Like so many others, I use the last day of the year to look back on what has been accomplished and what the plan for next year is.

It has been a quiet year in some respects but one with a lot of good memories. We are settling into our new home now and are getting to know a lot of people who live here.

The Del Webb model for living includes lots of interactive clubs and activities. Most are very rewarding and offer us a chance to contribute. I am the President of the Veterans Club and in that capacity get to develop programming for the club and contribute to our core mission of serving veterans in the Low Country. If you aren’t familiar with that term, it means Charleston and her neighboring communities. There are a lot of homeless veterans in the area because of the more temperate weather.  So, we participate in veteran’s standdowns and food drives. We also do some fund raising to support all of that.

I participate in various Submarine Veteran activities through the year as well as Navy League functions.

My favorite is doing a Cold War Submarine presentation to the students at the Naval Nuclear Power School located at the Naval Weapons station. The presentations are done on the USS Yorktown at Patriots Point and despite having to get up at 0500, it’s the joy of my week to present our story. The young people who attend seem to enjoy it. I also gave a presentation to a Navy Reserve Medical unit from the area on December 7th called The Road to Pearl Harbor. It was a presentation I have given back in Western Pa, but much modified with some great updates.

Debbie has her own activities including something they call Bible Babes. They meet on Monday morning and share their love of Jesus with each other and study scriptures. She spends a lot of time during the week preparing for the study and we have both learned a lot from the effort. We also found a church recently that we both love and that is a growth thing for 2026. We are already involved with the adult bible study class and the minister and his team are fantastic. We had been searching for nearly a year and finding this one was a blessing. It feels like home. I am looking forward to formalizing the relationship in the near future and becoming members.

My favorite achievement for the year is no trips to the emergency room.

We are both enjoying a softer climate and trying to exercise more. Debbie has even taken a liking to the Bocce Ball court, and I am trying to sort out a couple of small health issues in the first part of the New Year. My bike continues to call out to me, and I am looking forward to better and longer rides. I have to get in better shape overall since the annual sailboat event in Charleston will be here sooner than I anticipate. If I can get my act together, that will be something I can participate in again.

The blog has been pretty successful this year. These are the stats for 2025. This has been the best year in the past four years.

I am looking forward to the next year as the country celebrates its 250th anniversary since its beginning. I am praying for a great year of celebrating the greatest country on the face of the planet. I make no apologies for that statement since it is the United States of America that has stood between tyranny and freedom for its entire existence. Yes, we have had our own failings and scars, but when measured against any other country, this country has risen above even its own faults to be a shining city on a hill. I hope we can still be that for generations to come.

I hope you and yours have an amazing year.

Mister Mac