I was sorry to hear about the recent passing of two legends of Port Clinton, Darrell Brand and Carol McLaurey. Darrell, along with his wife Connie and sons Stuart and Dalton, have operated Brand’s Marina since the mid-1970s. When they bought the Marina from the Jeremy family, they inherited the old Port Clinton Lighthouse.

Darrell was instrumental in getting the lighthouse renovated and ultimately placed just north of Derby Pond in Waterworks Park. Upon his death, the members of the Lighthouse Conservancy had the flag there flown at half mast in his honor.

Carol McLaurey was born and raised in Port Clinton as a member of the Amato family. She was a funny and enjoyable person to be around. Both will be missed.

It was “Giving Tuesday” on Dec. 3 with amazing results in Ottawa County. The Lakeside community opened their hearts and checkbooks to give over $270,000 for renovations to the historic Pavilion on the Pier. And of course you read about the $175,000 given away at the Portage Resale Center to 44 different non-profits around Ottawa County.

Krissy Hartman of Tiffin is the winner this week in our “Find Wylie” contest. Krissy was chosen from 69 entries who found Wylie hiding in the ad for Great Lakes Popcorn on page 1B in last week’s Beacon. So, Krissy wins our weekly $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.

Residents of Otterbein in Marblehead are getting their Christmas Spirit on! This week they celebrated by having a White Elephant Christmas Gift Exchange.

The 7th Annual Holiday Stop & Shop will be held this Friday (10 a.m. – 4 p.m.) and Saturday (10 a.m. – 3 p.m.) at
Liberty Aviation Museum. Admission is free. However, regular admission prices will be required to visit galleries and Hangar 2.

Santa will be flying into the Air Museum on Sunday, Dec. 22 for “Breakfast with Santa.” The hours are 8-10 a.m. Santa arrives at 11 a.m. and will be there until 1 p.m.

The Musical Arts Series of Port Clinton is working to add a “Pay it Forward” opportunity for their concert this Friday at St. John Lutheran Church in Port Clinton. The Burning River Brass from Cleveland will be performing the concert and the event is sold out.

In each program the group is including an envelope requesting a donation for the “GRANDlove” program, a new program in Ottawa County developed at the Ottawa County Family Advocacy Center. The program seeks to help and support the 225 families where grandparents or other close relatives in Ottawa county are raising children whose parents are absent due to struggles with substance abuse, mental health issues, incarceration or other difficulties.

A couple of weeks ago, the members of Port Clinton City Council were surprised to find masking tape over several of the nameplates in Council Chamber. All “M’s” were covered up! I’m guessing that Mayor Mike Snider might have had something to do with it.

This Friday, Dec. 13, is the donation deadline for our 2019 Beacon Mitten Tree. For over 30 years, we’ve had a Christmas Tree decorated with gloves, scarves, caps and, of course, mittens that we pass along to the Salvation Army for distribution to needy families to help keep heads, hands and hearts warm this winter. You can bring your donation to The Beacon office at 205 SE Catawba Rd. next to the Goodwill store. Thank you.

The Salvation Army is still in need of Bell Ringers. For more information to volunteer, call them at 419-732-2769.

Tickets are on sale for the Oak Harbor Athletic Boosters 32nd Annual Reverse Raffle will be held on Saturday, March 21 at the Ottawa County Fairgrounds. The 250 tickets will be sold for $75 each, which includes dinner. For tickets you can contact Joanie Campbell at 419-704-1097, Larry Wasserman at 419-304-7302 or contact OHHS Athletic Director Dan Hoover at dhoover@bcssd.com.

The Oak Harbor Area Chamber of Commerce will be offering gift wrapping services for the Holiday Season. All proceeds will benefit the Olde Fashioned Christmas Celebration in downtown Oak Harbor, and prices will range from $1 – $5 depending on the size of the gift. Customers can drop their gifts off Monday – Friday between 8 a.m.-4 p.m. If you have any questions, call 419-898-0479 or stop by at 161 W. Water St., Oak Harbor.

This Monday, Dec.16, Magruder Hospital will host an educational luncheon in the Conference Center at noon. Erica Clinker, APRN, with Magruder Pain Management will present: “Chronic Pain: Discussing all the pieces to the puzzle.” Learn about common diagnoses and treatments to help manage chronic pain.

This luncheon is part of a monthly education series which features a different topic and speaker each month. The luncheon series is open to the public and the cost is $6. The program is free if you do not wish to have lunch. To make sure there is enough seating, RSVP for the December program by noon on Friday by calling 419-732-4061.