Bradley University’s lifelong learning program has been awarded $100,000 by The Bernard Osher Foundation to expand programs for mature adults. As a result of the grant, the Bradley University Institute for Learning in Retirement (ILR), now in its 14th year, will be renamed the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute. “Our ILR has great potential for growth to satisfy the emerging learning needs of the aging population in our area,” said Jon C. Neidy, associate director of Continuing Education at Bradley. “The creation of an Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at Bradley will enable us to expand the breadth and depth of our programming.” The ILR is a collaboration between Bradley and more than 600 members, who together create a learning community that evolves from and is sustained by members’ educational interests and social needs.

The grant from the Osher Foundation will fund marketing efforts, additional staffing, and new programs for current and new members. New program efforts will focus on study groups, active learning trips, a retirement weekend, and expanded intergenerational programs with Bradley students. The Bernard Osher Foundation, a 30-year-old philanthropic organization headquartered in San Francisco, supports higher education and the arts.  Post-secondary scholarships are provided to selected institutions nationally, with a recent emphasis on meeting the needs of reentry and community college students.  The Foundation supports a growing national network of lifelong learning institutes for seasoned adults located at 121 colleges and universities from Maine to Hawaii.  The Foundation also funds integrative medicine centers at Harvard University, the University of California, San Francisco, and the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden as well as a career development awards program at NIH’s National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine. 

Arts grants, generally made to organizations in the San Francisco Bay Area and the State of Maine, seek to bring new and younger audiences to classical music and the performing arts. Bradley is one of only three Illinois universities supported by the Osher Foundation’s Lifelong Learning Institutes.  Other OLLI programs are at Northwestern and the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign.

Fascinated by police work, but realize that’s likely not to be a career choice? Enjoy the unique opportunity to have lunch with Peoria Chief of Police Steven Settingsgaard, tour the Police Department and ride on the streets with the Chief. Rubbing elbows with politicians your idea of a great time? Break Bread with the Senators Past & Present, Senator Dave Koehler & (Ret.) Senator George Shadid. Or enjoy lunch for two with Mayor Jim Ardis.

Or maybe you’re more into food choices! There’s a pizza a month for 12 months from Leonardo’s Pizza, bagel packs for a year from Panera’s, and four steaks a month for 12 months from Echo Valley. Adventure and travel intrigue you? Consider a one-day pontoon rental from Sunset Marine, a 15-minute helicopter ride over Peoria compliments of C & L Aviation, four one-day park hopper passes from Walt Disney World, and four tickets for the Chicago Bears/Detroit Lions game on October 28th.

These and many more items and gift certificates can be yours if you bid often and bid high at the Neighborhood House Sixth Annual Fall Fundraiser on Friday, September 7th at the Kickapoo Creek Winery. The Winery, located at 6605 Smith Road, Edwards, is just a short drive away. (From Peoria take I-74 west to Exit 82, turn left onto Kickapoo/Edwards Road. Travel � mile, turn right onto Smith Road. The entrance to the winery is just past the curve on the right, watch for the windmill.)

The festivities begin at 5:00 p.m. with Winery tours and hors d�oeuvres followed by dinner at 6:30 p.m. Silent and live auctions, entertainment, and a $1,000 raffle are all part of the event. The evening will conclude about 9:30 p.m. Maureen Gooding, Neighborhood House Administrative Assistant, says the fundraising event is �a good way to wind down your work week. It�s casual dress and a nice way to relax. The plan is to be outside for the evening.� Tickets are $50 per person ($30 is tax deductible), $400 for a table of eight.

Neighborhood House is dedicated to helping people help themselves. The not-for-profit agency at 1020 S. Matthew, off Garden Street in Peoria, has been helping to empower the people they serve for 111 years. Their mission statement reads: Neighborhood House, established in 1896, is dedicated to providing a Safe Haven with comprehensive services that meet the social, emotional and material needs of individuals and families from infancy to the elderly. The common goal of all services is to enhance the quality of life and foster independence of those served. Services provided include home delivered meals each Monday through Friday for the elderly or handicapped; day care for children six weeks to 12 years; before and after school programs; summer day camp; activities for those”55 and better� that include quilting, weekly programs, and various activities; and Critter Meals On Wheels (food for much-loved pets).

For additional information or to make reservations, please call Maureen at 674-1131.