McCarthy & Stone’s Charter Court development in Retford clearly struck the right chord with Enid Gostelow, Rita Dacey, Dora Smith and Mavis Dowler, as the four choir members all decided to buy apartments there.
The friends, who are all in their 80s, met at the Lena Snowden Ladies Choir, which rehearses every week in Retford. When Enid decided to look for a low maintenance new home she was soon followed by the others, who also saw the benefits of the lifestyle offered by McCarthy & Stone.
Enid, whose favourite music ranges from songs of praise to Eric Clapton, explained: “I loved our three bedroom home and garden but it became too much for me to look after when my husband John died. I decided to go and have a look at what was on offer at Charter Court and took Rita with me. We were both very impressed with what Yvonne, the sales consultant, said and we reserved apartments next door to each other off-plan.
“I love living here as there is such a strong community and everyone is so friendly. We meet regularly for coffee and there is even a social committee to organise events. Of course I still love to sing in the Lena Snowden and joint churches choirs and am learning to play the piano - I bought myself one instead of a computer as I thought it would be much more fun!”
Rita added: “I am very glad I visited Charter Court with Enid, even though I wasn’t seriously thinking about moving as I was happy in my old home. I warmed to the idea when I saw the wonderful lifestyle on offer, as thinking long-term I knew I would be better off being surrounded by people as well as enjoying the benefits of a low maintenance, new apartment.
“There are so many advantages to living here – getting to choir practice is easier now we all live in the same place as we can share transport, I can still do a bit of gardening, there are social events to go to and lots going on in Retford to keep me busy!”
Dora and her husband Roy live two doors away from Enid and chose Charter Court because they wanted a low maintenance, secure home near to their friends, as Dora explained: “Charter Court is a wonderful place to live as we have everything we need. We are close to a host of amenities, including the bowls club which I go to in the summer, and of course, the choir. I love to sing, having been a member of the Lena Snowden choir for eight years. We sing a mixture of songs from a range of eras to suit most tastes. I really enjoy music by the Cantamus Girls Choir and I think Susan Boyle is excellent, although I doubt we’ll be on Britain’s Got Talent any time soon!”
Mavis added: “Whilst we still pursue our love of singing we have made many more friends and are very much enjoying our lives in a new community.”
Although the ladies love living at Charter Court, they are missing one thing – a pianist, as Enid explained: “It would be wonderful if we could sing in the residents’ lounge and encourage everyone to join in, but we need an accompanist. If any retired pianists are reading this and looking for a new home then we’d like to invite them to come and join us!”
See Also: Property News (0), McCarthy and Stone (0), Charter Court (0), Retford (0)
Date Published: 17 May 2010
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