By: Al Wicklund
MONROE Snowbirds, migratory seniors who leave their northern habitats and spend the winter in warmer parts of the country, make up a sizable part of Monroe Township’s population.
Jack Cremen, Concordia’s executive director, said Wednesday that at the normal peak of winter’s cold, in January and February, as much as 65 percent of Concordia’s residents may be enjoying a southern sun.
Depending on personal lifestyles, snowbirds may leave any time from October through late December and into January, Mr. Cremen said.
The length of stay in the sun and the places in the sun also vary. The stays range from a month or less to six months with the average in the two-to-four-month range.
Eli Drapkin of Concordia, a former snowbird, said Florida, once the undisputed champion of snowbird havens, is now getting competition from Arizona, New Mexico and California.
Mr. Drapkin said that, wherever the haven, the No. 1 reason for snowbirding is "people can’t take the cold."
Where they go depends on where friends and relatives are and their habits and personal interests.
"When my wife was living, we used to go to Florida. I thought it was dull. The big deal there was reduced-price, early-bird dinners. We also went to Arizona, to Tucson. I liked the Tucson area. It’s scenic."
Mr. Drapkin, an astronomy buff, said he also liked Tucson because there’s an absence of light pollution. He said street lights in the area are directed toward the ground, leaving a night sky relatively free of man-made light.
"I trained near Tucson in 1943 when I was in the Army Air Force. Then, it was a small Spanish town. Today, it’s a big city, but still a nice area," he said.
He said one of the downsides of snowbirding is the transporting of personal belongings.
"For many, there’s the shipping of cartons packed with clothes and other items," he said.
He said some snowbirds, particularly the younger ones, drive to their winter places. Others drive to Virginia and take the auto-train which takes them and their cars to Florida, but many fly south and ship everything they need.
Other Concordia residents, such as Lionel and Joan Domash, are part-time Californians, wintering in Coronado, some 15 minutes from San Diego.
Dr. Domash recently e-mailed an account of the start of a day.
"This morning, at 7 o’clock, I took my usual two-mile walk. It is Dec. 28 and the sun is shining. The temperature is 55 degrees," he said.
On his walk, he is taken by the variety of people he meets, ". . . people of all ages, sailors from the Navy Seal training base running in formation along the sand, young mothers jogging while pushing three-wheeled strollers, people walking their dogs and the Coronado High School physical education class taking surfing lessons before the start of a school day."
Dr. Domash tells of full days "Joan plays tennis outdoors three times a week" and a wide variety of attractions in nearby San Diego with its zoo, its theaters and restaurants.
Dr. Domash said a bonus for him and his wife is that their children live in California.
The local impact of the absence of the snowbirds varies.
Rita Whitney of the township’s Senior Center said she is aware that people she knows will not be at the center during winter months, but said, "We have such a large senior population in Monroe that our activities and services never slow down."
Monroe is home to five planned retirement communities accounting for about 50 percent of the township’s residents.
Mr. Cremen said Concordia’s population is most depleted in January and February.
"In March, I’d say about 20 percent of our residents are still in winter places," he said.
He said because of the reduced population there’s a lesser need for services in January and February.
He said the absence of residents becomes more obvious to the Concordia staff when it snows.
"We get far fewer emergency calls than ordinarily might be expected. When there’s a snowfall or the expectation of one, an emergency call can range from an important visit to a doctor to getting out for milk and a loaf of bread. Whatever it is we want to help," Mr. Cremen said.
The snowbirds don’t have to be concerned about such things.
