Betty Steinmann has lived at Mease Life for eight years with her husband, Horst, and their beloved rescue dog, Bo. From day one, the lifestyle offered at the Life Plan Community in Dunedin, Florida, has been a rewarding experience for the couple, especially due to the genuine camaraderie they have encountered with fellow residents and staff.
Another key factor for the Steinmanns that added to the joy of calling Mease Life home is the abundance of activities regularly available. The community’s fun calendar is designed to provide residents with a culturally rich environment, which Betty and her husband appreciate.
“There’s not enough time in the day to do everything that’s listed in the program,” Betty says. “We like our weekly happy hour. They have an open bar, usually have live music, and Horst and I can dance! We’re dancers from way, way back, and it’s such a pleasure for us to be able to ballroom dance just a few feet away from our home.”
One of Betty’s favorite activities to participate in is the creative writing class she has been a member of since it began eight years ago. The class meets every Friday to delve in the wonderful world of words, which is led by a volunteer instructor who is a retired creative writing professor and serves as a docent of the Dunedin Historical Society.
“She is just the greatest thing on earth,” Betty says. “There are about 10 to 12 different varieties of poetry that she’s exposed us to.”
Engaging conversations about short stories and poetry to homework assignments and valued peer critique can be found in robust discussions among the class teeming with blossoming writers and published authors. It’s one of Betty’s highlights she looks forward to every week.
To celebrate the works of participants, an annual showcase is held where the audience full of Mease Life residents and staff, family, and friends have the opportunity to hear stories and poetry from members of the writing class.
“The residents look forward to our annual showcase,” Betty says. “They’re very proud of us because some of our writing is picked to be published by big name publishers, and they get to have heard it first. It’s a cultural experience for them, like going to the live theater.”
