Parks

Keeping the neighborhood safe at Casa Del Sol

March 6, 2014 By Special to The Laker/Lutz News

On Feb. 14, our men’s breakfast group, headed by Paul Delue, served 108 residents and guests. Scrambled eggs, sausage links, blueberry pancakes, and waffles were served. Each lady in attendance received a flower for Valentine’s Day.

Our lady quilters from our community, and a few who have moved and still help with making the quilts, delivered another batch making the total of quilts the ladies have made to 3,333. Lin Coats has guided the ladies in the quilt project for more than six years.

The ladies meet every Monday at 9:30 a.m., at the clubhouse to work on putting the quilts together. This work includes pinning, cutting, putting batting in quilts, and tying the quilts. Lin invites any of the ladies in our community to come and help. Some of the ladies bring their own machines.

The quilters always welcome helpers, as well as donations of thread, material and monies to help buy the supplies for the quilt making. During the six years, the quilters have delivered quilts to more than 17 organizations.

Cindy Keppel is one of the quilters, and in addition to helping on the quilts, makes caps for infants and usually makes seven dozen to take when they deliver the quilts.

During Wednesday morning coffee, hosted each week, Chick Anderson — a volunteer for the dark house program — came in to tell us about the program. The Casa del Sol community had a number of residents who leave for the summer sign up for the program and were quite pleased with it. Forms were available for those who wanted to participate.

We will have someone come in next time to talk to our community about scams and things we can do to keep our homes safe. On March 12, we will have someone in to talk about the Neighborhood Watch program.

Our lasagna dinner is March 5. Hopefully you signed up so we know how many will attend! The cost is $7.

By Barbara Bujaki

Published March 5, 2014

A good time to visit Gem Estates

March 6, 2014 By Special to The Laker/Lutz News

February had a lot of activities for the residents of Gem Estates. The coffee and doughnut social hour played to a packed house. The weather had been cooler, but yet, no one was complaining because it was still a lot better than what they have up north.

We had a Valentine treat by the Red Hat ladies, and the table decorations and candy treats were a lovely addition to our coffee hour.

Carolyn Mayer has been crowned and pinned as the new queen mother, and the program for her reign is set with terrific ideas and activities for the coming year. Her crowning by Loretta Green, outgoing queen mother, was in the form of a tea party. An invitation luncheon was scheduled for March 3 with each present member and an invited lady as their guest, who would hopefully become a Red Hat member.

Our coffee hours are bedazzled with lots of information and activity. Usually our president, Al Bennett, starts our social meeting with a comical story and gets everyone in a jovial mood. But once the coffee is gone and the doughnuts are eaten, we get into the real reason for the gathering: to inform everyone of the park activities going on.

Prayers were said for Norma Monsulik, Bessie Palmer, Randall Smith, Jerry Wyfels, Dan Farnsworth and Joyce Plummer. Hope everyone gets well soon. We’ve had our usual colds and coughs going around the park, but everyone seems to be doing better.

We had a lot of birthdays in February, including Norma Bowden, John Trundy, Ellie Brookins, Cheryl Raab, Marlin Thomas, Donna Eastman, Roger Michaud, Amy Temple, Jeannette Brown, Jeanne Schutte, Gerri Shields, Ginnie Zepp, Joyce Plummer, Joyce Knestaut, and of course, our Valentine celebrant, Earl Benedict, with a birthday on Valentine’s Day. Happy birthday to all.

Rusty and Betty Siler celebrated their 54th wedding anniversary.

New residents, Rick and Marilyn Foster, were introduced, and Bev Orr was acknowledged as a recent returnee to the park.

George and Mary Kay Lynch had their daughter, Deb, visiting. Deb is a runner in training for a marathon race, and we would see her up and running through the park usually early in the morning hours. The Lynches also had another guest, former resident Joan Miletello visiting.

Floyd and Bev Becker had their daughter and son-in-law, Diane and Steve Reglin, visiting from Charlotte, Mich., and we heard they went back home to lots of snowy roads. The Reglins are both truck drivers for a food chain and used to all kinds of weather.

The Burgess family had Dea-Ann’s brother, Jeff, and wife Karen Kerr, visiting from Natick, Mass.

Ann Liddy’s daughter, Brenda Piche, was visiting from Watertown, N.Y.

A group of musicians got together for a jam session. Ed Goodreault announced the invitation for anyone playing and singing to come join the group.

Ellie Brookins has formed a step dance exercise group and entertained all Feb. 28. Come join these groups.

Dick Thompson will start helping those who have computer technique problems, and that is a much-needed thing here in the park.

We had a cleanup project going on, where 19 men worked on pressure washing the clubhouse and fences, while the ladies worked inside the clubhouse, cleaning windows, sanitizing tables and kitchen counters. Thank you all for doing this much needed job.

Sandy Mann, our park treasurer, also is working on the new telephone directory and wants everyone to update their information, so she can make the new directories as accurate as possible.

Several people from the park will be going to preview some of the Mardi Gras parades in New Orleans with Road Ready Tours. They also will visit the World War II museum as well as the World of Mardi Gras, where they build the big Mardi Gras floats.

We are looking forward to the Western night in March at River Ranch with its hayride, barbecue supper and authentic rodeo. Hope everyone stays warm and do feel sorry for those up north in the cold snowy weather.

By Lee Heffelfinger

Published March 5, 2014

Valentine’s Day with Bobby Palermo at Grand Horizons

March 6, 2014 By Special to The Laker/Lutz News

Valentine’s Day arrived and with it a show presented in our community center.

It was one heck of a show, too, that approximately 125 people got to see.

Bobby Palermo brought the house down with his tribute to Neil Diamond at the Valentine’s Day event. (Courtesy of Marty Rubenstein)

The evening started off with each woman receiving a ticket for a door prize. There also was a table that sold raffle tickets for a quilt made by the women of the quilters club. It was a beautiful, double-sided quilt and each square, 12 blocks in all, was made by a different member.

Those who worked on this project were Betty Ball, Bea Fronius, Carolyn Ray, Naomi Sisk, Joyce Billig, Margaret Castonguay, Denise Hauser, Pat Caswell and Pattie Molnar. The quilt was simply beautiful, and it would go to one lucky winner. But what we were here for was the Bobby Palermo show.

The show lasted well over two hours, with songs from Neil Diamond. Palermo did a great job of impersonating him, with all the facial expressions to boot. He wore a black sparkly jacket along with black slacks, and performed like he owned the crowd.

He performed such hits as “Lean on Me,” “Cherry Cherry,” “Holly Holy,” “Forever in Blue Jeans,” “Hello Again,” “Sweet Caroline” and so much more. He had the audience swaying, clapping their hands and singing from their seats. He then told a few jokes that had us in stitches, and then performed another song “Yesterday’s Gone.” He did a fine job on it.

During many of the songs, Palermo walked up and down the aisles shaking hands and sitting on laps. He then outdid himself when he performed the song “Desiree.” He did a fantastic job and there was even more audience participation during this song. Bobby sure knew how to get the best out of his audience.

Three lucky winners received a box of candy shaped like a heart. A winner for the quilt also was drawn, and Maureen Benson was the new proud owner of the quilt. She is the sister-in-law of Bob and Rita Benson, whom she and her husband were visiting.

In addition to these drawings, there were two more lucky winners who were presented roses and balloons. They were Chris Fulton and Barbara Ford. Congratulations to all the lucky winners.

After a short break, the show continued with songs like “I’m Just a Gigolo,” “I’ve Got Nobody,” and a song by Julio Iglesias and Willie Nelson called “To All the Girls I’ve Loved Before.” He even had two people come on stage, Nancy Martin and Helen Hardardt, as background dancers, shaking tambourines.

A cute and funny part of the show was when Bobby Palermo was to perform the hit tune “Delilah,” a song performed by Tom Jones, when all of a sudden these huge red panties were thrown on the stage. This was such a riot, and Bobby eventually wore these large panties wrapped around him.

The song “That’s Amore,” plus other lively hits, was performed while the audience joined in on the singing. During one particular song, Marie Paolantonio danced and somehow made the show a little more attention-grabbing.

Bobby incorporated something new into the show which proved to be thrilling. He sang, while the audience clapped and sang along, songs like “Side by Side,” “When You’re Smiling, the Whole World Smiles With You,” and several more tunes. Did you ever see “YMCA” performed before? It was performed two ways, the regular way and an Italian version. This brought the house down.

Of course, no Neil Diamond tribute is complete without “Coming to America.” Bobby ended the production with “God Bless the U.S.A.,” originally performed by Lee Greenwood. This marked the end of the show, and people left the building talking about it, and will be for quite some time.

Our sincere thanks go to Terry Gardner for arranging this and other entertainment. Thanks, Terry.

In addition to all the activities at Grand Horizons like dominoes, shuffleboard, pay me, pinochle, euchre, art and more, we have the quilters who meet every Friday. Each month they have an instructor for something new and different. Recently, Carolyn Ray taught the AccuQuilt fabric cutting machine to the quilters. This is a tool that cuts squares and strips for a quilt and also appliqué products.

On Feb. 11, Rae Rice was the hostess to a class where Mary Smith-Stokes instructed on creating baskets. She had two classes. There were 12 women in the morning class, 10 women in the afternoon class. All women who attended completed their baskets and were delighted with them.

By Helene Rubenstein

Published March 5, 2014

It’s been a busy month at Happy Days

March 6, 2014 By Special to The Laker/Lutz News

February started out with the wildly popular Goofy Golf, which drew 99 players out for a day in the park with games, costumes and fun.

The pool is ready for Ron Graham, all dressed in pink, to race the ducks. (Courtesy of Dan Olson)

We just finished this month with an equally popular fun-filled morning with our duck race. This time, the lucky guy to jump into the pool, to the glee of all present, was Ron Graham. Ron did not disappoint with his duck-dipping outfit, consisting of a pink shirt, pink shorts, pink sandals and a big ducky hat.

He won this honor through the presales of the most ducks over the sales of the past two presidents, who had the “honor” of jumping in the pool in past years.

Ducks were sold at $1 each, and were sold out. Ron took a parade around the pool before demonstrating his prowess as a beached whale.

Great job, Ron, and you proved that even though all the girls wanted you in a pink Speedo, you took the high road.

This past Saturday opened with an internal park sale. This has been the practice for many years, and frankly, most park sales have too many cars, on too many lawns, and too much unmanageable traffic, to justify the end result. We trade with each other, and inevitably, it ends up on the “next year’s available to sell” table again.

The real winner in this is the local hospices that receive the excess. We wonder, could we remove the middleman and just donate first? Anyway, another year is in the books.

The annual bean soup supper also was in the hall with a full house. Needless to say, the hall doors were kept wide open for this. Chiefettes Linda Jenkins and Toni Fischer and their culinary crew of beaners and cornbread bakers — Fran Applegate, Carol Chapman and Mona Eddy — started the preparation early in the day for the hungry eager residents to take advantage of all the free grub. All they had to bring was their own bowls and silverware.

We just seem to keep putting gas in the tank lately with the previous chili, and now bean soup, suppers. It keeps you hopping, I guess.

Nancy “Sparkplug” Warren did it again with another successful karaoke night following the dinner. By the way, Nancy is a good sport as well as a good entertainer. She got quite a good chuckle from being named the “sparkplug” of these events. Maybe we should have simply called her “Sparkie” or “Sparkle”?

Anyway, more than 85 performers gave up their inhibitions and jumped in to the enjoyment of all. It was another successful night.

This is going to be a regular event, so stay tuned — but be sure to use your pitch pipe.

What a month of entertainment, wait until you see what March rolls in with.

By Ian Marwick

Published March 5, 2014

Music, dancing and lots of talent at Rainbow Village

March 6, 2014 By Special to The Laker/Lutz News

Chrissy Hariman played her music for our Mardi Gras dance. The committee did a wonderful job of decorating the hall. Each person that came to the dance could have their picture taken in front of a bench with balloons.

Don Weaver poses with his great breakfast committee. (Courtesy of Sandra Gilbert-Abel)

It was a fun dance with lots of fancy masks, beads and some even had special outfits to fit the occasion. Everybody was dancing to many kinds of dances like line dancing, fast dancing and slow dancing.

Thanks to Carol Halliday, Sue Larkins and Betty Vandenbosch. Betty always has done a great job of decorating the hall with whatever the theme is going to be for the dances. They all will be retiring from this committee, and now you all will be able to relax and enjoy the dances next year.

David Teague entertained at our Sunday night ice cream social. We always enjoy having David. He is so talented playing the guitar, electric guitar and banjo. He tried some of his new songs, and we loved them.

He invited Bob Richardson from the audience to sing, and Bob did a great job of singing with David. David invited Joe Edwards, 48 years on the Grand Ole Opry, to play dueling banjos on their guitars.

It was such great talent on stage that night.

The Sara Ghetto show at Rainbow Village was a very enjoyable evening with this very talented young lady who taught herself to play the keyboard, fiddle and many other instruments. She has her own studio where she plays and records all the music that you hear when she performs.

For a young lady who had several disabilities when she was born, she has shown how far she has come over the years to what she can do now. She travels with her father and mother all over the states to showcase her beautiful voice.

The Rainbowettes Red Hat group went to the Early Bird Dinner Theater in Clearwater to see “Lend Me a Tenor.” We took our husbands and several other guests along to this outing. It was a very enjoyable day.

A big thanks to Dick and Linda Luce, and Norm and Pat Hyatt, and their great committee for a great get-together for all the Michigan people in our park. They did the Michigan pledge and Michigan song, which a lot of people didn’t know they had.

Dick Luce read a very funny story: “Dear Diary, Living in Michigan.” It had everybody laughing. Good food, good times by all who attended.

Egg casserole, applesauce, orange juice, coffee, and a choice of either a Danish or muffin. Don Weaver and his great committee were in charge. They did a great job, and they sold out all they had to serve.

As you rode or walked through the park recently, you could smell the aroma of cooked pork. The association was cooking the pork for the pulled pork dinner that was served on Feb. 22. A lot of work goes into this meal.

This was a sell-out dinner with baked beans, scalloped potatoes and coleslaw.

After the dinner, nine pies baked by Bess Bonthuis were auctioned off, and they sold for $219. They had fun outbidding each other. Thanks to Eugene Hoard and his great committee for a great meal.

The Rainbow Village Carefree Talent Show was in the main hall. The tables were decorated in carefree colors, and lots of balloons were placed around the stage.

Steve Jeffris opened the show with several songs, and some of our residents put on a little lip-syncing to a ‘50s record. Really cute!

Doug Sawyer played his steel guitar, Linda Swinamer played guitar and sang, Bob Richardson played guitar and sang, and Glenda Walker sang two Patsy Cline songs.

The runner up was Linda Swinamer, and the winner was Glenda Walker, who will compete in the next round of the talent contest in March. Congratulations!

Our entertainment at Sunday night ice cream was Bob Walter, who won the Carefree Talent Contest last year. They did a great job of entertaining us for more than an hour, and when finished, they got a standing ovation and sang two more songs.

We witnessed why they won the contest. Great job!

We are looking forward to more events in the coming weeks at Rainbow Village.

By Sandra Gilbert-Abel

Published March 5, 2014

Luncheons and laughter at Casa Del Sol

February 20, 2014 By Special to The Laker/Lutz News

Our Casa Del Sol ladies had an exciting time at our birthday tea on Feb. 3. We had 76 ladies come and enjoy a wonderful luncheon with entertainment by two of our residents, Donna Bean and Stella Pileggi. Nancy Mclean and her wonderful crew served a great luncheon enjoyed by all.

Birthday gal Rita Thomas, in white sweater, enjoys her 89th birthday during a tea with, from left, Jean Duany, Thelma Springer and Ann Rabine. (Courtesy of Barbara Bujaki)

The day was extra special for one of our residents, Rita Thomas, as she turned 89 on the day of our tea.

Comedian Steven Chapman entertained us on Feb. 8 with a lot of skits, and several of our local residents helped him. It created a lot of laughter for everyone, including the comedian.

We had a ladies luncheon on Feb. 17. It was a great time to get together, relax, have lunch, and get to know each other better.

Our annual garage sale is on Feb. 28, from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. There is lots of activity as ladies prepare items for the gift basket raffle, as well as lining up things for the bake sale and the luncheon at the clubhouse. Come on out and find some great bargains, as residents within the park get things ready for their garage sale at their homes, as well as our white elephant sale at the clubhouse.

Casa Del Sol is on State Road 54, next to Palm Tree Acres, going west toward Morris Bridge Road in Zephyrhills.

By Barbara Bujaki

Published Feb. 19, 2014

Luncheons, taco dinner and more at Grand Horizons

February 20, 2014 By Special to The Laker/Lutz News

More than a dozen women from Grand Horizons met at Buca di Beppo Jan. 30 for an Italian meal that was delicious. We all sat in the Pope’s Room at one large table that accommodated all of us, and everyone was able to converse with one another.

The Pope’s Room at Buca di Beppo Italian Restaurant was the place to be for a ladies’ outing on Jan. 30. (Courtesy of Tita Mauk)

It was a lovely dinner, and at the end of the meal, hosts Barbara Sullins and Tita Mauk had several door prizes to give away. So, a few people went home happy winners. All in all, it was a lovely afternoon.

Then on Feb. 6, nearly 40 residents gathered in the community center for a social club meeting. These are informative meetings, and we get to hear what has occurred and the activities to be planned. We talk about our concerns and how to rectify them.

You not only get a wealth of information from these meetings, but you get yourself heard if you have any suggestions. Some of the things that were talked about were a rummage sale and when to have it. The next rummage sale will take place in April, possibly April 5.

We also heard from Terry Gardner, who is in charge of the entertainment in the community center, about a new show that will be brought to us on March 7. It sounds like it will be a really good one.

We had more on our plate to discuss, but the point is that these meetings are very enlightening. So, friends and neighbors, come on down.

Also, on this same day, we had a game of mah jongg that consisted of eight women playing on two bridge tables. This is definitely a game of concentration, but we still have a lively discussion in between the thinking of the many moves.

This was a very busy day, as later in the afternoon Andy and Margaret Castonguay hosted a taco dinner. This involved much work on their part, and we saw Andy and Margaret and some others starting the preparations before the 4:30 p.m. dinnertime. They wanted the dinner to be ready when the others came. We saw Ron and Joyce Bell setting the tables and making any necessary adjustments to make the dinner move along nicely.

More than 100 people were served. But, before the dinner, Vivian Sturdevant said grace. Each individual received a deep fried bowl made from scratch by Margaret Castonguay, and then Andy Castonguay supplied the meat in the shell. Cupcakes were served for dessert.

The volunteers for this dinner were Ron and Joyce Bell, Bill and Judy Ellsworth, and Chick and Annmarie Schackewyc.

Special thanks go out to Chick for arranging the tables so there would be room for people to move about. Thanks to all the people who helped in one way or other.

By Helene Rubenstein

A night in Ireland with Cahal Dunne

Some 150 people gathered at our community center Jan. 26 for a night with Cahal Dunne.

On the stage was a lovely white baby grand piano. The room was set up nicely and everyone was ready to enjoy the show.

In a tribute to America, Cahal Dunne dons red, white and blue, as he talks about the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. (Courtesy of Marty Rubenstein)

Cahal, wearing an emerald green jacket, started the show with the song, “When Irish Eyes Are Smiling” and had a little bit of audience participation. Several other Irish songs were sung, including a beautiful Irish folk song called “Home from the Sea” which was written by Phil Coulter. The words from this song were so descriptive that I could visualize the people in the lifeboat, the boat rocking and the waves gathering mist from the water.

He also sang and played the flute to the song, “The Galway Girl.” This was a very upbeat song and had many toes tapping. He then performed an Irish jig, and you should see his feet fly.

Cahal performed a few Scottish songs and some Broadway hits. The highlight of the evening was a song Cahal wrote called “An Angel for Sarah.” Before he performed the song, he related a story about his son being in a play and the teacher told them to be kind to Sarah as she was “special” and had Down syndrome. It was a very touching and moving story and song. It almost brought tears to my eyes.

Cahal’s last costume change was into a red, white and blue jacket, and he talked about the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.

He ended the show by singing the song “The Eagle Has Risen.” This song was done with much emotion and in very good taste.

– Helene Rubenstein

Published Feb. 19, 2014

More happy times at Happy Days

February 20, 2014 By Special to The Laker/Lutz News

Our first coffee hour of February started off with a preview of Valentine’s Day.

Rita Van Dyke and her niece, Ava Ledbetter, chat with resident John Sweet during Goofy Golf at Happy Days. (Courtesy of Dan Olson)

The challenge was to arrive wearing a red hat decorated for that day. As usual, the shy ones held back, but only because they wanted their fellow residents to have the chance to win.

The best part was the winner received a $10 gift certificate. Thanks for the opportunity. Our winner was Henry Parker. Second place had two runners-up, Fran Applegate and Bonnie Thews, each winning a box of chocolates.

I wonder if life really is like that?

Henry’s hat looked very similar to an Aussie Outback hat. Fran’s was last night’s pasta strainer gone disco, and Bonnie’s was two cute escapees from the pet store.

The second annual Goofy Golf was a great success with more than 100 of our residents golfing or helping out. Laughter filled the park all morning, and several sported goofy attire. What a fun day for all.

Jim Grant and his amazing kitchen staff hosted the second park breakfast this year, biscuits and gravy. He provided a special “wrinkle” promised us last month. Not sure how he does it, but their classic breakfast of pancakes, eggs, sausage, toast and coffee was included, all in the same one-time price of $3.

Forget the calories, it helps protect you from those cold spring winds we will all face soon enough.

Between 7:30 a.m. and 9 a.m., hungry residents brought their own silverware and mugs to brighten that damp Saturday with this hearty breakfast. Jim would not comment on his next plan for the March breakfast. It will always be sold out, because the classic is still the best!

How early do Jim and his crew start preparing before opening up the doors? A big thank you to all the elves.

The annual 50th wedding anniversary celebration was on Feb. 8. The additions to this group brought seven new couples. Introduced were Mike and Judy Bilak, Ed and Carol Chapman, Richard and Tony Fischer, Richard and Eileen Frantz, Ken and Gloria Knight, Jim and Jackie McGuire, and Tom and Carolyn Tripple.

Also celebrating was Harry and Louise Rockroth who reached their 70th wedding anniversary. We all should look this good! Congratulations to all.

More than 120 residents wished them well, and of course enjoyed the anniversary cake. Thanks to all who assisted in the day, and Fletcher Music Center and Joanie Albert for the lovely organ support.

A bus trip to Lakeland is booked for a spring training game, Detroit Tigers vs. Toronto Blue Jays, on March 18. Seats are behind the Blue Jays dugout. First come, first served.

Pick up is approximately 11.30 a.m. at Happy Days park. Seats and return bus fare are $51. Call Bill Wellivere at the park, (269) 967-0537.

This is an American League battle. Call your buddies for a friendly mix of fans on the bus.

Can we get any happier? Wait until next week.

By Ian Marwick

Published Feb. 19, 2014

Annual quilt show a smashing success

February 20, 2014 By Special to The Laker/Lutz News

A rainbow of colors greeted guests as they entered the Leisure Days hall to enjoy the ninth annual quilt show. The show featured more than 40 quilts of different sizes and designs. Wall hangings and quilted bags, purses and pillows also attracted the attention of the guests.

Ladies from Palm View Gardens enjoyed the ninth annual quilt show at Leisure Days RV Resort. Remarking the quilts on display were ‘fantastic,’ were from left, front row, Mary Savoie and Lauanna Hough. In the back row are Fay Dixon and Kathy Gillis. (Courtesy of Anne Astles)

While many of the quilts were creations of residents of the park, family heirloom quilts and special quilts for grandchildren were also on display. The Leisure Days quilters had their 2013 park quilt showing and several of the quilts they have created to donate to those in need in Zephyrhills.

More than 280 guests viewed the displays, visited with the Leisure Days quilters, and took a chance at the raffle table, which was filled with quilted items for the home. The members of the quilters group, including a former resident and quilter Margaret Aussant, donated these items.

During the show, guests were able to observe the art of hand quilting. Also, two former residents returned for the day to assist and demonstrate the art of making special flowers to sew onto a quilt, hanging, etc.

Joanne Vandenhoek, coordinator of the Leisure Days quilters, was very pleased with the show. She said several guests asked, “What is your secret to having such a successful show?” Mrs. Vandenhoek said, “I truly feel it is the commitment of all our residents in our park to work together and make it a success.”

During the day of the show there were close to 50 ladies with various tasks, and several men spent their day directing traffic. Numerous men and women spent Friday evening setting up for the show and returned on Saturday night to take it down.

“I feel the quilters in Leisure Days are privileged to be able to showcase their work and have the support of all the residents behind them,” Mrs. Vandenhoek said.

Many guests agreed, when asked how the Leisure Days quilters could improve their show for their upcoming 10th anniversary in 2015, the unanimous response was “Don’t change a thing.”

The quilters are already working on their 2015 Leisure Days park quilt and are busy planning for the 10th anniversary scheduled for next February.

By Anne Astles

Published Feb. 19, 2014

Much to celebrate at Rainbow Village

February 20, 2014 By Special to The Laker/Lutz News

Our main hall was set up for a Super Bowl party to watch the championship game on our new large projection screen that was hooked up to a television. It was a great way to watch the action of the game. Some diehard football fans brought their food and comfortable chairs to enjoy the event.

Ron and Betty Laskey celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary with Betty’s three sisters and their daughter, Jill. Funny hats have been a long tradition when the family gets together. (Courtesy of Sandra Gilbert-Abel)

There was a group of football fans on Crimson Lane that had a 52-inch television sitting in front of their unit cheering on their team to win. They were enjoying their party on a beautiful night to be outside.

Clayton and Chris Sanderson were the chairpersons of the Canadian dinner. They had 80 people at the covered-dish dinner. They had a guest speaker that talked about snowbird insurance for the Canadians, they played a game called “How Much of a Canadian Are You?” had a silent auction, and handed out door prizes.

The entertainment was Doug Sawyer and seven of his Canadian friends playing and singing for the dinner. Great job, Clayton and Chris.

Steve Jeffris, a resident at our resort, put on a great one-man band and variety show. He performed to a full house.

He had four of our residents come up on stage and help him with the song “Moving On Over” as his back-up singers. They were so funny. Steve put on a great show, as always.

The Rainbowettes Red Hat ladies’ service project for this year was to host a spaghetti dinner to benefit the special needs children of Zephyrhills. The dinner was a great success. A big thank you to Steve Lykins and Rich Vogel for cooking the spaghetti using Tony Andrade’s famous sauce, and Del Larkin, Dick Luce and Dale Mosley for cooking 36 pounds of spaghetti.

A big thanks for all those that purchased tickets to support our project. God bless you all.

Ron and Betty Laskey celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary at a party their daughter Jill hosted for them. Many family members came to Florida to help Ron and Betty celebrate. Many friends and neighbors were honored to be guests at the party also. Each person shared a story about Ron and Betty on how they got to know them.

This is one great couple that does so much for others in our resort. We wish you many more years together.

Sherry Cherry was our entertainment for our ice cream social. Her first song was “Crazy,” which she sang that to Maynard Gross. It was so funny, and Maynard was a good sport during the song.

Then Sherry picked on Rich Vogel, and he was a good sport, too. It was requested that she sing “12 Days of Christmas” with 12 residents portraying each day of Christmas. It was great fun with Sherry Cherry, a beautiful lady that donated her fee to the pregnancy center.

We have a special little lady at Rainbow Village who just celebrated her 94th birthday. Ruth Simmons Rounds has been coming to Rainbow Village for 27 years. She came with her late husband Howard, and for the past 14 years, she flies down from DePeyster, N.Y.

Howard and Ruth were farmers in New York and worked very hard on the farm. They did some traveling around the states with their camper before becoming snowbirds. Ruth has vision problems, but you would never know it the way she gets around. She has many friends that help her and also some friends from New York that check on her.

Ruth and Howard were blessed with two children, four grandchildren and six great-grandchildren. She always has a smile on her face. We love you, Ruthie.

Our last show of the season is the Jimmy Smith “Remembering the Legends and Gospel Show” on March 5 at 7 p.m. The ticket price is $8 each and can be purchased by calling Sue Flynn at (813) 782-5075.

By Sandra Gilbert-Abel

Published Feb. 19, 2014