Beauty Shop Beginnings

Written By: Lorna Alexander | Issue: 2016/06 - June

Here’s a little known fact.  Do you know how the Center for Life Enrichment got its start?  

It all started in a beauty shop in Highlands. It was the summer of 1991, and a chance meeting between two women, Nell Martin and Nelda Toothman, both under hair dryers, unknowingly put into motion the founding of the Center for Life Enrichment.  One thing led to another and the two women, along with their husbands, Bill and Rex, socializing over food and drink while getting to know each other better, discovered their mutual interest in the joy of constantly learning something new.  

 They asked themselves, “Wouldn’t it be fun and rewarding to promote a group in the Highlands-Cashiers area which could offer such opportunities to people of all ages and backgrounds?”

 These four energetic and inspirational people identified the need for new and varied learning opportunities in the mountains and what is now known as the Center for Life Enrichment came to be.  Its mission is to provide life-long learning programs for people throughout the Highlands-Cashiers region.

A founding Center for Life Enrichment advisory member has said, “After college I wanted to continue learning about the world around me and it didn’t seem fair that the kids get to go to camp and I can’t.” 

 The Center for Life Enrichment lets you be a kid again and experience life and learning through the eyes and heart of a child.  

The force that drives the Center for Life Enrichment forward are its enthusiastic Board of Directors, 500 members and ever-growing list of visitors each season.

The Center for Life Enrichment offers classes, workshops and educational trips, and meets the needs of active adults in the communities, welcoming both residents and visitors alike.  We cover it all – from the arts, computers and technology, culinary arts, gardening and nature, to history, literature, music, science, and current affairs.  In fact, this past year, the Center for Life Enrichment offered 130 courses and events. This year promises an even more exciting and expansive course and lecture series.

An important part of Center for Life Enrichment’s mission in curriculum development is to respond to the interests of its attendees and values input from its participants to plan courses for the future.  To that end, 2016 is offering more extensive interactive trips like “Chocolate & Orchids: An Exploration on Botany, Foods and Culture of Mexico” in November, and “Exploring the Wines of Oregon’s Willamette Valley” in September.  

Discover the Center for Life Enrichment this season and join in the pure fun and adventure of learning.  We invite you to renew your membership or become a member.  To learn about membership benefits, call us at (828) 526-8811 or stop by our office at 348 Fifth Street, in the Peggy Crosby Center
in Highlands.