The DeTour Reef Light Preservation Society (DRLPS) held its seventh annual "Evening Under the Stars" benefit Saturday, July 8. The event generated funds to preserve the historic DeTour Reef lighthouse. Seventy-eight guests attended the event. DRLPS gave awards and acknowledged major contributors to the preservation project.

Cliff Haley, director, legal advisor, and grant program chairman for DRLPS, was presented with the Appreciation for Outstanding Contribution Award for his work on the project.

"It's a real pleasure to be able to give back," Mr. Haley said. "We need to preserve our history to ensure our future."

The lighthouse stands 83 feet above the water, one mile offshore in northern Lake Huron, between DeTour Village and Drummond Island.

It is a steel-framed tower marking a dangerous reef that once helped guide ship traffic to and from Lake Huron and Lake Superior via the St. Marys River.

The lighthouse was automated in 1974. In 1997, it was declared surplus property by the U.S. Coast Guard, owing to sophisticated navigational systems aboard ships.

In 1998, local residents formed DRLPS to preserve the lighthouse. Since then, volunteers have worked to build the membershipbased group and acquire donations and grant funding for educational and restoration programs to preserve the historic structure.

DRLPs completed major interior and exterior restoration in 2004 and began public tours in July, 2005.

At the 2006 "Evening Under the Stars" benefit, Debbie Fogell and Robert Johnson, members of the group "Generations," provided entertainment.

Next year's event is tentatively scheduled for Saturday, July 7, 2007. DRLPS members are seeking silent auction donations. Interested parties can contact Joyce Buckley at (906) 493-5725.