One of the biggest joys of my life was when i found continuing education. I dropped out of college after a quarter ( i realized i could drink as much at home and for far less money). Took me a while before i sobered up, but once i did, i've spent the last 42 years trying to grow in both knowledge and common sense. Guess what? That's not unique or different. The reality is for many people reaching retirement age, the opportunity to go back to "school" is wildly important. Continuing education in age restricted communities is one of the fastest growing activities out there. Everyone focuses on the physical side of retirement, it's easily the most visible. But the cerebral side is every bit as important and all too often shuffled off as insignificant. Had we (the RCSC) not disbanded the long range planning committee, they could have identified exactly what newer communities were doing to kick our butts in that area. This thread will take some time to develop, but let me remind you exactly why i have argued our past must play a significant part in our future. All too many folks ignore it and why we know that is foolishness. John Meeker was arguably the most dedicated and knowledgeable genius behind our success. He left us a blueprint to at least try and incorporate into where we are going. In his journals and most notably the first 30 pages A Look Back, he said this about one of his shortcomings: "we needed more recreation facilities and activities for women." Say what? Women do all of the same physical activities that men do; right? Of course they do. But men tend to become more sedentary as they age. Couple that with women outliving us (sorry guys, just the reality of mortality charts) and we see perhaps where Meeker was going with this. To further amplify my point, let's look at our own Life Long Learning Club. I have no demographics, but they are available from the club. In the classes i have taken, there's always way more women in attendance. My guess is it is at least 2 to 1 and probably more than that. Ultimately this thread is about just that...Sun City and life long learning...the good, the bad and the ugly.
There are so many clubs that it is hard to choose. The Ukelele Club sounds like fun. Did you know that you can check out a ukelele at the Bell Library? As for nature, there is a Birding Club and a Hiking Club. You might like the Spanish Club. In addition to meetings/classes they have outings. A very special place to volunteer is the Sun City Posse. There are many things to do other than drive a car. I work the front desk. They have special events throughout the year for members. I could go on and on and on. The choices are phenomenal (sp?).
The classroom space set aside at the Grand Avenue property is primarily for the clubs that will be housed at that site. There are many clubs needing to share the space including Camera Guild, Clay, Garden, Archery and Vintage Vehicles.The LLLC was initially in the running for dedicated space but was ruled out by the Committee when the recommendations were given to the RCSC BOD. This doesn't mean the RCSC can't allow other classes/meetings to take place at this site if it isn't being used.
Speaking of life long learning, I do not remember how to start a new thread on TOSC. I have looked, but have yet to find anything to instruct me on how to start a new topic. Any help out there please? Never mind, I found how to do it. Just needed to look a little harder. Thank You
You found it but here are directions for others: 1. Upper left hand corner click on Home 2. Scroll down and click on Sun City General Discussions 3. Upper right hand corner click on Post New Thread
Back to the topic at hand: Long Range Planning has exploded across the country and especially in age restricted communities. There's a hunger for it, and with all due respect to the Sun City Life Long Learning Club they more than have their hands full. Seems to me their membership is at an all time high, somewhere around 300. For years they were comfortable between 225 to 250, with some 40 to 50 classes per session. The challenge is in how classes are selected. At their annual meeting it is first come, first served. Part of that ts due the structure. They charge $20 per year to join the club and they have unlimited session attendance. That is a great bargain and one of the reasons we are ahead of other communities. The downside is we are way smaller than we could be, with way less classes than most other communities. I tried early on to stimulate a bigger would be better construct but there was little or no interest, so i quickly backed away. I was on the board at the time but the president felt they had their hands full with what they were doing. Sadly had the long range planning committee stayed in place, they could have explored what other communities were doing and tried to create a Hy-bred of what we do and what others do. If you look at Sun City West or Sun City Grand you will both them run their classes through the organization, not a club. They handle reservations on-line and have massive numbers of classes. The downside is they have fees to attend classes that are $5 to $15 with an average of around $10. Seems to me with those kinds of differences there's ample room for a better mouse trap. That's always been my play; how can we make what we have better? Hey emily, if you are reading this, here is the link to the Meeker interview, hard to read but well worth is:
So i had coffee with a former board member the other day and asked why they didn't make the cut (Life Long Learning) and was told there will be a classroom that will be available, but not as a dedicated space. At least, that was the plan. Who knows if it still is.
