Early Voices

EARLY VOICES: PEG FRIDAY

Throughout 2021, as we celebrate the 25th Anniversary of Garden Spot Village, we will include the insight and memories of some of the Early Voices who knew the Weaver Family or were involved in the beginnings of Garden Spot Village. Written by Juanita Fox, Storyteller

Peg and Dan Friday’s journey to Garden Spot Village started at the Groves Campground in Fort Myers, Florida. Each winter, Dan and Peg spent three months at the campground, escaping Pennsylvania’s harsh winters. They quickly made friends with other Pennsylvania campers, including Marjorie and Howard Milbourne and Verling and Thelma Etter. Eventually, George and Jane Downes became part of this group. When the friends returned to Pennsylvania, they met monthly for lunch or dinner. In the summer of 1996, at one of their monthly gatherings, Howard laid out his vision for the next step in retirement: Garden Spot Village. The other couples were intrigued, but noncommittal that afternoon. Shortly after that luncheon, Dan and Peg found themselves in Lancaster County. They casually drove by Garden Spot Village. They liked what they saw and put their name on the waiting list. They hoped to move in 3 to 5 years. When they received a call in the winter of 1997 saying that in spring 1998, a home would be available to them, they were a little uncertain. Because Marjorie and Howard seemed settled and happy in their new community, Dan and Peg decided to move, too. Dan and Peg packed up and sold their home in Yardley, moved everything to storage in New Holland and headed off to Florida just after Christmas in 1997. On April 1, 1998 they moved into their home in Primrose Court. Peg remembers, “It was wonderful to move to Garden Spot Village. I called Marjorie the day after we moved in to say, ‘I’m so happy. It’s been a wonderful journey to live here.’” Over the years Dan and Peg connected with their neighbors and built deep friendships. Peg says, “Our court is a very friendly group of people. In the early years we would walk, as a group, each evening from our cottage all the way down to the apartments. We enjoyed walking and talking.” Most winters, the majority of their neighbors in Primrose Court would head to Florida for several weeks. Peg began to organize luncheons in Florida with Garden Spot Village friends (from Primrose and beyond!). One year, 48 Garden Spot residents gathered for lunch in North Port, Florida. “It was so much fun to see each other because we had become friends,” Peg reminisces. Peg enjoyed volunteering with Share & Care, helping with the Best Kept Secrets Tour and playing Mahjong. She enjoyed helping with the Garden Spot Village Marathon, singing with Village Voices and taking day trips with Life Enrichment. For many years, she helped with the annual picnic at Overly’s Grove and coordinated the Christmas House Tour at Garden Spot Village. She also remembers helping with the Open House for Village Square. Bonnie Gehrig, the marketing director at the time, asked if she would help to arrange flowers for the event. Peg, Bea Neely and Joyce Urbine headed to Flower and Craft Warehouse to purchase flowers and vases for 35 arrangements. “I was so pleased and so proud to be part of that project. It was an honor to decorate the building and help it look beautiful.” “It’s been fun to watch Garden Spot Village grow. The changes over the years have been really wonderful. They made it a home for all of us,” Peg says.