Genuine Replacement Parts barbershop quartet sings in the historic Lonz Wine Cellar in August, 2024. (Submitted photo)

BY JIM “CURLY” WILSON

PUT-IN-BAY – We have so much entertainment to offer in our Lake Erie Islands Region. One little-known secret is the long tradition of Barbershop Quartet Harmony on Middle Bass & South Bass Islands. We been gathering over 100 Barbershop Quartet singers for over 75 years. The best part is, all of our performances continue to be free of charge. We do continue our goodwill to the islands by raising money with free-will offerings to worthy island causes.

Our first performance will be held on Friday, Aug. 8, at 7 p.m. at Put-in-Bay Yacht Club. This continues our long tradition of singing the second Friday in August on Put-in-Bay, which was held on the front steps of Perry’s Monument for many years. For the last three years we’ve been blessed with being hosted by Mother-of-Sorrows Catholic Church. Thanks to Deacon Jim O’Donnell and his wife, Christy, for their enthusiastic and unwavering support.

Continuing our 50+ years of singing on Put-in-Bay, we’ve again changed venues and are excited to be on the waterfront again at Put-in-Bay Yacht Club. This event will be held in the Yacht Club dining room and is open to the public. Dinner and non-alcoholic beverages can be sold to non-members at this public event.

Thanks to yacht club members Bill & Patty Sulesky for being our sponsor, and thanks to Yacht Club manager, Donna Mitchell for her enthusiastic support. We are looking forward to a long-term relationship, with Middle Bass Barbershoppers providing great entertainment for the Put-in-Bay Yacht Club.

Our second performance will be held at the Historic George Lonz Winery Mansion at 1:30 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 9. We started this new tradition five years ago as an opportunity for the Middle Bass day-trippers to experience our four-part acapella close vocal (male only) harmony. We’ve made a change this year by moving our venue from the Lonz Wine Cellar to the grand front porch of the historic Lonz Mansion. Bring your lawn chairs to enjoy this beautiful new venue.

Thanks to Jane Wolnic, owner of Island Grind Coffee & Wine Bar, for her support in offering us this new great outdoor venue in front of the Lonz Mansion. There will be some lawn seating available, but we encourage our audience to bring their own chairs. Island Grind will be offering beverages for sale including beer & wine. If you’re hungry, sandwiches are available for sale at Island Grind which is located directly behind the historic winery pavilion. You’ll also have an opportunity to tour the historic and recently renovated Lonz Mansion from noon to 3 p.m.

Our Put-in-Bay Yacht club performance on Friday night and the Lonz Mansion performance on Saturday will benefit two island organizations, the Wildlife Museum & the Lake Erie Islands Conservancy. We will be passing the hat and promoting a free-will offering to benefit those two worthy non-profit organizations.

Our last performance will be held at Middle Bass Island town hall on Saturday, Aug. 9, at 7pm. This will be our 76th performance at the town hall. As is our long- standing tradition, this performance will benefit the local Middle Bass fire department. Thanks to our fundraising and to labor donated by Slife Heating & Air from Lakewood, the town hall is air conditioned. Thanks also to longtime barbershopper,Dave Slife for all his contributions in time, money and energy to Middle Bass Barbershop. We continue our 76-year tradition of singing in the town hall as part of our thank-you to the great islanders at Middle Bass for their long-time support. A special shout out to Middle Bass General Store and bar/restaurant for their continued support.

For more information, call or text Jim “Curly” Wilson at 419-967-0674.