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!

 

 

Lovely Luminaries

Come on in to claim your kit while supplies last!

Illuminate your home with your very own luminary. Each kit comes equipped with a piece of construction paper and a bag to decorate with stencils, or your own design! “Trace” your image by poking holes into your lantern with a complimentary push-pin and, once completed, add a provided tealight to bask in its beautiful glow. This activity is perfect for anyone looking for a creative yet simple craft.

 

 

 

 

Connecticut Women's Heritage Trail

Registration is Required - Register here

This March, celebrate Women's History Month by downloading the ConnTours App and picking up a OWL Women's Heritage Trail passport and journal. You’ll receive reading lists and supplemental materials that will make learning about the Connecticut women who shaped the character of our state. Passport stops include: Connecticut's Old State House, Harriet Beecher Stowe Center, Hill-Stead Museum, Webb-Deane-Stevens Museum, The Martha A. Parsons House Museum, Windham Textile and History Museum, Prudence Crandall Museum, Thankful Arnold House, Florence Griswold Museum, Osborne Homestead Museum and Birdcraft Museum and Sanctuary.

 

 

 

Move Your Mind; Move Your Body With Nancy Schuler

In-Person Space is limited. Registration is required to attend class. Register here

Zoom Participants:  Zoom Link - click here at 10:15 AM on Tuesdays through March 21 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. 

Join Nancy Schuler in this exercise class for senior women. You can attend the class in person, here at the OWL, or online in the privacy of your home. The class features stretching and exercises that can be done in a chair or standing, and lifting of 1 or 2 lb. 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.

 

 

Non-Fiction Discussion Group

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Thursday, March 9

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

Their is Nothing for You Here: Finding Opportunity in the 21st Century by Fiona Hill

The author, a historian and policy maker, reveals how declining opportunity has set America on the grim path of modern Russia and shows how we can return hope to our forgotten places. She finds striking similarities between her British roots and disadvantaged areas of both America and Russia. The book’s suggestions are specific rather than broad generalizations. Moderated by Pat D

 

 

 

 

Fiction Discussion Group

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Thursday, March 9

Fiction Group: 3:30 pm 

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

Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro

Klara, an Artificial Friend with outstanding observational qualities, watches carefully the behavior of others while hoping that she will be chosen by someone. The novel looks at our changing world through the eyes of an unforgettable narrator and explores the fundamental question:  what does it mean to love? Will our species be able to live with everything it has created?  Moderated by Margaret 

 

 

 

 

My Ántonia - A Book Discussion with Mark Scarbrough

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

Zoom Participants:  Zoom Link - click here at 2 PM on March 16 to Zoom to the Event.

Join us as we celebrate Willa Cather's 150th birthday!

Willa Cather is considered one of the most important American novelists of the first half of the twentieth century. Seen as a regional writer for decades after her passing in 1947, critics have increasingly identified her as a canonical American writer, the peer of authors like Hemingway, Faulkner and Wharton.

Join Mark Scarbrough as we discuss the ways Cather constructs My Ántonia as a very radical and subversive novel: both a celebration of the U.S. prairie and a send-up of the very values that created the myth of the prairie. Without a doubt, this is Cather’s magnum opus. She finally comes into double-speak, allowing her to voice her own sexuality while appealing to a broad segment of her readership.

Copies of My Ántonia are available here at OWL. Read the book, then come ready to discuss and explore Cather's novel with the Mark!  We also have this title and other Cather novels available as e-books and e-audios for instant access from our Libby app. 

 

Celebrated chef and author Mark Scarbrough teaches eight-week seminars on Virginia Woolf, William Faulkner, and Toni Morrison and leads an international book group of more than 150 committed readers who work through challenging fiction while zoom-sipping wine. He has published 35 cookbooks with his husband, Bruce Weinstein and recently published a memoir, Bookmarked. Scarbrough also hosts three successful podcasts, Walking with Dante, the only podcast to slow-walk Dante’s Comedy and Lyric Life, a podcast devoted to the pleasures of lyric poetry. With Bruce Weinstein, he hosts a popular food podcast, Cooking With Bruce and Mark. He has also been featured on outlets like TODAY - NBC, The View, Good Morning, America, NPR’s Morning Edition, Fox and Friends, and The Martha Stewart Show. 

Dial: +1 646 876 9923 | Meeting ID: 814 0620 6293 | Passcode: 135052

 

 

How to Use Libby - A Workshop with Jay Trevorrow

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

Zoom Participants:  Zoom Link - click here at 1 PM on March 22 to Zoom to the Event.

This workshop will provide an introduction to the Libby library app, a free application that allows users to access ebooks, audiobooks and digital magazines from OWL for use on your own digital device. You will learn how to set up an account (bring your OWL library card number and any device you wish - smart phones, tablets and such), search for and borrow books, and use the app's features on any of your devices. The workshop will also provide assistance for current Libby users seeking to expand their use of this effective, informational application.

Jay Trevorrow spent his four decade career engaged with the convergence of digital technologies and learning. During this time, he was involved in developing and implementing innovative technologies to improve the learning experience for students of all ages. Since his retirement he has been an active volunteer working with adults to assist them in applying technologies that address their own unique interests and goals.

To Join by Phone:

Dial: +1 646 876 9923 | Meeting ID: 874 2635 6356 | Passcode: 902295

 

 

Willa Cather: Her Life & Loves

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

Zoom Participants:  Zoom Link - click here at 7 PM on March 30 to Zoom to the Event.

Join us as we celebrate Willa Cather's 150th birthday with this dramatic and exciting performance! 

Prepare for a delightfully dramatic, comedic and compelling story as Prudence weaves the personal and intimate story behind the writer Willa Cather, one of the foremost women writers of the 20th century. 

In 1888, Willa Cather astounded her Nebraska neighbors with her brilliant mind and unconventional behavior. In spite of her success, her romantic life was fraught with conflict. Her work became her refuge and helped her to transcend the problems that beset her. As she often said, “That is happiness, to be dissolved in something complete and great.”

Actor & Storyteller, Prudence Wright Holmes has performed in almost a dozen movies including Sister Act 1 and II with Whoopi Goldberg and Kingpin with Woody Harrelson. She has been in four Broadway shows: Happy End with Meryl Streep, Inherit the Wind with George C.Scott, Lettice and Lovage with Maggie Smith, and The Light in the Piazza.  Prudence has authored 14 plays, including 8 solo shows. Visit her website at www.prudencewrightholmes.com  

Dial: +1 646 876 9923 | Meeting ID: 898 3655 9153 | Passcode: 986059

 

Art in 3 Ways

Come on in to claim your kit while supplies last!

Unleash your inner artist with this month’s take & make activity! Each kit comes with the materials for three art crafts. Learn about three different artists and their styles, then give each a try for yourself! Paint water lilies like Monet, create whole images out of dots like Seurat, and make colorful pop art like Warhol.

No previous art experience required!

 

 

 

Move Your Mind; Move Your Body With Nancy Schuler

In-Person Space is limited. Registration is required to attend class. Register here

Zoom Participants:  Zoom Link - click here at 10:15 AM on Tuesdays through April 11 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. 

Join Nancy Schuler in this exercise class for senior women. You can attend the class in person, here at the OWL, or online in the privacy of your home. The class features stretching and exercises that can be done in a chair or standing, and lifting of 1 or 2 lb. 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.

 

 

Non-Fiction Discussion Group

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Thursday, April 13

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

Homage to Catalonia by George Orwell

This is political journalist and novelist George Orwell's personal account of his experiences and observations in the Spanish Civil War. The participants represented a dizzying array of political affiliations – fascists, anarchists, socialists, revolutionaries, communists, and many foreigners. Orwell’s unwavering realism and ability to see things for what they are dispels the romanticism of war and the idealism of communism.  Moderated by Christine

 

 

 

 

Fiction Discussion Group

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Thursday, April 13

Fiction Group: 3:30 pm 

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

Before We Were Yours by Lisa Wingate

This novel is based on one of America's most notorious real-life scandals in which the director of a Memphis based adoption organization kidnapped and sold poor children to wealthy families all over the country. That such a place could actually exist, unraveling the lives of countless children, stealing their pasts and changing their futures, will give you chills. But the real feat of this novel is how deeply Wingate plunges us into the heart and mind of one such child. 
Moderated by Curry 

 

 

 

OWL Cook Book Club: Mediterranean Series

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

Zoom Participants:  Zoom Link - click here at 6:30 PM on April 13 to Zoom to the Event.

Join us for food, conversation and plenty of helpful guidance!

You are invited to bring a Mediterranean dish to share from the region scheduled for each meeting. And, you are welcome to join at any time without a dish in hand. We have many cookbooks at OWL if you would like inspiration.

Together we will explore the recipes and uniqueness of: Greece, Italy and Turkey in this series. What is common amongst these regions? What defines each in preparation or ingredients? Registered Dietician and Nutrition Counselor Carla Angevine will lead the conversation, take questions and inspire us to embrace new flavors in the pursuit of healthy eating.

April 13th – Fundamentals of the Mediterranean Diet: Focus on Greece
May 18th – Mindful Eating: Focus on Italy
June 15th -Tips to make following the Mediterranean way of eating more accessible: Focus on Turkey

Each session will begin with food sharing, before Carla leads the discussion on our topic of the week. We will end with questions, comments and more socializing. 
Please register to hold your space for one or all of our club meetings.

Carla Angevine MS RDN is the Manager of Community Health and Health Promotion at Charlotte Hungerford Hospital. In this role she strives to promote health, achieve health equity, and raise the quality of life by establishing strong, long-term community partnerships, incorporating diverse perspectives, addressing social influencers of health and making the healthy choice the easy choice.

Carla received her Master’s Degree in Nutrition and Exercise Physiology from Columbia Teachers College and has specialized certifications in adult, adolescent and child weight management. She is currently enrolled in a Master’s of Public Health program and hopes to complete her degree in 2024. In addition to her nutrition credentials, Carla is a certified health coach and fitness instructor.

To Join by Phone:

Dial: +1 646 876 9923 | Meeting ID: 883 7130 0955 | Passcode: 924802

 

 

Fair Weather Walkers

Registration is required. Register here

LET'S GET MOVING!

Walking is one of the best exercises that you can do to gain physical and mental fitness. It's free, convenient, right outside your door and the benefits are hard to beat.

It's easy to get started. Put on your sneakers, have a glass of water and join the OWL new walking class every Friday at 9:00 AM here at the Oliver Wolcott Library, starting April 14.

This is a 6 week program to get you started on a walking program and to introduce you to a lifetime fitness sport.

Restrooms will be available before and after our walk. For more information, email [email protected]

 

 

Armchair Travel For Seniors - Destination China!

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

Ni Hao!!! (hello in Chinese)

Let's travel to China and walk the Great Wall, visit the Forbidden City and its 9,999.5 rooms and unearth some of the thousands of Terracotta soldiers that have been buried since 210 BC. China is a feast for all your senses and what better way to explore it than through an armchair travel class and hear first hand stories from local travelers. Come share a fortune cookie and tea with us on April 19!

This class is for all seniors to learn and to participate but is also suitable for those experiencing memory difficulties.

 

 

Meet Galileo: The Starry Messenger

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

Zoom Participants:  Zoom Link - click here at 7 PM on April 27 to Zoom to the Event.

Dressed in a 17th century costume, Mike Francis will transform into Galileo, The Starry Messenger. This is a dramatic fun-filled adaptation of Galileo's short treatise Siderius Nuncius.  As he describes those discoveries, Galileo's new method of observation and measurement of nature become apparent. Throughout the presentation he will actively involve the audience in experiments and demonstrations. 

Astronomy and theater unite to bring us the dramatic story of an unknown court mathematician, Galileo Galilei, as he turned his telescope to the heavens to discover mountains and craters on the moon, four moons of Jupiter, and countless stars never before seen. Even more significant was his method of observation and mathematical analysis. He taught future scientists the way to discover the laws of nature.

Mike Francis brings astronomy to life with his Star Science Theatre Programs. He is a former physical Science and physics teacher. For ten years, he lectured at the Charles Hayden Planetarium at Boston’s Museum of Science.

Dial: +1 646 876 9923 | Meeting ID: 812 3606 9568 | Passcode: 148809

 

 

Getting Out of Saigon with Author Ralph White

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

Zoom Participants:  Zoom Link - click here at 7 PM on May 25 to Zoom to the Event.

Join us as author Ralph White shares the gripping and remarkable true story of his desperate efforts to save the entire staff of the Saigon branch of Chase Manhattan bank and their families before the city fell to the North Vietnamese Army.

In April 1975, Ralph White was asked by his boss to transfer from the Bangkok branch of the Chase Manhattan Bank to the Saigon Branch. He was tasked with closing the branch if and when it appeared that Saigon would fall to the North Vietnamese army and ensure the safety of the senior Vietnamese employees.

But when he arrived, he realized the situation in Saigon was far more perilous than he had imagined. Quickly he realized that no one would be safe when the city fell, and it was no longer a question of whether to evacuate but how.

RALPH WHITE joined the Chase Manhattan Bank in 1973 and worked as a business development officer in Thailand and Hong Kong; during his tenure in Thailand, he was temporarily assigned to Vietnam to close the bank’s Saigon branch as the city fell. White worked as a business development officer with three foreign banks and earned an MBA at Columbia University. In 2009, he founded the Columbia Fiction Foundry, a writing workshop for alumni of Columbia University, and now serves as its Chairman. He lives in New York City and Litchfield.

Books will be available at OWL to borrow at least one month prior to the event. 

Join us for the talk followed by a Q & A period. Want an autographed copy? The Hickory Stick Bookshop of Washington will be present at the event to sell copies of Getting Out of Saigon.  

To Join by Phone:

Dial: +1 646 876 9923 | Meeting ID: 869 1809 1851 | Passcode: 907544

 

 

Monday Scholars: How Winston Churchill Changed The World

* No meeting February 20

Monday 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:
In How Winston Churchill Changed the World, enjoy a thorough, multifaceted exploration of Churchill's life, accomplishments, complexities, and legacies. With Professor Shelden as your authoritative guide, you'll embark on an unforgettable adventure through the 20th century in the footsteps of the one man who helped not just Great Britain but all of humanity prevail during violent, dangerous times.

For more information on this series, click here.

 

 

Tuesday Scholars: The Guide To Essential Italy

*No class December 27

 

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: 

“You may have the universe, if I may have Italy.“ — Giuseppe Verdi

Anyone who is familiar with Italy—its glorious architecture, epic history, exquisite fine arts, and majestic landscape—understands Verdi’s passionate words. The Great Courses, in collaboration with the renowned Smithsonian, brings you The Guide to Essential Italy, your own grand tour of Italy that focuses on the most historically and artistically compelling sites.

For more information on this series, click here.

 

 

Writers & Readers: An OWL Book Club

New, fresh, and engaging, OWL's Writers & Readers Book Club promises to connect you with celebrated authors who will lead us in a discussion of a selected book title. 

Throughout the year, a high-profile author will engage and explore their work with us...LIVE and IN PERSON!

We will have extra copies of the book available for you to borrow from OWL at least one month prior to the event. Read the book--then discuss it with the author! 

We hope you will share our excitement about this new initiative to connect writers with readers!

 

 

 

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.

 

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