Village News

ARIEL, CLIPPER COVE, FLAGSHIP, HARBORTOWN, LIGHTHOUSE, LONGBOAT, MARINER’S COVE, RIVERSIDE, SCHOONER, STEAMBOAT BEND, STEAMBOAT BEND EAST, SUNSET COVE, SUNSET HARBOR, TRAWLER, WINDJAMMER

CLIPPER COVE

Winners Karen Sheldon won the women’s club championship in a hard-fought golf match against Lynda Redmon. Karen’s husband Willie Scroggs served as her caddy.

Clipper also had the champion of the President’s Cup—Theresa Johnson. Theresa’s golf is legendary. She got a hole in one on number 15 on January 12.

Besides golfing, Theresa is an excellent tennis player. Her favorite doubles team consists of her twin granddaughters Ella and Leni.

Birthdays

Glen Robinson and Jeff Leonard recently celebrated birthdays.

Adventures

All 11 members of the Fansler family enjoyed Christmas on Captiva with boat trips to Cabbage Key and Fort Myers Beach. Their rental had a bald eagle’s nest with an “eagle nest cam” allowing them to watch two eaglets hatch. It was a joy to holiday together.

Holly Morris Bumsted and Tyler Bumsted went on a 26-day trip to New Zealand and Australia. Starting in Auckland, they spent two weeks on the Viking Venus enroute to Sydney. Then they snorkeled on the Great Barrier Reef. Next, Holly and Tyler traveled to the Daintree rain forest, out to Ayer’s Rock and back to Sydney.

FLAGSHIP

As George Burns once said, “By the time you’re 80 years old you’ve learned everything. You only have to remember it!” Chuck Erickson (4604) will surely remember his 80^th birthday on January 6. He celebrated at the Helm Club during our “indoor” pool party with his neighbors and many brothers and sisters-in-law from Fort Myers.

As a final bon voyage to Pat Rosen (4616), about 25 women gathered at the Helm Club to wish her well on January 7. We are glad she isn’t going too far, and hope to see her back at Flagship to visit from time to time.

Our Flagship contingent filled three tables at Bingo on January 8. Winners were found at two of the three tables with one table unlucky for all participants. Maria Winant (4612), Barb Christian (4604), Kathy Zielie (4612) and Kathy Tyska (4612) all went home with pockets full of cash. Such a fun night for both winners and losers.

On February 2, 59 of us gathered at the pool for Sunday Brunch. It was a prefect morning to come together with all our returning snowbird friends. There was plenty of delicious food, sunshine and camaraderie. Thanks to Marly Konstant, John Fusintti, Kathleen Hickey, Cathy Spicer and Peggy Holton for putting together this awesome event.

In my “Getting to Know Your Neighbor” series, I had the pleasure of visiting with Don and Laurie Stoppelmann (4612). While new to Flagship, Don and Laurie have been coming to The Landings for some 20 years. Their parents owned here, and Don and Laurie owned in Trawler prior to moving to Flagship. Their homestead is in Sunset Hills, Missouri and their very “tight” family all live within five minutes of each other. They have two daughters and five grandchildren. They consider themselves an “educator” family, as Laurie taught school (and was awarded Teacher of the Year among 700 teachers). Their daughters are educators and Don taught fiber optic communication techniques to electrician apprentices during his 40 years as a licensed electrical contractor. They are pickleball enthusiasts and even have a pickleball court on their driveway back home! They also enjoy golf and Laurie volunteers, yep, as an educator, at their church in Missouri. Two years ago, they celebrated their 50^th anniversary in Sanibel where they renewed their vows. Two months later, Hurricane Ian destroyed the resort where they celebrated, but their memories will never be erased. Their family vacations on Lake of the Ozarks every year and has been going there ever since their oldest grandson was two years old. Welcome to Flagship!

LONGBOAT

Longboat Village December Christmas Breakfast – This article should have gone in last month, BUT I missed the deadline, so here goes: Mike and Lynda Redmon graciously opened their home to friends and neighbors for a Christmas breakfast. A breakfast that was loaded with different types and sizes of pancakes, with bacon (of course), and there were pastries galore.

Top that off with mimosas and coffee. A total of 35 people took part in this event and afterwards there was caroling on the back patio. What a great way to spend Christmas morning. Thank you Mike and Lynda for hosting this event.

           

Just a note for our resident Carol Bass, who had a minor stroke during December. I am happy to report that she has greatly recovered and is doing well now.

Longboat New Year’s Day – Longboat Village celebrated 2025 with a breakfast brunch that was once again very well attended. CeCe and her helpers did a fantastic job setting up for the crowd that attended.

There was a selection of breakfast casseroles, a cold deli assortment, dessert, and of course, there was champagne (and if you wanted to add the orange juice, it was available). Happy 2025!

LYC Stuart Trip – Alan and I, along with our neighbors, Lin and Oscar Muysson, Scott and Lauretta Dustin, John Naifeh and Natasha Benchimol, Carol Bass and Joe Teale, all enjoyed visiting the quaint downtown Stuart area on a Landings Yacht Club “cruise”.  Cold it was, BUT we all had fun with “docktails”, a group dinner the first night, and a pub crawl the next day. This trip also included land cruising members of the yacht club. A total of 60 people went on this trip

Longboat Board Members: Oscar Muysson, Alan Power, Werner Diersch, Michele Steudte, and Joe Teale are your current board members as of the 30^th of January. Positions have been planned but not assigned at the time of this newsletter. BUT, next time you see John Naifeh (now a past president of Longboat Village) please shake his hand and then give him a round of applause for the exceptional work that he did over the years as our president. His work alone has saved each resident thousands of dollars in maintenance fees. Thank you, John, for your service to our village. Good luck to the new board.

Stop Signs: I would like to give a quick mention for people that pass through our Longboat Village.  It would be nice if you could adhere to the stop signs and the speed limit on S. Landings Drive and Longboat Lane. I am quite certain our village members would appreciate your kind consideration in this matter. Thank you so much for listening. (You were listening, right?)

Article Note – If you have ANY stories you would like to share, or have travelled, please let me know. Sharing our stories and adventures with our neighbors brings us all closer together.

MARINER’S COVE

Mariners Cove’s own Pat Milkovich won the LYGTC Men’s Golf Championship flight (no handicap) on January 31. The format was match play, which means on each hole, you simply notate whether you won, lost, or halved the hole. It was a classic battle with his opponent, Mark Combs, who came from 3 down to close the gap to 1 down going into the 18th hole. After two great drives, each player hit the green on their second shot. Both made par to tie the hole and that allowed Pat to win 1-up and the championship. Congrats for bringing home the title to Mariners Cove. All hail King Patrick! 

Lynn Cisky is thrilled to be the new “Interim” director for The Landings Chorus. Herschel Avra has done a fantastic job for the last twelve years. Lynn wanted to keep Herschel’s legacy afloat. God bless the chorus singers and please support their performances.

Mariner’s Cove village says goodbye to another long-time resident, Mary Ann Sommers. Mary Ann will be living full time in her Pennsylvania residence. We wish her well.

STEAMBOAT BEND EAST

May your joys be as deep as the Oceans. Your troubles as light as its foam. And may you find sweet peace of mind, Wherever you may roam. Irish Blessing Many in our village gathered to celebrate a very special 90th birthday for our beloved Jeannie Szczurek.

While the buffet was being set up, Cindy Cooper shared some biographical details of Jeannie’s wonderful life of love, family, service and friendship. Darlene offered a beautiful prayer, and longtime friend Kathy Langton helped make the celebration very special with a beautifully decorated carrot cake, flowers, decorations, a crown, sash and corsage for the guest of honor. Cindy Cooper wowed us with her culinary and botanical skills making beautiful floral cupcakes, even a bouquet out of them! We all showered Jeannie with cards. Jeannie is a cherished neighbor at Steamboat Bend East. Wishing her the very best in the years ahead.

PICKLEBALL PLAYERS ENJOY “GLOW IN THE DARK” GAMES, ON NEON COURTS HOSTED BY THE LANDINGS.

By late January, the weather finally warmed up enough to enjoy Water Aerobics again, led by Darlene Kratz. We’re so fortunate to be getting perfect sunny days in Southwest Florida…the reason we all were lured to this area.

And many smiling faces appeared at the recent Wednesday night pool party. It was well attended and a bountiful feast appeared, thanks to the direction and organizing of Jane Dahlin. I noticed a new big screen TV has been installed. It will be great for watching the Super Bowl, and we may even see some movie nights in the future. Lynn and Shirley Bragg offered some squares to buy for the big game.

It turned out January was a great time to offer a couple of Watercolor Painting classes. We covered how to make a wash, activate the paints for “movement and shine”, and “wet in wet” techniques as well as “wet in dry”. We practiced three ways to make highlights: reserving the paper, using the corner of a paper towel as a vacuum, and making a thirsty brush to pull out some pigment. Those skills are all anyone needs to get started using one of Sarah Simon’s Watercolor workbooks that have watercolor paper and drawings ready for you, and all you need to do is paint! It is my hope that on cool or rainy days, this past time will provide an enjoyable alternative.

TRAWLER

Village News & Updates

New Leadership for 2025
The Trawler Village Board has elected its officers for the year:
President – Cheryl Box, Vice President – Betsy Jackson, Treasurer – Brock Henderson, Secretary – Jim Goetz, Directors – Perry Maness, Jean Boushay, and Larry Bush.

Betsy Jackson has been appointed to serve as Trawler Village’s representative on the Board through February 2026, completing Neil Shea’s term. 

Community Enhancements
– Pool Resurfacing Completed: The pool has been resurfaced, enhancing its functionality and appearance. Final inspections are pending.
– New Fountain Installed: A beautiful new fountain has been added to the pond behind the 4585 building, funded by The Landings at a cost of $15,000.
– Lightning Rods Installed: The 4-story buildings now have lightning rods, improving safety during storms. Work was completed by Hirschler Clark Electric, who also repaired the streetlights.

Trawler Village Sign Painted

Warm thanks to Patty Smith for her outstanding work on Trawler Villages entrance sign.

Reunion Highlight
Kathy and Rick Jerr recently reunited with their Japanese exchange student, Ayaka, and her family at Disney Springs. Ayaka spent her sophomore year at Pomfret School with the Jerr’s daughter, Lauren, 24 years ago. Their heartwarming reunion was a testament to the enduring friendships formed through cultural exchange. If you have any pictures from the reunion, please share them for the next article!

Community Update: Wishing Erv Evard a Speedy Recovery
Trawler neighbor Erv Evard had a tough holiday season after falling and breaking his hip on December 23. He spent Christmas, his 31st wedding anniversary, and New Year’s at Lee Memorial Hospital. Since then, he has been recovering in rehab at Lee Health and is expected to be released soon.

Family Visit Highlight
Trawler neighbor Ray Southard is excited to welcome his two daughters and five grandchildren for a weeklong visit starting Monday. While Ray modestly downplayed this as “not newsworthy,” we think it’s a perfect example of the joys of family and community. Ray, if you capture any memorable moments, please share a photo for the next newsletter!

WINDJAMMER

With all the ever-increasing sirens along McGregor Blvd and the arrival of high season I thought it might be appropriate to talk about Windjammer safety. No, this won’t be a list of things to be careful about but there is a story or two here to share. For example, Martha Whipple sent her recent experience: 

This is a funny, not so funny, cautionary tale of a woman, an E bike, an ER, and New Year’s Eve.

While riding my bike home from decorating for a New Year’s Eve party, I accidentally pulled on the front brake instead of the back brake which sent me hurtling off onto the asphalt! It was around 5:30 p.m. just short of my own driveway so I didn’t have far to go to get in the house, grab my car keys, and head out to the ER. As I was leaving, I remembered I had thrown my health insurance card in the garbage because a new one was going to start the next day. I had already pitched that bag into the dumpster so I had to go dumpster diving for it! Fortunately, my bag was at the top and my card was still inside the macaroni and cheese box I had put it in. When I pulled into the parking lot at Healthpark emergency department I could tell it was going to take a while because the parking lot was full. I walked in and everybody and their brother was in there. After the usual triaging, I was finally seen seven hours later. I had a broken finger and numerous cuts and abrasions. They put a makeshift splint on, gave me a pain pill, two Advils, and an antibiotic then sent me on my way with a prescription for more. Armed with my prescription I headed out the door only to find fog that you could cut with a knife! I had to drive home alone through the fog at 1:20 a.m. I was glad at that point that I had not had anything alcoholic to drink, but I had missed the party, the food, the dancing, the fireworks over the Caloosahatchee and the midnight toast!

Moral of the story is stay off an E bike to stay out of the ER.

And speaking of ER’s Mary Beth Maile has nothing but praise for our new ER just a hop, skip and jump away tucked in front of the new condos where the goat farm used to be next to CVS. It is called HCA Florida West and the address is 8919 College Point Ct. It’s important to know how close, rapid and excellent their ER care is, without waiting, and with all capabilities including x-rays. The doctors and staff quickly diagnosed her and went out of their way to call four hospitals to find the quickest surgical time and arrange non-stop delivery directly to the surgical wing so that she and her appendix could part ways just in time.

DEREK RAUCHFLEISZ (LEFT) AND TOM BELL SERVED UP DELICIOUS HAMBURGERS.

Sunday Funday report from Eva Bell: We had great attendance at the pool on Sunday, January 26. Eighty residents joined us under blue skies and ample sunshine to enjoy freshly grilled burgers and all the fixings. After the holidays with turkey and ham, we turned West and went for the beef. Thanks to volunteers Theresa Cary, Diane Skipton, Sue Pipher, Robert Hummel, Sam Gates, and Tom Bell the set-up went smoothly, and our hamburger chefs Derek Rauchfleisz and Tom Bell started the new grills up at 4:00 p.m. sharp.

As always, Julie Iverson welcomed the guests and collected the money; she does a good job keeping our finances straight so we can continue these fun events. Our residents brought delicious salads, baked beans, vegetables, potatoes, and of course desserts.

True to our Western Theme, many guests were sporting their cowboy boots and hats, and even a Royal Canadian Mountie outfit.

The highlight of the event was our own Corston Lane who volunteered his talents and his guitar to entertain us for over two hours with country music and good old rock n’ roll. People were dancing and singing along, and the Tip Jar got its well-deserved attention. Corston loves to play music and is open to performing in other Landings Villages at their events. Windjammer’s official “Dancing Lady” Elaine Trapp especially enjoyed the music and her 81^st birthday.

With the end of the season quickly approaching, we have one last BIG event scheduled for Sunday, March 16, again at Picnic Pointe. The day before St. Patrick’s Day, we are serving the other Irish meat, BBQ ribs, hahaha. We also will have musical entertainment by a well-known group everyone loves at the Compass Rose and the Wheelhouse; come join us and be surprised.  

And of course, stay safe and be careful upon entry and exit from the Landings as multiple accidents continue to occur there with increasing frequencies. Be aware that new signs have been posted that northbound U-turn vehicles have the right of way over vehicles turning right to exit The Landings and enter McGregor

ARIEL

Fun and Games Featured at Ariel

Ariel’s busy Social Committee produced another rousing get-together with a Game Night on January 25. Residents were invited to bring an appetizer to share while the Committee provided beer, wine, and water. Those who preferred stronger adult beverages were free to BYOB – and did.

Events took place in two of Ariel’s amenity rooms on the Plaza level (second floor) of the 18-story high rise at The Landings. The Card Room, where monthly Board meetings are held, was the site for spirited card and Scrabble games.

The Game Room has floor to ceiling windows that face west to capture beautiful sunsets. The room includes one ping pong and two pool tables as well as video game machines and a Wii system.

The owners of the 135-units at Ariel enjoy getting together with their neighbors. The age range as well as the number of the contestants at Game Night was substantial. Participants ranged from three-year-old twins to those well into the 80s, although the ones at the upper end weren’t quick to acknowledge that.

Additional Social Committee events are being planned throughout the year. The full time residents enjoy the festive Ariel Summer Dinners that are held in one of excellent restaurants at The Landings.  

Another active group at Ariel enjoys decorating Ariel’s public spaces. The December Holiday decorations were abundant and the newest decorations celebrate Valentine’s Day.

The lobby entrance on the first floor has attracted a lot of attention, including from young visitors who made themselves at home.