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Update from the Executive Director
A shared goal for many of us is to remain living in our home as long as we are able. The desire for greater independence and choice, individuality and purpose are the primary driving factors. Often, we expend enormous amounts of energy planning and putting into place whatever is needed to support this goal.
For some, finances, health concerns or both, prevent the achievement of this goal creating a sense of helplessness and vulnerability. Articles swirling around elder abuse in nursing homes and assisted living settings compound the angst.
In January, a work group consisting of Minnesota Elder Justice Center in collaboration with AARP Minnesota, Alzheimer's Association, Elder Voice Family Advocates, and Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid released a report recommending ways to address abuse, neglect, care and safety regulations within these settings. The report focuses on four, key areas:
* Enhancing rights of older and vulnerable adults and their families;
* Strengthening criminal and civil enforcement of rights;
* Developing new licensure frameworks for assisted living and dementia care
across residential settings; and
* Improving Minnesota Department of Health licensing regulation, Office of Health
Facility Complaints enforcement and investigative process, and Minnesota Adult
Abuse Reporting Center processes.
MILL CITY COMMONS: We learn. We share. We engage. We give.
~ Joan Wright
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Technology Help Desk
Tuesday, March 6, 1:00 - 2:30 pm 
MCC office, 125 Main St SE, Ste 339
Schedule time with a tech support guru and have your nagging technology questions answered during our complimentary Help Desk. Support for both Apple products and PCs is available. After you register, MCC will confirm the time of your 20-minute one-on-one session. Reminder: Installing or upgrading software and creating accounts cannot be included in the Help Desk session, as they exceed the allotted appointment time.
Registration is now closed. If you'd like to be added to the waiting list if there is a cancellation, please email [email protected]. |
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Rendezvous Readers' Book Chat
Wednesday, March 7, 9:30 - 10:30 am
Abiitan's Porter Cafe, 428 2nd St S
 Join us to discuss
Epitaph by Mary Doria Russell. An American
Iliad, this richly detailed and meticulously researched historical novel continues the story the author began in
Doc, following Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday to Tombstone, Arizona, and to the gunfight at the O.K. Corral. A deeply divided nation. Vicious politics. A president loathed by half the populace. Armed citizens willing to stand their ground and take law into their own hands. That was America in 1881.
Epitaph tells Earp's real story, unearthing the Homeric tragedy buried under 130 years of mythology, misrepresentation and sheer indifference to fact. Epic and intimate, this novel gives voice to the real men and women whose lives were changed forever by those fatal 30 seconds in Tombstone. At its heart is the woman behind the myth: Josephine Sarah Marcus, who loved Wyatt Earp for 49 years and who carefully chipped away at the truth until she had crafted the heroic legend that would become the epitaph her husband deserved.
If you'd like to read ahead, April's book is Hero of the Empire by Candice Millard. Have a book suggestion for the Book Chat? Email [email protected]. |
Men's Coffee and Conversation
Thursday, March 8, 7:30 - 8:30 am 
Elsie's Restaurant, 729 Marshall St NE
It's caffeine and camaraderie for the male members of MCC and guests! This group meets every other Thursday and is hosted by various members who get the conversation going. Please register by the Monday prior to Men's Coffee and Conversation. Dan Johnson, MCC Community Partner, will speak on "Catholic Eldercare: A Resource to Your Community." Learn more about Catholic Eldercare, a near-downtown resource offering housing, services and support based on your level of independence.
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Syria Crisis and the Arab Spring: A Current Perspective
Thursday, March 8, 7:00 - 8:30 pm
Winslow House, 100 2nd St SE
 Join us as Syrian-American Mazen Halabi shares his views on the Syria crisis. He'll give a historical perspective on Syria's involvement in the Mideast, talk about the impact of the Arab Spring and address geopolitical interests, including those of the United States, on Syria's future. Halabi left his home country of Syria for the United States after the 1982 Hama massacre, in which more than 40,000 people were killed by then-President Hafez Assad. He now works in the IT industry and serves as public relations director for Watan, a Syrian civil society organization.
Registration is now closed. If you'd like to be added to the waiting list, please email [email protected].
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Shariah: Some Myths and Some Reality
Monday, March 12, 7:00 - 8:30 pm
Carlyle Great Room, 100 3rd Ave S 
"Shariah," the Islamic legal tradition, has become almost as controversial a word as "jihad," and frequently as poorly misunderstood. While Muslim countries have not experienced the secularization of Western societies, and shariah thus remains more powerful and traditional than Jewish and Christian parallels, its most notorious aspects are extremely rare, or confused with local tribal practices not actually justified by classic Islamic jurisprudence. Bill Davnie has lived and worked in three Muslim-majority countries and has a background in religious studies. He will seek to sketch out how shariah law operates in Muslim-majority countries and among Muslim minority communities, and why it's not a threat to Western legal systems.
MCC members sign up here. |
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After Hours Connect: Minneapolis Foundation
Tuesday, March 13, 5:00 - 7:00 pm
Minneapolis Foundation, 8000 IDS Center, 80 S 8th St
 Please join us for an MCC After Hours Connect program at the Minneapolis Foundation. We'll hear from Foundation CEO and President R.T. Rybak and his team about what the Foundation is doing to spark a positive change in our community. All MCC men and women are invited to attend. Refreshments will be served.
After Hours Connect is an evening gathering of MCC men and women, many of whom are still working full time, that connects on an occasional basis over a speaker, tour or social event. All MCC members are welcome.
MCC members sign up here. |
Social Bridge
Wednesday, March 14, 3:00 - 5:00 pm 
Washburn Lofts, 700 S 2nd St
Join bridge players for a round of social bridge; levels of expertise and experience vary. Bring a partner if you can, and remember to register both yourself and your partner. Questions? Contact Carol Jordan at [email protected].
MCC members sign up here; guests email MCC. |
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Our Turn
Thursday, March 15, 10:00 - 11:30 am
Mill City Quarter Club Room, 322 2nd St S
 MCC women, you're invited to attend Our Turn: A Conversation for Women. This week, Sonia Cairns and Ginny Craig host a discussion on the #MeToo movement. We've heard about generational differences among women in the #MeToo movement, that women of a certain age say they were socialized to accept sexual harassment, advances and assaults. And now there's a backlash to some claims being made by women in the movement. We want to hear your experiences. What was it like to be a child, a young woman in college, a professional woman and/or a woman in your broader world? How have your views changed-or not-over the past several years? How might our perspective support those who are still reeling from sexual aggression toward women?
Our Turn meets every other Thursday, alternating between morning and afternoon times. Hosts and topics change each time.
MCC members sign up here; guests email MCC. |
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Great Decisions: The Waning of Pax Americana
Monday, March 19, 7:00 - 8:30 pm
DeLaSalle High School, 1 DeLaSalle Dr, Room D104 
During the first months of Donald Trump's presidency, the U.S. began a historic shift away from Pax Americana, the liberal international order that was established in the wake of World War II. Since 1945, Pax Americana has promised peaceful international relations and an open economy, buttressed by U.S. military power. In championing "America First" isolationism and protectionism, President Trump has shifted the political mood toward selective U.S. engagement, where foreign commitments are limited to areas of vital U.S. interest and economic nationalism is the order of the day. Geopolitical allies and challengers alike are paying close attention. Speaker Dr. Mary Curtin had a 25-year career as a State Department foreign service officer before joining the U of M's Humphrey School of Public Affairs as Diplomat-in-Residence in 2013.
Registration on the MCC website is required for Great Decisions members.
Sorry, not open to guests; to join the MCC Great Decisions Discussion Group, email Betsy Wray at [email protected].
MCC GD members sign up here.
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Nosy Neighbor Tour: Sports Check It Out
Thursday, March 22, 4:30 - 5:30 pm
Cedar Riverside Community School, 1610 S 6th St
 "Sports Check It Out" is an innovative program developed by four entrepreneurial junior high students in Cedar Riverside Community School. It's a library system for any K-12 youth in the neighborhood to check out sports equipment, sports safety gear and quality winter clothing. It was created, designed and is run by the four students who, in 2016, won the Social Innovation Grand Prize. The prize included cash awards for the program and a trip to the 2017 Super Bowl. Learn more about the program here. If you'd like to walk to Cedar Riverside Community School, meet in front of the Guthrie at 4:00 p.m., where MCC member Claudia Kittock will lead the way. If you're driving, find parking information here.
MCC members sign up here. |
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Sunday Soiree
Sunday, March 25, 5:00 - 7:00 pm 
RiverWest Community Room, 401 1st St S
Join your friends and neighbors for the MCC Sunday Soiree, hosted by John & Sonia Cairns, Carol Hovey, Lois Libby Juster, Linnea Olesen and Sabina Sten at RiverWest. Please contribute to the potluck by bringing a hearty hors d'oeuvre, main dish salad or dessert to serve at least 8. As you register, let us know what you'll bring by answering the "Question" that will appear on the screen. You are welcome to bring your own wine or beer to share.
MCC members sign up here. |
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Indoor Cycling Fun with MCC
Monday, March 26, 9:30 - 10:15 am
CycleBar, 2927 Girard Ave S
 Join us for a free trial of a tailor-made fitness and fun program for Mill City Commons! Cyclebar, a premiere indoor cycling experience (like spinning) has created a special fitness/social class just for Mill City Commons members. The 45-minute session is designed specifically for our age group-our music (Motown, Broadway show tunes, classic rock, Frank Sinatra, etc.), with an instructor/leader who listens to just what we want. If there's enough interest following this trial class, CycleBar will offer MCC members a series of cycle classes (a package of five, 45-minute classes for $69) at this same time slot. Parking is available in the same building as Cyclebar (which is right across the street from the Lagoon movie theater in Uptown) or at meters on the street.
MCC members sign up here. |
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MCC Program Calendar
Plan ahead! View the full calendar of MCC's March events
here.
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News from Members
MCC member Lou Burdick suggests you don't miss the Mill City Singers (a community group which includes about 10 MCC members) who will be performing from 7:00-7:45 pm at a free event in the Target Atrium at Orchestra Hall prior to the March 9 & 10 performances of Pink Martini at Orchestra Hall.
If you are interested in joining other MCC'ers and friends for an afternoon of TWINS baseball at Target Field, contact MCC member Allan Burdick at [email protected]. Select one or more games from a schedule of nine mid-week/mid-day and four weekend contests. Tickets only $22 and located in 3rd deck behind home plate. No limit on number of tickets requested. For details on game dates, times and opponents, click here.
MCC member Diane Hoftsede invites members to the Great River Coalition's 2018 Earth Day 5K Run/Walk and River Cleanup at Boom Island Park! The event takes place on 4/21. The race begins at 9:00 am, with river cleanup starting at 9:30 am. Click
here for more information on the race and cleanup. There are also plenty of
volunteer opportunities. Consider volunteering together with your MCC friends!
MCC member Scotty Gillette thought members might want to read the following article: "Lowest Ever Black Jobless Rate is Still Twice That of Whites" from this week's New York Times. It highlights Minneapolis' more hospitable economy and lauds Summit Academy in North Minneapolis and Mortenson Contruction for their efforts in addressing this unacceptable issue.
MCC member Bill Davnie encourages members to read the article "The Age-Friendly City Can't Be Just For the Wealthy." In it, University of Manchester researchers argue that the movement to make cities more livable for older residents must expand its work on inequality.
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Around Town
Connecting with Movement and Music
Every Wednesday, March 7-April 11, 12:45-2:15 pm, East Side Neighborhood Services, 1700 2nd St NE
Join this class intended to bridge the gap between "I want to" -- and "I Can." Led by dance instructor, Christopher Yaeger, and sponsored by ArtStart, this class is full of easy enjoyable activities that integrate music, dance and singing. Move, Stretch, Strengthen, Release, Rejuvenate and Radiate and have fun! Register by emailing
Assassins
Now through March 18, 2:00 & 7:30 pm, Theater Latte Da, 345 13th Ave NE
A multiple Tony Award-winning theatrical tour-de-force, Assassins combines Stephen Sondheim's signature blend of intelligent lyrics and stunning music with a panoramic story of our nation's culture of celebrity and the violent means some will use to obtain it. The musical provides a glimpse into the psychology of America's four successful and five would-be presidential assassins. Bold, original, disturbing, and alarmingly funny, Assassins has been called "the most controversial musical ever written." Click
here to purchase tickets.
Global Conversations: Media and Foreign Policy
March 13, 6:00 pm, Minneapolis Central Library, 300 Nicollet Mall
State and non-state actors today must maneuver in a complex and rapidly evolving media landscape. Conventional journalism now competes with user-generated content. Join a thought-provoking conversation with Ethar El-Katatney on how actors are using media to pursue and defend their interests in the international arena and what the implications are for U.S. policy. Free, but seating is limited and registration is required
here.
Aging with Dignity and Respect: It's a Social Justice Issue
March 20, 1:00-2:30 pm, East Side Neighborhood Services, 1700 2nd St NE
As we experience aging across our communities, there is an urgent need to plan for the prevention of elder abuse, neglect and financial exploitation. These crimes are significantly under reported, and have far-reaching impacts on victims and their families, friends and neighbors. Join this forum on prevention and intervention and learn how to make our neighborhood a safer place for all. Register
here.
Mill City Times
is a local website devoted specifically to our neighborhood and a place to go to find out what's happening, whether it's a new restaurant opening, a local event, proposed construction, volunteer opportunities and more.
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Volunteer Opportunities
Click
here
for community volunteer opportunities on the MCC website!
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MCC Ongoing Social Opportunities
Dutch Treat
Social Hour
Mondays, 4:00-5:00 pm
Jefe Urban Hacienda
219 Main St SE
Drop in for an afternoon coffee or drink and a casual chat. No reservations
required.
Guthrie Play Reading
RiverWest Group
Tuesday, 3/6,
6:30-9:30 pm
The group will be reading "Familiar" this month.
North Star Group
Wednesday, 3/7,
6:30-9:30 pm
The group will be reading "Indecent" this month.
Rendezvous
Readers' Book Chat
1st Wednesday of the month, 9:30-10:30 am
Abiitan's Porter Cafe
428 2nd St S
No reservations required.
Epitaph
by Mary Doria Russell
Rendezvous on 5
Wednesdays, 9-10 am
Guthrie Theater Level 5 Express
Drop in and join your friends and neighbors for fellowship at this neighborhood haunt. This weekly adventure requires no reservations!
Social Bridge
Every other Wednesday, 3:00-5:00 pm
Washburn Lofts,
700 2nd St S
Enjoy a round of social bridge. Be sure to register on the website!
Men's Coffee and Conversation
Elsie's Restaurant,
729 Marshall Street NE
Caffeine and camaraderie for the male members of MCC! This group meets every other Thursday at 7:30 am and is hosted by various members who get the conversation going.
Our Turn: A Conversation for Women
Relax and chat with other MCC women. This group meets every other Thursday and alternates between morning and afternoon times. Look for details in the body of this newsletter.
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| Mill City Commons Ongoing Fitness Opportunities
G-Werx Fitness,
An exclusive opportunity for members, this weekly class focuses on strength, balance
and stretching to keep you fit and strong.
First time participants, please contact G-Werx Fitness at (612) 767-4415 and arrive 20 minutes early to complete paperwork. Cost varies depending on commitment.
River Walkers Tuesdays and Thursdays, 7:30-8:30 am Stone Arch Lofts Riverside Parking Lot
All levels of walkers are welcome for this early morning walk along the banks of the Mississippi River. An MCC volunteer leads each walk.
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Ongoing Member-Led Activities
MCC Caregivers' Support Group
2nd and 4th Wednesdays,
January - April,
10:30 am-12:00 pm
A way to support members and non-members who are or have been in a caregiving role. For more information, contact
Betsy Wray.
Exploring Meditation
Mill City Quarter,
322 2nd St S
Every Tuesday,
9:30-10:30 am
Clear the clutter in your mind, reduce stress and increase the feeling of calm in your life.
Men's Dutch Lunch
Abiitan's Porter Cafe
428 2nd St S
Alternating Thursdays at 11:30 am
March 15 & 29
This casual, dutch treat lunch alternates weeks with Men's Coffee and Conversation. No reservations required! Questions? Contact
Allan Burdick.
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