Emeriti Connection

Issue No. 30 - May 2024

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Photo from “Four Seasons in Burnet Woods” by Rama Kasturi

What Is This?

"Stonehenge"

Were you there when it was installed in 1972?

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Inside Insights

Annual Report of the President

The 2023-2024 academic year was eventful on many fronts, including the hiring of a new Executive Director, our first participation in the university budget process, submission of our Age-Friendly University initiative to the administration, and numerous well-attended activities.

Following an extensive search, the Emeriti Association hired Pamela Person as our new Executive Director. She began work on August 15 and has contributed much-needed support and leadership to the organization. Pam quickly developed knowledge of the structure of the Emeriti Association and interfaced seamlessly with the Executive Committee, the Board of Directors, the Committee Chairs, and the membership. She provided essential leadership on our budget process and support for our Age-Friendly Initiative proposal, Spring Arts Festival, and numerous events.

We are now participating fully in the budget process with the Provost’s Office. Our budget team consists of Treasurer Tim Sale, Past Treasurer Pat Kumpf, Past President Ralph Katerberg, and Board members Howard Jackson and Craig Vogel, assisted by our Executive Director Pam Person and President Sally Moomaw. At this time, our budget is still under review.

After working for well over a year, the Age-Friendly University Committee, led by Joanna Mitro and Craig Vogel, with help from numerous committee members, submitted its request to the administration that UC apply for acceptance to the Age-Friendly University Network. Numerous individuals and groups both within and outside the university helped with this endeavor. Although we have not yet heard the results of this submission, the Emeriti Association intends to continue supporting and developing age-friendly initiatives as an essential component of UC’s Next Lives Here platform.

A new initiative this year was a collaboration with Reed Gallery at DAAP for a curated exhibit of artwork by current and emeriti faculty from all disciplines throughout the university. We received an enthusiastic response. Of the 117 artworks submitted, 33 were selected for display, of which 9 were by emeriti. The display was open during February and March, including during our March 2nd Spring Arts Festival.

Emeriti committees have remained active throughout the year. They are the mechanism for supporting the Emeriti’s mission of advocating for emeriti, providing opportunities for intellectual and social engagement, and strengthening emeriti ties to the university. Please consider serving on one of these committees. We are always seeking new ideas and inspiration.

This spring the Emeriti Association welcomed 77 new emeriti into the organization at our annual welcoming dinner. These new members, along with our many active current members, ensure that the UC Emeriti Association will remain the thriving organization it is today.

Sincerely,

Sally

Sally Moomaw, EdD

President, UC Emeriti Association

sally.moomaw@uc.edu

We welcome these colleagues to the community of Emeriti as ratified by the UC Board of Trustees on April 23, 2024:

Appreciation & Recognition Celebration

Annual Dinner for New Emeriti

2023-2024

New Emeriti gather for the 

traditional photo on the stairs

Colleagues connect with old friends and new, generating ideas and enthusiasm

The Office of the Provost and the Emeriti Association & Center co-sponsored the Celebration on May 1, 2024, welcoming the 77 individuals who achieved emeritus status from June 2023 to April 2024. This annual event honors new emeriti in appreciation of their service to the University.

Dr. Keisha Love, Vice Provost for Academic Affairs, kicked off the evening event by noting that the new retirees are joining a community that includes more than 1,300 members and serves as the organizational, social, and intellectual home for UC's emeriti. “I’m astounded by the growth made over the years” [since the late Bert Huether’s revitalization of the Association]. Dr. Love detailed the many ways emeriti stay engaged, providing cultural, intellectual, and philanthropic gifts to the university. She noted that during the last 5 years, more than 400 emeriti have contributed more than $19 million dollars to UC.

Dr. María Ortiz, executive director of the Faculty Enrichment Center (FEC) and the Association’s liaison to the Provost’s Office, served as Master of Ceremonies. She declared the FEC is a proud supporter of the UC Emeriti Association, reflecting a dynamic partnership and intergenerational exchange, and noted, “It is wonderful to be part of this event in such a fun way.”

Mary Kay Scarramucci checks in with Dan Durbin & Pat Mezinskis, and receives a welcome gift

Mike Zenz, Keisha Love, and Pam Person each take a turn at the podium

María Ortiz & husband Carlos Flores

Ralph Katerberg, past president, announced the establishment of a new award in honor of the Association & Center’s founding president, Bert Huether, and stated the first award will be bestowed at next year’s celebration dinner. UC Foundation’s Michael Zenz and past president Terry Milligan acknowledged the impact of emeriti contributions and the opportunity to help fund the Association’s scholarship for underrepresented Gen-1 students. Cate O’Hara, Osher Lifelong Learning Institute director, extended a free* OLLI membership to new emeriti.

President Sally Moomaw noted our close collaboration with the Provost’s Office, college deans, OLLI, the Faculty Senate, and other university units. She acknowledged our liaison, friend and advisor María Ortiz. Sally’s informative and entertaining slides displayed on multiple screens throughout the evening, underscoring the multi-faceted activities of the Association & Center.

Terry Milligan, Cate O’Hara, Jayne and Geof Yager enjoy pre-dinner chat

A&S Dean James Mack & Carol Tonge Mack

A long walk to the buffet

The evening’s program highlighted the emeriti's status as colleagues, retired from all colleges, who come together to create and participate in a myriad of intellectual, cultural, social, service, and health-promoting activities. 

Special thanks to CCM’s Alex Merck Jazz Trio who provided music to dine by and to the members of the Emeriti Association Celebration Committee, chaired by Patrick Kumpf, who created an elegant and festive affair.  The evening hummed with camaraderie and the enthusiastic energy that embodies our Association.



* All new Emeriti may take advantage of one free term membership ($90 value) during the 2024-25 school year.  Just call or email the OLLI office before you register so they can apply the membership. 513-556-9186 or olli@uc.edu.

News & Announcements

UC Emeriti Association

New Officers & Board

May 2024 Election Results

Officers newly elected for one-year terms:

• President Sally Moomaw, CECH Early Childhood Education
• Vice President George Babcock, CoM Surgery- Burn Research
• Secretary Kathryn Lorenz, A&S Romance Language & Literature
• Treasurer Tim Sale, LCB Accounting

The Executive Committee consists of the officers, immediate past president Ralph Katerberg, and our Faculty Senate representative George Babcock.

The Board of Directors consists of 21 members, serving 3-year staggered terms, with seven members elected each year.

Returning Board members re-elected to terms expiring in May 2027:

• George Babcock, Professor Emeritus of Surgery, CoM
• Robert Conyne, Professor Emeritus of Counseling, CECH
• Ralph Katerberg, Professor Emeritus of Management, LCB
• Sally Moomaw, Professor Emerita of Education, CECH

Board members elected to terms expiring in May 2027:

• Susan Bourke, Professor Emerita of Criminal Justice, CECH
• Russel Durst, Professor Emeritus of English, A&S
• Terence Milligan, Professor Emeritus of Music, CCM

Board member elected to fill an unexpired term, expiring in May 2026:

• George Suckarieh, Professor Emeritus of Engineering, CEAS

Continuing Board members:

“Reimagining Retirement: Exploring Your Life Plan”

Webinar series captioned recordings available

Many of us joined the webinar sessions this winter presented by AROHE and Fidelity Investments. The 3-part virtual program explored the social, psychological, and emotional aspects of transitioning to, and living in, retirement. Our Health & Wellness and Pre-Retirement Mentoring committees co-sponsored the sessions for 60+ attendees, including UC emeriti, faculty and staff pre-retirees, and arranged group viewing at the Faculty Enrichment Center.

Photo: Geof Yager and Bob Conyne, committee chairs, hosting at the FEC.

The 1.5 hour Zoom programs included "Reframing Your Identity" (Jan. 30), "Exploring Your Plan" (Feb 13), and “Rebuilding Your Network" (Feb 27). These programs are now available, including a recording of each webinar with captions on youtube and access to the session slides and reading list. 

Visit the site:  www.arohe.org/Reimagining-Retirement

Questions? Contact Geof Yager, Pre-Retirement Mentoring chair,

or Bob Conyne, Health & Wellness chair.

Book Review:

Ultra-Processed People

Contributed by Joanna Mitro with Emily Van Walleghen

Are You an Ultra-Processed Person?

The 2023 book Ultra-Processed People: The Science Behind Food That Isn’t Food makes some provocative points that will have you examining what you eat and perhaps changing your dietary choices. Physician and author Chris Van Telleken claims that “many problems in your life…are caused by the food you eat.” Or more precisely, by the “not-food” in your diet: highly processed products that contain “novel molecules…not encountered in our evolutionary history” – ingredients like modified starches; hydrolyzed protein isolates; refined, bleached and deodorized seed oils; and industrial chemical additives found among the ingredients in many breakfast cereals, snack bars, frozen meals, ice cream, mayonnaise, and many other packaged foods.

Almost all the food we eat is processed in some way before it gets to us. Ultra-processed foods are highly processed foods that contain ingredients that are foreign to home kitchens – chemical additives like emulsifiers, preservatives, and artificial sweeteners, colors, and flavors. These ingredients may have unrecognizable and unpronounceable chemical names. According to a New York Times article on “What Ultraprocessed Foods Can Do to the Brain” about 60% of the calories in the average American diet come from ultra-processed foods (UPF).

Van Telleken begins by describing his own experiment eating an 80% UPF diet, and then dives into the history of “eating” and the origins of UPF. Some of the UPF ingredients in food are there to achieve consistency of texture and flavor, or to prolong shelf life, in products that are mass-marketed and shipped all over the country. But many UPF ingredients are used as artificial substitutes for more expensive natural ingredients and to mask undesirable flavors in these cost-saving substitutes. Van Telleken asserts these artificial ingredients create a mismatch between taste and nutrition that alters metabolism and appetite.

There is a lot of thought-provoking information in this book. Van Telleken’s discussion of how our bodies manage calories is eye-opening, and he builds a case for UPF as a cause of obesity with evidence that obesity isn’t caused by excess sugar, lack of exercise, or failure of willpower. He claims UPF ingestion “hacks our brains” by subverting the body’s mechanisms that signal when to stop eating, triggers addiction, and disrupts the microbiome. He cites studies that show that UPF are strongly associated with increased risk of cancer, metabolic disease, cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure, mental illness, depression, dementia, and irritable bowel syndrome. It’s quite an indictment of UPF. Van Telleken criticizes manufacturers for using UPF to promote overconsumption and for prioritizing profit over health. He includes stories and imagery intended to shock the reader: an account of the artificial butter synthesized from coal in Germany during the 1940s, descriptions of dramatic health consequences when UPF displaced the traditional diet in a remote Brazilian village on the Amazon River, and his characterization of xanthan gum as a “revolting bacterial slime.”

Wary of possible overstatements in the service of the author’s crusade against UPF, I asked Emily Van Walleghen of UC’s Nutrition and Dietetics Program to read the book and compare notes with me. Emily pointed out that there are thousands of ingredients and additives that could make a product UPF, and we are a long way from knowing the potential health effects of each. She acknowledges that current research indicates there may be properties of UPF additives that contribute to weight gain and disease but cautions that the research cited by Van Telleken is “limited” – mostly based on experiments with animals or on observational studies in humans, showing associations but not proving causation – so additional research is necessary.

Emily agrees that limiting consumption of UPF is a good idea but points out that asking people to eliminate UPF from their diets would result in food being less available, and possibly prohibitively expensive, to some populations. Most people would find avoiding all UPF extremely restrictive and possibly awkward in social situations, but people whose diets are already restricted by a health condition may rely on the kinds of substitutes Van Telleken disparages. For instance, UPF ingredients in gluten-free bread are what make it resemble "regular" bread in texture and taste. She wouldn't want someone on a gluten-free diet to feel like they should never have a sandwich again, especially if we aren't certain about negative health consequences from those specific ingredients. 

Emily suggests a rational approach might be to try to avoid UPF when possible and not stress out otherwise. When choosing foods, aim to eat 5 servings of fruits and vegetables each day to supply your body with healthy nutrients.

Research on UPF continues as scientists seek to identify and confirm its effects and explain the underlying mechanisms. While there is more to untangle about the consequences of ingesting UPF, this book alerts us to be aware of what we are eating.

Undergraduate Mentoring

The Emeriti/Student Mentorship Award

Presentation

The recipient of the 2023-2024 Emeriti/Student Mentorship Award for Collaborative Projects was Civil Engineering student Gracie Hill, who worked with emeritus mentor George Suckarieh. Gracie presented her completed project, "Women in Construction: Recruitment, Retention, Promotion, and Success" at the Emeriti Association Board meeting on April 1.

In her project, Ms. Hill argues that a key to solving the current labor shortage in the construction industry would be to diversify the workforce by increasing opportunities and support for females at both the craft and management levels. Interviews with a dozen local construction professionals representing various roles in the industry explored the status of recruitment, retention, and promotion in the construction industry, asked about obstacles women face, and explored opportunities for improvement. Those interviews formed the basis of a survey that she deployed locally, garnering 96 respondents. Although nationally only 11% of the construction workers are women, about two-thirds of the respondents to Gracie's survey identified as female.

In her report, Gracie analyzed the differences between women's and men's perceptions of the conditions women face in the construction industry. Based on the information gleaned from her literature review, interviews, and survey, she developed sets of recommendations:

• for women to help them succeed in the construction industry;
• for companies to improve the recruitment, support, retention, and promotion of women;
• strategies for the industry as a whole to promote greater gender diversification.

Gracie plans to present her findings at industry meetings and share her recommendations with local and national organizations/associations.

This excellent project is an example of a successful collaboration between a retired faculty member and an undergraduate student. The ingredients are a motivated and capable student and an engaged emeritus or emerita. You, too, can be part of such a collaboration in the future, if you have an idea to offer a student. If you have questions about this award, contact Mentoring Committee chair Joanna Mitro.

Luncheon Speaker Series

In Case You Missed It

Our Luncheon Speaker Series completed its 2023-24 schedule with the following speakers.

March 28th: Ming Tang, Professor of Architecture and Interior Design, Director of Extended Reality Lab, “Medical Uses of Virtual Reality”

In this talk, Professor Tang described how his XR-Lab has been designing and using virtual environments for professional training in the health and well-being field. In collaboration with Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, his lab developed a VR-based simulation to enhance employee safety training. This initiative involves creating a virtual hospital environment with AI-controlled characters to facilitate research on diverse scenarios encountered during therapeutic crisis interventions.

A vital feature of this simulation is the VR dialogue between a staff member and a teenage patient exhibiting aggressive behavior and mental illness. The primary objective is to equip staff members with the necessary skills to de-escalate tense situations effectively and adhere to appropriate protocols, thereby ensuring a safer and more controlled environment for staff and patients.

The use of such VR scenarios enables researchers to assess human behavior and performance in simulated high-stakes scenarios, providing perspectives on human decision-making processes. By immersing individuals in high-fidelity simulations that mimic real-world challenges others face, the goal is to foster a deeper, more profound sense of empathy among participants and explore the potential of virtual environments as powerful tools for education, understanding, and human connection.

April 25th: Jun Bai, Asst. Professor, Electrical Engineering & Computer Systems, “Artificial Intelligence Today and Tomorrow”

On April 25^th the Emeriti enjoyed the final Speaker Series of the semester with a carefully crafted and entirely engaging talk from Professor Jun Bai of UC’s Department of Computer Science. She began with a useful condensed discussion of some Artificial Intelligence (AI) fundamentals, e.g., how AI actually works. Her title “Artificial Intelligence: Today and Tomorrow” was then reflected in the diversity of areas being transformed by AI. She cited examples ranging from the medical diagnostics to entertainment. Her specific research interests are in the medical diagnostics arena. More specifically, she has developed AI-aided breast cancer diagnostics which, with her advanced modeling, have allowed notably enhanced correct predictions with lower false positives. She noted that developing increasingly effective AI models requires not only considerable computing power, but additional data; thus data may be monetized in some way in the future. Looking ahead more broadly, especially in the visual arena which has recently advanced rapidly, she identified many challenges, including significant ethical challenges, that we will need to face.

Upcoming Speakers

We program August through April (with a break in December).

Most lectures on Thursdays, noon to 1 pm.

Light luncheon provided at 11:30 am

in the Faculty Enrichment Center, Langsam Library

Zoom option for those who cannot attend in person.

Watch for announcements with more details as future events approach and plan to join us!

Do you have ideas for a speaker or a topic you'd like to hear?

Your ideas are welcome as we plan for next year's topics.

Contact Tim Sale, Luncheon Speakers Committee, chair.



Health & Wellness

Walk With Us For Fitness

The Health & Wellness Committee recommends incorporating walking into your routine. Walking in nature, and with companions, is even better. Join us for Walking for Fitness, on Wednesdays, at 9 am, weather permitting:

• Wednesdays in May @ Glendale Gardens
• Three Wednesdays in June – 5, 12, 19 @ Glendale Gardens
• Five Wednesdays in September & October – September 11, 18, 25 & October 02, 09 @ Summit Park (Blue Ash)

More details, with instructions on where to meet, appear with each month's emailed Calendar of Events. Questions: Jennifer.Pearce@uc.edu

The Health & Wellness Book Club

The Health and Wellness Committee book club reads non-fiction and fiction books that cover a broad range of topics that support our physical, emotional and intellectual well-being. We engage in thought provoking discussion about each book and share and reflect about our own life experiences. Discussions are always enlightening and enjoyable.

To join Zoom for the book discussion:

https://ucincinnati.zoom.us/j/91698883016

For your Health & Wellness To-Do List:

Schedule a Hearing Screening

this summer

UC Speech & Hearing Clinic

Health Sciences Building, 3225 Eden Ave, Suite 325

PHONE TO SCHEDULE: 513-558-8503

or Contact: csdclinic@ucmail.uc.edu

Free Diagnostic Testing for UC Emeriti

and Discounted Hearing Aids

Click here for Services & What to expect

Jessica Prewitt, AuD: The best time to reach us is when our doctoral students are in the clinic – during the academic terms June-July, August-November, January-April.

Thanks to UC Audiology's

Communication Sciences & Disorders Department

Brought to you by the UC Emeriti Association's

Health & Wellness Committee

Consider Joining Us

Our Health & Wellness Committee plans and schedules many events designed to promote the well-being of Emeriti, including the Walks for Fitness, the Book Club, and presentations like last fall's discussion of Senior Living Options and last summer's Pickleball demonstration. Psychosocial aspects of retirement are also addressed, including a presentation with the University’s Human Resources & AAUP workshops for faculty considering retirement.

Do you choose activities that support staying healthy as you age? Explore new research, programs, and practices designed to promote successful living past retirement? Interested in getting involved? We welcome new members.

Contact committee chair Bob Conyne.

Arts & Culture

[Committee: Sally Moomaw (chair), Terry Milligan,

Cynthia Lockhart, Mary Henderson-Stucky, Lynn Davis]

In Case You Missed It

Exploring Cincinnati Neighborhoods

Architecture & Art in Mariemont

Friday, May 3

Enthusiastic Emeriti who braved the threat of rain were rewarded with a lovely Friday afternoon and evening in Mariemont. The 2024 Spring outing of our popular “Exploring Local Neighborhoods” walk included the charming Tudor architecture of Mary Emery’s 1920s planned community, combined with the gorgeous opening exhibit at a local art gallery. An eclectic group of explorers included regulars as well as first-timers and newly named emeriti. 

Anne Runyon and Heather Arden, emeritae and Mariemont insiders, provided the walkers with local knowledge. Anne described her experiences as an elementary school student in the community, and Heather, a seasoned walker in the area, guided the explorers through some lovely neighborhoods and a park overlooking the Little Miami River. The troupe returned for Happy Hour at the National Exemplar restaurant, then joined the crowd at the Eisele Art Gallery to view artist Cedric Michael Cox’s solo exhibit, Rhythm & Bloom.

Heather Arden, Anne Runyon, Alan Siebert, Sally Moomaw. Anne: “A nice walk to the Miami Bluffs where I used to walk with my father most evenings.”

Cox’s “This Is the Way” acrylic painting based on the Northern Star quilt pattern, symbolizing hope and freedom

Don French and Joan Murdock: “Fantastic Friday with Emeriti and friends at Eisele Gallery in Mariemont honoring the incredible artist, Cedric Cox!”

An alumnus of DAAP, Cedric has been a strong supporter and contributor to our Emeriti Spring Arts Festivals and Emeriti Scholarship fund. Rhythm & Bloom,

a collection of 18 new canvases, features deeply introspective paintings, from

futurist-inspired cityscapes to narrative still-lifes. “One of my fondest memories of my father was his appreciation for interior design, which included his arranging of wall art and ceramic vases filled with floral arrangements that vividly accented the corners and tables of our home. The Still Life pieces in the exhibition are a tribute to my father,” said Cox.

Cedric Michael Cox, Artist

Kieran Daly & Ed Choi peruse the artist’s patterns & perspectives

Mariemont’s charming business district

Our group enjoyed this vibrant exhibit that draws on Cox’s personal history and features his signature arrangements of shapes and patterns that reference musical compositions. And as if that weren’t enough, the evening’s social and cultural activity was capped off with a stop at Mariemont's Graeter’s ice cream emporium. 

Watch your Emeriti emails as more neighborhood walks are planned,

and join us on our next amazing adventure!

The Arts & Culture Committee identifies local arts and cultural activities to recommend to emeriti, and sponsors interesting and stimulating artistic and cultural occasions that emeriti are invited to enjoy together to gain deeper appreciation.

The Arts & Culture Committee welcomes new members.

Contact Sally.Moomaw@uc.edu

LET'S GET SOCIAL!

[Committee: George Babcock, Howard Jackson, Terry Milligan, Sally Moomaw, and Joan Murdock, chair]

The Social Activities Committee

sponsors ongoing events for socializing and enjoying each other’s company.

P.O.E.T.S. Club Enjoys Cincinnati's Brew Pubs

Phooey On Everything! Tomorrow's Saturday!

Final Friday of each month at 5 pm

Bring your friends or come make new ones ... all are welcome.

Newly-named Emeriti ... First Round on Us!

We hope to see you then!

2024 P.O.E.T.S. Club:

January 26 – Esoteric Brewing Co., Walnut Hills

February 23 – Braxton Brewery, Covington

March 29 – Big Ash Brewing, Beechmont Ave

April 26 – 50 West Brewing, Wooster Pike

Photo: Well attended get-together at 50 West Brewing

Coming Up Next

Friday, May 31, at 5 pm



Fretboard Brewing Company

in Norwood, Ohio

Watch your email for more details.

Recommendations? Contact George.Babcock@uc.edu

The Social Activities Committee also organizes get-togethers at UC sports events.

Join your fellow UC Emeriti at a UC Baseball game on Friday, May 17th, at 5:00 pm. 

(Rain date: Saturday, May 18th, at 1:00 pm.)

Bring family and friends for a relaxed evening of camaraderie and Bearcat baseball as we support the team when they take on the Sooners from Oklahoma University.

The UC Baseball Stadium is at the intersection of Corry Drive and Jefferson Avenue on the University of Cincinnati campus. A parking garage is located across from the stadium. Tickets for the game are just $5.

Above: Dan Durbin, Terry Milligan, and George Babcock at a UC baseball game in April 2023.

Right: Dan Durbin with the Bearcat at the game.

“Each One Teach One” is a proverb and a slogan to rally support for a cause. Promoting the idea that each of us is responsible for handing down the lessons we’ve learned to the following generation, it embodies the goal of spreading knowledge for the betterment of your community. Professor Emeritus Edmund Choi exemplifies that philosophy and puts it into action in his many retirement endeavors. 

Ed has long been a volunteer with the 4-Way String Project’s “Each One Teach One” program, which spreads the joy of music with underserved children. The program, located at Norwood Schools, is free of charge thanks to volunteers and donor support. According to Ed, a school music teacher group teaches all the students starting in the 5th or 6th grade. The school provides the violin, viola, or cello, and the 4-Way program supplements with individual after-school lessons, saving students the cost of rentals and private lessons. “I am impressed by what many students can achieve by the time they reach the 8th grade. Many move on to the high school orchestra at Norwood. The motivation for learning by many of the students is inspiring. Few of these students are thinking of a career in music due to the late start. However, this is an opportunity that some will carry with them for life as it has for me.”

“Edmund Choi has quickly become a favorite of our students, and they look forward to working with him each week.” 

Nat Chaikin

4waystring/each-one-teach-one

Photo: Ed (far left) at Kennedy Heights Arts Center, 2021

Ed’s professional career was as a molecular geneticist, not a musician. Following a PhD at UCLA and post-doc at Harvard, Dr. Choi started at UC in the Department of Molecular Genetics, Biochemistry and Microbiology in the College of Medicine in 1986. His specialty was Immunology and Microbiology, and he collaborated with investigators at Children’s Hospital on autoimmune diseases (juvenile rheumatoid arthritis). He was also a member of the AFTL (Academy of Fellows for Teaching & Learning). 

Ed’s training as a violinist started out the same way as the students involved with the 4-Way String program: “Group music lessons along with playing in school orchestras and youth orchestras in San Francisco gave me 6 years of grounding in music. I was lucky to have conductors who were skilled string players to guide me along as I progressed towards more difficult music. I joined the university symphony in college but had to quit after a year and a half, since I had to return the violin I had on loan from my high school. Seven years later I bought a new violin while in grad school and started playing again by joining small ensembles at first, followed by multiple community orchestras during my fellowship in Boston. Cincinnati has a rich cultural heritage, and I've played in the Cincinnati Metropolitan Orchestra (on the west side), the Seven Hills Symphony, and the Kentucky Symphony Orchestra for 25 years plus now.

Photo: Seven Hills Symphony Trio at the Emeriti Association's Spring Arts Festival, March 2023:

Charles Moomaw, CCM Alum (Baroque alto recorder), Sally Moomaw, CECH Emerita (cello), and Ed Choi, CoM Emeritus (violin)

“I started violin lessons when I retired in 2017 and had my very first violin recital a year later where I was by far the oldest performer among my teacher’s students on the program. Of course, resolving 50 years of bad habits is an ongoing process and challenge for my violin teacher. As a student I can fully appreciate the steps taken by a good teacher during my lessons, and I am now beginning to access musical repertoire that I would never have attempted in the past. Certainly music provides a significant outlet for life-long learning during my retirement years. But I would never have gotten started on this long musical journey without the school music programs that were available to me close to 60 years ago. Getting involved with helping other students starting out on their instruments is something I've always wanted to do and brings out the essential teacher-side of my nature.”

Ed keeps busy, often with daily ensemble rehearsals and long hours of practice, preparing works like Wagner’s Parsifal or Bruckner’s 9th symphony for performances with the Kentucky Symphony Orchestra, the Seven Hills Orchestra, and the Cincinnati Metropolitan Orchestra. He performed at the Jewish Music Festival and the Association’s Spring Arts Festival in March. In addition, he volunteered this winter with the Cincinnati Community Action Agency in Bond Hill helping with tax return preparation and helps teach workouts at a boxing gym. Ed has recently added his volunteerism to the CCM Prep department’s New Horizons ensemble, a program for people over age 50 to renew inactive training or take up a new instrument. Ed’s interest was piqued since “there are very few group learning situations for adults.” In addition to playing 2nd violin (because most want to play 1st) with the ensemble, Ed is also leading violin sectional rehearsals where he helps with fingerings and technique.

Photo: Ed (far left) supporting the solo performance of young talent Sonya Moomaw, then 12 years old, at a Seven Hills Orchestra concert, March 2023.

[Sonya is the grand-daughter of Emeriti Association president Sally Moomaw.]

You can enjoy Ed’s next musical performance at the Seven Hills Symphony concert on June 9th. CCM’s Dr. Aik Khai Pung conducts “Heroines in Music,” featuring women composers.  [Ticket information: 7hillssymphony.org]

Service Committee

Those of us who watched AROHE's three-part webinar "Reimagining Retirement" heard that many retirees find being generous with their time adds greatly to their satisfaction with their lives. Consider volunteering with civic organizations or lending a hand on local projects to increase the generosity of YOUR lifestyle.

Join us for the annual

UC Serves Day, Friday, May 17.

UC Serves is a demonstration of the university's commitment to urban impact and investment in faculty and staff development.

Join us for this day of intentional, focused service to the communities surrounding the University of Cincinnati campuses.

Volunteer to join the Arlitt Center's 100 Year Celebration in 2025

Your connection to the Arlitt community, whether as alumni, a past or current family member, a dedicated faculty or staff, a passionate student, or a valued community partner, is what makes Arlitt's legacy so special. Your memories, insights, and stories are invaluable as the Center prepares to honor its rich history.

Arlitt's "Find Our Friends" campaign seeks faculty, staff, students, alumni, former families, etc. – with either prior connections to Arlitt or seeking to get involved. Use this online form to share contact information and stories, and to volunteer (serve on a planning committee, host/sponsor the event, donate to the silent auction, etc.) to help with the celebration.

The Service Committee aims to encourage volunteer activity among Emeriti by providing information about volunteer opportunities and by discovering and highlighting the exemplary volunteer activities that Emeriti are doing in the community. The committee seeks to establish partnerships with non-profit community organizations and UC groups to create service activities for Emeriti.

Are you engaged in community service? Do you know about service projects we might promote? Ideas to encourage volunteering?

Please let us know how and where YOU are volunteering!

Contact committee chair Jennifer.Pearce@uc.edu.

Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at UC



Combatting the Loneliness Epidemic

Along with providing opportunities for lifelong learning, the other half of the mission of the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at UC is … social interaction for adults aged 50 and better. Why?

OLLI patrons enjoy treats at the VPC café.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “Loneliness and social isolation in older adults are serious public health risks affecting a significant number of people in the United States and putting them at risk for dementia and other serious medical conditions.”

And the Institute for Healthcare Policy and Innovation at the University of Michigan’s “National Poll on Healthy Aging” finds that older adults are still experiencing loneliness and isolation at much greater rates than before COVID kept us all at home alone.

OLLI seeks to combat that isolation through both learning opportunities and social events like mixers, lunches, card playing, community puzzles, and other gatherings. Add to that OLLI’s discussion, interactive, and hands-on classes that promote sharing and conversation.

If you would like to try out a program or event, we’ll be happy to welcome you to our merry band of loneliness-busters—just give me a call at 513-556-9174 or email me: Cate O'Hara.

And, if you’d like to lead a class (one time or multiweek) in the fall, we are taking proposals now at www.uc.edu/ollii.

In the meantime ...

Check out OLLI’s Facebook page and latest OLLI e-newsletter.

Try out this weekly social gathering at the Victory Parkway Campus:

OLLI Lunch Bunch, every Wednesday, May 1-June 12, 12pm, VPC first floor café. Bring your lunch or grab a snack from the vending machines. Then join a table of new friends. No need to register.

Or this special treat:

BBQ Lunch from Just Q’in, Wednesday, May 22, 11:30am-1pm, VPC café.

Sign up and pay $20 by May 15 to enjoy a catered lunch from Just Q’in. You’ll get three meats (beef brisket, chicken wings, pork sparerib), mac & cheese, greens or coleslaw, pickles, onions, bread, and peach cobbler. Get your order in before it’s sold out!

Sign up online (Select Term: Special Events). Call 513-556-9186.

Help us pay tribute to our deceased emeriti colleagues. If you know of any emeriti who have passed since our last issue, please send information to:  

Lynn.Davis@uc.edu

Emeriti Endowed Scholarship Fund

Supporting Gen-1

The twenty-one-member Board of the Emeriti Association has pledged to establish an endowed fund for the Emeriti Scholarship for underrepresented, first-generation undergraduate students at UC. 

We ask you to partner with us to grow the endowment principle to $125,000.  This will enable us to create a sustainable $5000 scholarship to be awarded yearly. We are making great progress: as of March 31, 2024, the market value of the fund was $79,738.



Together we can help make their dreams come true …

Engineering alum sees K-12 educators as the path to STEM diversity

Keonte Alexander, CECH '22, is a father and a science and math teacher at William Howard Taft Elementary School in Cincinnati Public Schools. He became interested in serving youth while earning his associate degree at Cincinnati State. 

"I wanted to be a teacher because I realized the need for Black male teachers," he says. Alexander began pursuing an education degree at UC, where as a first-generation student, he became a part of the Gen-1 Program. Balancing parenting, studying, work and student-teaching was challenging and expensive. "Paying for my Ohio Assessment Educator exams was a barrier because I'm a father, and I have to take care of my kids," he shares. "It was hard to even get by with the most simple things. A $100 fee for those exams was a lot."

Thanks in large part to a $100,000 gift from engineering alum Tom Sharp, CEAS '84, MS '92, PhD '97, the Inclusive Excellence Support Fund for Students in Math and Science supports students who have expressed an interest in teaching in urban schools.  "We focus on growing the science teacher pipeline, ideally minority students, so they can provide a role model for someone that looks like them," Sharp says. "One teacher can impact thousands of students. Our role has been removing the barriers that happen."

Alexander adds that many of his sixth-grade students have told him that he is their first male teacher. "I want to thank Mr. Sharp from the bottom of my heart. If it wasn't for the help, I wouldn't be teaching in Cincinnati."

Read more about entrepreneur Tom Sharp, founder of aerospace engineering firm NLign Analytics, and Keonte Alexander at foundation.uc.edu/stories/thomas-sharp.

Details: Fund Name and Number

“University of Cincinnati Emeriti Association

Endowed Scholarship Fund” (S201318)

• Make a gift at: foundation.uc.edu/give

After the funds load, in the “Search Funds by Name” field,

Enter “Emeriti Scholarship”

• If you are 70 1⁄2, you may wish to transfer (not withdraw) directly to the UC Foundation all or part of your IRA's Required Minimum Distribution (RMD) to a Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD), naming this scholarship fund, and save on your taxes.  A QCD is also called an IRA Charitable Rollover. rmd/qcd/rollover

UC Foundation can work with you and your financial advisors to prepare necessary documents.    

Contact: Michael D. Zenz, Executive Director for Principal Giving,

513-558-4619, zenzmd@foundation.uc.edu

We Appreciate Our Donors!

The UC Foundation provides the following list of those who have made donations to the Emeriti Endowed Scholarship Fund as of May 1, 2024.  We express our heartfelt appreciation for your support. Please let us know if you have made a donation but don’t see your name here.  We will add you to our donor list in our next newsletter! (Contact Lynn.Davis@uc.edu)

We also note the generosity of the Artists who donated their works, as well as other Donors of items for the Silent Auction at our Spring Arts Festivals. All proceeds from auction sales were directed to the scholarship fund.

Monument to H. H. Richardson

How did this mini-Stonehenge-looking structure arise from recycled rubble to stand at the south end of Burnet Woods, overlooking Martin Luther King Blvd?  Called “Richardson’s Rocks,” it’s a monument to architect H.H. Richardson and his last masterpiece, the famed Cincinnati Chamber of Commerce Building. The monument is composed of 51 pieces of pink granite salvaged from the building once located at the corner of 4th and Vine Streets. Completed in 1889, the “fire-proof” building was destroyed by fire in 1911. The Cincinnati Astronomical Society acquired 3000 tons of the building’s relatively undamaged granite blocks for use in building an observatory in Cleves. The blocks were stored at a rail yard there in 1911, where they languished for over 50 years.

The resurrected stones now sit across from UC’s College of Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning (DAAP), the site of the monument’s creation. Completed in 1972, the Richardson memorial is the result of a design competition won by architecture student Stephen Carter, the repurposed rocks recalling the castle-esque elegance of Richardson’s lost masterpiece. DAAP architecture professor J. William Rudd’s research in 1967 led to locating the burned building’s forgotten stones. Professor John Peterson directed the student-led effort “Operation Resurrection” to establish the memorial, 1968-72.  

[Read Rudd’s tale of the search and resurrection here.]

(1) UC architecture students work to prepare the stones for moving to Burnet Woods. 

(2) Students and faculty implement Carter’s winning design in 1972.

Photos/UC Archives and Rare Books

H. H. (Henry Hobson) Richardson, 1838–1886, was one of the most prominent American architects of the nineteenth century. Along with Louis Sullivan and Frank Lloyd Wright, Richardson is one of “the recognized trinity of American architecture.” Richardson infused the Romanesque tradition with something new and distinctly American: Richardsonian Romanesque, featuring his signature arched windows, rough-hewn stone, massive towers, blocks laid in bands of contrasting color, often with stunning murals and stained-glass windows. (Cincinnati architect Samuel Hannaford’s City Hall is a prime example of this style.)

Although he only lived to age 47, an 1885 poll of the ten finest buildings in the country included five by Richardson, with his Trinity Church in Boston’s Copley Square at the top. The recent PBS program “Ten Buildings That Changed America” notes Richardson’s Trinity Church as #2, further sealing its status as an American masterpiece. Richardson’s legacy in influencing a generation of American architects included conceiving of a building as a whole and maintaining its integrity throughout, an organic approach adopted by Sullivan and Wright.

Richardson’s last building featured “Milford Pink” granite, a red tile roof, and three-story arched windows.

Richardson was a towering figure … “big-hearted, large-minded, loving as he is pugnacious.” Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery.

H.H. Richardson:

“The architect acts on his building, but his building reacts on him. His work is plastic and cannot be finished in a drawing. It cannot be fully judged except in its own particular surroundings.” (TheArtStory.org)

Emeriti Association & Center

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Who We Are

President | Sally Moomaw | moomawsc@ucmail.uc.edu

Vice President| George Babcock | babcocgf@ucmail.uc.edu

Secretary | Kathryn Lorenz | lorenzkm@ucmail.uc.edu

Treasurer | Tim Sale | salejt@ucmail.uc.edu

Executive Director| Pamela Person | personp@ucmail.uc.edu

Editorial & Communications Team

Chair | Joanna Mitro | mitroj@ucmail.uc.edu

Editor | Lynn Davis | davislk@ucmail.uc.edu

Reviewer | Jonathan Kamholtz | kamholj@ucmail.uc.edu

Emeriti Connection is produced by the Office of the Executive Director

assisted by the

Editorial & Communications Team.

 Contact us at emeriti@uc.edu

The UC Emeriti Association & Center

is supported by the

Office of the Provost for Academic Affairs.

University of Cincinnati Emeriti Association & Center

2412 Carl H. Lindner Hall

P.O. Box 210066

Cincinnati, OH 45221-0066

Issue No. 30 - May 2024