Wisdom House Retreat and Conference Center is an interfaith center presenting programs in spirituality, education, and the arts. It offers hospitality for group meetings and specializes in service to the not-for-profit community. The center is a ministry of the Daughters of Wisdom.
Making Peace with Money - 9:30am-3:00pm - Wisdom House
Making Peace with Money
Susan Lovallo
Are you stressed over money issues? Would you like some new strategies to get control over your finances? Learn money management skills, how to achieve your short and long-term goals, how to get out of credit card debt and have a peaceful relationship with money.
Fee: $40. Bring a friend for $25 payable with registration. (Non-refundable deposit: $15)
"Getty Center Abstractions," a selection of photographs by Warren, CT photographer Richard Wanderman, opened in the Marie Louise Trichet Gallery at Wisdom House on Saturday, January 7, 2012.
Introduction by Sister Jo-Ann Iannotti
Richard Wanderman - Artist Talk - Part 1
Richard Wanderman - Artist Talk - Part 2
Richard Wanderman - Artist Talk - Part 3
Opened in 1997, the Getty Center in Los Angeles is a campus for cultural institutions founded by oilman J. Paul Getty, including a branch of the Getty Museum. Over many years Wanderman has taken thousands of photographs of the Center, which is well known for its architecture, gardens, and views from its hilltop location. This exhibit is a small selection of the images that document what he has seen when focusing on design elements which, when looked at abstractly, capture his feelings about the buildings.
"Every time I visit the Getty Center I'm astounded by the architecture. The architect Richard Meier put incredible lines, angles, curves, and textures into almost every view. You look up, down, across and through in almost any place and there are things of interest to see. People visit the Getty Center just to be in the space without ever entering a gallery to see artwork, and that says a lot about the success of the architecture," Wanderman says.
The Marie Louise Trichet Gallery at Wisdom House has featured the works of local, national, and international artists since its opening in 1994. The Gallery is open Mon. - Sat. 10 am - 4 pm.
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IT'S IN THE AIR
I have a belief I've kept secret for many years. It's not related to any religion. It's a belief I've had for many years and never been disappointed by it nor had it disproved as incorrect.
Simply stated: I believe that every Sunday, somewhere in The New York Times newspaper, I will find something that will add to or support my own spiritual growth. It rarely is in an article about religion. It might be in the sports section, the business section, or the obituaries. Very often, something is in the arts section, sometimes the real estate section, and then there is always the book review or the magazine.
This past weekend was no exception. On Sunday, January 1, 2012 there they were: two articles - one in the op-ed (Sunday Review) and the other was in the travel section. Ironically, each had to do with the same theme: the need for silence in our lives.
In the travel section, the article dealt with a woman's need for "a solid period of quiet." The 43 year old mother of three, as the article put it, "needed to recombobulate" somewhere, cheaply." Her searching brought her to a Jesuit-run retreat house where she had time to herself to examine her life with the help of a spiritual director and sort out where her life had brought her.
The second article took the front and center spot of the Sunday Review section. The article was titled, "The Joy of Quiet." It dealt with our need for quiet in our ever-demanding and intrusive world of technology. Our technology swallows up our attention at every turn and tap of an app!
We experience our world through a screen. The average American spends at least eight and a half hours hunched over, "bowing before" one every day. That which was supposed to have freed us has enslaved us - or so it seems. Ironically the author concludes (and has research to back it up) that it's our immersion in the natural world , listening to nature, that heals us and makes us more attentive to the rest of our lives.
I pass this on because finding these two articles was like getting a double hitter for myself. It renewed my belief in my "Sunday practice." It reminded me of all the people I meet through Wisdom House who have the same pressures and the same yearnings. I reinforced my belief that this need is "in the air."
And now all I have to do is to click the 'Send' button to share this reflection with my closest 2000 friends and after that, 'Shut Down.'
Jo-Ann Iannotti, OP
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BOOK RELEASE: THE TRANSITION COMPANION
The Transition Companion by Rob Hopkins
was released this October.
Copies of this book are available through Wisdom House for a minimum donation of $16. The price on the book is $29.95. (The price for the book and shipping is $20.00).
To order a copy of this book, send payment to Wisdom House, 229 E Litchfield Rd, Litchfield, CT 06759. You may call us at 860-567-3163 or email programs@wisdomhouse.org.
The focus of The Transition Companion is on “making your community more resilient in uncertain times.” Author Rob Hopkins, Founder of the Transition Movement, is recognized globally for his grassroots work in promoting community resilience in the light of peak oil and climate change. Rob’s blog is www.transitionculture.org.
Sister Rosemarie Greco discusses the history and use of the labyrinth at Wisdom House.
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WISDOM HOUSE RETREAT AND CONFERENCE CENTER
DEDICATES SOLAR ELECTRIC SYSTEM
photos by Jo-Ann Iannotti, OP
Sister Rosemarie Greco with Bryan Garcia, President of the State's Clean Energy Finance and Investment Authority and Senator Andrew Roraback. Ray Furse of Litchfield Hills Solar based in West Cornwall describes the function of the inverter to change direct current from the solar panels into alternating current.
Wisdom House activates new solar panels
Litchfield.bz (08-12-11)
Wisdom House Retreat and Conference Center unveiled its new 80 new solar photovoltaic panels for the public during a dedication ceremony on Thursday.
The panels, activated yesterday, are located on the roof of the center's Spruce Brook Barn and are an example of Wisdom House's commitment to clean-energy initiatives, according to Wisdom House Administrator Sister Rosemarie Greco
Funding the installation of the panels were a grant of $50,500 from the Connecticut Clean Energy Fund, now known as the Clean Energy Finance and Investment Authority, $30,000 from both the Daughters of Wisdom and Friends of Wisdom House, $10,000 from the Seherr-Thoss Foundation, and $10,000 from Paula and Emma Desel.
Estimates show the panels generating about 15,500 kilowatt hours of clean, renewable energy annually, saving an estimated 10.7 metric tons of carbon dioxide from entering the atmosphere. They will help Wisdom House reduce its energy use by an estimated 25 percent, and over 30 to 40 years, the panels will produce an estimated $300,000 worth of energy.
State Sen. Andrew Roraback, R-Goshen addressed the gathering and praised Wisdom House for leading by example. Clean Energy Finance and Investment Authority President Brian Garcia also spoke and credited Roraback for his role in legislation that established the authority.
CEFIA's job is to promote, develop and invest in clean energy and energy-efficient projects that would improve the environment and strengthen the economy.
About Wisdom House
Wisdom House Retreat and Conference Center is an interfaith center in a country setting. The center presents programs on spirituality, education and the arts and has a commitment to energy conservation and sustainability. The center welcomes not-for-profit groups, hosting events and offers hospitality . The center is a ministry of the Daughters of Wisdom. For more on Wisdom House, please visit www.wisdomhouse.org .
About the Clean Energy Finance and Investment Authority (CEFIA)
CEFIA was created by the Connecticut General Assembly in 2011. It is the successor organization to the Connecticut Clean Energy Fund. CEFIA’s mission is to promote, develop and invest in clean energy and energy efficient projects in order to strengthen Connecticut’s economy, protect community health, improve the environment, and promote a secure energy supply for the state. CEFIA is governed by an 11-member board of directors appointed by the governor and the leadership of the State Legislature. As the nation’s full-scale clean energy finance authority, CEFIA will leverage public and private funds to drive investment and scale up clean energy deployment in Connecticut. For more information on CEFIA, please visit www.ctcleanenergy.com.
