Shortly after moving with my family to Ann Arbor in 1972 I was asked to sub in a bridge group. After subbing for a few months I was asked to become a permanent member of the group. Late in the year 2002 one of the women in the group, who was a particularly good friend, invited me to join the City Club and be her partner in one of the duplicate bridge groups. I came to the January 2003 Open House and joined at that time.
 
In July of that year I had a very serious bicycle accident. I spent three months in hospital and many months of recovery after that. My membership was coming up for renewal in May 2004 and I had to make a decision. Should I renew my membership or not, since by this time my friend was no longer a member? She had become involved in other activities and was no longer interested in playing bridge at the Club. One thing I knew for sure. If I renewed my membership and was not going to play bridge, I had to become involved in other things the Club had to offer.
 
While I was mulling all of this over, I received a call from a member asking if I would be interested in joining the House Committee at the Club. Since I had always been interested in decorating, it sounded like a good fit and I said “yes”. I’ve always been grateful for that call. There were some wonderful women on the committee, and for me, it was the beginning of some longtime friendships. I have chaired several other committees over the years as well as served on the Board of Directors as assistant secretary and secretary. My husband has since joined the Club and together we attend several of the special interest groups, enjoy lunches and dinners, parties, Lunch & Learn, decorating for the holidays and many other things the Club has to offer. It is truly a special place. 

About the author of today’s post: Bev Flynn joined the City Club in 2003. If you would like to learn more about membership, visit us here for more information: http://www.annarborcityclub.org/join-the-city-club.html​.

Some years ago, looking excitedly at retirement and already filling my head with things I wanted to do, I decided to take a bridge class at the Ann Arbor City Club. My bridge skills needed to be updated from Goren to more modern conventions, and I was ready for the challenge. One bridge class led to another and then another and another. In a short time, I ventured into playing duplicate bridge and getting master points.
 
For a while, taking the classes and playing bridge were the sum and substance of what I did at the City Club. I already had my groups of friends, volunteer work, active role as a grandmother, and classes that I sometimes audited. My life, I felt, was pretty complete.
 
Apparently there was room for more, because in time I found myself going to hear some of the City Club Lunch and Learn speakers and helping with physical plant tasks at the Club’s historic building. This put me in contact with interesting, intelligent, and caring members of the City Club outside of bridge.
 
Now I manage to fit in book discussions, attend monthly meetings of the Apple Lovers group, meet fellow members for lunch, and even participate in leadership roles. And in the past year, my husband and I have enjoyed entertaining our non-member friends at the Jazz Patio Party, the Lobster dinner, and the Motown dance party.
 
The list of diverse opportunities at the City Club grows every year, but some things remain the same – always outstanding speakers, great book discussions, day trips to various sites within lower Michigan, community volunteer opportunities, and yes, still good bridge classes and bridge play for all levels.
 
About the author of today’s post: Marcia Knapp joined the City Club 12. She is president of the City Club Board of Directors in 2016-17. 

My Story of When My Father-in-Law Moved In With Us
 
A few years ago, my father-in-law moved in with my husband and me. Now, it could’ve been a lot harder than it was. He is a kind, easy-going, quiet man, so he wasn’t particularly difficult to live with. And I don’t have children, so I wasn’t suddenly in the “sandwich” between parents and kids. But my husband and I do have a very small, 1930s Ann Arbor house, with only one bathroom, and we were suddenly faced with a lot of elder care that neither one of us was expecting. Plus, I work at home, so my work space and the solitude I need as a writer were compromised by my father-in-law’s full-time presence.
 
In other words, I wasn’t exactly a happy camper. And since I’m generally a pretty happy gal, this was a new experience for me.
 
I remember well when I started unloading on my friends at the Ann Arbor City Club. Because it seemed like every time I was at the City Club, I was unloading on somebody—the people in my poetry group, the women in my book club, the friends I met for lunch. For the six months it took to move my father-in-law into his own place, I needed somewhere to talk about what I was going through—what I was feeling, what I was learning, how things were going.
 
And you know what? My City Club friends were with me every step of the way. Not only did they give me good advice and lots of supportive hugs, but they encouraged me to unload on them, so I could go home in the right frame of mind for my family responsibilities. The City Club was the home-away-from-home I needed at a critical time. And the people I know there were just exactly the kind of experienced, encouraging, patient friends anyone could want during one of life’s tough transitions.
 
In the end, we found my father-in-law a great place to live, not far from us, with the services he needs. He made new friends at his new place, and he is happier than he’s ever been. And sometimes he even comes with us to the City Club for a dinner party.
 
This blog is about friendship at the Ann Arbor City Club. My story is just one of many stories of the transformative power of community. Check back here for more such stories. And check out the City Club website if you want to know more about this very special place.
 
About the author of today’s post: Stephanie Kadel Taras, Ph.D., has been a member of the Ann Arbor City Club for 14 years. She is a professional writer and personal biographer with her own company, TimePieces Personal Biographies.