Live, work and play

For most Australians the idea of ‘seniors living’ has been a place to move to after retirement or in the twilight years of life.

For a new generation, one that is still working but wants more out of life, the decision to make a move to a Halcyon community is one based on lifestyle rather than their age. Welcome to Generation X, roughly defined as those born from the early 1960s to around 1980, they slot in after the Baby Boomers and before the Millennials. Instead of listening to the Rolling Stones on an 8-track, they may have had Blondie or Wham playing in their cassette player or perhaps even Nirvana on a CD. At Halcyon we have a number of homeowners who are in their early to mid 50s and are still working fulltime – leaving the gates each day to head to work and coming home to a social and connected community. Instead of having to mow lawns or maintain large homes, they are using their precious weekends to fully enjoy the facilities and opportunities community living provides.

MULTI-GENERATIONAL MOVE

When Ruth Speight was given the task of finding a suitable place for her parents to retire from their home in Tasmania, she and partner Ricky Tranter couldn’t go past Halcyon Greens.

“I’m one of six kids and we live all over Australia,” Ruth said. “We all went searching for a place for Mum and Dad and I found Halcyon and fell in love with the community.” Much to the chagrin of her five siblings, Ruth’s parents Ivan and Charmaine Clarke moved to Greens in June last year. “In the end it was their decision, but it really was the best option out of everything we had looked at for them,” she said. Ruth said she and Ricky thought it was perfect for her parents but could also see the appeal for the two of them, who work at the same northern Gold Coast school as primary teachers. “We have such busy jobs, we could see how the community could be great for our lifestyle,” she said. “Funnily enough, we are going to be closer to work when we move to Halcyon so we will spend even less time commuting.” The pair are very active and are looking forward to using the facilities as well as getting involved in the many activities on offer at Greens. “Now is the time for us,” Ruth said. “It’s our turn to be able to relax and enjoy the lifestyle, while still being able to enjoy our working life.”

GENERATION X MAKES THE EARLY MOVE

GETTING OFF THE ROLLERCOASTER

Getting off the ‘treadmill’ of busy working lives and the maintenance of a large suburban home was the catalyst for Natalie Schoenauer and Mike Mitchell to make an early move to Halcyon Greens.

The pair, both in their 50s, have high pressure roles in criminal law and IT, leaving home at 7am each morning for their busy days in central Brisbane and not getting home until at least 6.30pm most evenings. “I’m just over Brisbane, I’m over the constant pressure of corporate work and I feel like we should be enjoying life more than the treadmill we’re on,” Natalie said. “We’ve worked really hard and achieved the goals we’ve set out to achieve, but now it’s time for us to enjoy that.” Natalie credits an unusual set of circumstances for her and husband Mike’s decision to buy a home at Halcyon Greens. The pair had bought a new puppy and Natalie had taken annual leave to get Kobe a Havainese, settled into life at their spacious Carindale home which they share with Zoe, a 10-year-old Llhasa Apso and 4-year-old Bichon Frise Mia. “I was home and had the television on in the daytime which I wouldn’t normally do as I’m at work and I kept seeing the ad for Halcyon and I thought ‘that looks bloody good’,” Natalie said. “I decided to do my research and ask lots of questions and I decided pretty quickly that it was exactly where I wanted to be.” She said Mike was away for work in Sydney and by the time he arrived home on Friday night, she was “hellbent” on making the move and she had the entire pitch for Mike “all scripted”. “I told him about the facilities, the lifestyle and amenities and how we could have a smaller home and actually enjoy our life more.” Mike added: “I could see all the benefits as we really want to be able to enjoy our lives more while we are still young and active. “We’re so busy during the week and our weekends are spent working on the yard or the house, it doesn’t leave much time to relax and before you know it, the rollercoaster starts again.” Natalie said it was Mike who made the call and said “let’s throw caution to the wind and go and have a look”. Natalie said they called early the next morning and spoke to Kris Hailey, who said she was booked up that day but would let them know if there were any cancellations. “Kris called and said there had been a no-show and could we get there,” Natalie said. “We were about 30 minutes away at the fish markets, but we jumped in the car and headed straight down and the rest is history. “We fell in love with the place. It’s all just meant to be.”

Natalie Schoenauer and Mike Mitchell

Koi Boys with Ann Ryan

Let’s get the party started

SOCIAL GROUP COMES OUT OF THE BLOCKS POST LOCKDOWN

Halcyon communities are designed to provide our homeowners with the ability to do as much or as little as they like.

Our homes are built to allow ageing in place while our facilities offer a platform for homeowners to form numerous recreation and sporting groups. When it comes to bringing the fun to a community, it is the social group which really gets the party started. At Halcyon Greens, the ‘fun committee’ is back with a vengeance after the restrictions and lockdowns of 2020. Under the stewardship of group president Ann Ryan and events coordinator Jenny Hale, the homeowners are spoiled for choice when it comes to the variety of events on offer this year. “Jenny and I get together and work out what the community may like in terms of music, shows, dancing and Jenny loves to dance,” Ann laughed. “We are such a large community so we have to be mindful of everyone’s needs. “Whether it is just a Sunday roast, a themed dinner, a mystery bus trip, fashion parades, trivia or musical acts, we try to find something for everyone.” Ann said the best thing about being involved with the social group is having the opportunity to meet more people in the community. “It brings homeowners together from the single homeowners to the couples to socialise and connect with the rest of the community,” she said. “It’s great watching people who haven’t danced in a long time on the dance floor, seeing the people who have just joined our community happy and talking to new friends.”

Ann said the social group is run entirely by volunteers from the bar manager and bar staff to those who work in the kitchen for catered events, and twice weekly at the Box Office, where homeowners can pay for their tickets in person. “It is hard work at times with late nights and early starts but we have a great team on the social group and our “soldiers” who turn up to help out with the heavy lifting all help to Kelvin Hale and Ian Pynor make it happen,” she said. Ann said at big events such as the recent Friday night concert with the Koi Boys, paid bar staff are hired to carry the load and allow all social group members to relax and enjoy the evening. “We are spoiled for choice as you need to prioritise what you want to go to each week as there are so many things on offer.” she said.

Helen Holmes and Carolyn Rose

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Malcolm Sproule

REAPING THE REWARDS OF RECYCLING

The Halcyon Greens’ social group are using their empties for their fundraising efforts with a program called Return It.

Social group member Malcolm Sproule said each week a company came to collect all the containers in the three purple bins located across the community. “They provide us with the purple bins, they collect the containers, they do the count for us and then they deposit the money in our bank account,” he said. “They give us five cents per eligible container rather than the 10 cents we would get if we took it ourselves, which is a pretty lengthy process especially with the amount of containers we get here.” Malcolm said they were averaging between $30 and $40 per week, depending on what events are on each week.

“When we have a big event on, we’re likely to fill two bins,” he said. Malcolm said the money goes back into the social group’s coffers and has been used for items such as a new hot water urn or to subsidise the cost of entertainers coming to the community.