Afghan Refugee Information Session

There will be an “Afghan Refugee Information Session” on Friday, January 7 at 11:00 am. A Zoom meeting will be hosted by Pamela Klapproth and Ellen Ottstadt to inform residents about the Kendal on Hudson Board Initiative to host Afghan refugees.

This will be a short presentation to give the basic information that is known about partnering with Hearts and Home to host two women Afghan refugees.

A Zoom link is being sent out on Friday, December 31. If you do not receive it in your email, please reach out to Jordan DiPaolo or Ellen Ottstadt.

Saturday Opera: Amahl & the Night Visitors

Amahl and the Night Visitors, postponed from December 18, will now be shown on Saturday, January 8.

Gian Carlo Menotti wrote the music and libretto for this, the first television opera. It was telecast live on December 24, 1951, from NBC's TV studios, and has remained a favorite of television audiences.

Please join Kendal’s opera lovers at 1:00 pm in the Gathering Room.

Reserving Meeting Rooms

Kendal is short on meeting rooms. There is so much Resident activity, we are beginning to have space traffic jams.

Ellen Ottstadt, our Director of Resident Services & Communications, advised us:

It has come to my attention that residents are not making reservations for our conference rooms but instead are walking in to use them any time they are empty. This has caused some inconvenience for the residents who do make reservations when wanting to use a room.

If you would like to meet in any of our spaces, you will need to call Resident Services x1078 or the Front Desk x1000 to make a reservation. If any residents are in the room when a group of residents or Kendal staff comes in to use their reserved space, they will be asked to leave. If they do not, someone from Resident Services will come and have them vacate the space.

 I appreciate your cooperation in this matter.

Saturday Opera

Saturday Opera at Kendal continues.

We will ring in the New Year at 3:00 pm with Die Fledermaus (The Bat) by Johann Strauss II. 

The story takes place on New Year’s Eve. For this reason it is traditionally presented by opera houses that evening. 

The principal singers in this Vienna State Opera production by Otto Schenk are Gundula Janowitz, Eberhard Waechter, Renate Holm, and Wolfgang Windgassen. 

Please note change of time.

January Concerts

The Music Committee will sponsor two Sunday afternoon events in January:

On January 9 — “Steel Passion”, a steel drum band  -- lively and infectious music including calypso, pop, jazz, and liturgical.

On January 23 — The  “Empire Trio” featuring pianist David Shenton, soprano Erin Shields, and baritone Adam Cannedy performing classic show tunes from beloved Broadway musicals.

New Trip

The Trips Committee is gearing up for 2022.

On Wednesday, Jan 12, there will be a trip to the Bruce Museum in Greenwich, CT.

The tour will be of two crafts exhibitions: “Resolute:  Native Nations Art in the Bruce Collection”; and “The Fisher Dollhouse: A Venetian Palazzo in Miniature.” 

Scheduled during National Native American Heritage Month, the exhibition strives to be more sensitive to ethical questions about the collections, and it consulted with an indigenous museum and various tribes to increase the interpretation of various objects. 

The show includes baskets, weaving, ceramics, silver, a doll, drum, and more by “known artists.”

The 10-room dollhouse was created during the Covid pandemic by Joanna Fisher, an art patron, and collector in New York City, and was inspired by the Gritti Palace in Venice.  The small palazzo was by British designer Holly Jo Beck but with a Murano-style chandelier made in Madrid, a watering can and espresso machine by a metal crafter in Georgia, and miniatures of contemporary art by ten international artists.

It all sounds pretty interesting. Sign-up is in the Trips Book located in the Activities Alcove across from the Computer Room.

Next Great Course "History of Russia" (Channel 970)

The next Great Course on Ch. 970 “History of Russia: From Peter the Great to Gorbachev” starts Saturday, January 8, 3-4 pm.

 Mark Steinberg, Ph.D., professor of History at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, will lead it

 Dr. Steinberg earned his Ph.D. at the University of California, Berkeley, and has taught at Harvard and Yale.  He draws on his own years of experience as an author, a student in the Soviet Union in the 1980s, and more recently, as a world-class historian granted access to once-secret government archives.

Over 36 half-hour sessions, the course will focus on 300 years of Russian history from Peter the Great to Gorbachev by examining the lives of the men and women who, in fact, were Russia. This is history told through biography.

New Year's Eve Celebration Postponed

Sorry, folks, but our New Year’s Eve program and gala reception are postponed until late January or February because of the Covid emergency.

MurielFox, our producer of the festivities, promised: “Kendal New Year’s Eve will take place later than expected, but we’ll present the complete show and party as originally planned. We’ll lower the glittering ball and count down to shouts of ‘Happy New Year!’ and celebrate together in our best clothes with champagne and caviar.”

Dining director Fred Coppola is still planning a seated dinner for Friday night, December 31. But those plans might change if the Covid situation in Westchester worsens.

The Kendal Singers and Kendal Players have already rehearsed their parts. The reception committee headed by Sally Costa and Sharry Lukach has already planned our refreshments and decorations.  The only thing that’s different will be the date.

KoH is resilient!

Notes

Announcements

Thursday, January 6: Hispanic Society (Upper Manhattan): “Gilded Figures,” more than 20 artworks from the Hispanic world, created between 1500 and 1800, focusing on polychrome sculpture, a rare art form with sculpture painted in vivid colors and with gold.

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You will find Cecily Selby’s biography posted opposite the Main Street bulletin board next to the window and in the resident directory in the Residents Only section of the website.

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Residents are encouraged to continue to clean and sort all recyclables. A comprehensive guide is in preparation.

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Art Brady recommends that you look in your email spam folder if you cannot find the link for a Zoom program for which you signed up. If you can’t find your Spam folder, please call Anthony Bradford.

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January Course Reminder

NYU History Professor Edward Berenson returns on Tuesday afternoons in January for a course in the Gathering Room: “Four People Who Shaped History: Roxelana, Napoleon, Toussaint Louverture, and Leni Riefenstahl.”

This is Professor Berenson’s third course designed for Kendal residents.

Tuition is $50 for the four sessions, or $15 for an individual class. To enroll, contact Fran Kelly,.

Wine Receptions

One of the most successful attempts to provide more social opportunities for residents is the wine receptions.

Formerly known as “Wine & Cheese” get-togethers, the addition of much better snacks to go along with the red & white wines have made them more festive and tasty.

No particular events are celebrated. Rather, they feature interesting conversations between residents and a great chance to get to know one another. They are made better by the loving care Director of Dining Fred Coppola and Chef Cliff Saladin give them.

The Receptions usually take place every Wednesday and Friday from 5:00 to 6:00 pm in the Gathering Room. However, they were suspended December 17 until further notice because of the rising prevalence of COVID in Westchester County and several cases here.