River Bluffs Update – Status of the River Bluffs Clubs (December 2018)
This is an update of the 37 River Bluffs Clubs to provide residents information for activities they might find interesting. The beginning of the new year would be a good opportunity to log onto the Resident’s Portal and confirm that you are signed up for the clubs you want.
How do you edit your Club subscriptions?
After logging into the Resident’s Portal, just click on “View All Clubs†on the left-hand side of the page. A list of all the community clubs will show up with a box on the righthand side of the page of each club.
- A green box “√ Member†confirms that you are a current member.
- Clicking on the club name will take you to the club page that contains more information about the club.
- A gold box “Join Club†indicates that you can join the club by clicking on the box.
- To Un-Join a club one would go to “Edit Account†that is under “My Accountâ€, select the “Clubs†tab and then click the box to the left of the club name.
Clubs That Need Managers
Short updates for the most active clubs are provided later in this note. First, we would like to canvas the last time for volunteers to become Club Managers for the following clubs that are currently dormant and need a little bit of leadership to become active:
- Drinks Please (69 members)
- Foodies Club #2 (36 members)
- Movie Nights at Porches (44 members)
- Naturalists (34 members)
- Rolling Wheels (18 members)
- Volunteers for the Community (33 members)
We welcome volunteers and new Managers to contact Megan (marketing@riverbluffsliving.
Club Manager & Co-Manager Information
- Club Manager, & Co-manager Roles – These managers steward club activities and have the authority to manage the club library and create and send news items to club members through the Resident’s Portal.
- The club called “Club Managers” provides training and support for the 25+ Club Managers.
- Clubs without at least one Club Manager will be removed from the list of clubs until a manager is identified.
Two Co-Managers provide flexibility for clubs that are lucky enough to have that level of volunteers. The following clubs have one club manager and we welcome new volunteers to become a Co-Manager:
- Foodies Club #1
- Handyman Club
- Helping Hands Inside River Bluffs
- History Club
- Home Grown Club
New Clubs (and clubs recently activated Clubs with new Managers)
Updates for all of the currently active River Bluffs Clubs
Gamers Club (43 members) Ken Kienas and Scharlotte Eby are Club Co-Managers
The club became active late in the year and had two meetings in the Community Activity Room (CAR). Board games (Taboo and Apples to Apples) were played during the first meeting and card games (Hearts) was played at the second meeting.
Plans for 2019 for expanding the indoor games and holding some events for outdoor games (corn hole, horseshoes, etc.) when the weather warms up are being developed.
Home Grown Club (30 members) Cal Beasley is the Club Manager
Previously named the Gardening Club, this is the place for those who want to grow crops are work with Farmer Steve and Ian at the Community Farm.
Anyone wanting to try their hand at farming a small plot? The Farm has plots of 10’X20’ (single) and 20’x20’ (double) available. We are taking request and an update plot assignment is in the works.
Odor Complaints Information Site (NEW, join if wanting to be involved or stay updated about odors) Greg and Sheila Corbin are Site Co-Managers
This site uses the structure of the portal to coordinate the impact that residents can make to reduce undesirable odors that are sometimes present within the Wilmington area. The site can provide communications to keep interested residents abreast of recent activities and a library to store relevant materials and instructions on how to report odors detected to regulatory agencies.
River Crafters Club (19 members) Linda Emmerich and Cindy Bruckel are Club Co-Managers
This new club is planning to kick-off the first meeting at 11:30am, Wednesday, January 16th with Linda leading the first crafting project. The club hopes to have monthly meetings and will provide the opportunity for members to lead a meeting and share their crafting knowledge.
Tennis Club (NEW club, join if you like to play tennis) Cal Beasley and Jane Love are Club Co-Managers
For all those Tennis players or anyone to start the sport, we have social Tennis gatherings to play games and get some outdoor exercise.
We are currently scheduled to play Monday & Friday mornings at 10 am and Wednesdays at 1 PM at the RB Sports Complex.
Other Active Clubs
Here is some information about the other active clubs within River Bluffs:
BBs (Bullets and Bows) (33 members) Linsay Henry and Bob Conger are Club Co-Managers
During 2018 the club focused on shooting events such as monthly trips to the Holly Shelter Shooting Range and periodic get-togethers of a few members to shoot at Bulls Eye range. Thirteen members obtained their concealed weapons 8-hour training on January 13th and various announcements about firearms sales and low-cost ammunition were provided. Information about obtaining a concealed weapon permit was placed in the club library.
Continuing 2018 activities and possibly including some outings for bow target shooting are planned for 2019.
Boaters Club (64 members) Otis White and Bob Conger are Club Co-Managers
From Otis: The boating activities club remains very active preparing for winter and planning some interesting sessions and activities for next year.
We had a great boat safety inspection day last year and we plan on repeating the RB Boat Safety Day again in the spring and summer of 2019. Also, we are planning several boat handling seminars, free, for those looking for tips and tricks in boat handling along the river. As a partner with the Cape Fear Sail and Power Squadron, we are advertising some of their safe boating basics classes for spring 2019. These are very well produced one and two-day sessions that involve not only classroom learning but also “on the water” demonstrations of the skills learned in the classes. Many members have requested a “fishing seminar” and we are busy making that happen with our fishing partner Coastal Carolina Fishing Magazine (http://www.
One final note … if you would like an “on the water” training session (2 to 3 Hours) with your own boat the Cape Fear Sail & Power Squadron will provide an experienced boater to go out with you and help you “get comfortable” with your new (or not so new) boat. There is no charge for this service. Just let me know and I will arrange for a session when the weather breaks in February.
From Bob: The Kayak part of the club was also very active with guided tours and the installation of 15 racks and a paddles/life vest storage building at the boat launch for those who OK the use of their kayaks or canoe by other club members. A trip supporting GE’s scholarship charity went out on July 14th and a paper providing information about kayaking from River Bluffs was added to the club library.
We plan to have more guided tours, lessons for beginners and other new events during 2019.
If you have any more ideas for our group please let Otis or Bob know and if you are a boater of any type please join our club!
Book Clubs (21 members) Randy Jayne and Kim Kostner are Club Co-Managers
During 2018 the club was split into two groups to serve the size and time preferences of club members.
- Book Club – Afternoon River Readers – manager, Randy Jayne
- Book Club – Evening River Readers – manager, Kim Kostner
Residents interested in joining a book club are invited to sign up for either club. We read the same books and meet on the afternoon and evening of the same day.
The reading list for 2019 is below and in the club library.
| DATE | TITLE | PAGES | AUTHOR |
| Jan 2 | Uncorked | 179 | Paul Shore |
| Feb 6 | An American Marriage | 320 | Tavari Jones |
| March 6 | Mornings on Horseback | 480 | David McCullough |
| April 3 | The Cuban Affair | 448 | Nelson DeMille |
| May 1 | The Beach House | 480 | Mary Alice Monroe |
| June 5 | Where the Crawdads Sing | 384 | Della Owens |
| July 3 | Identical Strangers | 320 | Schein & Bernstein |
| Aug 7 | The Good Good Pig | 245 | Sy Montgomery |
| Sept 4 | The Queen’s Gambit | 256 | Walter Tevis |
| Oct 2 | The Couple Next Door | 336 | Shari Lapena |
| Nov 6 | A Conspiracy of Tall Men | 384 | Noah Hawley |
| Dec 4 | A Secret Kept | 352 | Tatiania de Rosnay |
Community Watch Club (160 members) Jane Love and Alan Morris are Club Co-Managers
The Community Watch Club enlists the active participation of River Bluffs residents to enhance the safety and security of our community. This is accomplished by 1) club managers obtaining security and safety concerns from the residents of River Bluffs and addressing them by working with River Bluffs management and local law enforcement. 2) providing safety and security information to River Bluffs residents via onsite educational and training programs 3) disseminating safety and security information on the River Bluffs portal. The ultimate goal is to neighbors getting to know each other and working together for the good of the community. All residents are automatically included in this club for informational purposes, but you may opt out if you are not interested.
During 2018 the club held meetings and got River Bluffs certified by the New Hanover County Sheriffs Department as a Community Watch Neighborhood. The club also expanded its area of impact to include hurricane preparedness with a presentation given by the Red Cross. When Hurricane Florence was forecasted to impact the area a pre-hurricane meeting was held. The club library contains multiple documents including a Home Security Survey and Hurricane Preparedness Checklist. Following Hurricane Florence, a survey to residents was provided to both recognize how residents pulled together during the event and to collect lessons learned.
During 2019 activities will continue on both Community Watch and Hurricane Preparedness. A summary of the 2018 survey will be issued and placed in the library. The club Club might expand education on CPR training, First Aid, etc.
Ping Pong Club (25 members) Sean Hsu and Bob Conger are Club Co-Managers
Open Ping-pong play will be available Wednesdays starting at 4:00 p.m. up in the community activities room (CAR – Fitness Center 2nd Floor). We have three tables available for beginner, intermediate and advanced play. Free lessons are available upon request.
We are open for setting up Ping-pong play at different times and days of the week depending on feedback from members.
The 10th annual Wilmington Ping-pong Throwdown tournament is scheduled for January 25th in the Brooklyn Arts Center. Some of us watched part of this tournament last year and it was very interesting. Information is provided in the link below:
https://www.
The club is considering holding its first Beer Pong event during January or February. For those unfamiliar with Beer Pong, it combines a Ping-pong ball with a liquid substance, such as beer. Click the following link for additional information about Beer Pong:
https://www.google.com/search?
Multiple styles of play will be available during our event (using ping pong paddles, using hands to toss the ping pong ball, standard Ping pong table, small table and inflatable table topper). To ensure no spillage, the cups used during play will be weighted but empty of liquid. Each player will keep their personal liquid reserves in separate containers away from the playing surface. We are considering opening this event to all River Bluffs residents as an introduction to the Ping-Pong Club. Your thoughts and comments are welcomed. Contact Bob (rconger53@yahoo.com) or Sean (seanhsunc@gmail.com).
Handyman Club (22 members) Bob Conger is the Club Manager
Members of this club have donated tools and worked with the Developer to purchase items such as a table saw, band saw and dust collection system for the workshop that will be built by the Developer in the Storage Area/Sports Complex area.
2018 members worked with the Helping Hands Club to build and hang birdhouses, bat houses, and the Kayak Paddles Storage Shed.
Activities will be expanded in 2019 after the workshop is ready for use.
Helping Hands Inside River Bluffs Club (42 members) Bob Conger is the Club Manager
Members of this club are happy to lend helping hands to other River Bluffs residents in need. During 2018 members responded to several requests from moving furniture to hanging cabinets. Donations were received for the larger projects and those funds helped support various clubs within River Bluffs.
The Helping Hands group also planted daffodils in three park areas, created the garden area on the path from Rosewood Landing Drive to Haughton Lane and cut and stored firewood at the Community Farm.
Water Volleyball Club (55 members) Ritt Schiano and Bob Conger are Club Co-Managers
The pool is closed for the season so the RB Water Volleyball Club is inactive until it reopens. For 2019, we plan to hold a meeting in late April after the pool re-opens. At the meeting, we will decide whether to keep the same playing hours as last year or to modify them to what Club members would like. Last year’s hours were Saturday 11-1, Sunday 3-5 and Wed 5-7.
If you have any questions about the Club while we are inactive, please e-mail or call me and I’d be happy to try and answer them for you. Ritt Schiano, 480-895-4886, captritts@gmail.com.
Check the club pages on the RB Residents Portal for information on the other active clubs within our community:
Bunko Club (42 members) Barb Kohler is the Club Manager
City Events Club (62 members) Greg and Sheila Corbin are Club Co-Managers
Community Farm Club (205 members) Stephen and Ian Douglass are Club Co-Managers
Drop on By Club (27 members) Susan Rooks and Scharlotte Eby are Club Co-Managers
Fitness Club (14 members) Judy Cutler is the Club Manager
Foodies Club #1 (60 members) Jhansi Kandasamy and Bob Conger are Club Co-Managers
History Club (21 members) Otis White is the Club Manager
Investment Club (17 members) Felicia and Will Grant are Club Co-Managers
Meditation and Mindfulness Club (22 members) Felicia and Will Grant are Club Co-Managers
Pickleball Club (56 members) Jackie Niedermayer is the Club Manager
River Painting Club (20 members) Linda Emmerich is the Club Manager
RRB (Rock, Rhythm & Blues) Club (14 members) John Distler is the Club Manager
Supper Club (13 members) Patty Cullen is the Club Manager
Welcome New Neighbors Club (20 members) Kelly Good is the Club Manager
Yoga Club (32 members) Kathy Distler is the Club Manager