IS SELF MANAGEMENT BECOMING TOO MUCH ABOUT "SELF" IDEAS WITH THE GM?

[Rana Goodman]

When I was in business my theory was to make management and staff  one team; Team leaders led the pack with a common goal and at the end of the job we all made a wonderful jig saw puzzle fit together as a cohesive TEAM….. That is what seems to be lacking here, or am I imagining it?

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The expo was to be about safety, letting our friends and neighbors know about things we had found that were interesting and of help to all, especially people in our age range. Or, as our friend Bruce Ewing’s song goes, “of a certain age.”

A safety expo that would be fun to plan, lasting a brief 2 hours…… And then….. SCA rules kicked in!  Dan was renting the room as a resident, thus no “outsiders” were allowed and restricted advertising or promotion. Of course, he was not told this until the day he delivered 4 full color posters to the activities office a week before the event so they could be placed in the recreation centers to remind our neighbors to attend.

Many people lost a chance, at no cost whatsoever, to hear about many safety measures available from the police, fire, city of Henderson, secretary of state (anyone sign up for the Lockbox?), AAA (anyone find out about the “yellow dot program” in case of an automobile accident?) and several local vendors (like Kindred Hospice who offered the 5 Wishes Checklist?) who came loaded with interesting (and free) information.

Plan a “do-over”? Not on your life, there comes a point where any fool knows when they are being targeted and the treatment is personal. That is the time when you stop “banging your head against the wall” and go only where you have been welcomed with open arms. Sadly, that has not been the case, time after time right here in in our home community.

Gee Wiz, if a resident takes the time to read the facilities usage manual” (You know, that instruction booklet that was just approved in January of 2017, not that I have found it on any board meeting agenda, hmmmm!, …. The one that has rules going back to Maurice Tally’s days, (like a charge of $1 per chair if you want them moved or rearranged from the place they always are in Independence Center).

The next surprise rule was security; in light of the fiasco at the Republican Club event melee’ March 11 where Senator Dean Heller was treated with such astounding disrespect, this is really funny. If you have no respect for the man, respect the office, but from what I hear, rather than asking questions people were yelling and screaming at each other and it is a miracle no one was injured. However, security, if they were there since it was a club event and not a resident rented room, no one was asked no one to leave.

At our event Dan was made to pay for one security guard for a minimum of 4 hours (2 were there and they turned out to be really nice men by the way) and who had volunteered their time for the two hours of the safety event.

The facilities Manual also spoke about the Activities Department having discretion for granting free rooms if an event was of benefit to the community, such as a community service, entertainment etc. Yet when I reminded the Activities Department that through the Henderson Senior Citizens Advisory Commission our guardianship seminars were a community service and I had never been charged for the room, I was told I would be charged and had to appeal to the board with the help of David Berman to get the money we paid refunded. (are the fees now to be personal?)

I found it really interesting, if not odd that a trust seminar is to be given by an attorney I have never heard of before at the invitation of Activities, yet an attorney who specializes in trusts and has advertised faithfully, FULL PAGE  (which is not cheap I’m sure) for many years on the back of the Spirit magazine, was not asked to do so. It gives more credence to the whispers of “decisions being made with a personal flavor” and that “Dan and I are being targeted” as probably quite true…… Well, if so Ms. Seddon, my message to you is “sticks and stones!”…….

Now It was time to catch up on unanswered emails and the first one I needed to attend to was from Rex Weddle who had an idea to replace the now ended Agenda Review meetings. (Rex’s position statement is posted on Anthem Today under Election News). However, my question to the entire board of directors and most of all to our $250,000 a year general manager; is this: Judging from the number of members who regularly attended to Agenda Review meetings vs. The handful who attend board meetings what was the motivation for cancellation in the first place?

It would seem to me that any fool could see the residents valued these meetings, WHY, because they could get answers to questions. The fact that our GM wanted them ended because it was too time consuming, too much work, not done in other communities, “whatever” is irrelevant. They were done here and they were working as were the TOWN HALLS. What part of “she works for us” is not clear?

I’m sorry but I really love the KISS method especially at this age and here are the things that our GM has taken from us, in my opinion since she has been here that I think are contrary to running a senior community and why;

In the time I have been working and advocating for seniors I have learned that seniors need to keep busy and feel that they serve a purpose, even it is to themselves and/or to their family or friends, club, job. The new GM came in and almost at once, like a new broom, terminated many of the seniors who had been “staff” for some time. Where do seniors go to find another job (especially close to home if they don’t drive, did she care or even think about that?)

Next the ax fell on our volunteers; committees have been the backbone of this association since I moved here in 2003 and I’m sure before that. They did their busy work passing advice to the board or whomever. One by one many have been done away with and I am sure she will dismantle more, WHY? They don’t get paid so she is not saving the association money but she is taking purpose away from volunteers and it was said her qualifications included working in senior communities. If so, those qualifications didn’t include knowing what made seniors tick, in my opinion.

 

 

[MARCIA KOSTERKA]

Rana:

You are not imagining any of this.  You and I as well as others, have talked about this change regarding favoritism, extremely biased decisions being made on personal whim and I think it will become a lot worse before it ever gets better.  

This has also been demonstrated by at least one standing committee and its chairman. In fact, the decisions have only tightened the noose around homeowners’ necks. Sooner or later something will give and there may be a rebellion. 

[Rana Goodman]

I went to a candidate debate today and a resident made a very interesting commentary. She said she asked Sandy Seddon why SCA no longer seems to have such a high rating after being named one of the best senior communities in the country several years ago. She stated Sandy told her it was because residents don’t get along and there are some who constantly go to the Real Estate Division and file complaints against the board.

This is a very old and tired tale from long before Sandy came here. Attempting to blame residents with the back-bone to stand up for themselves and fight back against a board that will not correct wrong-doing. Let me repeat what I have written so many times the words should be able to type themselves… This is the procedure for complaints to the division; A certified letter must be sent to the board and time given for them to respond. If the board does NOT respond, then the resident may file the complaint attaching a copy of the letter to the board, the signed green card showing the letter went certified.

Next the division invites both a representative from the board and the resident in for a “sit-down to talk over the problem and see if it can be solved amicably. If it cannot it goes to mediation, still no agreement, arbitration. If that fails then the resident is free to go to small claims court.

The point is that the board get the chance to settle the problem before ANY COMPLAINT GOES TO THE DIVISION. The issue is that SCA never, or rarely opts to even attempt to do that.

I was president of the Whitney Ranch HOA for 5 years before moving to Anthem. In those 5 years we NEVER had 1 complaint filed with NRED. The difference was we were a RESIDENT FRIENDLY COMMUNITY. Something Anthem has NEVER been in all the years I have lived here.

[Anonymous]

I agree with the team concept.  I worked for a privately owned company for 35 years.  We always worked as a team.  Any one in the company could do someone else’s job if necessary (by the way, we had over 60 employees…that took a lot of team work).  As an executive and the senior member of the staff, if there was a problem an employee could come to me or my boss.  Things were worked out in a civilized manner.  That doesn’t seem to happen with the BOD in SCA.  They are the gods and we, the dues paying residents, are the peons.  Somehow that doesn’t seem to be the way things should be to me….how about you?  We are treated by the BOD and Ms. Seddon as we are the servants and they give the orders.  How many times have I heard various residents say “if I could lift my house up and move it somewhere else I would”?

I feel SCA is becoming a prison that none of us will every get out of.  Most of us have the major part of our retirement invested in our property.  We moved here to have a peaceful last part of our lives after working most of our lives for the “privilege”.  Believe me, it is rapidly becoming a way of life none of us every bargained for thanks to the many power hungry BOD’s, and now an inefficient GM, who have had  only one thing in mind….power over the residents and OUR money (dues).

Patsy

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