By STEPHEN HAMMIL

The first SNUG meeting for the winter program took place Jan. 12 at the University of South Florida’s main campus, where a partial move in classes to Carrollwood was a big topic.

The Seniors Networking User Group, or SNUG, was formed in 1996 to give SeniorNet program volunteers and students a place to connect and to keep learning beyond the classes. The group meets monthly, and instead of a rigid instructor/student setup, guest speakers and lecturers hold informal talks. The meetings can cover a wide array of computer topics.

SNUG is sponsored by the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute and the University of South Florida.

On Dec. 14, SNUG met to celebrate its 10-year anniversary. Jim Kaehler, the group’s current president, spoke at the milestone event. Kaehler, a former employment law attorney, has been involved with SNUG for more than a decade. When he retired, his company gave him a computer.

“And I didn’t know word one about computers,” he said. “I successfully avoided computers my entire working career.”
Like most of the SNUG members, Kaehler came to the program as a neophyte, but is now passing on what he’s learned to others.

“Computers open up an entirely new world,” he said. “For seniors, the challenge is we didn’t grow up with computers, so it’s a daunting experience.”
Kaehler recalled a 92-year-old student who had been a professor at the University of Kansas, who was given a computer by his grandchildren and didn’t know what to do with it. Stories like his permeate SeniorNet and SNUG, and illustrate Kaehler’s mission.

“The services we provide – it’s the best deal in town,” Kaehler said. A typical eight-week class costs $80. There is a three-to-one ratio of students to instructors in SNUG.

“We are excited to be able to make our program available for many more seniors so that their lives can be as full and productive as it has made ours,” said Marilyn Bartholomew, SNUG historian and co-chairwoman.

Asked to explain the relationship of SNUG to the SeniorNet program as a whole, Bartholomew said, “It’s a mixture; the SNUG group is a natural extension of SeniorNet. It gives beginners a chance to mingle with the instructors.”

SNUG meetings, according to members, have an informal, town-hall feel to them.

Bartholomew emphasized the camaraderie that SNUG generates, in addition to its technical support value. She hopes to stir up interest in further developing sub-groups in Carrollwood, where she lives.

The Osher institute has moved about 25 percent of courses off campus, with plans to move even more into neighborhoods like Carrollwood.
“We’re a parking-challenged community,” commented Kaehler, referring to the difficulty in navigating the USF campus. He also said bringing cla
sses to other areas will help increase enrollment among those not inclined to drive to the university.

Each term, the institute program runs an open house to drum up support and enroll new members in its courses. A recent open house at the Lake Magdalene United Methodist Church, 2902 W. Fletcher Ave., welcomed more than 300 people. SeniorNet and Learning In Retirement classes are now offered at the church on a daily basis.

The institute and USF coordinate programs and services for seniors over the age of 50. The Learning in Retirement program offers courses and study groups in the liberal arts and sciences, while the SeniorNet program provides hands-on computer instruction and training.

Joseph McAuliffe administrates the senior programs for USF. He said having volunteers for instructors and administrators helps keep the costs low.
“SNUG is great, because we try to blast away that thinking that it’s too late for these folks,” he said.

For many retired residents heading back into the workforce, the SeniorNet courses have evolved from a luxury to necessity.
“For so many seniors now, it’s not even that you can do it, it’s that you have to do it,” McAuliffe said. He has noticed a huge impact in the program over the last few years, as seniors use the courses for more than recreation.

“Now it’s moved into a realm for their survival. They need these basic skills to go back into the world,” he said.
McAuliffe stresses that SNUG is equal parts computer users’ group and social support group. The group, like other institute programs, encourages social activities and friendships.

“It gives some people a place to come to,” added Kaehler. “We help each other. It’s educational in a social setting.”
SNUG membership is open to those who have participated in any of the SeniorNet or Learning In Retirement courses. Guests are welcome to attend one meeting free prior to joining SNUG.

SNUG meetings take place the second Friday of each month in the Westside Conference Center at the University of South Florida’s main campus on 4202 E. Fowler Ave. in Tampa. Meetings typically begin with a social half-hour featuring beverages and snacks followed by guest speakers.

Ara Rogers is the institute’s director for senior programs at USF. She said she’s found her niche by working with senior citizens.

“What attracted me to the program was I didn’t have a personal experience of being around older people in my family. They’re very engaged in the community and their own lives. These people are showing me how to live,” she said.

Rogers stressed that they are not running a senior center or a service industry with these programs.

“We’re not doing things for them,” she said. “We allow them to do things for themselves.”

David Henry heads up the Windows SIG group. Three special interest groups, or SIGs, have developed from SNUG. The groups cover genealogy, graphics and Windows. Henry is a charter member of the SeniorNet program at USF, and he authored a book chronicling its history.

“It’s basically about starting a program like this – the challenges that arise, especially in a university environment,” said Henry, a former employee of IBM.
Henry said early on it was difficult finding computer experts who also knew how to teach, but that now they have nearly 70 qualified teachers who have volunteered.

Thanks to the Lake Magdalene Church classes, enrollment in the SeniorNet programs now surpasses 800, with between 125 and 150 of those also active members in SNUG.

McAuliffe, Kaehler, Rogers and Bartholomew all live in Carrollwood and have a vested interest in the new outreach at Lake Magdalene Church.

Kaeler said SNUG meetings usually last about two hours, with a half-hour of socializing preceding them.

For more information, visit http://www.seniornet.org.