Leelanau County

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Readers declaim the Declaration of Independence

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One might wonder why people are gathered at the post office in Glen Arbor on the Fourth of July when it is closed. The story is the same across Leelanau County, in Omena, in Empire, in Lake Leelanau. Then promptly at 10 a.m. the reason is revealed. “When, in the course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another,” booms a voice. “And to assume among the powers of the earth,” says another. “The separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitle them,” continues a third. Welcome to the Fourth of July in Leelanau County, where nine people—one at each post office—read aloud the Declaration of Independence.

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DeKornes take Crystal River Polar Plunge

For their 2026 spring break, the DeKorne kids polar plunged in the Crystal River this past weekend. As locals walked by, they said, “You’re definitely first in the river this year! Send to the Sun!” Pictured in this photo are: Kate (10), Klaire (7), Dan, Drew (10) and Jack (7) DeKorne.

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Communities, researchers measure ice thickness on the Great Lakes

Scientists are asking for help from the public this winter to measure how thick the ice is on the Great Lakes and inland lakes. Data submitted by ice fishers and other people who spend time on frozen lakes could improve the models that forecast ice cover on the Great Lakes. Satellites do a good job at capturing how much ice there is, but not how thick it is, according to researchers at the Great Lakes Observing System (GLOS) in Ann Arbor. More data could give researchers insight as to how climate change is altering ice cover in the region and provide important safety information for people out on the ice.

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Meet Me at the Loaf: Leelanau Historical Society celebrates Sugar Loaf stories

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The Leelanau Historical Society, in partnership with Here:Say Storytelling, will present Meet Me at the Loaf: A Celebration of Sugar Loaf in Stories. The Jan. 29 event at Solon Township Hall near Cedar will feature memories and voices connected to one of Leelanau County’s most beloved landmarks: Sugar Loaf Mountain. Doors open at 5:30 pm, offering guests the chance to reconnect with old friends, neighbors, and fellow “Sugar Loafers.” The storytelling program begins at 6:30.

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Afghans assimilate and contribute in Leelanau County

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One man returns home in his pickup truck from his job managing a fruit processing plant near Empire to greet his children as they step off the yellow school bus. Another shares a homemade dinner with his wife and kids, then naps before working the nightshift in the radiology unit at Munson Medical Center. A third man retreats upstairs and uses a hand-me-down sewing machine to mend a customer’s torn Christmas stocking—his side gig to make extra money for his family after he works daytime hours at Spectrum. These could be the stories of any hard-working men in Leelanau County. In fact, they represent the everyday rituals of three Afghan refugees who worked with the U.S. military and then fled for their safety after the Taliban took Kabul and seized power four years ago.

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Leelanau Conservancy reaches $8 million goal to protect Sugar Loaf

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“French toast.” That was the codename that Leelanau Conservancy executive director Tom Nelson created for the top-secret project, 3.5 years in the making, to acquire Sugar Loaf, and turn the County’s once popular ski resort into a community gathering place. The Conservancy announced on July 17 that it will permanently protect the hill and 285-acre property in the heart of Leelanau County and bring this cherished location back to life for the first time in a quarter century. On Sept. 26 the Conservancy announced that it had reached its $8 million fundraising goal. Nelson said that more than 1,100 individuals have donated to the campaign. “This achievement is nothing short of historic,” said Nelson. “And it belongs to all of us. Overwhelming community support has made it possible to reach our $8M goal. We’re thrilled with the support and excitement.”

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Celebrating songs of Leelanau: Chris Skellenger’s “Old Yellow Dog”

Singer-songwriter and guitarist Chris Skellenger, who has played nearly every music venue and hot mic in the County, wrote “Old Yellow Dog” about 30 years ago as an homage to small towns. The song was “inspired by trips I took from college back in the late ’70s, where—to a city kid—Leelanau looked like a place out of a Field & Stream magazine in a barber shop,” said Skellenger. “It was remote and wild. I expected to see a moose! “The roads and beaches were pretty much empty. If you’re too young to have experienced the old Leelanau, you missed something special.” This is part of our ongoing series featuring songs inspired by Leelanau and the Sleeping Bear Dunes.

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Breathing with the Trees: relational forest therapy comes to Leelanau County this summer

Here in Leelanau County, we are no strangers to the health benefits of slowing down and immersing ourselves in nature. Our magnificent forests, lakes and fields are treasured by locals and enjoyed by millions of visitors each year. Spending time in nature supports our physical, mental and emotional well-being. We know it, we feel it, and we live it! But beyond just walking in the woods or getting outdoors, relational forest therapy aims to take the connection and its benefits deeper. This modern mindfulness experience is based on Shinrin-yoku, a Japanese practice of forest bathing which began in the 1980s as the Japanese government’s response to reports of their population’s increasing stress levels.

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Inspired by Gateways Council, Housing North launches housing exchange

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Finding housing in the area has long been a challenge, and it only seems to be getting worse. In response, Housing North is implementing the Housing Exchange Platform, a means for those seeking rentals and those who may have available housing to connect. “It just launched,” says Housing North executive director Yarrow Brown of the effort. The Housing Exchange is a free, community-based tool to be used by both employers seeking housing for their workers and for individuals, connecting them with rental properties, whether that is homes, apartments, ADUs or simply rooms in a home. The platform grew out of a similar effort by the Sleeping Bear Gateways Council. The Leelanau County non-profit recognized the need for rental housing was acute and getting worse. Between low inventories of home for sale and for rent, increasing prices and the trend for homes to be used for more profitable short-term rentals, the Sleeping Bear Gateways Council formed in 2018 to focus on challenges and opportunities in the communities around the National Lakeshore.

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Protecting paradise since 2013: Leelanau County’s Sheriff Mike Borkovich

The very mention of the name “Borkovich” in the region always seems to get a strong reaction, one way or the other, writes author Tim Mulherin in this excerpt from his book “This Magnetic North: Candid Conversations on a Changing Northern Michigan,” which is currently available at local bookstores. “When I told several of my more liberal acquaintances that I would be meeting with the Leelanau County sheriff as part of my research, they greeted the news dismissively, eyes rolling, heads shaking from side to side. Yet my more conservative friends commended me for reaching out to the county’s chief law enforcement officer, collectively giving him plaudits. With such extreme polarities being openly shared, I was eager to meet the man responsible for ‘protecting paradise’. Indeed, Sheriff Mike Borkovich did not disappoint.”

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