AAUW GUEST SPEAKER ANNIE SCHLESINGER

EXPLORES “THE NEXT CHAPTER”
At a certain stage in life questions arise about what to do next. Should I move to be nearer to family members? Is it time to sell the house and downsize? Is assisted living an option?

The Bennington Branch of the American Association University Women will sponsor a free public meeting on Tuesday, November 7, at 7 p.m., that will focus on some of these questions. The meeting will be held at The Left Bank, 5 Bank Street, North Bennington.

Guest speaker will be Annie Schlesinger, who spent many years as a medical social worker for Hospice. “I then retired to care for my husband who was declining from Alzheimer's. At the same time I was recovering from a life threatening illness that required a stem-cell transplant,” she explained.

It was during this time of being isolated in her home that she created a television show. In “The Next Chapter,” her television show for public access channel GNAT-TV, Ms. Schlesinger interviews elders who seem to have discovered a secret or two about quality of life as they age.

A warm and lively TV host, Ms. Schlesinger will show clips from her show and open up to a conversation about “all things elderly.” “As my friends and I turned 70, the shift in our conversations seemed significant,” says Ms. Schlesinger, “and this shift began to define a new chapter we were entering. She explains that they became less focused on careers, travel and romance and more on their own health, care giving for others and whether they were going to abandon the family homestead to be closer to their grown children and grandchildren. “Doctors are keeping us healthier longer,” she continues, “but can we age well? And what does that mean?” Ms. Schlesinger majored in Art at Bennington College and got her MSW at Hunter College. A former resident of Arlington, VT, she now lives in a condo in Falmouth, ME, near one of her daughters and her granddaughter.

The public is invited to attend the meeting and light refreshments will be served following the discussion.

Press Contacts: Julie Mackaman – (802) 823-5545
Judy Murphy – (802) 375-3294