Parks

 

Because Marty and I were away, Sandy Lindke was nice enough to tell me about their outing. She told me that a nice size group of residents showed up for a late lunch at the Zephyrhills Golden Corral on Jan. 13. She went on to mention that there were 46 people who attended and left stuffed. This was a nice time for chats and laughs, and it was hosted by Sandy. From what Sandy mentioned, there was a door prize won by Bill Elliott. It was a voucher to the next visit to Golden Corral, and it was picked by Mr. Tuttle from the signup sheet (The Tuttle family owns Golden Corral).

I am sure that most people thoroughly enjoyed themselves and found that time just flew by. If you have never gone to a Golden Corral, let me tell you that anything you could possibly think of is on this buffet.

In the meantime, while this lovely outing was going on, Marty and I went on a mini cruise to the Bahamas.

We had a lovely time aboard the cruise ship, and on the very first day after attending a mandatory fire drill, the ship hosted a sail away party.

Everyone mingled and got to know one another. There was much music and loads of conversation.

Later that night, we saw a comedy show which had everyone in stitches.

The following day, we attended many a trivia contest. They were so much fun, and I realized there was a lot we didn’t know.

The ship made a stop at Nassau, but since we were here before, we stayed onboard.

There was also an International Parade of Flags aboard the cruise line, where they celebrated the many nations represented by their crew onboard.

There was another comedy show that was entirely different than the first. Again, it was an absolute delight.

Later that night, there was the Love and Marriage game. This was a cute show and had some audience participation.

On the very last day, beside some more games, our travel agent (B & D Travel) hosted a show that was fabulous. It consisted of different types of music and songs, and there was quite a bit of dancing going on. There was also a hilarious special treat.

We were, at this time, also treated to some cocktails.

The very next day we made a stop at CocoCay, a private island, where they had vendors and swimming.

By Helene Rubenstein
Grand Horizons

Published January 25, 2017

 

Grand Horizons held its first egg n’ bag of the New Year on Jan. 7, with 95 people in attendance and several first-timers, including guests.

If you have never been to an egg n’ bag, let me explain it to you. It is a very different way to serve an omelet. People pick their own ingredients from an assortment including bacon, ham, cheese, onions, mushrooms, green peppers and Jalapeno peppers. Besides the omelet, there are hash-brown potatoes, sausage gravy and biscuits, plus coffee and orange juice.

The event was hosted by Jim and Judi Leitzke, plus many helpers, including Sue and George Richardson, Joan and Dave Lawrence, Sue and Galen Parker, and Clayton and Carol George.

There was much socializing and catching up on past news.

Galen Parker said grace before the tables were called forward to make their omelet. The entire community was quiet while grace was being said, and Galen did a very nice job.

As always, the breakfast ran smoothly, as each person had a specific job to do.

On Jan. 10, we had our Lunch Bunch. It was a little different than the past lunches, as the women met at an Olive Garden where they had a lovely time. The only difference was there was a misunderstanding and, for some reason, they met at two completely different Olive Gardens.

There was still a nice gathering of approximately 20 women who got together and went shopping or directly home after a terrific lunch.

I didn’t go that day, but I am sure different dishes and cheesecakes (which they known for) were served and taken home for a remembrance of a delightful, but hectic, day.

I recall, too well, the different cheesecakes that were brought out last year. The array of colors was breathtaking. I am sure the same goes for this year as well.

This lunch was hosted by Joyce Bell.

By Helene Rubenstein
Grand Horizons

Published January 18, 2017

 

Nearly 80 people attended a New Year’s Eve celebration on Dec. 31, with music, dancing and games. The party was hosted by Gary Wilcox, and from what I heard, he did a marvelous job.

The band, Gears 1 Music Explosion, played a variety of music, which consisted of oldies, rock n’ roll and country. The band also took requests.

There was music trivia, karaoke and cash prizes awarded to 10 attendees. The prizes that were awarded were such things as a free egg n’ bag, a free pancake breakfast and so much more. From what I heard, there was a movie basket, too.

I spoke to Eileen Goldstein, and she said that the movie basket included four movie tickets, cash and candy. Barb Livingston made up the basket, and she did a lovely job.

When the people first entered the community center, they saw it was decorated beautifully with top hats (for the men), tiaras (for the women), and noise makers at each individual place setting, plus beads and confetti on the tables.

The tables were set up with silver and white tablecloths, along with black seat coverings.

Many pictures were taken, and Gary Wilcox and Ed Goldstein provided information about the party and some pictures of the fun time.

A special presentation was made to Joan and Ed Fisher on their 67th anniversary. The presentation was made by Gary Wilcox. This was truly special to the wonderful couple.

The band went on to play the song, “I Wonder Who is Kissing Her Now,” which was a song that the Fishers danced to when they first met.

Gary Wilcox was the disc jockey, and Chick Shackewyc was in charge of the engineering and setup.

Our thanks go out to Gary and all the other volunteers in making this celebration a success.

By Helene Rubenstein
Grand Horizons

Published January 11, 2017

 

On Dec. 21, we had our weekly coffee/donuts hour where we heard all the news that is occurring in our development, plus, birthdays and anniversaries of the week to come and the thought of the day presented by Gary Wilcox. We also heard the top three winners of the holiday house contest.

This was also a first, and I hope we have it again, where several members toured the community, and judged decorated homes for both daytime and nighttime light displays.

Trophies were awarded to the winners, and they were donated by Andy Castonguay.

The winners were Frank and Debby Christmas, Doug and LuAnne Taylor, and Dave Howell.

Sandy Lindke suggested this idea, which worked out well. Our thanks go out to Sandy.

By Helene Rubenstein
Grand Horizons

Published January 4, 2017

 

 

The holiday season continues, and on Dec. 7 we had our weekly donuts and coffee hour. Even though several people could not join us (as they were on a cruise), we still had a nice turnout. We celebrated birthdays and anniversaries that were being held the following week, and we heard recent news. There was much conversing, and everyone had a nice time.

On Dec. 10, Marty and I took the Tour De Clay 2016. The event consisted of visiting and touring four pottery studios. It was very interesting and included several demonstrations.

Each place had a kiln and had objects in it that were fired. The items that we saw were beautiful and nicely made, such as vases, cups, magnets, bowls and so much more.

Sandy and Al Lindke hosted a block party in the cul-de-sac on Dec. 15, and they were prepared with campfire heaters, if necessary. It turned out to be a beautiful day, so they didn’t need them, but it was nice to know the heaters were there, just in case.

There was a nice crowd of 50 people, and each brought something to share. There was an assortment of dishes that consisted of finger sandwiches, pizza, deviled eggs, chips, dips, cake, cookies and more. Again, because several people were away on the cruise, this was a very nice turnout.

They also collected canned goods and gift cards for the United Methodist Church food bank. It was a collection of many types of foods and food cards. The church food bank helps mostly the elderly.

On Dec. 16, a “Yankee Gift Exchange” was held at one of the homes in the development. This was our third annual Christmas Cookie Exchange. Approximately 15 women attended this function and had a very good time eating, conversing and exchanging gifts.

We each brought with us some cookies and a gift that was “Christmassy.” As each person opened up their gift, the appropriate “oohs and ahs” were heard around the house. This party, or cookie exchange, was hosted by Sharon Blair and Rox-Anne Lamphere. It was done to perfection, and we all had a variety of cookies to munch on. We all went home filled to capacity.

On Dec. 17, we had an egg n’ bag breakfast at the community center where a really large crowd of 90 plus people gathered for a good meal to start the day. This function was hosted by Jim and Judi Leitzke and several helpers. The helpers were Ed and Eileen Goldstein, Sue and Galen Parker, Carol and Clayton George, and Bill and Ginny Sarver.

Considering the fact that the cruise had just ended, it was an extremely big crowd. There was so much conversation going on. In addition to the omelets, there were hash brown potatoes, biscuits and gravy, butter, orange juice and coffee.

On Dec. 21, we had something special, which was done for the first time and hopefully for years to come. It was caroling around the development with a cute dance step included. The people who all joined in wore Santa hats, and they did a marvelous job of caroling.

This was started by Barbara Livingston, and it sure looked like everyone had a nice time.

There were approximately 12 carolers. The people who did the caroling were Chick and Annmarie Shackewyc, Gary and Carol Wilcox, Tony and Nadine Guetti, Dave and Barb Livingston, Sam and Pat Allen, Cheryl Leone and Joan Fisher.

The caroling included a variety of songs, and they went in the community center and performed, in addition to houses around the development.

We were only spectators, but we loved it.

By Helene Rubenstein
Grand Horizons

Published December 28, 2016