Pat Atkinson
In 2001 before the GoodTime Gals was part of our community, Shirley Sughrue learned a fun card game called Hand and Foot. She asked her friend Pat to help organize a card day in her home. Shirley and Pat invited 16 gals to learn and play the game. They took turns meeting in different homes. In less than a year there were too many gals asking to play, so Shirley reserved a room at the PebbleCreek Arts and Craft Center. Two years later a larger space was needed. The choice was the Eagle’s Nest Clubhouse. It was and still is a good place to play as the GTG continues to grow in 2018. At times we exceed our capacity. How amazing that this small group of 16 has grown to over 60 gals playing Hand and Foot each Friday. The game has evolved into the GTG Progressive Hand and Foot.
In 2003 Shirley and Pat thought that the group should have a special name and logo. They were excited when they chose GoodTime Gals as the name and a logo of two gals sitting back to back. It’s still used today.
During that same year, Shirley and Pat planned other fun events. They organized day and overnight casino trips. The GTG enjoyed bowling days, shopping trips, pool and pizza parties and brunches. These events brought many gals together for the first time. Fun, silly games and prizes were enjoyed. We also held a yearly trip to the race track in Phoenix, where we had a race named in our honor. We loved getting our photo taken with the winning horse and jockey.
In the beginning these events were all ideas of Shirley and Pat. Since then, overnight adventure trips to Palm Springs and Cottonwood have taken place. Our PC gals proved to love the activities offered besides cards and Mexican Train. We have a monthly Dinner Bunch event that began with four gals doing lunch or dinner.
A unique event that Shirley and Pat came up with was a card marathon. The first one started at 9:00 a.m. and ended at 2:00 a.m. LuJean Anderson and Pat Atkinson (our current group leaders) were there to the end. It was great and tiring fun. The next one was held at Pat Atkinson’s home with 36 players and a potluck lunch and supper. After that, Barbara Arnold volunteered her home for several years for a card marathon with a fried chicken feast. The annual event is now held at the Eagle’s Nest Palm Room with shorter hours and a catered lunch by our F&B department.