Mackinac Island

Oh, what a beautiful morning! Oh, what a beautiful day!Warm temperatures and sunny skies made everyone smile. Summer is finally showing off the many picturesque flower gardens. At the Dwight LaPine garden on French Lane, irises and peonies are bursting into bloom. Be certain to take the wooded pathway in the grove below Grand Hotel, where you will find an array of different flowers. It is relaxing and lovely for everyone to enjoy.

Saturday, June 20, it was truly a beautiful Mackinac evening, when friends gathered for the Mackinac Associates G. Mennen Williams cocktail party at the beautiful home of Betty and the late Barry BeDour on the East Bluff. Folks were thrilled to view the wonderful handiwork of Barry, and the magnificent view from the veranda. Then people were transported to Grand Hotel for dinner in the Terrace Room. It was a very nice evening enjoyed by all.

Happy birthday July 1 to Jody Chambers and Dean Gillespie Jr. Have a great day.

It was wonderful to see Marian Petersen at the G. Mennen Williams dinner Saturday evening, June 20. She enjoyed meeting and greeting old friends.

Former Town Crier reporter Sean Reavie made a visit to Mackinac Island Tuesday, June 23. Now a police officer in Phoenix, Arizona, Mr. Reavie was graduated from LaSalle High School in St. Ignace and earned a degree in journalism at Central Michigan University. He worked at the Mackinac Island newspaper from 1987 to 1989, when stories were written on a typewriter and then shipped to the mainland by ferry, because Internet wasn't available. He returns to St. Ignace every summer for the St. Ignace Antique Auto Show, which his father, Ed, produces. Lorabeth Fitzgerald is settled in her lovely cottage on the East Bluff with its magnificent view of the Straits of Mackinac. Lorabeth is spending her 48th summer on Mackinac.

A very happy 80th birthday to Herb Roth June 24. He and his wife, Claudette, live in the condominium complex at the Mission.

Almeda and George Bodwin of Manton spent two days at the Iroquois Hotel with their neighbors. They visited their daughter, Jackie Bradley, and family and the Kolatski family.

Mary Wellington of Sault Ste. Marie visited family and friends Sunday, June 14, and enjoyed the Lilac Parade.

Bette Emmons, Joanne Bagbey, and Marti McIntire will celebrate their birthdays July 2. Enjoy your day.

Jody, Robert, and Clara Chambers spent Friday, June 19, at Northwestern

Michigan College in Traverse City. Robert was there for college orientation.

Rick and Margie Parker of Fort Wayne, Indiana, celebrated their 24th wedding anniversary Friday, June 26, at the Chippewa Hotel. They love Mackinac Island and the Town Crier.

Elaine Bila of Colorado Springs, Colorado, is visiting her sister, Rosemary Kompsi. Elaine enjoys Mackinac, and she helps out in the Indian Drum Gift Shop on the Arnold Dock.

We send best wishes to Jack Shaffer, father of Jeff Shaffer, who is hospitalized at Mayo Clinic. We hope to see you on Mackinac soon.

Jackie Bradley and her daughter, Doris, surprised her son, Dennis Jr., on his 40th birthday Saturday, June 20. They drove to New York to be part of a big birthday celebration.

Judge Beth Gibson has returned to her home in Newberry after spending three weeks at Marquette General Hospital. Best wishes for a speedy recovery from Island friends.

Last March, several folks from Mackinac went to Honduras on a medical mission. Friday, June 19, Brother Jim Boynton gathered many of the group together for a reunion at Ste. Anne's Hall. Barb Kovalak and Tim Leeper provided a great meal. Wonderful memories and pictures were exchanged.

Carlton Varney of New York spent the weekend on Mackinac visiting the Musser family at Grand Hotel. Carlton will return for the antique weekend in September.

It was great to see Jane Manoogian with her husband, Richard, at the G. Mennen Williams dinner Saturday evening, June 20. Jane is recovering from a fractured knee. It is so nice to have her back on Mackinac.

We wish Brother Jim Boynton well as he travels to India this summer. He will leave for Haiti in late August for a three-year assignment. Happy birthday to Brother Jim July 3.

Happy birthday June 28 to Mary Jane Neuman of Royal Oak, who is an annual guest at the Windermere Hotel. Mary Jane arrived Monday, June 29, for a couple of weeks. She enjoys attending Tuesday night bingo at the Community Hall and visiting her many Island friends.

Tom and Kathy Lewand are spending a week at their lovely cottage on the East Bluff. Kathy attended the Mackinac Island Community Foundation meeting Saturday, June 20.

Happy birthday June 29 to Paul Fullerton, owner of Great Lakes Air. Hope you had a great day.

We have several news items about wildlife on Mackinac. The big news is that the black crown night herons have returned to the maple trees behind the Windermere Hotel. They are fascinating to watch, and they return to the same spot every year. Many folks reported seeing a mother duck and 20 or 25 little ducklings following her between the Coal Dock and the Main Dock. There also are several duck families around the Little Jewel golf course. Also, on Windermere Point, there are four young geese following their mother.

George Bodwin, Sr. and Bobby Joe Horn will celebrate their birthdays July 4. Have a great day.

Karl and Ilse Schmitt of Detroit were guests of Brian and Barbara Hellis over the weekend. They all attended the G. Mennen Williams dinner Saturday evening.

There is a new addition to Ken and Vanessa Hardy's home. It is a new Dalmatian puppy named Daisy. She will join Suzy Q and the two of them will keep Ken and Vanessa very busy.

The Sheldon Smith family of Washington, D.C., joined friends at the G. Mennen Williams dinner Saturday evening. Sheldon is the former chairman of the Mackinac Island State Park Commission.

Deana and Glenn St. Onge enjoyed lilac weekend on Mackinac.

Happy birthday to Jennifer Putnam July 5. Have a wonderful day.

It was a pleasure once again to welcome my dear friend, Don Kromer, to Mackinac from his home in Rogers City. Don often visits the Island, where he has many friends. Don returned to his parents' home on Mullett Lake Tuesday, June 23, to join in their anniversary celebration.

Jack Landress's Gallery on Market Street is beautifully landscaped, with new flower boxes filled with a variety of flowers. It is most attractive.

Wayne Jungman is visiting Phyllis Dunham at her cottage on French Lane. Wayne is recuperating from a fractured ankle.

John, Mark, and Clara Chambers returned from visiting their mother, Joyce Chambers, in Crivitz, Wisconsin, where she is recuperating from a fractured pelvic bone and shoulder.

Brian Dunnigan arrived Friday, June 26, to spend the weekend with his family at their Easterly Cottage. Brian was the guest speaker at the Mackinac Island Public Library Friday, June 26.

Enjoy the summer temperatures!