By Tom Mackie
THE ERICKSON TRIBUNE
Of the 75-plus clubs started by Ann’s Choice residents since the community opened in 2003, perhaps none have more business sense than the entertainment committee.
“The club started after a few us got together that first year to put together a New Year’s Eve Party,” says Bob Luebbe, the entertainment committee’s chairman. “Although it was a nice event, afterwards we started critiquing it. We thought if we put together an entertainment committee that had some structure there was no telling what we could accomplish.”
So Bob and co-chairman Bill McLay sat down and figured out how to make the committee run more efficiently. “We needed to be organized in order to get the acts we wanted. We decided to structure it like a business.”
A Community Full of Opportunity
Bob, who spent his career as a corporate purchasing manager overseeing 20 chemical plants across the country, moved to Ann’s Choice with his wife, Ruth, for the carefree lifestyle. Even though there’s work involved with co-chairing the entertainment committee, Bob notes that it’s become an activity that he and the rest of the group clearly enjoy. In fact, probably nowhere else is there a community as residentfocused as Ann’s Choice. It gives residents the time and opportunity to pursue endless passions and pursuits.
“Living here means I don’t have to worry about chores anymore. I can focus on the fun stuff,” says Bob. For Bob and Bill, some of that “fun stuff ” includes making the committee operate efficiently—like a business.
“Bill and I worked together and subdivided the committee to include everything,” says Bob. “It took some time, but now we’ve got a treasurer, a booking manager, advertising manager, ticket manager, production manager, project manager, and also a classical project manager for the increasing number of classical musical groups we bring in.”