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OFFSITE TOUR: 220 North Huron Street, Ypsilanti
Enrollment: This tour is limited to 10 attendees. A waitlist will be available.
Please let the Elderwise office know if, after registering, you are unable to attend this tour. This gives students on the waitlist an opportunity to join. It also helps the onsite class assistant.
The Ypsilanti Historical Museum’s collections are housed in a handsome Italianate mansion built in 1860 by banker Asa Dow. The building’s fourteen rooms are filled with 19th century furnishings and artifacts donated by the area’s residents. It features two parlors, a country kitchen, a solarium, and rooms dedicated to crafts, costumes, music, tools, and toys. There is a room celebrating some of Ypsilanti’s more notable past citizens, their industries, and their accomplishments. If time allows, we will descend to the basement for a quick look at the extensive city archives - which include items such as maps, photographs, directories, court records, tax rolls, and obituaries. The museum is operated and maintained by volunteers, most of whom have local connections, as well as by interns from the historic preservation program at Eastern Michigan University. John A. Stewart is a retired software developer with degrees in biology from the University of Michigan. He has served as a volunteer docent at the Ypsilanti Historical Museum for the past 13 years. Driving directions and parking instructions will be emailed to class registrants a few days before the tour.
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Fee: $15.00
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Instructor: John A. Stewart
Capacity Remaining: -1
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Dates: 3/28/2025 - 3/28/2025
Times: 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM
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Sessions: 1
Days: F
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Building: Offsite
Room: Ypsilanti Historical Museum
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Come join us for a fun and rewarding experience!
This volunteer opportunity is FREE, but you must register.
OFFSITE: Food Gatherers Facility, 1 Carrot Way, Ann Arbor
Food Gatherers exists to alleviate hunger and eliminate its causes in our community. Established in 1988 as Michigan’s first food rescue program and the sixth in the United States, Food Gatherers is the first food rescue program to be founded by a for-profit business, Zingerman’s Delicatessen. Food Gatherers rescues several tons of food daily that volunteers help process, inspect, and sort. Since Food Gatherers relies on donations from the community, they cannot predict what they will be getting from one day to the next; therefore, specific tasks are often not determined until the day of the shift. Driving directions and parking instructions will be sent to registrants a few days in advance of the tour.
Enrollment: This volunteer opportunity is limited to 20 attendees. A waitlist will be available.
Please let the Elderwise office know if, after registering, you are unable to attend this event. This gives students on the waitlist an opportunity to join. It also helps the onsite class assistant.
NOTE #1: The professional staff at Food Gatherers know we are primarily seniors and will not ask our volunteers to move or lift heavy items. The shift does involve being on your feet for two hours. In past terms we have been tasked with sorting produce in the refrigerated room so wear something warm. Our specific assignment depends on what they have on hand that day, so let's be prepared.
NOTE #2: Volunteers must wear sensible closed-toed shoes (no sandals) and shirts with t-shirt length sleeves or longer. A head covering (hat, beanie, bandana, etc.) is required for most tasks. Hairnets will be provided if you need one. You may be in the Green Room which is temperature controlled around 50 degrees F, so it’s a good idea to bring an extra layer such as a sweatshirt or a coat. Also, keep in mind you may be working with open food and things can get a bit messy. If you are wearing clothing that does not comply with these guidelines, you will not be able to volunteer.
REQUIRED: A Group Member Volunteer Waiver Form and more information will be sent to all registrants a few days prior to the tour. Please bring the form with you when you come to volunteer. Please be on time with your waivers filled out. If you decide to fill out a waiver on site, please arrive a few minutes early.
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Fee: $0.00
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Instructor(s): Professional Staff Food Bank Program, Food Gatherers
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Dates: 4/14/2025 - 4/14/2025
Times: 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM
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Sessions: 1
Days: M
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Building: Offsite
Room: Food Gatherers Facility
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OFFSITE TOUR: Scio Woods Preserve, 4000 Scio Church Road, Ann Arbor MI
Enrollment: This tour is limited to 15 attendees. A waitlist will be available.
Please let the Elderwise office know if you are unable to attend this tour. This gives students on the waitlist an opportunity to join. It also helps the onsite class assistant.
Vernal pool life abounds in spring when the water level is high and the winter snows have melted. Join Washtenaw County Parks naturalist Elle Bogle for a morning exploration of these incredible ephemeral ecosystems. We will use dip nets to examine tiny creatures from frog and salamander larvae to fairy shrimp and learn to identify the aquatic dwellers of these remarkable habitats hidden beneath the smooth water of leafy, woodland pools. Please wear tall boots that can get wet and muddy. Elle Bogle is a passionate outdoor educator and adventurer who takes pride in connecting people with the beauty of nature. She has been working as a naturalist with Washtenaw County Parks and Recreation Commission for four years and as an environmental specialist with the Ann Arbor Public Schools for five years. Her specialties are amphibians and reptiles, dragonflies, and mindfulness in nature. She is an avid reader and book lover who also enjoys traveling, kayaking, hiking, and spending time with her family. Driving directions and parking instructions will be emailed to the class registrants a few days before the tour.
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Fee: $15.00
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Instructor(s): Elle Bogle
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Dates: 4/15/2025 - 4/15/2025
Times: 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM
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Sessions: 1
Days: Tu
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Building: Offsite
Room: Scio Woods Preserve
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OFFSITE TOUR: LeFurge Woods Nature Preserve
Enrollment: This tour is limited to 15 attendees. A waitlist will be available.
Please let the Elderwise office know if you are unable to attend this tour. This gives students on the waitlist an opportunity to join. It also helps the onsite class assistant.
Join botanist Bev Walters on a wildflower walk through LeFurge Woods just north of Ypsilanti, where the rich woodland never fails to delight the nature explorer. It is home to the typical spring wildflowers such as Trillium, Wild Ginger and various Violets, and it also harbors some of the less common species like Waterleaf, Spring Cress, and Blue Cohosh. Trails are often muddy in the spring, so wear appropriate footwear. Beverly Walters has experience both as a field botanist and a Museum Collections Manager at the University of Michigan Herbarium. Now retired, she helps maintain and improve the Herbarium's Michigan Flora Online website (https://michiganflora.net), a popular resource for plant identification. Bev pursued her botanical studies at Michigan State University. Driving directions and parking instructions will be emailed to class registrants a few days before the tour.
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Fee: $15.00
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Instructor(s): Beverly Walters
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Dates: 5/1/2025 - 5/1/2025
Times: 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM
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Sessions: 1
Days: Th
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Building: Offsite
Room: LeFurge Woods Nature Preserve
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- This class has reached the enrollment limit. Please click the "Add to Waitlist" button below.
OFFSITE TOUR: Northwest Washtenaw County
This hike is limited to 8 attendees.
Note: Because the enrollment is limited and Tom’s hikes are popular, he will be guiding this same exact hike on May 30.
Please let the Elderwise office know if you are unable to attend this tour. This gives students on the waitlist an opportunity to join. It also helps the onsite class assistant.
Mud Lake Bog occupies part of a 260-acre property owned and protected by the University of Michigan, west of Whitmore Lake. It is a true bog system - an open, often floating wetland characterized by an absence of water input from streams and by acid-loving plants adapted to nutrient-poor conditions. The bog is reached by a strenuous slog through densely tangled swamp land and wet mucky ground. Those who persevere will be rewarded by the breathtaking open aspect of the quaking peat bog itself and the lake it still surrounds after thousands of years. Hikers should dress warmly in old clothing and wear boots suitable for walking through pooled water and mud. Tom Friedlander is a retired University of Michigan trained tree-and-shrub taxonomist who spent 38 years teaching and coaching at Greenhills School in Ann Arbor. Driving directions and parking instructions will be emailed to class registrants a few days before the tour.
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Fee: $15.00
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Instructor: Tom Friedlander
Capacity Remaining: 0
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Dates: 5/16/2025 - 5/16/2025
Times: 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM
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Sessions: 1
Days: F
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Building: Offsite
Room: Mud Lake Bog
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OFFSITE TOUR: Northwest Washtenaw County
This hike is limited to 8 attendees.
Note: Because the enrollment is limited and Tom’s hikes are popular, he will be guiding this same exact hike on May 16.
Please let the Elderwise office know if you are unable to attend this tour. This gives students on the waitlist an opportunity to join. It also helps the onsite class assistant.
Mud Lake Bog occupies part of a 260-acre property owned and protected by the University of Michigan, west of Whitmore Lake. It is a true bog system - an open, often floating wetland characterized by an absence of water input from streams and by acid-loving plants adapted to nutrient-poor conditions. The bog is reached by a strenuous slog through densely tangled swamp land and wet mucky ground. Those who persevere will be rewarded by the breathtaking open aspect of the quaking peat bog itself and the lake it still surrounds after thousands of years. Hikers should dress warmly in old clothing and wear boots suitable for walking through pooled water and mud. Tom Friedlander is a retired University of Michigan trained tree-and-shrub taxonomist who spent 38 years teaching and coaching at Greenhills School in Ann Arbor. Driving directions and parking instructions will be emailed to class registrants a few days before the tour.
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Fee: $15.00
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Instructor(s): Tom Friedlander
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Dates: 5/30/2025 - 5/30/2025
Times: 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM
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Sessions: 1
Days: F
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Building: Offsite
Room: Mud Lake Bog
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OFFSITE TOUR: Villa Barr Art Park, 22600 Napier Rd, Novi MI 48374
Registrants are welcome to bring and enjoy a snack in the Park’s picnic area after the tour.
Time: 2:00 to 3:30 p.m.
In 1975, internationally renowned sculptor David Barr began creating his home and studios in what was a cornfield near Novi, Michigan. Over the next 40 years David and his wife, dancer Beth Dwaihy Barr, transformed the site, creating verdant gardens surrounding a small lake, where David installed over 20 major sculptures. The site is now Villa Barr Art Park, a singularly unique park with pathways and a picnic area, where visitors can discover, imagine, and unwind. Ken Stevens will serve as docent for a tour focusing on the interwoven dependence of life in the arts, sciences, and humanities. We also hope to include a presentation by resident artist, Australian sculptor Deborah Redwood. Ken Stevens came to Michigan from the University of Cincinnati. He is Professor Emeritus at Eastern Michigan University, where he created both the musical theater program and the graduate and undergraduate programs in arts management. Driving directions and parking instructions will be emailed to class registrants a few days before the class. Registrants are welcome to bring and enjoy a snack in the Park’s picnic area after the tour.
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Fee: $15.00
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Instructor(s): Ken Stevens
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Dates: 6/3/2025 - 6/3/2025
Times: 2:00 PM - 3:30 PM
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Sessions: 1
Days: Tu
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Building: Offsite
Room: Villa Barr Art Park
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OFFSITE TOUR: Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History, Detroit, MI
Time: 8:00 am. to 4:45 p.m.
Enrollment: This tour is limited to 15 attendees. A waitlist will be available.
Please let the Elderwise office know if you are unable to attend this tour. This gives students on the waitlist an opportunity to join. It also helps the onsite class assistant.
Fee: Member $32 Nonmember $37
Fee includes roundtrip bus fare, museum entrance, and docent fees. Lunch cost is not included.
For over a half century, the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American history has dedicated itself to exploring and celebrating the rich cultural legacy of African Americans. Join us as we travel to Detroit on the D2A2 bus, leaving from the Blake Transit Center on Fifth Ave in downtown Ann Arbor at 8:00 a.m. When we get to Detroit, we will transfer to the Qline, to arrive near the museum. We will walk to a restaurant for lunch, the cost of the lunch is not included in the class fee. Following the Museum tour, we will take the Qline back to Grand Circus Park to board the bus to Ann Arbor, arriving at the Blake Transit Center around 4:45 p.m. Please note there will be a fair amount of walking to access our transfers and the restaurant. Class fee includes roundtrip bus fare, museum entrance, and docent fees. Lunch cost is not included. Additional details will be emailed to class registrants a few days prior to the tour.
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Fee: $37.00
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Instructor(s): Docent Charles H. Wright Museum
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Dates: 6/6/2025 - 6/6/2025
Times: 8:00 AM - 4:45 PM
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Sessions: 1
Days: F
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Building: Offsite
Room: Charles H. Wright Museum
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OFFSITE TOUR: Matthaei Botanical Gardens, 1800 North Dixboro Road, Ann Arbor, MI
Enrollment: This class is limited to 25 attendees. A waitlist will be available.
Fee: Member $10, Nonmember $5
Plus and additional $10 for entrance fee.
Note: Parking is $4 for two hours, payable at the kiosk
Matthaei Botanical Gardens education team members will lead an interactive tour of the Great Lakes Gardens and Conservatory to explore plants from the unique plant communities in the Great Lakes Region and from around the world. The Great Lakes Gardens re-create our region’s natural habitats such as open dunes, alvar, and prairies. We will see species found in Michigan and nowhere else in the world, as well as native orchids, and prairie wildflowers. In the gardens, a series of accessible pathways, boardwalks, and overlooks invites up-close views of plants we might never encounter in the wild, while interpretation illuminates the role conservation plays in protecting this unique diversity. Walking shoes are recommended. Stations where one can sit and rest will be available throughout the tour. The tour will be led by Matthaei-Nichols Professional Docent Staff. Driving and parking directions will be sent to class registrants a few days before the tour.
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Fee: $15.00
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Instructor(s): Gardens Matthaei Botanical
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Dates: 6/13/2025 - 6/13/2025
Times: 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM
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Sessions: 1
Days: F
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Building: Offsite
Room: Matthaei Botanical Gardens
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