Y's Men Newsletter -- Sunday, January 4, 2026

Newsletter

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Y's Men News -- Sunday, January 4, 2026

Table of Contents

(Scroll Down to Find the Article Behind the Headline. Articles are

in the same order as the Table of Contents)

Travel Discussion Group Focuses on 2026 Planning
Allyson Maida to Speak on Applied Brain Science This Thursday
Military History Group Discusses Two Most Decorated Marines
Photography Club to Tackle AI Manipulation of Images
Live Celebration of the Flute at Classical Music Society Tuesday
Y's Man Paul Epstein Facilitates Mindfulness and Just for Men
T&E Lists Outings
Y's Men T&E Group Updates New York City Travel Hints
If You Receive This Email, Delete It
Y's Men Invited to Participate in The Legacy Project
We Are Looking for More Hoot Owls
New Y's Men Fraud Protection Club to Hear Hacking Victim
Another Y's Man Winner in the Expo 22 Photo Contest

Travel Discussion Group to Focus on 2026 Travel Planning

The Y’s Men Travel Discussion Group will meet from 9:00 to 10:30 am tomorrow in rooms 203-204 at the Saugatuck Congregational Church

As usual, meetings begin by members talking about their recent travel experiences.

The topic of the meeting will be:

Travel Planning for 2026 – What’s New and What You Should Know

There will be a guest presenter, Angela Caes, a Professional Travel Advisor at Fernleaf Travel. Formerly a co-worker at Tauck with fellow Y’s Man Ed Strong, Angela has more recently been helping both Y’s Men Rich Freeman and Art Mann with their future travel plans.

Spouses/partners/significant others are welcome to attend.

For information about the Y’s Men Travel Discussion Group, or to be added to the Group’s email distribution list, please contact Art Mann, mannart03@gmail.com

First Speaker of 2026: Applied Brain Science

For Successful Retirement

Allyson Maida

Allyson Maida, Ed.D., LCSW, is the featured speaker at the Y's Men's first meeting of 2026 this Thursday, January 8. She will present a fresh take on retirement, utilizing neuroscience to redirect individuals from a lifetime of deeply ingrained work habits to the joys of new interests, hobbies, and personal passions.

Why it matters: Retirement offers new opportunities to recalibrate your brain, breaking free from the work mindset to new energy and purpose.

The expert: Maida, business owner, professor, psychotherapist, and author of 180: A Counterintuitive Method for Long-lasting Personal Change.

Y's Men Thursday morning meetings are in Hoskins Hall downstairs in the Saugatuck Congregational Church, 245 Post Road East in Westport. Coffee, donut, and bagel social hour begins at 9:00 am, business meeting at 10:00 am, speaker at 10:30 am. Come early and meet your fellow members. Guests are always welcome.

Military History Group Discusses Two Most Decorated Marines

Y's Man Bruce Nemirow will be leading a discussion tomorrow about two of the most decorated Marines: Lt. General Chesty Puller of WWII and Sgt. Daniel Daly of WWI.

The meeting is tomorrow, Monday, January 5, from 10:15 to 11:15 am in room 211 at the Saugatuck Congregational Church.

On Monday, February 2, Civil War expert Bill O'Brien will discuss the 1862 battle of Antietam.

For additional information, contact Y's Man Mark Perlman at firstdiv@optonline.net.

Photography Club to Tackle AI Manipulation of Images

At the next meeting of the Y's Men Photography Club this Tuesday, January 6 at 9:30 am at the Saugatuck Congregational Church, there will be a deep dive into how AI manipulation of images is changing the world of Photography.

Members have sent in their own images that have been altered by AI for discussion. The group also will be discussing how to detect AI manipulations and how accurate it is.

Y's Men are invited to audit the meeting if they wish to be up-to-date with the current state of affairs of AI in the photography world.

For additional information, contact Y's Man William Weiss at william.wweiss@gmail.com.

Live Flute Concert at Classical Music Society This Tuesday

When the Y's Men Classical Music Society meets this Tuesday, January 6, it will feature a live performance of flautists with piano accompaniment rather than the usual video presentation. A flute concert will be performed by Aimee Toner and Lynn Padell accompanied on the piano by Y's Man Harry Sauer in a program that includes pieces by Johann Sebastian Bach and Claude Debussy

Flautist Aimee Toner’s extensive experience includes performing as flautist and piccolo player with orchestras throughout New England headlining contracted recitals along the east coast.

Lynn Padell has been playing the flute on and off since elementary school. In college, she studied classical flute with renowned flautist and arranger Louis Moyse.

Dr. Harry Sauer, who is retired as chair, department of obstetrics and gynecology, Yale New Haven Health; chair of ob/gyn at Bridgeport Hospital in the Yale New Haven Health system; and a Clinical Professor at the Yale School of Medicine, is a part time pianist who has performed for the Classical Music Society at several past meetings.

The Celebration of the Flute concert is scheduled for 2:45 pm to 4:15 pm at the Westport Center for Senior Activities. Because seating is limited, please let Y's Man Past President Ed Bloch know if you plan to attend with an email to edbloch71@gmail.com.

Y's Man Paul Epstein Facilitates Mindfulness and Just for Men

Y's Man Dr. Paul Epstein is the facilitator of the Y's Men Mindfulness Group as well as the Just for Men discussion group at the Westport Center for Senior Activities. Just for Men meets the first Thursday of the month beginning with this Thursday, January 8 from 3:00 to 4:00 pm.

The Mindfulness Group meets on Zoom the third Thursday of the month from 7:30 to 8:30 pm. This month the meeting will be on Monday, January 19 and will take place if there is a quorum of five attending. Let Paul or Jeff Rubin (email addresses below) know if you want to participate.

At each session the groups practice mindfulness and compassion and gratitude, and discuss the teachings and their practical application and integration with life for peace, health and happiness.

For additional information, contact Paul Epstein at epsteinmb@aol.com or Jeff Rubin at jeffrubinwpt11@gmail.com.

Wednesday, January 28

Brooklyn Museum of Art

Spouses, significant others & friends are most welcome

https://conta.cc/3YO656k

~~~~~

Saturday, February 7

UConn Women’s Basketball

Spouses, significant others & friends are most welcome

https://conta.cc/3JHnHgE

Y's Men T&E Group Updates New York City Travel Hints

The Y’s Men T&E Group posted New York City Travel Hints on the Y's Men website last year to assist travelers to NYC navigate Metro-North, Grand Central Terminal, and the MTA system. There are a few changes effective today, January 4, so an amended version is now available.

The principal changes are:

The Senior discount fare on Metro-North is now available all day, including morning rush hour. There is no longer any need to wait until the 9:00 am off-peak train.

The MetroCard has been discontinued. Subway and bus fares are now paid using credit or debit cards or the MTA OMNY card.

A revised "NYC Travel Hints" appears on the Trips and Events tab on the Y's Men website or click here to read them.

If You Receive This Email, Delete It

The email below was received by several Y's Men last week. It was the subject of a Y's Man Scam Alert on Friday. If you receive it, don't open it, and delete it.

From: "Men's Ofwestport" <mensofwestport@gmail.com>

Subject: IMPORTANT MEMBER UPDATE FROM Y’S MEN OF WESTPORT

Date: January 2, 2026 at 10:55:06 AM EST

To: james.thomas2026@dr.com

Men of Westport/Weston

OFFICIAL UPDATE FROM Y'S MEN OF WESTPORT

Y’s Men of Westport/Weston

P.O. Box 167

Westport, CT 06881-0167

https://www.dps.texas.go

Y's Men Invited to Participate in The Legacy Project

Calling all Y’s Men who would like to participate in The Legacy Project, a special program connecting Staples High School students with older adults to build meaningful, one-on-one relationships across generations.

Each student will meet individually with a participating adult to listen, learn, and help document their unique life story. For more information, email Stella DiGeronimo at stella.digeronimo@icloud.com.

We Are Looking for More Hoot Owls

The Hoot Owls is the singing group, or Glee Club, of the Y's Men. It has been serving the area's senior facilities for more than 50 years. It is led by music director Chris Coogan, a well known Jazz musician, pianist, singer and composer.

If you are interested in singing and enjoy entertaining your follow seniors, please consider joining the Hoot Owls. No audition necessary.

Contact: Bob Leng at Leng_7@msn.com or 978-289-0940.

Y's Men Fraud Protection Club to Meet March 11;

Hacking Victim to Relate His Experience

The new Y's Men Fraud Protection Club will hold its first meeting on Tuesday, March 10, at 10:00 am in room 211 at the Saugatuck Congregational Church. It will hear the story of a fellow Y's Man who lost a major portion of his life savings through fraud.

His sobering tale of how quickly a life can change because he was hacked should spark some ideas on how we should protect ourselves. The group will discuss what actions can be taken to prevent a hack before it happens.

According to Y's Man Jeff Schwartz, one of the goals of the Club is to develop a preemptive “defense manual” that can be shared with all Y’s Men. "Currently, he says. "no such guide exists. We have to build it ourselves."

For additional information, contact Jeff at jandjschwartz@gmail.com

Another Y's Man Winner in the Expo 22 Photo Contest

Fall Golf (Photo by Y's Man Ed Simek)

This photo by Y's Man Ed Simek was a winner in the Y's Men Photography Club's 22nd Annual Photographic Exhibition co-sponsored with the Westport Center for Senior Activities. The contest was judged in November among entries in eight categories. The photo is now on display at the Center.