Sand and surf featured at recent party on campus

By Laura Hipshire
THE ERICKSON TRIBUNE

It was warm and sunny inside recently at Fox Run, thanks to a beach-themed shindig.

The “Fun in the Sun” party on campus featured a Beach Boys band, hot dogs, potato salad, popsicles, dancing, and, of course, a hulahoop contest.

“People wore Hawaiian shirts, and there was lemonade and pop, and even a conga line,” says Barbara Birmingham, who moved from Livonia with her husband Roy. “They really went all out,” she says, referring to beach-themed decorations like surfboards that added to the sunny atmosphere.

The ‘Twist’ reigns supreme
Community member Larry Rosenthal got into the spirit by doing his best rendition of the popular dance craze called the “Twist.”

“The guy across the table said I should do it,” the Livonia transplant explains. “The last time I did the ‘Twist’ was over 25 years ago.”

A former skier, runner, and tennis player, Rosenthal rose to the occasion when the famous “Twist” song began playing.

“I went up and down,” he laughs. “Just for a few cycles.”

Rosenthal says he had a great time at the party, “Twist” and all.

“They’re very imaginative here at Fox Run. They put a lot of spirit into the party,” he says.

Hula hoop contest
Also in the party spirit was Betty Maul, who won third place in the hula hoop contest—an official “Fun in the Sun” beach towel for her “hooping” efforts. Staff member Anne Hansen, from Resident Services, “hooped” her way to win first prize in the quirky contest.

“I’ve always been active,” says Maul, who moved to Fox Run from Redford Township with her husband Bill. “When I was younger, I used to do it [use the hula hoop].”

Maul may have had a bit of an advantage in the contest in that she regularly does hula hooping in her water aerobics class on campus.

“You do the movements without the actual hoop, though,” she says. “It’s great exercise for the hips and waist.”