Celebration Lifelong Speaker Series – Fall-Winter 2024

It’s time to enjoy the new theater season showcasing the unbelievably talented performers and beautiful theaters right here in the Orlando area. Come join us as we preview the 2024–2025 offerings of Orlando-area Broadway touring companies and regional, community and college theaters. We’ll enjoy video clips from the wealth of shows which will be available to you this coming year — practically in your own backyard! No plane tickets to New York City needed — just a love of live theater!

Lecturers:

Don Salvo
Don Salvo is a co-founder of the Playwrights’ Lab at the Pittsburgh Public Theatre and teaches playwriting and courses about Broadway Musicals at Celebration Lifelong. Don is a published playwright and has had multiple plays performed throughout the country. His play, Unraveled, a Heideman Award Finalist for Drama from the Actors Theatre of Louisville, was produced twice off-Broadway and introduced Joe Manganiello to New York audiences. His plays One-Way Mirror and The Florida Highwaymen were finalists for the Verna Safran Prize. A professionally trained dancer/actor, he is a proud member of Actors’ Equity and has performed in over 60 productions with the Kenley Players. Don earned degrees from Edinboro University of Pennsylvania, the University of Pittsburgh, Duquesne University, and was a Fellow in the School of Speech and Drama at Northwestern University.
Dolores Salvo
Dolores Salvo was the Supervisor of Mathematics at a suburban school district near Pittsburgh where she taught high school math and English. She conducted workshops and seminars in math pedagogy and educational software at the national, state, and regional levels. After retiring from teaching in Pennsylvania, she taught math for several happy years at Celebration K-12. She currently teaches courses at Celebration Lifelong and served as the Chair of the Lifelong Steering Committee. Dolores enjoys teaming with her husband Don to deliver lectures and facilitate the Lifelong Book Club. She earned degrees from Edinboro University of Pennsylvania, the University of Pittsburgh, and Duquesne University.

You may have attended last term’s course, The Presidential Election and the Effects on the Market. Well, now we’re going to switch it up. This presentation is about the Effects of the Market on who gets elected. We will dive deep into historical statistics but also lean into present day numbers. Most importantly, we will use math and numbers that don’t require opinions or politics! Will we be able to predict the outcome of the election? I don’t know…but we’ll have fun trying!

Lecturer: Dan Zagata

Dan Zagata is the Managing Director of Evershore Financial Group, an independent comprehensive financial services firm. Dan brings 21 years of experience working with professionals, businesses, and non-profits to help them realize their financial potential and goals. Dan earned a BA in Economics and an MBA in Finance from Bentley University, Boston, and earned his DBA in Finance from the International School of Management, Paris, France. He also holds a graduate certificate of Financial Planning from University of Miami. In addition, he has earned the Certified Financial Planner (CFP) and Chartered Financial Consultant designations from the American College and is a Chartered Life Underwriter.

Let’s explore the history of the Edsel automobile — from its promise of glamor, to nearly ruining the Ford Motor Corporation, to becoming a punch line, and eventually to turning into a beloved classic. We’ll also have a tour around a1958 Edsel Pacer Convertible in Ember Red and Frost White – complete with REAL Chrome! (Mmmmm Chrome!!) It’s a fascinating business story of how things went right, wrong, with some bad luck thrown in for good measure.

Lecturer: Paul Dunlap

Paul Dunlap has an MA in Film & TV. He’s worked as a Producer, Director, Cameraman, and Editor for PBS, ABC, CBS and as a BBC Corporate Communications Trainer. Paul’s been playing with cars since he was a kid. He owns a 1958 Edsel Pacer Convertible and is a member of The Edsel Owners Club, International Edsel Club, Florida Edsel Club and is currently the VP of the Central Florida Edsel Club.

Whether you are an active or former cyclist, the comfort, safety, and ease of riding a recumbent trike may astound you. Learn about the health benefits, advantages, designs and features, assistive options for those with physical limitations, and how to get started riding a recumbent trike. And then… LET’S RIDE! We will have a variety of trikes for you to try, if you wish to do so.

Lecturer: Nick White

Nick White, a professional educator, is a lifelong cyclist and non-professional bike mechanic. He’s ridden recumbent bicycles and tricycles for over 20 years. During the pandemic, Nick refurbished and flipped about 75 used recumbent cycles — during the period when there were no supplies in the bike shops.

All of us would like to be as strong, able and present as possible in our later years! From nutrition to footwear to brain health and more, examine a wide list of strategies (some unexpected, some not) to aid in accomplishing that goal. Make the most of your opportunities to enjoy an active, independent life!

Lecturer: Alexis Saire

Alexis Saire, MEd, MA, is a Health and Fitness Educator and Certified Exercise Specialist at AdventHealth Wellness Center Celebration. Prior to her many years in Florida, she was a faculty member at Penn State University and community colleges, as well as an educator at hospital and rehab centers. Alexis has been a conference presenter for local and national organizations on topics including yoga, stress management, obesity, senior health issues, creativity, brain health and self-esteem.

Perhaps you watched “The Joy of Painting” on television between 1983 and 1994; maybe you’ve even painted while listening to Bob Ross’s soft-spoken instructions! But did you know he was born in Daytona Beach and raised in Orlando? Or that during his 20-year career in the Air Force, he attended art classes at the USO in Anchorage? Or that he lost part of his left index finger as a carpenter? Or that his paintings have sold at auction for as much as $95,000? Interested in learning more? Then come to our lecture and not only will you hear all about him, but you’ll watch our local artist, Meryl Rachlin, as she creates one of her fabulous “Bob Ross” paintings!

Lecturers:

Audrey Byllott
After working for Citibank for 20 years, Audrey Byllott became a Director for MasterCard USA for six years, then joined MasterCard Europe as a consultant for five more years. Her banking career may have nothing to do with American Icons but her love of history and interesting people does! As a Lifelong instructor, Audrey has lectured on 18 American Icons. All of them have museums and/or homes right here in Florida and are worth a visit.

Meryl Rachlin
Meryl Rachlin has been an artist for as long as she can remember. Meryl studied Graphic Design at Massachusetts College of Art. She worked on creative technology as part of her corporate career until starting her own mural/decorative painting business in 1995. Meryl also creates unique 3D dog portraits upon commission, managed the Celebration Art & Wine Strolls, and is a member of Celebration Lifelong Steering Committee. Meryl continues to learn new arts and craft mediums to teach at Celebration Lifelong.

What do science and the medical community have to say about the impact of creative engagement on brain health? Engaging in a creative expression practice has a restorative effect, reducing anxiety and stress levels. Creativity is related to the personality trait of “openness” and can lead to more flexible thinking, “Yes, and…” thinking. As part of this presentation, we’ll engage in an exercise: “Doodle for Your Noodle.” Doodling is playful and the epitome of creative freedom and a non-threatening way to exercise your creative muscles.

Lecturer: Liz Kitchens

Liz Kitchens is the author of Be Brave. Lose the Beige: Finding Your Sass After Sixty which won the 2024 National Indie Excellence Award for aging. Liz conducts workshops and seminars on creativity and its impact on healthy aging. She directed a creative arts program for teens in underserved communities for eighteen years. She has also been a market researcher for more than thirty-five years and is the founder of What’s Next Boomer, a website dedicated to helping Baby Boomers navigate retirement options. Her book, speeches, and blog (Be Brave. Lose the Beige!) focus on women’s empowerment and how creative thinking helped her cope with empty nest syndrome, and transition from being “outtasight” to literally being out-of-sight. Liz is a contributing writer for the online magazine, Sixty and Me, and has been published in various online and print publications.

Casual conversations with other taxpayers often seem innocent and productive but may lead to incorrect information. Each person’s tax situation differs from another’s, so the smallest nuance can change the answer. Join us for an interactive presentation to explore common errors and tall tales. Get ready to level up your tax knowledge for the future.

Lecturers:

Thomas Williams
Tom Williams, a federally licensed tax practitioner, holds an undergraduate degree in accounting and an Enrolled Agent license, an elite status reflecting the highest designation awarded to individuals for taxes by the IRS. Fewer than five hundred people in the country, including Tom, are non-attorneys admitted to the United States Tax Court.

Iris Palma
Iris Palma and Tom Williams co-author a series of tax books and guides for small business owners and individual taxpayers, notably the award-nominated book Deducting The Right Way: Untangling Small Business Accounting & Taxes. With a Juris Doctor and a background in entrepreneurship, Iris brings a unique perspective to their discussions.

Join Philip Pikelny, co-author of the best-selling biography, Rambling Willie: The Horse That God Loved to learn about this amazing horse. During his career, Rambling Willie won 128 races, including a then-record 79 races timed in 2:00 or faster. He was inducted into the United States Harness Racing Hall of Fame in 1997 and was the first Standardbred to win more than $2 million in a career. But there’s so much more to learn about Rambling Willie, including how he overcame adversity after adversity in truly miraculous fashion, how he became the biggest donor to a rural Ohio church, and how he appeared with Philip Pikelny on the Merv Griffin Show!

Lecturer: Philip Pikelny

Philip Pikelny was inducted into the Harness Racing Hall of Fame in 2020. He was the youngest Publicity Director for the U.S. Trotting Association when he went to work in that capacity in 1975 at the age of 23. Philip introduced the world to the story of pacer Rambling Willie that same year and co-wrote, with Don Evans, the horse’s best-selling biography entitled Rambling Willie: The Horse That God Loved. Later in life, Philip worked in marketing for media companies such as The Columbus Dispatch, WBNS-TV, The Weather Channel and KLAS-TV.