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| Four Seasons Hemet Herald | August 2016 | 5 For this month, I'm excerpting an article I wrote in 2012 that deals with gate arm strikes. The reason I'm revisiting the article is that in the past several months we have experienced a dozen or so gate arm strikes and for some reason, this is happening more frequently than ever. Here is an excerpt from the article: I want to cover an issue that is happening all too frequently and I'm asking for your help. The issue is damage to our gate arms and to vehicles, mostly at the front gate, but recently at the World Cup gate as well. The good news is the damage to the arms and/or the vehicles is 100 percent preventable. It's simply a matter of making sure your Transponder or Fob was "read" by the antenna or the gray reader. In reviewing videos of the incidents, damage to the vehicles could have been prevented by simply allowing extra space between the vehicle in front and the vehicle following. I suggest allowing at least two car lengths between you and the vehicle ahead. For example, if you are coming through the front gate and following another vehicle and you pass the antenna area and the arm stays up after the vehicle goes past the gate, you're okay. But, if you are following that same vehicle too closely and your transponder didn't get "read" (for whatever the reason), the arm will come down after that car right on top of yours! If you are at the front gate, and for some reason your transponder did not activate the gate, allow enough space between your vehicle and the one ahead of you so you will have time to see the gate arm coming down. The gate attendant will take notice and manually open the gate for you. While attending a committee meeting where interviews were taking place to fill a vacancy, a resident said something that stuck with me. He said he has lived here for over 10 years, enjoyed this community so much, but has never volunteered for anything. He said, "It's time that I give back." Wow. Think about that for a second. "Giving back." How many of us have done that? It's simple to do, but so hard to commit ourselves to giving back or volunteering. What does it mean to you? It means something different for everyone. But I do know this, there are SO MANY of you that have given (and continue to give) much of your time, your dollars and your expertise, to make this community what it is today. I think that's what this resident was referring to. If you are in that group, thank you! If you are not, please consider giving back in some way. Volunteer to help on an event, with a club or a committee. But don't limit yourself to just Four Seasons. There are many ways and places to volunteer in our city and any way you volunteer will be greatly appreciated! Happy August and be safe! A Message From Your General Manager By Rick Ruth, CCAM

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