By SUZANNE M. SCHMIDT

Members of Tampa Bay Newcomers have new activities in store for next year including fun in the sun for beach babes and activities for bicycling babes.
Newly elected president Ruth Gibney of New Tampa already has exciting plans for the next year.
“We just changed the by-laws to let women join regardless of how long they have been living in the area as long as they are entering a new phase of life, like being recently divorced or retired,” Gibney said. “We also changed the by-laws to let people in who have lived here for four years or less.”
Newcomers is an international organization whose mission is to promote friendliness, provide a venue for social interaction for new and established residents and to work for the good of the community through community service.
“There are so many women’s groups that are solely for socializing and others solely for community service and ours does both,” Gibney said. “Newcomers helps to ease the transition for a new phase in life.”
Gibney said there are some things she wants to change in order to make the club a friendlier atmosphere.
“I am trying to emphasize that the newest people need to be contacted multiple times,” Gibney said. “I want for everyone to for the new people and then contact them about anything they can relate to. So when we have a new person come out they won’t just sit there and have no one talk to them. We want to make sure all our new members have some type of contact.”
Gibney said she has seen so many women feel excluded when they come to a function.
“I try to assign greeters to take the new person to their table and introduce them to everyone,” Gibney said. “So many women have felt excluded and that is why we are now making this effort.”
In addition to those changes, the group now has three new activities including Beach Babes, Biking Beauties and Troop Support.
“The women in the Beach Babes group will now have a reason to go to the beach together,” said New Tampa resident Joyce Guttman, co-chair of public relations for the group. “The Biking Beauties will take bicycle trips and the ladies in the Troop Support group will make care packages and send them to troops overseas. We might be starting a beginning yoga class soon too.”
Some of the activities members of the club can join in are Bowling Babes, Lunch Bunch, Scrabble, Bunko, Casual Bridge, Quilting, Divot Divas and Movie Night Out. Some activities are for couples including Couples Date Night and Couples Bridge.
“If a member doesn’t find something they like, they can always start a new group,” Guttman said.
Gibney has belonged to Newcomers groups in other parts of the country and even in Canada.
“One of the cool things about Newcomers is that they have the same activities in most of them,” Gibney said. “This is my seventh newcomers group.”
Arlene Berkowitz is the chair for community service. She said there are a few changes in store for that part of the Newcomers group as well.
“We will have four community service activities a month,” Berkowitz said. “We go to Trinity Café and feed the homeless and the people who are down on their luck. We go to Everyday Blessings, an orphanage in Thonotosassa and do activities with the children and create scrap books for them. We also go to Hope Lodge and work with the patients and their caregivers making crafts. Then there are two organizations that we alternate helping and that is the Joshua House and the OASIS Network.”
Members of the club were asked to buy various articles of clothing and shoes and bring them to the monthly luncheon April 24 at Carrabba’s in Temple Terrace.
“We highlight one charity a month and we either bring in donations or raise money or do hands-on work,” Guttman said. “They tell us what they need and we try to provide what we can. We have been very fortunate and we can afford to give back.”
Berkowitz said the community service aspect of the club is very important.
“I think there are many people who feel the need to give back to a community that has been so good to us,” Berkowitz said. “Whether we have been transplanted or re-issued it is nice to be accepted by such a wonderful organization.”
Cindy Harvey, New Tampa resident, co-chairs the Great Escapes group with Vonda Sue Mays.
“We are going to go to Honeymoon Island to collect sea shells and then we are going to eat out,” Harvey said. “In the future, we will be doing an awful lot of shopping, taking boat rides and eating at fantastic restaurants. I promise to make every trip extremely tantalizing.”
Janet Moses, South Tampa resident, has been a member of the group for two and a half years.
“I run the Lunch Bunch,” Moses said. “We dine around Tampa and try to eat at restaurants that are not chains. I have belonged to Newcomers in other cities as well. It is hard to make friends when you are new in town and you don’t have a job or children.”
Marcia Nelson of South Tampa is the third vice president of communications and it is her job to communicate with new potential members.
“It is a wonderful way to meet new friends and to become acquainted with the community,” Nelson said.
Membership dues are $24 a year. For information about Tampa Bay Newcomers, visit http://www.tampabaynewcomers.com.
For information, call Marcia Nelson at 486-1279 or e-mail her at .