A Reader Takes A Close Look at the Sun City Anthem Volunteer Luncheon

Many of our readers are now well aware of the "infamous" Robert N.

Robert is the reader who decided "enough was enough" about Sun City Anthem spending habits and relentlessly pursued obtaining a number of expense items that were authorized by current president, Bella Meese, and paid for by our current Board Treasurer, Tom Nissen,  using association funds, despite his being required to complete what appeared to be an illegal document to obtain it by current Community Association Manager, Lori Martin.

Well...Robert has more....this time he went to the Sun City Anthem Volunteer luncheon and made a few observations we thought we would share with our readers.

Sun City Anthem Volunteer Luncheon

A Reader Speaks Out Following the Event

I happen to be one of the many faceless volunteers who donate a portion of his or her time trying to make Sun City Anthem a nicer, safer place to live. I, like everyone else, do this without an expectation of accolades or remuneration. 

I do it because, well, “Why Not?”  I live here just like you do.

My organization holds an annual, members-only “appreciation breakfast” at Buckman's Grill, and we are also treated to the annual “Volunteer Appreciation Luncheon” which was held (again) this year at the M Casino.

Now, don’t get me wrong:

I appreciate the fact that the luncheon is actually held as a token of appreciation for the SCA Volunteers – and I am NOT “looking a gift horse in the mouth”…..so...

...memo to any alternate blogger attempting to increase his waning or non-existent testosterone level by twisting my thoughts with scurrilous and libelous comments – put a sock in it.

BUT

I was emailed a confirmation for the M Casino luncheon the other day, and was absolutely shocked when I read through it.

The confirmation included the menu that indicated the choice of Chicken or Salmon, vegetable, ice tea and water (what happen to those $3 soft drinks?), and cookies.

(There was also Passover and Vegetarian options).

Further reading indicated that IF you wanted to bring a guest the cost would be $44.

Forty-Four Dollars ($44)!!!!

Anyone who has ever eaten at a restaurant knows that the cheapest items on the menu are usually chicken or salmon dishes (yeah, yeah – and also pasta dishes).

$44 is MORE than you would spend at the M’s Anthony’s Prime Steak & Seafood Restaurant

If you look at that expensive restaurant's actual dinner menu...

It includes:

Scottish Salmon, cauliflower puree, kumquat marmalade, poached beets 

  $32

Roasted Chicken, green beans, baby artichokes, oven dried  tomato,  kalamata olives, pan juice  

  $30

OK, those prices don't include dessert, but even if you add the approximate cost of $9, that's still below the $44 spent, remember we are talking about comparing things to one of the more exclusive places in our city.

I attended the luncheon on April 29. 

The meal consisted of a small thigh/leg from a capon-size chicken, some rice, and some mixed vegetables.

Yes, there were the obligatory butter & rolls, ice tea, water, coffee, and a desert.

When people asked for the ‘salmon option’ they were informed “only chicken” – the salmon option had suddenly disappeared.

I cannot report on the Passover or Vegetarian options as neither I (nor anyone at my table) selected one of those meals.

The main course was preceded by a small salad; each table received a sparse amount of salad dressing –

...when my table asked the waitress to replenish the dressing she informed us that she would have to ‘hunt around’ because they only allocated a certain amount for each table!

 (keep that $44 per head in mind).

The last time I consumed a meal of this magnitude was on United Airlines (when they still served you food on a plane).

In this era of fiscal prudence and looking ahead to what could be a financial catastrophe for SCA residents once the TRUE cost of the Liberty Center repair is finalized, I certainly hope that the Guest fee did NOT reflect the cost-per-head of the Volunteers attending the luncheon.

The April issue of our Spirit magazine lists approximately 700 volunteers that are being ‘honored’, and all would be eligible to attend the luncheon.

700 Volunteers X $44

 =

$30,800

Even if only half attended , the tab would be close to

$16,000. 

Who would like to bet that it would have been FAR LESS EXPENSIVE to utilize Hanneman Hall and an outside cater?

Of course, that would negate any possibility of Comp Points being awarded to anyone’s Player’s Card, wouldn't it !!!!

Yes, there was some entertainment, and, yes, the two singers had excellent voices…but it was announced that they have up-coming performances at the Anthem Center, so I couldn’t help but think their performances were basically promotions for the future shows.

I tend to doubt that they were paid thousands of dollars – if they were paid at all.

The big winner was the M Casino (the House always wins).

The big loser was our SCA bank balance.

So, in closing, I again emphasize that I certainly appreciate the efforts being made to recognize the SCA Volunteers. 

One of the side-benefits of our many volunteer organizations is to keep our HOA fees low.

For example, it has been estimated that our Community Patrol saves SCA $500,000 - $1,000,000 per year when it eliminates the necessity of hiring a private security company.

So – memo to the SCA Board of Directors: 

The volunteers are trying to save the community money.

How about you doing the same?

Robert N.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Did you attend the Volunteer luncheon? If so, what was your experience?

Should it have been held at the M Resort or should we have utilized our own facilities as a cost saving measure?

Got a comment on Robert N's critique?

Send it to:

scaopinions@gmail.com