Village News

WINDJAMMER

PAM DAHLBERG [email protected]

In keeping with the idea of introducing Board members to those new to the Village today we feature a uniquely dedicated couple in Mark and Hillary Combs.

Originally from Central Florida their professional pursuits took them to Chicago, Oklahoma City, Seattle, Dallas and Nashville and then back to Windjammer through a friend, Janan Meyer. Janan sold her condo to them when she moved to Longboat. We are so grateful she did as Mark arrived at exactly the right time. He ran for the Board and became Treasurer. He put his 40 years of experience in the banking industry to work keeping our Village out of unexpected financial disaster. He was able to keep us afloat despite roofing/insurance issues and multiple hurricane appearances and kept us on solid ground. Please be sure to thank him as you see him around the golf course or checking out the landscape with his wife of 46 years, Hillary.

Hillary was a Dental Hygienist for 40 years keeping her patients mouths squeaky clean and now is keeping our village beautiful and squeaky clean as our Landscape Committee Chairman. Believing strongly in community service, they have in the past been involved in parish homeless ministry, parish lector and Eucharistic ministry, board member of Bluegrass Landings HOA, and Hendersonville Samaritan Association. They are boat owners and love to fish in our bay and gulf and hope they find the time to enjoy all the marine life! We thank you both.

And while in thankful mode, two of our hardworking board members Martha Whipple and Mick O’Sick have recently left the Board and we thank them and wish them well. Also, thanks to the hardworking social committee for the Second Sunday Funday BBQ and Thanksgiving Food Drive. Eva Bell sends the following report. On a gorgeous day under 72-degree blue skies, guest chefs Julie Iverson, Derek Rauchfleisz and Tom Bell cooked and served up 36 lbs. of pulled pork sliders. Food was outstanding as was the collection of 200 lbs. of food and monetary contributions for the Gladiolus Food Panty. Eva Bell dropped them off to the Food Pantry. We have a new recreational competition at Windjammer, Cornhole. Tom Hendrix set up the game and Foremast Court and Spanker Court had a friendly sparring match to the background of Blues music. Marc and Mary Willis, Donna Hendrix and Betty Kollar also lent their help.

The decorations committee has done a wonderful job of adding to the Holiday spirit throughout the village and we hope you all had a happy holiday season. Don’t forget to send your news to Pam Dahlberg, [email protected].

Congratulations are in order for a long time Windjammer couple. Dave and Judy Russell celebrated a remarkable 66th year of wedded bliss this November. Their family will be down shortly to help them celebrate in December.

Eva Bell sends a reminder that the next Sunday-Funday will be January 19th at 4:00 PM. It will have a Wild, Wild West theme and hamburgers will be served. Please plan to come and bring either a fun side dish or dessert. We need 4 couples to help set up and tear down so please let Eva know if you are able to help.

ARIEL

Ariel Residents Give Back

The residents at Ariel are generous with their time and finances as they support people who are struggling in the Fort Myers area. Much of their effort is devoted to needy children, with two primary beneficiaries of their efforts.

A new event took place when a dinner was held at FK Your Diet, a restaurant at 19630 S. Tamiami Trail owned by Doug Miller. The FK stands for Foster Kids, and Miller learned first-hand what the foster program was like since he grew up in numerous facilities for foster kids. His restaurant devotes a portion of all proceeds to foster care agencies.

Two couples at Ariel, Holly and Skip Messinger and Carol (Cooke) and Steve Smith, invited their friends to join them for a charity dinner at the restaurant. They also served as wait staff for the evening with their “tips” donated too. The food was delicious and the experience very moving and enjoyable. Best of all, more than $6,000 was raised to support these kids. FK Your Diet is normally open only for breakfast and lunch so this evening gathering was special in every way.

For the past six years, Ariel has participated in the Salvation Army’s Angel Tree program, which provides holiday gifts for needy children. Ariel residents bought gifts for 50 children, from infants to 12 years old, with a documented need for help. Information including the child’s age, gender, clothing and shoe sizes are provided and each child is able to specify a need and a wish. It is obvious how great the needs are when a child wishes for a blanket, which happens frequently.

The involvement of Ariel residents doesn’t stop with buying gifts. Many participate in the organizing effort and offer support by volunteering to help at the distribution center where all the gifts are collected. People are given a specified date and time before Christmas to pick up their gifts. Margaret and Pat Rookey, former Ariel owners who now live at Mariner’s Cove, manage the distribution center. Residents at several other villages at The Landings participate in the distribution process too.

Especially at this time of year, it’s nice to know there are caring, kind neighbors throughout our community.

CLIPPER COVE

ADVENTURES
Michael MacLeod and Linda Andrews visited the Galápagos Islands of Ecuador on a ten-day cruise with the Lindblad/National Geographic Explorer 11. They visited six islands and, saw many different species of animals living on each island. The animals do not fear humans. One can get up close to observe and even swim with sea lions, rays, marine iguanas, penguins and marine turtles.

BIRTHDAYS
Angie and Jeff Leonard celebrated their grandson Pierce on his golden birthday, his baptism and Thanksgiving. Pierce’s first birthday fell on December 1. Tim Dennison celebrated his 74th birthday on December 7.

ANNIVERSARIES
Tim and Marcia Dennison celebrated 38 married years. The Seiverlings and the Dowdneys have upcoming anniversaries. Dennis and Dana Hahn also had an anniversary.

GUEST
The Hahns enjoyed having Beckham over Thanksgiving break. They were fishing (and catching), swimming, remote control sailing, biking, performing a science experiment, playing pickleball, enjoying the Fort Myers Beach Sand Sculpting Championship, playing bocce ball and taking the Swamp Buggy Eco Tour.

NEW LEADERSHIP
Many thanks to Tim Dennison who steered Clipper Cove through many a storm. Our new president is Guy Hughes, a resident new to Clipper Cove. He has owned and operated his own business since 1998, an engineering firm specializing in software development, vibration monitoring and advanced product testing.

FLAGSHIP

Holiday magic was in the air at The Flagship Village. Since Thanksgiving was late, our Christmas decorations sprung up before the president could pardon his turkeys. It sure put us in the holiday spirit. Kudos to all who participated. We are so grateful to have our Christmas Decorator Extraordinaires John Fusinetti (who continues to add special effects each year) and Jean Hokana (who out does herself every year with our ornamental tombstones).

We had a huge turnout for Jeff Parrett’s 70th Birthday Party bash at the pool. Over 50 people joined in the festivities and enjoyed delicious appetizers, pulled pork sandwiches, coleslaw and cake. Who says getting old isn’t fun?

For my “getting to know your neighbors” series, I had the privilege of visiting with Alexander Irigoyen and Magdalena Sotiriadis (4600) who have been owners at The Landings since 2005 and moved permanently to their Flagship condo in 2009. They were both born and raised in Buenos Aires, Argentina, where they graduated as a CPA (Magda) and an Architect (Alex). Her family was Greek and his was half Italian and half Spanish, so they grew up with international exposure to other cultures and speak several languages. In Argentina, Magda worked in a CPA firm and Alex owned his own practice and was a Professor of Architectural Design at the University of Buenos Aires. In 1992 they migrated to the US (Michigan), where they lived for 17 years, developed their professions, started businesses and became US Citizens. While they loved Michigan, they sought a warmer climate, something similar to what they grew up with, and fell in love with The Landings. Presently, they work part-time with their consulting business for overseas clients while enjoying The Landings life. Magda practices yoga, meditation and frequents the gym and Alex is an avid tennis player where you will see him on the courts at least 3 times a week. They also love to travel. Magda and Alex feel blessed in what life has offered them, especially with the lifestyle and fine people they have met at The Landings. Alex’s words of wisdom are “Surround yourself with the best and most intelligent people; that is how you will have the greatest chance of success.” Well said!

LONGBOAT

Surprise – A very well-kept secret got Nastasha Benchimol a well-deserved surprise party for her birthday at the Helm Club Main Deck. Many came for the festive occasion which then rolled right into the Yacht Club’s Thirsty Tuesday. Happy Birthday and Best Wishes, Natasha!

Longboat November Pool Party – What an enormous success this was as over 52 people showed up for this event. Joe and Jen Bavender hosted the party with a Veterans Day theme (it was November 11, after all). There were flags, balloons, and other decorations to emphasize Veterans Day.

There was tasty food galore, which included sliced ham, wings, sausage and peppers, potato salad, and desserts (to name just a few). Joe Bavender brought us up to speed on big board happenings and John Naifeh brought us up to speed on Longboat. Joe graciously provided music for the occasion. Thank you, John, Joe and Jen for your service to our community and thanks to all who participated.

Veterans Day – Picnic Pointe – The annual Veterans Day event was held at Picnic Pointe and was hosted by CAPT Charlie Ryan, US Navy (Ret.). Many attended, including our Marine Corps Corpsman Scott Dustin (also a Past Commodore of LYC), CDR Alan Power, SC, US Navy (Ret.) (and the current LYC Commodore), to name a few. The Cypress Lake JROTC was in attendance to parade our Colors. There was patriotic music, patriotic singing, and guest speakers. A wreath was laid to commemorate our soldiers and sailors who have paid the ultimate price for our freedom.

Longboat Residents – Flags – Have you ever wondered how the flags get displayed in our village? Well, let us all give Scott Dustin a big THANK YOU! On those special holidays that include Memorial Day, July 4, and Veterans Day, Scott goes out the night before or early in
the morning to place the flags on both sides of the street throughout Longboat, so we can all honor and remember those who have served in our armed forces (and some that have made the ultimate sacrifice). We must always remember that freedom is not free. Next time you see a veteran, be sure to thank him or her for their service to our country.

Article Note – If you have any stories you would like to share or have traveled over the summer months, please let me know. Sharing stories with our neighbors brings us all together.

MARINER’S COVE

The Thanksgiving Service organized by Janice and Jack Purse at Picnic Pointe had perfect weather and there was a great turnout. Jack, Rick Brown (Ariel) and Janice led praise songs accompanied by Jack and Rick on guitar. Fred Garner (Riverside) gave a wonderful message and the ending prayer was given by our own Debbie Coolman. They are hoping to see everyone at the Easter morning service!

It was with great sadness that we learned of the passing of one of our Mariner’s Cove Village original owners, Gretchen Howard. Gretchen and her husband Bob moved into Mariner’s Cove in the1990s. Bob passed away in 2019 and Gretchen continued to play tennis, golf and do lunch with her lady friends. Gretchen was quite active in the tennis and golf community, serving on the ladies Nine-Hole Golf league as Treasurer for 10 years. She loved to play in the Sunday Scramble and frequently won closest to the pin on hole #11. She had recently moved to Amavida but had a fall and was admitted to the hospital where she passed away peacefully in her sleep on November 23. Gretchen recently celebrated her 90th birthday with all of her family in NY. She will be missed by her family and all her Landings friends.

The campaign for Women Build for Habitat for Humanity has begun. This is a special program through Habitat for Humanity which empowers women to come to the aid of other women by raising funds and building a house. Over 70% of the households who seek assistance from Habitat are led by single mothers. Habitat’s vision that everyone will have a decent place to live drives these efforts and instills the passion that I, your writer, Pat Benner, have for this program. If you would like to contribute, either go to my team page, https://secure.habitat4humanity.org/25patsamigas, and make a donation or send me a check made out to: Habitat for Humanity of Lee and Hendry County/Women Build with my team’s name, Pat’s Amigas, in the memo section. My address is 9518 Mariner’s Cove Ln., Fort Myers, FL 33919.

RIVERSIDE

GUEST REPORTER

“Oh, What Fun! ”was the theme for Riverside’s annual Holiday Dinner and Dance, held on December 2 in the Main Deck of the Helm Club. Once again, The Landings House Committee did an amazing job of decorating the club for Christmas and the Riverside social committee made each table look beautiful.

Riversiders appeared fabulous and festive in their holiday attire. The buffet was filled with wonderful food and dessert was a “make your own sundae bar”!

The Landings own Lonza Bartlett entertained us during dinner and turned it up a notch so Riversiders could dance off all the calories they’d eaten, with a few slow dances so couples could take a break.

Marilee and Don Simon, the leaders of our village, made sure everyone had a great time. Don can really cut a rug on the dance floor! Kathy Krum acted as “Vanna White” to hand out the raffle prizes and 50/50 drawing winnings.

Everyone had a wonderful time, and we always enjoy getting together to celebrate. Our next village outing will be held at the Prawnbroker on January 8, 2025.

I hope Christmas was merry and meaningful this year and wish a Happy New Year to all!

SCHOONER

Schooner is looking mighty festive these early days of December. There are lights on the trees, garland and red bows on the lamp posts, new garland on the Schooner Village sign, nutcracker soldiers at the entrance, and special lights at the pool. All of this was made possible by some very nice “elves.” John and Trish Thomas stepped in and supervised, as the Lawries were called out of town. Elves included the following: Doug and Renelle Nelson, Mark David and Becky Goss, Linda Tucker, Jackie Wagner, Michele Shepherd, Mary Wilson and Lori Emmons. Thank you to all!

Hank and Deb Lawrie’s youngest son, Travis, married Kaitlin Travis last month on November 17. The wedding was held in Austin, Texas, where the bride grew up. The ceremony and cocktail hour were outdoors at a beautiful venue in the hill country, and the entertainment was a fabulous 10-piece band that brought great energy to the reception. Friends and family all enjoyed the celebration. Travis and Kaitlin live in Dallas, where they met and are both in commercial real estate. Hank and Deb are hoping to see the newlyweds here in Schooner Village over the Christmas holiday.

The snowbirds have returned in force. There were seventeen at the Ladies’ Birthday Luncheon organized by Jackie Wagner and Linda Tucker. They celebrated several birthdays including Donna Hallett, Sarah Noyes, Barb Curioso, Jackie, Chris Dixon, and Belinda Stacey.

The book club has resumed, thanks to Margie Nahnsen, and met at Kim Wasik’s to review The Women by Kristen Hanna. The crafters are crafting.

The singers are singing including Maria Aponte who sang in the terrific Holiday Concert attended by many Schoonerites.

Thanksgiving feasts were prepared and enjoyed.

Roofers are roofing and our Board ensures all goes well and brings good news to all with a budget that lowers fees!

Happy holidays to all!

STEAMBOAT BEND EAST

“Tomorrow is the first blank page of a 365 page book. Write a good one.”
~Brad Paisley

Activities are ramping up. May we all enjoy good health to enjoy them as much as we can. In the coming months, if you golf, play tennis or pickleball, do crafts or play games, please inform me of the highlights and take pictures with your phone. I hereby anoint all of you as journalists providing me with the who, what, why, when and where.

In a cooperative effort to help families across Lee County, Steamboat Bend East and the United Irish of SWFL gathered and donated two carloads of Blessing Baskets. A total of 16 laundry baskets filled with various food items as well as numerous gift cards were delivered to the Keller Williams Realty office on University Dr. Thanks to everyone for their support and generosity. The welcome back pickleball mixer was held in the early morning hours of November 10th. Sponsored by LTPA. The players were grouped by ability in a round robin competition. Later that day there was a welcome back party sponsored by LTPA held at McCoy Pavilion.

TRAWLER

Trawler Village Spotlight: Milestones, Celebrations, and Community Impact

As we ring in the new year, Trawler Village is bustling with exciting milestones, heartwarming celebrations, and meaningful community contributions. Here’s a look at what makes our community so special:

Congratulations to Rob Streeter on His Retirement After an incredible 44-year career in the corrugated packaging industry, Rob Streeter is retiring at the end of this year. For the last 18 years, he served as an Area General Manager for Georgia Pacific, leaving a lasting legacy in his field. Rob and his wife Sue are embarking on a thrilling new adventure—they’ve recently purchased a boat and will set off on the Great Loop
next year. This journey will take them through scenic waterways across North America. We wish them smooth sailing and many unforgettable memories!

Celebrating Eileen Morrissey’s 90th Birthday On November 16th, Eileen Morrissey (4586) celebrated her 90th birthday with a joyous gathering at the Helm Club. Surrounded by her family, including her three sons, two daughters-in-law, and grandchildren, Eileen enjoyed an evening filled with dinner, music, dancing, and cake.

Trawler Village friends Barbara Hartman, Pat Daniels, and Phyllis Grzegorczyk joined the celebration, adding even more joy to the occasion. It was a night filled with laughter, hugs, and cherished memories—a true testament to the bonds that make Trawler Village such a wonderful place to call home. Here’s to Eileen and her incredible milestone!

Supporting Our Community Through United Way The 2024-2025 Landings United Way Community Campaign is officially underway, and once again, Trawler Village is leading the charge in supporting our local community. With a campaign goal of $60,000 this year, Trawler Village’s generosity continues to make a significant impact.

96% of donations to United Way of Lee County stay local, directly funding programs that provide essential services, including:

• Nutritious meals for children to help them grow and thrive.
• Free clothing and shoes for students through the Resource Room (a collaboration with the Lee County School District).
• Support for veterans, seniors, and families in need.

Barbara Hartman, Past- Chairperson of The Landings United Way Community Campaign, expressed her gratitude, saying, “I’ve watched Trawler Village step up year after year, and your efforts are truly amazing. Let’s see what we can accomplish this year!” Thank you, Trawler Village, for continuing to support the needs of our community and helping to improve lives. For more information or to donate, contact:

Barbara Hartman
Phone: (239) 940-5702 Email: [email protected]

Closing Thought
From personal milestones to collective generosity, Trawler Village embodies the spirit of connection and community. Here’s to a new year filled with even more memorable moments and impactful efforts. Thank you for making Trawler Village such an incredible place to live!