I just did a Facebook Sun City Chat post of a picture of the second magazine we did while on the SCHOA board (i think it was 2008). The first one was done towards the end of 2006 (couldn't find a copy of it) and was entitled "Compliance Matters." Funny, following the special session the other day, i told a handful of members the story, which i had pretty much forgotten. In 2006, there were 5 new board members elected to SCHOA. It's where i first met Ben Roloff, he was one of the candidates. We all took office in January and within 3 or 4 months, we were all looking at one another asking ourselves what we had gotten into. We knew there were some problems, we had no idea how bad they were; at least not until we could peak under the covers and see why Sun City residents were so angry at us. We were being ripped to shreds in both local newspapers and our visibility and membership were at an all time low. We started digging and asking questions. There were 75 or more cases sitting on the executive directors desk. The initial letters detailing the violations were done, there was virtually no follow through. When we asked why we were told "taking people to court was too expensive." Say what? If we did nothing, ever, why in the world would anyone care about what we were saying to them? The reality was they wouldn't and didn't. Several of us met for coffee and talked about a rebirth. We had 14 employees, a building with expenses and not a heck of a lot of revenue coming in. Worse yet, we were operating with our heads just barely above water. We went to the board president and told him we were going to fix it. He had a choice, get on board or stay out of the way. He elected to sit on the sidelines which worked fine for us. We just couldn't let him get in the way. We met with all of the employees and told them we were going to help them be more successful at their jobs. They were excited by the opportunity and by week's end, 13 of them walked out the door. The head of compliance stayed till the end of the year which was a God send. Everyone else was replaced within the month and the entire board assumed duties and responsibilities until the new staff was brought up to speed. As a board we took the most egregious and long-standing violations and went after them with a vengeance. It's amazing when you explain to people if they don't clean up their properties, we would take them to court and they would be paying our court costs when we won the case. By years end, virtually every one of the files was resolved. That was just one aspect of our rebuild. As properties were cleaned up, residents started taking notice. We weren't shy about tooting our own horn and we tried to make sure our efforts were well reported in the local newspapers. We gave dozens of speeches at every opportunity given to us. We knew we needed more, like growing the membership and helping home owners understand the value SCHOA brought to the community. We decided on producing a full color magazine with the lofty goal of distributing it to every household. I did all of the writing, we hired a graphic artist Ben knew who worked for next to nothing. We sold a few ads to cover the cost of printing 40,000 copies and by November of 2006 we took delivery. We bought 30,00 bags to put them in and then we were faced with the prospect of stuffing them with membership applications, the magazine and some other promotional materials. Daunting task; until it wasn't. My good friend Ben Roloff said, just ask the residents to lend a hand. We picked an open date in November at the Bell social halls on a Saturday. It happened to be a weekend i was flying back to Minnesota and it crushed me to be gone. The event went on without me (proving yet again, no one is all that important). We invited Sun City residents to just show up and work for a few hours. The plan was to open the doors at Bell at 8 am. By then, everything was on the tables ready to be inserted. The goal was to get as many done as possible and then finish up at SCHOA over the next week or two. I called Ben at 11 am and asked, "how bad is it?" His response floored me and to this day i still tear up when i tell the story. He told me (i'm sure he was smirking when he said it), "we're done." I think my reaction was something like, "holy shit." Then i asked if he was pulling my leg? Nope, like most Sun City events, people started coming a half hour early, by 8 am the room was filled and the volunteers working their butts off. At one point Ben had to go outside and thank people for coming, and then send them away. 30,000 bags stuffed in 3 hours time and better yet, people feeling good about giving back to the community they loved. The rest of the story is good too. Ben created a large Sun City map with drop routes where members could sign up and distribute the bags. That one took longer but by years end, we had passed out all the bags and consequently we grew SCHOA's membership by 30%. As is said, the magazine focused on "Compliance Matters." In it, we highlighted properties that were pristine and some that were not (pictured alongside one another). Once the magazine hit the streets, several of those dumpy properties contacted us and told us they had cleaned up the messes they had. Calling the efforts an unbridled success could well be the understatement of the year. It proved to me the power of the community and the simple reality of just having to ask them to help; to be a part of something special. Sadly we've gotten away from that. We need to return to it. Teachable moments, life is filled with them. The questions almost always becomes: Can we, do we learn from them?
Love hearing about those kinds of projects, but sorry they are not a regular part of life here now. Seems you have to be enrolled in a club to do anything. Why don't the clubs have more events open to nonmembers that may net them new members or just help people come together for a project? PRIDES could offer a community work day for others to pitch in for cleaning up a particular stretch--assign a buddy to a member and have them work alongside. That sort of thing. If RCSC had a real community activities coordinator we could have more community wide "invitational events" similar to what they do at the library where a guest comes in to lead a "make and take" simple craft project, or a community table game night, catered meal night, learn a folk dance from the country of your ancestry night, etc. Things they do on cruise ships like "horse races" and scavenger hunts and tourneys that you can sign up for and not have to be a club member: mini golf, bocce, etc.--done with a try-it, you may like it type of fun atmosphere for beginners or other levels, although the latter are probably involved in specialty clubs already. We need more pulling together the community types of events as well as venues for non-club members to get better use of the facilities. A "sign up to serve" project of the month could be set up where a project could be chosen and people could sign up to roll up their sleeves and help our community or a neighboring community.
So well stated scj and such a simple concept, living in a place where community thrives well beyond the needs of the corporation. When Sun City first opened the initial 5 years were run by guys who were focused on making money. Nothing wrong with that, other than it was on the brink of failure. As Webb was looking at pulling the plug on the "great social experiment," John Meeker took over the reigns and set the financials aside and focused on the community's needs. I can tick off a half a dozen things he did to change the game, but each and every one of them was centered on bringing the community together. He spent (i like to think of it as investing) way more money than many in the company thought was smart. Almost without fail, the more he spent, the more Sun City thrived; the more the buyers showed up and bought into a unique way of life. Events were a mainstay, clubs were the lifeblood and the membership was always the conduit to make it work. It's why i tell people it was Meeker's genius that made Sun City the success it was. It's why have argued long and hard about following in his footsteps. Sadly, too many see looking back as a silly exercise. They argue people have changed and the things they did won't work now. Shortsighted. Building a sense of community should never go out of style. Trying to become that "fun community" like the other thousand out there makes no sense. I know the argument, we can do it cheaper so that will make us better. Will it? The premise Sun City's value and values were formed around our volunteerism was what made us unique, made us special. Running from it, impacts literally every aspect of the Sun City way of life. This 2006 story seems like centuries ago. The evolution of changes shoved at us since that November day when members took ownership has been frustrating to watch. Like i wrote somewhere recently, it was look watching a slow motion car wreck and being able to do nothing about it. Much like reading a predictable mystery novel and knowing the outcome long before you get there, you long for a plot twist that makes the book so much better. Until this election, i had little or no hope. I had resigned myself to seeing Sun City devolve into the classic business model of home developers across the country. Every decision made based on "return on investment" or worse yet, "what's in the best interest of the corporation?" We know historically what and where that gets us. What we don't know is far we can go when the elected board puts community ahead of corporation. I suspect we will soon be finding out. Merry Christmas to all.
One of the anecdotes told in the Jane Freeman room at the museum (where we tell the Sun City story) is vintage John Meeker. DEVCO had a policy of "non-involvement," they wanted the residents to take ownership. When John came in 1965, he understood it was folly. He quickly grasp the importance of a helping hand, a guiding light to help them find their way. He quickly embraced the importance of a mutually beneficial relationship. He knew, they would become his most effective marketing tool. Clubs had a presence, they just weren't widely attended. Shortly after he arrived he told Jerry Svendsen to buy the most expensive color television he could. He brought it to one of the club meetings, there were about a dozen members there and they had a drawing for it. Word spread like wild fire and attendance spiked. Meeker in his journal proudly claimed that one effort drew more members to clubs and what they found was way better than a TV; friendship and camaraderie. It was such a simple concept and one path the RCSC followed religiously over the years. Clubs were the lifeblood and the rec centers that housed them were their home away from home. The pandemic hit and everything changed. Clubs were crushed by the closure. As much as the management team brags about the resurgence of golf, it was due to it being the only game in town. Everybody and everything else saw the other side of the coin. The number of clubs is lower than it has been in years. In many clubs, the membership has dropped. Getting them back is a slow arduous process. It would help if there was a concerted effort on the part of the RCSC. The question really is; do they care? If the answer is yes, why not better coverage in the Sun Views? There was a time when clubs were prominently featured in every issue. There was a time when two rec enters a year featured annual open houses; one in the spring, one in the fall. Covid19 shut them down, will they be back? If you think this is just my crazy ramblings, read the minutes from the past Committee on Clubs (COC) meeting. You tell me what you get out of the purpose of that committee is? There was a time when they existed to help the clubs survive and flourish; does it look like that's still the case? Let me be very clear here: The power of the community has never been a single organization (no matter how much money they had in the bank). It's always come from the membership and the willingness of those living here to take ownership. Does anyone believe we are where we need to be? I don't, but i do believe we are on the right path. We'll see eh?
"In many clubs, the membership has dropped." Yep and I can understand why. There are way too many hoops for clubs to jump through re: RCSC requirements for formal structure, monitoring, dues, etc. The All Board Games Club folded because of this as have others. People are busy enough today, many having to work later into what used to be full retirement years. While most wouldn't mind pitching in, it gets wearisome when most activities require one to be a member and take on responsibilities. For ex., since there is no community room to just hang around and spontaneously start up a card or board game, separate clubs have to form to fill the gap. Wanna play mahjong, backgammon, chess, bridge, etc.? You must join a club and play with other club members during designated hours. This does not make for casual, noncommittal fun times for the residents. Just provide appropriate space with a staff member and think of all the activities that could take place in it. Serious players may additionally still veer towards clubs and tourneys and all, but those who like variety, don't want to take on an additional responsibility, and enjoy meeting a mix of different people at times that work for them will have numerous options. RCSC has complicated something that should be fun by over regulating it and not having spaces for spontaneity. They've ripped the wings off the butterfly.
SCJ...I've been thinking the same thing. I just said to a friend today over coffee: "I find the tag line 'the Original Fun City' sort of funny when they keep trying to limit the fun." We really do need an informal gathering place. We believe it's necessary, and I'm convinced the next generation of buyers will definitely be looking such an amenity.
A social gathering place is a much needed amenity that all owner/members will enjoy. Not all are able or interested in sports or clubs. rec·re·a·tion1 /ˌrekrēˈāSH(ə)n/ noun noun: recreation; plural noun: recreations; noun: re-creation; plural noun: re-creations activity done for enjoyment when one is not working. "athletic and recreation facilities"
You guys nailed it; the RCSC missed the boat years back when they failed to buy the Lakes Club. The one missing piece has always been a “Community Center.” What was so tragic was we didn’t trust the membership to decide, one way or the other.The other shortcoming has been their inability to understand with an aging population more cerebral activities would keep the community vibrant and attractive. Not everyone wants to golf or lift weights.
