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Dear WISE Members,
If you called the WISE Office lately, you may have heard an unfamiliar voice at the other end of the line. Jill Lagana was recently hired and began working in the WISE Office on October 3rd. She is rapidly coming up to speed and learning the many tasks that keep WISE working smoothly for us all and providing the many benefits and experiences we all enjoy. So if you call the office or stop by in La Maison Française, be sure to introduce yourself. I’m sure Jill will enjoy meeting you.
Of course, I also want to acknowledge the wonderful support Pat and Eileen have been providing. Pat has been with WISE from the beginning, assisting members in many ways – whether it was helping to resolve a class scheduling issue, taking payments for an upcoming Special Event, or arranging for a carpool to get someone to class on a snowy day. Eileen has been with us for two years, helping Pat manage the office, and making sure everything worked smoothly and efficiently for all our members. Both Pat and Eileen will be leaving the WISE office at the end of October, as Jill assumes her role as our new Office Manager. At our Holiday Luncheon in December, we will acknowledge Pat and Eileen for the many years of faithful service they’ve provided to WISE.
From our course standpoint, the A Session classes just ended, and B Session classes start on October 24th. I hope you all completed your class evaluations, as they are extremely important to the Curriculum Committee. Your comments help ensure that we provide the excellent courses and Group Leaders you’ve all come to expect. Early indications are that the A Session courses were all extremely well-received with a number of new Group Leaders who presented some great courses. We look forward to more of the same in B Session.
One thing to look for during the first week of B Session classes is a brochure that the Class Assistants will be handing out. The Travel Committee, specifically co-chairs Barbara Kupfer and Dianne Stoler, have been working closely with Collette Travel to plan what looks to be a superb trip to Costa Rica next June. All of the details about the trip are contained in the brochure. When they get distributed, please take only one. (The Monday and Tuesday Class Assistants will have many brochures to pass out. For the classes later in the week there will be fewer brochures, as it is assumed most people will have already obtained one.)
As reported in last month’s blog, the WISE Council established a new Outreach Committee at the September meeting, with Pat Hurton accepting the role of chairperson. She has already established her committee and they had their first meeting in late September. Pat and her committee will focus on community outreach, to bring in new members to keep us growing and vibrant. This committee will also focus on membership retention, so that we all continue to enjoy the many benefits of WISE membership.
Special Events continues to play a vital role in WISE, with some great trips, Brown Bag Discussions, and other events being planned by Cookie Nelson and her committee. In October, we enjoyed a great trip to Andover to visit the Amos Blanchard House and the Addison Gallery. For a nominal fee, transportation, museum admissions, and lunch were all provided. In December, as noted earlier, our Holiday Luncheon is scheduled. Be sure to watch this space, the WISE Bulletin, and special mailings about future Special Events.
The WISE Movie Club continues to grow by leaps and bounds, with several movies every month being organized at Worcester North Showcase Cinema, Cinema 360 at Clark University, and movies shown at Assumption in 119 Kennedy. On October 30th, they are showing a special movie for Halloween: The Others, staring Nicole Kidman. This movie is being shown in 119 Kennedy starting at 2:30 pm. Over 140 members have signed up for the Movie Club. If you’d like to be on the mailing list for future movies, contact Bobbi Corn at bobbizcorn@gmail.com.
The new WISE Book Club is also off and running, with its first meeting held on October 13th. If you’d like to join the Book Club, contact Joyce Abdow-Dowd at jadjd6@townisp.com.
Next year marks our 25th Anniversary year and we’re looking forward to make it a memorable one, with many special events and activities through the year! We’re just starting the planning, and looking for ideas and volunteers to help. So if you have ideas, and/or wish to serve on the planning committee to help make our 25th year our best ever, please contact either me at jdcorn45@gmail.com, or Susan Perschbacher at spersch@assumption.edu.
Until next month!
Joe Corn, President
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Mission Statement
The Worcester Institute for Senior Education (WISE) at Assumption College is a member-directed organization providing lifelong learning opportunities for older adults.
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