MCA helps you live the retirement life you deserve

By Larry Israelite

Many ‘boomers’ share a similar life story. We went to school, got married, bought a house, and had kids. We worked for large companies, small companies or started our own business. We worked for 30, 40, or even 50 years at jobs some of us liked and others did not. We coached soccer or T-ball, were involved in our synagogues, and, if we were lucky, lived happy, productive lives. Then we retired!

Suddenly, our daily routines disappeared. Days that were filled with rush hour traffic, meetings, phone calls, discussions with customers or other job-related things were, for the most part, wide open. For sure, we found things to do. But along the way we learned a few things: winters can be very cold, especially when we aren’t in an office all day and, perhaps, more importantly, most cities and towns do not cater to retirees. And those things, among others, led us to Naples, where some of us have winter homes and others reside all year.

One of the things that makes Naples different from other cities is the existence of the Men’s Cultural Alliance, or MCA, an affinity group of Jewish Federation of Greater Naples whose goal is to foster camaraderie among men who are intellectually curious, physically active, and enjoy the company of others who share the same interests. In other words, MCA is an organization whose only goal is to provide men who live in Greater Naples with a way to stay active, meet other people, and thoroughly enjoy their retirement years.

Men’s Cultural Alliance addresses the intellectual curiosity of its members by offering presentations and discussions on a wide variety of topics each and every month. Monthly discussion groups include Science, Current Events, Israel, Books, and Photography.

Formal presentations include Monthly Luncheons, Speaker Series, Men’s Medical Seminars, Brazina Documentary Film Series, and speakers on a variety of other topics of interest throughout the year. Also included in this category are the various excursions to local sites of interest, including places like the Holocaust Museum, Baker Museum, Gulfshore Playhouse, Revs Institute, and the Collier County jail and courthouse, special operations center, and EMT/911 call center, to name a few.

For MCA members who wish to remain physically active, there are a variety of options, including weekly biking, kayaking, pickleball, bocce, and golf. Members can also indulge in birding, axe throwing, and miniature golf. In addition, MCA offers a variety of other games, including poker, table tennis, canasta, and bridge.

And, of course, there are events that defy categorization, like the annual Sweethearts Dance, monthly evenings of Jewish Jokes and Humor, Monte Carlo Night, Bingo, and, of course, the MCA Welcome Back BBQ, Comedy Night, and Beach Party.

As you can see, MCA offers something for everyone. And there is an unwritten but very well-known MCA rule: If there is an event — a lecture, a sports activity, a game, or anything else — that you would like MCA to sponsor, you are actively encouraged to reach out to the MCA board, which will help you plan it. That is, in fact, why MCA has been able to offer so many interesting and varied activities.

So, if you are new to the area, or you have been around for a while but have never experienced what MCA has to offer, there is no time like the present. The 2025-2026 season is about to begin, and there is no better time to find your niche. MCA can help make your retirement years interesting, engaging, challenging, and entertaining.

If you are interested in learning more about MCA, send an email today to membership@mcanaples.org or scan the QR code below. You won’t regret it!