Senior Center News – August 6, 2020

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]The Tin Woodman knew very well he had no heart, and therefore he took great care never to be cruel or unkind to anything. “You people with hearts,” he said, “have something to guide you, and need never do wrong; but I have no heart, and so I must be very careful.
~ L. Frank Baum, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz

At present
The Senior Center building remains closed, but things are happening. Those activities that are held outdoors, namely Kayaking for Women and Birding Expeditions, have started up again.

There is a wide variety of online Zoom courses that you can check out on the Senior Center website. All of the Wednesday presentations/events at 1:00 p.m. can be attended online, via Zoom. Any other activities or in-person courses will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis and announced after they have been carefully considered. Meanwhile, please take good care to social distance, wash your hands frequently—and consider your mask as your new best friend.

Updates
The Foot Clinics/Blood Pressure Clinics will be starting up again in the fall. Those who were signed up in the spring will be contacted when new dates are established. It was recently announced by Age Well that the Universal Restaurant Tickets that they have already dispersed will have a new expiration date of 2021.

Zoom course
The new iteration of Writing Your Life Story, online with Laurie McMillan starts tomorrow, and a new version will be offered in the fall as well. The hope is to ultimately establish an informal group of writers who get together once or twice a month (via Zoom or in person) to share their writings and get feedback if desired. (It could be fun).

Courses are winding down for the summer and new ones are being planned for the fall. While finding new courses is always a fun challenge, this is now slightly complicated by needing to locate instructors who are comfortable using the Zoom format and whose subject matter is a reasonable fit for it. One exciting course planned for the fall will be Civil Discourse, starting in mid-September. And there is another one planned with a physical therapy focus. Stay tuned.

Outdoors
Both the first Kayaking Trip for Women and the first Birding Expedition have successfully taken place this month with great weather for both days. All participants had their temperatures taken (forehead, digitally), dutifully answered the brief health screening questions, donned masks—and responsibly kept that six feet of social distance.

The next Birding Expedition with Hank Kaestner, scheduled for 8/12, is now only taking names for the waiting list. If you are already on the list and are not able to make it, please call so that someone else can have your spot: (802) 425-6345. Fear not—these will continue in the fall.

The next Kayaking Trip for Women is 8/14. Please register your interest by emailing Susan. Locations vary and are weather dependent, of course. Additional dates are: 8/28, 9/11, 9/18 and 9/25.

Wednesday events
All Wednesday events at 1:00 p.m. will take place only as Zoom meetings, and you will not need to sign up in advance. In order to join one of these events via Zoom, access the link on the Events page of the Center’s website. The specific invitation/link for that week will be posted by the day before the presentation. As well, this link will be supplied in Front Porch Forum in Charlotte and in FPF postings in surrounding towns. Some of the events will be recorded and posted in case you missed the original presentation.

Next week’s Wed. 8/12 event, Greenbush, music with John Creech and Cobey Gatos on Zoom, has been cancelled, unfortunately. Perhaps, at some time in the future – when in-person attendance is possible again – it can be rescheduled. Many of you know of John Creech from his years of teaching T’ai Chi at the Senior Center, but you might not know that he is also an accomplished musician. It is something to look forward to for next year.

8/19 at 1:00 p.m. Lake Champlain: History & Shipwrecks with Art Cohn.
Review 12,000 years of Lake Champlain’s human history along with shipwrecks that connect us to that history. Over four decades, his team has located more than 300 intact sites. Art will update us on the Spitfire, a Revolutionary War gunboat that fought the British at the Battle of Valcour Island in 1776 and sank during a daring escape.

In addition to being Director Emeritus of the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum, Art is a professional diver, educator and a nautical archeologist. He has helped develop law and public policy for the preservation of submerged cultural resources. He is also a member of the Ferrisburgh Volunteer Fire Department, a chaplain and a tug boat captain.

Art Exhibits
The Senior Center’s monthly art exhibits have resumed—even though the building is not open for the regular hours. This means that anyone interested in coming in to see an art exhibit in the Great Room is asked to schedule an appointment at least 24 hours in advance. The days for viewing are Tuesdays and Thursdays between 1:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m. Please leave a message anytime at (802) 425-6345, and include your name and phone number for a confirmation of your appointment.

The current show is the August & September Art Exhibit: Bill Stirewalt—Large Format Photography. During his long medical career, Dr. Stirewalt remained serious about his hobby of fine art photography. The work on display for these two months spans a time frame from the 1960s to the present. Subject matter is varied and locations range from New Zealand to Vermont. The 27 pieces that comprise the show are all available for sale. Two of the most stunning pictures are of the Hoh Rain Forest in the Olympic Peninsula of Washington State.

The Senior Center’s mission is to serve those 50 and up; if a course is not full, younger ages may also enroll. Residents from other communities are always welcome. There are no membership fees. Feel free to leave a message anytime at (802) 425-6345; voicemail is checked daily.

Be careful. Stay well. We are all in this together.

Charlotte Senior Center
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