Springfield OLLI

with Howard Coffin – Author & Historian

A Harvard professor, Barry Fell, in the 1970s made the claim that Vermont was settled more than 2,000 years ago by Europeans.  He said stone chambers and inscriptions that they left behind still exist. Come hear the story of how Coffin, a newspaperman at the time, explored the sites with Fell and wrote the first stories on his claims   People thought stone chambers might have been root cellars of settlers in colonial time, but the research showed they are testament to people much earlier than that.  Most archaeologists disputed Fell at the time and controversy still exists about it all.

with Ian Clark – Photographer & Nature Enthusiast

Loons are one of the North Country’s icons.  Their haunting calls echoing are a highlight of living near a pond.  The chance to see them carrying their chicks on their backs is a treat.  They’re big, beautiful and powerful birds.

Photographer Ian Clark has been following the loons on three ponds since 2012, spending something like 2,400 hours and taking 350,000 photos.  Join us for a slide show exploring the natural history of loons and the conservation effort on their behalf before following a family through the breeding season along with some of Ian’s favorite loon photos.

with Jan Albers – Historian & Author of Hands on the Land

At the dawn of the 19^th Century, Vermont was a patchwork of subsistence farms, slowly creeping along the valleys and climbing to the tops of the highest hills. There was development, but no specialty was bringing in big capital. That would change after 1811, when diplomat William Jarvis, of Weathersfield, Vermont, brought a flock of Merino sheep in from Spain. The Merino sheep industry grew exponentially in the decades that followed. At its height in 1840, there were 1,681,000 sheep in Vermont—six sheep for every person in the state. Vermonters thought the Merino miracle would never end, yet ten years later it was finished. How could such a boom go bust so quickly, and what landscape lessons did it leave behind?

with Alexis Doshas – Nursery Manager, Native Plant Trust at Nasami Farm

Gardening with plants native to our region is a rewarding and practical endeavor. Native plants are adapted to our region’s geology, hydrology, and climate. This means when sited correctly, they require little maintenance to thrive and survive! Native plants are the basis for our region’s ecosystem services (think nutrient processing, clean water, and storing carbon) and support the intricate food webs that create resilient landscapes through biodiversity. Many insects, birds, soil organisms and fungi, have evolved with our native plants, creating symbiotic, specialized relationships. We’ll discuss the importance of including and supporting native plants in the stewarding of our gardens and landscapes, and look at a variety of options.

with Alan Rumrill – Senior Historian, Historical Society of Cheshire County, Keene, NH

with Stephen Collins – Actor & Educator

We will spend the evening with Walt Whitman on the evening of his seventieth birthday as he reminisces and questions his success as a man and a poet.  As Whitman transforms into his young vibrant self, we begin to trace back along with him the experiences that led to the creation of Leaves of Grass, his lifetime work.

We’ll learn that his life is forever changed by the occurrence of the Civil War when he finds ‘the most important work of his life – nursing the wounded soldiers in the hospitals.’  Through readings of his actual letters and his poetry we will experience his movement from selfishness to selflessness as he develops into a mature artist who is at peace about ‘himself, God and death.’