Paying tribute to the World War II generation is an “occupational opportunity” that Carol Burton finds especially rewarding.
And she will have that honor again this year during the College’s Elderfest 2006 “reunion,” slated for May 28-31 at Amicalola Falls State Park and Lodge in Dawsonville, Georgia.
“We have a wonderful program planned,” says Burton, who coordinates all Elderhostel and Elderfest programs for Dalton State College through its Center for Continuing Education.
“We will be paying tribute to our heroes who served in World War II, and answering the question ‘Where were you in ’42?’”
Elderhostel is a nonprofit organization and is the nation’s first and the world’s largest education and travel organization for adults aged 55 and older. More than 8,000 programs are offered each year in more than 90 countries.
The Dalton State Elderhostel programs have a big following, partly because of Georgia’s location as a major thoroughfare connecting Florida to points north. Elderfest, initiated in 1993 by Burton, is designed for Dalton State Elderhostel alumni and their friends and families and others who are interested in hostelling and learning more about the Elderhostel experience.
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Sarita Gale and Carol Burton, of Dalton State College’s Center for Continuing Education, prepare for and direct all Elderhostel programs and the annual Elderfest reunions.
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During this year’s Elderfest program, participants will be able to reminisce about the “greatest generation,” those who defended our nation during World War II. The theme for the three-day program is “A Salute to the World War II Generation.”
Hostellers will view the World War in photographs during a session on “The Big One: WWII.” Led by historian Dr. Tom Veve, this program will revisit the brave feats undertaken by the Band of Brothers, the Doolittle Raiders, Merrill’s Marauders, and the Eighth Air Force. Among the major issues to be discussed are the Japanese decision to attack Pearl Harbor, Winston Churchill’s support for an initial Allied counterattack in the Mediterranean Theater, the turning point battles of El Alamein and Stalingrad, and Truman’s decision to use the atomic bomb.
Other special programs include Lloyd Ponder’s special recounting of his experience as a prisoner of war in “A Personal Journey: Long Days and Nights as a P.O.W”; “Movies and Music of World War II”; “What were they Writing? Short Stories of World War II”; and a special event “LEON and the Boys, Music to Dance By.”
Participants will pay $330 per person for double occupancy and $450 for a single room for the program. Accommodations are in the Amicalola Falls State Park and Lodge, which is home to the highest waterfall east of the Mississippi River.
“This is a great opportunity for folks to be able to enjoy a program at what we feel is one of the most beautiful sites in Georgia,” Burton says.
For more information about Elderfest or Elderhostel, please call 706.272.4454.
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