Helping the community:

White takes active role in Hot Springs Village

During six years as a property owner and, eventually, as a resident of Hot Springs Village, Rolland White has made a considerable impact on the community.

So great have been his contributions as a volunteer that outgoing Property Owners’ Association Board President Jerry Kosoglow presented him with the President’s Award during the POA’s annual meeting.

“It was a total surprise. I had been gardening all day and got a phone call from my wife, Mary, who said that I needed to be at the annual meeting that afternoon,” White said.

White is retired from the Houston area, where he worked as project manager for an offshore oil field company.

His experience in dealing with big operations have come in handy during his volunteer efforts in the Village. He worked on the Strategic Planning Committee three years ago to help update the community’s long-term plan, which involves millions of dollars in infrastructure, amenities, capital improvements and purchases, as well as maintaining the community’s current assets.

“Mary thought I would go crazy when I retired since I had a job that basically necessitated I be on call 24/7, 365 days a year. However, I think I have adjusted well. I stay busy, but I can pick and choose what I do. I volunteer for the community, but we still make time to do our gardening in the back yard. Mary is the manager, and I provide the labor,” White said with a laugh.

“We also like to go dancing, so I have my schedule balanced out pretty well.”

White said the physical work has been a welcome change from the high-stress mental job he had in Houston.

“Physical work helps me sleep well at night, and the volunteer things I do is just enough to keep me sharp mentally without stressing me out.”

White is also serving his second year as chairman of the Public Works Committee, one of the most active of the community’s various committees. The members are charged with rating the Village’s nearly 500 miles of roads and its numerous buildings on soundness, identifying those that need work.

The committee has become the eyes and ears of the Public Works Department, providing it with valuable data. As chairman, White coordinates all of these efforts with the other members.

White’s current big project is serving on the Friends of the Dog Park Committee, which is in the process of converting the former RV and boat storage area into a dog park that will be a welcome amenity to a community where many seniors lead a better quality of life because they have dogs for companions. White and his wife have three of their own.

“The dog park came into being one evening while we were sitting on our deck playing with our dogs,” White said.

The group held a cleanup day May 22 and invited dog owners to come by to help, and to see how the park will look when completed.

Fundraising is still in progress, and White said the group effort has been rewarding.

“It has been a lot of work, but it is also a fun effort. Fundraising is not my forte, but we have put together a good team with various areas of expertise to cover all the bases. It will be nice to see the park finished and dedicated,” he said.

With the gardening work in the back yard, White also gives back to nature with a variety of bird feeders and houses on the premises as well as a lot of ferns and other plants that contribute to the environment.

“When I am off the Public Works Committee and the dog park is done, I may throttle back a little bit and spend more time reading, but I will still stay involved with community activities. That is the secret to keeping it growing,” he said.