Ottawa County Commissioners Mark Stahl and Steve Arndt will have some important company this Wednesday when they hold their Campaign Kickoff at Catawba Island Club from 7 to 9 p.m. Ohio Republican Chairman Bob Bennett and long-time State Rep. Randy Gardner will also be on hand for the event.
In his invitation letter to potential attendees, Arndt had this to say: “Mark Stahl and I care about the people and community of Ottawa County. We enjoy the satisfaction that comes from balancing our budget, working with people, counties and the State of Ohio on projects that improve our economy and quality of life.” Arndt also points to the combined total of 40 years of experience.

This year’s contest is open to all boys and girls that are Ottawa County residents age 0-12 and will be held at Adams Street Park at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, July 4. In case of rain, it will be held at St. John Lutheran Church, at the corner of Second and Adams streets in Port Clinton.
Participants are asked to don their red, white and blue for the occasion.
New this year is an optional “most photogenic” contest, which will be judged based on photographs sent in with the applications. These will be judged separately prior to July 4th, and awards will be given at the afternoon ceremonies. Registration deadline for the “most photogenic” contest is June 30, and Firecracker Cutie contest applications are due the day of the event. Firecracker Cutie Applications will be accepted on the 4th starting at 9:15 a.m.

Dave Ninke of Dream Works Entertainment, from Oak Harbor, returns to the stage with his voice, guitar and other musical accessories at Riverfront Live! The free summer concert series is held each Friday at 6:30 p.m. under the canopy at North Jefferson Street.
Ninke specializes in ’50s through ’80s oldies and rock ’n’ roll and usually grants requests.
“Dream Works offers a huge musical selection so that I can tailor my performance to the crowd,” said Ninke.
The free Riverfront Live! outdoor summer music program is sponsored by Main Street Port Clinton. For a complete schedule of performers for the 2012 season, please go to www.historicportclinton.com.

In a continued effort to promote health and wellness, Lakeside is again hosting a bi-weekly Farmers’ Market during the Chautauqua summer season. From 9 a.m. to noon every Tuesday and Friday until Aug. 31, Farmers’ Market vendors will sell fresh produce, honey, herbs and homemade baked goods at Walnut Avenue on the pedestrian walkway between Second and Third Streets in Lakeside.
There will be nine to 10 vendors each day, including DeChant Farms, DTF Enterprises, Great Lakes Gourmet Spice Co., Healthy Bakes By Catherine, My Mother’s Market, Farm Wife Breads and TNT Farms.
The items sold at the Farmers’ Market are grown within a 50-mile radius; this provides Lakeside residents and guests the opportunity to purchase regionally produced goods and contribute to the growth of the local economy.

The Ohio Department of Natural Resources’ Division of Watercraft is among many state and local marine patrol agencies participating in a nationwide crackdown on alcohol-impaired boating known as Operation Dry Water from June 22-24. This is the fourth year of the special marine enforcement effort initiated by the National Association of State Boating Law Administrators.
Alcohol is involved in approximately one of every three boating-related accidents on Ohio waterways. While state watercraft officers and local marine patrols are always on the lookout for impaired boat operators, Operation Dry Water is an organized national effort that focuses greater awareness of the need for boaters to boat smart, boat sober and make a commitment to staying safe on the water.

The Salvation Army needs volunteers to ring the bell for the Christmas in July Red Kettle event from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday through Sunday, July 27-29. There will be three kettle sites set up with volunteers needed at each site: Community Market in Port Clinton, Kroger and The Jet Express. All proceeds will go The Port Clinton Salvation Army’s current programs.
If you are interested in ringing the bell or would like to make a donation, contact Director Maureen Saponari at 419-732-2769, 1854 E. Perry St., Suite 800, Port Clinton.

Thanks
On May 20, the Elks Lodge No. 1718 served a wonder benefit breakfast for the community to partake in. The benefactor, myself, would like to thank you, the public, for attending and supporting this delicious activity! Your support and an ENF Grant have enabled the Elks to purchase for me an electric scooter. This scooter enables me to to take myself to the market, go to public functions (Walleye Fest yes, I was there!), visit friends, the list goes on!
The hard work of the Elks membership and you, the public, have afforded me a new level of independence. There were even folks at the benefit breakfast who donated monetarily. A big heartfelt thank you to you also!

When Marblehead merchants started making plans to sponsor four big festivals along Main Street this season, they turned to Sande Measimer, who teaches art at the Danbury High School and Middle School, for some special help.
Grant McCallum, of Jodie McCallum & Company Fine Art Gallery, and secretary of the Marblehead Merchants Association, asked Measimer if any of her students would be interested in designing logos for the festivals. The idea was to involve young people in helping to promote their community.
Taylon Molnar, 15, who will be a high school sophomore next year, jumped at the chance. He’s an honor student and like everyone else in his family has a love for art. He submitted caricatures of four old-fashioned barbershop quartet singers and they were selected as the logo for Marblehead’s June 16 “Olde Fashioned Days” festival. Another caricature of a man alongside a variety of garage sale items will be the logo for the July 14 “Your Street to Main Street” festival — a village-wide garage sale along Main Street.

Perry’s Victory and International Peace Memorial will host a “Mock Redeclaration of War” at 11 a.m. Monday, June 18, to kick off the Bicentennial of the War of 1812. The Memorial is also hosting a series of free activities highlighting this important historic anniversary, said Memorial Superintendent Blanca Alvarez Stransky.
On June 18, 1812, “an act declaring war between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and the Dependencies thereof and the United States of America and Their Territories” was approved by the Senate and the House of Representative of the United States of America.   “With the assistance of modern technology, on Monday, June 18, 2012, we will conduct a ‘mock redeclaration of war’ between our sister park, Signal Hill National Historic Site in Newfoundland, Canada, and Perry’s Victory marking the 200th Anniversary of the start of the War of 1812,” said Stransky.

In preparation for the fifth annual Catawba-Marblehead Parade of Homes, the annual Kickoff Party will be from 5 to 7 p.m. Thursday, July 5, at Crow’s Nest on Ohio 269 north of Ohio 163 in Danbury Township. The event will be a wine tasting featuring many local and international wines as well as heavy hors d'oeuvres. Tickets are $20 and can be purchased at The Beacon, Minuteman Press, Crow’s Nest, Mon Ami, Crabby Joes and Salvation Army, the beneficiary of the fundraiser. Pictured here are the principal organizers: John Schaffner (left), publisher of The Beacon; Jennifer Bailey, manager at Crow's Nest; and Maureen Saponari, director of the Salvation Army in Ottawa County.