OLLI E-News Newsletter

August 28, 2020

• Alerts & Notices
• From the Desk of the Executive Director
• Pass on the Good Word
• Amateur Photographers: Here’s How You
  Can Shine 
• Zoom in to Enlarge Images
• Poet’s Corner
• Arts & Music at George Mason
• Meetings & Clubs
• About OLLI E-News

Alerts & Notices

• Fall term is September 21 – November 13. Although priority registration ended August 26, registration continues on a space-available basis. To view the fall catalog online, click here; for access to registration, click this link.
• Since catalog production, a few classes have been changed, canceled, or added. A complete listing is available here.
• The next issue of OLLI E-News will be published Friday, September 11; regular deadline for submission of items is Tuesday, September 8, at 6:00.

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By Jennifer Disano, Executive Director

In turbulent times we rely on anchors in our life to give us normalcy. To so many members, OLLI is a life anchor designed to support social engagement, intellectual exploration, and creativity. OLLI is also where our friends are, and staying in contact with friends during these trying times is core to personal well-being. Knowing this, when COVID-19 hit our community, the leadership of OLLI had one goal—keep the program going! And we did. Thanks to the extraordinary efforts of our selfless volunteers and dedicated staff, this fall we enter into our third term of remote learning…and the program is just as strong, diverse, and vibrant as ever. With over 140 courses and more than 20 clubs to choose from, there really is something for everyone!

We’re very proud of these successes and of our world‑class program but none of this would be possible without your commitment to OLLI which is most appreciated. Your continued efforts to recruit new members and your steadfast renewals of annual dues keep OLLI solvent, secure staff retention, and provide for the future of our organization. Thank you for maintaining OLLI as an anchor in all our lives as we weather the storm together.

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Pass on the Good Word

By Rosemary Lubinski, Outreach Committee Chair

If you didn’t have a chance to do it yet, there is still time to pass on the good word about OLLI to your friends and family. Your positive experiences at OLLI are the best advertising we have. You can tell your friends about the wide variety of interesting programs, the social opportunities, the ease of using Zoom to access programs in the comfort of home, and right now the bargain price of first-time membership. Remember that since our programming is online, membership can be extended to those who live farther away. So, in your next phone call, text, email, or other contact, please pass on the good word about OLLI. Your friends can see our fall catalog at https://olli.gmu.edu/2020fallcatalog/.

Amateur Photographers: Here’s How You
Can Shine 

By John Nash, E-News Editor

We all take pictures and at some point wish they had come out better. Some of us in the OLLI Photo Club (OPC) have been in that situation many times but, thanks to the photo club, members have many ways to improve their photographic skills.

In addition to monthly meetings, OPC members have several opportunities to take and submit their pictures for critique and display. Discussions of pictures give different perspectives on photos, including technical camera settings that often confuse new photographers.

Below are examples of members’ photographs where the challenge is to take and submit a picture each week. This encourages the photographer’s creativity and technical expertise, both of which can improve with practice. You can view all of the OPC Galleries at https://olliphotoclubgmu.smugmug.com/.

No matter if you have a point-and-shoot camera, a cell-phone camera, or a complicated digital single lens reflex, you’ll find the OPC can be a helpful way of improving your picture-taking ability. But you must be a member, so plan to join the OLLI Photo Club during this fall registration. The photo club is one of your OLLI membership benefits!

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Zoom in to Enlarge Images

By Paul Van Hemel, OLLI E-News Editor

If you want a closer look at images in E-News, you can zoom in to enlarge them. If you are a PC (personal computer) user, just hold down the Ctrl key on your keyboard while rolling the mouse scroll wheel up to enlarge the image; you can use the Ctrl key and roll the scroll wheel in the opposite direction to reduce the image again.

If you are a Macintosh or other Apple computer user, simply hold the Command key while pressing the plus key (+) to zoom in, or the minus key (-) to zoom out. If you prefer using the trackpad, with gesture support enabled in settings, place two fingers on the trackpad, then push the fingers away from each other to zoom in or move your fingers closer together to zoom out.

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Meetings & Clubs

Please note: Physical meetings for clubs and activities are canceled until further notice in accordance with Mason’s guidelines. OLLI is conducting its classes and activities online. Refer to the university’s coronavirus website for official university updates and check the OLLI Calendar for revised information.

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 mid-week but for the most up-to-date information, please view the latest forecast of coming events on our website (News/OLLI Calendar). Note: All OLLI members are welcome at, and encouraged to attend (online), meetings of the Board of Directors, committees and resource groups, kick-off coffees, etc. (bolded below).

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OLLI E-News was created by Rod Zumbro, who served as its editor from 2005 to 2013.

Editorial Staff
Chief Editor: Paul Van Hemel
Associate Editor: David Gundry
Weekly Editor Team: David Gundry, John Nash, Sheri Siesseger, Leslie Vandivere,
Paul Van Hemel 
Proofreaders: Rebecca Jann, Susan Van Hemel, Linda Randall, Tom Appich, Roz Stark,
Jane Hassell
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: Tuesday, 6:00, for that week’s issue (Monday, 6:00, 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:olli.gmu.edu/” without the quotes.

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