OLLI Observer
April 16, 2017 
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In This Issue

We Remember
Candle burning
Hal Davis 
April 9, 2017

Mike Sena, on the Finance Committee.

"I love volunteering at OLLI because it gives me an opportunity to give back, and in giving back, I actually got even more than I gave!"

 
Click here to visit the OLLI Volunteering webpage and learn about volunteering opportunities 

Two OLLI student assistants will graduate from UNC Asheville next month! 

  Join us in wishing them well as they soar off to an exciting future - come by the OLLI office to sign a card for
Owen Ryan and  
Caleb Hutcheson.
Elisha Mitchell Audubon Society (EMAS) Meeting
Tuesday, April 18, 7 p.m.
Reuter Center Manheimer Room


Christian Hunt 
"Saving the Red Wolf"

 Red wolves were added to the Endangered Species list in 1967 and conservation efforts began.  Reintroduced in 1987 to NC's Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge, their recovery was a first-of-its-ki nd accomplishment. With over 150 red wolves, the program became the inspiration and model for the reintroduction of gray wolves into Yellowstone National Park. Since then, as a result of agency mismanagement, the red wolf population has collapsed, and no more than forty-five remain. This past September, the US Fish and Wildlife Service also proposed removing most of the last wolves to zoos and shrinking their current wild territory by almost ninety percent-a proposal that could erase thirty years of conservation success.
 Come learn about this conservation effort with Christian Hunt, Southeast Program Associate for Defenders of Wildlife. 

Find out more at the EMAS website, www.emasnc.org,

Advocacy Workshop
Wedneday, April 19, 2-5 p.m.
Reuter Center Manheimer Room

Do you want to help change the world? Then join AARP representatives at a two-hour workshop for an opportunity to learn how to make your voice heard by federal, state and local officials. A panel of presenters with in-depth experience in advocacy, legislation and government will discuss the importance of and critical priorities for advocacy; building relationships with elected officials; sources for fact-based information on a wide range of topics; and strategies for advocating effectively.

Click on the link below to register for this free workshop at aarp.cvent.com/NCMakeYourVoiceHeard

For more information, call 877-926-8300
Sierra Club Meeting
Friday, April 21, 7 p.m.
Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Asheville, 1 Edwin Place

"Before the Flood"
An Earth Day film 
with Leonardo DiCaprio

Follow Leonardo DiCaprio, United Nations Ambassador for Climate Change, as he travels around the globe to witness first hand the effects of climate change and what can be done to solve the problems. The film includes interviews with global leaders such as Pope Francis and former President Obama.

Sponsors: WNC Sierra Club (WENOCA) and Creation Care Alliance of WNC.  
More information: Jane Laping 828.277.7342  janelaping@sbcglobal.net  
Donations requested


BRO presents "Cantus Terrae" at the Folk Art Center
Blue Ridge Parkway, MP 382
Saturday, April 22, 3 p.m.
Sunday, April 23, 3 p.m.
 "Cantus Terrae,"
is a concert in celebration of Earth Day. This season finale program showcases two of music's greatest tributes to the natural world: 
Aaron Copland's "Appalachian Spring" and
 Beethoven's "Pastoral Symphony" 
(No. 6). 

Tickets $15 General Admission, 
$10 Friend of BRO,
 $5 Student. 
or call   (828) 782-3354.

  Special Interest Group: 
The Forum
 Friday, April 28, 2017, 1 p.m. 
(Please note: There will be no April 21 meeting, due to Paths to Creative Retirement Workshop) 
Reuter Center, Room 205

"Why Isn't the US Among the 
Happiest Countries on Earth?"
  Talk  
 The Forum offers a free-flowing dialogue designed to enrich and expand participants' thinking on topics ranging from changing demographics of retirees to nuclear disarmament.

SIG contact: Eugene Jaroslaw, 828.255.9925, ejwestwood@gmail.com 
The Autumn Players 
Readers Theatre 
Sunday, April 30, 2:30 p.m. 
Reuter Center Manheimer Room

ALL OVER by Edward Albee  
Directed by Anita Chapman
 
 
 In this poignant drama a family keeps vigil at the deathbed of a rich and famous public figure. As pressmen wait outside for news to break, wife, mistress, adult children and best friend reminisce and bicker about the thwarted expectations, betrayals and unresolved conflicts in  their relationships with the dying man.

This performance is open to the public, begins at 2:30 p.m. Tickets are $6 
at the door. 
Did someone say Twitter?  
 
Follow us on Twitter  OLLI at UNC Asheville has begun to use Twitter to send out announcements of events and happenings.  We hope you join the fun.  Here are some links that might help you get started:

Instructions for how to create an account
 
Twitter FAQ sheet

Click on the box below to follow OLLI at UNC Asheville on Twitter  
Follow us on Twitter 
Special Thanks 
OLLI would like to thank Creative Retirement Exploration Weekend   Major Sponsor,   
Beverly-Hanks and Associates 
for their longtime support 
of our programming.
Beverly-Hanks and Associates:
"The Choice is Black and White: Unsurpassed Local Knowledge, Global Reach"


CREW helps those considering relocation in retirement examine all their options carefully and make an informed decision about this major life transition.
Dear OLLI Members,
Please remember that the OLLI office and the Reuter Center will be closed on Friday, April 21, as we conduct the "Paths to Creative Retirement" workshop.  Participants come from around the country to learn more about the many issues involved in making the transition from work to retirement.  These kinds of programs are unique because our members serve as facilitators to inspire participants to recognize all of the possibilities of a creative retirement. 

Before April 19, stop by the OLLI Office if you think you may have lost something at the Reuter Center.  We have quite a collection of things people have left behind, and we need to clear out the Lost and Found.

We had a small but engaged crowd to hear (and taste!) our second "More Than a Month" event with Chef Gene Ettison and graduates of the Green Opportunities Kitchen Ready program.  They prepared wonderful Caribbean inspired food and were incredibly honest and thoughtful in sharing the stories of what brought them to Green Opportunities and the work and fellowship that keeps them going.  We plan to invite the group back when they can have a bigger audience. We hope that you will mark your calendars for the next "More Than a Month" event on Wednesday, May 3, when Dewayne Barton will talk about all the work he is doing as part of his Hood Huggers International initiatives.  We are inspired that so many people are using their talent and commitment to making Asheville a more just and inclusive community.

If you want to be part of those efforts, consider joining other members of OLLI's Civic Engagement Committee to be part of a Homework Diner to offer a meal and homework help to families of middle school children. Representatives of our local SCORE program will also be here in April to talk about their work to nurture local entrepreneurs.  If you want to be a mentor to a new business owner, this program may be just the right fit. 

And please take some time to read UNC Asheville Chancellor Mary Grant's annual report on ways UNC Asheville students, faculty and staff are "Making an Impact." We know that you will be impressed to learn about all the ways that the university thrives under Chancellor Grant's leadership.

With respect for all that you do to model creative retirement,
Catherine Frank
Executive Director


Check calendarthe links here to see OLLI and UNC Asheville current events:
 
Around the Center
Photo courtesy of David Allen, 
UNC Asheville Communications

 UNC Asheville atmospheric science faculty Doug Miller and students prepare to release a weather balloon during a high wind event. In 2012, Dr. Miller and his students began to launch balloons from the Center, a perfectly situated building for an unimpeded launch that comes with an indoor spot to monitor the balloons. We love to play a small part in fostering the work of UNC Asheville faculty and students.

unca
UNCA Bulldog 





Tuesday, April 18, 6 p.m.  
Baseball vs USC Upstate 
Greenwood Baseball Field

 
 OLLI Lost and Found

Can't find your jacket? Glasses? Coffee
mug? Your lost item may have been found and turned into the OLLI Lost and Found.  We clear out the OLLI Lost and Found periodically and donate unclaimed items to charity.  Please check in the office for your lost item.  All unclaimed items will be donated on Wednesday, April 19, 2017.  Thank you.
Smart Driver Class 
Monday, April 17, 2017, 11:30 a.m. -3:30 p.m.
Reuter Center Room 120  

aarp Safe Drving This four-hour AARP Smart Driver class offers numerous tips for coping with inevitable changes in perception and reaction time, as well as increased hazards on the roads with faster cars and busier traffic. Participants can expect to review the rules of the road, tips on dealing with aggressive drivers and general safety tips such as how to make left turns into heavy traffic. The course, offered nationwide, is designed to help participants avoid crashes and remain safely behind the wheel. Scheduled at the Reuter Center, the cost is the $20 or $15 for AARP members.  

Contact Ollie Bunch to register orbunch@netscape.net
SCORE Information Session
Tuesday, April 25, 4:15 p.m.
Reuter Center Room 230


Do you enjoy mentoring?  Are you looking for a fulfilling way to make a positive impact on  Asheville's entrepreneurial community? Asheville SCORE's volunteer mentors counsel local entrepreneurs on how to start small businesses and achieve new levels of success in existing businesses.  
Please join SCORE representatives for a discussion and refreshments. 

 
UNC Asheville's Chancellor's Report:
Making an Impact
OLLI at UNC Asheville is very proud to be part of the designated public liberal arts campus in the UNC system.  We hope that you will take some time to read the 2016 Chancellor's Report, "Making an Impact," that reminds us of all the wonderful ways that UNC Asheville contributes to the broader community and trains young people to have an impact as they make their way in the world.  Thanks so much in particular to all of our OLLI mentors who have worked to make a difference in the lives of UNC Asheville undergraduates.
 
 Fab Friday Lunch and Learn Lecture
Friday, April 28, 11:30 a.m.  
(no Fab Friday on April 21 due to Paths Workshop)
Reuter Center Manheimer Room

 Wild Edibles by Roger Klinger

Have you wondered about whether you can eat those pretty yellow mushrooms growing in your back yard? Or wondered if jewelweed really treats poison ivy and where you can find it? These are just a couple of questions that naturalist, ethnobotanist, writer and guide Roger Klinger will explore during this presentation on wild edibles. Roger has a contagious passion for the exciting and wondrous world of wild edible and medicinal plants and mushrooms found in the mountains of Western NC and our own backyards. He will explore the history and folklore of some of the most delicious and most easily identifiable wild plants. A former naturalist/educator with the Audubon Society, the National Park Service and the Smithsonian Institution, Roger is passionately devoted to the earth and celebrating the wonders of nature.  He served as Curator of Natural History for the St. Mary's City Commission. Also, for many years, he has written a monthly column for a variety of newspapers on wild edible and medicinal plants.

This event is free and open to the public.
Volunteer Opportunity

 Volunteer at the Homework Diner.
 

 

These weekly events at local middle schools offer a place for students and families to get homework help and a free meal for the whole family.  This program provides help to families living in poverty by tutoring and encouraging kids and the parents who work to help their kids.  

Click here to read more. 


WNC Historical Association (WNCHA) Event
Saturday, April 29, 2-3:30 p.m.
   Reuter Center Manhiemer Room
 
Caledonia Carolina: Scottish Music at the Roots of Old-Time Appalachia
Presented by Grammy-winning guitarist Bruce Nemerov, Caledonia Carolina is a musical trio that includes the talents of well-known Asheville musicians Michael Garner (fiddle) and Chris Abel (flute and Celtic whistle).  The trio performs 17th and 18th century Scottish tunes demonstrating how the music of North Carolina's early settlers evolved into the "Old-Time" mountain music of the 19th and 20th centuries.  Informative discussions throughout the program illustrate the special bond between the music of Scotland and WNC.
 
Tickets will be sold at the door:  General  Public $5 donation, WNCHA members free. 
Program sponsored by the 
Western North Carolina Historical Association
 
More Than A Month Event: 
Hood Huggers "Touring Affrilachia"

Wednesday, May 3, 3 p.m,   
Reuter Center Manheimer Room

DeWayne Barton
DeWayne Barton will discuss how Hood Hood Huggers International LLC is raising awareness of "Affrilachia"-the African-American communities in Appalachia. Hood Huggers International, LLC offers services in these three categories: social enterprise, the Pearson Plan, and the arts.  A key way Barton pursues his mission is through the organization's Hood Tours, which shuttle participants in a brightly painted van through Asheville's historically African-American neighborhoods. 

Barton says that a main goal of Hood Tours is giving back to the community. "African-American neighborhoods in Asheville are being left behind," he says. "There's a lack of basic infrastructure, connections, and momentum. We've got to have more of that. Our mission is to help create it." One way that Hood Huggers does this is through its Pearson Plan, which connects community members through the arts, environmental stewardship and social enterprise to create sustainable infrastructure and lasting community relationships.


This presentation is part of the "More than a Month" series, providing information throughout the year to raise awareness for OLLI members about African American culture and politics locally and nationally.
Osher Lifelong Learning Institute | 828-251-6140 | olli@unca.edu | http://www.olliasheville.com
Reuter Center, CPO #5000
UNC Asheville
One University Heights
Asheville, NC 28804