THE COLUMNS Vol. 28 No. 2
Tara Woods Homeowners Association – www.twha.us
February 2017
941-349-0194 | ISLAND VISITOR PUBLISHING, LLC | www.islandvp.com
Shirley Ringleben
2017 APPRECIATION DAY HONOREE
M
any times as you read the Columns, I bet you skim over some articles but always find and read the important Column called BIRTHDAYS and ANNIVERSARIES. Shirley has written that Column for every issue since February 1989!! That’s a long time!! Shirley, an only child, was born in Buffalo, NY on May 3, 1928, and graduated from Kenmore High School in 1946. She met Gil at a Methodist Church function and married him on August 18, 1951. They raised their daughter, Gail, in New York and during those years Shirley worked as a Secretary for two sales firms and at Daemen College in Buffalo, NY. Gil was later transferred by Dow Chemical to Dover, Ohio where they lived for ten years. Shirley and Gil moved to Tara Woods in February 1988 and Shirley worked as a weekend Receptionist in the Front Sales Office from 1989 to 2006. Gil also worked part time in Sales. He cooked hot dogs at the Front Office on various Saturdays for visitors.
When they were not working, they were both very active at Tara Woods. They opened and ran the apparel and watch sales at Saturday morning coffee for 8 years. (Tony and Celeste Perre ran it after them.) Shirley was involved in a tap dance class, a round dancing class and line dancing as well. She was also involved in Bocce, Spanish class and Chorus, of which she is presently secretary for the Chorus Board and is still a very active member. She frequently has danced during the Chorus performances. Because Tara Woods was a new Community, they were involved in many activities to sell homes. They had a Tara Woods display at the Shell Factory in 1994, and in April 1994 at the Open House they had the theme of “Gone with the Wind”. Shirley was dressed all day as Scarlett and Gil was Rhett Butler. That night the management had cock-
tails at poolside and then a dance in the Clubhouse with a full orchestra. Scarlett and Rhett danced all night. No wonder homes sold so rapidly!! Shirley is proud to say she has been a member of the Eastern Star for 63 years
in Sabal Springs, which is a blessing. As you know, Shirley is a generous, talented, non-judgmental woman, who is fair and loves helping people. We
are so fortunate to have this classy lady in Tara Woods and we are privileged to have her as our 2017 Honoree.
Thanks, Shirley
~ Mary Nothnagel
and is a lifetime member of FMO. Her life has been bittersweet, with her beloved Gil dying on January 19, 2014, but her wonderful daughter, Gail, and her sonin-law, Jim Blackburn, live