Page 88 - South Mississippi Living - November, 2016

GOLDEN YEARS camaraderie ROMEO
RETIRED OLD MEN EATING OUT
Doug Parker, Cooper Farris, Joey D’Angelo, Jim Davis and Walt Hack
Staying in touch with friends is a way to add happiness to the Golden Years, and a group of local men have found just the way to do so. They call their group ROMEO — retired old men eating out — because they meet every Thursday to have lunch together. They enjoy the food and camaraderie and get a kick out of
trying different restaurants. The membership is loosely organized and includes some who are semi-retired. They may have as many as 10 show up or as few as four; regardless, the fun and fellowship are prevalent. “It’s not formal; just whoever shows up,” D’Angelo says.
Six members of ROMEO turned out on a recent Thursday to dine at a new restaurant in downtown Gulfport. They were Joey D’Angelo, Walt Hack, Cooper Farris, Doug Parker, David Leva and Jim Davis. They were celebrating Davis’ birthday and let him choose the restaurant. “He’s not retired yet so he’s here as an unofficial rushee to join in the future,” D’Angelo said of Davis.
“We decided to get together and try different places to eat,” Hack said. “We even went over to Bozo’s in Pascagoula after seeing their ad in South Mississippi Living. We’ve been doing this for more than a year and we’re happy to call someone who’s at work and dig it in.”
Farris adds, “We like to try new places and we
have some favorites we’ve returned to several times, and we’ve probably closed some down.” Dat Kitchen in Waveland and Dempsey’s in Kiln are a couple of favorites.
Golf is the thing all the guys have in common
and Windance Country Club is their home course. However, the group is not entirely about meeting and eating each week. They have some service projects that center around their love of golf. They collect used golf balls and clubs for the golf program at Bayou View Middle School and donate items to the thrift shop at Keesler Air Force Base, which is operated by Air Force wives to finance a scholarship fund. “We’re not just out drinking beer and eating,” Hack said.
88 SOUTH MISSISSIPPI Living • November 2016
FOR MORE REFLECTIONS OF THE GULF COAST >> www.smliving.net
story by Lynn Lofton photos by Teddy Lewis
This section is sponsored by: