We had another taste of winter this past weekend, with a fair amount of snowfall. The scenery in the area was beautiful with the ground and trees covered with snow. It is probably time to keep the shovels handy; I know mine is. The snow definitely puts most of us in the holiday mood; if not the snow, all the ads on television are gearing up for the holiday season.

Here in DeTour, members of the Arts Council are busy preparing for the second annual Village Christmas. There will be 50 participants located in and about the area starting at the hall behind Sacred Heart Church. Maps will be available. Horse drawn carriages will take you around the Village, and a storyteller will be relating tales of long ago in the hall alongside the fireplace. Dawn and Jon Hamelink will once again display their beautiful Dickens village.

This year's Village Christmas will be Saturday, December 2, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. There will be many new items available. Also on this day, the DeTour Union Presbyterian Church will hold its annual Christmas bazaar. Be sure to mark your calendar, as you would not want to miss Village Christmas in DeTour.

The community choir has set the dates for the Christmas concerts. The first performance will be at Drummond Island Lutheran Church Thursday, December 14, at 7:15 p.m. The second performance will be in DeTour at Sacred Heart Catholic Church Sunday, December 17, at 3 p.m. The program will be filled with familiar Christmas music.

A week ago, the women of St. Stanislaus Catholic Church in Goetzville held a birthday banquet as a fundraiser for new carpeting

and paint for the church. The tables were set in a most beautiful and fashionable display for each month of the year. The dinner was delicious and definitely enjoyed by all who attended. Kudos to all the women involved for making this affair successful. Hopefully, they will consider doing this again next year, and if so, I'll be the first to have my reservation in early.

On October 25 the DeTour Public Library was packed with fans to hear Captain Glen Shaw speak on a variety of topics, such as the origin of early maritime shipping load restrictions and ship markings; the start of the stone quarry on Drummond Island by the T.J. Deroscher Construction Company; and Captain Shaw's boyhood reminiscences of T.J. Deroscher and his descendants. Captain Shaw related his comments with personal stories and his wry humor.

Captain Shaw, 89 years of age, a lifelong resident of DeTour Village and DeTour Township, closed his remarks with an original poem calling DeTour "my town, our town, and your town." He thanked people for making DeTour their home.

We all look forward to another evening of Captain Shaw's interesting talks. Alex Fisher videotaped and provided a complimentary CD of Captain Shaw's talk. Bob Vaught and the Presbyterian Church helped with the sound system and Ruth Ann Hudeck worked with the video camera. The CD is available for viewing at the DeTour Library. To obtain a digital photograph via email, please contact Angela Leonard at (906) 297-3852.

A thought: The person with the fondest memory of homemade bread is usually the one who didn't have to make it.