'The History of Spices' is the next OLLI program

Hank Kaestner will present the next OLLI-Osher Lifelong Learning Institute program on Tuesday, Feb. 13, 2018. The History of Spices will be presented at 2 p.m. at the Nolin Murray Center next to St. Mary’s Catholic Church.


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The History of Spices is the next OLLI program February 3, 2018 SPRINGFIELD, Vt. – Hank Kaestner will present the next OLLI-Osher Lifelong Learning Institute program on Tuesday, Feb. 13, 2018. The History of Spices will be presented at 2 p.m. at the Nolin Murray Center next to St. Mary’s Catholic Church on Pleasant St. in Springfield, Vt. Kaestner, former director of spice procurement for McCormick & Co., will discuss his travels as spice buyer for the world’s largest spice company. World exploration was largely driven by the search for spice origins. Our speaker literally followed in the footsteps of the early explorers, Vasco Da Gama and Columbus. He’ll take us back to the dawn of civilization, since spice buying is the world’s second oldest profession! Tracing the use of spices by the early Chinese, the Romans, and the Egyptians, he’ll follow the Age of Exploration when the European powers discovered direct routes to the spice origins in India and southeast Asia. spices Learn about the History of Spices, the second oldest profession in the world! Stock photo. He will recount stories such as that Manhattan island was traded by the Dutch to the British for a 50-acre island in eastern Indonesia that Britain held for the nutmegs it produced. Yale University was founded in Connecticut largely with money made in the spice trade. Kaestner has made more than 150 trips back to the spice sources, visiting all of the major spice production areas of the world. This knowledge has resulted in his being considered one of the world’s foremost experts on spices. He has combined his hobby of photography while traveling to remote and fascinating corners of the globe. He is a world-renowned bird-watcher and has presented 2,000 lectures on spices, travel, and birds. This program is co-sponsored by the Springfield Garden Club. OLLI-Osher Lifelong Learning Institute, affiliated with the University of Vermont, is a local membership program geared towards seniors 50 years and older who want to engage in meaningful learning “just for the fun of it!” People of all ages are welcome to attend. The OLLI series programs are selected with input from the local members and carry varied themes from semester to semester including history, art, music, literature, health, nature, science, travel, and current events. Programs are held at 2 p.m. on Tuesday afternoons and last about an hour and a half. Membership for the semester includes access to the nine programs. Non-members are encouraged and welcome to attend individual lectures for a single program fee. Memberships, as well as single program fees, may be paid at the program. The following OLLI program will be two weeks later on Feb. 27, and will be “Gold Mines of New England,” presented by Jim Pecora, author and mining historian. Brochures have been distributed throughout the area towns at businesses, the local libraries, town halls, and Chamber of Commerce offices. The complete Springfield and state-wide program list is available online at www.learn.uvm.edu/olli. Choose State-wide programs from the menu, and then scroll to Springfield. For weather-related changes to the schedule you may check the above mentioned website or SAPA TV, 802-885-6248 or call 802-885-3094.