What happens when you get more than 25 self-proclaimed “news-junkies” into the same room? According to retired pediatrician and class leader, Michael Epner, “We create a group of highly educated seniors who enjoy sharing our opinions on a spectrum ranging from ultra-conservative to ultra-liberal with one another, and we feel safe and well-respected in doing so.” The class began as a senior “emeritus” option at a community college more than 15 years ago. According to Epner, many of the participants have been with the class since its inception. About seven years ago, the original teacher retired and Epner realized he could lead the group. A few months ago the class was defunded, but the group wanted their weekly discussions to continue.
Epner and a few others decided that they’d restart the group themselves. The Mustang Library, located at 10101 N 90th St. in Scottsdale, rented them a room for a discounted fee. Epner says they all realized that they’d still need to charge a fee to cover the cost of flyers, mailings and other expenses; they decided the amount would be the original tuition minus 20%. The group plans to donate any extra funds to worthy causes. They’ve already made the first donation, which was to help send a group of high school “mathletes” in Costa Rica to compete in the Iberoamerican Math contest. Epner, who has no formal social science training, works hard to prepare for each week’s 10-11:30 Wednesday morning class. Epner says, “It may be hard to believe, but I’ve been a news junkie since I was 6!I read 25 newspapers online daily and listen to insightful information on the media, and then take notes.”
Some of the publications he accesses via computer are The New York and Los Angeles Times, The Wall St. Journal, the China Daily, Le Monde and the Arizona Republic, just as a start. From there Epner writes up a list of possible subjects that lead to some lively and interesting discussions.
“I’ve listed as many as 50 (subjects) on the board. Sometimes we only get through one or two, and other times we might talk over a half dozen,” says Epner of each week’s discussions. “The age range of the group is from 72 to 84, about 90% of our members are Jewish and most have more than one degree.”
Michael Mehlman, a long-time student in the class, says he loves the weekly get-togethers and says they are very important on several levels since his retirement. “I find they help keep me mentally stimulated. I keep learning. I’ve made lifelong friends – even though we don’t always agree. It’s good for everyone to meet and have relationships with people we may have never met otherwise.”
Mehlman adds that now the class has a couple of dozen people, but that within a few short weeks the snowbirds will arrive and then the gathering will swell to almost triple that number. “But we’re always looking for more people. I was out to dinner with some friends the other night and invited them. No doubt, they’ll join us.”
The group has been known to successfully predict the outcome of many national elections. “In the past we have predicted the national elections and predicted the winner in 49 of the 50 states. We missed Iowa. We predicted the next pope two weeks before the College of Cardinals elected him,” boasts Epner.
Even though the group has been so successful in the past, when asked if they had a strong feeling as to whom would be the next president of the United States, both leader and students declined to make their choices public. However, they did say they feel that the country is polarized in a way that no one has ever seen before, and therefore it’s hard to predict what will happen in our future.
They do have strong opinions about the survival of Israel and the Jewish population. Mehlman says, “We as a people are incredibly strong and so is the state of Israel. We will survive.” Epner echoes the sentiment and adds, “We will always figure out a way.” As a guest and observer, I loved the way the group listened to those who talked and everyone was very respectful of the person giving an opinion. One of the hot topics on this occasion was the Affordable Care Act. Everyone was allowed and encouraged to state what they thought and others to disagree, but all seemed to be certain it was safe to share their points of view with everyone in the room. And afterward, they loved the idea of getting together for lunch.
If anyone is interested in learning more about the “Valley Newsroom” sessions, email Epner at EpiePandM@aol.com
