This week, under little fanfare, Leelanau County celebrated it’s 150th birthday. That is, on Feb. 27, 1863, the Michigan State Legislature create the county of Leelanau with three townships — Centerville, Glen Arbor and Leelanau. The peninsula that looks like the mitten’s pinky finger had previously been part of Grand Traverse County (along with what is now Benzie County).
The Glen Lake Community Library will host a special story hour featuring Maggie van Galen, author of the new children’s book The Adventures of Keeno & Ernest: the Banana Tree. In this charming picture book, two young jungle friends — a mischievous monkey and a clever elephant — encounter more adventure than they had planned on their search for the perfect banana. This will be a homecoming for the Massachusetts-based author, who grew up in northern Michigan.
A special holiday tradition continues as the Glen Lake Community Library kicks off its 14th annual call for children’s books on Nov. 19. The Friends of the Library, in cooperation with Glen Lake School’s “Parenting Communities” program, are once again collecting donations of new children’s books for children whose families are in need of assistance this holiday season.
Sometime this month, the 1,364,835th visitor to the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore in 2012 will arrive at the Dune Climb, hike to Pyramid Point, or perhaps bike the Heritage Trail and enjoy its stunning autumnal beauty. In doing so, that visitor will officially make this the busiest year ever for the Glen Arbor region, the most profitable for local businesses, and perhaps the most hectic one too.
In addition to the tremendous support provided by donors, the Friends of the Glen Lake Community Library have a more than 30-year tradition of supporting Library programs and collections through their annual fundraiser, the Annual Vintage Book Sale. This three-day event is held in mid-August at the Glen Arbor Township Hall. This year the event, which includes gently used and some new items, will run Aug. 8-10:
They don’t wear their sparkly Wonder Woman suits out in public, or leap tall buildings in a single bound, but the members of southern Leelanau County’s two well-known service clubs are definitely community superheroes. Both the Glen Lake Woman’s Club (GLWC) and the Glen Arbor Women’s Club offer a warm welcome to new members who are seasonal or year-round residents, provide community fellowship and enjoyable social and civic activities that greatly enhance the quality of life for the people of the Glen Lake area as a whole.
The Glen Lake Community Library in Empire will host a series of children’s programs beginning June 23. No advance registration is needed. All programs will take place on Thursdays at 11 a.m. unless otherwise noted.