A Family Affair
Leslie Davis was always hearing patients rave about Sun-N-Fun at the chiropractic office where she works part-time as office manager. So a couple of summers ago, she decided to bring the family to Sun-N-Fun on a day pass and see what all the talk was about.
One day was all it took to convince her, husband Brian, and their two sons, Tim 16, a junior at Lakewood Ranch High and Jake, 11, a 6th grader at Nolan Middle School, to buy a Summer Swim Pass. Soon the family became regular weekend guests.
Leslie, a sun worshipper, loves reading poolside – she just finished a Harlan Cobain suspense thriller, “The Caught,” she calls “awesome” – and listening to disco on her iPod, even though she’s much too young to have danced to it. Donna Summer’s her favorite.
Brian, who has a tile and flooring business, Square One, enjoys unwinding in the whirlpool and hot tub. According to Mom, Jake’s addicted to the Hippo Slide. “He rides it over and over from the time we arrive in the morning until we leave at night.” Older brother Tim, when he isn’t in line behind Jake, likes “watching all the pretty girls go by at the pool.”
Leslie, who recently started her own business, Stella’s Tasty Treats, making dog treats like Chase’s Chunky Peanut Butter and Sam’s Sweet Potato Chews, took some time out from her busy schedule when her mom, Ann Richards, and Ann’s husband Bob, visited, to introduce them to Sun-N-Fun. The newly retired couple liked it enough to come back and rent a cottage for a month. Two weeks into that visit, they made the decision to buy. A winter with nearly 70 inches of snow in their Ohio hometown helped seal the deal.
“People may have said it was cold here last winter,” the good-natured Bob tells us. “I tell them I didn’t have to shovel snow once.”
The Richards have quickly made friends they enjoy spending time with, love going to dances – they both disco, which is where Leslie picked it up – and taking part in our Murder Mystery dinners. They also like playing pickleball, and while Leslie isn’t exactly sure what that is, she promises to give it a try next winter. Ann also takes water aerobic classes and Bob joined the golf league.
“You can make your lifestyle at Sun-N-Fun as active or as quiet as you like,” Bob explains. “Ann and I are active.”
So is the whole family, and they’ve discovered that Sun-N-Fun is a great place for all of them to be together and bond. Mother and daughter enjoy time at the pool, trading disco hits, while Bob and the boys go to the driving range across the street to practice chipping and putting. This coming year there are plans to get the boys out to a golf course for the first time. Bob, Brian and the boys like going down to Turtle Beach at Siesta Key to fish. They all enjoy Friday night karaoke and having dinners together at Boondock’s Restaurant whenever Leslie and Brian can get away from their busy lives and businesses. This past winter, Leslie’s big sister, Nicole and her 10-year old son, KC, came down from Ohio to be with the family and now they’re making plans to return for Christmas.
“Sun-N-Fun is just a wonderful tropical oasis for us,” is how Leslie describes it. “A little paradise where the family can be together, hangout, relax and enjoy connecting.”
By the way, if you need tiling or flooring, Brian’s the guy to call. You can reach him at 941-592-7311. And if your dog has earned a reward, Leslie’s got a fantastic menu of treats or would be happy to whip something special up. Call her at 941-592-7278. Our little guys are partial to Bella’s Banana Peanut Butter and Oatmeal cookies.
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Nice article. I want to go too!