With the advent of spring and warmer weather in SaddleBrooke, the games got hotter, as approximately two hundred residents gathered in 13 different homes – and on a golf course – to prove that when “Champions play, Oracle kids win.”
Sponsored by the Oracle Schools Foundation, the “Games Month” project hosts and hostesses invited guests to their homes to play poker, pinochle, mah jongg, charades, bridge, bunco, wizard, court whist, rumi tile, and – amazingly enough – “glow in the dark putting” on HOA #1’s practice green!
An example of one of the “games,” on May 2, after a fun pre-game “adult beverage warm-up session,” 20 couples proceeded, under the guidance of hostesses Midge Mollenkopf and Sue Colby, to the HOA #1 practice putting green to compete in a “scotch two-some putting contest.” The challenge consisted of 18 holes, played in the dark. Golf balls were clear plastic with light bars in them. Holes were lit with light sticks, and players were allowed to use personal flashlights. Putting took on a whole new dimension!!!
In addition to Midge Mollenkopf and Sue Colby’s golf contest, other games were hosted by Leslie and Bill Nagy, Sandy and Bart Epstein, Chris and Larry Crum and Betsy and Alan Levenson, Mary Jo and Barry and Swartzberg, Sherry and Bill Kaplan, Leslie Nagy and Lucy Kalinski, Sylvia Goldin and Ellie Breitbart, Betty Farrow and Mary Ziats, Sheila Clarkin and Benith MacPherson, Karen Poortvliet and Ann Lowry, and Susan Spaniol.
The play at all the events was fun and the prizes were lucrative for the lucky ones; however, the real “win” was the opportunity to listen and learn about the amazing educational opportunities the Oracle Foundation has made available to youngsters through its early literacy efforts. Guided by the vision of providing resources to make the Oracle School District a “beacon of excellence in public education,” the Foundation has funded over $150,000 to support a free pre-K program for all Oracle residents, as well as other crucial efforts related to early literacy, where research has told us we have the best chance to make a lasting impact on future academic success.
For more information on the Foundation and its work, visit the website at www.OracleSchoolsFoundation.com.