By John Schaffner

Tonight (Thursday, Oct. 10) is Candidate’s Night starting at 7 p.m. at the Port Clinton Elk’s Lodge. It is co-sponsored by the Port Clinton Area Chamber of Commerce and the local chapter of the Business and Professional Women. The event is free and open to the public.

We’re here!!! Ottawa County’s big Festival Weekend. The Oak Harbor Apple Festival takes place both days this weekend and the Marblehead Lighthouse Festival will be Saturday, Oct. 12, with many of the activities throughout the peninsula and inside Lakeside. Also, the Autumn Wine Affair presented by the Ohio Wine Producers Association will be held at the Liberty Aviation Museum this Saturday, Oct. 12. To get tickets, call 440-466-4417 or log on to www.ohiowines.org.

And finally, The Port Clinton Lighthouse will be open for tours this Saturday from noon to 5 p.m. Enjoy.

At noon this Friday, Ottawa County will test the Emergency Planning Zone sirens for the Davis-Besse Nuclear Power Station. The test will last for 3 minutes.

Lisa Violette of Port Clinton is our winner this week in our “Find Wylie” contest. She was chosen from among 87 entries who successfully found our friendly fish hiding in the ad for Ciao Bella on page 8A in The Beacon last week. So, Lisa wins a $25 gas card graciously donated by Friendship Stores. Each week we generally hide Wylie Walleye in an ad and our readers, when one of them finds him, can either bring in a contest entry cut out of the paper or log onto our website … www.thebeacon.net … and let us know where he is, thus entering, and possibly winning the contest.

There will be another public meeting regarding Port Clinton’s proposed infrastructure plan. It will be held at the Ottawa County Family Advocacy Center, 570 McKinley Dr., Port Clinton on Thursday, Oct. 24 at 6 p.m. Of those who attended the Sept. 26 meeting, only one person said it was not needed while one other individual said it was too big. The majority, 80.65% of the attendees stated that it should not go to the ballot box, but should be passed by City Council.

Family Frenzy, the local version of “Family Feud” that is a fundraiser for Joyful Connections will be held on Saturday, Oct. 19 at the Port Clinton Elks Lodge. Tickets are $30 which includes dinner and the opportunity to watch six teams go head-to-head. All tickets must be purchased in advance. It’s a lot of fun.

The Port Clinton Knights of Columbus Council 1750 is sponsoring a Youth Soccer Challenge Competition this Sunday, Oct. 13, at 4 p.m. at Heigel Park on Catawba Island. All boys and girls ages 9-14 are invited to participate in the local competition. Participants will compete in their respective age divisions. The Knights of Columbus Soccer Challenge is an annual event designed for youngsters to demonstrate the most basic of soccer skills – the penalty kick. Participants are required to furnish proof of age and written parental consent.  Entry forms will be available at the event. There is no fee to enter the competition and awards are presented to all participants. For any questions contact the event chairman: Andy Migas at 419-322-2310 or migas1021@outlook.com.

The office of Dr. Patrick Reineck at 232 E. Second Street in Port Clinton is accepting donations of small, new stuffed animals to be used to comfort children during EMS rides with the local EMS. Donations will be accepted until Nov. 1.

The Elks Lodge will also be hosting their annual Clam Bake this Saturday, Oct. 12 from 5:30 to 7 p.m. and the public is welcome. Non-Elks members can acquire their tickets by calling 419-734-1900.

The mandatory meeting for all Port Clinton High School winter sport athletes and their parents has been rescheduled. The Winter Sports Parent-Athlete Meeting has been moved to Monday, Oct. 21 at 6 p.m. in the PCHS Cafeteria.  The meeting has been rescheduled due to a home PCHS Girls Soccer Sectional Game on Oct. 16.  PCHS winter sports include: Boys Basketball; Girls Basketball; Bowling; Cheerleading; Swimming & Diving; Wrestling.  Ohio High School Athletic Association requires these mandatory parent-athlete meetings.  Please call PCHS Athletic Department at 419-734-2147 with any questions.

The Salvation Army in Ottawa County has partnered with the Cousino Restoration and The Ottawa County Community to provide new and gently used warm winter coats for local children and families in need. The Salvation Army’s “Coats for Families” program will run through January 2020. This program is based on donations from the general public of new and gently used coats only that will be cleaned by Cousino Restoration.

Last year, The Salvation Army collected and distributed over 1,018 coats to local families in Ottawa County. This is the 25th year this program has been providing coats to the local residents. The collection site for new coats is The Salvation Army’s office, 1834 E. Perry St., Port Clinton. If you would like to donate new coats, please drop them off at the collection site or call The Salvation Army at 419-732-2769 and speak with Director Maureen Saponari.

The Port Clinton Rotary Club will host its 10th Annual Rotary Pizza Challenge on Tuesday Oct. 22 from 4 to 7 p.m. at the Mon Ami Restaurant and Winery. They are currently seeking pizza vendors to participate in the event. Contact Challenge Chairman Duane Waite if your business is interested in participating by providing pizzas for judging. He can be reached at rotarypizzachallenge@gmail.com

Makayla Wagner, of Oak Harbor, is a member of the Ashland University women’s cross country team. Wagner, a 2017 graduate of Oak Harbor High School, is majoring in biology.

The Magruder Hospital Nutrition Department is offering monthly Diabetes Get-Togethers on the third Thursday each month at Noon in the Conference Center. There will be a different topic & speaker each month. For the Oct. 17, get together, Tara Haley from Physical Therapy will present “Be safe when exercising.”

The group meets from September through May and is for anyone dealing with Diabetes or Pre-Diabetes, including family and friends. Light refreshments will be provided. For more information, call 419-732-4027.

Magruder Hospital will also host the monthly Alzheimer’s Support Group on Monday, Oct. 14, at 9 a.m. in the Conference Center. Meeting on the second Monday of each month, the group provides helpful tips, education, encouragement and resources to family, friends and caregivers of anyone dealing with dementia and memory loss. For more information about this program as well as other support groups, events and screenings, go to www.magruderhospital.com and click on the events calendar.

Your new Mobile App is available for you use! It is called “Lake Erie Coastlines” and it’s FREE! Just download it on your iPhone or Android device from the App Store. It is chock full of useful information on local events, things to do and places to go. “Lake Erie Coastlines” … enjoy!