Board of Directors Meeting with Newly‑Elected Directors, June 18
(See Summary Article Below)
June 25, 2021
Editor of the Week: David Gundry
Table of Contents
Alerts & Notices
Summer term has begun and runs through July 30. If you are registered for a course/event you cannot attend or no longer want, please contact the registrar (email ollireg@gmu.edu) and drop it.
The next issue of OLLI E-News will be published Friday, July 2; regular deadline for submission of items is Tuesday, June 29, at 6:00.
As a reminder, OLLI classes will not be held on Monday July 5, in observance of Independence Day.
In 2021, OLLI celebrates its 30th year of classes for seniors. This feature provides fun facts and interesting milestones about our institute each week that E-News is published throughout the first half of this year.
June 25 A five-year contract for the use of the Fairfax swimming pool parking lot was signed in 1996.
President Paul Howard opened the meeting by welcoming the newly elected board members, Toni Acton, Zachary Teich, Camille Hodges, Debby Mossburg, and Charles Silver.
The first order of business was the election of board officers. A vote was taken by virtual technology and ballots counted by Mike Sargent of Earthcare. Lillian Brooks, chair of the Governance Committee, announced the results as follows:
President – Paul Howard
Vice President– Mel Russell
Secretary – Rita Way
Treasurer – David Osterman
Executive Director Jennifer Disano reported that ramp construction at Tallwood has started. Much activity is happening at the site and the new ramp is taking shape. Additionally, the Audiovisual Committee (“Tom Swift Club”) is working in TA-1 to improve equipment in our classrooms. As of now, all classes for summer and fall are planned to be held on zoom.
The promotional rate of $300 is working to bring in new members. However, the membership is in a downward trend and all members are encouraged to promote OLLI. Word of mouth is the best marketing tool.
Site assistants and staff have been working long hours to prepare for summer and fall terms with very little turnaround time. Please give kudos to them at your next opportunity.
More help is needed producing the catalog. Several editors and proofreaders have moved on to other activities. Putting out the catalog is a very large project and it is an important marketing tool.
The old OLLI Handbook is now titled, The OLLI Manual. Lillian Brooks and the Governance Committee have worked very hard to bring the manual up to date. This will be an ongoing process.
Current OLLI membership is 1,034 (1,030 full members and 4 introductory members).
Although Mason’s campus is shut down, online entertainment continues for us to access and enjoy. Dr. Linda Apple Monson produces a periodic “Notes from the Director.” This email is full of interesting online performances by the students and faculty of the School of Music. If you would like to receive these bulletins, just send an email to Brianna Schoen at bschoen@gmu.edu. Also, the Center for the Arts has a websiteMason Arts at Home, which has a calendar of online events and access to many past performances.
All Mason Arts & Music events are postponed until September.
Please note: Physical meetings for clubs and activities are canceled until further notice in accordance with Mason’s guidelines. OLLI is conducting its classes and activities online. Refer to the university's coronavirus website for official university updates and check the OLLI calendar for revised information.
The following list covering the next two weeks is extracted for your convenience from the master online calendar maintained by the office. The list is accurate as of mid-week but for the most up-to-date information, please view the latest forecast of coming 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, kick-off coffees, etc. (bolded below). The OLLI office has sent (or will send) emails with links and meeting passwords to club members; you may also log in at the member portal and click on ZOOM CLASS LINKS.
Sat Jun 26
10:30 am
Tai Chi Club
Tue Jun 29
4:30 pm
Tai Chi Club
Wed Jun 30
2:00 pm
6:00 pm
Memoir and More Writing Group
Ethnic Eats Club
Thu Jul 1
4:30 pm
Tai Chi Club
Fri Jul 2
9:30 am
11:00 am
Craft and Conversation
Homer, Etc.
Sat Jul 3
10:30 am
Tai Chi Club
Tue Jul 6
4:30 pm
Tai Chi Club
Wed Jul 7
4:00 pm
Mah Jongg Club
Thu Jul 8
12:15 pm
4:30 pm
Special Events Program Planning Group Meeting
Tai Chi Club
Fri Jul 9
9:30 am
9:30 am
10:00 am
11:00 am
11:30 am
2:30 pm
Photography Club
Craft and Conversation
Coffee and Trivia
Homer, etc.
Cooking Club
Tallwood Book Club
OLLI E-News was created by Rod Zumbro, who served as its editor from 2005 to 2013.
Chief Editor: Paul Van Hemel
Associate Editor: David Gundry
Weekly Editor Team: David Gundry, John Nash, Sheri Siesseger, Paul Van Hemel Proofreaders: Rebecca Jann, Susan Van Hemel, Tom Appich, Roz Stark, Jane Hassell
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: Tuesday, 6:00, for that week's issue (Monday, 6:00, for letters to the editor); early submissions are greatly appreciated. Please limit articles to about 250 words. Search E-News: You can view past issues of OLLI E-News at ENews Archives. To search the content within issues, use Search or enter your search term(s) in Google followed by “site:ollidev.earthcare.com/” without the quotes.
