Judy Smith and Pat Shannon met in 2008 when Smith moved in across the street from Shannon on Timber Creek Drive.
“My [previous] neighbor and I were good buddies,” said Shannon. “Then, when Judy moved in to Peggy’s house, well, we began to be buddies, too.”
The two forged a friendship that centered around walking.
“We always walk Sunday mornings at 9:45,” said Smith. “Religiously. We never really miss, unless it’s a holiday,” she says, adding that even on cold or bad-weathered mornings, the pair walks indoors in the Fitness Center of the Lodge.
After realizing they’d been walking the same path for years, Pat Shannon (left) and Judy Smith decided to walk every road in Sun City, starting September 1, 2013. (Photo provided)
After a few years, the two realized they often walked the same streets with little variety. By this time, Smith was retired and was ready to take on a new challenge with her walking partner. After some discussion, the two women devised a plan: why not challenge themselves to walk each and every street of Del Webb Sun City — all 69 miles of road — in sequential order?
With their map in hand, the women started at the very beginning: On September 1, 2013, they laced up their walking shoes and headed to Neighborhood 1: Brook Creek Circle and Brookside Court just off of Farm Hill Drive. From there, they tackled each and every one of the neighborhoods, marking off each street they completed. Some weeks, the ladies were able to travel through a few neighborhoods; some of the bigger neighborhoods required more time. No matter what, the weekly Sunday morning walks always lasted at least an hour. Along the way, the women admired the winding, curving streets of Sun City as they discussed current events.
“We see each other every day,” said Smith. “But during the week we will write little notes to ourselves so that we can remember what to talk to each other about on our walks!”
For more distant neighborhoods, Smith and Shannon hopped in the car to get to their starting point. One particular Sunday, a Del Webb resident noticed the unfamiliar car parked on the street, and saw two women walking the neighborhood, studying a map.
“They called for the Neighborhood Watch to have a policeman come and check us out,” said Smith. The officer stopped them, and asked for ID to verify they lived there. “A strange car and two ladies with a map. I guess we looked a little suspicious,” said Smith with a smile.
It took two years, but by the end of 2015, Smith and Shannon completed their challenge: Two friends, four feet, and many Sunday mornings earned them the right to say they’ve walked each and every street, cul-de-sac, and stretch of sidewalk in Del Webb Sun City.
But for Smith and Shannon, it’s not the end of the road. The two continue to meet each week, enjoying the walking, the friendship, and the beautiful surrounding community. Now, re-visiting neighborhoods is a little like going home.
“We’ll pick out one we liked especially, and if it was interesting, we’ll go back and see what’s going on over there,” said Shannon. Some neighborhoods that were in development during their challenge are now finished. “We were out last Sunday and we saw a neighborhood that was coming when we started. Now the landscaping is in and it’s very nice…like a mature neighborhood.”
