Newsletter, January 2009

Events

A Special General Meeting was held on 4 December 2008 in the School of Arts Building, 3 Castlereagh Street, Penrith.
Financial members were asked to vote on the following resolution:-
“That the members agree to allow the governing Committee to sponsor, if required, the State Annual Conference in 2010 to the maximum of $10,000 (Ten Thousand dollars)”. All financial members present and all proxy votes were in favour of the resolution. Several members spoke in favour of our U3A hosting the State Annual Conference in 2010. It is hoped that the Conference revenue will balance the expenses and it will not be necessary to use any of our U3A funds to make up the difference. As the Department of Ageing has now offered a donation of $5000, it was felt that it would be very unlikely that our U3A would have to provide up to $10,000.

Two Social Dances for U3A Members and their guests were held at the Penrith School of Arts Hall on Saturdays 29 November and 6 December. Due to the small numbers attending these dances, no more social dances have been planned.
However, the U3A Ballroom Dancing classes run by Allan & Beverley Bond at the Penrith School of Arts are proving popular and will resume at 1.00pm to 3.00pm on Friday 9 January 2009. If you are interested, just come along. If you wish, you can continue dancing after 3.00pm. Allan & Beverley Bond also teach Ballroom Dancing at Llandilo Community Centre on Tuesday nights (starting 6 January) at 7.30pm to 11.00pm. However, there is a charge of $5 per person that goes to the church at Llandilo.

Enrolment Days
11.00am to 12.30pm on Wednesday 21st January 2009 at
Mid Mountains Community Centre, New & Staple Sts, Lawson (behind the shops)

11.00am to 12.30pm on Friday 23rd January 2009 at
Penrith School of Arts, 3 Castlereagh St, Penrith

Please remember to bring your U3A Handbook for 2009, your completed and signed U3A Membership Application Renewal Form and your money $30 or cheque book with you. Additional Application Forms can be downloaded from our website.
Raffle tickets and Devonshire Teas will be on sale at the Enrolment Days with the proceeds going towards our 2010 U3A NSW State Conference.

Movie & Supper Night on Saturday 24 January 2009
John Morehead has a Movie & Supper Night each month in his home at 136 Jamison Road, Penrith. John was a projectionist at the local movie theatre in Penrith and still runs the old 16mm movies.
On Saturday 24 January, he will be showing Sun Valley Serenade starring Sonja Henie, Glen Miller & His Orchestra, the Nicholas Brothers, Milton Berle, John Payne, and Dorothy Dandridge. There will also be a Newsreel & Cartoon. John only asks for a voluntary donation to cover the cost of the refreshments.
U3A members and their guests will be welcome.

Term 1 of 2009 Starts on Monday 2 February

Presentation for new Life Members on Tuesday 17 February 2009
A Presentation for the 6 new Life Members has been organised for Tuesday 17 February 2009 at Penrith RSL Club. Invitations will be sent to new and current life members and their partners. Committee members and their partners will also be invited.

General Information

U3A Classes during the Holidays
The following classes will continue during most of the Holidays and new students are welcome:
Walk A will commence on Monday 5 January – see details below.
Yoga classes will resume on Tuesday 6 January at 11.30am to 12.30pm Suite 2/352 High St (Entrance on Castlereagh St), Penrith.
Canasta 5 will resume on Friday 9 January at 1.00pm to 3.00pm Penrith School of Arts - Room 1.
Ballroom Dancing will resume on Friday 9 January at 1.00pm to 3.00pm Penrith School of Arts – Hall. Members may continue dancing after 3.00pm, if they wish.

Email from U3A Cake Decorating Classes
A few weeks ago, at the beginning of November, Esme a student of the Cake decorating group extended an invitation to all members of The Cake Decorating Class to come to her home in December to see some little houses that she has been collecting for the past thirty years or so.
Most of us were able to go and I have to say I am pleased to have had the pleasure of such a treat for Esme had created the most appealing display of miniature town life any of us had ever seen. There was great background scenery and so many levels of town life such as a Theatre with its own audience, a Restaurant with the patrons being entertained, then there was the fruiterer with his barrow full of goods, there was also a Church with stained glass windows, an observatory, a wharf for the ships and paddle boat and a smaller wharf for the boats. There were also people and Ferris Wheels and Roundabouts there was also a graveyard  there were  wolves there was even a group playing tug of war plus numerous other people, places and things  just far too many to list.
There was just so much to see that every time I returned (from our fine morning tea) to the exhibition something new captured my interest. We all felt that this extensive miniature designed town reflected Esme's creativity and patience and we would like to thank her for taking the time to put a smile on our faces and lighten our hearts with her delightful treasures so - Thank you Esme
From Sophia , Jacqueline, Verna, Mayra and Marion.

Safe and Sustainable Gardens
Elizabeth Mitchell: 4751 4947, Email: lizeliz2@bigpond.com, Lawson Rural Fire Service Hall, Wednesday: 10.00am – 11.30am, Fortnightly – Term I only, Commencing 12 February.
How to plan an easily accessible, low maintenance, low dependence on water garden. Design your garden so that you can travel and leave your garden to fend for itself for a while; so that you can move about it safely and easily now and in the future. The course will cover access problems, water needs, bush fire safety, choosing both native and introduced plants for beauty, low maintenance, bird attracting, the right size for your garden, and avoiding troublesome and invasive plants. Guest speakers and Workshop leaders will include Ruth Ley of the Disability Access section of the Department of the Ageing, a builder and a keen gardener, and Linda Thomas from the Blue Mountains City Council Environment Department. We will visit some gardens to hone our planning skills.

Patch-Work Quilting
We have a tutor who is willing run a course on Patch-Work Quilting at the Penrith School of Arts at 11.00am to 12.30pm on Wednesdays. If you are interested in joining this course, please contact Alan Lees 4736 5541 or alanlees@y7mail.com

Line Dancing
There are a large number of members who would like to attend Line Dancing classes. Unfortunately, we have not been able to find a tutor yet. If anyone knows of someone willing to run Line Dancing classes for our U3A, please ask them to contact Alan Lees 4736 5541 or alanlees@y7mail.com

Table Tennis
Kay Barlow has suggested starting Table Tennis at our U3A. If you are interested in playing Table Tennis or, if you have a have a Table Tennis table that you would like to donate or sell to our U3A, please contact Alan Lees 4736 5541 or alanlees@y7mail.com

Walking with a Touch of History in January:
Details of all Walks for Term 1 are shown on our website www.u3anepean.org U3A Members can join any Walking Group. But Walks A and Walks B are for “Medium walkers” and Walks C are for “Gentle walkers”. For full details CLICK HERE.

Committee News

Our Website: www.u3anepean.org
Our website is now receiving over 500 visits per month – see counter at the bottom of the Home Page.

Internet Kiosks
There is a Federal Government initiative to set-up 2,000 free internet kiosks in community centres and clubs used by seniors throughout Australia. The Australian Government has committed $15 million over three years, to provide computer hardware and software, broadband service and training.
The kiosks, which will provide computers, internet connections and training, will be available to both pensioners and self-funded retirees. . Recent statistics indicate that only one in five Australians over the age of 65 are currently using the Internet and this National Broadband for Seniors initiative aims at making it easier for seniors to get online.
NEC Australia has won the contract to provide the technology, nationwide network and management for the project. They will do this as part of a consortium which includes Adult Learning Australia, the Australian Seniors Computer Clubs Association (ASCCA) and U3A Online.
The first stage of the project will be to select appropriate sites within communities to locate the kiosks. NEC is calling on local community centres, organisations that are currently running computer services for seniors and anyone else that is interested in hosting kiosks, to register their interest.
We have registered our interest and have received an acknowledgement of registration. We now wait and see if we get accepted.

Newsletters:
The closing date for submissions to the monthly Email Newsletter is one week before the end of each month. However, if you miss the date, your submission will go in the following month’s newsletter – if I remember. Submissions should be sent to the Office – Attention Curriculum Convener or preferably emailed to alanlees@y7mail.com

Next Committee Meeting
The next Committee Meeting will be held at the Penrith School of Arts at 1.30pm on Tuesday 13 January, 2009.

Disclaimer – Articles contributed to this Newsletter and published as a service to members; do not necessarily reflect the opinion or policy of this association. Articles are intended as opinions and items of debate only and should not be acted on without expert advice

Chris Behl, who has just completed a year with the Creative Writing Class has encapsulated the U3A experience in her final contribution for the year. Although it is specifically about Creative Writing, the sentiments expressed apply equally to the our other courses.