- OLLI offices are closed through August 11, reopening Monday, August 14.
- Remember: pre-registration for fall classes is August 15-24.
- The next issue of E-News will be August 18.
The Board met on Friday, July 21, 2017, at Tallwood. Ray Beery reported that the June 16 Board of Director’s retreat was a success. He established an Ad Hoc Committee on Membership Growth & Retention to address the challenge of increasing OLLI membership. The first step to take is to increase our advertisements to show what OLLI has to offer. Since word-of-mouth has proven successful, all members are encouraged to pass on the benefits of belonging to OLLI.
Jennifer Disano reported that Beth Davis, program associate, has resigned from OLLI after nine years of faithful service. Jennifer McMahon was hired to be the program associate. Jen is a former teacher and education policy researcher at the Department of Education. A smooth transition is expected.
In an effort to alleviate parking issues at Lord of Life church in Fairfax, members are requested to follow signs as to where they should park and to carpool when possible. Members who are taking classes at Loudoun this fall need to contact Leigh Knox, Loudoun site assistant, to obtain their parking passes. (Photo by Paul Van Hemel, July21.)
As of July 13, 2017, OLLI total membership is 1,149 (annual membership is 1,134 and term membership is 15). There will be 175 courses for members to choose from this fall term.
Understanding the OLLI Budget - Part Six: Program, Publications, and Committee Budgets
By Paul Howard, Board Member and OLLI Finance Committee Member
Ed. Note: This is part six of a series of six articles on the OLLI budget, prepared by the Finance Committee to provide insight into the OLLI budget process for E‑News readers.
This figure shows expenses projected for this year for program, publications, and committee budgets.
The budget's Program category is budgeted for $26,500 in 2017. The 'Teacher Appreciation’ celebration and token gifts to teachers accounts for $20,000 of that. Other expenses included here are classroom expenses/donations -- easels, markers, DVDs for Great Decisions, etc., printing instructional materials -- and an allowance for the OLLI Players performance outreach activities.
The Publications line item of $21,325 includes $19,500 for course catalog printing, and modest amounts for promotional materials, newsletter, and publications.
Also for 2017, the Committee Budgets category includes $14,500 divided among development, hospitality, landscaping, member services, and outreach.
By Alice Slayton Clark, Communications Associate/Registrar
Hopefully, you’ve seen it before the start of each OLLI term -- the OLLI ad on the Mason marquee on Braddock Road. The ad will be rotating periodically on the marquee for two weeks in August, promoting OLLI and fall priority registration which is from August 15-24.
Mason provides free space on the marquee to announce each OLLI term registration. “We appreciate Mason’s support in providing us with this very visible medium to promote OLLI,” said Jennifer Disano, OLLI executive director.
Watch for OLLI’s ad on the Mason marquee during August and tell your friends to do the same. This just may be the incentive someone needs to join OLLI. Fall is coming and so is another great selection of OLLI classes for all of us to enjoy!
Online Registration System:
An Easy Way to Register
By Toni Acton, Chair, New Members Advisory Committee
Learn how fast and easy it is register on-line rather than having to fill out the registration form by hand every term, especially when you make a mistake and need to start all over again!
Using the on-line registration system for selecting your classes each term, and signing up for social events and classes which are between terms, is not as scary as you might think. With a quick lesson from one of our able volunteers, you’ll become proficient in just a few minutes.
If you’d like to learn the on-line registration system, join us on Wednesday, August 16, in the Annex at Tallwood. Stop by anytime between 9 a.m. and noon, bring a list of the classes you want to register for this fall, and before you know it, you’ll be registered and on your way!
If you’re having too much fun this summer and can’t come on August 16, drop me an email at jacton1@cox.net and we’ll try to arrange another time to get together for training.
Virtual Technology Conference
Watch Party and Lunch Party Saturday, August 19
The Computer Club (OLLI Personal Computer User Group, or OPCUG) will meet with its partner, the Potomac Area Technology and Computer Society (PATACS), on Saturday, August 19, at Tallwood. Join us at 12:15 for a light lunch and socializing in the Annex. Program activities begin at 1:00 in TA‑2 and TA‑1.
This unique event offers attendees the opportunity to attend three programs from two tracks totaling six 50-minute sessions – a 'Virtual Technology Conference' presented by APCUG – the Association of Personal Computer User Groups.
Track 1, offered in TA‑2:
1:00 – Pi-hole – a LAN-wide ad blocker that runs on a Raspberry-pi. If you're sick of ads all over the web pages you see, here's a solution. 2:00 – Home Automation Security - Are you worried about home automation devices listening in on your conversations? 3:00 – Finding Tech Information on Medium.com – Medium is a large site for writers and readers. The platform is built to make it easy to share stories about almost anything.
Track Two, offered in TA‑1:
1:00 – Global Navigation Satellite System - Why You Shouldn’t Get Lost! This presentation includes information about GPS and other systems. 2:00 – Chromebooks are for Seniors – Are you looking for a computer that isn’t complicated to use? 3:00 – Ideas for Revitalizing Your Computer Club – help for what ails us <grin>!
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.
I'm probably the only OLLI member born in Rio de Janeiro, and therefore the only one who could be called a "Brazil Nut." No, I have no Hispanic heritage (despite my affinity for old Xavier Cugat records), but was born to an American Air Force family stationed in that beautiful city.
Despite a nomadic life as an only child living in 19 different homes, I've spent the bulk of my 70 years in Northern Virginia, with detours to Tokyo (where I attended first and second grade); Langley Air Force Base in Hampton; and Michigan (where I attended high school in Detroit and then Michigan State University, receiving a master's degree in advertising).
My first job as a Kodak camera salesman in Rochester, NY, lasted little more than a month before I was drafted into the Army, serving my country as a cub reporter for the Fort Belvoir post newspaper. The Belvoir experience whetted my appetite for a journalism career, but after I had unsuccessfully sought employment in such a career, my old Army editor got me a job in Washington, DC, as national newsletter editor and photographer for the U.S. Selective Service System headquarters (ironically, the same guys who drafted me). From there, I jumped to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency headquarters, where I spent 35 years in press relations.
After retiring from the federal bureaucracy, I joined OLLI in 2011, chairing the Outreach Committee for over five years, and recently and proudly being elected to the Board, where I plan to be a productive nuisance.
My wife Nancy -- an OLLI member since 2007 -- was a Fairfax County elementary school teacher for thirty years and an adjunct professor at Mason, where she got masters and PhD degrees in education. We love boating, eating out, visiting our condo in Ocean City, Maryland, and holding hands at the Cinema Arts Theater in Fair City Mall.
Nancy and I have human children and grandchildren living in Arlington and Reston, and are also seriously attached to our surrogate children, cats Jibby and Clancy.
Odette O'Donnell, longtime member of the Learning in Retirement Institute (LRI) and later OLLI, died July 20, 2017. Her funeral service was held at St. Mark Catholic Church in Vienna on July 26. Interment will be later at Arlington National Cemetery. More details are available at this link.
Performances, Aug 4 through August 21By 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
Celebrando la independencia de BOLIVIA: Festival de Naiños 2017
Sun, Aug 6, 4:30
Concert Hall
Admission: $15.Tangles: A Musical Play about Family and Dementia
Sat, Aug 12, 7:00
Harris Theatre
Admission: $10.
Gallery Exhibit: Marti Patchell, Botanical Fusion
Jul 18 - Aug 26
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.
Buchanan Partners Art Gallery
Admission: Free.
K-Tigers with K-Pop (taekwondo)
Sun, Aug 6, 5:00
Merchant Hall
Admission: $50, $40, $30.
Xanadu Jr.
Sat, Aug 12, 2:00 and 7:00
Gregory Family Theater
Admission: $30.
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 midweek 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).
Mon Aug 14
10:00am
10:30am
Bridge Club–TA-3
What’s in the Daily News, cont’d–TA-1
Tue Aug 15
9:30am
Annex Art–Annex
Wed Aug 16
10:30am
1:00pm
Tom Crooker Investment Forum–TA-1 A/V Committee Meeting–TA-1
Fri Aug 18
9:15am
9:30am
11:00am
1:00pm
Recorder Consort–TA-3
Craft and Conversation–Annex
Homer, etc.–Annex
Dr. Who Club–TA-3
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 Editor Team: Jean Boltz, John Nash, Sheri Siesseger, Leslie Vandivere,
Paul Van Hemel Proofreaders: Rebecca Jann, Susan Van Hemel, Polly Johnsen, Shirley Springfloat
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.
In an effort to alleviate parking issues at Lord of Life church in Fairfax, members are requested to follow signs as to where they should park and to carpool when possible. Members who are taking classes at Loudoun this fall need to contact Leigh Knox, Loudoun site assistant, to obtain their parking passes. (Photo by Paul Van Hemel, July 
the Learning in Retirement Institute (LRI) and later OLLI, died July 20, 2017. Her funeral service was held at St. Mark Catholic Church in Vienna on July 26. Interment will be later at Arlington National Cemetery. More details are available at 
