by John Hawkins,
President and CEO, The Club
Did you know that the City of Los Angeles operates a totally awesome, family-centered fun palace with mini-golf, a big videogame arcade, and batting cages?
And soon, basketball cages just like the batting cages?
Well with that intro, you can surmise that the City does have such a facility. It’s unique, it’s busy, it’s popular, and it’s perfect for City families. It’s Castle Park in Sherman Oaks.
I know a lot about the City. It’s been my business passion for decades. But I didn’t know that Castle Park was a City facility.
When you visit, you will notice right off the bat, just like I did, how beautiful the grounds are. Thanks to management and the Rec and Parks designers and grounds crew, it’s florid, colorful and really pleasant. A lot of family fun centers don’t concentrate as much on beauty. But this is a Rec and Parks facility. Outdoor awesomeness is its purpose.
It’s also about family affordability. The Club is all about giving you value; we offer strong discounts to other, for-profit family fun centers, and we like them, too. But Castle Park, which turns its profits back into operations, is intentionally kept affordable.
Andrew Baird, Sr. Park Services Attendant, Club Member, wrote to us, asking if we were interested in featuring Castle Park (we get many good stories this way). Andrew said he was just completing some renovations at Castle Park, but would be good to go after that. That made the timing perfect for our annual Summer in the City feature. And here’s that story.
So take your family and enjoy! I already have.
Moving on … I love this photo sent in by Retired Club Member Jill Weiszmann. Jill regularly submits photos to my Picture Perfect photo contest from her hometown of Cheney, Wash. She sent this extra photo, too. Already a City Councilwoman in Cheney, she’s running for re-election. Jill is living proof of what Retirees can do when they leave their City connection. Good luck, Jill! You’re a model for us all.
Everybody, enjoy the rest of your Summer in the City; spend time with your family before everything gets impossibly busy again. Time marches on! Let’s grab these precious moments while we can.
— John
