I am so proud that my niece, Dr. Jennifer Willford, will be inducted into the Port Clinton High School Alumni Hall of Fame. The induction will take place on Wednesday, May 3 as part of the annual Rotary Scholarship program at the Port Clinton High School Performing Arts Center. Jen is the daughter of Steve and Mary Willford and her academic accomplishments are incredible. She is a professor of Psychology at Slippery Rock University in Pennsylvania. She is a graduate of the Port Clinton High School Class of 1988. I was proud to nominate her.

Three more signs of Spring…the trees are now turning green and the roads in eastern Ottawa County are packed with thousands of trailered fishing boats everywhere. It just gives you an idea how much a nice stretch of weather like we had last week can have such an amazing local impact. My guess is all those boats were headed to the vicinity of Niagara Reef.

Congratulations to Kat Brause of Bucyrus, selected from 182 entries who found our friendly fish hiding in the ad for Blissful Cleaning on Page 8 in last week’s Beacon. Kat wins our weekly prize of a $25 gas gift card provided us by the Friendship Stores throughout the area.

We will continue to hide Wylie each week in an ad. To enter the contest, look for the link on our website, www.thebeacon.net.

Fourth grade students at Bataan School have been given the opportunity to read “Journal for Young Leaders” by Tony and Sandy Legando from Huron. Thanks to the support of Port Clinton Elk’s Lodge 1718, the entire fourth grade at Bataan Memorial Intermediate will be receiving the Legando’s book!

Along with the Legando’s, Port Clinton Elk’s leaders Bill Murphy and Marv Solomon presented the donation to the grade four teachers and Bataan Principal Geoff Halsey.

The official start of the Put-in-Bay season begins with the Whiskey Light Celebration at the Round House Bar on Sunday, April 23 at 2 p.m. The Master of Ceremonies will be the venerable Ray Fogg, who will put on a show. Fogg’s Opening Night at the Reel Bar, his own digs for the summer, will make its debut on Saturday, May 13 at 7:30 p.m. But Reel Bar is already open for lunch and dinner.

The Oak Harbor Log Cabin Committee will be hosting local third graders on May 15-16 at Adolphus Kraemer Park. To meet their social studies curriculum and Ohio state standards they will learn what life was like in this area of Ohio in the 1860’s compared, to our lives today.

This includes the history of the cabin and our area and hands-on experiences washing clothes and making butter. Retired teachers and adult volunteers will dress in period costumes to authenticate the experience. Times on Monday are 8:20-11:20 a.m. and Tuesday from 1-2:30 p.m.

I understand that there will be an Ohio Ballot Initiative coming up that is designed to add language to the Ohio Constitution on abortion rights since Roe v. Wade sent the issue back to the states. On the pro-life side, there will be a Town Hall at the Denny Bergeman K of C Hall in Port Clinton on Wednesday, April 26 at 7 p.m.

It is officially “Haul-In” season, which means the boats are going in the water and the docks are filling up. Also, the annual Catawba Island Club Boat Show is scheduled for Friday through Sunday, April 28-30.

The Port Clinton Lions Club will be sponsoring a bus trip to Ohio Amish Country on Thursday, June 22. The cost is $75 per person. Call Lorna Garber at 630-881-8230 for details.

The Red Cross Bloodmobile will be visiting Oak Harbor on Friday, April 21. Here’s your chance to save a life with a blood donation at St. John Lutheran Church on Ottawa Street from noon to 5:30 p.m.