The Twinberry Theater at the Fort Collins Senior Center is the venue for our next movie playing on Wednesday, September 12th. Doors open at 1:30 pm, the movie starts at 2:00 pm. There will be free popcorn available. Following the movie, a facilitator-led discussion will allow viewers to participate in a dialogue on the film. 

Starring Robert Redford and Dusin Hoffman and directed by Alan Pakula.  In the run up to the 1972 elections, Washington Post reporter Bob Woodward covers what seems to be a minor break-in at the Democratic Party National headquarters.  But the discovery of names and addresses of Republican fund organizers connected to the accused arouses his suspicions.  Post Editor Benjamin Bradlee (Jason Robards) assigns Woodward (Redford) and Carl Bernstein (Hoffman) to the story.  They find the trail leading higher in the Republican Party and eventually to the White House itself.  138 min.

Kick off for Fall Registration

This is your opportunity to visit with the facilitators about their course offerings and to register for the class/classes of your choice. Light refreshments will be served. Front Range Forum classes will begin the week of September 10, 2018.

If your Senior Center membership has expired, please pay $45 for both Senior Center ($25) and Front Range Forum ($20) dues. Both your Senior Center membership and your Front Range Forum membership run for one full year from the date of payment. Dues are paid at the Senior Center front desk. 

The Twinberry Theater at the Fort Collins Senior Center is the venue for our next movie playing on Wednesday, August 8th. Doors open at 1:30 pm, the movie starts at 2:00 pm. There will be free popcorn available. Following the movie, a facilitator-led discussion will allow viewers to participate in a dialogue on the film. 

Written and directed by Olivier Dahan, this is a screen biopic of tragic French songstress Edith Piaf (Marion Cotillard).  Piaf is raised by her grandmother in a Normandy bordello, and is discovered on a street corner by cabaret proprietor Louis Leplee (Gerard Depardieu).  The film segues between various episodes from Piaf’s life; her abandonment as a young girl, her time with boxer Marcel Cerdan (Jean-Pierre Martins), her period in 1950s Hollywood, and her car accident and subsequent morphine addiction, leaving her barely mobile.  Yet, like Billie Holiday, she is able to funnel personal tragedy and emotions into her vocalizations, dazzling audiences in the process.  136 min.

Front Range Forum, 2018 Annual Meeting and Ice Cream Social

The year's annual meeting will be held at the Fort Collins Senior Center in the Twinberry Auditorium. There will be a brief business meeting including the election of a new Board President as well as acknowledgement of the many volunteers that keep Front Range Forum moving forward. The meeting will conclude with an Ice Cream Social for all.

Mark your calendars now for this event.

The Hour of Land

by Terry Tempest Williams

Wednesday, May 23, 2018

The time has come for acts of reverence and restraint on behalf of the Earth. We have arrived at the Hour of Land. What is your favorite national park? Do you know of Effigy Mounds National Monument in Iowa or the Gulf Islands National Seashore? In her book, The Hour of Land, Terry Tempest Williams takes us to 12 of her favorite parks, some well-known, some less so. Every tour is individual and unique.

There will be two presenters before breaking into small discussion groups:
1. The Literary Style of The Hour of Land by Sue Ellen Campbell, CSU.
2. Challenges Facing Rocky Mountain National Park by Tom Crow, US Forest Service.

Join the discussion on Wednesday, May 23, from 2:00 PM to 4:30 PM – followed by refreshments. The Hour of Land is available for $15.45 at Old Firehouse Books or from Amazon.

“Inspiring! Her organization The of Hour of Land is brilliant and invites discussion.” Dale Hein.

The Kick Off for Spring Term Registration
 

You can register at the February 8th Meet the Facilitators meeting. We always encourage you to attend this event. This is your opportunity to visit with the facilitators about their course offerings and to register for the class/classes of your choice. Light refreshments will be served. If your membership has expired, please pay $45 for both Senior Center ($25) and Front Range Forum ($20) dues. Both will run for one full year from the date of payment. Dues are paid at the Senior Center front desk. The Front Range Forum registrar does not accept payments for either the Senior Center or Front Range Forum dues.

We will be holding our Second Annual Book Swap on January 17 at the Senior Center from 1:30 - 3:30. Just so you know, we call it a book swap, but feel free to come without a book to swap and take as many as you like. We like to recycle books to people who have a wide range of interests and that certainly means Front Range Forum members.

FRONT RANGE FORUM EXPLORES

“Everything in the Song Is True”

GARY McMAHAN

Cowboy poet, guitarist and song writer
He'll show his 2016 documentary, his work and music and if we're lucky demonstrate some yodeling

Friday, November 10th

1:30 to 3:30 PM

Twinberry Auditorium

Please note that the date for this event has been changed from Monday, May 22nd to Tuesday, May 30th.

We are fortunate to have David Bayer, a master naturalist with the City of Fort Collins Natural Areas, as one of our members. David has offered to guide us on a hike at Bobcat Ridge. The hike is about 3 miles and follows the Valley Loop trail.

Trail description: The trail passes for one mile through the prairie in the glade (valley). It then ascends gently up about 100 feet in elevation for about a half-mile. We’ll turn south and follow the trail along the lower shrub and tree line for 1.2mile and then descend a half-mile back to the entrance.

The interpretive hike passes through three life zones: prairie, shrub lands and lower montane forest. Each of these vegetative zones will be explained as to its primary vegetation and the birds and mammals adapted to each. Several important geological principles and examples will also be demonstrated, e.g. Bobcat Ridge is the boundary between the foothills’ hogbacks and uplifts of the Rocky Mountains.

If you enjoy hiking and want to learn more about the natural areas, please join us on Tuesday, May 30th from 10:30 AM to 1:00 PM, Members only.

Bring a lunch to enjoy in the shade of the ponderosa forest about half-way through the hike. A brochure is available on-line at:
https://www.fcgov.com/naturalareas/pdf/bcr-brochure2014.pdf?1443629521

Directions to the Trailhead:

Bobcat Ridge's address is 10184 West County Road 32C, Loveland.

From Fort Collins, take Harmony Road west, it turns into CR 38 E. Follow CR 38 E to Masonville. Go left (south) at the Masonville Mercantile onto CR 27. Follow CR 27 about 1 mile to CR 32 C, head west about 1 mile to the Bobcat Ridge parking lot.

From Loveland, go west on Highway 34 about 4.5 miles west of Wilson Avenue. Turn north on CR 27 by Big Thompson Elementary and drive 4.5 miles. Turn left on CR 32C and go 1 mile west to the Bobcat Ridge parking lot.

The Ox-Bow Incident -- The Book

Set in 1885, The Ox-Bow Incident is a searing and realistic portrait of frontier life and mob violence in the American West. Published in 1940, it focuses on the lynching of three innocent men and the tragedy that ensues when law and order are abandoned, a universal story about good and evil, individual and community, justice and human nature.

One reviewer called it a "mature, unpitying examination of what causes men to love violence and to transgress justice," and the novel was selected for One Book, One Chicago Spring 2005.

Program Details:
Wednesday, August 24, in the Twinberry Auditorium
2:00 - 2:45PM        Presentations on the Fort Collins Lynching of 1888, cowboy poetry, and Walter Van Tilburg Clark
2:45 - 4:00PM        Discussion Groups
4:00 PM                 Continue the conversation at an ice cream socia

The book is available at Old Firehouse Books for about $8.00

No reservations are required
The program is open to non-members.

The Ox-Bow Incident -- The Movie

Set in 1885, The Ox-Bow Incident is a searing and realistic portrait of frontier life and mob violence in the American West. Published in 1940, it focuses on the lynching of three innocent men and the tragedy that ensues when law and order are abandoned, a universal story about good and evil, individual and community, justice and human nature.

One reviewer called it a "mature, unpitying examination of what causes men to love violence and to transgress justice," and the novel was selected for One Book, One Chicago Spring 2005.

In 1943, the novel was adapted into a movie of the same name, directed by William A. Wellman and starring Henry Fonda and Harry Morgan. Fonda regarded this  film as one of his favorites. The film was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture at the 16th Academy Awards, losing to Casablanca.

Program details:
Wednesday, August 17, in the Twinberry Auditorium

2:00 – 3:30PM The Ox-Bow Incident movie

No reservations are required                                                                                                                                                                 The program is open to non-members

The City of Fort Collins natural areas consists of 43 sites, with more than 40,000 acres of protected lands, and more than 100 miles of walking trails. Deciding where to walk next can be the toughest decision. Join us as Natural Areas Department experts share their favorite walking locations and the best time to visit them.
  
 

Walking the Natural Areas Details:

o    When - Wednesday, April 27; 2:00 - 3:30 pm
o    Where - Senior Center, Twinberry Auditorium
o    Who - Free and open to FRF members and non-members

Coloring for adults is this summer’s hottest craze. Today, adult coloring books fill eight of the top 20 slots on Amazon’s bestseller list. There are coloring clubs, coloring contests, and social media is filled with articles, videos, and examples of finished images. Whether coloring is a stress reducing technique, a simple creative outlet, or an alternative to television and the Internet, millions of people have gotten hooked on the hobby.
Join Lynn Lutkin and Mac McNeill to learn a little about the craze, to try pictures from the 100s of available coloring books, to test various pens, pencils and gels, and to learn a few basic skills that can make your work more interesting. Also, Joel
Rutstein will join us for a special challenge. Mostly, we’ll color together, relax, and have fun. If you wanted to try this new hobby, this is your chance.

• 􏰀  Date: Wednesday, October 21, from 2:00 to 4:00pm

• 􏰀  Location: Foxtail 1 & 2 Rooms

• 􏰀  Price: $10 per person for shared course materials.

• 􏰀  Limitation: Limited to a maximum of 30 people.

• 􏰀  Reservations Open: August 13 at 7am. Go to the Senior Center front desk or call (970) 221-6644.

• 􏰀  Registration Number: #407981-01 

Friday, July 17 - Senior Center Auditorium, 9:30 – 11:30

In the second classroom session, Kurt Terrio, President, Midtown Art Center and Director of Oklahoma!, will tell us how a musical is cast and staged and will lead a discussion of Oklahoma! and its themes.

Open to the public. Free admission. No registration required.

Thursday, July 16 – Midtown Arts Center, Fort Collins 5:30 – 10:30 pm
$50/Ticket (Includes play, entrée, dessert, taxes and tips. Excludes alcohol) Limited to the first 36 people that register, begining May 5.

Register by calling the Midtown Arts Center box office – (970) 225-2555 – and telling them you’re with Front Range Forum. If you already have season tickets, they will move them to July 16.
 

Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Oklahoma! July 16, 2015

“Finally we are proud to bring you the classic of all classics. Oklahoma! is one of the crown jewels of American Musical Theater. Featuring such favorites as: “Oh What a Beautiful Morning,” “I Can't Say No” and the title number “Oklahoma!” Never before done by Midtown, this show will not disappoint.”

Thursday, July 16 - Senior Center Auditorium, 9:30 – 11:30

In the first of two classroom sessions, a series of speakers will give us the background we need to enjoy Oklahoma! as more than a frivolous musical. We’ll learn about Green Grow the Lilacs, the play that becomes Oklahoma!, and discuss the music, dances, scenery and themes of the musical.

Discover why and how:
     Producing Oklahoma! is a challenge on many levels,
     Rodgers & Hammerstein created a uniquely rich play with memorable music,
    A ballet is incorporated and established a career for one of America’s icon, 
    The story is small, but the complexities are huge.

Open to the Public. Free admission. No registration required.

This year's annual meeting will be held in the Twinberry Theater at the Fort Collins Senior Center. At 1:30 pm, Susan Marie Frontczak will give a performance as Mary Shelley, a significant contributor to the rise of independent English women authors early in the 1800s. This performance is a preview of this summer's Front Range Forum Reads. The book is Frankenstein by Mary Shelley.

Following this performance, other announcements and summaries for this year will be presented by various Board members. The annual meeting will conclude with an ice cream social. Plan to attend.

The Twinberry Theater at the Fort Collins Senior Center is the venue for our next movie playing on Wednesday, June 10. Doors open at 1:30 pm, the movie starts at 2:00 pm. There will be free popcorn available. Following the movie, a facilitator-led discussion will allow viewers to participate in a dialogue on the film. 

Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Zooey Deschanel star in director Marc Webb's wry, nonlinear romantic comedy about a man who falls head over heels for a woman who doesn't believe in Love.  Tom (Gordon-Levitt) is an aspiring architect earning his living as a greeting card writer.  Upon encountering his boss' lovely new secretary, Summer (Deschanel), he discovers the pair have plenty in common and Tom is smitten.  He deeply believes in the concept of soul mates, but unfortunately for Tom, Summer sees true love as the stuff of fairy tales.  Stay tuned.

Early in his career, Joan Miró (pronounced Jwan mr-OH) primarily painted still-lifes, landscapes and generic scenes. But in 1920 Miró made his first trip to Paris, where he met Pablo Picasso, and his work changed forever. While Miro can’t be identified with a single school, he is most often classified as a Surrealist. His artistic career is one of persistent experimentation, in paint, print and sculpture. Join us as we explore one of the most interesting artists of the 20th century.

Thursday, June 4 – Senior Center Auditorium, 10 -12 noon

Joan Miro, His Life and Art - a lecture by Stephanie Newton

Modernism: Early 20th Century Art - a Cleveland Museum of Art videoconference

Free admission.

The Twinberry Theater at the Fort Collins Senior Center is the venue for our next movie playing on Wednesday, April 8. Doors open at 1:30 pm, the movie starts at 2:00 pm. There will be free popcorn available. Following the movie, a facilitator-led discussion will allow viewers to participate in a dialogue on the film. 

Warren Schmidt (Jack Nicholson) is a retired insurance salesman, who at age 66 has no plans other than to drive around in the motor home that his wife insisted he purchase.  Schmidt is not quite bitter, but not altogether happy either.  Everything his wife does annoys him and he disapproves of the man his daughter is about to marry.  When his wife suddenly dies, he sets out to postpone this imminent marriage, while coping with discoveries about his late wife and himself in the process.

Registration opens on Tuesday, February 17, 2015  (Open to members and Non-Members)

Jack Reacher in Book and Film
One of the top mystery writers working today is Lee Child. His hero, Jack Reacher, has found millions of fans around the world. In December 2012, Paramount Studios released the movie Jack Reacher, starring Tom Cruise, based on the novel One Shot by Lee Child. Read the novel and then join us in the auditorium as we view the film and discuss the question: Which format tells the better story and why?

Here is a synopsis of the movie:
In an innocent heartland city, five are shot dead by an expert sniper. The police quickly identify and arrest the culprit, and build a slam-dunk case. But instead of confessing, the accused man writes the words, "Jack Reacher." Reacher sets out to confirm for himself the absolute certainty of the man's guilt, but comes up with more than he bargained for.

Facilitators: Mac McNeill & Rodger Myers
When: Thursday, March 26, 1 – 4pm
Where: Twinberry Auditorium, Fort Collins Senior Center                   Cost: $5 per person, No limit but registration is required.                   Registration Opens: Tuesday, February 17, 2015                       Activity Code: 207478-01. Please register at the Senior Center Front Desk and pay the registration fee at that time.

Sparks of Hope: Insurgent Rock Music: Anthems of the 1960's

Fred Enssle is a retired professor of History from Colorado State University.  The music of the 1960's has fascinated him for many years and he has done research on its influence on people and other musicians.

The talk will be on Thursday, March 12th from 1:30 until 3:30 at the Fort Collins Senior Center in the Twinberry Auditorium.

We look forward to seeing you there to relive the music of our times.

Bring a friend and enjoy the popcorn.

The Twinberry Theater at the Fort Collins Senior Center is the venue for our next movie playing on Wednesday, March 11. Doors open at 1:30 pm, the movie starts at 2:00 pm. There will be free popcorn available. Following the movie, a facilitator-led discussion will allow viewers to participate in a dialogue on the film. 

A lyrical and sometimes surreal film about a man in the twilight of his life, the movie explores director Ingmar Bergman’s recurrent themes of innocent children subjected to dishonorable elders.  The old man in Wild Strawberries realizes too late that he’s failed to create meaningful relationships with those near to him and remembers, with some dishonesty, his often painful past.

The Twinberry Theater at the Fort Collins Senior Center is the venue for our next movie playing on Wednesday, February 11. Doors open at 1:30 pm, the movie starts at 2:00 pm. There will be free popcorn available. Following the movie, a facilitator-led discussion will allow viewers to participate in a dialogue on the film. 

Oscar winners Anthony Hopkins and Emma Thompson reunite with the acclaimed filmmakers Merchant Ivory for this moving story of blind devotion and repressed love.  Hopkins plays Stevens, the perfect English butler, as he serves his master, Lord Darlington (James Fox). Like other members of the British upper class in the 1930s, Darlington is duped by the Nazis into trying to establish a rapport between Germany and the British Government.  Thompson plays the estate’s housekeeper, who watches the ggoings-on with horror.  Despite her apprehensions, she and Stevens gradually fall in love, though neither will admit it. 

Front Range Forum Reads!

Front Range Forum Reads is aimed at bringing our membership together over the discussion of two books each year, a nonfiction book in the winter and a work of fiction in the summer. Our Winter 2015 selection, our very first selection is . . .

             “One Summer: America, 1927”
                            By Bill Bryson

Knowing that history is a favorite subject area of FRF readers, we have chosen a readable, lively account of several significant events that occurred in a few months in a single year. Bryson covers Lindbergh’s solo flight across the Atlantic, Babe Ruth’s long-standing homerun record, and the low-key presidency of Calvin Coolidge, along with the capture of Al Capone, the seeds of the Great Depression two years later, and other fascinating stories. Old Firehouse Books will have the paperback edition for sale for $15 (their discounted price).

Once you’ve read the book, here’s what is planned:

A Deeper Dive (Saturday, January 17 from 10:00 to 11:00) – On that Saturday we offer you the chance to go deeper into one of the major topics covered in the book; choose from among these three concurrent one-hour programs, which will combine videos and discussion to do a “deeper dive”:

Lindbergh and Aviation – Twinberry Auditorium                                                                Baseball, Boxing, and the Sports of the 1920s – Foxtail 2                                          The Politicians and Anarchists – Sand Lily

The Twinberry Theater at the Fort Collins Senior Center is the venue for our next movie playing on Wednesday, December 10. Doors open at 1:30 pm, the movie starts at 2:00 pm. There will be free popcorn available. Following the movie, a facilitator-led discussion will allow viewers to participate in a dialogue on the film. 

Woody Allen's nostalgic tribute to the glory days of radio and coming-of-age during World War II.  Seth Green is Joe, a teenage Jewish boy growing up with a house full of relatives in Brooklyn.  Allen cuts between Joe's working class neighborhood of Rockaway Beach, and the glitter and glamour of radio in Manhattan.  Some have compared this movie to Fellini's "Amarcord" filtered through Neil Simon.

The Twinberry Theater at the Fort Collins Senior Center is the venue for our next movie playing on Wednesday, December 10. Doors open at 1:30 pm, the movie starts at 2:00 pm. There will be free popcorn available. Following the movie, a facilitator-led discussion will allow viewers to participate in a dialogue on the film. 

Lars Lindstrom (Ryan Gossling) is a lovable introvert whose emotional baggage has kept him from fully embracing life. After years of near solitude, he invites Bianca, a friend he met on the internet to visit him. He introduces Bianca to his brother Gus and wife Karen, and they are stunned. Bianca is not a real person, but a life size doll. They consult the family doctor who explains this is a delusion Lars created, but they better go along with it! What follows is an emotional journey for Lars and the people around him. (1 hr. 46 min.)

For additional information, please contact Joel Rutstein.

This is your opportunity to visit with the facilitators of the winter 2015 term courses about their offerings and to register for the class/classes of your choice. Classes begin on Monday, January 12, 2015 and end on Friday, March 6, 2015. Registration closes on Friday, November 28, 2014. Light refreshments will be served. If your Senior Center membership has expired, please pay $45 for both Senior Center ($25) and Front Range Forum ($20) dues. Otherwise renew your FRF dues whenever you pay for the Senior Center. Both now will run for one full year from the date of payment. Dues are paid at the Senior Center front desk. The Front Range Forum registrar no longer accepts payments for either the Senior Center or Front Range Forum dues. 

Join us for a live video conference with Britt Cornett, from the Chilhuly Studios on Dale Chihuly, some of his major installations and works, and his exhibition currently at the Denver Botanic Gardens. There will be time for questions and answers at the end of the presentation.

This event is brought to you free of charge by the Front Range Forum, the Fort Collins Senior Center and the Senior Learning Network.