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FOUR SEASONS BREEZE | JULY 2022 11 Busy Bees: Spotlight on Volunteers Landscape Committee Keeps Four Seasons Beautiful Have you noticed that there is a clean orderly library in The Lodge? There is a broad selection of books that are well cared for, shelved by category, and it is relatively easy to find something you might be interested in reading. Did you ever wonder who makes sure everything is in its proper place? A small group of book lovers volunteer their time so you may enjoy a good read. It is time they were recognized for their dedication. What inspired you to join this group? We love to read and we wanted to give back to this wonderful community we live in. We want to help keep the library up to date and accessible for all our community members and to help them have an opportunity to experience not only new authors, but favorite ones as well. What would you say to someone thinking of joining? If you like being around books, this is the job for you. It isn't hard and you can volunteer as much as you want or as little. Most volunteer one day a week but it's what works best for you and your schedule. You can even work in pairs if you want. What is your life motto? You can never go wrong with a good book! Reading enriches your life and can take you any place you want to go. Stay positive and keep smiling! Some of The Lodge Librarians: Kathy Rust, Sue Balt, Julie Stayner, Terry Hall, Lois Butler, Cat Thomas, Irma Peterson You're moving to Beaumont? Why would you want to live there? I heard this question from more than one person when I told them that we were relocating to the high desert (well, mountain pass) area inland. Perhaps you heard the same question. Do you remember the first time you came through the Potrero gate and saw the shrubs and trees even before you got to the first building, The Lodge? Do you remember driving south on Four Seasons Circle and observing the towering sycamores that lined the streets? Do you remember thinking what a marvelous place to live this will be? How do you think the community continues to appeal to prospective owners and guests? Well, it's true that we do have a fabulous landscape service – Park West, and they do an incredible job of keeping up the lawns, the plants, and the trees. But they do it only under direction of the residents. And the residents who most interact with the landscapers are members of the Landscape Committee. None of the current members have a background in commercial landscape. None of us were landscape architects or nursery owners. What we do have is an interest in all forms of flora and a desire to see the community maintain its premier status. As time has gone by, all of us learned more about the plants that are present and their needs. We've also met residents whom we might not otherwise have met while we attempt to resolve any problems they're experiencing. It's not a small task to manage even the common areas of the community, let alone the front yards of the 566 Front-Yard-Cost-Center homes, but we all work at it. On most Friday mornings, we're out walking a portion of the community, looking for areas that need a little TLC (or, sometimes, a lot of TLC). The walks give us a chance to keep up with the health of the plants, and an excuse for some much needed exercise for those of us who aren't getting any younger. But, there are only five of us, and, while each committee member brings his/her own point of view, we could really use augmentation. Everyone knows that two heads are [usually] better than one, and "a camel is a horse designed by a committee," but a team of seven or eight as we've had in the past seems to do the best job. Please consider joining our hearty (and happy) band. ~ Kirk Freyermuth, kafreyer@frontier.com (L-R) Kirk Freyermuth, Brenda Streckler, Nancy Justice, and Bonnie Makela. Not pictured: Patti Pitts

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