Summer term priority registration opens May 16 and closes May 24 at noon. The catalog was mailed this week and is available on the OLLI website here.
Between-terms coffee klatch, Wednesday, May 17, 9:30-11:30, Tallwood Annex; register for Special Event 1105.
Remember to vote in the Board of Directors election, open now and closing May 19 at noon. You should have received an email with a link to vote; if you can't find it, call the office at 703-503-3384. Candidate profiles are available here.
Summer Catalog Update: – The following entry was accidentally omitted from the Ongoing Activities section of the summer 2017 course catalog. Please see below for details about the club and its meetings for summer term.
Personal Computer User Group Generally third Saturdays
June 17, July 15, August 19, 1:00-3:00, Tallwood
Coordinator: Mel Goldfarb mgoldfarb2@gmail.com In partnership with the Potomac Area Technology and Computer Society (PATACS), the OLLI PC User Group (OPCUG) focuses on Windows and Mac computers and software for enhancing our lives. Members and presenters also discuss smartphone and tablet apps across Android and iDevices, the Internet, digital photography, related technology, and open-source software. Our aim is to bring broad expertise about technology and topics of interest to attendees. PC clinics for members are offered twice yearly. Our target audience encompasses all computer users, from complete beginners to intermediate amateurs to experts. Our motto is “users helping users.” Club dues (currently $5 per year) are payable at the first meeting attended in each calendar year. Dues-paying members can view monthly sessions online via the Zoom cloud meeting service on a variety of devices from home or anywhere with an Internet connection. More details are available on the group’s website, www.olligmu.org/~opcug.
Inside
OLLI-MasonSummer Term Registration Improvements, Updates, and More…
By Jennifer Disano, Executive Director
Priority Registration, Membership Renewal, and Profile Update: OLLI summer-term registration is around the corner; Priority registration is May 16‑24. Enter your registrations during this period to receive priority access to our fabulous array of courses and events. If you are renewing membership, please remember that you must first make your membership payment and check out before you can register. Also, please update your profile in the member portal with any changes (e.g., emergency contacts, volunteer interest), and also let us know if you are Mason retired faculty or alumni (Mason has issued new special benefits for these OLLI members, so let us know and we’ll contact you with those details).
Lottery: Lottery classes will be assigned May 31. If you have email, you will receive a class confirmation email that day with details about your enrollments and class locations; members without email will receive mailed confirmation letters. Always read that email thoroughly, as it has the most current information about class locations and venue changes.
Add to Cart: Take note! New this term and beyond, all bus trips and events with a fee will be “Add to Cart” items with placements on a first come, first served basis. This means that once the registration portal opens, you sign up and pay immediately for placement on trips and events until slots are filled (also applies to online and paper registrations). “Add to Cart” purchases are processed via the Shopping Cart and Checkout section of the member portal. Once payment is made, an immediate email confirms your enrollment. All sales are final and nonrefundable, unless your spot can be filled by the wait list.
Trips and events with a fee are no longer subject to lottery placement, so you don’t need to prioritize these. Under the new practice, OLLI members can register an additional OLLI member guest for trips and events with fees. (Note - If you are registering for your guest, that person should NOT register for the trip separately. Be sure to communicate with any guests before registering them. Confirmation of enrollment will only be sent to the payee, not to the guest). This change in practice was made to reduce the administrative costs of finalizing payments under the lottery system, to guarantee bus contracts with payment secured, and to increase your chances of being placed on a trip, with a plus one. This change in practice does not affect regular courses; they are still subject to lottery placement.
Spread the word: Finally, please share your OLLI experience with friends, relatives and neighbors. Membership sustains OLLI and is our primary source of income, so please spread the word. OLLI catalogs, brochures and bookmarks are available for you to encourage folks to join. Take a moment to mention OLLI at your next neighborhood gathering, family event or the next time you take a friend out to lunch. In addition, you can give the gift of lifelong learning by purchasing a gift membership online. OLLI is a wonderful program and a positive experience worth sharing. Thank you for your efforts!
Highlights of the Annual Business Meeting, May 5 By Rita Way, SecretaryPresident Ray Beery opened the meeting with a short introduction of the agenda. He reported on the OLLI Annual Meeting held in Dallas, Texas, from April 3-6, 2017, and presented some of the data on the state of the Osher network. Some of the highlights were:
there are 120 Bernard Osher Institutes serving 377 towns and cities associated with 26 private and 96 public universities or colleges;
at this time there are a total of 160,125 Osher members;
most members fall in the age bracket of 70-74 years old;
shared values include autonomy, volunteerism, honoring the academy, social learning communities and creativity, collegiality, and curiosity.
Executive Director Jennifer Disano reported that this term we have 1,173 full memberships and 50 introductory memberships. Although the full membership has declined, the introductory membership has doubled. We are optimistic some of the intro members will convert to full memberships next term. The OLLI budget is based on full membership, and most of the income comes from dues, plus residual from our endowment. It was noted that additional facilities costs have been incurred to avoid wait lists. Strategic planning ideas include improved access for mobility-challenged members, long-term goals of building or renting space, expansion of Loudoun and Reston programming, membership sustainment, university engagement, and others. Last week’s Teacher Appreciation and Mason scholarship donors’ event was very successful.
Terri Feldmayer, chair of the Nominating Committee, presented the eight candidates for the 2017-2018 Board of Directors: Evan Douple, Paul Howard, Gloria Loew, Jeffrey Rosendhal, Mel Russell, Dave Ryan, Harvey Schwartz, and Randall Scott. After each one gave a short personal introduction, they took questions from the members. Voting will be held May 5‒19, 2017.
Photo Club Members Highlighted in Abstract Photography Exhibit By Dan Feighery, Photography Club MemberPictured here is OLLI Photo Club member Ed Marion with his abstract photograph titled “Ripple in Time,” which won an entry into the Seventh Annual Joseph Miller Abstract Photography Exhibit that opened on Sunday, May 8th. According to Mr. Miller, "Abstracts do not have an immediately recognizable subject matter but contain an interesting visual design. They are the poetry of photography, free verse producing visual poems of mood and feeling." Other OLLI members with photos juried into this international exhibit are Dan Feighery (who received a Special Merit award), Jean Feighery, Ed Parker, Tom Simpson, and Susan Van Hemel.
The exhibit is open noon to 5:00 Saturdays and Sundays through May 28 and also noon to 5:00 on Memorial Day, Monday, May 29.
UN Office of Disaster Risk Reduction Official Speaks to OLLI Class By Stephen Canner, Co-coordinator, Migration and Immigration CourseStephen Canner and Rosemary McDonald, coordinators of the ongoing course F702 Migration and Immigration, stand with Elina Palm, liaison officer from the United Nations Office of Disaster Risk Reduction, on May 3. Ms. Palm spoke to measures and challenges the UN encounters to avoid and reduce risk of disasters‒natural and man-made‒ which ultimately can lead to increased migration and refugees.Ms. Palm journeyed all the way from New York to address our class in a significant contribution to the series. (Photo of Stephen Canner, Rosemary McDonald, and Elina Palm by a class member.)
Volunteers Needed for Unprecedented
OLLI Promotional Opportunity at Celebrate Fairfax! Festival By Dave Ryan, Volunteer Outreach ChairFor the first time, thousands of northern Virginians will be passing OLLI’s booth at the annual “Celebrate Fairfax!" festival in June, and we’ll need plenty of volunteers to chat them up about the benefits of membership.
The festival usually draws tens of thousands of visitors, and this is the first time OLLI has ever participated.
The 36th annual festival, Northern Virginia’s largest community-wide celebration and the only one designed to reach all of Fairfax’s different communities and lifestyles, will take place June 9-11 on 25 acres of the Fairfax County Government Center grounds, 12000 Government Center Parkway. The festival will boast 300 exhibitors, food vendors, and interactive activities, along with live concerts on eight stages.
(Photo by John Nash; images courtesy of Celebrate Fairfax, Inc.)
The OLLI “booth” (really a tent with tables and chairs) needs to be staffed as follows:
Friday, June 9th, 6pm to midnight
Saturday, June 10th, 10am to midnight
Sunday, June 11th, 11am to 7pm.
Any amount of time volunteers can give will be greatly appreciated. (Dave promises to buy each volunteer one item from any food vendor at the festival.) OLLI booth volunteers should also be able to park free in the Government Center garage.
For more information on the festival itself, please click here.
To volunteer, or for more information, please email Volunteer Outreach Chair Dave Ryan at dryan6@gmu.edu or call him any time at 703-593-1008.
The Computer Club (OLLI Personal Computer User Group, or OPCUG) will meet with its partner, the Potomac Area Technology and Computer Society (PATACS), Saturday, May 20th at Tallwood. Join us at 12:30 for soft drinks and socializing in the social room. Presentations will begin at 1:00.
Watching TV on the Internet─Trends in TV Viewing‒Presented by Rick Ellrod
Today’s TV’s, computers, and mobile devices offer “over-the-top” options to watch movies and TV programs via streaming video over the Internet. Services such as Netflix, Hulu, YouTube, Amazon, Sling TV, and Apple TV provide new alternatives. “Cord-cutters” are replacing or supplementing their cable television subscriptions with such Internet video sources. Rick will discuss the benefits and limitations of these options.
Frederick E. Ellrod III (Rick) is director of the Communications Policy and Regulation Division of Fairfax County’s Department of Cable and Consumer Services.
Learn in 30: Flightradar24‒Presented by Bill Walsh
Flightradar24 is one of several available websites that let you graphically follow aircraft in flight, with detailed parameters of the plane and flight route. Thousands of flights are shown around the world, with aircraft data (e.g., location, speed, origin, destination) being displayed. Flights can be selected and tracked onscreen, with many features controlling the program offered to the user. Because of the use of near-real-time data, the displays are closer than most to showing aircraft positions, though accuracy is often dependent on reception of transmitted data.
See full details on this meeting by clicking here. For information on the Computer Club, see the OPCUG website. OPCUG dues of $5 for 2017 will be collected at this meeting.
Can't make the meeting in person? Dues-paid club members may attend via Zoom's cloud meeting service, beginning at 12:45. Send a message to webinarhosts@patacs.org if you plan to attend in this way. Join from PC, Mac, iOS or Android: https://zoom.us/j/585402414 (Zoom Meeting ID: 585 402 414).
By Paul Howard, Audiovisual Support Committee Chair
OLLI's Audiovisual Support Committee (a.k.a. The Tom Swift Squad) seeks additional volunteers to help ensure the smooth employment of OLLI's audiovisual resources. Our primary mission is to help instructors, liaisons, and staff with any audiovisual issues that might arise during the classes we attend.
We'll be meeting at 1:00 on Wednesday, May 17th in TA-1. We'll be doing hands-on training on OLLI's classroom audiovisual equipment, including a new 'Road Show' mixer, projectors, HDMI connections, and media players, and planning future activities.
Please let me know if you're planning to attend or would like to become a "Swiftie" even if you can't attend this meeting. Contact me by email (preferred) or phone (703-860-9246).
For more information on the Audiovisual Support Committee, see its web page.
By Uncle Olli, Etiquette Consultant, Driving Consultant, and everything in between
Uncle Olli has lived long enough that people often ask him various questions, including ones in the matter of etiquette. He is approachable (to take nothing away from Miss Ollie Ettakit) and welcomes your queries: ask Uncle Olli at ollienewseditor@gmail.com. He is embarrassed by nothing!
Question: Am I going to regret asking about classroom announcements? Are you going to do an endless nagging series?
Uncle Olli: No to both questions. Just this one, and two more. Now that you are wearing your Name Tag (I keep mine in the car so I don't forget), it is time to acquire the good habit of arriving a few minutes early so you can sign in. I cannot remember names but I still know how to make a check mark. Those check marks add up and ensure your favorite topics and lecturers get renewed. Unless the program chairs know what's popular, we'll get the topics they dream up on their own. Sign in! Or else it's more lectures on Hula Hoop Collecting!
Alright, who left a path of paw prints on my swiftly Swiffered floor
And tucked a tailless toy rodent inside the grand piano
And sang a screeching soprano sonata at six AM
And haply heaved a hoary hairball in the hallway?
And who left spaghetti shreds suspended from my snug window seat
And cavorted countless creations off the Christmas tree
And slam-dunked a stick-on bow into doom in the downstairs dungeon
And flicked flecks of Fancy Feast on my freshly painted baseboards?
It is she who greets me with chipper trills
Consistently keeping me company in the kitchen
Inspecting ingredients inviting attention on the counter and
Chattily, cheerfully upholding her half of any conversation
She who flops on my flank and dozes
Sometimes snoring and chasing dreamy mice
Occasionally stretching and splaying soft toes
Happy to have a comfy kingdom to enjoy… and destroy.
Performances, May 12 through May 22By Shelly Gersten, OLLI E-News Staff WriterFor tickets for either Center for the Arts (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 pageor the Hyltonticket purchase page.
At the Fairfax Campus Venues Fairfax Symphony Orchestra: Ode to Joy─Beethoven's Ninth Symphony Sat, May 13, 8:00
Pre-performance discussion: Join David Ginder of WETA and conductor Christopher Zimmerman
Admission: $65, $53, $39.
Dr. Monson's Piano Studio Recital
Fri, May 12, 7:00
Harris Theatre
Admission: Free.Music Dept. Honors Recital
Sat, May 13, 8:00
Harris Theatre
Admission: Free.
Gallery Exhibit: Gilbert and Sullivan Memorabilia
Through May 27
The Gallery is open to the public Tue-Sat, 10:00-6:00; Thu, 10:00-8:00; and two hours before performances.
For more information, visit https://cvpa.gmu.edu/gands.
Admission: Free.
Northern Virginia Ballet: Cinderella
Fri, May 12, 7:00
Merchant Hall
Admission: Adults, $28; seniors, $18.Manassas Symphony Orchestra: Symphonic Exuberance
Sat, May 13, 7:30
Merchant Hall
Admission: Adults, $20; seniors, $16.Manassas Ballet Theatre: Romeo and Juliet
Fri, May 19 and Sat, May 20, 7:30
Sun, May 21, 3:00
Merchant Hall
Admission: $65, $55, $45, $35, $25.
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 any time 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 May 13
10:30am
Tai Chi Club–TA-3
Mon May 15
10:00am
What’s in the Daily News, cont’d.–TA-1
Tue May 16
9:30am
Annex Art–Annex
Wed May 17
10:00am
10:00am
10:30am
Bridge Club–TA-3
Mah Jongg Club–TA-2
Tom Crooker Investment Forum–TA-1
Fri May 19
9:15am
9:30am
11:00am
1:00pm
Recorder Consort–TA-3
Craft and Conversation–Annex
Homer, etc.–Annex
Dr. Who Club–TA-1
Sat May 20
10:30am
1:00pm
Tai Chi Club–TA-3
Computer Club–TA-1
Mon May 22
10:00am
What’s in the Daily News cont’d.–TA-1
Tue May 23
9:30am
10:00am
Annex Art–Annex
Spanish Club–TA-2
Wed May 24
10:00am
10:30am
Bridge Club–TA-3
Tom Crooker Investment Forum–TA-1
OLLI E-News was created by Rod Zumbro, who served as its editor from 2005 to 2013.
Editorial Staff
Chief Editor: Paul Van Hemel
Technical Editor: Irene Osterman
Associate Editor: Sheri Siesseger
Weekly Editorial Team: Jean Boltz, John Nash, Sheri Siesseger, Leslie Vandivere,
Paul Van Hemel Proofreaders: Rebecca Jann, Lorna Moran, Susan Van Hemel, Polly Johnsen
Backup Chief Editor: Alice Slayton Clark
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 Tuesday for that week's issue (6:00 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.
Pictured here is OLLI Photo Club member Ed Marion with his abstract photograph titled “Ripple in Time,” which won an entry into the Seventh Annual Joseph Miller Abstract Photography Exhibit that opened on Sunday, May 8th. According to Mr. Miller, "Abstracts do not have an immediately recognizable subject matter but contain an interesting visual design. They are the poetry of photography, free verse producing visual poems of mood and feeling." Other OLLI members with photos juried into this international exhibit are Dan Feighery (who received a Special Merit award), Jean Feighery, Ed Parker, Tom Simpson, and Susan Van Hemel.
Stephen Canner and Rosemary McDonald, coordinators of the ongoing course F702 Migration and Immigration, stand with Elina Palm, liaison officer from the United Nations Office of Disaster Risk Reduction, on May 3. Ms. Palm spoke to measures and challenges the UN encounters to avoid and reduce risk of disasters‒natural and man-made‒ which ultimately can lead to increased migration and refugees.
For the first time, thousands of northern Virginians will be passing OLLI’s booth at the annual “Celebrate Fairfax!" festival in June, and we’ll need plenty of volunteers to chat them up about the benefits of membership.
lifestyles, will take place June 9-11 on 25 acres of the Fairfax County Government Center grounds, 12000 Government Center Parkway. The festival will boast 300 exhibitors, food vendors, and interactive activities, along with live concerts on eight stages.
