HIGHLANDS RANCH, CO — More than two years ago, a group of ROMEOs, short for Retired Old Men Eating Out, from Wind Crest Retirement Community in Highlands Ranch started a monthly tradition of gathering at a pre-determined local restaurant for lunch and a little guy time – no Juliets allowed.
“Only the men can go,” said Herb Schaffer, a Wind Crest resident and defacto leader of ROMEO. “Some of the guys have asked about bringing their wives, but they were voted down. It’s a very democratic process.”
The women did not take the exclusion lightly. They banded together and formed their own club.
“JULIET — Jolly Upbeat Ladies Into Eating Together — is our answer to ROMEO,” Wind Crest resident Grace Breffle said with a laugh. “We even meet on the third Friday of the month like they do.”
ROMEOS
On average, 10 ROMEOs gather at the restaurant of the month to eat and enjoy social conversation.
“We talk about everything — interesting things we’ve seen, movies we watch at Wind Crest, and politics,” said Bill Kamsler, a member of ROMEO almost since its inception. “It keeps us younger and mingling with other people. Last month, there was one person at the restaurant who had been living at Wind Crest for some time, but I don’t remember seeing him. We look forward to it. For me, the most enjoyable part of each lunch is seeing people and the exchange of ideas.”
Schaffer agrees that the camaraderie is enjoyable, but his driving motivation is appetite.
“The best part for me is culinary,” Schaffer said. “I’ve always enjoyed food. My favorite is Asian food, Thai, but it’s nice to be able to get out and try different restaurants. The conversation is also good. We talk about news of the day, Wind Crest activities — where we’re going to eat next.”
JULIETs
Like ROMEO, JULIET is a social club that meets at pre-determined restaurants on the third Friday of each month for good food and socializing.
“The idea is just to go out, have a good time and gossip,” Breffle said. “In order for someone to join a JULIET lunch, they have to belong to Wind Crest’s Woman’s Club or be a guest. We’ve also taken husbands with us on some of the things we’ve done. We’re not too restrictive.”
When it comes to the food, Breffle agrees with Schaffer that it’s key to the group.
“The food is very important,” she said. “We’re fortunate. We have had very good food at all of the meetings so far.”
ROMEO and JULIET?
With the two groups meeting on the same day, the law of averages dictates that occasionally both will decide to meet at the same restaurant.
“That happened one time — last summer,” Breffle said. “We did by accident, but it went over fine. It was a riot, really. They arrived at the restaurant before we did, so they were finished before us. When they were leaving, they came over to serenade us. They sang ‘I’ve Been Working on the Railroad.’ It was the only song they knew.”
With that much fun, Breffle said the JULIETs are tempted to deliberately stage a meeting next time to cross paths with the ROMEOs.
“I’ve thought about arranging the JULIETs at the same restaurant as them,” she said. “The ROMEOs have their sign up sheet in Wind Crest’s library now, so we know where they will be. We could always do that.”
The next meeting for both groups is Friday, March 19. Whether ROMEO and JULIET will meet again at the same restaurant is a fate that William Shakespeare himself could not have foretold.
About Wind Crest: Wind Crest is an Erickson full-service retirement community. Erickson Retirement Communities is one of the leading national developers of full-service retirement communities. Headquartered near Baltimore, Md., Erickson has built an innovative network of communities that combine a maintenance-free, active lifestyle with an ever-expanding host of amenities, social activities, and wellness and medical centers, proven to improve both physical and mental health. FORTUNE named Erickson a Top 100 “2009 Best Companies to Work For®.”
For more information about this story, please contact Jason Connors, public relations manager, at (703) 923-4690.
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