March 8, 2014
MEDIA CONTACT
Mary Ann Armes § 748-1700, Ext. 7024
Westminster Towers and Shores Announces
Spring 2014 Courses:
“Reading as a Writer”§ Starts March 11
Famous Women Behind Bars § Starts March 13
These compelling courses take active seniors on stimulating odysseys of the mind and spirit.
(Sarasota-Manatee, Florida) Westminster Towers and Shores, an active retirement community in downtown Bradenton, presents its spring 2014 courses in partnership with the Lifelong Learning Academy, University of South Florida, Sarasota-Manatee. The courses offered are “Reading as a Writer,” moderated by author and educator Eric Sheridan Wyatt (eight sessions, beginning March 11, 1-2:20 p.m.); and “Famous Women Behind Bars,” moderated by Harriet Hendel (eight sessions, beginning March 13, 1-2:20 p.m.). Tuition is $75 per class. Ample free parking is available and can be found by following the signs. On-campus transportation from parking to the location of the lectures is free. Westminster Towers and Shores is located at 1700 3rd Avenue West in Bradenton. For more information about this series and to register, visit www.lla-sm.org or call 941-359-4296.
In the “Reading as a Writer” series, Eric Sheridan Wyatt focuses on selected works by author Madeleine L’Engle to demonstrate how to read great pieces of literature in ways that will benefit our own writing. L’Engle was best known for her children’s books, but she also enjoyed literary success writing novels for adults, memoirs, non-fiction reflections on faith and art, and poetry. Sheridan Wyatt is a writer and educator, whose short fiction has appeared in Eunoia Review, Epiphany Magazine, Ozone Park Journal, and The First Line, among others. His writing was also featured in the non-fiction anthologies, Can My Marriage Be Saved? and Letters to Me.
In “Famous Women Behind Bars,” Harriet Hendel takes students on a journey inside prison walls to meet women—from both the past and present—who were incarcerated for their beliefs or their crimes. This class will delve deeply into the lives and ideologies of women such as Margaret Sanger, Ethel Rosenberg, Eugenia Ginzburg, Judith Clark, Ruth First, and others. Two films will also be shown, Heir to an Execution by Ivy Meeropol, granddaughter of Ethel Rosenberg; and A World Apart, about Ruth First. Hendel taught children with learning disabilities for 30 years in New York. As a volunteer, she also taught creative writing in a men’s maximum security prison in upstate New York. Hendel volunteers with Project 180, a new non-profit organization in Sarasota, which assists men released from prison by providing job training and housing. She has recently been a counselor at The Hole in the Wall Gang Camp, begun by Paul Newman in 1988.
According to Thomas Sutton, executive director of Westminster Towers and Shores, these compelling courses reflect Westminster Communities’ ongoing commitment to lifelong learning.
“We believe that lifelong learning is vital to health and wellbeing,” says Sutton. “We encourage our residents and the public to participate in these enriching experiences and actively seek partnerships with area educational institutions to offer the very best in intellectual stimulation.” Sutton adds that Westminster Towers and Shores is home to many distinguished educators, writers, artists and other thinkers and creators.
About Westminster Towers and Shores
Westminster Shores and Towers, a mid-rise retirement community overlooking the Manatee River in the heart of downtown Bradenton, offers a comprehensive activities calendar for active seniors, and a continuum of lifestyle options, including independent living, assisted living, memory care and skilled nursing. The community is sponsored by Westminster Communities of Florida, a family of not-for-profit organizations, working together in a common bond of ministry and mission.
About Westminster Communities of Florida:
Westminster Communities of Florida serves 6,000 residents in 19 active living communities around Florida with an enlightened, fully integrated, person-centered approach to health and wellness. Since 1954, it has been Florida’s best choice in active senior living.
