We are pleased to be offering seven classes for ESI College’s October-December 2023 term, serving those age 60 and older. Most of the classes will be in person, at the Congregational Church of Middlebury. (We are still reserving our home base on Exchange Street for our adult day center, Project Independence.) Two classes will be offered via Zoom. Online registration for all classes is open now, and classes begin October 3.
Course Listings
(Please click on course titles for more information)
The Musical Genius of Walt Disney, Part 2. Robert Wyatt. Tuesday, October 3, 10:30-11:45 a.m., Congregational Church of Middlebury, in person. ~ $20.
Book Discussion: Joan Lundgren’s Why Did I Come Into This Room? Elise Blair. Wednesdays, October 18 & 25 and November 8, 1:30-2:45 p.m., Congregational Church of Middlebury, in person. ~ $60 (plus $15 for the book, available through Elderly Services)
The Unimaginable Journey of Peter Ertel. Screening and discussion with filmmaker Joe Cahn. Tuesday October 24, 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. ~ $20.
Social Commentary / Social Action. Led by study group leaders from the Smithsonian American Art Museum. Wednesday, November 1, 1:30-3 p.m., via Zoom ~ $10
Understanding State and Federal Criminal Cases. Gary Sarachan. Thursday, November 9, 10:30-11:45 a.m., Congregational Church of Middlebury, in person. ~ $20
Women of the American Revolution. Russ Leng. Tuesdays, November 14 & 21, 10:30-11:45 a.m., Congregational Church of Middlebury, in person. ~ $40.
Book Discussion: Two Short Novels by Willa Cather. John Berninghausen. Wednesdays, November 29, December 6 & 13, 1:30-2:45 p.m., Congregational Church of Middlebury, in person. ~ $60 (buy your own books).
Registration
Register for classes over the Internet! Simply click here:
https://elderlyservices.wufoo.com/forms/esi-college-registration-octdec-2023/
We use an online registration system named “Wufoo” that provides an easy-to-use form to select your classes.
- Please sign up at least 48 hours in advance so we can be in touch with you about the class.
- Some classes have limited enrollment; others have readings.
- Each person in your household must register separately. If you share the same email address, simply fill out a separate form for each person.
- The registration system calculates the amount owed on a per person basis ($10 per session, per person). The total cost for your classes will be listed when you complete your registration.
- Some courses may require you to purchase books that will be available at the Vermont Book Shop at a discounted price.
- After you submit your form, you will receive an automated email confirmation from “Elderly Services-ESI College <no-reply@wufoo.com>.”
Payment Options
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- You may pay by check. Please send it (within a week of registration) to:
Elderly Services-ESI College
P.O. Box 581
Middlebury, VT 05753 - Or, you may make a debit/credit card payment via PayPal, as you complete the online registration form. You do not need a PayPal account to use this feature.
We look forward to seeing you!
Kristin Bolton
Jeff Rehbach
Geetha Wunnava
Ron Hallman
Course Listings for October-December 2023
Course: The Musical Genius of Walt Disney, Part 2
Instructor: Robert Wyatt
Date: Tuesday, October 3
Time: 10:30-11:45 a.m.
Location: Congregational Church of Middlebury, in person.
Cost: $20
Description: When most people think of Walt Disney, they think of his movies, but the movies would not have achieved greatness without the songs. Disney’s musical genius was not in writing music but in gathering composers, musicians, artists and writers together to weave songs in so that they were an integral part of the story. Enjoy learning about the magic that music has made in over 75 years of Disney films. This is the second of a two-part series, from Pinocchio in 1940 until Mary Poppins in 1964, including until his death in 1966.
Instructor: Robert Wyatt is a Steinway Artist who has performed throughout the United States and internationally, gathering critical acclaim for sensitive and colorful solo and chamber music recitals. He delights audiences with a rare blend of pianistic savvy and engaging storytelling that makes each performance a creative event.
Course: Book Discussion: Joan Lundgren’s Why Did I Come Into This Room?
Instructor: Elise Blair
Dates: Wednesdays, October 18 & 25, November 8
Time: 1:30-2:45 p.m.
Location: Congregational Church of Middlebury, in person.
Cost: $60 (plus $15 for book, available through Elderly Services)
Description: According to Joan Lundgren, author of Why Did I Come Into This Room?, “Aging, while it can be stressful, is also beautiful, joyful, liberating, and exciting!” In this group we will use the book to discuss the many aspects of aging, whether challenging or enlightening.
Instructor: Elise Blair trained and worked in the Netherlands as an industrial social worker. She became a psychoanalyst in Washington, D.C., and had a private practice for 30 years. She played a large role in the Washington Center for Psychoanalysis as a teacher, board member and president. She is a member of the American Psychoanalytic Association.
Course: The Unimaginable Journey of Peter Ertel
Instructor: Joe Cahn
Dates: Tuesday, October 24
Time: 10-11:45 a.m., followed by filmmaker Q & A with Joe Cahn, 11:45 a.m.-12:30 p.m.
Location: Online
Cost: $20
The Unimaginable Journey of Peter Ertel (104 minutes) recounts the extraordinary odyssey of Peter Ertel, an aspiring German violinist who becomes a reluctant soldier in Hitler’s army and defies overwhelming odds to not only survive World War II, but become a U.S. Government agent. Immigrating to Ohio after the war, he begins a 25-year career with a small company owned by Orthodox Jews. Peter Ertel, 95 at the time of the filming, tells his own incredible and inspiring life story. This is an unprecedented film narrative of that historic period, which has profound relevance to our current times. The film won several top awards during its festival run. The filmmaker will join us for a Q & A over Zoom after the private showing. (Offered in partnership with Eastview; residents of Eastview, see Cari Burkhard for details.)
- To participate in online sessions, you’ll need a device with a webcam with Zoom set up on it.
- We email you a link for each online class in the morning of each day’s class.
- If you bump into any issues on the day of the class, please call our support line at 802.349.2686.
Course: Social Commentary/Social Action
Led by study group leaders from the Smithsonian American Art Museum
Date: Wednesday, November 1
Time: 1:30-3 p.m.
Location: On Zoom
Cost: $10
Artists living in America have often visualized and engaged with social issues through their artistic practice. Students will examine 18th-21st century art to discover the range of approaches artists have used to make their voices heard.
- To participate in online sessions, you’ll need a device with a webcam with Zoom set up on it.
- We email you a link for each online class in the morning of each day’s class.
- If you bump into any issues on the day of the class, please call our support line at 802.349.2686.
Course: Understanding State and Federal Criminal Cases
Instructor: Gary Sarachan
Date: Thursday, November 9
Time: 10:30-11:45 a.m.
Location: Congregational Church of Middlebury, in person.
Cost: $20
Description: We rely on our judicial system more than ever to navigate the challenges of these times, but there are many aspects of the legal process that most of us are not aware of. This class explains how cases are initiated, the pre-trial activities of both the prosecution and defense, jury selection, selected trial procedures and the dynamics of sentencing.
Instructor: Gary Sarachan was a litigator for 40 years in St. Louis, Missouri focusing his practice in the areas of commercial litigation and white- collar criminal defense. In addition Gary was an adjunct professor at the Washington University School of Law in St. Louis, Mo.
Course: Women of the American Revolution
Instructor: Russ Leng
Date: Tuesdays, November 14 & 21
Time: 10:30-11:45 a.m.
Location: Congregational Church of Middlebury, in person.
Cost: $40
Description: Most of us are familiar with the men who led the American revolution, but what about women? We know that they often were left on their own to manage farms and businesses, raise children, keep the family afloat financially, and, too often, to mourn the losses of husbands and sons. The actions of American women extended beyond their culturally prescribed roles to shape the course of American history. Over two classes we will examine the roles played by four of those women: Abigail Adams, the wife of John Adams; Peggy Shippen Arnold, the wife of Benedict Arnold; Deborah Sampson, who disguised herself as a man to fight as an infantryman in a Massachusetts regiment; and Phillis Wheatley, a young slave who used the power of poetry to advocate abolition, while celebrating the leaders of the revolution.
Instructor: Russ Leng is the James Jermain Professor Emeritus at Middlebury, where he taught international politics for 40 years before retiring. Since retiring Russ has taught courses to adults and undergraduates that blend political science with his love of history.
Course: Book Discussion: My Antonia and The Professor’s House by Willa Cather
Instructor: John Berninghausen
Date: Wednesdays: November 29, December 6 & 13
Time: 1:30-2:45 p.m.
Location: Congregational Church of Middlebury, in person.
Cost: $60 (buy your own books)
Once thought of as a superb but regional writer of the American plains, Cather later came to be seen as one of the leading figures of American literary Modernism, ranked with authors like Hemingway, Faulkner and Wharton. She had the ability to create on her pages an intimate understanding of characters in relation to their personal and cultural places. After reading two relatively short novels, My Antonia (1918) and The Professor’s House (1925), we will discuss these two subtly haunting works with three different settings: the Great Plains, the Midwest and New Mexico. NOTE: The books will be available at the Vermont Book Shop for a discounted price.
Instructor: After earning his Ph.D. at Stanford, Professor Emeritus of Chinese John Berninghausen established Middlebury College’s Department of Chinese Language and Literature. Along with teaching Chinese, he led popular seminars on Western and Asian literature. An avid reader, he collects Chinese paintings and is a world traveler.
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