Carter, a former  chaplain from Mission Hospitals and minister for the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of the Swanannoa Valley and consulting minister for The Thermal Belt Unitarian Universalist Fellowship in Tryon, North Carolina. After hearing from speakers, participants will work in small groups to plan out their wishes in a way that allows them to feel prepared to manage the complex issues that face all of us in times of crisis at the end of life.

The Gift of Time Program will encourage participants to think about how to  plan and communicate end-of-life wishes  to spouses, partners, children and parents as well as how to advocate for yourself in end-of-life planning.

The fee for this course is $30. 

For more information, please contact Life Transitions Program Manager, Hannah Furgiuele at 828-250-3871 or [email protected].


Next Steps for OLLITalk
OLLI executive director Catherine Frank met on Friday, July 12, with interested OLLITalk members. During a short presentation she discussed the reasons that staff will no longer maintain OLLITalk, including the time required and the potential liability from people who breach security and make comments that diminish our sense of community.

A group of OLLI members met after the initial information session to discuss how to create and run an alternate service. Many of them have significant experience maintaining similar services, and we are confident that they have the expertise and commitment necessary to create a successful online community. We will keep you posted in the newsletter to let you know more about how to join any new group. 

Thanks to the many people who have successfully used the service over the years.  We have re-opened the list until Wednesday, July 31, 5 p.m. At that time we will keep the archives open indefinitely.
Meditation Special Interest Group (SIG)
Monday, July 22, 5 - 6 p.m.
4 Eagle Street, Downtown Asheville

Billy Zanski  will be offering the Meditation SIG a sound meditation at Skinny Beats Drum Studio, 4 Eagle Street, downtown Asheville.  While there is no fee for this program, donations are welcome. Note that this will be an "off site" Meditation SIG event, and people should arrive early as the entry door
 will close promptly at 5 p.m.
 
Billy Zanski, an enthusiastic and inspiring teacher, healer, and musician has dedicated his life to sharing the joy and passion for journey through sound. Sound healing and taking percussion into the realm of healing has become the cornerstone of his shop.  Spending extensive time in West Africa, Brazil, and Chile, Billy has developed a fusion of rhythm and deep frequencies, which he has been facilitating for the past 10 years.  One of Billy's main gifts is to allow space for others to connect and feel the peace and presence of sound and music.  Crystal bowls, gongs, didgeridoo, kora (west African  harp) and many forms of percussion, comprise some of Billy's main instrumentation.

This will be our last gathering until classes resume again in September.  Those who wish to enjoy a group dinner are welcome to join us at a local restaurant.

All OLLI Members are welcome at this event.  
SIG Contact: Sally Ekaireb


A Weaverville Story Spin
"Anything Could Happen"
Tuesday, July 23, 7 p.m. 
 Weaverville Public Library, 41 N. Main Street, Weaverville

This event features three local tellers, Chuck Fink, Pete Koschnick and Jill Totman. 

The show is free but not recommended for children, since language and references may be "a tad salty."

Greater Asheville Science for All Book Club

Wednesday, July 24, 6:30 p.m. 
  Reuter Center Room 206



The vision of this group is an informal networking group that meets to discuss books and topics regarding current science as well as science that addresses the unique and diverse landscapes of the Southern Appalachians.
Leadership Asheville Buzz Breakfast
"What Are We Doing Now to Connect Community?"
Thursday, July 25, 8 a.m. Breakfast and Networking; 8:30 a.m. program
Crowne Plaza Expo Center, 1 Resort Drive, Asheville


The second of three programs this summer addressing the question "How do we build a connected community?" will include  Erica Anderson, Director of Economic and Community Development for Land of Sky Regional Council,    Dawa Hitch, Communications and Public Engagement Director for the City of Asheville,    Chris Joyell, Asheville Design Center Director for Mountain True,    Vicki Meath, Executive Director of Just Economics,  Catherine Mitchell, Executive Director for River Front Development Group,  Ray Rapp, Western North Carolina Rail Committee Chair, and  Meghan Rogers, Executive Director for Asheville Downtown Association.

Individual tickets are $25 for each event. Consider purchasing an equity seat in addition to your regular purchase. All equity seats sold will be offered to community organizations that would like to join in the discussion. 

 
OLLI Storyteller Mike Sena

Stories on Asheville's Front Porch
Saturday, July 27, 10:30-11:30 a.m.
Jubilee!, 46 Wall Street, Downtown Asheville

July 27: Catherine Yael Serota, Uncle Ted White, and Mike Sena

This event is free and open to everyone.
Click here for an event poster for Stories on Asheville's Front Porch. 

Wilma Dykeman Riverway
2019 Summer Series

Paddling the French Broad River with Asheville GreenWorks
Saturday, July 27, 10 a.m.- 1 p.m.
Asheville GreenWorks Riverside O ffice, 318 Riverside Drive
Participants will take a shuttle to Hominy Creek River Park,  220 Hominy Creek Road and board canoes,  kayaks and dories, then paddle down the  river. Asheville GreenWorks will share their  history and current activities. To register contact  Dawn Chávez, GreenWorks Executive Director  or Eric Bradford, Director of Operations,  Asheville GreenWorks, 828-254-1776.  Participation is limited to 20 persons.

The Woodfin Greenway / Blueway and a Creekside Train Ride
Saturday, August 17, 1:30 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.
Craggy Mountain  Line, 11 Woodfin Avenue
or meet at French Broad River Academy for Boys, 1990 Riverside Drive

The afternoon will include a train ride (which starts at 1:30 p.m., with participation limited to 35 people) and illustrated presentations,  followed by a short tour of the French Broad  River Academy's sustainable facility. To register contact  Jason Young, Woodfin  Town Administrator 828-253-4887


The 92nd Mountain Dance & Folk Festival 
is coming to UNC Asheville's campus!
Thursday - Saturday, August 1 - 3, 6:30 p.m. each night
UNC Asheville, Lipinsky Auditorium

The 92nd Annual Mountain Dance and Folk Festival comes to Lipinsky Auditorium with three different shows, each at 6:30 p.m., Thursday-Saturday, August 1-3, featuring traditional and old-time musicians, ballad singers, mountain dance groups and cloggers. 

General admission tickets are $25 at the door; $10 for students; $5 for children age 6-12. 
Astronomy Club of Asheville
Image of Ultima Thule
"Beyond Pluto: The New Horizons Mission to Ultima Thule"
A Presentation by Steven J. Conrad, 
Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory

Thursday, August 1, 7 p.m.
Reuter Center Manheimer Room

When NASA's  New Horizons spacecraft sped past Pluto in July 2015, offering unprecedented (and unexpected) views of the strange dwarf planet, its mission was considered an unparalleled success. As the spacecraft continued into the far reaches of our solar system, scientists were cautiously hopeful that the mission could be extended to explore an object in the  Kuiper Belt, the distant region located one billion miles past Neptune's orbit that contains comets, asteroids and other small icy bodies.

The mission's new target did not disappoint; on New Year's Day 2019, 13 years after the spacecraft's launch, New Horizons had its closest encounter with Kuiper Belt Object 2014MU69, nicknamed " Ultima Thule," the most distant - and quite possibly the oddest - object ever explored. This 22-mile, peanut-shaped asteroid gives scientists a primordial glimpse into the earliest formation of our solar system.

Steve Conard will discuss the New Horizon mission's efforts to find Ultima Thule and how scientists characterized the object prior to the encounter. He'll then examine the preparations for the flyby, and how data collected by the spacecraft's Long Range Reconnaissance Imaging (LORRI) instrument can unlock the mysteries of our solar system's beginnings.


Sierra Club
"Hiking the Rim of the Swannanoa Valley:
 America's Highest and Most Historic Skyline" 
Thursday, August 1, 7 p.m.
Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Asheville, 
One Edwin Place (corner of Charlotte and Edwin), Asheville

Joe and Mary Standeart of the Swannanoa Valley Museum will talk about hikes, history and culture of the region. 


Start Your Summer Reading to Prepare for a Talk by 
StoryCorps Founder Dave Isay
Thursday, September 19, 7:30 - 9 pm
UNC Asheville Campus, Lipinsky Auditorium

Dave Isay, founder of StoryCorps and author of five books, will give a free public talk on Thursday, September 19, in Lipinsky Auditorium. 
Isay's most recent book based on StoryCorps interviews, Callings: The Purpose and Passion of Workwas summer reading for first-year UNC Asheville students. 

Isay, a radio producer, began what grew into StoryCorps in 2003 with a story recording booth in New York City. StoryCorps, with a mission "to preserve and share humanity's stories in order to build connections between people and create a more just and compassionate world," now has story booths in different cities, and mobile story booths that travel the country.

Osher Lifelong Learning Institute | 828-251-6140 | [email protected] | http://www.olliasheville.com
Reuter Center, CPO #5000
UNC Asheville
One University Heights
Asheville, NC 28804