The Flossie Pack Center
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The Flossie Pack Center For Lifelong Learning SUMMER 2021 Schedule of Courses and Activities Classes Begin Monday, June 7 Phone: 816-235-2870 E-mail: [email protected] Visit our website: spark.umkc.edu or Web search: UMKC SPARK SPARK is an affiliate of the University of Missouri-Kansas City SPARK OVERVIEW SPARK stands for Senior Peers Actively Renewing Knowledge. We are a lifelong learning organization for active retirees. SPARK has been offering classes and other activities in the Kansas City area since 1993. We are a non-profit organization with over 200 members and an affiliate of the University of Missouri-Kansas City. In gratitude for a major contribution from the Pack family in December 2020, we have changed our name to “The SPARK Flossie Pack Center for Lifelong Learning.” Our Mission SPARK’s mission is to provide lifelong learning opportunities, through intellectually stimulating, cultural and social experiences which enhance the quality of life for SPARK members. Who Are We? We are “Happy Wonderers” – interesting, curious, educated persons with a passion for continued learning, meeting new people, sharing time and experiences and pursuing an active, stimulating life. SPARK is a volunteer organization that relies on the participation of members to promote and achieve its mission. Classes are held four quarters per year for two to six weeks, and last two to three hours per week in person or 60 to 90 minutes over video. There are no tests or exams. SPARK also offers several social activities throughout the year. Annual Membership dues are $40.00, renewable in January. Membership is REQUIRED to enroll in our classes and activities. SPARK’s NEW downstairs office and classroom remain closed with the exception of the Western Civilization Class !! For everyone’s safety during this Coronavirus outbreak, all other classes will be held online over ZOOM. Tours will be IN-PERSON. Upon enrolling, you will receive a confirmation email of your registration detailing the Meeting ID and Password for each class. 2 TABLE of CONTENTS ~~ CLASSES ~~ Mondays, June 7 thru June 28 North American Indigenous People and Imperial Expansion..............................4 The Founding of North America’s Middle Colonies ............................................5 Tuesdays, June 8 thru June 29 Introduction to Tai Chi Chuan (OUTDOORS !) ..................................................6 Kansas City Gems .......................................................................................... 7-9 Western Civilization: Modern Japan (IN-PERSON Option) .............................................................. 11 Wednesdays, June 9 thru June 30 Western Civilization: Modern Japan (ZOOM Option) ........................................................................ 10 Western Civilization: Modern Japan (IN-PERSON Option) .............................................................. 11 Urban Art: Drawing and Painting with Liz ........................................................ 12 Thursdays, June 10 thru July 1 The Paradigm Shift of Impressionism (5 weeks – Ends July 8) ..................... 14 Sicily, the Island at the Crossroads of the World .............................................. 15 ~~ SPECIAL IN-PERSON TOURS ~~ Friday, June 11 Guided Tour of Antioch Park ............................................................................ 16 Friday, June 18 Guided Walking Tour of the Loose Park Rose Garden .................................... 17 ~~ CLUBS and GROUPS ~~ “Let’s Eat Out” Group Announcement ............................................................. 18 Margaret Sturges’ Book Club (meets 3rd Mondays) ........................................ 18 Thursday Book Club (meets 4th Thursdays) ................................................... 18 ~~ MISC. INFORMATION ~~ Other Fun Things to do this Summer ............................................................... 13 Donations and Scholarships ............................................................................. 19 Membership and Class Registration ................................................................. 20 NEW ENROLLMENT PROCEDURES ............................................................. 21 Officers, Board of Directors & Committees ...................................................... 22 How to Contact Us ........................................................................................... 23 Calendar of Classes and Events ...................................................................... 23 Need Help or Want to Volunteer to Host ZOOM Classes? ............................... 24 3 NORTH AMERICAN INDIGENOUS PEOPLE and IMPERIAL EXPANSION North American Indigenous People and Imperial Expansion Since 1815 June 7 – June 28 (4 weeks) Mondays, 10:00 – 11:30 This course concludes the sequence of classes on the Indigenous People of the Western Hemisphere and the European Invasion offered by SPARK over the last several years. We will begin with the last of the “Indian Wars” in the United States at the end of the Nineteenth Century and the commonly held idea – among Euro Americans – that Indian people and cultures were destined to simply fade away. Then we’ll consider what really happened: increasingly conspicuous determination on the part of Indigenous People to survive physically and culturally; citizenship for all (whether they wanted it or not); the gradual disappearance of the boarding schools; and radical changes (back and forth) in Federal policy, beginning with the “Indian New Deal”. We will also look at the modern history of the Inuit and Aleut in Alaska; the First Nations in Canada, including the Canadian people involved in the 19th Century Métis Rebellions. Who are the Métis? Take the course and find out! We will also watch and discuss the film “Cree Hunters of Mistassini.” Class Fee: $30 Instructor: Dr. Alan Perry shares with us his knowledge, experience and a life-long enthusiasm for history. Dr. Perry graduated from Washington University in St. Louis and Victoria University in Wellington, New Zealand with degrees in history. He served over 15 years as Adjunct Professor of History at the University of Missouri-Kansas City and taught history at Park University in Kansas City. He also has served as an Archivist for the National Archives and Records Administration in Washington, DC, the Virgin Islands and Kansas City. 4 FOUNDING of the MIDDLE COLONIES of NORTH AMERICA The Founding of the Middle Colonies of North America and King Philip’s War June 7 – June 28 (4 weeks) Mondays, 1:30 – 3:00 We all learned about Jamestown, the Pilgrims and the Mayflower, when we were in school, but the six decades (1630s to 1680s) following those momentous events are shrouded in mystery for most Americans. This class will attempt to lift the veil covering those forgotten years. We will discuss the founding of New Sweden and New Netherlands; the military struggle for control of those colonies waged by Sweden, the Netherlands and England; the tragic story of King Philip's War in New England; and the cultural, social, religious and political history of those turbulent times. Americans have always prided themselves on their rich diversity. Nowhere was that diversity more evident in seventeenth-century North America than in the four Middle Colonies (i.e., New York, New Jersey, Delaware and Pennsylvania), with settlers coming from all parts of Europe. The groups represented included English, Swedes, Finns, Dutch, Germans, Scots-Irish and French; all living in close proximity to one another. The Middle Colonies also contained an assortment of Native American tribes and a sizable population of indentured servants and African slaves. America's Middle Colonies were more religiously diverse than other regions of North America and thus enjoyed a high degree of religious tolerance. The Penn family, for example, was Quaker, and their colony became a haven for that group as well as German Lutherans and numerous small sects such as Mennonites, Amish, and Moravians. Scots-Irish Presbyterians and Jewish settlers also found a home in the Middle Colonies, and the Dutch Reformed Church had a strong presence in upstate New York and New Jersey, whereas Congregationalists were prevalent on Long Island. This made the dominance of a single faith next to impossible, but it also made the Middle Colonies less cohesive than other regions. Just a few of the fascinating individuals you'll be introduced to during this class include Peter Minuit, Johann Printz, Wilhelm Kieft, Peter Stuyvesant, Metacomet or “King Philip,” Benjamin Church and, of course, William Penn. Class Fee: $30 Instructor: Robert Gangwere is a native Kansas Citian now living on a farm in southeast Missouri. He earned BA and MA degrees in American history from the University of Missouri-Columbia, and a law degree from UMKC. During his career with the U.S. Small Business Administration he served as the Agency's ethics official, Deputy General Counsel, and acting General Counsel. Robert has also served as the President of the Citizens Association of Kansas City, as a member of Kansas City's Tax Increment Financing and Historical Preservation commissions, and co-authored Kansas City: A Place in Time (2nd edition). 5 INTRODUCTION TO TAI CHI CHUAN Introduction to Tai Chi Chuan (OUTDOORS !) June 8 – June 29 (4 weeks) Tuesdays, 10:00 – 11:30 Tai Chi is a form of exercise characterized by slow moving forms or sequential postures, performed in a relaxed and conscious manner, controlling energy with awareness. Traditionally, Tai Chi is considered