great lives series 20th season

Great Lives

Popular series 20th season

By Laura Moyer

Anne Frank, Bruce Springsteen and Virginia-born technology pioneer Gladys West are among the intriguing figures featured in the 20th anniversary year of the William B. Crawley Great Lives Lecture Series at the University of Mary Washington.

The popular biography series will be held on Tuesdays and Thursdays, Jan. 19 through March 28, 2023, at Dodd Auditorium in George Washington Hall. All lectures are free and begin at 7:30 p.m.

A notable example of positive relationships between the University and the community, the program is significantly supported by donations from area corporations and private individuals.

The lecture about Gladys West, set for Thursday, Feb. 2, 2023, will be of particular interest in the Fredericksburg area, said series director and namesake William Crawley, distinguished professor emeritus of history.

"Although largely unknown to the general public today," Crawley commented, "Dr. West fashioned a remarkable career that took her from a poor tobacco farm in southern Virginia to become a mathematician whose work in the 1940s and '50s contributed significantly to the development of GPS." Laura Moyer is University Relations & Communication Editor

West, a resident of Dahlgren in King George County, was a mathematician at what's now the Naval Surface Warfare Center, Dahlgren Division. Lecturer Karen Sherry will be joined onstage by a panel including West's daughter Carolyn West Oglesby '83, a Mary Washington alumna. The 2023 series continues the Great Lives tradition of featuring an eclectic mix of personalities from many eras and geographic locations. Besides West, Frank and Springsteen, upcoming subjects are Alan Turing, Shirley Jackson, Thomas Paine, civil rights activist Fannie Lou Hamer, Ted Kennedy, J. Edgar Hoover, Rembrandt, Magellan, Sandra Day O'Connor, the Transcendentalists, Lafayette, Queen Isabella and Colin Powell.

The 300-plus lectures of the past 19 years have focused not only on specific individuals but on notable groups and fictional characters. One non-human subject, the great Virginia racehorse Secretariat, was among the most popular presentations in the history of the series, Crawley said - and also his favorite.

All 2023 lectures will be recorded and made available on the program's website after the live presentation. But attending at Dodd has the advantage of an audience Q&A with speakers. Books by speakers also will be available for purchase and signing.

Great Lives Series Tuesday & Thursday, January 19-M March 28, 7:30pm Dodd Auditorium George Washington Hall, UMW

Laurie Black

Guest Porch Editorial

ON THE PORCH

Contributing Writers & Artists

Rita Allan Sally Cooney Anderson Dianne Bachman Laurie Black Sonja Cantu Collette Caprara Tom Conway ElizabethDaly Janet Douberly Jeannie Ellis Jenna Elizabeth Edwards Em Ford Frank Fratoe Bill Freehling Jon Gerlach Lou Gramann Kathleen Harrigan Ralph “Tuffy” Hicks

David C. Kennedy Lisa Marvashti Ray Mikula Kristin Moeller Vanessa Moncure Pete Morelewicz Laura Moyer Patrick Neustatter Gerri Reid Paula Raudenbush

Suzanne Carr Rossi Rob Rudick Ted Schubel Paul T. Scott Mandy Smith David Steingart Anne Timpano Rim Vining Tina Will Norma Woodward

Front Porch Fredericksburg is a free circulation magazine published monthly by Olde Towne Publishing Co. Virginia Bigenwald Grogan, Publisher.

The mission of Front Porch Fredericksburg is to connect the diverse citizenry of Fredericksburg with lively features and informative columns of interest to our community’s greatest resource, its people.

Messages from our readers are welcome. All article submissions must be received by e-mail by the 16th & calendar items the 19th of the month preceding publication.

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Copyright 2023 Front Porch Fredericksburg Magazine All rights reserved.

light

by laurie black

I love sitting at my breakfast table watching the morning light separate the sky into layers of color before gradually filling the whole sky with soft illumination. My plants (taking up nearly half of the table) seem to lean toward the window, anticipating and craving the light. Like my plants, I love light. I love light in all its forms. From sunrises to sunsets, from dancing candle light to cozy firelight, I am fascinated and inspired by light.

Each season seems to have its own special light. Winter has twinkling lights on evergreens and snow that sparkles like glitter in the sun. Spring may have shimmering rain showers on a sunny day or jagged flashes of lighting across the night sky. In the summer I enjoy watching fireflies play hide and seek in the trees and 4th of July fireworks fill the sky with bursts of color. Fall brings harvest moons and spooky glows from jack-o-lanterns.

Even with all the wonderful light mother nature provides, there are still more forms of light to be appreciated. I am often in awe of the light that seems to emanate from art or music. A stroll through any of the many art studios in Fredericksburg will be an education in light and color. A musical performance at the University of Mary Washington or a local high school or even on the steps of the downtown library, will find people smiling, swaying, or toe tapping to the music that makes them feel, "light".

Places can also be a source of light. Collette Caprara's "Fredberry Shines" in last month's Front Porch Fredericksburg beautifully captures the spirit of Fredericksburg with its many seasonal sights and sounds.

Perhaps my favorite form of light, however, is the light that comes from people - the kind of people that make a community feel like home.

Eight years ago, my husband and I moved into our current home. Our very first day in our new home we were welcomed by next door neighbors who brought us freshly squeezed lemonade. All these years later we are still enjoying the light of our neighbors, with chats by the mailbox or across the fence, game nights, traded baked goods and casseroles, and more. I have also been inspired by the amazing volunteers in our community. I have the privilege of working with many volunteers serving older adults in our area through Mental Health America of Fredericksburg's Senior Visitors Program. I have also witnessed and worked alongside volunteers in our community helping at area homeless shelters; food banks, churches, and organizations providing food to those in need; volunteers in our schools mentoring students; organizations, churches, and neighbors building ramps, repairing homes, and cleaning up after storms.

Great things happen when we share our "light". As Martin Luther King, Jr. said, "Darkness can not drive out darkness, only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that." There are endless ways to get involved and share a little light with someone whose circumstances have left them in the dark.

If you are looking for it, you'll find light in the usual places like our awesome first responders, medical personnel, and teachers to name a few. Sometimes you'll find light in the most unusual places like the check out line.

During the busy holiday season, in a crowded store, a young father with a crying child in line in front of me, realized he had left his wallet in the car. He was panic-stricken and asked if he could please run to his car for his wallet. In unison, myself and the two people behind me in line encouraged him to go get his wallet. Instead of being frustrated or angry, the checker and the three of us in line began chatting, laughing and sharing stories of "been there, done that." By the time the young father returned and paid for his cart, we all felt like old friends. We exchanged well wishes and all went on about our way. It really can be that simple. Smile. Be kind. Share your light!

Now, I'm going to it to go sit by the fireplace and read my copy of the Front Porch cover to cover.

Laurie Black is a wife, mother, grandmother, gardener, blogger (lauriesleaves.com) and the Senior Visitors Program Coordinator at Mental Health America of Fredericksburg.