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(soft upbeat music)

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Welcome to "Hadley Presents."

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I'm your host, Ricky Enger,

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inviting you to sit back, relax,

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and enjoy a conversation with the experts.

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In this episode, we explore Hadley's live discussion groups.

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And joining us are Debbie Worman and Carol Mackey.

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Welcome to the show.

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Hi, Ricky.

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Thank you.

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Hi, Ricky. Hi, Debbie.

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So great to have both of you

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for a discussion on discussion groups,

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and thankfully that will be the last time I say that

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for the episode.

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But it's awesome to have you both here,

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because you're such valuable contributors,

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each in your own way, to Hadley's discussion groups,

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and I'm delighted to have the chance

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to just explore some of that and talk with both of you.

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Before we jump into that portion of things,

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why don't we just get a couple of brief introductions.

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Debbie, we'll start with you, tell us a bit about yourself.

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I am a learning expert here at Hadley,

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I support our Recreation, Daily Living,

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and Adjusting to Vision Loss workshops.

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But I imagine the main reason I'm here with you and Carol

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is that I actually co-host

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6 of the 10 Hadley discussion groups,

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so I'm happy to be here with both you and Carol

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to do that today.

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Six. Now that takes some dedication right there.

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And none of it is feigned enthusiasm,

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it is definitely you really love what you do,

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it certainly comes across.

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Carol, how about you? Tell us a bit about yourself.

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My name's Carol Mackey, and I live in Maine.

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And I came to these discussion groups probably,

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I was just thinking how long ago,

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it's probably getting close to a year actually.

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And I take part in quite a number of them,

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I think there's only one that I don't actually,

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the braille discussion group.

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I am visually impaired, I have limited vision,

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have kind of a lifetime of low vision, a poor vision,

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but was able to do quite a few things.

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And as I've gotten older, I am 78 years old,

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my vision is deteriorating.

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And the Hadley discussion groups

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has been just a wonderful gift

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in expanding not only the specific knowledge

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that these groups offer,

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but also the people that I meet, Debbie included,

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and all of the other facilitators,

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but also all of the people on the call.

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Well, I hope you can hear the smile in

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my voice, Carol,

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because I certainly am smiling.

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I love your description of,

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you know, just how you came to the discussion groups,

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and really what they've meant to you.

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Maybe it makes sense to talk about discussion groups,

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and what are they, and what are they not?

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Because I think if you hear the phrase "discussion group,"

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people are like,

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"Is that a support group? Is it like a class?"

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You know, what is it?

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Debbie, how would you best describe

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what Hadley's discussion groups are?

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What are Hadley discussion groups?

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What a great question.

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I know what they're not,

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they're not boring. (laughs)

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So, Hadley discussion groups really are an opportunity

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to share resources, tips, and tricks.

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It gives our Hadley learners a chance to meet others

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who share similar interests.

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The groups provide a chance for connection.

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I like to think they offer reassurance and boost confidence.

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That's kind of, sometimes when people come on,

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I know they have a feeling that they're not alone,

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that they got this,

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that others are here for them.

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And another wonderful thing is

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that it offers an opportunity for learners

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to share what they know,

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to really put out there some of their own good ideas.

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So, the groups are live,

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but if you're busy or can't make it,

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we do have 'em recorded, that you could receive.

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They're facilitated by the co-host,

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but we kind of go with the flow.

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It's an opportunity to either chime in

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with their own ideas and resources,

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or just sit back and soak it all up.

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We welcome listeners as well.

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Awesome.

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And I think one of the most fun things for me

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is that sense of, it is structured,

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but we do go with the flow,

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so there are times when we have a discussion,

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I come in to do mine,

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which I do one, as opposed to six,

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but when I'm having my tech discussion group,

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I go in thinking it's going to be one thing,

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and I'm surprised and delighted to discover that, you know,

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the conversation takes a totally different turn,

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and people still end up learning quite a lot.

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Debbie, when you're doing these discussion groups,

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what makes a discussion group feel like,

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okay, great, this has been a super successful session?

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What are the key things that you're going for?

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Mostly, I'm going for participation.

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I may share information, you know, at the beginning,

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but again, we're not there to lecture or to give a class,

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we're there to kind of spark the conversation

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and get people thinking.

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My success is to see all those hands go up, right?

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And even sometimes at the end, when we run outta time,

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if there's a few hands up, I still consider that a success,

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because I consider that people were excited

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and were interested in the topic,

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and they wanted to be engaged.

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You know, I have to admit,

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I get quite anxious before each and every group.

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But once we get started, that vanishes,

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and I think that's what helps me feel like it's a success.

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Like we're really just,

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even there could be 60 people in the Zoom room,

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I just feel like I'm sitting in my living room,

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just having a conversation with people.

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When I was a teenager, I used to work at a movie theater,

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and the projectionist used to tell me,

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"The sign of a good movie is it's over before you know it,

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it just goes real fast."

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And so that's the same for me in the discussion groups,

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sometimes I just can't believe how quickly the hour goes.

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Yeah, time flies when you're having fun. For sure.

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What about you, Carol?

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I'm wondering how you heard about Hadley discussion groups.

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How did you become involved?

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I think I started,

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I was doing a number of American Council for the Blind,

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they have a number of groups that meet,

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and I had heard from some one member about,

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"Oh, there's Hadley. Have you done any Hadley?"

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And I thought, "Oh, okay, I'll look into this."

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And I got the number and called in,

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I don't happen to Zoom it,

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I do it on the telephone.

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When I got in,

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I really liked the way these discussion groups are done,

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because the facilitators,

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Debbie, for example,

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will start out with a jumping off place,

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some information, some resources, some experience,

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they've done research.

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And I really appreciate that,

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because it's also, "Oh, I didn't know that,"

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but also it gives the whole discussion

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kind of a little bit of,

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even though I may arrive with no knowledge at all,

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it starts out and I think,

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"Oh yeah, actually, I knew a little bit about that."

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And I love the interchange, and people speaking up,

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not only that they're adding their experience,

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but also the location,

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I love hearing where people are calling in from.

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There's someone from Hawaii,

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or someone from, you know, the other corner of the country.

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And I love that flavor.

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I will just add one other piece,

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and it's not part of the formal discussion groups,

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but 15 minutes or so before the group starts,

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which starts on the hour,

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there's kind of like an open period of time

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when everyone can just,

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there's no one muted, everyone just talks.

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And it doesn't get too rowdy, if you will,

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it's not like people are talking over each other,

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a little bit.

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But that's always fun,

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because we just never know

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where the discussion is going to go,

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and it often goes totally different directions

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than what actually the discussion group might be about,

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which is always kind of fascinating.

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It could be about food,

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and the discussion group is about a tech talk.

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I get so much out of it,

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and feel the support to know that there are other people

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who are dealing with many of the things

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that I'm also dealing with,

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and get some pointers, "Oh, okay,

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I can do that if I try it that way."

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That maybe I do need the new headset,

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or maybe I do need to get that added magnifier,

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or something,

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just from talking to people on the call,

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or people who have never had sight,

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which I have had sight.

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So, there's a different experience

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that everybody has to offer or bring to the table,

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and it's really a gift, it's a wonderful gift.

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Wow, and once again,

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you're talking about some of my favorite things

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as well, as a facilitator, is watching that interchange,

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and seeing people who are,

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sometimes you're the one who is sharing that tip

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that's making the difference for somebody else,

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and sometimes you are the one receiving that tip,

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someone's giving you a good idea

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that you can go and try after the call,

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or a resource that you weren't aware of.

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So, that's always so, so much fun to watch.

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Debbie, what about you?

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I mean, you're in six groups,

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so you have a lot of opportunities

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to see just how people engage with each other.

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What keeps you coming back?

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What keeps you feeling the love for the discussion groups

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that you clearly do?

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It's knowing that there's never one right

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way or wrong way

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to do something, right?

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There's no right or wrong way to do something,

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that we're just throwing out things we're trying,

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and that have worked for us,

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and everybody has an idea,

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and we respect each other's idea and support each other.

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And if you've been in any of my groups,

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you know all about the WW theory,

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we get a lot of "Whatever Works" in there.

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So, it's really not feeling the pressure

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that there's one way to be,

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to live with vision loss, right?

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That there's all kinds of unique ways to deal with things,

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and we are absolutely going to hear them

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in the discussion groups,

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we've heard some really interesting things.

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My favorite part is just that connection with the learners.

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Carol has been so generous,

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she co-hosted a Hadley Growers with me,

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and as we were planning,

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that just gave me an extra opportunity

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to get to know her more,

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and that truly is what I love about the discussion groups,

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I learn new things, and I get to hear stories,

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and that just fuels me,

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that's what just keeps me going,

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is that fuel I get from the discussion groups.

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I'm worn out when I get done with the discussion group.

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It's that worn out feeling of, wow, you know,

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it's a real positive worn out.

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Yes, it's that feeling of being so engaged

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and so in the moment,

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and when it's over, it's almost like,

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"Wow, okay, the endorphins are going away now." (giggles)

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Carol, what about you?

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And we're gonna have a pop quiz for Debbie in just a second

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where she names all 10 of our discussion groups,

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but, Carol, you're involved in several of them,

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and what is it that keeps you coming back

264
00:12:33.120 --> 00:12:35.310
week to week, month to month,

265
00:12:35.310 --> 00:12:38.280
and not just for a couple of them, for lots of them?

266
00:12:38.280 --> 00:12:40.380
What keeps you involved?

267
00:12:40.380 --> 00:12:43.410
I think that every single one,

268
00:12:43.410 --> 00:12:47.970
there's something that, first of all, the topic is clear,

269
00:12:47.970 --> 00:12:49.147
so that I know,

270
00:12:49.147 --> 00:12:51.540
"Oh, goodie, we're gonna talk about tech stuff,"

271
00:12:51.540 --> 00:12:54.600
even though I'm not a techie person in the least,

272
00:12:54.600 --> 00:12:56.880
but I always learn something.

273
00:12:56.880 --> 00:12:59.010
And I think maybe that's the crux of it,

274
00:12:59.010 --> 00:13:02.400
I always come away with having heard something,

275
00:13:02.400 --> 00:13:04.230
learned something,

276
00:13:04.230 --> 00:13:06.030
not necessarily new,

277
00:13:06.030 --> 00:13:10.230
but a different way to approach something or think about,

278
00:13:10.230 --> 00:13:11.970
a different perspective.

279
00:13:11.970 --> 00:13:16.260
The other thing is the people that come and just listen,

280
00:13:16.260 --> 00:13:17.880
that there's no requirement,

281
00:13:17.880 --> 00:13:20.430
they don't have to do anything,

282
00:13:20.430 --> 00:13:22.230
they only have to show up,

283
00:13:22.230 --> 00:13:23.910
and gain what they gain,

284
00:13:23.910 --> 00:13:27.060
come back, hopefully, but maybe not.

285
00:13:27.060 --> 00:13:29.010
But it's available,

286
00:13:29.010 --> 00:13:31.890
it's this ease of availability

287
00:13:31.890 --> 00:13:33.540
that really makes a difference.

288
00:13:33.540 --> 00:13:37.020
Call in on the phone as I do,

289
00:13:37.020 --> 00:13:39.240
or Zoom in,

290
00:13:39.240 --> 00:13:43.200
Zoom in and not have the video working,

291
00:13:43.200 --> 00:13:45.210
whatever someone might choose.

292
00:13:45.210 --> 00:13:48.510
Those are the things that just keep me coming back.

293
00:13:48.510 --> 00:13:49.343
I love it.

294
00:13:49.343 --> 00:13:51.090
And as you mentioned, Carol,

295
00:13:51.090 --> 00:13:54.840
there's no one way to join the groups either,

296
00:13:54.840 --> 00:13:58.440
you can join by phone, as Carol has done,

297
00:13:58.440 --> 00:14:02.340
you can join from the Zoom app,

298
00:14:02.340 --> 00:14:07.340
or from Zoom on the PC or the Mac.

299
00:14:07.950 --> 00:14:12.060
And Hadley, by the way, does have some Zoom workshops.

300
00:14:12.060 --> 00:14:15.930
If you're, "Uh, I don't know about this Zoom thing,"

301
00:14:15.930 --> 00:14:20.557
we do have the ability for you to check out those and see,

302
00:14:20.557 --> 00:14:22.680
"Okay, what's this Zoom thing all about,

303
00:14:22.680 --> 00:14:26.160
and how difficult is it going to be to join?"

304
00:14:26.160 --> 00:14:30.450
But if all that is still feeling a bit overwhelming,

305
00:14:30.450 --> 00:14:35.450
that's cool too, because we have the ability to call you.

306
00:14:36.600 --> 00:14:40.620
If you're able to press the number one on your keypad

307
00:14:40.620 --> 00:14:42.690
on your phone, and get joined up,

308
00:14:42.690 --> 00:14:46.320
then you can be a part of the discussion group.

309
00:14:46.320 --> 00:14:49.890
So, we'll have information in the show notes,

310
00:14:49.890 --> 00:14:52.860
and talk a bit more when we wrap up.

311
00:14:52.860 --> 00:14:54.663
But before we do that,

312
00:14:55.500 --> 00:14:57.180
Debbie, it's time for your pop quiz.

313
00:14:57.180 --> 00:14:58.920
So, we have 10,

314
00:14:58.920 --> 00:15:02.817
10 discussion groups, can you name them?

315
00:15:02.817 --> 00:15:03.870
Can I name them?

316
00:15:03.870 --> 00:15:06.480
Well, easy to name the ones that I do.

317
00:15:06.480 --> 00:15:09.870
Book Nook, which is actually like a book club,

318
00:15:09.870 --> 00:15:10.740
Get Up and Go,

319
00:15:10.740 --> 00:15:14.370
which is exercising and getting out in the community.

320
00:15:14.370 --> 00:15:17.310
Hadley Growers, which is our gardening group.

321
00:15:17.310 --> 00:15:18.780
Resource Roundtable,

322
00:15:18.780 --> 00:15:23.490
where we share resources and organizations.

323
00:15:23.490 --> 00:15:26.280
Travel Talk, all things travel.

324
00:15:26.280 --> 00:15:29.910
Writer Circle, where we have learners who are writers.

325
00:15:29.910 --> 00:15:32.490
Don't have to be published to join Writer Circle,

326
00:15:32.490 --> 00:15:35.670
we have writers from all abilities,

327
00:15:35.670 --> 00:15:38.940
and just people who write journals or just for fun.

328
00:15:38.940 --> 00:15:42.870
Then the ones I don't do are Crafting Circle,

329
00:15:42.870 --> 00:15:44.580
which is a crafting group.

330
00:15:44.580 --> 00:15:48.000
Embracing Braille, all things braille.

331
00:15:48.000 --> 00:15:51.420
Then we have Ricky, your group, Tech It Out.

332
00:15:51.420 --> 00:15:54.510
And then the ever-popular What's Cooking?

333
00:15:54.510 --> 00:15:56.910
So, those are the 10 groups,

334
00:15:56.910 --> 00:16:00.930
kind of covers a nice range of interests I think.

335
00:16:00.930 --> 00:16:04.860
And it's not super problematic

336
00:16:04.860 --> 00:16:07.530
to figure out the schedule either.

337
00:16:07.530 --> 00:16:09.930
There's always something going on

338
00:16:09.930 --> 00:16:14.930
Tuesdays at 7:00 Central, or Wednesdays at 4:00 PM Central.

339
00:16:15.510 --> 00:16:18.120
Then we have a couple of our Thursday groups

340
00:16:18.120 --> 00:16:20.580
at 11:30 as well.

341
00:16:20.580 --> 00:16:23.760
So, you know, just some consistency there,

342
00:16:23.760 --> 00:16:27.930
of, "Hey, it's Tuesday at 7:00.

343
00:16:27.930 --> 00:16:30.210
I wonder what Hadley group I should join today?"

344
00:16:30.210 --> 00:16:31.950
Which is kind of nice.

345
00:16:31.950 --> 00:16:33.570
For some people though,

346
00:16:33.570 --> 00:16:38.490
it can still feel like an overwhelming thing

347
00:16:38.490 --> 00:16:40.140
for a variety of reasons.

348
00:16:40.140 --> 00:16:42.000
Maybe it feels too technical,

349
00:16:42.000 --> 00:16:45.810
or maybe it feels kind of vulnerable

350
00:16:45.810 --> 00:16:47.520
to put yourself in the position

351
00:16:47.520 --> 00:16:50.610
where you're socializing with other people.

352
00:16:50.610 --> 00:16:52.830
Maybe you're just not feeling that confident,

353
00:16:52.830 --> 00:16:56.160
and you're feeling like everybody knows more than you,

354
00:16:56.160 --> 00:16:58.740
or you're just shy in general.

355
00:16:58.740 --> 00:17:03.067
For people who are, for whatever reason, just feeling like,

356
00:17:03.067 --> 00:17:07.440
"I don't know if I wanna do this discussion group thing,"

357
00:17:07.440 --> 00:17:11.130
what would you say, just as an encouragement,

358
00:17:11.130 --> 00:17:12.600
to think about it?

359
00:17:12.600 --> 00:17:14.670
Debbie, I guess we'll start with you.

360
00:17:14.670 --> 00:17:18.210
There used to be a cereal commercial years ago,

361
00:17:18.210 --> 00:17:20.797
where this little kid, they would tell Mikey,

362
00:17:20.797 --> 00:17:22.527
"Try it, you'll like it."

363
00:17:24.360 --> 00:17:25.920
If anybody remembers that.

364
00:17:25.920 --> 00:17:28.710
So, I would say about the discussion groups,

365
00:17:28.710 --> 00:17:30.720
try it, you'll like it.

366
00:17:30.720 --> 00:17:32.010
You know, again, Carol,

367
00:17:32.010 --> 00:17:34.710
you said this beautifully earlier too,

368
00:17:34.710 --> 00:17:37.650
if you just wanna join and sit back and listen,

369
00:17:37.650 --> 00:17:39.540
that is perfectly fine,

370
00:17:39.540 --> 00:17:42.060
you do not have to chime in if you're shy,

371
00:17:42.060 --> 00:17:43.560
or if you don't feel like you have

372
00:17:43.560 --> 00:17:47.700
anything to add that night, that's perfectly fine.

373
00:17:47.700 --> 00:17:50.100
If you're hesitant about the technology,

374
00:17:50.100 --> 00:17:51.570
hey, we've got you covered,

375
00:17:51.570 --> 00:17:55.020
we can call you, you press one, and you're in.

376
00:17:55.020 --> 00:17:56.850
That's the We'll Call You feature,

377
00:17:56.850 --> 00:17:58.170
it's as simple as that.

378
00:17:58.170 --> 00:18:02.340
And we have quite a number of people who join that way

379
00:18:02.340 --> 00:18:04.170
who otherwise wouldn't have gotten in,

380
00:18:04.170 --> 00:18:06.930
and we're happy to have them in the group.

381
00:18:06.930 --> 00:18:07.890
And you know what?

382
00:18:07.890 --> 00:18:10.410
They've learned to raise their hand and participate,

383
00:18:10.410 --> 00:18:12.870
so we're so excited about that.

384
00:18:12.870 --> 00:18:14.640
We have workshops on Zoom.

385
00:18:14.640 --> 00:18:17.040
The other thing is we're very willing

386
00:18:17.040 --> 00:18:18.780
to set up practice sessions.

387
00:18:18.780 --> 00:18:21.000
If you're hesitant about raising your hand,

388
00:18:21.000 --> 00:18:22.890
or muting or unmuting,

389
00:18:22.890 --> 00:18:26.490
happy to set up a time privately that we practice that

390
00:18:26.490 --> 00:18:28.410
so you're comfortable doing that.

391
00:18:28.410 --> 00:18:31.650
'Cause, hey, I had to learn Zoom at one point too,

392
00:18:31.650 --> 00:18:32.730
believe it or not,

393
00:18:32.730 --> 00:18:35.790
I know how anxious that technology can be.

394
00:18:35.790 --> 00:18:38.760
We've made it really quite easy to join,

395
00:18:38.760 --> 00:18:42.150
and just, as I said, jump in and try it.

396
00:18:42.150 --> 00:18:45.597
Try out the different groups, see what interests you.

397
00:18:45.597 --> 00:18:48.870
You know, if you are new to vision loss,

398
00:18:48.870 --> 00:18:50.940
and you can't imagine

399
00:18:50.940 --> 00:18:53.100
how you're gonna get back in the garden,

400
00:18:53.100 --> 00:18:54.360
join our group.

401
00:18:54.360 --> 00:18:56.757
Believe me, the gardeners in that group

402
00:18:56.757 --> 00:18:59.580
can just tell you all kinds of things to do.

403
00:18:59.580 --> 00:19:01.560
I mean, my brown thumb

404
00:19:01.560 --> 00:19:04.740
is gradually turning green because of that group.

405
00:19:04.740 --> 00:19:07.530
I would just encourage people,

406
00:19:07.530 --> 00:19:08.817
try it, you'll like it.

407
00:19:08.817 --> 00:19:12.990
But we have fun learning, we have fun sharing.

408
00:19:12.990 --> 00:19:17.990
As Carol said earlier, that pregame the 15 minutes before,

409
00:19:18.360 --> 00:19:19.620
wow, the energy,

410
00:19:19.620 --> 00:19:21.630
people just saying hi,

411
00:19:21.630 --> 00:19:23.490
and then we get into the discussion.

412
00:19:23.490 --> 00:19:26.160
And again, if something sparks you to speak up,

413
00:19:26.160 --> 00:19:28.890
ask a question, share a resource,

414
00:19:28.890 --> 00:19:31.320
you know, share something that's going on.

415
00:19:31.320 --> 00:19:32.310
As you said, Ricky,

416
00:19:32.310 --> 00:19:34.230
people can feel vulnerable,

417
00:19:34.230 --> 00:19:36.630
and we've had people open up and share things,

418
00:19:36.630 --> 00:19:39.900
and I'm very glad that they feel comfortable

419
00:19:39.900 --> 00:19:41.430
doing it in the group.

420
00:19:41.430 --> 00:19:42.540
Carol, how about you?

421
00:19:42.540 --> 00:19:43.950
What would you say to somebody

422
00:19:43.950 --> 00:19:45.750
that's feeling a little hesitant

423
00:19:45.750 --> 00:19:50.250
to dip their toe in the water and join a discussion group?

424
00:19:50.250 --> 00:19:51.720
I would say,

425
00:19:51.720 --> 00:19:55.140
and I guess for those that are feeling very vulnerable,

426
00:19:55.140 --> 00:19:56.910
that no one knows you're there

427
00:19:56.910 --> 00:20:01.170
except you and whoever the facilitators,

428
00:20:01.170 --> 00:20:02.580
and they don't tell.

429
00:20:02.580 --> 00:20:06.930
You can just hide, for the period of time,

430
00:20:06.930 --> 00:20:11.340
and there's no responsibility, there's no requirement,

431
00:20:11.340 --> 00:20:14.880
that you're interested in this topic or not,

432
00:20:14.880 --> 00:20:18.810
or just think, "Oh boy, I wonder what that's all about?"

433
00:20:18.810 --> 00:20:20.070
That's all that's required,

434
00:20:20.070 --> 00:20:23.940
is your, perhaps, curiosity, or interest,

435
00:20:23.940 --> 00:20:26.490
or oftentimes it might be someone

436
00:20:26.490 --> 00:20:28.710
who can bring a lot to the table

437
00:20:28.710 --> 00:20:31.290
that has all kinds of knowledge,

438
00:20:31.290 --> 00:20:34.290
which always shows up at almost every discussion group.

439
00:20:34.290 --> 00:20:35.550
There's someone who speaks up,

440
00:20:35.550 --> 00:20:39.750
and it's like, "Wow, I didn't know that."

441
00:20:39.750 --> 00:20:41.790
And that's always just wonderful.

442
00:20:41.790 --> 00:20:45.690
The fact that the Hadley folks will call you,

443
00:20:45.690 --> 00:20:48.090
they'll call you, you press a button, and you're in,

444
00:20:48.090 --> 00:20:51.270
you don't have to do another thing, just be,

445
00:20:51.270 --> 00:20:53.280
and that's all that's required.

446
00:20:53.280 --> 00:20:54.630
Thank you for that.

447
00:20:54.630 --> 00:20:58.890
Thank you both for sharing just, your enthusiasm.

448
00:20:58.890 --> 00:21:01.110
And it's funny,

449
00:21:01.110 --> 00:21:06.110
I think we all have really come back to the same point,

450
00:21:06.630 --> 00:21:09.120
although we've expressed it in different ways,

451
00:21:09.120 --> 00:21:13.440
that these discussion groups really are about connection,

452
00:21:13.440 --> 00:21:15.030
and learning from one another.

453
00:21:15.030 --> 00:21:19.800
And what could be more important and more fun than that?

454
00:21:19.800 --> 00:21:21.210
If you're listening,

455
00:21:21.210 --> 00:21:24.150
and you wanna be involved in the discussion group,

456
00:21:24.150 --> 00:21:29.150
you can give us a call, 800-323-4238.

457
00:21:32.190 --> 00:21:35.640
So if you're not even signed up on the Hadley site yet,

458
00:21:35.640 --> 00:21:36.473
and you're thinking,

459
00:21:36.473 --> 00:21:40.170
"Oh gosh, that's gonna take a lot to get started with,

460
00:21:40.170 --> 00:21:41.670
and I don't know,"

461
00:21:41.670 --> 00:21:43.650
give us a call, we're happy to help.

462
00:21:43.650 --> 00:21:46.770
We also have information in the show notes

463
00:21:46.770 --> 00:21:49.140
about the discussion groups,

464
00:21:49.140 --> 00:21:52.830
and how to join each of them, and the schedule.

465
00:21:52.830 --> 00:21:55.740
All that fun stuff, you'll find there.

466
00:21:55.740 --> 00:22:00.090
Any final thoughts before we say goodbye for now?

467
00:22:00.090 --> 00:22:02.370
I guess I would just like to remind people too

468
00:22:02.370 --> 00:22:05.760
that we're here after the discussion groups as well,

469
00:22:05.760 --> 00:22:08.400
and that, you know, we just don't sign off,

470
00:22:08.400 --> 00:22:10.915
that connection with the learners continues.

471
00:22:10.915 --> 00:22:14.550
Each one of the groups has a special email address,

472
00:22:14.550 --> 00:22:15.780
you can contact us,

473
00:22:15.780 --> 00:22:19.020
and we're happy to follow up if you missed something,

474
00:22:19.020 --> 00:22:21.000
if you want something re-explained,

475
00:22:21.000 --> 00:22:23.040
if a question didn't get answered,

476
00:22:23.040 --> 00:22:26.370
if you had your hand up and we didn't get to you.

477
00:22:26.370 --> 00:22:29.160
We're just always wanting to talk to the learners,

478
00:22:29.160 --> 00:22:31.470
it's that connection that we like.

479
00:22:31.470 --> 00:22:33.390
And hey, it's my passion,

480
00:22:33.390 --> 00:22:35.430
and I'd be happy to talk to anybody

481
00:22:35.430 --> 00:22:37.320
about the discussion groups.

482
00:22:37.320 --> 00:22:40.710
I would say give it a try. Absolutely.

483
00:22:40.710 --> 00:22:42.060
There's a lot to learn.

484
00:22:42.060 --> 00:22:44.280
And also, you're not alone,

485
00:22:44.280 --> 00:22:45.928
and we can't do this,

486
00:22:45.928 --> 00:22:47.640
at least, I can't do this alone.

487
00:22:47.640 --> 00:22:51.900
What an opportunity to expand what you have.

488
00:22:51.900 --> 00:22:53.610
Very well said, both of you.

489
00:22:53.610 --> 00:22:56.100
Thank you so much for dropping by.

490
00:22:56.100 --> 00:23:00.150
And if you'd like to hear Debbie's or Carol's voice again,

491
00:23:00.150 --> 00:23:03.450
then all you gotta do is join a discussion group,

492
00:23:03.450 --> 00:23:07.020
and you can chat with either or both of them

493
00:23:07.020 --> 00:23:08.130
during the pre-game,

494
00:23:08.130 --> 00:23:10.500
and then hang out for the discussion group

495
00:23:10.500 --> 00:23:11.658
and learn something.

496
00:23:11.658 --> 00:23:13.740
(upbeat music)
Thanks, everyone.

497
00:23:13.740 --> 00:23:15.300
Got something to say?

498
00:23:15.300 --> 00:23:18.390
Share your thoughts about this episode of "Hadley Presents,"

499
00:23:18.390 --> 00:23:20.940
or make suggestions for future episodes.

500
00:23:20.940 --> 00:23:22.590
We'd love to hear from you.

501
00:23:22.590 --> 00:23:26.850
Send us an email podcast@hadley.edu.

502
00:23:26.850 --> 00:23:31.850
That's P-O-D-C-A-S-T @hadley.edu.

503
00:23:32.130 --> 00:23:35.107
Or leave us a message at 847-784-2870.

504
00:23:38.520 --> 00:23:39.633
Thanks for listening.

505
00:23:40.720 --> 00:23:44.720
(upbeat music fades out gently)