Arizona Opera Education Manager Joshua Borths will lead a session on the opera Carmen on January 14; particularly helpful if you are going on the opera trip in February.
Art appreciation, artisan bread, great decisions and genealogy among classes starting in January
Will your New Year’s resolutions include a plan to exercise your mind by exploring new ideas? If so, a class offered by LifeLong Learning at PebbleCreek may be the perfect solution.
Classes begin in January and are limited in size to enable interaction with the presenters and fellow classmates. Many are taught by PebbleCreek residents who willingly share their knowledge and wisdom with neighbors and friends and most have a small fee to cover associated costs for the class.
Procrastinators, beware! Registration is required for all classes and once the maximum number of registrants is reached the class is closed. Some classes are already closed, so we urge you to go online at www.lifelonglearningatpc.org/classes, find the class you are interested in and follow the link to register and pay.
The classes that will be held in January are the following:
Art Appreciation
Dr. Loni will teach a class on American art with a focus on the new Whitney Museum of American Art exhibit, America is Hard to See. Wednesday, January 20, 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. $20
Artisan Bread Making
While the January 12 session is closed, there is still room in the January 5 and January 19 classes. In each class, which run from 10:00 to 11:15 a.m., Gene Fioretti will teach how to make delicious bread in your own home. $10
Gardening
If you’re new to the desert, you already know that gardening here is totally different. Master Gardener Jim Oravetz returns for a four-week class that will teach you the basics about irrigation, what plants to choose, how to prune your citrus and grow vegetables according to the Arizona schedule (which is likely backward from where you came from). Saturday mornings, 10:00 a.m. to noon, beginning January 16. $60
Genealogy
PebbleCreek’s Loretta Morris will teach you the computer tools and websites to use to research your ancestry. This three-week class will be held Mondays, January 4, 11 and 18. The class is currently full but you can add your name to the waiting list. $50
Great Decisions
The most intense of all LLL classes, Great Decisions, is a once a week, eight week discussion program created by the Foreign Policy Association. Each week focuses on a different critical issue facing America, including the Middle East, ISIS, Climate Change and Cuba. Four different times are scheduled to enable you to find a group that meets your calendar needs. For more information see www.lifelonglearningatpc.org/classes/great-decisions. $30 per person; $5 for second person in household sharing the book.
Opera
Opera lover or not, you’ll enjoy a preview of Bizet’s Carmen by Arizona Opera Education Manager Joshua Borths. Learn about the history, context and music of the opera and receive exclusive, behind-the-scenes information about opera productions. Gain useful insights and learn what to listen for to make your time at Carmen – or at any opera – as rewarding as possible. Thursday, January 14, 10:30 a.m. to noon. $15
TED talk groups to begin in January
Are you curious about the world? Do you enjoy learning through the eyes and life experiences of others? Have you enjoyed the TED Talk videos we’ve shared through the e-newsletter?
Then you are perfect for this new LLL program.
Using a TED talk or two as the catalysts for each afternoon’s discussion, we will use “point of view” guidelines to ensure a respectful, non-confrontational structured conversation.
These sessions will be held on Thursday afternoons from 2:00 to 4:00 p.m. Please visit www.lifelonglearningatpc.org/special/ted for more information and to register for these free sessions.
Dr. Sam Foote, who blew the whistle on the Veterans Administration Hospital scandal, is the Premier Lecturer on Friday, January 22.
Mark your calendar for LLL January events
We suspect your December calendar is already overflowing with events so LifeLong Learning at PebbleCreek suspends lectures during the month. That said, January has several events you won’t want to miss so mark your calendars now. All events other than trips are in the Renaissance Theatre.
Friday, January 8 at 7:00 p.m. Scout’s All Grown Up.
Mary Badham was only nine when she played the young tomboy daughter of Gregory Peck in the movie To Kill a Mockingbird. She will share stories of Peck and reclusive author Harper Lee whose book, To Set a Watchman, was published last summer; $15 online or at the door.
Monday, January 11 at 10:00 a.m. Fighting the Cold War Undercover
What is it like to learn shortly before he died, that your father was an undercover agent for the Department of Defense? A compelling personal story from John Clauson; $4 at the door.
Monday, January 18 join PebbleCreek’s Just Folks for a celebration of the life of Martin Luther King.
Friday, January 22 — Trip to the Phoenix Symphony. Sold Out
Friday, January 22, 7:00 p.m. VA whistleblower Dr. Sam Foote
If you are a veteran, married to one or disturbed at the reports of the delayed care given to veterans at VA hospitals, you won’t want to miss this talk by the man who shed light on this scandal; $15 online or at the door.
Monday, January 25, 10:00 a.m. Your Sleep, Your Life
Dr. Carol Baldwin will talk about sleep disorders, why they occur and how they can be treated and how they affect our personal health, performance and relationships; $4 at the door.
Wednesday, January 27 — Trip to the Heard Museum
Enjoy a docent-led tour of the internationally recognized museum of Native American Art, including the special exhibit Frida Kahlo – Her Photos. Register online (see www.lifelonglearningatpc.org/trips); $60
Thursday, January 28, 10:00 a.m. – Cinema Society of PebbleCreek
Films from top major and independent studios are shown in this film series.
For more information on all LifeLong Learning activities visit www.lifelonglearningatpc.org.
A few seats remain on the bus for these museum trips
All but three of LifeLong Learning’s 13 trips are already sold out, but there is still room on three of the most educational trips of the season. Visiting a museum with LifeLong Learning is different from visiting alone, as the group has a private tour with a docent.
The Heard Museum trip includes a docent-led tour of the major permanent collections and the current special exhibits. We will enjoy lunch at the museum. Wednesday, January 27; $60
Western Spirit: Scottsdale’s Museum of the West is the newest valley museum and has been praised for its architecture and exhibits. Our docent-led tour of the exhibits, bringing to life the story of America’s West in the 19th and early 20th centuries, will be followed by lunch at Café Forte. Thursday, March 24; $60
Desert Caballeros Western Museum hosts an annual Cowgirl Up exhibit of western and Indian art by award winning female artists. We follow the docent-led tour with lunch at the resort, Rancho de los Caballeros. Tuesday, April 19; $60
Visit the LifeLong Learning website – www.lifelonglearningatpc.org/trips — for more information and to register for these trips and other programs or contact Lisa Greenhoot, 541-554-5628, or Judy Cowan, 623-266-1426.
How to reserve your seat at LLL events
Still wondering how to get LLL tickets and register for the events described in this month’s Post? It’s very easy to do, either online or in person.
Online
To get tickets to Premier Lectures or register for classes, trips or special events, go to the LifeLong Learning website at wwwlifelonglearningatpc.org where you’ll find the complete schedule of events. On the bottom right of the home page, click on Create an Account and complete the form. Then go to the page with the program you’re interested in and follow the link from that page. You can pay with a credit card or indicate that you will send a check.
In Person
Not interested in paying online? Then come to the computer room in the Eagle’s Nest Activities Center on Saturday, December 5, 12 or 19 from 10:00 a.m. to noon. Purchases also can also be made before any Monday Morning Lecture. Purchases may be made with checks, credit cards or cash.
Don’t miss out on LifeLong Learning’s fabulous season!
Mary Badham won the hearts of America in the 1962 film classic To Kill a Mockingbird.
Revisit an old friend Friday, December 11 when LLL shows To Kill a Mockingbird
In the early 1960s, when Freedom Riders were run out of southern towns for trying to register black voters and blacks were staging sit-ins at lunch counters, a different vision of the South was portrayed by Gregory Peck in the movie To Kill a Mockingbird.
Atticus Finch, explaining to his young children why he was defending a black man wrongly accused of raping a white woman, stirred the hearts of many and became an unforgettable icon of honesty and integrity. And Scout, the inquisitive nine-year-old who charmed Boo Radley, made it okay for young girls to be tomboys.
Now, more than 50 years later, we have the opportunity to be inspired again when LifeLong Learning at PebbleCreek gives two showings of the movie on Friday, December 11 at 9:30 a.m. or 1:00 p.m. in the Renaissance Theatre.
Tickets to the movie are $5 but are free for those who have purchased tickets to the Premier Lecture “Scout’s All Grown Up” with Mary Badham, the actress who portrayed Scout in the movie.
Tickets to the January 8 Premier Lecture with Mary Badham are $15 each and may be purchased online or in the lobby of the Renaissance Theatre prior to the showing of the film.
Calling all collections and collectibles
Shannon Tyre
Maybe it’s Wedgwood? Or perhaps a collection of fine Mont Blanc pens? Lladro or Hummel? Maybe you collect antique tea cups or antique toys or Navajo rugs. You decided to carefully move it all here from somewhere else and now you have an opportunity to display your collection for PebbleCreekers to view during LifeLong Learning’s special event in February.
What started out as a way for us to display our beautiful place settings and flatware has now grown into a wider array of collectibles and collections. Do you have a beautiful tablescape that you would like to share with others? Maybe know of someone with a collection of interesting items?
Dust it off, shine it up and prepare to show it off. LLL is looking for participants to include their collections or collectibles in our exhibit on Wednesday, February 3, 2016. The exhibit will be in the Chianti Room at Tuscany from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. So whether it’s your collection of owls, Stief Teddy Bears or gilded compacts, there will surely be something on exhibit to please everyone.
Please contact either Diane Jakobs at [email protected], 623-825-0986 or Ann Gregerson at [email protected], 602-684-5777, with a description of what it is that you would like to display. We are looking forward to seeing the many beautiful collections here at PebbleCreek. Oh—just a reminder: the collections are for viewing—not for sale!