Hey There!

So you just moved to south Charlotte. Your boxes are still in the garage, you don't know anybody, you've gotten lost on the way to the grocery store twice, and somebody at the post office called you "sugar." Welcome! We've all been there. That's the whole idea of this club.

I'm Betty Cervantes, and I'm the club's web volunteer. My husband Wayne and I moved here from San Antonio in January, when his bank transferred him (if you're new to Charlotte, the odds are pretty good your husband or wife works for a bank too). I'd been a sales coordinator at a hotel on the River Walk for five years, and I didn't know a soul here. I spent the first three weeks unpacking and talking to the cable guy like he was my best friend. Then a neighbor left a flyer for this club on my door, I went to the February luncheon, and three people invited me to lunch before dessert was served. By June I'd somehow volunteered to make this web page. That's how it goes around here. Fair warning!

Now I'm looking for my next job (anybody need an events or sales person who can sweet-talk a caterer? E-mail me!), and in the meantime I walk on Mondays, play Bunco on the first Tuesday, and eat lunch with the Lunch Bunch, and I've got more friends than I had in Texas. Okay, almost. Don't tell my sister.

What's a Newcomers Club?

It's a social club for people who are new to the area. You can join if you've lived here less than two years, and you can stay a member for three years. After that you "graduate," which is our way of saying you're not new anymore and it's time to make room. (Lots of graduates stay friends forever, and some of the groups that started in this club are still meeting fifteen years later.)

We have about 210 members right now, from all over: Ohio, New Jersey, California, Michigan, Florida, New York, Illinois, Texas, and a few from England, Germany and Brazil. Most of us are women, but husbands are welcome at the couples' groups and some come to everything. We have young moms with babies on their hips and retirees who moved down to be near the grandkids. There's no age, no neighborhood, and no church you have to belong to. You just have to be new.

The Monthly Luncheon

October Calendar

Here's what's going on this month. Details and leaders are on the interest groups page. Most groups ask you to call or e-mail the leader so they know you're coming.

New-Member Coffee

Thinking about joining? Just joined and nervous? Come to the new-member coffee, held the third Thursday of every month at 10:00 a.m. in a member's home. This month it's Thursday, October 21, at Ruth Poland's house. It's a small, relaxed get-together with coffee and way too many muffins, where our membership chairman, Beth Olivarria, tells you about all the groups and you meet a few other new people. Little ones are welcome. E-mail us for directions, because nobody can find Ruth's street the first time. Nobody.

Join Us!

Dues are $25 a year per household, which gets you the monthly newsletter, the membership directory, and the chance to join any and every interest group. Luncheons and group outings are paid separately. Bring your check to any luncheon or coffee, or e-mail and we'll get you the form.

And when you're ready, read my Translating Southern page. Trust me. You'll need it before you need the directory.

Y'all come back now!


visitors since June 1999

Questions? Want to join? [email protected]
Last updated September 24, 1999