Spring courses for senior adults feature symphonies, wildflowers, storytelling and India

GOSHEN, Ind. – Spring short courses for interested senior adults include symphonies, wildflowers, writing your own story and today’s India.

The Lifelong Learning Institute of Elkhart County is offering four, two-week courses during April and May 2007 at Goshen College and the Rieth Interpretive Center in Goshen.

The courses include:

“Studies in Mendelssohn and Dvorak Symphonies,” by Mary Oyer

April 9, 11, 16, 18; 2-3:30 p.m., at Goshen College Music Center, Room 153. Cost: $40.

Mary Oyer, professor emerita of music at Goshen College, will lead a study of Mendelssohn’s “Symphony No. 5 in D Major,” to be performed by the Fort Wayne Philharmonic Orchestra on April 15. The symphony is often known as the “Reformation Symphony,” as its fourth movement is built around “A Mighty Fortress.” The second feature is Dvorak’s “New World Symphony,” to be performed by the Goshen College Orchestra on April 21. If time permits, studies may include the symphonic dances from “West Side Story,” also to be performed by the Goshen College Orchestra.

Reserved tickets for the Fort Wayne Philharmonic are $14; they may be ordered with the course registration. Admission tickets to the Goshen College Orchestra, $4, are available only at the door.

“Local Wildflowers and Natural Areas,” by Joann and John Smith

April 23, 25, 30 and May 2; 1:30-4:30 p.m. first three days,; 11 a.m. May 2 for longer field trip. Cost: $40. Location: Rieth Interpretive Center, 412 Plymouth Ave., Goshen, across from Shanklin Park. The Goshen Parks and Recreation Department is sponsoring the classroom.

Two teachers share their enthusiasm for identifying, photographing and keeping inventories of local wildflowers. John is professor emeritus of education at Goshen College and Joann is retired from teaching French at West Noble High. Classes will include both classroom information and slow-paced hikes to nearby areas. The final class features a trip to Bendix Woods. The longest hikes will be about one and a half hours of slow walking over easy terrain; abbreviated versions will be arranged for any who wish.

“Your Stories,” by J. Daniel Hess

May 7, 9, 14, 16; 2-3:30 p.m. Location: Goshen College Music Center, Room 110. Cost: $40.

J. Daniel Hess, retired Goshen College professor of communication and continuing consultant, will guide participants in gathering and writing their life stories. Hess said, “As I assemble my own family’s stories, I’m pleased to share what I’m learning about how to jog my memory, how to use family snapshots, how to build time lines and family trees, how to use old maps, how to interview old-timers, how to build scrapbooks and, of course, how to tell or to write stories.” Hess noted people should not expect lectures. “In each class we will work together, like a happy crew of archeologists, unearthing and dusting off the formed and half formed, the whole and the broken, the significant and the ordinary bedrocks that shape the terrain of our lives. Believe me, you’ll have something to show your grandchildren for all your work begun here.”

“Emerging India,” by John and Dorothy Yoder Nyce

May 22, 24, 29, 31; 2-3:30 p.m. Location: Goshen College Music Center, Room 110. Cost: $44.

Ancient and tradition-sensitive as India’s places and people are, diversity further marks the present. Through varied formats, this course will highlight two major realities (religions and economics), three specialties (regional politics, higher education and distinct arts) and personalities central to the subcontinent’s richness. From stereotypes like oxcarts to mobile phones, from geography to social structures, India exposure – on location or through friendships – prompts the desire to be informed of new trends. A curry meal will complement the final session.

“We sponsor a series of two-week courses in early fall and in spring, as well as a lecture series in mid-winter,” said Wilbur Birky, who with his wife, Fanni, is co-director of the Institute. Courses to date have ranged from literature to the fine arts, from folklore to autonomy in later life, from African music to international cooking, from politics to modern philosophy, from the DaVinci Code phenomenon to landscape photography – and included a brief study tour to northern Japan.

“There are no tests – just the joy of learning, combined with connections to other seniors interested in stimulating thought, conversation and exploration,” Birky said. “All are welcome; there are no previous college or other advanced studies required.”

Wilbur is former professor of English and director of international education at Goshen College. Fanni is retired from housing and volunteer programs management at Greencroft Goshen. They may be reached at (574) 533-6352 or wilburjb@goshen.edu.

The Lifelong Learning Institute of Elkhart County is sponsored by Goshen College and Greencroft Retirement Communities. It is part of a recent grassroots movement that has swept the country, Wilbur said. The Institute is a member of a national network of similar programs, The Elderhostel Institute Network (EIN); see www.elderhostel.org/ein/intro.

For seniors on Medicaid or living in HUD housing, The Learning Society of Elkhart County provides scholarships (excluding supplies, local travel and special event admission fees), as well as an honorarium for the volunteer teachers.

To register by phone and pay by credit card, call (574) 535-7566. Or send a check, or indication that you qualify for a scholarship, and desired course to Goshen College Welcome Center, 1700 S. Main St., Goshen, IN 46526.

Editors: For more information about this release contact either John Bender, Greencroft Retirement Communities Public Relations Director, (574) 537-4017, johnb@greencroft.org; or Jodi H. Beyeler, Goshen College News Bureau Director, (574) 535-7572, jodihb@goshen.edu.

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Goshen College, established in 1894, is a residential Christian liberal arts college rooted in the Anabaptist-Mennonite tradition. The college’s Christ-centered core values – passionate learning, global citizenship, compassionate peacemaking and servant-leadership – prepare students as leaders for the church and world. Recognized for its unique Study-Service Term program, Goshen has earned citations of excellence in Barron’s Best Buys in Education, “Colleges of Distinction,” “Making a Difference College Guide” and U.S.News & World Report’s “America’s Best Colleges” edition, which named Goshen a “least debt college.” Visit www.goshen.edu.

Greencroft Retirement Communities, established in 1962, operates housing and services in Goshen and Middlebury, Ind., and manages Southfield Village in South Bend. Residents from 20 faith traditions reside in Greencroft communities. Greencroft Retirement Communities is a not-for-profit organization sponsored by MHS Alliance. Visit www.greencroft.org.