Enews16-16

May 6, 2016

• Alerts & Notices
• Board of Directors Election
• Board Meeting Summary
• Matching Gift When You Donate to Help Mason Vets Before July 15!
• Upcoming Meeting for Humanities and Social Sciences Planning Group - May 18
• Grab 'n Gab Coffee Klatch - Register Next Week!
• Fun Facts to Celebrate OLLI's 25th Anniversary
• In Appreciation
• Art That's Changing Lives
• Spanish Conversation Class Fiesta!
• Advocacy Workshop on Robocalls
• Book Club
• Poet's Corner
• Arts & Music at George Mason
• Meetings & Clubs
• About OLLI E-News

Alerts & Notices

Hot off the press (in these days, actually cold off the press) OLLI's literary journal OLLI Ink 2016 will be available in the Social Room and the Social Annex on May 6, the day of OLLI's picnic.

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By Jennifer Disano, Executive Director

The vote on election for Board of Directors will take place from Friday, May 6 through Noon on Friday, May 20, 2016.

Election Procedures

Recognizing the accuracy, convenience and efficiency of electronic balloting, the bylaws allow for electronic transmission and members are encouraged to use this method of voting.

How to Vote For BOD Candidates

On May 6, members with an email address will receive an email with the subject line, 2016 OLLI Ballot for Board of Directors. This email will contain a unique link to the 2016 OLLI BOD Ballot. The link is specific to the recipient and cannot be forwarded, transferred or shared with another member. Clicking on the link will take you to the online ballot to cast your vote. If you do not receive this email be sure to first check your spam/trash files, if not found then, contact the OLLI office (703-503-3384 or olli@gmu.edu).

Any OLLI member who does not have an email address or requests a paper ballot will receive one by mail with an addressed envelope marked BALLOT ENCLOSED. Please notify the OLLI office to request a mailed ballot. Use this ballot to vote for up to six candidates; you can mail the ballot to OLLI or drop it in a ballot box at Tallwood, Reston or Loudoun. Since you do not sign the ballot or return envelope, your vote remains completely anonymous. To be counted, all ballots must be received by noon on May 20, 2016.

Do not lose your ballot: No member having lost, damaged or destroyed his/her mailed ballot may receive a second ballot. Making more than six choices will invalidate your ballot. Similarly, more than one ballot per envelope, any ballot not in the furnished BALLOT ENCLOSED envelope, or not received by May 20 will be invalid. If you have questions about the election process, contact any member of the nominating committee: Michelle Blandburg (chair), Toni Acton, Dave Mason, Ray Beery, Camille Hodges, Beth Lambert, Ted Parker and Martha Powers.

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By Glenn Kamber, Board President

The last meeting of the current Board of Directors was held on April 29 at the OLLI Loudoun campus. In attendance were candidates for the 2016-2017 Board who met with OLLI members before the meeting. OLLI president Glenn Kamber recognized Garrett Cochran his many years of service and his role in smoothly relocating the Reston campus from Lake Anne Plaza to its current site at the United Christian Parish Church. Kamber also reported on the efforts of a small ad hoc group to explore various options for engaging planned senior residential communities as OLLI partners in the future. He indicated that OLLI will receive the Jack Wood Award for community-university relations from the Mason Board of Visitors on May 5. Jennifer Disano will accept the award for OLLI accompanied by Kamber, Leo Brennan, Kathy West and Alice Slayton-Clark. Kamber thanked Board members leaving after this term (Janet Cochran, Steve Goldman, Bill Reader) and asked board members to keep Bill Reader in their thoughts and prayers. Kamber announced that he intends to fill the vacant seat and unexpired term on the Board (Joel Ticknor resigned in early April) by appointing the Board candidate that places seventh in the upcoming election. He will seek Board approval via email so that the new member can take his seat in June.

The Board approved two resolutions that allocated funds from a Murder Mystery production to the 25^th Anniversary gift to the Mason Office of Military Services ($2000) and to the OLLI Players ($1000). In her Executive Director’s report, Jennifer Disano reported that the Osher Foundation had awarded a third $1 million grant to the University of Alabama and that she is continuously informing the Foundation of OLLI/Mason activities in order to keep us in the running if the Foundation were to award additional grants in the future. Disano thanked Kamber for his two years of leadership and shared with the Board the addition of Kamber’s name to the plaque honoring past OLLI presidents that hangs in the OLLI office at Tallwood. Steve Goldman recommended that the OLLI Board hold a luncheon to recognize and thank the OLLI staff for their support and excellent work. Martha Powers, chair of the Membership Services Committee, offered their help in organizing the event. All were invited to attend the Super Salad event immediately following the Board meeting in Reston where candidates for the Board present their credentials and thoughts on OLLI current and future needs.

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By Leslie Bubenhofer, Development Committee Chair

If you make a designated contribution for OLLI’s 25^th anniversary gift to Mason’s Office of Military Services (OMS), a very generous benefactor will match your donation. To qualify for the match, your gift must total $100 or more and be received during the period from May 6th through July 15th, 2016. Your donation is tax-deductible. To donate on line, click here. You can also print the contribution donation form, which can be taken or mailed to the OLLI office with a check.

This is a fantastic opportunity to help Mason's veterans and their families. The Office of Military Services provides scholarships and a variety of services to help our vets transition to student life and meet short-term needs. Your individual gift is an acknowledgement of the OLLI/Mason partnership’s 25 years of exemplary accomplishments, stellar association, and mutual commitment to education and our community.

Please donate today, and double the value of your gift!

Thank you for your support!

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By Johnnie Hicks, HSS Planning Group Chair

The Humanities and Social Sciences (HHS) Planning Group is one of OLLI’s ten planning groups. We discuss and plan courses related to a wide range of subjects, including sociology, education, politics, genealogy, criminology, philosophy, marriage, personal growth, religious traditions, cultural understanding, and much more! We plan for all three OLLI locations, and our courses are listed in the “650-699” section of each quarterly catalog.

As OLLI membership grows, the HSS group would love to have more members assist in this planning. Our full planning group meets about 4-6 times a year, with sub-committees assigned to plan and coordinate specific courses. We encourage interested OLLI members to attend the upcoming meeting on May 18, 10:00, at Tallwood. We will be finalizing 2016 fall courses and begin planning for 2017 winter, spring … and beyond!

We welcome OLLI members at any of our meetings and especially appreciate feedback on courses you would like to have repeated. For more information or if you would like to suggest or comment on any of our course offerings, please feel free to contact either Johnnie Hicks, or Co-chair Camille Hodges at 703-690-8214 or mimihodges2@aol.com.

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By Martha Powers, Board Member

After a couple of weeks without OLLI classes, it will be time to see some friends and catch up for an hour or so. On Friday, June 3, from 9:30-10:45, you can grab a free cup o’ joe and a fistful of cookies in the social room and join us in the social Annex for casual conversation and camaraderie. Attendance is limited so sign up soon for 1002BT.

By Ray Beery, Member, Board of Directors

A Celebration Tea was held on April 23, 2002, to mark the signing of the LRI/Mason Affiliation Agreement. Tom Hennessey, Chief of Staff to the Mason President, signed as well as LRI President Ed Mentz. Mason Provost Peter Stearns was a speaker.

OLLI is celebrating its 25th year of classes for seniors in 2016. We'll be publishing fun facts and interesting milestones about the Institute each week that OLLI E-News is published from now until the end of the fall term, 2016.

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In Appreciation

By Joan Lunsford, OLLI member

 

Beverley Persell

 

Beverley, Our Wonderful French Professor

I took OLLI classes since two thousand and ten.

And if asked, I’d do it again.

One of my favorites is French Conversation

Taught by Ms. Beverley—for her, a real vocation.

She showed us her many amazing collections

Of statues of Jeanne d’Arc, Quasimodo, and other selections.

We read cool stories from Paris Match

Did reports on famous people and places of France.

We played guessing games about presidents & movie stars,

Answered questions galore on subjects from Earth to Mars.

We’re going to miss Beverley, who was always very kind,

As she retires after ten years—time to unwind!

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Art That's Changing Lives

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Spanish Conversation Class Fiesta!

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Advocacy Workshop on Robocalls

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Book Club

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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).

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OLLI E-News was created by Rod Zumbro, who served as its editor from 2005 to 2013.

Editorial Staff
Chief Editor/Technical Editor: Irene Osterman
Associate Editor: Sheri Siesseger
Weekly Editorial Team: Jean Boltz, John Nash, Sheri Siesseger, Leslie Vandivere,
Paul Van Hemel
Proofreaders: Nancy Michel, Marilyn O'Brien, Susan Van Hemel, Lorna Moran
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:ollidev2.earthcare.com/" without the quotes.

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