CLL: Community Classes

All Community classes are open to both CLL members and non-members!

These classes do not require a CLL membership to attend; however, they require registration and may have an additional fee.

December 2024

December Lunch Meet Up
Wednesday, December 25
12:30 p.m.
Join us for a festive holiday lunch at Tavern on Rush (1015 N. Rush St., Chicago, IL 60611). Tavern on Rush offers an elevated experience with enhanced food and beverage offerings in a beautiful space.

WINTER 2025 COMMUNITY CLASSES
These classes do not require a CLL membership to attend; however, they require registration and may have an additional fee when noted in the listings below.

January 2025

Mindfulness Meditation
Every Monday and every Friday
11:30 a.m.–12:00 p.m. (Zoom)
Cost: Free

Sign-up through CLL; the Zoom link will be sent from the facilitator, Regan Burke.

Bridge Group
Every other Monday
1:00–4:00 p.m. (In-person)
Cost: Free

This group is currently full. Contact Linda Daly if you are interested in being put on the substitute list.

Improv
Tuesdays, January 7–February 11
1:00–2:30 pm (In-person)
Cost: $50 for CLL Members, $65 for non-members

Ron Tolisano is a Chicago resident who has been involved in the improv community for the past ten years. He has a BA from Western Ill. Univ. and an MSW from Loyola University, Chicago. He has taken classes at Second City and Annoyance Theatre. He currently teaches improvisation at the Chicago Cultural Center and at the Harold Washington Library Center- Chicago Public Library.

Monthly Book Group (on Zoom)
Second Tuesday of the month
2:30–3:30 p.m.
Led by Alan Bath
Cost: Free

All are welcome to join us for lively and thought-provoking discussion each month.

January 4:
The Glassmaker by Tracy Chevalier

February 11:
Blind Spots: When Medicine Gets it Wrong, and What it Means for Our Health by Marty Makary

March 11:
The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store by James McBride

Men’s “Great Ideas” Discussion Group
Every other Wednesday
10:30 a.m.–12:00 p.m. (In person)
Cost: Free

A discussion group that provides a safe and supportive environment for men to discuss and work through challenges of current topics that are facing the world at large. Before each meeting we will read an article from “Foreign Affairs” magazine and then discuss as a group.

Winter Meeting Dates:
January 8 and 22
February 5 and 19
March 5 and 19

Midweek Meditation
Wednesdays, January 8–March 26
11:00–11:30 a.m. (In-Person)
Cost: Free

Join CLL Director Annette Mileski on Wednesdays for 30 minutes of mindful restoration, meditation, and gentle movement. All are welcome.

Art Beat with Susan Musich
Wednesday, January 8
1:30-2:30 p.m. (Zoom)
Cost: Free for CLL Members, $10 for Non-members

Join Susan as we explore the work of Paula Modersohn-Becker in the Art Institute’s latest exhibit, “I Am Me.” During her short life, Paula Modersohn-Becker (1876–1907) radically charted her own path, exploring the singular aspects of the feminine experience in a bold style that foreshadowed Expressionism. Her most striking works—among the more than 700 paintings, roughly 1,400 drawings, and eleven prints made across only 10 years—are frank portrayals of childhood and images of the lived bodily experience of motherhood, pregnancy, and old age.

Film Series
2nd and 4th Wednesday of each month
2:00–4:00 pm (in-person)
Cost: Free

Join us to enjoy a current film! Register to receive a list of this month’s movie selections.

Dates for Winter:
January 8 and 22
February 12 and 26
March 12 and 26

Matters of Health
Thursdays, January 9–March 20
11:30 a.m.–12:30 p.m. (Hybrid)
Cost: Free

Matters of Health is a weekly series which provides participants with information and resources about five areas of health. Local experts facilitate lively discussions about physical, mental, social, financial, and spiritual health, as all these areas contribute to healthy aging.

Participants register for the whole series and will receive a weekly email reminder about the topic and speaker for that session. This program is free and open to all, and is offered in hybrid format, meaning you can attend in person or virtually.

Foreign Affairs Perspectives
Every other Tuesday
1:00–2:00 p.m. (On Zoom)
Cost: Free

This is a member-led small group discussion based on articles from the magazine Foreign Affairs. Group members are required to subscribe to the magazine. For each discussion, one group member selects an article from the magazine, develops questions about the article, and moderates the discussion. Each member is expected to moderate one or two discussions during each term.

This group meets every other Tuesday on the following dates:
January 7 and 21
February 4 and 18
March 4 and 18

Around the World Art History

Wednesdays, January 15-February 5
1:30-2:30 p.m. (Zoom)
Cost: $40 for CLL Members, $60 for Nonmembers

Travel around the world, examining the incredible beauty within diverse cultures, linguistics, and belief systems through the profundity of art. We will expand our horizons by taking in a deep past as we consider its impact on our present. While marveling at humanity’s dynamic complexity, we travel along the songlines in the ancestral lands of the aboriginal people of Australia. Along our journey, we will make our way through West Africa and Ancient Rome before finding the dawn of globalization and echoes of modernity in the 17th-century Dutch Masters.

Hugh Leeman is an artist and lecturer teaching art history in English and Spanish. He lectures regularly at Duke University, Johns Hopkins University, and in Spanish at Colorado State University. His lectures focus on the manifestation of social power structures and the spiritual realm in pre-modern art and the future of images' ability to re-engineer social constructs. Leeman's social practice has been exhibited at the Museum of Mexico City. His first social art project focused on a five-year collaborative project with the inner city's homeless, using technology to create micro self-empowerment business platforms for homeless individuals. More recently, Leeman cofounded aetatribes.org.

Art Days (Make & Take)

Third Thursday of the month, 1:30–3:00 p.m. (In Person)
Cost: $5 will be collected during class for materials.

Avid creative crafter, paper lover, and CLL director, Annette Mileski facilitates this monthly group in different hands-on artsy endeavors. All crafting experience is welcome so come join the fun while chatting and stretching your creative brain!

Mosaics Class
Thursday, January 30
2:00–4:00 p.m. (In-Person)
Cost: $40 for CLL Members, $60 for Nonmembers

Learn how to make mosaics with stained glass! You will learn the basics of mosaic making with practicing artist Vivian Visser, then create a piece that you can take home! All materials will be provided.

Vivian Visser received her BFA from the Center for Creative Studies in Detroit. She has focused on natural art for more than 25 years. Vivian has developed and taught classes in acrylic painting, painting on silk, clay, drawing, and mosaics to people at every stage of life, from children to families and adults.

Hooray for Hooks!
Knitting and Needle Arts
Fridays, 2:00–3:00 p.m. (in person)
Cost: Free

Interested in learning how to knit or crochet? Or do you already know how, but would love to sit and stitch with a group? Have we got a space for you! Heather Groh will be facilitating this group every other week and all skill levels are welcome. She will be able to help you get started with some simple patterns if you are new to the craft and will provide support if you are feeling a bit stuck in your stitching.

This group meets every other week in the 4th-floor lounge of Gratz Center:
January 10 and 24
February 14 and 28
March 14 and 28
December 13

February 2025

Storytelling Workshop
Thursdays, February 6–February 27
3:00–4:00 p.m. (Zoom)
Cost: Free for CLL Members, $40 for Non-members

Stories and storytellers have been a part of human history throughout time. It is one of the things all cultures share. It is the way we connect with those who have gone before us and provides guidelines for those who will come after us. Stories are threads which bind us to one another.

Storytelling requires a teller and a listener; little else. When we tell a story, we invite the listeners into the moment of the story with us, and when we listen to a story our imagination begins to make connections; trying to connect to information we already know or experiences we have had.

How do you welcome someone into your family or group? How do you include others? You tell them the story of your group.

Participants in this four-week interactive workshop will learn basic storytelling techniques as well as tips to create and develop their own personal stories. This is a great opportunity to learn something new, stretch your neurons, and meet new people!
Everyone is a storyteller, and everyone is a story listener.

CLL Member Memorial Service
Wednesday, February 12, 11:00-12:00 p.m. (Hybrid)
Cost: Free for CLL and Non-members

CSO Dress Rehearsal
Wednesday, February 19
10:00-12:30 pm (In-Person)
Cost: Free for CLL Members and non-members
This rehearsal will be held at the Chicago Symphony Center. Tickets will be available to be picked up from the CLL Office and we will meet at the CSO the day of the concert

Oscar Preview Party
Thursday, February 27
2:30-3:30 p.m. (In-Person)
Cost: Free for CLL Members and Non-members

Join Matt Helms for the CLL Oscar Preview Party. This in-person party will be a celebration of this year’s nominees and all things related to the Academy Awards!

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