 Dear Senior Academy Members, June has been an eventful month as COVID-19 pandemic restrictions are slowly being lifted and as the summer solstice signaled the new season—this year with opportunities to connect in person with family and friends close by and farther away. The Annual Meeting of the Senior Academy also fell into June with an outdoor gathering in Eagle Creek Park that brought friends and former colleagues together to mark not only the impending change of the Board’s membership according to rules and tradition but also to enjoy conversation and Panera’s box lunches, followed by Chris Lamb’s talk about political comeback—humorous, biting, and memorable—concluding with a walk in the woods. The formal parts of the business meeting could be kept short because the website includes a link to the 2020-2021 annual report (click here for the annual report) and will list the 2021-2022 directors as they take on their responsibilities after July. At the beginning of the year, when all of the Academy’s events had to be virtual, we met for a monthly Social Hour by Zoom. It turned out to be a poor substitute for in-person conversations, but it allowed some far-away former colleagues to join the meetings, which was a surprise and pleasure. By now, other modes of social gatherings have been put into place, in person and also still virtually, creating spaces for members and their friends to enjoy focus on a special interest. Foremost among those get-togethers that combine an activity with socializing is the String Theory Group, which displayed the results of their knitting and crocheting labors at the Annual Meeting. This group meets next on July 13, 2021, 4:30 p.m. in-person (register via this link). You are welcome to join them at that time or at a later one. Meeting particulars can be found using the “Event” tab on the Senior Academy website under the "Activities" heading. The Book Club had its first meeting in May and scheduled its next gathering in August for a discussion of Bill Sullivan’s Pleased to Meet Me: Genes, Germs, and the Curious Forces That Make Us Who We Are (2019). The Walking Group, led by Gabrielle Bovenzi, is new and offers a different kind of socializing on July 27, 2021, 1 p.m. (register via this link). At the joint meeting of the old and new Board the programming for the next year was discussed at considerable length. If we can count on post-pandemic circumstances, plans are for mostly in-person events but also keeping the option of virtual participation to allow members who travel or cannot easily get to the meeting place to join in the occasion. The offering of likely events is varied, including workshops, presentations, and excursions. In 2020 the visit to the Miller House in Columbus, Indiana, had to be cancelled but will make for an outing in October. The success of last year’s picnic in Eagle Creek Park is scheduled for a repeat and this year it may be possible to enjoy a holiday party. The Last Lecture has become a November tradition as has in a different fashion the Academy’s participation in Spirit & Place, which focuses on “Change” as its theme. Among the highlights last year were the presentations about the many and varied roads to retirement. It became apparent that the topic is such a large and important one that some issues deserve repeated or extended consideration. For the fall seminars addressing “De-Clutter for a Streamlined Life” are planned, which may be well matched with workshops on “cutting the cable” and learning about social media and streaming. In short, you can expect invitations to those events in your email boxes and you can also use the website to plan and register for the Senior Academy events. May you have a wonderful summer (there will be no July Bulletin)! I hope to connect with you again in August and see you in the fall at any one or all of the Senior Academy’s events. For questions and comments, contact us at ude[dot]iupui[at]ymedacas. |
