Home
UIRA: A Quick Take
Printable Brochure
News &
Announcements
Programs & Events
Photo Gallery
Contacts
Leadership
Meetings & Minutes
Resources
Perks & Discounts
for Retirees
Newsletters
Membership Form
Bylaws

Programs & Events

2012-2013 Programs and Events

UIRA Board of Directors Meeting (Tuesday, April 9, 2013)
UI Senior College Courses (Spring 2013)
Tour the County Courthouse (Thursday, Sept 27, 2012)
Tour the County Jail (Sept 27, Oct 2 or 4, 2012)
Discuss Johnson County Recreation Areas (Monday, Oct 22, 2012)
Annual Flu Shot Clinic (Thursday, Oct 18, 2012)
Discuss Health Care Benefits for Retirees (Thursday, Nov 15, 2012)
Alien Worlds: Search for Life in on Extra-Terrestrial Planets (January 17, 2013)
Tour the New Indoor UI Football Practice Facility (Thursday, Feb 28, 2013)
Iowa Flood Center (Wednesday, March 6, 2013)
Higgs boson: the "God" particle (Friday, March 29, 2013)
UIRA Annual Luncheon and Meeting (Tuesday, April 23, 2013)
Marathons Around the World (May 15, 2013)
UIRA Annual Picnic (Tuesday, June 4, 2013))

UIRA Board of Directors Meeting (Tuesday, April 9, 2013)

The UIRA Board of Directors meets the second Tuesday of each month from September through June at 1:00 p.m. in Room 427 at the Levitt Center. Members are welcome to attend to observe or address the Board.

When we cast our votes for U.S. President in November, we will also be asked to approve a bond issue for a new Justice Center in Johnson County. In order to inform our members, we have arranged for a tour of the current courthouse on Thursday, September 27th at 4:00 p.m., meeting in Courtroom 2A. After a tour of the historic Richardsonian Romanesque building, which dates back to 1901 and features a stained-glass dome, Janet Lyness, Johnson County Attorney, will tell us about the proposal for the new facility, which will include a new jail and additional courthouse space. No reservation is required.

In addition, there are opportunities for a tour of the current jail. These tours can accommodate only 10 persons at a time, so reservations are required for the three tours we have scheduled. Schedule times are at 6:00 p.m. on Thursday, September 27th (after the Courthouse tour), 6:00 p.m. on Tuesday, October 2nd, and Thursday, and 6:00 p.m. on October 4th. Because of limit on the number, we must make reservations for the jail tours. Please make a reservation with Nancy Lynch after September 15th by e-mailing her at nancylynch1941@gmail.com. If possible, rank your choices of those three dates and Nancy will do her best to accommodate as many as possible.

On Thursday, October 18th, the Visiting Nurses Association will host our annual private flu shot clinic from Noon-4:00 p.m. in the community room of the UI Community Credit Union on Mormon Trek. They will bill Medicare or insurance companies directly for us.

Discuss Johnson County Recreation Areas (Monday, Oct 22, 2012)

Harry Graves, Director, Johnson County Department of Conservation,
Monday, October 22nd, 3:30 - 5:00 p.m., Coralville Public Library, Lower Level meeting room Parking is available immediately below the library’s street-level parking lot provides lower level access.

Johnson County is a treasure trove of outdoor recreation opportunities and attractions. Included are camping, picnicking, swimming, biking, hiking, canoeing, kayaking, horseback riding, hunting, fishing, and so on. Harry Graves is the perfect person to discuss all of this. Harry is the Conservation Director of Johnson County and is directly or indirectly involved with all these and more.

A recent, just-dedicated development in which Harry was very involved is the Ciha Fen Preserve in NW Johnson County, a unique prairie/wetlands project. Harry will discuss this as well as other undertakings in our county, including plans for the future and utilization of Conservation Bond funds.

Want to know more about Johnson County's trails, native prairies, river access areas, small community parks, Sutliff Bridge and Recreation Area, geocache permits, environmental education programming? All this and more is under the umbrella of the Johnson County Conservation Department. See their website at
www.johnson-county.com/dept_conservation.aspx?id=3943

Discuss Health Care Benefits for Retirees (Thursday, Nov 15, 2012)

[Click photo for larger image.]

Health benefits was the topic of a presentation by Richard Saunders, UI assistant vice president of Human Resources and director of the Benefits Office, at a meeting of the UIRA Nov. 15 at Parkview Church.

Alien Worlds: Seach for Life on Extra-Terrestrial Planets (January, 17, 2013)

On Thursday, January 17, 1:00 p.m. Coralville Public Library

Professor Robert Mutel will present a program titled: Alien Worlds: The Search for Life on Extra-Terrestrial Planets. In the past decade an entirely new field of astronomy has blossomed: The search for life on planets beyond the Earth. Click here for full article.

We will tour the new indoor football practice facility and hear about our Olympic sports program on Thursday February 28 11:30 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. UIRA will provide a tour of the new Indoor Football Practice Facility, followed by a talk by Jane Meyer about the Olympic (formerly “the minor”) sports at the University of Iowa. Jane has been at the University of Iowa Associate Director of Athletics for many years. Her responsibilities include overseeing the building of new sports facilities. She knows this place from the inside out – literally. RSVP required and lunch will be provided. View more information in the February Gray Hawk issue.

Our UIRA program for March will be a presentation by Larry Weber at the Iowa City Public Library, Meeting Room A, 10:30 a.m. until noon.

“Iowa Flood Center: A critical resource for all Iowans” program by Larry Weber, Larry Weber is the Director of IIHR-Hydroscience and Engineering. Details in the February issue of the Gray Hawk.

Professor Usha Mallik will present a program on the Higgs boson, the "God" particle (and the origin of matter) at the E. Jean Schwab Auditorium, lower level of the Coralville Public Library, March 29th, 3:30 - 5:00 p.m. She is a Professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy, specializing in Experimental Particle Physics. Professor Mallik will explain where and how the Higgs boson or “God” particle fits into the theory of the universe. She and her group of post-doctoral fellows and graduate students work on data from the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN (European Organization for Nuclear Research), near Geneva. LHC experiments discovered the supposed Higgs only last year. There is free parking in the library parking lot with direct access to the lower level. Parking on the main level is permitted but please avoid the closest two parking aisles, which are reserved for library patrons.

UIRA annual general business meeting and luncheon is scheduled for April 23, 11:30- 1-30. The event will be at the Holiday Inn Conference Center, located north of I-80 at exit 242. There will be a choice of entrees, including a vegetarian selection; and gluten-free meals may be requested. There will be a cash bar and time for socializing beginning at 11:30 and luncheon served at noon. New officers and directors for 2013-14 will be elected by the membership at this meeting. The business meeting will follow the luncheon. Musical entertainment will be singing as provided by Music Professor Stephen Swanson. This is also a good time to renew your UIRA membership.

Be sure to make your luncheon reservation by April 16. Click here for printable reservation form.

7 Marathons on 7 Continents, presented by Rick Walton, President-Elect of UIRA at the Coralville Public Library Meeting Room A. It’s a double whammy! Meet our incoming UIRA President and hear an adventure story. Over a period of 8 years, Rick Walton, his wife Laura and two friends traveled the world to run a marathon on each continent. The locations included Easter Island (South America), Athens (Europe), Siberia (Asia), Kenya (Africa), New Zealand (Oceana) and even Antarctica. Each travel adventure also served up challenging runs through some intriguing and dramatic terrain. You will also learn about the discipline of training to run marathons.

There is free parking in the library parking lot with direct access to the lower level. Parking on the main level is permitted, but please avoid the closest two parking aisles, which are reserved for library patrons.

The UIRA Annual Potluck Picnic is scheduled on Tuesday, June 4, at 6:00 p.m. in Shelter 6 of City Park (the large shelter nearest the Riverside Festival Theatre). We will provide the main course, table service, and beverages. Please bring either a salad or dessert to serve 6 people. Following the picnic, at 7:00 p.m., we will once again have an opportunity to mosey across the green and attend a bit of the rehearsal of Shakespeare's Hamlet that will be performed this summer.

The UI Senior College will announce another rich schedule of offerings for the Spring 2013 Session. At the time of this writing, the courses have not been announced but will be available at the beginning of January.

More information about courses, instructors, time and place of classes, availability and registration can be obtained from the Alumni Association at www.iowalum.com/srcollege/ or by calling Jane Kirsch at 319/335-3294 or 800/469-2586. A brochure is available upon request.