(2019 update: Sadly, the map mentioned below is no longer available)
This week I caught up with The Villages resident Paul Emberger.
Paul is the creator of The Villages Golf Cart Map and I've wanted to catch up with him and share his story with you for a while now.
I really enjoyed hearing Paul's story and I hope you do too.

Where are you from? How long have you been a resident of The Villages?
Born in Philadelphia in 1944. Raised in western PA and Maryland until 1971. Then moved to SC for 3 years and then NJ where I lived until 2005 when I moved to VA and then to The Villages in 2007.
Can you describe your background?
I was married twice and have 3 children from my first and 2 step-children from my second. My wife of 29 years passed away in 2006.
I worked as a professor of Psychology at schools in South Carolina and NJ. Switched careers in 1984 to computers. Worked for AT&T, Bell Labs programming various phone applications. Then consulted to financial firms on Wall Street and was VP of Research Technology at Merrill Lynch. Had my own business creating software applications for restaurants and supporting small businesses.
What originally attracted you to The Villages? What do you like most AND least about The Villages?
TV advertising and the DVD sent by The Villages convinced me to look at the place.
After my wife passed away I started looking for a place in Florida. Besides being beautiful, The Villages had their act together with regard to mortgages and not wasting my time on properties I would not want. And it was literally “Florida's friendliest hometown”. Initially I was a little put off by the ubiquitous presence of The Villages radio station. Since then I have come to appreciate its local information and selection of music.
In my first year here I joined Sumter Singles. This club provides a chance to meet people and have a chance to engage in many activities with others. Towards the end of my first year here I met a lovely lady who was also widowed and after 2 more years we married in 2010.
What does a typical day for you look like?
I start the day with The Villages newspaper. So much is going on here that you need to check daily to stay up to date. Then it is some kind of exercise (either walking or golf) followed by time on the computer to catch up with email and work on my website. Evenings are frequently spent with friends, sometimes playing games or eating out.
What is your website called? What does it do?
The site provides the only comprehensive map of all the cart paths in The Villages as well as information on related laws, resources, and safety issues.
Shortly we will be providing printed versions of the map.

Why did you start it?
My wife had been in this area for 18 years and had been a resident of The Villages since 2004. She knew how to get almost everywhere by golf cart. We used our cart for most of our travel. In fact we sold our second car and only have one car and a golf cart. (Our two year old cart has 7,000 miles on it.)
One day in our travels we encountered 6 different people pulled off the cart path trying to figure out how to get to their destinations. That night we decided to build a website to help people navigate The Villages by Golf Cart.
We called our business “Get There By Golf Cart”.
In addition to the cart I have been presenting a course at The Villages Life Long Learning College called “Get There By Golf Cart” to help new and old residents make better use of the great golf cart path network in this 70 square mile residential and business community.
What do you count as the benefits of running a small business in The Villages?
Having identified a need in this community the response has been fantastic. People here are willing to buy products that meet their needs.
K,E.Christy says
SOUND LIKE GREAT DEAL. WOULD LIKE THE APP. TELL ME WHERE TO GO OR WHERE CAN OBTAIN IT.
Tyron says
I would love an iPhone app with the cart paths.
philip fry says
Hello Paul. My Brother in law and I stayed in the villages for a couple of weeks last year and it took almost all of that time to negociate and learn the cart paths. So a detailed map is a fantastic idea. Please let me know when it’s available as we hope to be coming back this year.
Kind regards
Philip Fry
London
England
Maude Hall says
Thank you very much for sharing this info. I have saved it as one of my “favorites” for reference. I will be sharing it with friends who snicker at me for always saying, ” If I can’t get there by cart, I prefer not to go.”