Your Tax Refund Can Make History. That’s the message that prompted 17,391 Ohioans to contribute a portion of their 2011 state income tax refund to the Ohio Historical Society last year, making $114,000 available for a new competitive matching grants program that helps fund projects by local historical societies and related organizations throughout the state.

During Ohio’s annual Statehood Day observance at the Statehouse in Columbus yesterday, 11 recipients of History Fund Grants made possible by last year’s contributions were announced.  Eden Valley Enterprises, Elyria, was awarded $15,000 in a matching grant for support of a PBS documentary about Emma “Grandma” Gatewood, an ordinary Ohioan who overcame adversity and became extraordinary through her hikes of the Appalachian Trail in the 1950s and 1960s. Gatewood’s inspiring story will broaden understanding of what the Women’s Movement, fitness and successful aging means.

We are very excited about this wonderful opportunity. With your help this matching grant gives us the ability to get Emma’s story on the big screen!

No this is not a stock broker tip, or insurance policy update. This is about our village of Put-in-Bay and what we hope it will resemble years from now as development continues to reshape our community. Over the past years as prosperity revisited the island a repeated concern has been voiced about the look and feel of the Village of Put-in-Bay. Not just the buildings, but also the green spaces, parking lots, signage and color palettes.

We know that visitors come here because of a certain, sometimes hard to describe, charm the island has, but recent development has added many unfamiliar elements to our landscape. We have introduced various styles of modern and “foreign” architectural patterns to the mix. So what is the “look” of Put-in-Bay? Is it Victorian or nautical? Do we like Italianate or Queen Anne styling? Is Gothic board and batten or Cape Cod clapboard more of what we think of when we describe our town? Is the essence of our charm the Victorian era homes and winemaking traditions or Key West style tiki bars and Western motifs or all of the above?

 
Quite often people ask, “What can we do” to help shape our towns future development. We looked into this and quite by accident found the Kent State University Urban Design Collaborative. This group provides a process to help find some of the answers to the questions we ask about what makes us feel good about where we live. Sometimes the simplest things like green space and business signage can help bring together the “signals” of a place we enjoy visiting.

 
So we are very lucky to have professors Terry Schwartz and David Jurca leading a team of 28 students in a design charrette. They will come to the island with the express goal of reflecting our desires and hopes for a future definition of what the “Put-in-Bay” palette is. This is not a set of rules and regulations, but a systematic cataloging of materials, paints, siding choices and patterns we like. Its defining the green space and building designs, patios and public spaces we find appealing and putting it into a comprehensive design resource.

Do you want to get involved, share your likes or dislikes? Now, finally you have the opportunity. Over the weekend of October 19th-22nd the Kent State students will produce a comprehensive report on the patterns and future growth initiatives we want to adopt. Your input is essential to this process. Be involved in the future of the town YOU want to live in. The opening session will be Friday October 19th from 10:30am-noon and subsequent feedback sessions will be held Saturday and Sunday with a final report be presented Monday morning at the village council meeting. It’s time to get involved.

It is hard for many visitors coming to Put-in-Bay to believe that an island like South Bass does not have a sandy beach. And in fact it did. 50 years ago, a beautiful sand beach at the end of Delaware Ave. (the main street downtown) was the envy of the islands. There was a bathhouse and wonderful sand to play in, sun bathe or just enjoy a leisurely swim. But over the years it fell into complete disarray. No sand, no kids, no beach, no fun!

But there is hope on the way. The Put-in-Bay Garden Club! Garden club? Yes really the Garden club. It was mid summer 2009, and a garden club was just a lunchtime daydream fantasy; Some friends sitting around talking smack about annuals versus perennials thinking out loud about why it might be fun to have a garden club on South Bass. Sally Duffy, the Put-in-Bay Garden Club founder thought “hey if they’re serious I’ll put a notice in the paper”.
It turns out if you print it they will come. The next month 35 like-minded people from plant killers (like me) to master gardeners got together at The Goat Soup and Whisky Restaurant. A month later they had officers and a mission; “Beautification of Public Lands”.
Of course beach restoration was not the first thing on the clubs “to do” list, the industrious group’s first task was to take on a visible public beautification project. So they raised money and purchased heavy wire baskets for the antique light poles surrounding DeRivera Park in the center of the Village. In May of 2010, a gaggle of volunteers descended on the Park installed, planted, fertilized and watered the new pole mounted flower baskets.

So now when you visit the island this summer you may notice that the difference between “just ok” and “wow” on the streets of Put-in-Bay is really those beautiful flower baskets. It takes a lot of love and dedicated volunteers like Kelly and Marti Farris, Bob and Diane Smith, Kim Stoiber, Skip Morrison, the Leopolds, Doug and Mary Meyers, Laureen Mooney (and so many more) to keep them alive especially during a drought like we had in 2010 and 2011.
But the club did not rest on their Laurels and Petunias alone. No, they decided to do something amazing. Take on the lost Sandy Beach at the end of Delaware. In August of 2010 the club learned about the “Adopt a beach” initiative started by the Alliance for the Great Lakes (http://www.greatlakes.org/). A group of Put-in-Bay Garden Club members and interested community folks got together, funded by a small grant from Barefoot Wines, took the first step and cleaned up the beach of the accumulated flotsam and jetsam that had piled up over the past decades. Finally you could see the sand from the muck.

A garden club group led by Jody Frimel, long time summer resident and owner of the Mill Hollow Nursery in Vermilion, took this process one step further in 2011. They formulated a plan for the beaches restoration and worked with Liz Knauer to write a grant under the state of Ohio’s “Nature Works” program administered by the ODNR. (The grant for 22k was awarded to the Village of Put-in-Bay this year).
On a warm Saturday morning last July members of the garden club and the Black Swamp Conservancy converged on the Delaware Avenue beach with shovels, rakes and other implements of reconstruction including heavy equipment loaned by Put-in-Bay Investments. With “technical help” from Lee Krendl and Craig Cox, they cleaned, sifted, moved and re-graded the beach. The group removed a dilapidated chain link fence and created a new live fence with a Yucca variety known as “Adam’s Needle” and Switch Grass. They planted 45 bushes and set the course for this year’s next phase.

With the awarded grant funds “in the bank” and a master plan created by the garden club in hand, the Village of Put-in-Bay now will take on a recurring drainage problem that has caused the constant erosion of beach sand. A new swale and increased drainage will now be installed that will divert the rainwater away from the beach. Regular maintenance, a large planter, and additional plantings will be part of this year’s sandy beach upgrade spearheaded by Jody Frimel, the Village of Put-in-Bay and the Garden Club.

Sally (McMonagle) Duffy, the current president of the garden club, spent summers as a child in the cottage compound once owned by Leona Blocker, adjacent to the Delaware Avenue beach. She has fond memories of the beach, and working at the old bathhouse with Viv Ladd. Three years ago when Sally ‘got this party started’ she joked that her mom would be rolling in her grave knowing that Sally, whose best previous effort was regularly avoiding having one, had started a garden club.

You can’t help but smile seeing what they all have accomplished in just three short years. I guess it really doesn’t take a green thumb to bring a little beauty to your community, just some vision and a rake. The Put-in-Bay Garden Club continues to grow (ouch)! Special projects like the phenology garden, seminars on xeriscaping, and summer home garden tours, keeps the members planting new dreams. So this summer bring your sunscreen, shovel and bucket. They’re building sand castles again in Put-in-Bay.

Over last summer many folks urged me to write about the traffic problems here on the island. I, in fact, resemble that problem, and perhaps am slightly even responsible for your delayed arrival to some appointed destination this summer. I am sure that not many of you can say that you got stopped this summer for going too slow. I did. But In my own defense I was waiting for passengers to catch up to the train as we left the depot. I could see them in my rear view mirror running to catch up, and I didn’t want to responsible for any heart attacks. But none the less the police informed me that I might be hindering traffic, I think “obstructing” was the term used, but from my point of view, “bringing the island to its knees” might have been closer to correct. That was my plan all along.

One island driver this summer offered me this advice, “ Third world vehicle right of way rules apply here; the bigger the vehicle the more people will get out of your way.” Not bad advice, but until you have spent some quality time sitting in traffic around LA, Boston or New York, you can’t really appreciate the wonderful aspects of driving on this island. I mean, in LA they at least have 24-7 talk radio traffic stations to help you on your way. Here we have loud speakers with live music, wandering pedestrians just trying to get home and no one even thinks to look where they walk. You don’t hear about that during the morning news, no sir.

No, here on the island I’m talking Traffic Jams with a capital T. Nothing in New York compares to the three minutes of total mayhem on Concord and Catawba at lunchtime on a school day. Or how about the first few minutes after the ferry arrives at the Lime-Kiln dock late Friday afternoon? Cabs lined up to the lighthouse, the buses trying to load unsuspecting passengers and pedestrians scattering everywhere, all of them in our way, as we just try to drive home.

And then, how about the lemmings, I mean, visitors, that parade, zombie-like, off the Fox Dock across State Route 357 on a Saturday morning. Hundreds of blank stares following unknowing leaders just looking for coffee or the closest food establishment. They can really bring the downtown to a stop for minutes on end. But, is there any traffic gridlock greater than the Sunday afternoon old car parade? I mean this one rocks. One day, and I am not making this up, there were old cars going into the winery, and out of the Cave in both directions. Half the parade trying to get to the winery while the other half was trying to get to the Goat. I guarantee this would have confounded even the best traffic engineer in the world.

But yet, I am still a bigger slowdown than all of them combined. No one else takes the time to look around, to see the beauty of the island anymore. That’s my job. Go slow, look around, and talk about the past. So many islanders hurry here and there, so busy they don’t even get to stop and look around during the summer months. So it is my job to go very, very, very slowly. Who else will do it? I do it so that the visitors can drink it all in, and see what it is that we like about this place.

Now, I love my car, and think nothing of getting into it and driving from our driveway to the school. Matter of fact, it appears that we all love our cars and we need to drive them even if it is just for 500 yards and back. Don’t get in the way of progress. As I race for the boat with two minutes to departure time, I need room to move, space to park, and no wicked slow drivers in my way.

So the next time you have a chance, stand and watch the traffic on Langram on a summer day. As a traffic lover I recommend you do, because it is a thing of beauty. On a busy afternoon, you’ll see the buses weaving to and fro, the 6 and eight passenger golf carts being prodded forward every so slowly in a “Row, row, row, your boat” fashion, and the mopeds darting haphazardly in and out of it all. Look more closely and you’ll see me. I’m the one with all the cars stacked up behind, all desperately hoping to pass. It’s a thing of beauty, a work of traffic art. We own it. I love it. Now drive carefully, please!

Turns out Joe’s Navy training would help shape his life’s work. After being honorably discharged in 1976, Joe started working in, or with, several rock bands, got married, had a daughter, and worked day-jobs while performing at night. He was living the “rock and roll” dream. The long hours finally took their toll and in 1989 Joe decided to go back to school. He entered the Art Institute of Pittsburgh’s Music and Video Production and Business School and two years later had his degree in Applied Sciences. Then he went back to school again at ITT Technical Institute. Getting an Electronic Engineering degree while graduating with highest honors (3.994 GPA). After graduation he helped form Stage Left Productions, Inc. and worked as a performer, technician, and sound engineer. In 1999 Joe came to Put-in-Bay to perform his one-man “Joe Show”. He caught island fever and by summer’s end he had decided to move here permanently.

Today Joe is not only a skilled musician, he’s a lighting director, sound engineer, actor and director and now a theatrical writer. Joe will tell you that winter on South Bass can be very quiet. So in the spring of 2002 he acted in his first stage play since high school called “An Evening of Culture”. Smitten by the acting bug, Joe has acted, done lighting and music design for our Dramatic Society every year since. In 2007 he started directing, with the full-length play – “The Face on the Barroom Floor”. His new play was borne out of frustration in trying to find great Community Theater level productions that are fun to act in.

His inspiration for “Finding Felix” is Neil Simon’s classic – “The Odd Couple”. Like many of us, he was a big fan of Felix and Oscar, characters in the play and later in the popular TV sitcom. The setting for “Finding Felix” is a small mid-western town. The story involves a community theatre troupe that enlists the aid of a visiting Broadway director. When the “Broadway legend” takes over he brings on his “favorite Broadway actress”, and the troupe is subjected to a series of insensitive illogical cast changes, tantrums, additional auditions, and on and on…As Joe notes in his press release about the play, “Throw in a mob boss and his henchman, a gold-digger, the town drunk; mix thoroughly, and hilarity ensues.”

As you can imagine Joe is very excited about his new comedy. The Put-in-Bay Arts Council hopes you will join Joe and the our talented Put-in-Bay Dramatic Society for “Finding Felix” at the Put-in-Bay Opera House. The curtain goes up Thursday April 12th at 7:30 and run for three nights, April 12,13,and 14th. Break a leg!

 
The Columbus Dispatch had an article a few weeks back about 20 students at Wilmington College who took part in a voluntary study where they had to give up their cell phones, computers and television for 24 hours. About 15 hours into the study two of the students were rushed to the hospital after having extreme anxiety attacks. Technology is that addictive.

 
Do you remember “Get Smart’s” Cone of Silence? If you’re a baby boomer or perhaps a Steve Correll fan you may be familiar with the “Cone of Silence”. Max and the Chief would lower the “cone” to have a top-secret discussion or argument. Then after they were done they would retract the cone and pretend as is nothing happened. Well I like to think of our cars as that “cone of silence”.

 
Many of us embrace the idea that some how when we’re on the phone in our car it magically navigates for us and no one “notices” that we are completely distracted as we chat or text. Think, “picking your nose”, but with far greater implications and potential danger. Last month I was in downtown Columbus crossing High Street in a marked crosswalk with the pedestrian “Walk” light lit when a young lady in an SUV on her cell phone started to make a left turn (on red no less!) She just about ran me over. She never blinked, just keep on going as I dodged her car hood!

 
The American Psychological Association released a study, which asked the question “when people do two things at once, are they being more efficient or wasting time?” Their study in the Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance (Vol. 27, No. 4) indicates that multitasking may actually be less efficient–especially for complicated or unfamiliar tasks–because it takes extra time to shift mental gears every time a person switches between the two tasks.

In a letter Lord Chesterfield wrote to his son in the 1740s, he offered the following advice: “There is time enough for everything in the course of the day, if you do but one thing at once, but there is not time enough in the year, if you will do two things at a time.” To Chesterfield, singular focus was not merely a practical way to structure one’s time; it was a mark of intelligence. “This steady and undissipated attention to one object is a sure mark of a superior genius; as hurry, bustle, and agitation, are the never-failing symptoms of a weak and frivolous mind.”

Let’s face it; humans are not really capable of multilevel processing or multitasking as it is called. The truth is we are really linear thinking beings that are the most effective when we focus on doing one task at a time. Though we’re loath to admit it, multitasking inevitably takes longer and may even put us in harms way. That’s why when we walk and talk/text (or drive) we are often oblivious to things happening around us. I know you’ve seen it your self, but as evidence of this problem, I point out the viral You Tube video sensation last winter where a young woman is texting as she walks though a mall. She walks right into the Mall fountain. She get’s completely soaked, climbs out and continues on her way as if nothing happened.

 
Don’t think that just because we live on a small island that we some how immune from this behavior. If I had a dollar for every summer worker I saw last summer walking and texting like zombies I would be rich. Just spend a morning near the school during drop off and pick up and I guarantee you will see multiple cars with distracted drivers passing by. Survival requires you keep your senses sharp, and check for the glazed look in their eyes as they stare down at the phone.

 
Driving, walking and other “pedestrian activities” now require a new level of vigilance to avoid the “comatose cell phone addicted”. We are not doing a good job of curbing our behavior so it will be just a matter of time before laws will be enacted to limit our cell phone use. Several states have already launched “Driving while distracted” campaigns. Nine states ban all use of hand held cell phones while driving, 35 have outlawed texting. That does not help here in Ohio where we have no cell phone use laws, yet, that will save us from the distracted drivers and walkers. Cell phone addiction is rampant and we just can’t help ourselves.

Launching of the USS Arizona

On the morning of December 7th as first light scattered across the picturesque beaches of Honolulu Hawaii, my cousin, Raymond Richar was on watch at his targeting station in gun turret number one aboard the USS Arizona. The Arizona, commissioned in 1916, was the pride of the Brooklyn Navy Yard. The low flying Japanese Zeros flew in nearly undetected that morning catching our fleet napping in snug confines of Pearl Harbor. In mere minutes the Japanese attack had landed a blow that would take 1,177 lives and launch America into a world war. The bomb dropped on the USS Arizona’s forward turret was a direct hit and left it defenseless and sinking.

“Yesterday, December 7, 1941 – a date which will live in infamy – The United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan…with the unbounded determination of our people – we will gain the inevitable triumph – so help us God.”

The grim yet inspiring words of President Roosevelt rallied a shattered America. Able-bodied young men and women across the country rushed to enlist hoping they would have the opportunity to defend our precious freedoms, many came from right here on our Bass islands.

I never knew my cousin Raymond, but Dec 7th has always been a day of keen importance, honor and remembrance for me and my family. This month marks the auspicious 70th anniversary of America’s entry into World War II, first with Japan on December 8th and then with Nazi Germany and Italy on December 12th. As we reflect back on those men and women who served their nation under such difficult circumstances, their sense of duty, honor and service should be touchstones for our generation.

“This generation of Americans has a rendezvous with destiny.”–Franklin Delano Roosevelt
In Tom Brokaw’s book “The Greatest Generation” he comments on this galvanizing moment, “Millions of men and women were involved in this tumultuous journey through adversity and achievement, despair and triumph. Certainly … this generation did have a “rendezvous with destiny” that went well beyond the outsized expectations of President Roosevelt when he first issued that call to duty in 1936.”

Growing up in a suburb outside Columbus, I worked during the summer cutting the lawns of my neighbors. It was a great job for a kid, but often a lesson in learning as well. One of my customers was a fellow named Oscar P Snyder, that’s Major General Oscar P Snyder, Retired! General Snyder was my toughest critic, he made certain that I cut, raked and bagged his grass, pulled the weeds, and neatly trimmed the tall edge grass not gotten by the mower with his rusty hand clippers (there were no gas powered weed-whackers then). My hand still hurts thinking about that rusty clipper.

A decorated soldier and a dentist, General Snyder rose to Assistant Surgeon General of the Army. Often after I was done with his lawn he would sit with me, as we sipped on a cold glass of lemonade, and tell me stories of his time in Europe and the Pacific with the likes of Patton, Eisenhower and MacArthur. He was THE dentist for the high command. I can only imagine the stories he couldn’t tell me as he peered into the depths of Eisenhower or Patton’s cavity prone teeth drill in hand!

Although he was a “tough customer”, General Snyder instilled in me the importance of a job well done. I learned first hand from him the lesson of duty, honor, and pride in my work. So often we live among people like General Snyder and yet may be unaware of their past service and life’s story. But interestingly, when we get to know them, these stalwart members of our community make a lasting impression on us.

Sadly, these humble, duty driven men and women who sacrificed so much for us are disappearing as I write. Let’s take time now to honor the sacrifices of those few remaining veterans among us, especially those here right here in Put-in-Bay. The list (to the best of my ability) of surviving Bass Islands WWII vets that served with distinction includes Bob Engle, Louis Heineman, Bill Massie, Don McIlrath, Bob Ramsbottom, Larry Ripich, Bob Schmidt, Ray Stoney, Ray Traverso, and Jack Whelan.

So on this 70th anniversary I want to especially honor these men among us who are the last of their generation. Let’s take time to listen and learn from them the lifelong lessons of service and honor they bring to our community. As Tom Brokaw so poignantly explained “It is, I believe, the greatest generation any society has ever produced”. (A special thanks to Ted Hiles for suggesting this story idea.)

Prior to this laws passing, it was not permissible to have a handgun in an establishment that serves alcohol. Now, under this new law, permitted concealed weapons owners can go into any establishment that serves alcohol without disclosing if they are carrying a handgun. The law does state however, that these permitted people with handguns are not allowed to drink while in these bars and restaurants if they are carrying a concealed weapon.

The problem is that in an environment like ours were drinking establishments and a good time comprise a large amount of our island commerce it just may be a very tall order to expect that these tourists with concealed weapons will not be tempted or succumb to having a drink or more while here. Under this new law a restaurant or bar owner that permits concealed weapons in their establishment has no way to take action unless they, or a reliable witness (i.e. employee) actually sees that there is a concealed weapon being carried by a person who is drinking in their establishment. The new law does allow an establishment the right to voluntarily exclude weapons in their bar or restaurant if they post a sign that informs patrons that it is a “no gun” zone.

By doing this the State of Ohio leaves the decision up to the businesses whether to restrict guns in their establishment. If an establishment posts a “no gun” sign the customer is given direct knowledge about the establishment’s decision to exclude weapons thus “ensuring” the rights of a citizen to choose which establishments to patronize.

But enforcement now is more complicated. It is my understanding that under the old law any handgun owner carrying a gun, permitted to carry a concealed weapon or not, was not allowed in a bar or restaurant where alcohol was served. If the police were called to a gun related incident at a drinking establishment they had the ability to enforce the law without regards to whether the person involved had a permit to carry a concealed weapon or not.

Now, under the new law, when a call to the police is made, first the police must determine if the person indicated has a permit to carry (federal and state laws mandate a registry for all people permitted to carry a concealed weapon). Then they must perform a sobriety test before they can consider arresting or removing that person from the establishment for a violation related to the gun owners conduct. So in thinking through your position on this issue, I suggest you ask the police their opinion. Take the time and talk with those tasked with enforcing this law.

As I mentioned, bar and restaurant owner’s do have a choice, they can voluntarily post a “no gun” zone sign on the outside of their bar or restaurant. In a season as short as ours, no one wants to exclude or limit people’s personal liberties, or discourage potential patrons so this may create a dilemma for some of our island business owners. Private businesses are free to allow or restrict whatever activity they feel is appropriate in their own establishments, but I think we must embrace the fact that we are a popular summer destination for many people who imbibe to excess, some come with handguns.

We presently give tacit permission to law enforcement to use concealed weapons to better serve our community needs for public safety. But in my opinion we should not give permission, implied, tacit or otherwise, to individuals with concealed weapons in environments where alcohol is served. If you don’t agree with that point of view, if you believe the 2nd amendment’s “right to bear arms” extends to having concealed weapons in public bars and restaurants then you should continue to assert your opinion by frequenting establishments that do allow concealed weapons.

I am a supporter of the right to bear arms, but having a concealed weapon carry permit and being allowed to take that concealed handgun into bar is not in my estimation a fundamental liberty, it is a privilege. For me, the simple answer is to encourage our local business owners to post a “no gun” zone. It’s complicated, but I would prefer to assert my right to “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness” by frequenting establishments that post “no gun” zones.

Next year starts the beginning of a three-year observance of the War of 1812 and September 10, 2013 is the bicentennial of Commodore Perry’s decisive victory over the British. Ohio was a crucial part of this American story of independence and Put-in-Bay was the focal point for the turning point in this Lake Erie (Ohio) story. While other locations, like Fort Meigs (near Perrysburg), had critical roles in the war, Put-in-Bay was the launch point for Commodore Perry’s effort to defeat the British, and the turning point in the War of 1812.

Amazingly, the War of 1812 is mostly just a brief footnote in our children’s history lessons about the Revolutionary War. But unlike the Revolution, the War of 1812 gave the US standing among our allies as a country to reckon with, to finally be able to defend ourselves and ensure and preserve the hard fought independence we gained 30 years before. The Battle of Lake Erie, sometimes over looked in some scholarly accounts of the war, was the first successful defense of our country by the US Navy and the first strategic win by the US Navy ever.

Just over the border, our Canadian friends are way ahead of us on telling this history story. And while their version is told from a different perspective it is apparent to tourists visiting there that Canada embraces the fact that the War of 1812 established their own sovereignty and the borders that now define their country. A recent trip to the northern shore of Lake Erie revealed that this history and the long term peaceful co-existence with the US are not just relevant to Canadians but to their collective tourism plans for the next several years. Re-enactments, special events, concerts and documentaries about the war are all part of the governments remembrance of the war.

But for many, this battle and the subsequent story as it relates to US History has been reduced to “Never Give Up the Ship” and “We have met the enemy and they are ours”. But we have a chance to bring this story to a much larger audience over the next few years collectively and individually. There is no reason why we can’t actively market this legacy and promote our standing among other important turning points in US History.

Last month, In the ceremony to commemorate the anniversary of the Battle of Lake Erie, Congresswoman Marci Kaptur remarked that the painting “Battle of Lake Erie” by Ohio artist William Henry Powell is emblazoned on the wall outside the doors of the Senate wing of congress. It is an ever-present reminder of this epoch event. A companion piece is in the Rotunda of the Ohio Statehouse. These paintings remind our state and federal representatives that this battle was key to the growth and security of America. The next two years are our moment, our American legacy to share.

It started right here, 200 years ago. So we need to share this legacy of peace, and the heroic efforts of the men of our young Navy. I am hopeful that by the start of 2012 we will have a concerted and coordinated effort underway to share and promote this event and create collateral materials, books, movies, re-enactments, T shirts and posters for our summer guests to experience, share and take home with them.

 We have created an alliance with our local Put-in-Bay Chamber, the National Park Service and The Perry Group to ensure that this message is coordinated and promoted. Local businesses are now ready to rally behind this idea. Tell your friends, this is a once in a life time opportunity to become involved. Be a part of the story. If you have questions or ideas give me a call. 419-285-2491 or check out our website at http://www.battleoflakeerie-bicentennial.com.