TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Highlands Today

Waiting With A Smile?

Jasmina Meyer/Highlands Today

Volunteer Gayle Renker gives out visitor passes at the reception desk at Highlands Regional Medical Center on Monday in Sebring. Renker has been a volunteer here for 24 years and says she enjoys it when her friends from the north come back to volunteer.

ADVERTISEMENT

By BILL RETTEW JR.

Highlands Today

Published: September 16, 2008

SEBRING - Water foamed and splashed around eight women Monday morning in the Buttonwood Bay pool as they vigorously practiced water aerobics.

Some wore hats, many wore sunglasses and, when leader Maryjo Finn asked the ladies to "tighten up your fannies," they responded by laughing.

When snowbirds return from the north, the number of residents at Buttonwood Bay will more than double to 2,000. The morning water aerobics session will then be split into two groups to cater to the 100 daily participants.

Finn is an 8-year Buttonwood Bay resident and said she welcomes back her old seasonal friends, although the summer season in the county - where there is a little less than 100,000 year-round county residents - is "much quieter."

She enjoys visiting several snowbird buddies up north, when things slow down and temperatures rise here, between visits to her kids.

While Barbara Strickengloss missed her winter friends and said that U.S. 27 is always a "nightmare," Bettyann Shetts said during the summer she feels like a member of an exclusive country club.

Sebring Police Commander Steve Carr said Monday the Sebring Police Department serves the community with the same number of officers year-round.

"When there's an increase in population, and obviously, when roads are more crowded, there are more accidents," said Carr.

The number of reported crimes does not increase or decrease seasonally, although when winter visitors first return, more burglaries are reported due to homes of snowbirds left empty for the summer, he added.

Pete Pollard is a veteran actor, director and board member at Highlands Little Theatre.

Pollard said Monday that historically there are more prospective ticket buyers available during the winter months, but this year he's seen "a reduction of business across the board."

Pollard noted a recent trend. Some theatergoers purchased only a seat for the community theater, as fewer came early and paid more to have dinner.

"Everybody's feeling the squeeze," said Pollard.

Municipal workers in Avon Park see their workload increase when it snows in Michigan, but according to City Manager Sarah Adelt, no extra employees are added when temperatures cool here.

"The infrastructure is already in place," said Adelt. "We have to buy the same amount of trucks. We don't have any additional employees in place for our winter guests.

"We shuffle our schedules around a little bit, and when they're not here, we clean up and do maintenance to prepare for the busy times."

Gayle Renker, of Sebring, volunteered for 24 years at Highlands Regional Medical Center where she works in the gift shop and reception desk. More than 100 volunteers work at the hospital during the winter, with half of those after the orange crop is harvested in the spring.

Renker feels appreciated and enjoys giving back to the community. She volunteers for about 16 hours a week off season and eight hours in the winter when the number of volunteers doubles.

Vickie McNamara hustled Monday afternoon to serve lunch to a packed Village Inn restaurant.

She said that extra servers are added for the high season when she works fewer tables, so that customers are served quicker. She confided that tips are better in the off-season.

"With summer people you feel more like family," said McNamara.

Bill Rettew Jr. may be contacted at 386-5857 or wrettew@highlandstoday.com

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT