Senior World Conference in Dothan

Seniors have a new look in our world today. I say this from looking at my wonderful mom and dad. They don't look, act, or feel as old as they are.(on most days) My parents are much more active at their age than my grandparents at the same age. I'm sure there's a list of reasons why, but that's another post. My mom was all excited when she reach the age to go to the senior adult luncheon at church. I'm the one who told her she wasn't old enough. I just couldn't believe my mom was that old. It's just 50! Needless to say, I'm getting closer to that to that number everyday.

Troy University will host the Senior World Conference this Friday. Dothan Police Chief John Powell will be the guest speaker and then they will have breakout sessions. The breakout session topics will range from organic gardening to health and legal issues and lots in between. I think this will be a great opportunity to learn about issues facing seniors. Get out and have fun!

Senior World Conference
Friday, September 26, 2008
8:00 a.m.
Troy University Dothan's Sony Hall
Cost: $10 at the door, $8 in advance
Info: www.the seniorworld.org or 983-0005

Mom, hope you have fun!

Michelle

Holiday of Hope Marketplace

What is your favorite time of the year? Starting now until the end of the year is the "bestest" time of the year. A tradition in Dothan for the past 3 years has been the Holiday of Hope Marketplace. This is a great place to start your Christmas shopping and get a look at the newest trends for the year. A variety of vendors participate to show-off their treasures. Fine gifts, gourmet foods, clothing, pet items, handbags, jewelry, home decor, children's attire, and more.

Start today making your Christmas list today. It's important to be organized in shopping, so you don't duplicate gifts. This is a great event for ladies to get together and do what we do best--SHOP!!!!

The Holiday of Hope Marketplace is presented by The City of Dothan. The proceeds from this event benefit Covenant Hospice. There is a Preview Party & Silent Auction on October 2 at 6:30 p.m. Please contact the Dothan Civic Center for Preview ticket cost. It only cost $6 per day and children 8 & under are $2. Believe me it's worth every penny and what a great cause.

Holiday of Hope Marketplace
Dothan Civic Center
October 3-5, 2008
Friday 9-7
Saturday 9-7
Sunday 12:30-4

Make your list and check it twice!

Michelle

Wiregrass Home & Garden Expo

The Wiregrass Home & Garden Expo is here! You can find most anything for your home at this expo. I can personally hook you up with a realtor-ME! There will be seminars all 3 days at various times. Demonstrations at different vendors and plenty to see. There will be over 47 venders. All proceeds will benefit Wiregrass Habitat for Humanity Youth United. I can't wait! Here's the info:

Wiregrass Home & Garden Expo

September 19-21

Dothan Civic Center

Friday 10am-6pm

Saturday 9am-6pm

Sunday Noon-4pm

Admission is $5

I will be at the Century 21 Key Realty booth on Friday from 10-2. I hope to see you there. Stop by and pick up some freebies and info on area homes.

See ya where the fun will be.

Michelle

Art After Hours in Dothan

Art After Hours will be held Thursday, September 18 from 5-7:30 at the Wiregrass Museum of Art. This is the season finale and will include live music, horsd'oeuvres and wine. This would be a wonderful close to a busy day. The music will be provided by Wigatron, a blues and fund band out of Birmingham. The Wiregrass Museum of Art has so much to offer our community so go by on Thursday and enjoy a little Art After Hours. Tickets are $5 and free for museum members. If you have any questions please call 794-3871.

Have Fun!

Michelle

Deciding to Buy in Dothan

Are you ready to get out of that apartment? Want to own your very own home? Are you ready for more responsibility? When you get to this point thousands of ideas run through your mind and if you ask, you will probably get way more opinions than you would ever want. These questions will help you come closer to the answers you need.

Do you want to fix-up an older home in an established neighborhood?
Do you want to walk into a home with that "new" smell lingering?
How much time do you have to devote to maintaining your home?
Do you like yard work?
Do you want to live close to work?
Do you need to be in a certain school district?
What area/neighborhood do you want to live?
How big does your home need to be?

To help get some of these answers I would suggest you ride around different neighborhoods at different times of the day. On Sunday's go to open house. There are always houses open each Sunday and you can see new construction and pre-loved homes. The answers to these questions and these tips will assist you in getting on the right track to purchase a new home.

One last thing, CALL ME!!! I can help you with the answers to these questions. I can show you things in person and even over email which will assist you on your journey to a new home. Realtors are professionals in the housing industry. I look forward to hearing from you.

Cell: 334-333-1609
Office:334-793-6990
michelle@c21keyrealty.com

Call me your adventure awaits!

Michelle

Dothan's Jewish Community Goes National

Last week I blogged about a new program the Family Jewish Community Services in Dothan was offering for people to move to Dothan. Big is not the word for it! It's the buzz in New York! How exciting! Dothan has hit the front page of the AM New York paper. This news has been in hundreds of newspapers and linked on more than 700 blogs, per Google search. The Blumberg Family Jewish Community Services of Dothan Web site has over 150,000 hits and the office has fielded over 500 calls from across the country. You can go online and fill out and application. There are stipulations, such as, criminal background checks, etc. and you do have to stay in Dothan at least 5 years. This program shows the dedication and love that Larry Blumberg has for the Jewish community, but also for Dothan.

I look forward to meeting new friends coming to Dothan!

Michelle

Low Country Boil at Landmark Park

Have you ever eaten from a wheelbarrow? Thursday night is your chance to experience a Low Country Boil at Landmark Park. The night will be filled with food, music, and an auction. This is a huge fundraiser for Landmark Park and all proceeds will go to further the parks development in the future. The Stokes Barn will house the main scene on this special night, as the wheelbarrows bring the food to the tables and then the food is spread out before you to feast on all the things you like such as shrimp, sausage, corn, etc. it's so much fun. Pure & Simple, a local bluegrass band, will provide entertainment for the night. Your kids can come and play on the Barnyard Playground and go on a fun hayride. Hotdogs will also be available. An auction will also be held with Auburn and Alabama signed footballs on the block to be auctioned plus more things like trips.

This will be a great night of activities for the entire family and all proceeds will go to future development.

Landmark Park-Highway 431 North in Dothan
Stokes Activity Barn
Thursday, September 18, 2008
6:00 p.m.
Tickets: $60 per person, $50 per person for park members, some reserved tables for 8 are available. Tickets must be purchased in advance and are available at the park.

Come on out and enjoy the Landmark Low Country Boil!

Michelle

Move to Dothan For Money

Move to Dothan for money? Yes it is true! Temple Emanu-El in Dothan is working with Blumberg Family Jewish Community Services of Dothan to increase the membership of the temple in Dothan. This organization is offering as much as $50,000 dollars to families who will to Dothan and live for at least five years. Over the years the Temple Emanu-El has lost more than half its membership and is left with a remnant of about 50 families. Rabbi Lynne Goldsmith hopes this works for the temple. They are advertising this program in Jewish papers in Miami, Boston, Providence, R.I., and Washington so far. Finding young people to use their religious school and help create a family atmosphere in the temple would be great. So many Jews have left our area for the bigger cities and some have died, leaving our Dothan temple slim on members. Of course, there are requirements such as securing employment, no criminal record, etc. in order to receive the money, but the money doesn't have to be repaid. I think this would be a great opportunity for a Jewish family.

Michelle

District to Open in Downtown Dothan

Downtown Dothan is moving up in the world! The newest addition to downtown Dothan is a wonderful place called District. It boast a combination of restaurant, lounge, and dance. The 8,500 square foot will be home to 4 lounge/bar areas, restaurant, concert hall, outdoor pavilion, and a 1,800 square foot VIP area. Wow! The District will bring sophistication to a Dothan. The Red Room & Pavilion will serve lunch Tuesday-Friday 11am-3pm. There will be a private meeting/event space. They will feature fine wines & spirits from around the world and their menu will be intercontinental. Other added features are limo services provided by Bay Limousine and valet parking ($5). The District has a mandatory dress code and also requires a membership. There are VIP services for black & platinum cardholders and 20 VIP tables for bottle service. The District is for those age 21 and over and there is a mandatory dress code.

The Ultralounge and Club are open Wednesday - Saturday at 5pm. The District is a non-smoking venue with smoking permitted on the outdoor pavilion only. The District is staged to be a welcome addition to Dothan's downtown scene. For general information and VIP Entertainment Concierge Services call 334.67.DANCE. Check out MYSPACE.COM/DISTRICTULTRALOUNGE.

DISTRICT
158 North Foster Street

Enjoy the sophistication!

Michelle

Open House This Weekend-1402 Hiawatha

Here's a heads-up about a great house that will be open on Sunday, September 7 from 2-4. This unique home is a 3 possibly 4 bedroom home with 3 full baths. The square footage is 2408 and it has a contemporary, ranch-style architecture. It boast 2 master suites with turning the office/study in one of the master suites back into a bedroom. Hiawatha's backyard is very private and fenced and the landscape has very large mature trees in the wonderful neighborhood. There is plenty of room for a large family and entertaining. The price is $149,900 which comes out to $62.25 per sq. ft. That's great for this large house. This home is nestled in Cherokee Acres and is convenient to shopping, schools, churches, and the grocery. It's a wonderful neighborhood to live in and I should know because I have live experience living in this neighborhood.

Directions: Turn inside the Ross Clark Circle onto Cherokee, take a left on Sequoyah and a right on Hiawatha.

Definitely put this OPEN HOUSE on your list. Tell Lisa you read about 1402 Hiawatha Open House here.

Check out http://www.dothanhomesearch.com/ for more info on Dothan and homes. Call me I would love to show you any of the homes on our MLS (Multiple Listing Service). 334-333-1609

Happy House Hunting!

Michelle

Weekend Fun at the Wiregrass Museum Of Art

The Wiregrass Museum of Art will be bustling with activity on Saturday, September 6. Check out these activities this weekend and join the fun.

First Saturday Family Day
Saturday, September 6, 2008
10:30 a.m.
Every first Saturday of the month kids and their families can enjoy free art lessons.

Yard Party for Art (Finally no bad weather)
Saturday, September 6, 2008
7:00 p.m.
Annual fundraiser for the museum.
Featured Guest: The Circle City Rollers
Tickets: $15 in advance and $20 at the gate
Must be 18 to enter

Go and join the excitement and support a good thing in Dothan.

Michelle

YouTube Phenomenon

YouTube is a phenomenon! You can see just about anything on there. From the cute baby laughing to the skateboarder trick gone bad, there's just nothing that isn't put on video now a days. Did you know people 55+ make up 22% of all the users of YouTube. Wow! 51% of YouTube viewers are men with 49% women. The age group with the fewest users of 13.2 million is people 18-44 years of age.

I know you are wondering who is all these people doing videos. They are regular folks, just like you and me, from all over the world. 10 hours of video are uploaded every minute of the day. That is UNBELIEVABLE!!!! Of the 72+ million viewers this is the #1 entertainment Internet site in the US. Each person spends on the average of 48 minutes per day on YouTube. Is your head spinning yet? Mine is.

I want to let you know of a special YouTube video. The address is www.YouTube.com/dothanhomesearch. Century 21 Key Realty is now putting their homes on video. Isn't that cool! Check it out it's really neat. As time goes on more and more homes will appear. Check out our Century 21 Key Realty website for a full list of homes and more info. The address is www.dothanhomesearch.com.

How many YouTube minutes have you logged? Me? Probably too many! lol

Have fun YouTube surfing!

Michelle

Dothan Tourist Population Growing

Do you ever wonder why we need one more ball field, soccer field, or tennis court? Tourism is the answer. Family vacations now surround their kid's sports. On any given weekend in Dothan there is some type of sporting event taking place, whether it be baseball, softball, tennis, swimming, or BMX. Folks are coming into Dothan to play and guess what they leave--money. Tourism is the largest industry in Alabama and Dothan is working their way up the tourist ladder. The Robert Trent Jones Trail is the largest attraction in Alabama and we have a golf course here. It was host this year to the Hooter's Pro Golf Classic. We host many tennis tournaments with the next one coming September 12. This tournament will bring in 550 players. This year the Future Masters hosted 550 players for an entire week. We won the bid for the Dixie Youth World Series in the future, which will bring in thousands on people. Leisure Services is working on adding to the number of soccer fields to be able to host more tournaments. The list can go on and on. Dothan is preparing to be a great tourist spot.

Not only are the players coming, but they bring their families. They lodge in our hotels, eat in our restaurants, and shop in our stores. Dothan can't help but prosper from sports tourist.

Show that wonderful Southern hospitality to our visitors.

Michelle

Dothan's Play Time

Dothan's Leisure Services offers multiple activities for the entire family. While called Leisure Services, it also acts as a huge draw for our tourism industry in Dothan. Tennis courts and Baseball/softball fields bring huge dollars into Dothan. Vacation patterns have changed among families and now they travel with their kids to multiple cities to play ball, tennis, and swim. The plus for Dothan is our hotels are full and they have to eat, so eating out is the plan for the day. This money stays in Dothan. A huge percentage of visitors money is not only on lodging and food, but they shop in our stores. It's always exciting to shop in different cities!

Not only do we have these activities that draw in money, Dothan Leisure Services has parks, walking trails and picnic pavilions for the home folk to enjoy. The following is a list of all the aspects of Dothan Leisure Services:

21 Total Parks
7 Recreation Centers
11 Playgrounds
6 Picnic Pavilions
47 Tennis Courts
31 Baseball/softball fields
4 Soccer Fields
5 Swimming Pools (1 indoor)
1 Water Park
4 Walking Trails
2 Football fields
1 Football Stadium
1 BMX Track

What a list! We should never fuss about not having anything to do. There is something for the entire family and all ages. Leisure Services Director Elston Jones is doing a great job! Check it out and get involved.

Playtime is great!

Michelle