I've been biting my tongue watching the Letters to the Editor in the Independent as people spouted off regarding the lawsuit. A week ago i had had enough and sent in my own. You may have read it in this weeks paper, but in case you didn't, here are my comments: Enough Bellowing… Every week we read on these pages where writers try and demonstrate how little they understand Sun City. The latest was about the RCSC board using “bullying tactics.” I could go on, but this letter isn’t about the authors of this recent spate of hate mail. Clearly they have the right to spew whatever, it’s just sad they misunderstand Sun City so badly. The travesty is they leave readers believing they may actually know what they are writing about. Over the years, I occasionally come across people who have told me how poorly Sun City is run. It always brings a smile to my face because the one question they can never answer is: If Sun City is so poorly run, how come we have the most amenities at the least cost anywhere in the country?” It’s not a trick question…it’s simply a fact they can’t argue or debate. Invariably they tell me that doesn’t matter. Really? If that doesn’t matter, what does? Here’s the test for anyone thinking Sun City is such a “poorly run” community. Did you know we have been “self-governed” since near on the beginning? That every step of the way, it’s been the residents who have taken ownership and assumed the mantel of responsibility; that have put their retirement on hold and said I’ll do that. It isn’t us versus them, we are them; always has been, always will be. Every board/committee member along the way has been our peers; neighbors and friends who were willing to get involved. They aren’t career politicians feeding off the public trough, they are just folks volunteering to keep Sun City a great place to live. The other thing I read is how there are residents who will starve because of the increase. I had the good fortune to spend 3 years as the President of the Sun City Foundation. It was started in 1986 and its primary role is to pay lot assessment fees for residents who have outlived their resources. Yes there is criteria to be met to qualify, but it’s extremely liberal and is there for those who need it. Sun City is like nowhere else you have ever lived. We are unique, we run ourselves and the outcome is one the vast majority of us living here absolutely love. It’s been that way since the first residents moved in in April of 1960. Our history is steeped in a structure of ever changing directions and responding to the demands and needs of the majority of the residents. I get it, a handful of you don’t like the path the RCSC is on. There’s a simple solution: Stop throwing rocks at those who are volunteering and get involved. If you don’t like our direction, be a part of the process to change it. The challenge of course is if you are a part of a small unhappy minority, you’ll get nowhere. And if your goal is to try and rally folks with constant moaning, you will quickly be tuned out by the masses who love it here. One final note: The bulk of those signing on to the lawsuit is regarding the PIF. Absolute nonsense and literally no basis for argument. The reality is the RCSC board in 1999 passed the Preservation and Improvement Fund (PIF); it was the single most important action taken in our 56 year history. Without it, Sun City would have become irrelevant and died of old age. Because of it, we are competing with newer communities as we have upgraded our amenities while keeping our costs far below every other age restricted community in the country. I’m not going to tell those whining to love it or leave it…just have the common sense to try and understand how and why Sun City is as good as it is. We are a community built by the people and for the people…how does it get better than that? Bill Pearson.
