Dale Dauten, Syndicated Columnist |
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If you’re like me, you were sorry to hear that Activities Director Susan Fox had taken a new job and moved on. BUT, then you were delighted to learn she decided to stay on after all. Sometimes it takes just a little absence to make us all re-appreciate the work Susan does. I spoke to her recently, back in her office, and she said, “I got what I thought was a great job with the Maricopa County Justice Court. After starting, I realized the situation wasn’t all I hoped for and that I’d be better off back at The Resort. It made me feel so great to be welcomed back — I’m never going anywhere again.” |
THE WIND SOCK IS FLYING
Diane had previously been working for Macy’s/Bloomingdale’s 1000+employee call center in Tempe, but she lives in Gold Canyon and the 45-60 minute commute wore her down. (She refers to that drive as “the Russian Roulette of the 60 and 202.”) Having worked in credit and customer service, she brings to The Resort postal station a drive for the twin goals of courtesy and convenience.
Although born in Maine, Diane’s family moved to the Valley in time for her to attend Chandler High and Arizona State. But after that she moved back to Maine for 30 years and had careers in graphic design and as an artist. The winters in Maine eventually convinced Diane and her husband that it was time to head back to Arizona.
Diane sending up the wind sock to announce that the mail has arrived
I was curious how a postal sub-station worked. She explained: “We are not running a business; we’re a satellite of the post office.” Even so, Diane doesn’t work for the Postal Service; she’s an employee of The Resort. That explains the part about the park’s post office not being a business – all revenues pass straight through to the USPS.
Diane says, “We’re lucky to have this convenience for our residents. It dates to when there weren’t any regular post office facilities out this far, and so the Postal Service was glad to have a satellite to handle the distribution of the mail. It was better for them and for the residents.”
The staff picks up the mail at 7:30 and starts the process of sorting it. Then, they go back again at 10 to get the additional mail that the folks at the Post Office have gotten sorted. (That second pass used to be available at 9:00, then it was 9:30 and now they often have to wait beyond 10AM to get the latest batches.)
For those Resort residents who have mail forwarded to them, they don’t save it up to forward – it goes out again the same day it arrives.
And then there’s the windsock. Diane says, “No one has been able to tell me how that tradition started, but we’ll keep it going. We run up the windsock, turn over the Open sign on the door, and we’re ready to say hello to residents.”
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DIRECT TV: BETTER SERVICE FROM OUR NEW, EXCLUSIVE PROVIDER |
Good news for those of you who have, or are thinking about getting Direct TV. The Resort management team has chosen Empire Communications as our exclusive provider. Instead of simply getting installers sent out from an out-of-town office, we will get personal attention from Empire, a Mesa company with folks you can trust.
Empire is committed to “supreme service” and one way they accomplish that is by having each customer assigned a personal representative – you’ll have the same person to work with, and who provides free tech support.
The folks from Empire will be joining us for upcoming coffees, and will provide complete details.
Empire Communications
4830 East Main St #5
Mesa, AZ 85205
800-403-8402
You’ll find that The Resort looks better than ever. The pool has been redone, as has the floor of the Ballroom and the Shuffleboard courts. All are ready for you and the new season.
MODEL HOME CLOSE-OUT
You can find the latest from Susan and the Activities Office in these PDFs: