A huge American flag waved between stately palm trees at the entrance to our next "camp ground". We stopped at the guardhouse for admittance and then registered at the Administration Office. We followed one of the concentric streets past more palms, saguaros, and tidy park-model homes to locate our site for the week. We were guests at Venture Out, an Active Adult Community in Mesa, Arizona, where each lot is privately owned. After camping mostly in the desert for six weeks, we were totally in awe of our new surroundings! There were paved streets (all named after airplanes), well-maintained homes, lots, and public areas and more activities than we could fathom.
We were soon welcomed by our neighbors and then invited to the monthly block party to be held the following week. We learned that there are almost a thousand sites in this community and around 1700 residents, with occupancy at about 1570 while we were there. There are many activities going on every day -- hiking, bicycling, golf, softball, tennis, pickle ball, bocce ball, lawn bowling, croquet, darts, pool, ping-pong, woodworking, carving, silversmithing, ceramics, sewing, quilting, creative writing, genealogy, computer groups, 18 Red Hat Ladies groups, Bible studies, cards, games, and more. There is even a ham radio club with a complete radio room and multiple antennas which impressed Lou (and our host!). The various activities are organized as clubs and during our stay, we attended two lunches sponsored by different groups. There are two swimming pools and a large, new activity center containing a ballroom, cafe, library, poolroom, mailroom, etc. On Sundays, a worship service was held in the ballroom. There were about 600 in attendance, with an offering of about $1600 which went to various charities such as Gideons, St. Vincent de Paul, Radio Bible Class, and Salvation Army.
Our hearts were warmed to be treated like regular residents and we especially enjoyed attending the block party. It was held on the terrace at the activity center where we viewed a beautiful sunset. This was a potluck meal and the hosts had decorated with green balloons and green candies for St. Patrick's Day. A few Irish jokes were told and we all sang a few Irish songs accompanied by a keyboard. We were seated with a couple from Rock Falls, IL and also met a couple from Huntley, IL. Many of our neighbors were from Canada and we enjoyed getting to know them and learn more about our neighbors to the north.
Our stay ended all too soon as we headed to Texas. Thanks again Bob and Laura!!
