If you would like to download and print a copy of the class list, you can access it HERE.
2023 WINTER SCHEDULE JANUARY 23 – MARCH 4, 2023
MONDAYS
8:30-10:00 a.m. (90 minutes) Sun City Social Center Ballroom
National Treasures in Our Natural Wonders: Exotic Terranes of the West Coast – Rocky Romero and Sandi Phillips (In-person Only)
The Vagabonds, Rocky and Sandi, are back to continue the second year of the ‘National Treasures’ trilogy. This semester will highlight the national parks and monuments that lie on the geologic wonder called the ‘exotic terranes’ of the west coast. They will investigate the tectonic forces that formed and are still changing this area, study the places that have been discovered there, the history of the people and events that shaped the development, and the joy of traveling to these special sites in Washington, Oregon, California, and Alaska. Get ready to explore the seashore, the coastal mountains, and the volcanic chain along our American west coast.
The Vagabonds, Sandi Phillips and Rocky Romero, met in 1996 in Angola while working in oil exploration for a major oil company. Sandi is a geophysicist and Rocky is an engineer. Both hold advanced degrees in their fields. Since retirement they have traveled the world studying the impact of geology on human history.
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9:00-10:00 a.m. Sun City Activities Center Meeting Rooms 1 & 2
Beginner Spanish – Inez Gonzales (In-person Only) (Max: 15)
Beginner Spanish for adults as a refresher or introductory course. Will cover present and progressive tenses so student is able to conduct a conversation about daily routine and plans for the day or future. Will include roll-playing, pictures for starting a conversation using vocabulary and verbs and an opportunity for the student to suggest material to cover.
Inez Gonzales is a University of Houston graduate with BA in elementary education with minor in Spanish. She has taught all grade levels, except kindergarten, music and physical education, for 38 years in Catholic and public schools in Texas and Wisconsin. She has been teaching beginner and conversation Spanish in Sun City for the last four years.
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10:30 -11:30 a.m. Sun City Social Center Ballroom
The War Scare of 1983 – Anthony Triola (In-person/On-demand)
This course marks 40 years since of a series of events nearly brought the U.S. and the Soviet Union to the brink of nuclear conflict. By the fall of 1983, the U.S. and the Soviet Union had reached a point of mutually assured misunderstanding. Relations between the two nations were at a particularly low ebb in the decades-long Cold War, which had emerged out of the ashes of World War II.
Week 1: Prelude
Week 2: US-Soviet Relations in the early 1980s
Week 3: 1980s Soviet Military Power in Review Week 4: January – June 1983
Week 5: July – December 1983
Week 6: Aftermath
Chief Warrant Officer Four (CW4) Anthony Triola retired on January 31, 2014, after serving 24 years, 7 months on active duty. The highlight of his career was when Anthony served as the Russia Ground Officer for the European Command from 2009 to 2012. For the past four years Anthony has been teaching Russian History at Senior University. Additionally, Anthony is an American Red Cross volunteer, and serves as the Mass Care Lead for Central Texas. He is married and has one daughter, Madeleine.
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10:30-Noon (90 minutes) Sun City Activities Center Meeting Rooms 1 & 2
Introduction to Genealogical Research — Ken Pinter (In-person Only) (Max: 20)
If you believe that it is important to know something about your family roots, this course will introduce you to the tools and techniques needed to begin your genealogical research journey. You will find out what it takes to be a researcher. You will hear ideas about how to plan and implement your research and where to find information. You will then learn about ways to organize and document your findings, create tree diagrams, and ultimately pass this heritage on to others. Finally, you will see demos of the various free and for-fee online and offline data resources available to you.
Ken Pinter has spent 18 years doing in-depth family history research. He has researched numerous immediate and allied families resulting in a large family tree, an extensive picture library, and a web site with his many writings about those families. In his career he was a corporate technical instructor and manager.
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1:00-2:00 p.m. Georgetown Public Library Hewlett Room
American Collage: Painting, Poetry, and Music – Dr. Ken Peters (In-person Only)
The full title of our class is “American Collage: Putting Together American Painting, Poetry, and Music from Various Periods of Our History.” In many ways painting, poetry, and music are independent disciplines, but I have always wondered if they can be seen (and heard) in relationship to each other, especially with respect to the times in which they were created. What, for example, do Robert Frost and Andrew Wyeth have in common, or Aaron Copland and William Hopper? John Singer Sargent, Samuel Barber, and Edith Wharton? I frankly confess that my venture into this is an experiment which may or may not succeed, but I trust that for those who are interested in the American arts and American history (and the relationship of the two), our six weeks together will be fun and enlightening.
Ken Peters has a PhD in American cultural and intellectual history. He has a special interest in American, painting, literature, and music, and in this proposed course he is returning to the subject of his doctoral dissertation, dealing major figures from those disciplines. Focusing originally on the early period of our history, he would like to broaden the scope of this topic to include artists, poets, and composers of the 20th century.
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2:30-3:30 p.m. Georgetown Public Library Hewlett Room
America’s Space Program: Do We Still Have One? – Hank Haliasz (In-person Only)
America’s civil space program began in earnest in the early 1960s when President Kennedy said we were going to the moon. Of course, the reasons were all basically political given the nature of the cold war with the Soviet Union. But, after a few years of success, we gave up on the moon, and things began going downhill. Yes, we launched the Voyager spacecraft, we began the Space Shuttle era, we orbited the Hubble Telescope, we built the International Space Station, and most recently launched the James Webb Telescope. But low Earth orbit is as far as America has gone with astronauts in the last 50 years, and despite all of the talk about going back to the moon and then on to Mars, it just isn’t happening very fast, and no one seems too concerned. NASA, once America’s shining light aimed at the new frontier of space, has been dimmed by poor government decisions, and a priority which appears more focused on keeping people employed and spending tons of money, rather than making real progress. This course will get into the details of where we are today, and how we got here. It will then offer some ideas on how America can turn this ship around and aimed once again in the right direction for the good of mankind – outer space.
Hank is a retired Air Force officer and IBM Executive Project Manager. He is a former Mission Director for low altitude intelligence satellite operations, and Department of Defense related Space Shuttle missions. Hence, his interests since retirement have been directed towards the heavens, to astronomy, cosmology, and space exploration. He chaired the Sun City Astronomy group for ten years, has been an instructor for Senior University since 2004, lecturing on astronomy and other space-related topics. He is currently a member of the International Mars Society and the Space Development Steering Committee, both advocacy groups for putting humans on Mars. He has published four books: “Martian Year 500: The Second Beginning, “Mars II: A Tale of Two Planets”, “The Doomsday Plant – Global Warming and the Next Ice Age; and the fourth, just published in December, “Flatline – One Man’s Search for the Afterlife”. Hank has a B.S. in Electrical Engineering from Texas A&M and an MBA from the University of Dayton.
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TUESDAYS
9:00-10:00 a.m. First Baptist Church Room E2 109-111
Shay La La (Irish: I have stories to tell) – Winnie Bowen (In-person Only)
Join Winnie as she recounts a lifetime of adventures, misadventures, and unique situations.
Week 1: Military Sites & Memorials Along the Way: Normandy, Flanders Field, Melbourne’s Shrine of Remembrance, Ireland’s Ring Finnan, Infamous Room 600, Moscow’s Victory Park.
Week 2: On the Lighter Side: Fun, Unusual Adventures, Opium ice cream, Cuban taxi, A brothel stay—really, St Andrews, Wurzburg stairs, Hermitage carriage Pa and the jungle, Bahnhofstrasse cows, & more.
Week 3: Sometimes Things go Awry: Living through a real munity, Agent absconded with money, Rooftop ferry ride with luggage, Stranded on the Danube—twice.
Week 4: Concentration Camps and Danish Resistance: Mauthausen, Auschwitz, Dachau, Danish stories.
Week 5: Peoples and their Cultures: Kuna Indians, Choco Peoples, Masai, Tarahumara Indians, Kikuyu Peoples, Quechua, Māori People and Aborigines Down Under.
Week 6: Unusual, Fantastic, Indigenous Animals and Zoos: Oldest and 2nd oldest zoos, Gooney birds, Fairy penguins, Tasmanian Devils, Wombats, Kangaroos, Koalas, Pandas, Polar Bears, and more.
When Winnie’s husband retired after a 28-year naval career, the family returned to the mainland after nearly a decade in Hawaii. With the children grown and on their own, Winnie resumed her nursing career, retiring in 1992. She then embarked on years of avid travel. As a founding member of Senior University, she looks back fondly on all those breakfast meetings and hours of work. When so many people registered for those very first classes, she created a travel course, which continues to this day. She moderated that course for the next 13 years, passing it on only when it interfered with her personal travel plans. Somehow, she fell back into her love of writing, and has authored several books including 3 major volumes of travel experiences and adventures.
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9:00-10:00 a.m. First Baptist Church Room E2 103-105
Technology in 21st Century America – Stephen Sutter (In-person/On-demand) (NOTE: THIS WILL BE A 5 WEEK COURSE: JANUARY 24-FEBRUARY 21)
What is artificial intelligence? How did Artificial Intelligence develop? Will AI make life better? What are future moral implications of technology? What role will human psychology play? This five-week course will examine technology and its intriguing questions regarding science, education, religion, law, and human relationships
Stephen A Sutter, Esq is admitted to practice in the US Supreme Court, the Federal Court of Appeals, all New York State Courts and the Courts of Connecticut. A graduate of NYU Law School and Queens College-BA-Economics cum laude, he has participated in several well-known venues. This experience includes federal criminal law, civil trials, surrogate court trials, family law trials, representation of minors in special courts, and various real estate, tort, contract and trust matters. He was appointed a member of the National Economics Honor Society and is a skilled poet.
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9:00-10:00 a.m. First Baptist Church, Room E2 209-211
The History of Mystery: Detective Fiction from Poe to the Present – Susan Patterson (In-person/Zoom/On-Demand)
Who done it? We all love a good mystery, especially one with a quirky, brilliant detective who outsmarts the villain. This course will delve into the history of detective fiction from Edgar Allan Poe’s Auguste Dupin through Sherlock Holmes and the Golden Age to today’s most popular writers. We’ll look at how the Industrial Revolution kick-started the detective story, why English country villages are terribly dangerous places, what makes a detective hard-boiled and more.
Susan Patterson is a retired lawyer with a lifelong love of literature, She earned a B.A. in English from Duke University and a J.D. from Stetson University College of Law. In addition to practicing law and spending a year as a school librarian, she also owned a used bookstore in Titusville, Florida. One of her favorite pastimes is engaging in great conversations about books.
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9:00-10:00 a.m. First Baptist Church, Room E2-205
Intermediate Spanish Session One – Gloria Gonzalez (In-person only) (Max: 15)
This will be a continuing course in Conversational Spanish designed to increase students’ oral and written comprehension skills. The class is designed for those who have completed the entry and earlier level classes or who can demonstrate a basic proficiency in the language. Materials will include educational videos, books, and other written materials. Two 60-minute sessions will be offered on Tuesdays: 9:00- 10:00 am and 10:30-11:30 am.
Gloria Gonzalez earned her MA in Spanish at North Texas State University and has had 14 years teaching experience. She has been a resident of Sun City 22 years and a Senior University faculty member for many years.
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10:30-11:30 a.m. First Baptist Church, Room E2 209-211
Vikings: Raiders, Traders, Settlers – Todd Clayton (In-person Only)
The Norse of Norway, Denmark, and Sweden went on “Viking” raids sweeping along the beaches and up the rivers of Eastern and Western Europe. It was the shock and awe period of the medieval age. Raiding gave way to trading and settling. They struggled for the mastery of England, they founded Dublin and the Dukedom of Normandy, and they laid the foundations for modern Russia. Exploring westward, they colonized Iceland, Greenland and Newfoundland. They made it to North America 500 years before Columbus and established a trading network from Baghdad to the North American Coast. The Viking age lasted 300 years, but our fascination is still strong today.
Todd Clayton was in the US Navy as an officer qualified in nuclear powered submarines. He has an MBA from the Harvard Business School and a BS Industrial Engineering from Northwestern University. He has 30 years of executive marketing experience in the high-tech industry in computers and communications.
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10:30-Noon a.m. First Baptist Church, Room E2 103-105
Creative Non-Fiction: Word Magic for Your Writing – Dr. Patricia Baldwin (In-person only)
You want to write … blogs, travelogues, essays, website posts, podcast scripts, a family history, a philanthropic memoir, stories for mass media and social media or other nonfiction. Maybe you need to improve your writing skills with a few simple steps. After all, you want to get your writing right and get it read. In the workshop, you’ll learn about writing artfully with sensory sentences and replacing abstract words and phrases with description. We’ll also explore how to use structural “recipes.” You’ll develop skills in critical thinking, clear communication, research – and have a chance to practice. You’ll also be guided to strengthen your writing with some refreshers in punctuation, usage, grammar, fact-checking, style, voice and maybe other essentials. Make writing fun!
Patricia Baldwin is a longtime writer, editor and educator who loves storytelling. She has experience at business journals, daily newspapers, consumer magazines. Recently, she taught writing workshops at Houston-based Writespace. She earned a PhD in higher education and journalism from the University of North Texas. She also holds degrees from the University of Texas at Austin. She has taught mass communication at the University of North Carolina at Asheville and Texas State University.
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10:30-11:30 a.m. First Baptist Church, Room E2 108-110
Learning, Experience, and Knowledge – Dr. Herman Matthews (In-person only) (Max: 15)
We were born into this world with no knowledge of this world. So, we immediately started learning about our world. Learning is the process that creates our experiences of what we know about the external world, others and ourselves. And learning never stops. These classes will explore important learning processes: rote and cognitive learning; serendipity and pattern interrupts; active and passive learning; and conscious and ‘unconscious’ learning. As we learn, we experience and as we experience, we learn. Durable learning and experience are called knowledge. We will also explore how to enhance and maintain our learning skills, experience and knowledge. This is an interactive, participatory experience and the enrollment is limited to 15 participants.
Herman Matthews has a PhD in Physics and was on the faculty at four major Universities in the US. He then resigned from academia and was self-employed for 35 years. He was a consultant, produced video and designed and facilitated several hundred workshops and seminars using experiential and non- traditional learning. Herman has worked with many, diverse corporations, organizations, cultures, traditions and individuals both in the US and India.
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10:30-11:30 a.m. First Baptist Church, Room E2-205
Intermediate Spanish Session Two– Gloria Gonzalez (In-person only) (Max: 15)
This will be a continuing course in Conversational Spanish designed to increase students’ oral and written comprehension skills. The class is designed for those who have completed the entry and earlier level classes or who can demonstrate a basic proficiency in the language. Materials will include educational videos, books, and other written materials. Two 60 minute sessions will be offered on Tuesdays: 9:00 – 10:00 am and 10:30 am – 11:30.
Gloria Gonzalez earned her MA in Spanish at North Texas State University and has had 14 years teaching experience. She has been a resident of Sun City 22 years and a Senior University faculty member for many years.
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1:00-2:00 p.m. ZOOM and On-Demand.
The Key to Unlocking the Joy of Meditation-Ki Browning (ZOOM and On-demand only)
s something missing in your life? I would assert it is the deep peaceful feeling of meditation. This meditation course guides you to rediscover that place inside of childlike joy (not childish) but childlike joy and curiosity. Through the weeks of self-exploration, you will learn new methods for seeking inner peace and letting go of resentments and regrets. Discover the advantages of meditation, the science behind it, who’s doing it, and how it works. You will learn different meditation methods to regain focus, dissolve emotional imbalances, improve healthy sleep patterns and increase overall health. Reclaim the joy in your life! Join us one hour each week for deep relaxation.
Ki Browning spent over 25 years in the wellness field. She graduated Cum Laude from the University of Texas with a degree in Psychology. In 1999, she took two years traveling the world independently studying world cultures, religions and yoga and eventually began teaching yoga in Australia. She designs wellness classes to suit the individual based on her international training and multi-cultural perspective of life and is a Fitness Over Fifty Specialist!
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WEDNESDAYS
9:00-10:00 a.m. The Worship Place @ Rocky Hollow, Room J
The Aftermath of WW I – Gerald Faulkner (In-person Only)
The course will cover the first few years following the end of WWI. It will focus on the impact of the war on veterans, their families, world leaders and the treaties, new national boundaries, other genocides, and a related, little-known war. The following titles for each week are:
Week 1: The Veterans (America’s best)
Week 2: Gold Star Mothers (Pilgrims)
Week 3: Versailles (Four Men and a Treaty)
Week 4: Other Treaties (Austria, Hungary, Bulgaria, Week 5: Mandates (Colonies by Another Name)
Week 6: Greco-Turkish War (Genocide, Again)
Gerald Faulkner has a BBA in Human Resources from City University of New York with a minor in History. He has completed all courses for an MBA. He has taught previous history courses for Senior University. He has been a substitute teacher in Illinois and a Bible Study leader as well.
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9:00-10:00 a.m. The Worship Place @ Rocky Hollow, Room I
Blessed Bloopers – Life and Leadership Lessons from Sacred Moments Gone South – Bobby Hulme-Lippert (In-person/On-demand)
We’ve all been there: A sacred event. Everything is in place. And then ‘it’ happens. The unthinkable. The hilarious. The horrible. And definitely not the plan. Time and again it happens in holy moments, business, and life. And, if we look closely, they’re often the ones that are helping us learn the most important lessons about life and leadership. In Blessed Bloopers, Bobby Hulme-Lippert harnesses stories from his time presiding at sacred events that did not go as planned and helps class participants embrace the gift of failed plans as the birthplace of new opportunities and timely insights. Some of the particular leadership insights that will be explored include: learning how to discern our true strengths, naming the elephant in the room, keeping an open mind with anxiety all-around, and finding a healthy pace amid life and work.
Dr. Robert (Pastor Bobby) Hulme-Lippert is a pastor, speaker, and writer. Since 2019, he has been the Senior Pastor and Head of Staff at First Presbyterian Church in Georgetown. He has also served congregations in Richmond, VA and Atlanta, GA. As well, he has served as a Chaplain in the US Army Reserves. Bobby is a graduate of the Leadership Georgetown Class of 2021-22, and he currently serves on the Leadership Georgetown Planning Committee through the Chamber of Commerce. As an Instructor at Senior University, Bobby has taught courses on leadership and writing. Currently, he writes a weekly newsletter on Substack, Small Stories about Big Things. Bobby, his wife, and their two young boys live in Georgetown.
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10:30-11:30 a.m. The Worship Place @ Rocky Hollow, Room J
King Charles and the Wars of the Three Kingdoms – Dr. Clark Wernecke (In-person/Zoom/On- Demand)
Many commentators were surprised when England’s current King decided to retain his given name as his regnal name. Charles is not an auspicious name in English history with one being beheaded and the second being overthrown and exiled. While most in the United States are aware of the beheading of Charles I and subsequent civil war they are usually not aware of the details which are much more complex and are known as the Wars of the Three Kingdoms with alliances, betrayals, lost opportunities and tragedies galore. This class will cover the period of English history between 1639 and 1652 and the six wars that led to the downfall of Charles and the English throne.
Dr. Clark Wernecke recently retired as the Project Director for the Prehistory Research Project at the University of Texas at Austin and Executive Director of the Gault School of Archaeological Research. His Winter 2023 class will delve into a critical period of English History. He started his academic career with a degree in history from SMU followed by an MBA from Northwestern University, an M.A. in Anthropology from Florida Atlantic, and his PhD from the University of Texas at Austin. He has an interest in history coupled with a diverse career in business and archaeology where has worked in the Middle East, Mesoamerica, the American Southeast and Southwest, and Texas.
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10:30-noon (90 minutes) The Worship Place @ Rocky Hollow, Room I
Solving the Downsizing Puzzle, Piece by Piece – Virginia Lazenby (In-Person Only)
If you anticipate making a move from your current residence in the next 3 to 5 years (or even sooner), this course is for you! While the thought of downsizing may feel overwhelming, understanding the different components and identifying potential challenges and solutions can bring order and reduce the overwhelm. You will gain valuable insights and practical solutions for decluttering, understanding your options for senior living, organizing for a downsizing move, making the move, getting rid of stuff no longer needed, and preparing your house to sell.
Virginia Lazenby, Certified Senior Downsizing Coach and Texas REALTOR®, hosts the popular Seniors Living Smarter Seminars. In their sixth year, the seminars’ goal is to equip, educate, and inspire seniors to make informed choices and empowered decisions concerning their lifestyle goals. Virginia holds the Certified Senior Housing Professional (CSHP) and Certified Senior Downsizing Coach (CSDC) designations from Seniors Real Estate Institute. Virginia began her real estate career in 2003 after 25 years in education and completing her doctorate degree.
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1:00-2:00 p.m. ZOOM ONLY
Stories of the Russian Revolution – Ellen Davis (Zoom Only)
Communism was never expected to take hold in a non-industrial country such as Russia. So how did the Russian Revolution come about? We will tell the story through first-person accounts of people who were involved with it or witnessed it, including several women.
- Week 1 – Setting the Stage: Russia in the 1800s
- Week 2 – The Development of Communist Thought
- Week 3 – Nicholas, Alexandra and Rasputin: Fact vs. Fiction
- Week 4 – World War I: The Final Straw
- Week 5 – 1917: The Bolsheviks Seize Power
- Week 6 – Epilogue: The Romanovs Become Royal Martyrs
Ellen Davis took a Russian history course in college. This sparked a lifetime of interest in all things Russian – history, culture, music, etc. She retired in 2021 after a 40-year career in journalism and college public relations/marketing. She has an undergraduate degree in journalism from the University of Massachusetts and an MBA from the University of Dallas. This course will incorporate books she has read over the years including some by and about women who are not as well-known as the more famous male revolutionaries.
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THURSDAYS
9:00-10:00 a.m. Grand Living Forum Theater
Worldwide Travel – Barb Larson, Coordinator (In-person/Zoom/On-demand)
January 26: Jaan Goad will share his travel experiences in a composite itinerary from three different trips. We will wind our way through gorgeous scenery as we visit the sites and historical locations in Paris and Normandy in France, Cologne and Mannheim in Germany, the American Military Cemetery in Luxembourg, and Amsterdam in The Netherlands.
February 2: With Harold Bergh we will travel along the Douro River in Portugal to the ancient city of Porto. This area is steeped in beauty and culture and flanked by vineyards, olive orchards and peaceful villages. Two highlights of the trip are Lisbon, the city of seven hills, and the famous shrine at Fatima.
February 9: While living in Ethiopia for 2 years, Christy Wolf took advantage to experience everyday life in Addis Ababa, “The New Flower”, as well as travel to the countryside, where a short airplane ride takes you back in time hundreds of years. We will see a coffee ceremony, the sights of the Simien mountains covered with Gelada baboons, the cultural tribes of the Omo Valley, as well as religious venues and other unique celebrations in a country that likes to boast being the only country in Africa that was never colonized.
February 16: Bill Thornton will take us to a part of the world that has been in the news for the past year—Ukraine, Belarus, and Moldova. He traveled these three countries in 2019 prior to the pandemic and the Russian invasion of Ukraine. He will share his experience of visiting the Ukrainian cities of Lviv, Kyiv, and Odessa all of which have been negatively affected over the past year.
February 23: Li-hua Yu and David Smith will share their experience on 14-night Grand Danube River Cruise covering 8 countries from Vilshofen, Germany to Bucharest, Romania. They will briefly discuss the historical significance of the Danube from Roman times to the present while their focus will be on the current conditions of the countries and on the delightful activities of wine and brandy tastings, entertainment, and food experiences.
March 2: Terri and Denny Boroczk will take us on an incredible northbound odyssey in Manitoba and Hudson Bay, Canada. The visit includes time at the Seal River Lodge, one of Nat Geo’s Unique Lodges of the World, swimming alongside beluga whales, searching for polar bears and seeing the Northern Lights.
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10:30-11:30 a.m. Grand Living Forum Theater
Haydn and Beethoven: Teacher and Student – Dr. Barry Williamson (In-person/Zoom/On-demand)
Led by Dr. Barry Scott Williamson, Founder/Artistic Director of the Texas Bach Festival, this course will continue from where Dr. Williamson’s Fall 2022 class, “1791: Mozart’s Last Year” left off. We will review the continued evolution and formation of Viennese Classicism (1770-approx 1825), as epitomized by its three great masters – Mozart, Joseph Haydn and Ludwig van Beethoven. We will examine these three composers’ relationships and influence by and work in Vienna (“The City of Music”), especially that of Haydn and Beethoven, including the “Teacher and Student” dynamic, focusing on their symphonies, string quartets and concerti, with additional insights offered by Dr. Williamson’s work with TBF’s weekly “Bach to the Future” radio broadcast and recent Texas Bach Festivals.
Dr Barry Scott Williamson has a long and revered international career of conducting and teaching innovation and accomplishment. He made his conducting debut at the European Music Festival in Stuttgart, where he finished as one of three finalists out of 63 conductors. Having led 5 international performance tours, Dr Williamson made his Carnegie Hall conducting debut in 2018. He has envisioned and led the Texas Bach Festival since it started in 2017.
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1:00-2:00 p.m. Grand Living Forum Theater
The Three Revolutions led by the Chinese Communist Party – Dr. Li-hua Yu (In-person/Zoom)
The course will provide historical reviews of the three Revolutions led by the Chinese Communist Party since its establishment of 1919. The First Revolution was under the leadership of Mao Zedong who led his victory over the Nationalist Party and established the People’s Republic of China in 1949. Unfortunately, Mao’s policies and his authoritarian leadership led China to poverty and total failure when Mao died in 1976. The second Revolution began with Deng Xiaoping’s calling for Chinese people to reform the Chinese centralized economic system. Deng’s slogan “to become rich is glorious” stimulated millions of Chinese to go to the free market to make a new life for themselves. 45 years later China is ranked the number 2 economic power next to US. Since 2010 a new leadership has emerged led by Xi Jinping. The Third Revolution is well underway in China spearheaded by Xi. In a review of the recent book entitled The Third Revolution by Elizabeth C. Economy, Lee Kuan Yew wrote “The size of China’s displacement of the world balance is such that the world must find a new balance. It is not possible to pretend that this is just another big player. This is the biggest player in the history of the world”.
Dr. Li-hua Yu was born in China, had her undergraduate education in China, and taught Chinese university students until 1983 when she pursued her post graduate degrees in US. Her lectures will provide not only facts but also her understanding of China through her own life in China.
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2:30-3:30 p.m. Grand Living Forum Theater
January 26: Horned Lizards in Texas and the US – Carolyn Todd (In-person/Zoom/On-Demand)
The presentation will include a PowerPoint and discussion of the horned lizard species and subspecies including the differences among the species, survey methods, clutches and live births, defenses, predators, food sources, lizard folklore, and more.
Carolyn is an artist who has studied, drawn, and painted horned lizards all her life while working with the state’s Horned Lizard Conservation Society and Parks & Wildlife Dept. to help horned lizards thrive in captivity for a safe release into the wild.
February 2: Cave Diving: The Role of Exploration in Groundwater Hydrology – Dr. Marcus Gary (In- person/Zoom/On-Demand)
The presentation will describe cutting edge hydrogeology research including the role of cave diving and robots in exploration and modeling of groundwater systems. This is a branch of engineering that studies the subterranean water and the underground environment and its interaction with porous solids, biology, and chemical constituents. Well design, pumping levels, groundwater use, contamination, conservation of supplies, and water quality are all important considerations. Emphasis will be placed on Texas karst, Valdina Farms Sinkhole, Jacob’s Well, and the Edwards Aquifer.
Dr. Marcus Gary is a Field Operations Project Manager for the Edwards Aquifer Authority and an Adjunct Assistant Professor, Department of Geological Sciences at the University of Texas, Austin.
February 9: My Life as a Suit Technician for NASA Astronauts – Tom Gallagher (In- person/Zoom/On-Demand)
This presentation will recount Mr. Gallagher’s witness to history. He was at the right place at the right time. His Air Force job prior to NASA was as an Altitude Chamber Technician, training Air Force pilots and maintaining their high-altitude pressure suits. His career began in 1960, when NASA was only two years old. He was a space suit technician for the Original Seven Mercury astronauts and went on to participate in the manned space flight program, which included Gemini and the Apollo Moon Landings. This is his journey.
Tom Gallagher spent the bulk of his career with NASA at the Johnson Space Center. While there, he went to night school at the University of Houston on the G.I. Bill and earned a Bachelor’s degree inBusiness Administration. Mr. Gallagher is married and lives in Georgetown.
February 16: Clay–It Isn’t Just Dirt – Karl Schiller (In-person/Zoom/On-Demand)
Palygorskite clay is a relatively common mineral, but its economic deposits are rare. The two largest are near Shanghai, China and Quincy, Florida. The US deposit has been mined continually since the 1890s. Originally used as a grease adsorbent and an early petroleum catalyst, it’s essential for drilling oil wells when salt formations are encountered. Uses have expanded and are as varied as pollution control, nuclear waste containment, paints, fire retardants, and an asbestos replacement. It’s now found in many everyday products, e.g., your medications, your house, and your car.
Karl Schiller holds a B. S. degree in Mining Engineering from the South Dakota School of Mines. He began his career in underground and open pit zinc, copper, and uranium mining but subsequently moved into Industrial Minerals mining, including clays.
February 23: Tell Us a Story: Norman Rockwell’s America – Jim Hutchinson (In-person/Zoom/On-Demand) We’ll look at Norman Rockwell’s process for creating some of his iconic Saturday Evening Post covers and discuss how he reflected American life and history with these paintings. A ‘question and answer’ session will conclude our class.
Jim Hutchinson has Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees and has taught many courses for Senior University and for the Osher Lifelong Learning Program at the University of Texas in Austin. He was the first Senior University lecturer to use the potpourri concept of selected lectures.
March 2: Texas Confederates Search for a New Home in Brazil – Dr. Earl Richard (Rich) Downes (In-person/Zoom)
In January 1867, 152 Texan men, women and children departed Galveston in a rickety brig bound for new homes in the wilds of Brazil. They were but a small portion of the 3,000 Confederates who departed for new lives in Brazil. Crushed by the defeat of the Confederacy and hoping to maintain their Southern style of living, including slavery–still legal in Brazil–they responded to a variety of incentives from the Brazilian government and promises of cheap land and religious freedom. This is their story,
Dr Earl Richard Downes is a career Latin Americanist and independent researcher dedicated to promoting the understanding of inter-American relations. He holds a BS from the USAF Academy, an MA in Latin American Studies from the University of Florida and a PHD on Latin American History from the University of Texas in Austin.
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SATURDAY: FEBRUARY 4, 2023 2;00-4:00 p.m. Georgetown Public Library Hewlett Room
Travel to the Land of Sherpas and Mt Everest–Linda LeBlanc
SPECIAL ONE-TIME PUBLIC LECTURE ALL ARE WELCOME
Travel to the land of Sherpas and learn their culture on the trail to the southern Everest base camp in Nepal. Follow the route to the summit and learn the hardships of climbing to 29,032 feet in thin air. Hear how a 13-year-old boy was the youngest to reach the summit from the northern base camp in Tibet and also complete the 7 summits (highest peak on each continent) at age 15.
Linda LeBlanc is a world traveler and mountain lover from Colorado. She raised money and helped Sherpas design and create the first lodge system in Nepal, 18 Sherpa Guide Lodges in the Everest region. She later formed her own travel company and led treks to the Everest base camp, India, and Thailand. She is also the author of two books, Beyond the Summit (Fiction about Sherpas and Everest) and No Summit Out of Sight (nonfiction about the youngest boy to complete the 7 summits). Copies of the books will be available for purchase for those interested.