Touring Burdickville’s art studios

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Art is often encountered in curated stillness—hushed in museums, framed behind velvet ropes, and stripped from the context of its making. But what happens when we encounter art at its source, in the textured, paint-splattered, light-filled rooms where imagination finds form? That spirit of transparency, invitation, and intimacy echoes here in Leelanau County in the quiet corner of Burdickville. Along Bow, Lanham, and Fritz Roads, a small but vibrant community of artists has embarked on something extraordinary: opening the doors of their studios to the public. They have come together under the banner of the Burdickville Studio Tour—11 artists inviting visitors into the heart of their creative process over Memorial Day weekend.

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Celebrating songs of Leelanau: Jeff Maharry’s “Good Harbor Bay”

Our story series celebrating songs inspired by Leelanau County and the Sleeping Bear Dunes continues with Illinois resident and summer visitor Jeff Maharry’s homage to Good Harbor Bay. “For years my family has come to Leelanau County in early August and have explored just about every point where you can access Lake Michigan,” said Maharry, a singer songwriter and musician from Homewood, Illinois, near Chicago. He performs solo as well as with his band Falling Stars. “There are amazing spots across the whole peninsula, but there’s something just perfect about Good Harbor Bay so we find ourselves going back there again and again. I wrote this song in the summer of 2010 after we spent a simply wonderful day on the beach, and I can hear the waves and feel the sun on my face every time I sing it.”

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Lively Market, campground continue growing

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As the Lively NeighborFood Market on M-72 east of Empire prepares to enter year two, owner Jim Lively continues to build on its success by increasing the store’s stock, as well as making improvements at the campground. Don’t forget the music, and it just recently received word that funding for its solar array has been approved. Lively will host the inaugural Neighbor Fest on May 25. Lively says the free show is a way to give back to the community that has supported the market, including those who donated through the GoFundMe crowdfunding effort. The show will also serve as the monthly fundraising concert for the Empire Area Emergency Fund.

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Oomen-Yamasaki collaboration features “Innocents in Peril”

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“If art heightens our awareness or makes us more conscious of the victims of wrongdoing, then maybe we move the needle,” as writer Anne-Marie Oomen said, “one iota of one iota.” The artistic collaboration between award-winning photographer Taro Yamasaki and writer Anne-Marie Oomen—both Leelanau County residents—strives to do just that. Their exhibit, titled Innocents in Peril, is now displayed in the Erie room at the State Library of Michigan in Lansing. The exhibit consists of 22 of Yamasaki’s award-winning photographs and oral histories paired with 19 of Oomen’s poems, inspired by the photographs. The exhibit features Yamasaki’s photographs of children surviving conditions of war or living under oppressive regimes. Yamasaki’s photographs of innocents ravaged by war, disease, natural disasters, and the cruelty of tyrants, will also be featured on May 13 at the Dennos Museum’s Milliken Auditorium at Northwestern Michigan College in Traverse City. The free event, which commemorates achievements by Asian American and Pacific Islander communities, is titled “Speaking truth to power,” and runs from 5-8 pm.

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Community pillar Tricia Denton faces challenges of her own

Imagine putting in the interminable work required to face down alcoholism and maintain your sobriety for 30 years. Through that journey, you mentor dozens of other women in the throes of their own addiction recovery. Now imagine your world is rocked by a rare neurodegenerative disease called Primary Lateral Sclerosis (PLS) that, among other cruel symptoms, causes your speech to slur. Most people would feel justified in reacting with anger or indignation but not Tricia Denton of Maple City. “I just found it humorous. We always have the opportunity to turn those situations into teaching and awareness opportunities,” she says with remarkable grace. Click here to read more, and find a link to support Denton’s GoFundMe campaign.

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Never forget: son of Holocaust survivors shares family story with local schools

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Leelanau County resident Michael Klachefsy, who was born in Germany in 1947, has shared his parents’ Holocaust survival story with local school classes, including at Glen Lake and Leelanau School. On the 80th anniversary of VE Day—the end of the Second World War in Europe, the Sun is sharing his family’s story.

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Celebrating songs of Leelanau: Seth Bernard’s instrumental ode to the Manitou Islands

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Our story series celebrating songs inspired by Leelanau County and the Sleeping Bear Dunes continues with Seth Bernard’s “Manitou,” an instrumental that he wrote in June 2019 during a residency sponsored by the Old Art Building in Leland. “I wrote this simple piece on acoustic guitar looking out over the islands near Van’s Beach around sundown,” said Bernard. “It’s a little magic carpet ride to that peaceful, serene, early summer Leelanau sunset vibe. Bernard returns to the Old Art Building on April 24 at 7 pm for an Earth Week-themed concert.

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Bookstore, cultural haven coming to Cedar

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What would you call a cozy retail shop that sells books, plants and art? Oh, it also hosts music and some craft workshops. Don’t forget the occasional food truck, and whatever else Rachel Zemanek dreams up. Unsure what to call it? Zemanek calls it a snuggery. The dictionary definition is “a cozy or comfortable place,” which is just what she intends it to be. “It combines my love of nature and books,” Zemanek says. You can also call it The Folded Leaf, because that’s what she’s calling it. She named it for the way some people mark their place in a book. The fact that those are also the organs of a plant that provide sustenance is a happy coincidence. The Folded Leaf is located at 9044 S Kasson Street, across from the Cedar Tavern. Cedar’s newest retail entry is scheduled to open April 26.

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Remembering “Water Warrior” Holly Bird

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Holly T. Bird, a local attorney, indigenous activist, and member of the Traverse City Area Public Schools Board of Education—and whose family had roots on Little Glen Lake—joined the ancestors on April 3. Bird was co-executive director of TitleTrack and advocated for everything from indigenous visibility and racial justice, to clean water and energy, to LGTBQ+ rights. A proud member of the Thunder Clan, she traced her heritage from Apache, Yaqui, and Perépucha Tribes and joined the Standing Rock protests against the Dakota Access Pipe Line in North Dakota in 2016. Click here to read the poignant note Bird wrote to her friend, now State Rep. Betsy Coffia, in September 2018.

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Remembering longtime Glen Arbor custodian Leonard Thoreson

Longtime Glen Arbor custodian Leonard Ole Thoreson, passed away on March 15 at age 98. Thoreson was born on November 28, 1926, in Port Oneida (on the Thoreson Farm). As a young boy his father worked the fields with horses until he purchased the Ford Tractor that is on the farm today. A lifelong resident of Leelanau County, Thoreson served in the U.S. Army during World War II and was a dedicated member of St. Philip Neri Catholic Church.

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