St. Albans OLLI

Will Gusakov

Clifford Coy

Clifford will be reviewing the origins of the Franklin County airport from a grassy landing strip to the paved runway to the significant improvements of the last two years. He will be discussing the facilities available for maintenance and repairs, for ultralights and the “learn to fly” opportunities with single engine planes with experienced instructors, ready now to get you airborne and loving it.

Christopher McBride

The trials of being a Natural History Photographer in 2024. Christopher participates in six competitive juried art shows a year and sells 40 – 50 large finished pieces to collectors around the country. This talk will discuss the decisions that he must make from the moment of image capture to wrapping a beautiful framed finished piece for an excited customer ready to take home. In the day when everyone captures casual images on their phone, we will discuss what can be done to differentiate your work and get encouragement to complete a photographic journey with a finished piece that you can share and be proud of. If for nothing else come to be inspired by a large sample of Christopher’s images and learn the stories behind each one.

Richard Ross, Division Chief

A Day in the Life of a Border Patrol Agent/Northern Border Operations, its challenges and rewards.

John Newton

One week on a small two masted sailboat with an American Captain, his Ecuadorian wife (and licensed guide), a first mate/cook and five paying passengers. Come join John as he and friend Marty share an amazing week sailing island to island discovering what Darwin saw which led him to publish “On the Origin of Species” in 1859.

Important Note: This presentation starts at 11:30 a.m.

Professor Luis Vivanco, Ph.D.

In this lecture, UVM professor Luis Vivanco explores the fascinating early history of the bicycle in Vermont, a new invention that generated widespread curiosity when it arrived here in the 1880s. During the 1890s, enthusiasm exploded statewide as bicycles became safer, women took to the wheel, roads improved, and retailers developed novel advertising techniques to draw in buyers. By 1920, popular interest in bicycles had waned, but it had not just been a fad: the bicycle was tied to important changes in industrial production, consumerism, new road policies and regulations, gender relations, and new cultural ideas about auto-mobility and effortless speed.

David Kelley, Katherine Falwell & Charlie Hosford

The origin and evolution of people to people exchanges between the U.S. and the former Soviet Union and former Soviet Republics.

Jason Barney

Local history has direct ties to a lot of national events. From the Revolutionary War, steamboat activity on Lake Champlain, the growth of railroads, and the Cold War, Franklin County has a unique history. Local Historian Jason Barney exposes all of these interesting connections.