Stimulation - Knowledge - Interaction - Fun |
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Dear members and friends,
What a disconcerting three years we have experienced! In June of 2019, I had the great privilege to be elected president of Acadia Senior College (ASC) at the Annual General Meeting. I remember a terrific Indian dish made by Sheila Kirby and I recall fondly sharing the potluck dinner with Ellen and Bill Dohmen. Nat Fenton, in his usual silly but serious demeanor, was wearing an outlandish hat crafted by Sydney Rockefeller. He handed me the ASC bell as a token of the presidency.
I have only had the opportunity to ring that bell once – at the delayed but magnificent celebration of ASC’s 20th year at Camp Beech Cliff in September of 2021. We have foregone our yearly Neighborhood House potlucks and much more. But we have all learned to Zoom and we have enjoyed a wonderfully varied and informative series of courses and events.
Instead of a talk at our annual meeting, I offer here a brief but significant list of tributes.
- Thank you to Abigail Conrad, Nat Fenton, and Dan Poteet who are leaving the Board. Gail has ably chaired and improved the Nominations Committee; Nat is a former president and general resource on ASC and legal issues, and Dan is also a former president who chaired the Racial Justice Initiative. Dan and Nancy have moved to Portland and we will miss them. If we continue with Zoom, I hope that they will stay involved in ASC events. Gail is moving to Denver soon, and we will miss her very much. Because of his vast store of ASC knowledge, Nat will continue to contribute.
- Hopefully, each of you will vote for the slate of new board members: Keith Davis, Patsy Fogarty, Cynthia Livingston, and Kathleen Slack.
- I want to give a shout-out to 3 remarkable individuals who have taught the most courses for ASC: Ben Blaney (26), Bob Gallon (24), and Bill Clark (23). We owe them our astonishment and gratitude.
- The work of ASC is accomplished by many of you in committees. I did not fully appreciate the amount of important work these committees do for all of us until becoming President. Thank you to the Committee Chairs and all of the Volunteers!
- I reserve the highest praise and my greatest thanks to Janice Kenyon whose common sense, technical skill, and dedication to ASC make this organization successful.
- Lastly, I urge you to vote for and welcome Mike Hastings as our new president. Mike has been the Vice President and chairs the Technology Committee. He also was instrumental in organizing our recent paired event on aquaculture and moderated each of them with skill and grace.
Thank you for allowing me to serve as your president over the past 3 years.
All the best,
Linda Dunn
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Annual Meeting Vote Deadline - June 8th |
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We had hoped to get together in person this year for our traditional potluck and annual meeting, but due to rising Covid cases, we will not meet in person and the potluck has been canceled.
Instead Acadia Senior College will elect Board Members and Officers by electronic vote. To vote, your ASC membership must be current as of June 8, 2022. Please contact the office if you are unsure of your membership status. You may renew online or over the phone.
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All votes must be received by 4:00 p.m. on June 8, 2022.
Your Vote Matters! We need a quorum of current ASC members in order for this election to be valid under Maine law.
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Special Online Presentation |
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Frescoes at the Solon Meeting House
June 9th, 4:00 p.m.
Online presentation
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Join Nick Clark, Founding Director of the Ashley Bryan Center, as he discusses the floor-to-ceiling frescoes at the Solon Meeting House in Solon, Maine. The frescoes were painted from 1952 to 1956, by a dozen contemporary artists including Ashley Bryan.
Everyone who registers for this program will receive information on Ashley Bryan's fresco "Parable of the Sower" and directions to the meeting house so you can plan a field trip to see the paintings and the meeting house on your own.
The meeting house is always open to the public except if a private event is being held.
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Maine Geriatrics Conference
Thursday, June 9th and Friday, June 10th
Harborside Hotel, Bar Harbor
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The 30th Annual Maine Geriatrics Conference, organized by the University Of New England, will take place at the Harborside Hotel in Bar Harbor on June 9th and 10th. The conference provides a venue for health practitioners, social service providers, and others with interests in the field of aging to come together to share ideas, ask questions, and develop or support care strategies affecting older adults in all care settings.
The conference organizer has kindly agreed to waive the $135 registration fee to enable two current ASC members and their spouse/guest to attend. You must be a current ASC member and over 60 years of age to attend.
If you are interested in attending the conference, contact Mike Hastings of Acadia Senior College (mhastings@maine.edu; tel 207-992-3508) ASAP to indicate your interest. The spaces reserved for Acadia Senior College will be allocated on a first-come, first served basis.
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A huge thank you to our awesome
Spring instructors:
David Gapp
Bonnie Chase
Robin Clifford Wood
Stefani Berkey
Val Libby
Ben Emory
We appreciate your dedication!
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Speaking of courses, if you took a class this spring please remember to fill out your online course evaluation forms. And, watch for fall course announcements later this month or early July. |
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Here are a few photos from Bonnie Chase's Printing and Dyeing with Spring Botanicals class. Looks like a lot of fun and creativity happened - enjoy!
Photos by Thayer Fanazick
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Have you been enjoying our presentations and classes? Our spring appeal continues. We appreciate all your support!
You can also donate online at any time, or you may wish to consider a recurring monthly donation. Quick, easy, and secure.
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Sea-Level Changes from the Last Glaciation of MDI
By Ruth and Duane Braun
Note: this is the latest in a series of articles on the geology of MDI. Previous articles appeared in the February, March, April, May, June, and September 2021, and January and April 2022 issues of the newsletter that can be found here on our website.
P.S. - watch for Ruth and Duane's Geology classes coming this fall.
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About 100,000 years ago the ice again began to accumulate in Canada. It advanced over Mount Desert Island about 35,000 years ago and reached it terminus (maximum extent) on Georges Bank about 25,000 years ago (map below). |
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As the ice advanced over the land the weight of the ice caused the land surface to be depressed. There was about 5,000 ft of ice (equal to the weight of 1500 ft of granite) over MDI when the glacier sat at its terminus. The global sea level was about 360 ft below its present level with all that water stored in the continental ice sheets. At that lower sea level, Georges Bank (map above) and the continental shelf all along the east coast was dry land. These two factors (weight of ice depressing the land surface and lower global sea level) resulted in a local sea level that was about 230 feet above the present level when the glacier had retreated to MDI about 15,500 years ago. The higher peaks of the mountains stood out as individual islands. Remnants of beaches can be found at the 230 ft. level at a number of sites around MDI (MDI map below). |
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When at this higher level the wave activity cut distinctive steps in slopes underlain by unconsolidated glacial deposits. The best example of such a scarp step is the one cut around Beech Hill at the 230 ft elevation (blue line on the shaded relief image below). The waves formed a series of boulder beaches starting at the 230 ft level and progressively lower levels as the land rebounded and the local sea level fell. |
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By 14,500 years ago the glacier terminus had retreated north of the island. With the weight of the ice removed, the land began to rebound. It rebounded faster than the global sea level rose (only about 5% of the glacier had melted by this time.) The local sea level fell to the present sea level about 13,000 years ago and kept dropping to about -190 ft at about 12,300 years ago. After that rebound was essentially finished and the rising global sea level gradually flooded the area to its present level.
When the sea level was at its lowest, Blue Hill Bay, Frenchman Bay, and Somes Sound were cut off from the sea and became freshwater lakes (light blue areas on the MDI map above). As the global sea level rose, it first flooded Blue Hill Bay, then Frenchman Bay, and finally Somes Sound (at about 7000 years ago.)
Early anthropologists were puzzled that there was little evidence of early Indians on the Island (prior to 4,000 years ago). Now they realize that the early Indians lived along these lower sea level shores and these sites are now underwater. Lobster fishermen around Bass Harbor sometimes bring up artifacts when pulling their traps.
If you have a favorite spot or feature or question about something on MDI that you are curious about, send an e-mail to ASC and we will try to answer your question.
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