Adult Events

The Oliver Wolcott Library offers a wide range of programming for adults, from continuing series like Monday Scholars,
to lectures, book discussions, and author talks. All events are free and open to all.

Continue your journey of lifelong learning with us!

Tuesday Scholars: The Great Tours - Ireland & Northern Ireland

Tuesday Scholars combines the best of online learning with live virtual discussion! All you need to do in advance is be eager to learn and discuss. 

 

About the course:
The Great Tours: Ireland and Northern Ireland gives you the chance to traverse this amazing land with a leading scholar in the field of Irish history, culture, and literature. Taught by Professor Marc Conner, president of Skidmore College and a scholar of modern Irish literature, you'll go on a sweeping tour of the Emerald Isle, from the Guinness Brewery in Dublin to the ancient ruins of Newgrange to the battle-scarred village of Derry in Northern Ireland.

For more information on this series, click here

 

 

Friday Scholars: History Of Russia - From Peter The Great To Gorbachev

Friday Scholars combines the best of online learning with live virtual discussion! All you need to do in advance is be eager to learn and discuss.

 

About the course:

This course focuses on 300 years of Russian history from Peter the Great to Gorbachev by examining the lives of the men and women who, in fact, were Russia. This is history told through biography. Discover historical themes made clear not by discussing treaties, war declarations, or economic statistics —but by examining the lives and ideas of the men and women who were Russia: tsars, emperors, Communist Party leaders, writers, artists, peasants, and factory workers.

For more information on this series, click here

 

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Register for a bag today!

Beginning June 9 - Register Here*

* While supplies last - limit 2 per person

To celebrate Isabella’s 70th birthday, we have created this Take and Make Bag featuring activities that are inspired by Isabella Rossellini. How does Isabella Rossellini inspire us? In many ways! In addition to her rich and varied acting career and being part of "movie royalty", she is an icon for timeless beauty and beautiful ageing; a wonderful example of lifelong learning by returning to college in her 0s and 60s, and demonstrating her continued appreciation and fascination for animals. 

Let Isabella Rossellini guide you to think, watch, create, and learn.  Included in the bag: animal tracking pocket guide, field book, materials to create your own self-portrait to celebrate your beauty, and seven challenges including: films to watch, short essays to write, books to read, and questions to think about all along the way. 

  

 

Move Your Mind; Move Your Body With Nancy Schuler

Zoom Participants:  Zoom Link - click here at 10:15 AM on Tuesdays starting June 28 to Zoom to the Event. 

Note: This Class is designed for senior women.

The United Nations General Assembly has declared 2021 to 2030 The Decade For Healthy Ageing. The OWL has always been committed to expanding minds and now we would like to help our community expand their physical strength. 

Nancy Schuler will be conducting an introductory exercise class for senior women. You will have the option of joining the class in person, here at the OWL, or online in the privacy of your home. The class will feature stretching and exercises that can be done in a chair or standing and lifting weights. All exercises are gentle and easy to understand.  Exercise has been proven to help one's cognitive abilities, blood pressure, insomnia, digestive issues, depression, strength and independence.  The Alzheimer's, Diabetes and Heart Associations all recommend exercise for healthy ageing.

No prior experience is necessary. Bring in a set of light weights for this class - 1 to 2 lbs.

 

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A Take & Make Bag

Register for a bag today!

Beginning July 1 - Register Here*

* While supplies last - limit 2 per person/household

Celebrate the start of summer by making your own hydrangea art with paint and dish soap. This simple and fun art project will turn out different each time you try it, so there are endless possibilities to get creative!

Your bag will contain: 

• Non-toxic acrylic paint
• Paper straws
• Cardstock paper
• Green construction paper

NO painting or art experience required!

Register above so we will have your bag ready for you, then stop in to bring home an engaging project that you can do on your own, at your own pace, and when it works for you!

 

 

Flash Fiction - A Writing Workshop

Space is Limited to 15 members - Registration is required for In-Person and Zoom attendees. Register here

Zoom Participants:  after registering, you will be emailed the Zoom link.

Do you enjoy writing as a creative outlet; telling a tale to amuse or inspire others? Might you enjoy the challenge, skill and beauty of brevity and a straightforward approach to storytelling?

If this piques your interest, we hope you will consider joining us for a 5 week workshop on crafting FLASH FICTION. No previous experience in this genre required.

Flash fiction is defined as a very short story. It can be as short as a few words or a few sentences. For this workshop, we will adapt the standard 1000 word count as a framework for our creations.

What to expect: We will further define and consider the boundaries of this writing format while exploring ways to connect succinctly with readers. We will experiment with various strategies for organizing ideas, revising and editing as we shape our stories. Each week there will be at least ONE (could be more!) prompted 10 minute writing exercise. We will have the opportunity to share our work and offer supportive critique to group members who would like feedback on their ideas and story construction.

In the spirit of group cohesiveness, new members will not be admitted once the sessions begin. If there is interest, a Fall group is likely to assemble.

 

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"Meditation Series" - Mixed Media

Opening Reception: Thursday, July 7 from 5:00 - 7:00 PM

On Exhibit July 5 - August 26

OWL welcomes back artist Joan Morosani in the Jamie Gagarin Art Gallery. Join us for her opening reception!

Click here to read about Joan's exhibit.

 

 

 

 

 

Non-Fiction Discussion Group

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Thursday, July 14

Meeting will be held in the Library's Jamie Gagarin Community Room.

Gone to the Woods by Gary Paulsen

Gary Paulsen portrays a series of life-altering moments from his turbulent childhood as his own
childhood survival story. Both brightly funny and darkly tragic, it freshly and honestly portrays difficult
themes. Read one of Paulsen’s own books for young adults (Hatchet, Dog Song, and many more) to see
how Paulsen wove his own experiences into his fiction. Moderated by Cindy

 

 

 

 

Fiction Discussion Group

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Thursday, July 14

Fiction Group: 3:30 pm 

Meeting will be held in the Library's Jamie Gagarin Community Room.

Me Before You by Jojo Moyes

Moyes uses the two main characters to create a contrasting love story between two desperately
opposite people. The woman struggles to find her next step of life, while the man struggles to deal with
living a life that was less than what he was used to. His condition gave her a purpose: to get him to
change his mind. Important questions are raised about the quality of living and whether a death with
dignity is possible. Moderated by Laura S 

 

 

 

Cello Performance by Ryan Mitten

In-Person Space is limited. Registration is Required. Register here

Zoom Participants:  Zoom Link - click here at 7:00 PM on July 21 to Zoom to this event.

Please join us for a unique live cello performance by Ryan Mitten. A lifelong cellist, Mitten is certain to delight us with his musical perspective and style. He plays what one might expect to hear played on a cello (think: Bach and Mozart), but encourages his audience to think bigger. He transports listeners to Hogwarts with the Harry Potter soundtrack then sends them to a galaxy far, far away with recognizable Star Wars repertoire. 

No two performances are alike as Ryan takes great care in catering to his audience. Music lovers of any age will appreciate his versatility, and may, after his performance, take advantage of his routine offer for “any requests” (and improvisational skills on the cello). He conjures almost any kind of folk music (bluegrass, Irish, country, the list goes on) and ties it all together with early 20th century sing-along ditties.

Ryan Mitten is a cellist and special education professor who also plays mandolin, guitar, banjo and piano. He is a member of the Pleasantville based folk band Nannyhagan Creek, and a mandolin strumming Living History Interpreter at the Mark Twain House and Museum.

 

Exploring Connecticut's Natural Wonders with Brendan Hanrahan

In-Person Space is limited. Registration is Required. Register here

Zoom Participants:  Zoom Link - click here at 7:00 PM on July 28 to Zoom to this event.

We hope you will join us as Brendan explains how our state’s small size and intriguing past make it one of the best places in the world to explore natural wonders.
 
With the aid of animations and video, we will tour the places where continents collided to shape local bedrock, where our region was flooded by vast flows of molten rock, dinosaurs prowled immense lakes, the last Ice Age left its marks—and the great variety of wild places we have to explore in our state today. We will learn about places where our region’s past can easily be explored, often in little more time than it takes to pull off the highway and eat lunch!

Brendan Hanrahan developed and published the "Road to Discovery Series" of guidebooks to the rocks, dinosaur fossils and natural places of Connecticut. Available for check out from OWL!

To Join by Phone:
Dial: +1 646 876 9923 | Meeting ID: 849 7290 0486 | Passcode: 006147

 

About Our Zoom Events:

All of our Virtual Zoom Events are live. They are not recorded. To participate/join the event, you need to use the exact link connected to the event. Once you click on the link at the specified date and time, you will be prompted to open Zoom, the virtual meeting program we are using. All you need is an internet connection and a device or computer with a webcam and audio. Most computers have built-in webcams. No passwords or confirmation codes, just click the link and follow the prompts.

Still having difficulty understanding how to access Zoom? Email OWL's Technology Coordinator Ted at emoy[at]owlibrary.org to set-up a virtual Book-a-Tech session and he will go over it with you.

 

More security, more privacy: In response to concerns about privacy in a virtual meeting space, we have enabled additional security features in Zoom and updated our meeting links to be protected, private, and secure. These new, unique links can also be accessed through our e-newsletters.To receive secure information regarding these events, please subscribe to our e-newsletter! Click here to subscribe