Gail Schroeder
Welcome to a new season of SunBird Golfing Niners. The snowbirds are returning, and we look forward to a fun year of friendly competition. I know most of you have heard all the instructions for signing up, but I want to make sure any SunBird newcomers know how to join our group. You will find a “SunBird Niners 2021-2022 Dues & Membership Registration” form on the Golf Pro Shop bulletin board in the hall leading to the Lakeview Room. Completing that form and giving it to Bev Wilson is all you have to do. That will start the process, and everything will be explained to you at that time. One thing which may make newcomers feel comfortable is the knowledge that a buddy will be assigned to you. That buddy will golf with you and explain everything before, during, and after the first three Tuesday golf games. Then you will be teamed with three different golfers each week in order to get to know everyone.
I would like to introduce a new feature to our Niners news articles. I think it would be neat to have a short paragraph updating us about previous SunBird Niners who have moved away. Many Niners keep in touch with their SunBird Niners friends, even though they no longer live here. If you would first get their okay to give us an update, I would include a different person/couple each month in our SunBird Niners newsletter. I think we would all enjoy and appreciate hearing about them. After all, we spend a lot of time golfing and socializing with them, and we miss them when they leave.
I talked to Donna Kleinow this month to see how she and Don were doing. Most people remember Donna, because she was the warm, friendly face at the Pro Shop counter for several years before they moved back to their home state of Michigan. They currently live in a condo in Frankenmuth, which is a city in Michigan known for its Bavarian-style architecture. Bronner’s Christmas Wonderland is a retail store in Frankenmuth that promotes itself as the “World’s Largest Christmas Store.” The building is 7.35 acres in size with landscaped grounds covering 27 acres. So, you know where Donna will be doing her Christmas shopping. Donna enjoys the freedom a condo brings, i.e., less maintenance and no yard work. She said she and Don miss everyone in SunBird so much, not to mention the sunshine. They have had an unusually large amount of rain this year. Even though Don has had complications with hardening of the lungs, they both continue to enjoy golfing. Their golf course is only five minutes from their home. We all miss them a lot as well.