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A Laker Shake-up

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The name conjures up a certain image for generations, both summertime vacationers and long-term residents. Ice cream and shakes of course, but also coffee, sandwiches, souvenirs and all the other items Laker Shakes is known for. The ice cream-and-more shop on the south end of Glen Lake, a five-minute walk from Old Settlers Park, has been a fixture for decades. Kate Alger is making sure that continues. “I always had a dream of being part of the community, serving the community,” Alger says. A longtime summer visitor and resident, Alger purchased Laker Shakes from owner Ellen O’Neill earlier this year. She and her husband Brad have been visiting the area since 2011. “We’re excited.”

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Their luck is our luck: Cultural Exchange workers help local businesses

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Thanks to the U.S. Department of State’s J-1 visa Cultural Exchange program, Empire and Glen Arbor businesses have a rich diversity of young folks from all over the world working here through the busy summer season. Cherry Republic and Anderson’s Market in Glen Arbor have staff from countries including Turkey, Jordan, and China working through August and into the fall. So do smaller businesses including Grocer’s Daughter Chocolate in Empire and Laker Shakes in Burdickville. In honor of Labor Day, we profiled a few of those J-1 workers.

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The character(s) of Burdickville

Burdickville, the hamlet on the southeast edge of Big Glen Lake, is full of history and characters. And if this area is the most beautiful in America, Burdickville may be the local enclave with the most charm.

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Laker Shakes

The venerable Burdickville destination, on the east side of Big Glen Lake, has been owned and operated by Richard Hargreaves since 1987. The white-haired, slender proprietor, familiar to two generations of ice cream lovers, served up his final cone in 2008, before handing his well-worn scoop over to Laker Shakes’ new owners, sisters Ellen and Mary O’Neill.

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