Monday, March 11 was great fun as the Foundation’s first “Swing into Spring” week-long festival opened with “All that Jazz”. Residents packed the ECH patio to munch on hors d’oeuvres, sip “Spring Flings” (lovely pink drinks concocted by Donna, our own Seaside Lounge bartender) and enjoy the vibrant music of the Stu Shelton trio.

Tuesday, March 12 Angela Tarquini-Sanders led a group of about 20 residents on a guided meditation on the ECH patio. The weather (and the golf course groomers) cooperated to make a restful hour. Later that day, avid bingo players filled the Palmetto Room eager to try their luck at winning one of a lovely array of designer purses. Pat Smart called the numbers with great expertise. In the end, 16 lucky winners carried home prizes. Happy Hour brought Peter Moroni on keyboard and Bentley resident, Bob DesJardin, on drums to the Seaside Lounge.

Wednesday, March 13 brought a new day of music, fun, and festivities. The Flower Wall, stocked with 100 gifts, opened promptly at 1:30. Ticket holders selected individual flowers from the trellis and traded them for numbered surprise packages. In the end, an empty trellis was the only remnant of a successful event. “Tea in Tropics”, a fashion show, featuring Chico’s spring styles, opened to a sold-out audience. Bentley residents served as fashion models, emerging smartly coifed and dressed in the latest Chico’s spring styles described by the Chico narrator. When Happy Hour arrived, residents enjoyed the sounds of “Calypso Magic’ featuring Skip Elliot on the steel drum. The appreciative lounge audience found the performance delightful.

Thursday, March 14 –The Vi staff was in an emergency conference when our newly formed resident musician group debuted in a morning performance at the Seaside Lounge. As the program ended, a prudent and timely announcement of a total shut-down of outsiders to the community was made. Al Spencer and Shep Drinkwater were present and voluntarily took concerned questions from the assembled residents. The Jodie DeSalvo performance for that evening was cancelled and the remainder of the Festival terminated.

Friday, March 15 – The Thrift Shop Specials Shopping Day, a Doug Williams dinner music performance, and the Scholars Ball, intended to be the capstone of the week, were all postponed. As of mid-May, COVID-19 is still a reality in our daily lives and dates for these events remain as yet undetermined.