Lifelong Learning Highlights

Please consult your CareMerge calendars and weekly announcements for specific dates and times. All programming subject to change based on COVID-related recommendations to maintain health and safety of residents, staff, and visitors.

Larry Walsh’s “Cycling across America to Self-Discovery"

“Your job has been eliminated.” When Larry Walsh heard those words, his world was turned upside down. After serving 7 years in the Army and working for 28 years in the pharmaceutical industry, Larry Walsh stepped away from corporate life and cycled into the heart of America to fulfill his lifelong dream of riding across the country. In a 3,120-mile ride from California to Florida, he cycled over treacherous mountains, through open plains, unforgiving deserts, and over 200 unique small towns. Walsh not only discovered a new world and new people, but he uncovered a side of himself that he thought was long forgotten—one filled with true grit and determination. Join Walsh on his trip across America and see what it feels like to experience life one pedal rotation at a time.

Vincent York’s Hands-On History of Jazz

Enjoy this new session as Vincent York introduces the audience to the deeper meaning and history of Jazz. Vincent plays and demonstrates how the evolution of diverse music styles contributed to the birth of jazz. It’s a hands-on, multimedia experience with audience participation, singing, and music. Vincent York was born into a family of musicians and a life of music. Vincent toured with the Duke Ellington Orchestra until he formed his own band in 1977. He has recorded or played with noteworthy jazz artists such as Marcus Belgrave, Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughn, Aretha Franklin and Martha Reeves. As bandleader, Vincent York draws on his wealth of understanding and local professional artists to unveil the story of jazz to audiences of all ages.

Detroit to Chicago: A trip down Memory Lane along Michigan Avenue The Old Chicago Road

Join Jon Milan and Gail Offen as they take a visual road trip from downtown Detroit, across Michigan, to Chicago's world-famous Magnificent Mile. Along the way we'll look at Detroit's delicious Coney Island hot dog wars, take a peek at Corktown to see where the Tigers once held court, and check in on the progress of the newly-reborn Michigan Central Railroad Station. We'll learn about the colorful cultural enclaves along the way, rich in history and tradition, as we pass through Irish, Arabic, African American and Native American neighborhoods and regions. It's a nearly 300-mile pathway through roadside America. Gail Offen is an adjunct professor of advertising at Lawrence Technological University, and an award-winning creative director, writer and branding specialist. She is a co-author of several books. Jon Milan is a Detroit-based freelance author, pianist, music historian, and corporate communications manager. He has written five books, three co-authored with Gail Offen.

Musical Lecture on Frank “Ol' Blue Eyes” Sinatra

Henry Feinberg is a musician, composer, music theorist and music instructor. He has taught music history classes at Oakland Community College in Farmington Hills since 2002, and has coached numerous piano and harmonica students. He also performs on the piano and harmonica at various venues in metropolitan Detroit. Henry performs a multi-media experience featuring recorded music, photos, and slides, highlighting the life and legacy of the great Frank Sinatra.

Chroma

Chroma is a two-part lecture and concert series exploring the deep and often surprising connections between music and art. Through visual as well as auditory aids, lecturer Dave Vessella will illuminate the parallels between music theory and color theory in a way that is both accessible and interactive. In between the presentation and the concert, residents are encouraged to make their own abstract art and his band will improvise music inspired by the art they will be seeing for the first time. It will be a unique and inspiring experience you won’t want to miss. About Dave: Trumpet player, vocalist, educator, composer, and arranger, Dave Vessella's unique sound is reminiscent of traditional New Orleans music and west coast jazz. Vessella has played at the Detroit Jazz Festival, the Panama Jazz Festival, Michigan Jazz Festival, in The Detroit Pistons house band, and across Chicago and Los Angeles. Vessella holds a M.M. from Wayne State University and a B.A. in Jazz Studies from Columbia College Chicago.

Arnie Collens presents “Florida Flowers, Birds, & Butterflies”

Arnold Collens is a lifetime Detroiter and graduate of Wayne State University’s School of Business and College of Education. In recent years, Arnie’s love of photography has taken him to the Center for Creative Studies and Oakland Community College. Over the last 17 years he’s walked the streets of Detroit looking at change, recorded images, and immersing himself in city history. Arnie engages groups by sharing his interest in community, history, nature, art and changes in architectural landscape. When in Florida, Arnie serves as a naturalist and day captain at Audubon’s flagship facility in Naples: Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary.

Games, Grins, and Improvisation with Paula Dirkes

No improv experience required! Come laugh, exercise your mind, and learn new games to crack up your neighbors. Paula Dirkes spent 25 years in health education and corporate wellness and 13 years as an entrepreneur. Paula combines her unique background as an improvisational theater actor and facilitator, with her Masters Degree in Adult Instruction and Human Performance Improvement, to deliver innovative programs for All Seasons. Paula’s adult instruction path includes: Health Promotion & Wellness trainer at both General Motors and Chrysler Motors and Speakers Bureau presenter for William Beaumont Hospital in metro Detroit.

Art Historian Wendy Evans presents “The British Royals”

A historical look at a selection of monarchs from Alfred the Great to Elizabeth II with plenty of pictures and stories of royal objects and events from births to burnt cakes, crowns to christenings, marriages to mistresses, and palaces to privies. Bring your coronets and pearls. Wendy Evans is an art historian with advanced degrees from Oxford University and Wayne State University. A long-time volunteer at the DIA, Wendy taught art history at WSU, CCS and the DIA. She loves to share her passion for art with groups around the metro area and beyond.

Connections and Smiles with Tamara Zoner

Join Speaker and Happiness Trainer, Tamara Zoner, to learn the actions and habits of happiness! Based on the NY Times Bestselling book, Happy for No Reason, and research in happiness and positive psychology, Tamara will share the tools that you can begin using to bring greater happiness into your life. A show-not-tell single mom to three awesome kids and a karaoke enthusiast, Tamara demonstrates how to create a life you love! She was the Director of Life Enrichment for four years at All Seasons West Bloomfield and has a six-year background in senior living.

Weekly Technology Workshops

Led by the Life Enrichment Team, these hands-on workshops are geared to meet residents’ every-changing technology needs, ranging from smartphone and tablet use to photography tutorials.

Detroit Public Theatre’s “Detroit ‘67”

To kick off an all-new partnership, you’re invited to attend a three-part community program with Detroit Public Theatre’s Co-Producing Artistic Director, Sarah Winkler and Connectivity & Engagement Manager, Madelyn Porter. In May, Winkler and Porter will visit All Seasons to discuss the history and vision of the Detroit Public Theatre and give us an exclusive snapshot of the development process of their upcoming production of the acclaimed play “Detroit ’67” written by TONY Award nominated Detroit native, Dominique Morisseau. On June 3rd, we will attend a special matinee performance with students, for an intergenerational audience experience. The week following the performance, Winkler and Porter will return to All Seasons for a facilitated discussion about the themes, highlights, and questions raised by this unique production.

Quizzo Trivia in the Bistro - Quizzo is a competitive trivia game that challenges you to think and stay on your toes . Did you know? We get a dopamine hit every time we experience the feeling of mastery – the feeling of knowing that we know something . And everyone has one area, one body of knowledge, about which they are – or think they are – an absolute expert! Join us in the Bistro for a professional, themed, curated trivia led by Quizzo!