Programs / Speakers
WELCOME TO THE WEDNESDAY CLUB PROGRAMS
From the Membership Chair If you have a prospective member, please email Katie Harder at katieharder733@msn.com or call 314-913-1138
WELCOME TO THE 2026-2027 CLUB YEAR
2026-2027 programs are offered in person at TWC and by Zoom.
For those opting in to watch the programs by Zoom, invitations will be sent by email each Monday! WATCH FOR THEM!
DEADLINE FOR RESERVATIONS IS NOON ON THE MONDAY BEFORE THE WEDNESDAY LUNCHEON!
LUNCHEONS ARE $22
OCTOBER 2026 CALENDAR
OCTOBER
Welcome to the 2026-2027 Club Year
Monday, October 5, 2026
10:30 am Executive Board
Wednesday, October 7, 2026
IT’S YELLOW RIBBON TABLE DAY! Make new friends!! If you have been a member for less than a year, join other new members at this special table. Request with your reservation.
10:15 am Punch Reception-Foyer
11:00 AM MUSIC SECTION
Chair: Crystal Weaver
Leader: Ann Riley
Subject: The Beauty and Magic of Orchestral Harp
Speaker: Megan Stout & Jennifer Gartley, Symphony musicians and music professors at Washington University
12:15 PM LUNCHEON
1:15 PM SCIENCE & HEALTH SECTION
Chair: Helen Berger
Leader: Marj Alderson
Subject: Medical AI: Friend or Foe?
Speaker: Philip O Alderson, Dean of the School of Medicine at Saint Louis University, extensive teaching and research on Artificial Intelligence
Wednesday, October 14, 2026
11:00 AM EDUCATION SECTION
Chair: Tiffany Frautschi
Leader: Alison Cole
Subject: Ranken Technical College-Students Commit to Skilled Trades
Speaker: Donald J. Pohl, President, Ranken Technical College
12:15 PM LUNCHEON
1:15 PM ART SECTION
Chair: Barb Barber
Leader: Mary MacDonald
Subject: Creation of Our Nation: 1776-1830
Speaker: Amy Torbert, Ph.D., Andre W. Mellon Foundation Assoc., Curator of American Art at SLAM, curator of this year’s “Picturing Independence”
*Indicates an offsite Zoom program that will be broadcasted on our large screen to those attending The Wednesday Club and will come as usual to those watching via Zoom from home.
Wednesday, October 21, 2026
11:00 AM DRAMA SECTION
Chair: Susan Roach
Leader: Diane Denney Rogers
Subject: Prison Performing Arts
Speaker: Ashwini Kherdekar, Managing Director and Rachel Tibbetts, Artistic Direcotr of Prison Performing Arts
12:15 PM LUNCHEON
1:15 PM CREATIVE WORK SECTION
Chair: Carole Less
Leader: Sarah Thomasson
Subject: Wearable Creations-Hats Off
Speaker: Dianne Isbell, international designer of Hats by Di-Anne
Wednesday, October 28, 2026
It’s a Halloween Mystery Mixer! Come and enjoy drawing your table number out of our spooky Witches’ Cauldron . There will be no reserved table. (Accommodation will be made for those bringing guests.)
11:00 AM CURRENT TOPICS SECTION
Chair: Eileen Wiegert
Leader: Kathleen Woodworth
Subject: Population Trends in St. Louis
Speaker: Ness Sandoval, Ph.D., Professor of Sciology, University of St. Louis
12:15 PM LUNCHEON
1:15 PM LITERATURE SECTION
Chair: Neela Kottmeier
Leader: Magdalin Szabo
Subject: Indai: A Story of a Country in Turmoil and a Portrait of Love in Modern India
Speaker: Manil Suri, Ph.D., Professor of Mathematics at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County; author of The Death of Vishnu and The Age of Shiva