The Life Enrichment series is planned especially for adults age 60 and over.
The series is made possible by funding from Bethel College and the generosity of speakers who share their talent and expertise without compensation. The series is held in conjunction with Bethel’s academic year.
| Cost: | $30 per semester or $3 per week; first-time attendees get a free day |
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| Time: | 9:30 a.m.–12:15 p.m. (lunch following) |
| Location: | Krehbiel Auditorium in the Luyken Fine Arts Center on the Bethel campus, unless otherwise noted |
Coffee break time is usually 10:15 a.m.–10:35 a.m. (donations needed to help cover cost). Lunch is served in the Schultz Student Center dining hall. Tickets for lunch should be purchased by 10:30 a.m. Cost: $6 for full meal; $4 for soup/salad/dessert.
Current Schedule
August 28
| 9:30 a.m. | “On the Road with Larry Hatteberg,” Larry Hatteberg, TV anchor/photojournalist, Wichita |
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| 10:15 a.m. | Coffee break |
| 10:35 a.m. | “On the Road with Larry Hatteberg,” continued (double session) |
| 11:30 a.m. | “Song Writing and Performance,” Doug Everingham, musician, Park City |
September 4
| 9:30 a.m. | “An Update on Bethel College,” Jon Gering, Bethel College president |
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| 10:15 a.m. | Coffee break |
| 10:35 a.m. | “Enriching Life to the Last Minute,” Tom Welk, director of professional education and pastoral care, Harry Hynes Memorial Hospice, Wichita |
| 11:30 a.m. | “Weather in a Word,” Merrill Teller, retired KWCH-12 meteorologist, Wichita |
September 11
| 9:30 a.m. | “The Darkest Period: The Kanza Indians and Their Last Homeland, 1846-1873,” Ronald D. Parks, author, Manhattan |
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| 10:15 a.m. | Coffee break |
| 10:35 a.m. | “The Darkest Period: The Kanza Indians and Their Last Homeland, 1846-1873,” continued (double session) |
| 11:30 a.m. | Story drama: “The Lopsided Crane,” Laurel D. Gugler, storyteller, North Newton |
September 18
| 9:30 a.m. | “100 Years of Milling in Kansas,” Mike Ginal, plant manager, Ardent Mills, Newton |
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| 10:15 a.m. | Coffee break |
| 10:35 a.m. | “Dinner Theater in the Prison,” Larry Temple, McPherson, and Dawn Abrahams, Moundridge |
| 11:30 a.m. | “An Update on the Kansas Agricultural Economy, including U.S. and Global Perspectives,” Steve McCloud, farmer, Farm Bureau board of directors, Newton |
September 25
| 9:30 a.m. | “Almost a Decade: Coming Together as Newton Community for Racial Justice,” Sara Dick, North Newton, and Larry Lee, Newton, Newton Community for Racial Justice co-coordinators |
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| 10:15 a.m. | Coffee break |
| 10:35 a.m. | “The Rise and Fall of Poor Farms in Kansas,” Wes Brummer, Wichita |
| 11:30 a.m. | “Eric Liddell, the Flying Scotsman,” Jim Goering, agricultural economist, North Newton |
October 2
| 9:30 a.m. | “Teaching at Bethel College in the 1960s: Student Protests and Student Rights,” Keith L. Sprunger, Bethel professor emeritus of history |
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| 10:15 a.m. | Coffee break |
| 10:35 a.m. | “Folklore and Stories around Alta Mill,” Jerry Wall, Newton |
| 11:30 a.m. | “Feeding the Multitude at Circle of Hope,” Margaret Goering, Newton |
October 9
| 9:30 a.m. | “Becoming a Refugee in WWII,” Justina Neufeld, North Newton |
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| 10:15 a.m. | Coffee break |
| 10:35 a.m. | Panel discussion: “What You Don’t Know about Dementia,” Denise Vann, Kansas Alzheimer’s Association, Wichita; Eric Massanari, chaplain, Kidron-Bethel Village, North Newton; Jim Banman, caregiver, Newton; Yolanda Kauffman, life enrichment coordinator, Schowalter Villa, Hesston |
| 11:30 a.m. | “Elder Abuse and Common Scams,” Marc Bennett, Sedgwick County district attorney, Wichita |
October 16
| 9:30 a.m. | “Off the Beaten Path: A View from the Back Roads and Small Towns of Kansas,” Jeff Heidel, professional photographer, McPherson |
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| 10:15 a.m. | Coffee break |
| 10:35 a.m. | “I Smell Smoke – My Work in Wildland Fires,” Deon Steinle, assistant fire management officer, Mid-Plains Fire Management Zone, Marais des Cygnes Wildlife Refuge, Pleasanton |
| 11:30 a.m. | “Wichita’s Best-Kept Secret,” Lyndzee Rhine, naturalist, Great Plains Nature Center, Wichita |
October 23
(Please note: This schedule has only two sessions.)
| 9:30 a.m. | “From the Middle East to Sterling, Kansas: Researching the Health Benefits of Arum Palaestinum,” Gene Zaid, chief scientific officer, and Preston Moore, vice president of science and technology, Hyatt Life Sciences, Sterling |
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| 10:30 a.m. | Coffee break |
| 10:50 a.m. | “Etzonia: The Lost City in Kansas,” Sandy Randel, director, Cherokee Strip Land Rush Museum, Arkansas City |
| 11:50 a.m. | Evaluation questionnaire handout |
October 30
| 9:30 a.m. | “Living Life with Autism,” Barbara Moran, author, Topeka |
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| 10:15 a.m. | Coffee break |
| 10:35 a.m. | “Free Does Not Mean Welcome,” Carmaletta Williams, Grandview, Missouri |
| 11:30 a.m. | “Free Does Not Mean Welcome,” continued (double session) |
November 6
| 9:30 a.m. | “Hope for Harvey: D-FYing the Drug Trend,” Benjamin Meier, coalition coordinator, Harvey County D-FY, Mirror Inc., Newton |
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| 10:15 a.m. | Coffee break |
| 10:35 a.m. | “Stories about Bethel College Students in Europe,” Merle Schlabaugh, Bethel professor emeritus of German |
| 11:30 a.m. | “Story of KNORK,” Matt Wray, KNORK Flatware, Newton |
November 13
| 9:30 a.m. | “From Mexico: Building Bridges, Not Walls,” Jesus Martinez, Newton |
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| 10:15 a.m. | Coffee break |
| 10:35 a.m. | “Everyone Belongs,” Heidi Classen, mom and educator, Newton |
| 11:30 a.m. | “Communication through Singing Together,” with William Eash, D.M.A., director of choral activities, Bethel College |