October/November 2014 Welcome to Autumn! Ahhh, the cool crisp mornings have begun and the mid-80 temperatures have revived us to the point of shrugging off the memory of those 100-degree days . . . Finally, Autumn is here (or at least we hope so)! October in Texas is generally celebrated with a variety of different festivals each weekend, with something for everyone. The State Fair also kicks into ‘high gear’ with the deep fried loaded baked potato as the food headliner this year. And Halloween and Thanksgiving are just around the corner -- once again we wonder how the year went by so fast. Let’s try to savor this all-too-brief season while we can! It can provide the perfect respite before the hustle and bustle of the upcoming holidays carry us away – enjoy! Want to join the Newsletter team? Contact us, Denise Stricker, Judy Pate and Tami Rexrode. newsletterwinnerscircle@gmail.com Volume 7 WC Food Drive: We Need You! The season of giving is here! Join us for what we hope will be an annual food drive, benefitting the Forney Food Bank (last spring, we provided the Food Bank over $1,500 in donations and groceries). This year, the Food Bank anticipates providing for 700 families during the holidays and serves both the Forney and Crandall areas. We will be taking donations of food and money at the Winners Circle entrance on Sat. Nov. 1 (11 am-5pm & Sun. Nov. 2 (1 pm-5 pm, We need volunteers to help on both days (1-2 hour time slots are available). Please email us newsletterwinnerscircle@gmail.com to help us out at the entrance for an hour or two, or contact Tami Rexrode at 214-418-8332. Thank you for helping make a difference in the lives of others! Yard of the Month: New Winners and Judging Criteria Following are the Yard of the Month winners from the past two months: August: 3154 W. Alamosa September: 1010 E. Oak Lawn Primary selection criteria includes: • Dues must be paid to current year • Home and yard must be regularly maintained and overall well kept • Variety in yard design and foliage; overall curb appeal • Focus more on quality of design and landscaping rather than quantity Each Yard of the Month recipient received a Calloway's gift card along with a letter from the management company as well as a sign in their yard. Heartiest CONGRATS to all winners! Updates and Messages from our Board Our Board (L to R): Jon Miller, Marvin Sims, Millie Brice, Ken Grantham, Kevin Williams Important ‘Newsbites’: • Bids were accepted and one selected for the scraping and re-painting of the front entrance. The black paint is coming off and needs "freshened up“ (which the work may have started before you read it here). • The HOA is currently in the final selection for street repairs - our usual October/November repairs. • Spotlights at the front entrance have been changed out for stronger commercial grade fixtures. • We had a nice turnout at the last Board meeting on September 22. Our next meetings are October 6 and November 3. We hope to see you all there. HOA Covenants 101: Reviewing a Few Basics Rather than providing a topic from our covenants, let’s review what we have already learned: 1. No unlicensed motor vehicles are legally allowed on the streets of our community. 2. Any additions or changes to your home or property should be reviewed and approved through the Architectural Review Committee (ARC) and, in some cases, permits are needed from the Town of Talty. 3. When necessary, the HOA is happy to work out payment plans for dues and/or fines. 4. The number and types of pets are defined in the covenants and, when applicable, must be kept on a leash when not contained. 5. All traffic laws apply within Winners Circle as they do outside of Winners Circle. These are just a few of the highlights that are contained in our HOA documents. For a full copy please go to the official WC website. www.winnerscirclehoa.com. Have questions about the covenants? Call Michelle or Julie at Advanced Management (972-248-2238) New Business in the Area The UPS Store 750 E. HWY 80 Forney, TX. (972)552-2800 QuikTrip 1619 State Highway 34 S Terrell, TX. (972) 551-3404 Area Fall Festivals Terrell Halloween Festival and Thrillvania October brings spooky fun to Terrell with a haunted house voted the best in the Dallas area. Haunted Verdun Manor tells the tale of the twisted Baron Michael Verdun and his vampire wife, Lady Cassandra. This unearthly duo hosted fiendish masquerades and bizarre dinners in their strange house on Voodoo Bayou. Now, each fall, the ghosts of the baron and his lady haunt the remains of their mansion, burned with them inside it by angry citizens seeking revenge for the unspeakable horrors visited on their families and friends. This themed attraction features 30,000 square feet of horrifyingly real theatrical sets, atmospheric stage lighting, eerie special effects, and a talented cast of costumed live actors guaranteed to treat visitors to a frightfully good time. Other spine-tingling Thrillvania attractions include Cassandra's Labyrinth of Terror, Sam Hain's Hayride, and Granny Lupu's Séance Theatre. Downtown Terrell welcomes whole families of spooks and goblins with safe Trick or Treating, music, contests, and other Halloween favorites. Terrell Chamber of Commerce Convention & Visitors Bureau www.terrelltexas.com YesterLand Farm in Canton Old-Fashioned Fall Festival — down on the Farm! 2014 Fall Season: Open Weekends Sept. 20 – Nov. 9 YesterLand Farm goes Orange! While the rest of the world is going green, they are going orange! With pumpkins and gourds of all sizes, colors and shapes! They have many varieties in their Pumpkin Patch. Some are good for cooking and some are fun for painting or carving. Food , Rides, shopping and more……. More than aMAZEing … it’s Corny! About 3 acres of tall corn, carved with paths that twist and turn in a unique new design each year! This year’s maze features Mallory’s Heart Foundation. For more information and prices, check out their website yesterlandfarm.com 15410 Interstate 20, Canton, TX 75103 — Phone: 903.567-2255 Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden Autumn at the Arboretum-September 20-November 26 Over 65,000 pumpkins, gourds and squash come together to form the nationally acclaimed Pumpkin Village. Visit website for additional info www.dallasarboretum.org Neighborly Tips Tip 10 is Be a good driver on our streets. Over the past several months, many of us have experienced erratic drivers on the Winners Circle streets, those that consistently run stop signs or drive well above the posted speed (licensed and unlicensed drivers). Please remember that our neighborhood is filled with walkers, joggers and bicyclists (both adults and children). Try to remember that not only can a victim’s life be forever changed by an accident, but so, too, will the driver’s. Tip 11 is Discuss problems in person. As previously mentioned, it is important to meet our neighbors. One benefit of establishing relationships with our neighbors is the ability to discuss an issue or concern you may have directly with that neighbor. This is the very best way to amicably address and resolve the issue, rather than contacting the Board or Michele. The same can be true of concerns you may have with our Board: the opportunity exists monthly for you to bring forward your concerns and work toward a resolution, so rather than venting on a public online forum, call Michelle or Julie to request time on the next meeting agenda. Message from the President Oh No, I Got A Letter! Yes, even I have gotten one. Some think the HOA Board Members are exempt from this but they are not. So I understand the feeling; even though it’s a “friendly reminder” I was still not thrilled (it’s human nature I guess). But the first thing the “old flesh” wants to do is to point fingers at others that we see in potential violation. “What about that fence, that vehicle or that lawn…“ Hey here’s a thought, “What about taking care of our own issues?” Crazy huh? That said, as home owners we all need to keep a few things in perspective: • • • The main job of the Board is to ensure the covenants are enforced fairly and consistently. What we do not know is the neighbor we were pointing at has more than likely received the first and second letter and probably even a fine. It may look like the Board is overlooking the issues, but trust me; it is being tended to multiple times a month every month. There is a process the Board must follow. But what if the violation continues on and on? As much as we are willing to work with everyone, the property could be well beyond the simple fine process. The HOA lawyer is an option we don’t like to use but sometimes there seems no other choice. In regards to violations, the reasonable thing to do is to try our best to abide by the covenants that we agreed to at signing. There’s no excuse for not knowing what they are because they are posted on our website, in case you’ve misplaced the copy you received at signing (anyway, who pays out $200,000+ for a new home and does not do their homework to completely understand the requirements of living in an HOA neighborhood?). So to bring this full circle, if you do get a friendly reminder, correct the issue. If you feel the letter is not warranted, call the management company at once and ask for clarification. It’s really that simple. Let’s continue to all work together to keep Winners Circle the “greatest place to call home.” Kevin Williams President Winners Circle Homeowners Association