Lancaster Region

Your adventure will begin at the visitor center where you will learn about natural history, raptor identification, migration information, and Sanctuary guidelines. Participants will then spend time getting an up-close and personal look at one of the education raptors. Following the presentation, the group will take part in a guided walk to South Lookout. During the walk, you will hear about flight interpretation and local landmarks. A trained naturalist will be on hand to announce and identify approaching birds. There will be time for exploring the Sanctuary on your own followed by a boxed lunch outside, under the roof in the amphitheater.

In Mary Lou’s Part I Pathways Institute presentation, “A Story of a Garden,” she provides background for her passion of gardening to nurture biodiversity within Lancaster City. Part II will be an in-person tour of the Botanical Native Plant Garden that she oversees at the Wolf Museum of Music and Art. The sunny and woodland locations are ideal for more than 300 species of plants that numerous butterflies, moths, insects, and birds depend on for their survival. In 2013, the National Wildlife Federation certified the garden as a wildlife habitat. There is no additional fee for the tour. A suggested $10 donation towards the garden is appreciated. Please bring cash on the day of the tour; the donations will be collected at the garden. Transportation is not provided.

Enjoy a guided tour to explore the heritage and horticulture of Hershey Gardens from its beginnings in 1937 through today. Following the tour you will have the opportunity to walk among hundreds of butterflies from around the world at the Butterfly Atrium. The visit will round out with participants enjoying free time to wander among the gardens at their leisure. Bring your camera! The group is expected to return to Landis Homes by 1:00 pm

In Mary Lou’s Part I Pathways Institute presentation, “A Story of a Garden,” she provides background for her passion of gardening to nurture biodiversity within Lancaster City. Part II will be an in-person tour of the Botanical Native Plant Garden that she oversees at the Wolf Museum of Music and Art. The sunny and woodland locations are ideal for more than 300 species of plants that numerous butterflies, moths, insects, and birds depend on for their survival. In 2013, the National Wildlife Federation certified the garden as a wildlife habitat. There is no additional fee for the tour. A suggested $10 donation towards the garden is appreciated. Please bring cash on the day of the tour; the donations will be collected at the garden. Transportation is not provided.

Our adventure will begin with seeing highlights of the garden from a seat on the tram. Learn about the history of Winterthur, and see what’s in bloom on this 20-minute narrated tour. Enjoy a self-guided tour into the entertaining rooms and the premier collection of American decorative arts. Winterthur galleries highlight America’s history, cultural heritage, and design through objects from the museum and library collections. After the tour of the rooms, participants will be able to purchase lunch at the Pavilion Cafe, located in the Visitor Center. Following lunch, there will be time to explore the gardens and grounds on your own before departure. The bus will depart from Winterthur at 2:00 pm. The group is expected to return to Landis Homes by 4:00 pm

Greystone Manor Therapeutic Riding Center has created a unique horsemanship program for Pathways Institute participants. Four weekly unmounted horsemanship sessions will allow participants to experience the incredible bond between humans and horses, enhance physical and cognitive stretching and strength, facilitate positive exchange of experiences, and consider future equine opportunities. The sensory nature of the horse is good for the inside and outside of people! The group will be led by PATH certified instructors. Activities will include a moderate level of exercise. Additional forms will need to be filled out to participate in the program, including a release form from your doctor. Please register before August 14.

The commerce and livelihoods of nations owe much to chemical substances. These substances expanded exploration, created international trade, alleviated suffering, cured debilitating (even deadly) diseases, and significantly extended the length and quality of human lives. Using selected substances as context - from folk remedies to “The Pill,” aspirin to antibiotics, salt to steroids, dyes to wonder drugs - this course will illustrate how chemistry has played a major role in shaping the trajectories of history and cultures across the ages.

A Pennsylvania woman of the early 1900’s, Fianna was shaped by the Anabaptist faith that strengthened her through tuberculosis and early death at age 29. She left behind a grieving husband, two small children, and a large packet of letters. The story within the letters became the foundation for Fianna’s Story. While participants will follow Fianna’s daily life of church, home, and farm, we will focus on her experiences in a sanatorium, the strange treatments she received, and her determination to live her faith. We will follow her and her family after she returned home to die. Participants are encouraged to read Fianna’s Story before the class to help discuss lessons that her life offers for us. The book is available at Masthof Press and Amazon.

The First Amendment is just one sentence of the U.S. Constitution, but it has produced a library’s worth of analysis. It contains six separate rights, each of which presents legal and policy issues that few judges or lawyers have mastered. Yet it is also one of the most accessible provisions in the Constitution – almost everyone understands that speech and religion are to be “free.” The first session will introduce the First Amendment and then address several contemporary speech problems. The second session will focus on the two religious clauses of the First Amendment, addressing problems that show that people can be in agreement about the meaning of the clauses, and still in strong disagreement about results in individual cases.

We will trace the history of automobile styling from its horseless carriage beginnings through the decades of cultural and technological influences to its current state.