VOL. 21 NO. 12
Community web site: http://hggcc.com
Community Channels: 901 and 902 on TV
Veterans Day Dinner Dance, A Time For Remembrance And Celebration By Pam Scheid, Herons Glen Photo by Dan Lim, Herons Glen Every ticket was sold for this very special event sponsored by the Veterans of the Glen (VOG). In addition to the three-entrée buffet dinner, the anticipation of perhaps holding winning tickets for impressive door prizes, and the lively music, it is the military and patriot tributes which make this evening special. Guests were led in reciting The Pledge of Allegiance and singing The Star-Spangled Banner and God Bless America. Veterans proudly stood as the theme song for each branch of service was played. Don DeWitt gave the invocation. The most memorable moment of these tributes was the story of “The Missing Man Table.” VOG president Bruce Johnson explained the significance of each item on the table which represented the serviceman Missing Man Table who was not present. The ceremony of “The Missing Man Table” is performed at formal military dinners and other occasions. It serves as a reminder of all those in uniform who made the ultimate sacrifice and whom we must “never forget.” Bruce told the story of one man who was MIA since 1944, and to the strains of
Taps, in the background, read government statistics citing 86,539 service men and women since World War I who are still missing. Bruce concluded his solemn tribute to the missing and fallen by declaring it is also important to honor our heroes by celebrating their lives. He ended with “let’s party!” Soon the floor was filled with energetic celebrants dancing to the music by the popular band Zodiac. Parties like the VOG’s Veterans Day Dance do not happen without a lot of planning and work. And since it is its major fundraiser for its charities, the VOG depends on the generous sponsorship by friends of veterans. In the printed program and by announcement those sponsors were publicly thanked: Laura Steil of Starlink Realty for sponsoring the band; The Glen Group Realtors for providing the grand door prize, a 65-inch smart TV; Alpha Delta Alpha sorority for the patriotic table decorations; Alpha Delta Mu sorority for running the 50/50 drawing and for joining with Patrick and Shari Sanders for the two red, white, and blue dessert cakes; and Hogbody’s Bar and Grill for their longstanding support and for door prizes. Appreciation was also expressed to those who purchased tickets, the VOG board members, Mike Zarella and Sandy Herde were recognized for their work soliciting for door prizes and Jenn and Jack Cotter for their program design. And finally, to all who participated and helped the VOG raise nearly $7,500, all of which will be donated to veterans’ causes.
DECEMBER 2023
Activities Fair By Donna Piascik, Herons Glen Want to get to know your community better? Mark your calendars for Sunday, Jan. 21, 2024 and attend the Activities Fair being held in the ballroom between 12 and 3 p.m. This is sponsored by the HOA Activities Committee. Come learn about the wonderful array of organizations, sports, clubs, and other opportunities in Herons Glen awaiting your participation. These groups provide a great way to have fun, to make new friends and to become more involved in our community. For information on how to host a booth for your group, please contact either Donna Piascik (dfpiascik@ gmail.com) or Shirley Hrabar (sjnagy2001@yahoo.com).
Fasten Your Space Belts! By Jack Nelson, Herons Glen Why? Because we are embarking on the journey of a lifetime! The first 100 Herons Glenners to sign up for the trek will be guaranteed a seat, and for the low low airfare of only $1 million, you’ll be richly rewarded for the experience of a lifetime. Visa and Mastercard will be accepted. No personal checks please. Included in the package is a space camera, which will provide each of you with breathtaking photography. My name is Captain Dirk Kirk, and I will be honored to be your pilot in command. Our spaceship, the USS Entersurprise, is powered by four thermo-dynamic double coupler electromagnetic turbine engines, capable of delivering 60 million pounds of thrust. We will be departing from launchpad 40B at Cape Captiva, Fla., and we will be zipping right along at a speed of 600,000 miles per hour. Our trek will cover all of the planets in our solar system, from blistering Mercury all the way out to frigid Pluto and will depart on Dec. 31, 2025. There will be an extravagant New Year’s Eve party held aboard the ship, and don’t worry about spilling your drinks. The Entersurprise is equipped with artificial gravity, and when you need to use the men’s/ ladies’ bathrooms, that problem is also solved. Our first orbit will be Mercury, only 43,000,000 miles from the sun and 131,000,000 miles from Earth. It will take us only nine days to get there. Our second orbit will be Venus, which has the densest atmosphere of all of the planets and is hotter than Mercury. Our flight time from Mercury will be only a little over two days. After our Venus orbit, we’ll skip our home base and head straight to Mars. The flight time from Venus to Mars will take a little
Our Solar System over five days, and, unlike the other planets, we will actually land there. You Glenners will be provided with spacesuits and special containers to scoop up not more than one pound of soil. My flight engineer will have a scale to ensure that you do not exceed the limit. Thank you for your understanding and honesty. After we blast off from Mars, we’ll be heading for the big one, that giant of the skies, Jupiter. This monstrous orb was blessed with a big black eye. Maybe it got into a fight with Saturn. It will take us about 24 days to reach it. We’ll be orbiting much farther out because of its strong gravity. The circumference of this beast is longer than the distance from Earth to moon! Saturn, with those beautiful telltale rings, is a time distance of 28 days from Jupiter. Saturn is a gas giant and is second in size in our system. Its density is only one-eighth that of our home planet. If we were to travel straight to Saturn from Cape Captiva, it would take two months. As we pass
through the rings, your sensitive ears might start ringing due to the pinging of the ice crystals against Entersurprise’s skin. But not to worry. We will offer, at no extra charge, antiringing-due-to-pinging earphones to protect your hearing. In a little over two months, we’ll reach Uranus from Saturn. William Herschel discovered this gaseous giant in 1781. A primordial deity in Greek mythology, Uranus personified the sky, the heavens, and the air. It will take us about 70 days to reach Neptune from Uranus. Neptune is the final planet in the Solar System. It is more than 30 times as far from the sun as Earth. A year on this planet is equivalent to nearly 165 Earth years! Neptune is the Roman god of freshwater and the sea. In 61 days, we’ll reach Pluto from Neptune. The International Astronomical Union (IAU) downgraded the status of Pluto to that of a dwarf planet because it did not meet the three criteria that the IAU uses to define a full-sized planet. Essentially, Pluto meets all the criteria except one: It “has not cleared its neighboring region of other objects.” I, as your captain and tour guide, do not understand the meaning of that last statement, but I do know that Plutonians are hopping mad about being downgraded, and they’re filing a petition to the Inter-planetary Council of Governors for readmittance as a first-class planet. I hope they succeed! So, there you have it, my fellow Glenners. I’m certain that you’ll enjoy every space-traveling minute on the journey of a lifetime. Those of you who may suffer from space sickness need not worry. My sick bay staff will have a medication that will keep your stomachs in a happy mood. And when we return to Cape Captiva, your friends and neighbors will not be much older than when we left. Guaranteed!