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| SUN LAKES LIFESTYLES | JANUARY 2020 | 9 2020 Holds Important Decisions for Sun Lakers By Joe Formino, Chairman, District Delegate Assembly Well, believe it or not, the year is 2020. Never thought we would be looking at a calendar and that number would appear on it. But here we are, and we have our work cut out for us this year. First of all, we must elect three new members of the Board of Directors — the majority of the Board. We should be very careful in our choices. We want candidates with common sense and good judgment who have the good of our community as their target for pursuing the position. We do not need candidates with personal agendas, who develop into micromanagers, and disrupt our organization. There are two tasks that the new directors must constantly focus on, our financial status and our lifestyle. Governing Sun Lakes Country Club is similar to running a town of 6,000 people. There is a $10 million expense budget to manage each year and over 100 employees to oversee. They are really not our employees, but we pay for them and they do our work. The cost of operating is escalating at a faster speed than it did years ago. With the economy growing each year, our utilities are almost out of control. One by one, our other costs are increasing due to the labor increases. We will see increases in our assessment each year for several years. Anyone on a fixed income will be in desperate need of assistance. But there is no way to halt progress. It is very important that we manage our assets and repair and replace wherever possible. We are extremely fortunate that previous Boards of Directors maintained our properties with utmost care. Future Boards must do the same thing as a large part of their profile is managing our assets and having a sense of fiduciary responsibility. The new Board of Directors is also facing the reduced participation on the part of our members. Every club and every activity is reporting less participation in their groups. It greatly affects the facilities we have for use by our residents. It all comes down to our revenue generating entities. The Food and Beverage operation and the golfing venues are our two assets that generate monies. As the revenue decreases, we have reduced funds to pay our bills. No matter what the income might be from the dining rooms or the golf courses, the fixed costs are always with us. It appears we have two problems: One, there are many residents moving to Sun Lakes who do not participate in any activities. Two, some of the new arrivals are still employed and are not able to partake in any activities during the week. We always need volunteers to keep our clubs and advisory committees operating. There has to be a way to engender a spirit of participation. We are always looking for leaders, get in line we need your help! Wishing you all a happy and prosperous new year. DISTRICT DELEGATE ASSEMBLY REPORT

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