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June 27, 2014 Editor of the Week: Leslie Vandivere Table of Contents Alerts & Notices Board of Directors Meeting June 20, 2014 Meet the New Board Members: Wendy Campbell Meet the OLLI Founding Members Computer Club Poet's Corner Mid-class Stretch Arts & Music at George Mason Meetings & Clubs About OLLI E-News Alerts & Notices Next week, we will be publishing on July 3 instead of July 4. All articles will be due at 6 p.m. on Monday, June 30. Summer office hours at Tallwood are 9 to 1:15 on Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday; 9 to 4 on Wednesday; and 9 to noon on Friday. At Tallwood, park in the pool parking lot only in the morning. Back to Top of Page Board of Directors Meeting June 20, 2014 By Irene Osterman, Board Secretary The recently elected directors were acknowledged: Wendy Campbell, Irene Osterman, Martha Scanlon (second term), Nancy Scheeler (second term), Stan Schretter, and Joel Ticknor. The following were elected as officers: Glenn Kamber as president, Stan Schrettter as vice president, Irene Osterman as secretary, and Dave Mason to continue as treasurer. Al Smuzynski was appointed to the Board to fill the remaining one-year term of the late Debbie Halverson. Steve Canner presented a report on the Strategic Planning Committee. The committee has developed a decision tree for deciding whether it is feasible for OLLI to remain at Tallwood for the medium or long term. Jennifer Disano reported that great strides have been made in reducing the wait list. In the summer of 2013, 178 members were wait-listed due to room capacity and this summer the number is 28. The meeting opened with praise and applause for outgoing President Martha Scanlon and concluded with a celebratory cake. Back to Top of Page Meet the New Board Members: Wendy Campbell By Martha Powers OLLI Member & Liaison Sub-Committee Chair   If you’re a fan of American Girl dolls or the BBC TV series Doctor Who, Wendy wants to talk to you! And if you need a rowdy OLLI crowd to pipe down, call on Wendy, whose experience herding fifth graders has given her a commanding presence and built-in megaphone that will bring immediate silence—guaranteed. When you start life as an Army brat in Japan and France, you probably aren’t going to lead a routine life. With a BA in anthropology and MEd degree, Wendy became an elementary school teacher somewhat late in life, spending most of her 20-year career teaching students in gifted and talented center programs in Fairfax County Public Schools. She retired in 2009 and promptly joined OLLI. As OLLI members can attest, Wendy is a hands-on teacher who makes history fascinating. Her classes have included medieval reenactment of Viking times, insight into the life of a pirate, and writing skaldic poetry. For Grand Camp, she helped kids make bricks the old-fashioned way, using mud and an ancient recipe. Wendy also attends art and theater classes at OLLI, and she’s on a first-name basis with Bill Shakespeare. She has managed Readers’ Theatre classes, and co-manages Grand Camp and the Brunch Murder Mystery with Kathie West. As a member of The OLLI Players, Wendy brings her thespian flair to area senior centers and retirement communities. In her “spare time,” Wendy chairs the far-reaching Member Services Committee, responsible for numerous essential OLLI functions including front office volunteers, classroom liaisons, new member advisors, seasonal parties, kick-off coffees, and other hospitality events. How she finds time for her four grandchildren is a complete mystery, but Wendy creates wonderful photo books for them and visits them, and her two sons, on the West Coast whenever she can. Wendy’s amazing range of knowledge and interests, not to mention her heartfelt dedication to all things OLLI, will be important assets to the board in the coming years. And, thankfully, her unfailing sense of humor is also part of the deal. Back to Top of Page Meet the OLLI Founding Members By Alice Slayton Clark, Communications Associate Back in the early 1990s, a hundred intellectually driven retirees gathered in one room in the Commerce II Building to take classes from the 14 offered by the fledgling Lifelong Learning Institute at Mason. A few of those same visionaries still gather today at the now-thriving Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at Mason.   This is the first in a series of articles about the original OLLI members—their life stories and their observations on how OLLI has evolved over the past 23 years. Overall, they are united about one thing: OLLI is a vision that is here to stay! Chester Myslicki If you haven’t met Chester Myslicki, you are missing out. He joined the Lifelong Learning Institute at Mason in 1992, and has been happily taking classes ever since. In those days, OLLI was a much smaller organization, recalls Myslicki, with just one room shared alternately by classes and administration. “I liked the smaller classes then,” Myslicki said when asked about the differences between OLLI 1992 and OLLI 2014. “It was easier to meet people and get to know them.” Today, there are so many new faces it is hard to keep track, he remarked. But that does not deter Myslicki, who looks forward to the expanded course offerings today. He is an eager participant in the investment forum and he loves to talk with “real experts” in classes on current events. But his true passion is for Readers Theater, where he “always puts himself into character, whatever it is,” says Wendy Campbell, one of the class coordinators. And if you missed it, Myslicki performed an improvised cameo in the recent Murder at the Bellagio mystery brunch, lip-synching That’s Amore and dancing with “the girls.” “Chester is charming and delightful, and willing to do any role,” Campbell gushed. And that is not all. Fit as a fiddle at 93, Myslicki is a repeat champion in freestyle and backstroke at the Northern Virginia Senior Olympics and has often medaled in the breaststroke. He had to hang up his swim trunks a couple of years ago because of a bad knee, but he still looks toned and as ready as ever to hit the pool and do some laps. Otherwise, Myslicki keeps himself busy visiting with family living in Northern Virginia as well as with a friend he’s known since 1928. Born in 1920 in Flint, Michigan, Myslicki grew up to be a jack-of-all-trades. During World War II he served in the US Army and helped establish the largest radar station in the world in Japan. When he returned home, he earned a master of economics degree from the University of Michigan and found work, sequentially, as an economist at the US Commerce Department, the Department of Labor, the President’s Council of Economic Advisors, and the International Monetary Fund. He even served as a paralegal working on issues related to retirement and seniors. Myslicki capped his career by founding the Northern Virginia Mediation Service, a nonprofit providing affordable conflict resolution and education services to local communities. Intrigued? Introduce yourself to Chester Myslicki the next time you see him on campus. He’s someone you should know. Back to Top of Page Computer Club By Paul Howard, Computer Club Coordinator On June 21, the OLLI Computer Club held a joint meeting at Tallwood with the Potomac Area Technology and Computer Society (PATACS). The meeting featured presentations by Lorrin Garson, a favorite speaker of OLLI and computer group members, and Gabe Goldberg, a consultant, writer, and editor with expertise in network and enterprise computing environments. Lorrin’s presentation, and other material from the meeting is available here: http://patacs.org/recmtgspat.html The session included an associated PC clinic by PATACS experts for hands-on help with computer problems. There was also continuing work by members of the audiovisual support committee on a project started earlier in the week, assisting OLLI staff with installing dozens of Windows operating system updates Back to Top of Page Poet's Corner Courtesy of the Poetry Workshop Roof Dancers Tethered to the center, Six men move easily on the slanted stage, Crouch to pick old tiles off like scabs, Kneel to carefully nail each new tile to the fresh, wooden skin.   A perfect new roof in two days, clean, tight, like a good poem. Claire Hasselbeck Back to Top of Page Mid-class Stretch By Martha Powers OLLI Member & Liaison Sub-Committee Chair In several classes this summer, liaisons are encouraging instructors to offer a quick mid-class stretch halfway through the class. Recent studies show that too much sitting can be unhealthy, and 85 minutes is a long haul. When the class venue is appropriate, instructors may offer you the opportunity to stand in front of your chair and stretch a bit (perhaps 15 to 30 seconds).   The mid-class stretch isn’t intended as a bathroom break since that could require several minutes, but we hope you will enjoy the second half of your class more when you’ve had a chance to take a breather. Back to Top of Page Arts & Music at George Mason Performances, next two weeks By Shelly Gersten, OLLI E-News Staff Writer For tickets for either CFA or Hylton, call 1-888-945-2468, buy tickets online through the event calendar (see links below), or visit the venue's box office. For more information see the CFA ticket page or the Hylton ticket purchase page. At the Fairfax Campus Venues The XVI Saya Caporal Dance Competition Caporales is a traditional Bolivian original dance from La Paz, Bolivia. Sat, Jun 28, 5:30                 Admission: Adults, $20; seniors, $18 Center for the Arts Back to Top of Page At the Hylton Center Hylton Performing Arts Center First Annual Juried Exhibit Continues through July 18 The Buchanan Partners Art Gallery is open to the public Tue-Sat, 10 to 6, Thur., 10 to 8 and two hours before performances. For more information about the current exhibit, visit HyltonCenter.org/gallery   Back to Top of Page For further details on any of the above events, please see the CFA event calendar and the Hylton Center event calendar Back to Top of Page Meetings & Clubs The following list covering the next two weeks is extracted for your convenience from the master online calendar maintained by the office, with direct web links added when available. The list is accurate as of mid-week but to check anytime for the latest information, please view the latest forecast of upcoming events on our website (News/OLLI Calendar). Note: All OLLI members are welcome at, and encouraged to attend, meetings of the Board of Directors, committees and resource groups, Kickoff Coffees, etc. (bolded below). Sat Jun 28 10:30am Tai Chi Club–TA-3 Mon Jun 30 10:00am 10:00am What’s in the Daily News cont’d–TA-1 Bridge Club–TA-3 Tue Jul 1 10:00am Knitting and Needlework Club–Panera, Herndon Sat Jul 5 10:30am Tai Chi Club–TA-3 Mon Jul 7 10:00m 10:00am 10:00am 12:00pm Mah Jongg Club–TA-2 Bridge Club–TA-3 What’s in the Daily News cont’d–TA-1 Russia Discussion Group–TA-1 Tue Jul 8 10:00am Knitting and Needlework Club–Panera, Herndon Fri Jul 11  9:00am  9:30am 10:00am 10:30am 11:00am Recorder Consort–TA-3 Photography Club-TA-1 Craft and Conversation–Cottage Loudoun Program Planning Group–Rm 236 Homer, etc–Annex Back to Top of Page About OLLI E-News OLLI E-News was created by Rod Zumbro, who served as its editor from 2005 to 2013. Current Editorial Staff Chief Editor/Technical Editor: Irene Osterman Associate Editor: Weekly Editorial Team: Paul Van Hemel, Sheri Siesseger, Leslie Vandivere Proofreaders:  John West, Gordon Canyock, Susan Van Hemel Backup Chief Editor: Sheri Siesseger Submissions. Members are encouraged to submit letters to the editor, letters to Ms. Ollie Ettakit (on etiquette matters), OLLI-related news items, articles and photos. Submit material to: ollienewseditor@gmail.com. Deadline – 6:00 pm Tuesday for that week's issue (6:00 pm Monday for letters to the editor); early submissions are greatly appreciated. Please limit articles to about 250 words. Note: You can view past issues of OLLI E-News on the DocStore. To search the content of issues, use Search Our Site or put your search term in Google followed by "site:ollidev.earthcare.com/" without the quotes. Back to Top of Page