FROM THE PRESIDENT
What would you have us do?
It is Sunday May the 4th. Star Wars Day. May the Fourth be with you! It is going to be nice out the next few days, not getting up to 90° until Thursday. But that is about all the good news I have.
Thursday we had Bingo with a dismal turnout. Again. So dismal in fact that it was decided to suspend bingo until the fall when the winter visitors come back, and attendance will make it more feasible.
Yesterday was Breakfast in the Park. Great menu and those new breakfast sandwiches are really good. We had about 20 diners, all of whom thought it was a delicious meal at a good price. Nice that 20 showed up, but it takes about 10 people to cook, serve, and clean up. Not to mention the prep work of going to several stores to buy the product and all the pre-cooking done prior to Saturday. The question is “Is the effort worth the rewards?” Does it make sense for so many to put in so much effort for the benefit of a relative few? That question will be debated by the board to determine if we can or should provide breakfast in the summer months. In the past we stopped breakfast in May.
Later Saturday afternoon we had the Kentucky Derby Party. Again, few showed up. We had plenty of snacks, watched all the preliminary races, and kept ourselves amused with a small racetrack and little horses that raced to the finish. Only a quarter to play and if your horse won, you won $1.00! Quite fun, but so few there to enjoy it.
Monday afternoon we will have our Cinco de Mayo happy hour with plenty of snacks and we will have the race track game as well. It should be fun, but I have a feeling attendance will be sparse.
Do you see the pattern here? On Facebook you’ll go on and on about the pool and laundry which I get. Those have been withheld far too long and the excuses are getting weak. But to say we have no amenities? Give me a break! We have several activities and events every week. Movie Nights, happy hours, Men’s Breakfast, Women on the Go Lunches, Coffee and Donut Fridays, Birthday Dinners, all sorts of card games, billiards, Bocce Ball pick up games, tons of stuff. Yet few take advantage. Once or twice a month we put on a dinner. St Patrick’s Day, Easter, and the like. Since the pool and laundry remain closed, Cobblestone has been paying for the food we serve. So, for the free dinners, you line up for tickets.
Now the Women’s Club is putting on a Pasta Dinner night this Saturday. Multiple pasta dishes, salads, and maybe a glass of wine for $8.00, yet are struggling to sell tickets. $8.00 for dinner is not a bad price in today’s world, and even so, they aren’t looking to make a profit, the proceeds will be donated to local charities. But if it ain’t free you ain’t buyin’.
OK, you don’t like the activities we offer. You don’t want to pay for a dinner in the clubhouse. We try really hard to put on fun events and are consistently disappointed by the turnout. What keeps us going are the comments from those that do come, telling us how fun it was, how good the food was. We ask you what you want and crickets. Sometimes you offer a suggestion like a bus to a casino, or someplace in Arizona like Out of Africa, but when we say it is $40 per person and requires a 40 person minimum, silence.
OK, rant over. Just don’t be surprised when an activity you want to go to is cancelled for lack of interest, or no new activities are offered. We want this park to be a fun place to live, but we can’t make you want it too.
