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Century Inc. owner wins Chevy Volt in support of Heritage Trail

Bill Janis, CEO of Traverse City-based Century Inc., won the Chevy Volt raffle on Saturday at Cherry Republic. The raffle was held in support of the Sleeping Bear Heritage Trail, a multi-use and bike trail which connects the Dune Climb with Glen Arbor and will one day stretch 27 miles, from the Leelanau-Benzie County Line to Good Harbor. 1,200 tickets were sold, each costing $100, which generated $120,000 for the next portion of the Heritage Trail — the Dune Climb to Empire leg — which advocates hope will be complete by next summer.

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Workers for Charitable Giving at Play in Leelanau

Genuine Leelanau, a nonprofit charitable organization serving children and families of Leelanau County for the past 20 or so years, is hosting their annual gala, the Laundry Party, on Thursday, September 6 at the gracious Simpson home, overlooking Good Harbor Bay. The Laundry Project, GL’s most notable charitable recipient, supplies funds and laundry supplies for families who cannot afford to use a laundromat. Proceeds from the Laundry Party fill the coffers for this project’s annual budget. Tickets are available for $50 each through any GL member. Laundry Party guests will enjoy sumptuous food and drink, the opportunity to bid on two outrageously eclectic birdhouses sculpted by Dewey Blocksma, great community, and a classically fabulous Leelanau view. Party starts at 6 PM, 110 Highland Dr., off M22 behind the Good Harbor Vineyard tasting room. Guests are invited to bring a large box of diapers for the local free pantries. For more information contact GL member Sandra Carden, (231) 256-9027.

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Forthcoming Art of the Sleeping Bear Dunes calls for submissions

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The Leelanau Press, a nonprofit publishing company, is undertaking a major effort to recognize the work of artists who have painted in this unique northern Michigan gem. A future publication, Art of the Sleeping Bear Dunes, and a major exhibition at the Dennos Museum Center at Northwestern Michigan College in Traverse City will celebrate what has recently been media-designated as America’s Most Beautiful Place.

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Mario Batali’s love affair

I first laid eyes on you over a decade ago. My wife, Susi, and I rented a house on a little beach for a week. The next year it was two weeks, the next year three, then four. I couldn’t resist. I was hooked.

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Art’s for the summer: chronicles of a waitress

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Being a waitress is like being a duck. That’s right, a duck. You may look like you are gliding along a placid pond, but underneath the surface you are paddling frantically. No matter how fast the food may fly out of the kitchen you must be there to calmly escort it to the table with a carefree smile. This is not to say that waitressing is a horribly hard job only for the fearless. No, during my time at work I have met some of the most amazing people just by taking their orders. You get to know a person intimately and quickly by what they choose to order. You can tell a person’s temperament by how impatient they seem for their food. You can judge character by the way that they treat the waitress, me.

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Letter from Istanbul

Who would have thought that Istanbul would remind me so much of where I grew up above Sleeping Bear Bay? Everywhere you turn there’s a vista of turquoise water; and a pinkish tinge to the light, that I’ve never seen anywhere except on the Leelanau. If I don’t stop and think for a minute, the Bosporus and the Golden Horn, could almost be the Manitou Passage and Pyramid Point.

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Harvest Stompede Vineyard Run & Walk celebrates flavor of Leelanau Peninsula

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The 11th annual Harvest Stompede Vineyard Run & Walk and Wine Tour is a great way to experience the beauty of the Leelanau Wine Trail at harvest time, with local food pairings and wine from the exceptional 2011 vintage. The event takes place the weekend of Sept. 8-9 and is considered one of the most scenic running & wine touring events in the Midwest.

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Searching for Sleeping Bear artists

The Leelanau Press is searching for artists who painted the Sleeping Bear Dunes and surrounding landscapes before 1970 for possible inclusion in the historical preface for its 2013 publication, The Art of the Sleeping Bear Dunes. Several artists known to have painted in the area include Frank Dillon, Fred Dickinson, Mathias Alten, Charles Vickery, Charles Hetherington, Mary Moore, Kit Miller Knowles, Harry Weese, Sue Frank, Clarence Brower and Kay Smith.

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Leelanau School’s Lanphier Observatory sees heavenly bodies

“What’s the most amazing thing you’ve ever seen with this telescope?” asks a visitor to the Leelanau School’s Lanphier Observatory. My stock answer is another question: “You mean in the sky, or on the beach?”

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Empire Area Historical Group celebrates 40 years

What do a horsehide sleigh blanket, Liz Shimek’s basketball jersey, a Civil War sword and scabbard, and an entire one-room schoolhouse all have in common? All have a story to tell of their time and place in southern Leelanau’s collective past, and all form just a fraction of the collection of the Empire Area Heritage Group, now celebrating its 40th year.

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