active adult living – Page 14 – Retirement Media: Active Adult Living

What are the perks and benefits of living in a 55+ Active Adult Living Community as opposed to a regular suburban community?

Having lived in my suburban community for 21 years and then moving to a Del Webb Community about a year ago, gives me a perspective on that question. So here are my thoughts.

In my 55+ community, the people are friendlier. People wave and smile at you. They spend some time talking with you. Neighbors invite you over for dinner more often. Maybe we have more time for those things. Maybe there is an undeniable bond among us that we are in the same boat sailing the same seas.

In a 55+ community, there is definitely more things to do, opportunities to play games and enjoy activities. Thus the name active adult community!

In a 55+ community, there are more facilities and amenities, right here on site. We have bocce, pickleball and tennis courts. A lake to fish in. A wonderful clubhouse with indoor and outdoor pools, ballroom, demonstration kitchen, craft rooms, card rooms, library, exercise room, dog park, grand kids playground, walking trails, and wide sidewalks.

We have medical services nearby: a 100 bed hospital right next to our community and many medical buildings close by. I think most larger 55+ communities have the same.

So many interesting people live here! One of the unforeseen benefits is to meet so many talented and interesting people.

Living in a 55+ active adult community is fun! We have so many events every single month. All kinds of shows like the ventriloquist we saw this weekend, or the many bands who perform here. There are resident shows as well. Day trippers visit some interesting places. The travel club just got back from Ireland. All of the team sports are fun. Some people just love the card and table games. My wife and I just were saying that even though we have been here almost a year, it feels like we are on vacation and the place is new to us. No boring routines here!

Other benefits of 55+ Active Adult Living Communities:
Landscaping is included. No mowing!
Manned security gate.
Many restaurants give us a discount.
You can walk anywhere in the community or drive a golf cart.
Neighbors you can count on when you need them.
A safe community.
Energy efficient homes with great layouts and senior friendly.
A resort living feeling.

We feel very fortunate to live at an Active Adult Community. We moved here when I turned 67, why did I wait so long to do that?

Robert and Mary Ann live at Village at Deaton Creek, north of Atlanta Georgia.

Since moving in to our Del Webb community, Mary Ann and I learned to share many activities but there are some activities we both do on our own.

One activity Mary Ann enjoys is the ladies card games, especially something called Hand and Foot. It is kind of like playing Canasta I have heard.

There is a large group that plays at our clubhouse, but Mary Ann plays with a group of ladies on our street and they take turns playing at each other homes, usually playing for several hours the same day each week. It seems like Thursdays are the hot card game day of the week in our community. The group is either 4 or 6 and they play as partners of two. The regular schedule makes it easy.

Mary Ann says it’s good mental exercise but I suspect it is the social aspect that the players enjoy the most. Mary Ann always comes home with a bit of neighborhood news. Coffee and snacks are served.

Other benefits of playing Hand and Foot with this group is that it keeps you in contact with your neighbors. When we were new to the community, it was a great way to really get to know your neighbors.

These types of card games are going on almost every day of the week throughout the community and at the clubhouse. Just because I give the example of the ladies card game, it in no way implies men don’t play. There are plenty of men playing card games and not just poker. Anyone can just show up at the clubhouse when any card or table game is on the schedule and be included. If it’s just you, you will have no problem finding partners to play with. It fact it’s a great way to meet people and find new friends.

As far as popularity, I would guess that card and table games are enjoyed by more people than any other activity at a 55+ active adult community. It’s easy to learn, to find people to play with and you can play all year long.

To give you an idea of how popular card cards are, just looking at our schedule this month, here are some of the card games scheduled (not even counting the many table games).

Shanghai Rummy is a card game for 3 – 8 players. In some parts of the country, it is called May I?. It is a version of Contract Rummy consisting of a series of rounds.
Duplicate Bridge Club, Rusty Bridge Club, Contract Bridge Club
Double Deck Pinochle Group
Hand and Foot has been a huge hit in our community. If you are in an existing Hand and Foot Player and just can’t get enough OR you would like to join others in the fantastic game similar to Canasta, join this group and let’s get started with some more Hand and Foot!!
The Men’s Poker Group meets every Tuesday in the clubhouse lounge. A third table has been added so there’s now space for more players.
Hearts Group
Co-Ed Texas Hold’em Group
Spades Group
Euchre Card Game Club
Daytimers Texas Hold’em Group

If you don’t see a card game you would like to play, you can just start a group.