Villa neighborhood parties on

The bond among neighbors on Lemongrass Drive seems tight. All it took was one of them to start planning get-togethers. 

“About six months after we moved in, I went door-to-door with invitations and said, ‘We’re having a party in our driveway,’ ” recalls Anita Kabele. “When I asked if they wanted to keep meeting monthly or weekly, they all said weekly! It’s all about making more friends, that’s the whole idea.”

 The Kabeles host the weekly happy hour and women gather for weekly coffee at The Market.  There’s a standing dinner appointment at Gilmore’s Pub. In three years, they’ve had a chili cookoff, wine tastings, a progressive dinner and a watch party for the Iowa – Iowa State game. 

Lee Fritts grilling burgers next door.

On this sunny Sunday afternoon of June 11, the theme was frisbee golf with a friendly barbecue competition. Ron Kelderman managed the brats on one grill as Lee Fritts was next door keeping a close eye on burgers. All the sides landed on one patio table and another featured desserts, while Jane Anderson made ice cream floats.

And one trio, undaunted by especially blustery winds, traversed the frisbee golf course set up along the back yards between Lemongrass and Caraway Lane. It included laundry baskets as “holes” and handmade wooden sticks with the hole number. 

Mervin Carnahan lets his frisbee fly as Dennis Kabele watches to see where it will land.

Anita admits she missed her previous home for the first few months. It took Leon Nelson a little time to adjust to being off his acreage, too. 

But now? These residents wouldn’t be anywhere else other than their villas. 

“I love it out here, I absolutely do,” says Anita. “I love the security, I love the closeness. It’s just like our own little town.”

Party planner Anita Kabele, center, gives instructions for frisbee golf.