The Trivia Night fundraiser for Leelanau Investing for Teens (LIFT) at Hop Lot Thursday was a great success and a lot of fun. Debby and I and Kim and Dennis Armbruster were there from Omena. The LIFT program got its start 10 years ago in the home of current Executive Director Rebekah TenBrink and her husband Gerald to provide a place for teens to gather on weekends. LIFT became official in 2017 and moved into The Friendship Center in Suttons Bay, primarily as an after school program for Suttons Bay middle and high school students who could walk from the school.
They are now in all four Leelanau County public schools, with Leland being the most recent addition. They currently serve 640 students at no cost to the students. It began with $470 in 2017, and this past year received a $116,000 grant from Impact100 Traverse City. Some of the staff recently attended the Michigan Afterschool Association Conference in Detroit and were the only rural program there. We are very fortunate to have them in Leelanau County.
You can go to their website to learn more about their programs, to donate, and how to volunteer.
Back on the subject of Trivia, do you know what Samhainophobia (pronounced saw-win-ophobia) is? We didn’t either. But we learned that it is the fear of Halloween and comes from the Celtic ritual of Samhain (saw-win), which was usually celebrated on October 31 and November 1 to welcome the harvest and usher in “the dark half of the year.” Celebrants believed that the barriers between the physical world and the spirit world blur during Samhain, allowing more interaction between humans and denizens of the Otherworld. People wore costumes and masks to appease the spirits.
In the 9th century, the Western Church endorsed November 1 as the date of All Saints’ Day, and November 2 later became All Souls’ Day. It is believed that Samhain and All Saints’/All Souls’ days influenced each other and the modern Halloween.
The Northport Arts Association (NAA) is staying busy for the rest of 2024. Starting tomorrow and running through November 23 is the Autumn Member Art Exhibit at the Village Art Building in Northport. The exhibit is open Tuesdays through Saturdays from noon to 4 p.m. Then, on Saturday, November 30 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. is the Holiday Arts and Crafts Sale at two locations – the Village Arts Building and the Willowbrook Mill.
From December 6 to January 4, the NAA will have a Christmas in the Village Arts Building exhibit. The exhibit will be open Tuesdays – Saturdays from noon to 4 p.m. There are also a number of classes being held, many at the NAA’s Pottery Studio, from now into January. You can go to the NAA website for more information on all of these.
Another holiday special event, the Northport Women’s Club Holiday Treats and Yard Sale Treasures is at Trinity Church on Saturday, December 7 from 9 a.m.to 1 p.m. We got some great holiday treats last year. I’m making sure Debby is there bright and early!
I fear that I may be looking at new laptop. For the second time last week, it decided to quit on me on an Omena News deadline day. I think it’s deadline-ophobia. So, Happy Birthday last week to Kathy Miller, Dave Brown, Rachel Smith, Cody Mayer, Ruth Steele Walker, Joan Brovins, and Margie Tropf.
Happy Birthday this week to Gary Roll, Helene Mack, Zac Kalchik, Owen Nyland, Kelli Fitzgerald, and to Jackson Dailey, who turns 21! Happy Anniversary this week to John and Ann Marie Mitchell, Dave and Renata Priest, and to Trevor and Emily Love.
Enjoy the extra hour of sleep this Sunday as we leave Daylight Savings Time for four months, until March 9, 2025.
