MEET THE NEIGHBORS
Cherokee Village - Lakeside Living: Cyril and Lynda Bertram
by Anne Fruge
When Cyril and Lynda Bertram decided to move from northern Wisconsin to Cherokee Village, they left behind seven grandchildren and 11 great-grandchildren. What drew them to a state so far away?
"We looked at numerous places in the U.S. to retire in a warmer climate," Cy, as he is called, said. "We chose Cherokee Village because it has just about everything one would want for retirement with a touch of four seasons and within a reasonable distance from our family."
After serving in the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary for 45 years and working for Mercury Marine as a plant manager for 37 years, Cy knew he had to find a place where he could be around the water.
"Boating has been in my blood all my life and now I spend my summers patrolling the seven lakes here in our city," he explained. "This job is similar to what I did in Wisconsin when I patrolled Lake Winnebago. In fact, Cherokee Village reminds me of Wisconsin with its abundance of trees and lakes."
Four years before they retired, Cy and Lynda visited Cherokee Village with some friends. They loved it so much they bought a house before they left. Today, they live on Lake Sequoyah.
"We were so impressed with the beauty, friendship and affordable cost of living," he recalled. "Cherokee Village is the hidden beauty of The Natural State. It has two 18-hole golf courses, tennis courts, recreation centers, physical fitness center, senior center, horseshoe pits, and seven lakes for boating or fishing."
Cy volunteers with Village Pride, an organization that strives to keep the city beautiful, and is the chairman of the Strategic Planning Committee for the city. The Bertrams enjoy fishing, boating, bowling and spending time in the garden.
Though they left their family in Wisconsin, the Bertrams have learned the importance of staying in touch. They call their family and stay up to date with pictures sent through e-mails. However, Cherokee Village is now home, and they enjoy spreading the word about their successful out-of-state move.
"We enjoy affordable housing, very good fire and police protection, and a wide range of doctors for our health care needs," Cy said. "Once an individual retires and is on a fixed income it is very difficult to maintain the lifestyle that you were used to while working. Moving to Arkansas gives you the ability to keep that lifestyle."
Air Executive: Deborah Schwartz / Little Rock
by Leigh Ann Golden
As Executive Director of Little Rock National Airport, Deborah Schwartz oversees the operations, maintenance and strategic development of the city's air link to the rest of the country; the airport served almost 2.5 million passengers in 2006.
Schwartz and her daughter, now 16, relocated from Worcester, Mass., in November 2004 so Schwartz could assume her role at Little Rock National. Before her tenure at Worcester Municipal Airport, the Indiana native worked as assistant airport manager at William P. Hobby Airport in Houston, Texas.
"Many of my friends and colleagues [in Texas] had parents who had retired in Arkansas, or they themselves vacationed in Arkansas. I had only driven through Arkansas once, 20-plus years earlier, before I moved here," Schwartz said.
The state surprised her, Schwartz said, with its natural beauty and outdoor opportunities, plus its geographical variations. She thinks Little Rock's friendly people, four seasons, relatively low cost of living, and easy access by land and air are excellent reasons to retire to the area.
The state's natural beauty lets Schwartz participate in her favorite pastimes. She enjoys "horses, running, hiking — almost anything outdoors."
Besides being an accredited member of the American Association of Airport Executives, Schwartz has become invested in local community through professional organizations. She serves on the Arkansas Aviation and Aerospace Commission, on the boards of the Little Rock Regional Chamber of Commerce and the United Way of Pulaski County, as a honorary commander of the USAF 463rd Airlift Group and member of the Community Council at Little Rock Air Force Base.
Schwartz envisions a bright future for Little Rock National. Her wish list includes a new or remodeled terminal that will enhance air service and customer service; direct international service to Mexico and Europe; and the relocation of "all production and support suppliers for Dassault Falcon Jet and Hawker Beechcraft to Little Rock National to establish a single, one-stop location to meet their customers' production and service needs."
Schwartz said she doesn't plan to retire in the traditional sense of the word, but would give this advice to people looking to relocate: "Determine how you want to spend most of your time and then find the best location to support that vision."
Pine Bluff - Writer in Residence: Laura Castoro
by Leigh Ann Golden
Laura Castoro has made a career out of telling stories. The author was born in Texas but raised in Pine Bluff, the city she still calls home. Her first book, a historical romance titled "Silks and Sabers," was published in 1980. Since then, she has published 36 novels, including historical romance, western, paranormal and women's fiction, as well as magazine articles, a short story and "Careers in Computers," a nonfiction book for young adults.
Laura and her husband, Chris, have lived many places; the couple moved from Dallas back to Pine Bluff in 2002 to care for her ailing mother.
"I was surprised to come back and look at my state with new eyes," Laura said. "It's a beautiful place with access to every kind of retirement possibility anyone could be looking for – lakes and hills, low country and warm waters, city life, museums, culture and plenty of green, quiet places to relax and enjoy."
The genuine friendliness of the people of Pine Bluff also impressed Laura. "I have made dozens of new friends and reconnected with more old friends. Pine Bluffians have taken me back in, along with my New Orleans-born and Brooklyn-bred husband."
Chris Castoro is a retired executive from an international corporation who keeps busy as a city commissioner, a Big Brother and executive director of the Pine Bluff Area Community Foundation. The couple's three grown children and their families live out of state, so the Castoros spend free time traveling to see their eight grandchildren.
Laura is an active member of Arkansas's creative community. She speaks to professional writing groups and conferences and has served on the board of the Arts and Science Center of Southeast Arkansas in Pine Bluff. She's also a past president and current member of the board of the Communications Arts Institute, which sponsors the Writers' Colony at Dairy Hollow in Eureka Springs. The colony offers writers of all types a quiet and secluded place surrounded by the state's natural beauty.
Laura was inducted into the Arkansas Writers' Hall of Fame in 2005. It was "the thrill of a lifetime," she said. "To be honored for one's achievements in one's home state, there's nothing quite like it."
Her advice for those wishing to relocate to Arkansas? Come on! "A person can come to Arkansas and make a name for her or himself, or find solitude. The possibilities are limited only by the imagination and effort."
Hot Springs Village - World Traveler: Tom Arwood
by Anne Fruge
Tom Arwood traveled around the world as a major general in the U.S. Army before retiring in Hot Springs Village in 1997. After moving 23 times, Tom and his wife, Peggy, believe their move to Arkansas was the best decision they ever made.
"Friends of ours in Texas introduced us to Hot Springs Village in 1994, and we were drawn to the natural beauty of the state, the abundance of friendly professional services and the friendly neighbors. The medical support in the area is also far superior than in most locations," Tom explained.
Tom grew up in northwest Ohio and graduated from Bowling Green State University in 1958. One year later he entered the Army, advancing from second lieutenant to major general during his 34 years of service. Before his retirement in 1993 Tom traveled around the world, serving in Vietnam, Somalia, Panama and Desert Shield/Desert Storm and commanding the humanity relief efforts for Hurricane Andrew in southern Florida in 1992.
Though Tom is officially retired, he puts his talents to good use in and around Hot Springs Village. "I was fortunate to have a satisfying career in the military in service to our nation. Now, I have the opportunity to serve our Village in many ways," he said.
Currently he serves on the St. Joseph's Mercy Hospital Advisory and Foundation boards, and as president of the Hot Springs Village Foundation board, president of the Veterans Memorial Foundation, president of the Rotary Club and chairman of the Governmental Affairs Committee. Peggy serves on the St. Joseph's Mercy Advisory Board and at the Boys and Girls Club and is the chairwoman of the POA Recreation Committee.
In their spare time, the Arwoods golf, boat, travel and keep in close contact with their relatives in Michigan and Ohio, including their son, John, and granddaughter, Salina. They enjoy many of the local restaurants and shops available in the Village, but often make the quick trip to Little Rock for additional choices in dining and entertainment.
"Arkansas is a great place to retire," Tom concluded. "It's the people that make it the best. They are goodhearted folks, dependable to work with and fun to be with. I would hold it up over anywhere we have been — and we have seen and lived all over the world."
Harrison - Artist's Inspiration: William McNamara
by Anne Fruge
It made perfect sense for William McNamara, an artist who paints vivid watercolors of the rugged outdoors, to move his family from Louisiana to Cave Mountain in Arkansas. "I'm inspired by the particular place I live, the energy of the mountains, the climate, all four and ever changing seasons, and the intimate grandeur that fits so well with my painting," McNamara said. "Where I live is very beautiful, quiet and peaceful, and it's in the middle of nature but also remote, isolated, and requires some strenuous activity just to keep things going. But for those who like it, it's heaven."
McNamara's mother was an amateur artist and he began drawing at a young age, but he did not immediately pursue it as a career. Instead, after majoring in art in college, he taught in the art department in Centenary College in Shreveport, La., for several years. In 1974 the McNamaras visited the Ozarks with a friend to search for a place to live. While looking near Harrison, they saw an ad for 80 acres on the Buffalo River and decided to buy the land. "We chose the piece of land because it was in the roughest parts of the Boston Mountains and beautiful in any direction one could walk," McNamara said. "I smile when I think that I get to live here."
It was here that McNamara realized that he could support himself with his art. In 1980 he exhibited his watercolors at a local community college, where his work was discovered. Besides painting, McNamara has also written several novels set in the area and spends his time walking in the mountains, reading, growing a garden, and keeping up with his children and grandchildren.
So what is next for this painter, author and naturalist? "Despite the years I've been painting and the successes I've had, I have this feeling that I'm just getting started. Great achievements still seem like something of the future," McNamara said. However, don't expect a change of scenery for the not-yet-retired artist. "I'm very much attached to this place; I want to retire right where I'm living now."
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