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Spring is turning into summer quickly! As spring turns into summer the flowers and the critters have returned to Birch Lake. Thanks to Stewart Spratt for the snake pix, and to Pat McGann for the heron pic. Some old, white-haired, Santa Claus-looking guy shot the pic of the tulips ... Commodore's Comments Counting down until Memorial Day when I hope most of the lake cottages will be open and ready for summer activities. We are kicking off this season with our annual Birch Lake Spring dinner on May 18. The dinner will be held at Pineview Golf Course, Three Rivers, Michigan. Social hour 6 to 7 pm, with dinner following. Tickets will be available until May 10. This year‘s theme is “Derby Days“ so hope to see some fabulous hats and natty bow ties. See ad below for more details. The first monthly card night will be held at the Yacht Club May 30. Any card game (Other than strip poker) can be enjoyed. Tables of euchre, Michigan rummy, (Tripoli) 65, and poker, to name a few, will be running. Cards, poker chips and Tripoli board will be provided, but bringing additional decks and chips will be welcomed. Yacht Club will be open at 7 pm for all players. Hope to see you there. Please sign up for the Bloating Safety Course if you haven’t already. As mentioned in a previous Barker, anyone born after July 1, 1996 must have a license to drive a power watercraft on the lake. A representative from the sheriff's office, Marine division, will be at our yacht club on June 8 at 10 am to run the program. Sign up online at Michigan DNR or email me at EYESND 76@gmail.com to be included in the program. If not enough Birch Lakers sign up, the program will be canceled and traveling to another location will be required. The program is free. I was invited to join Water Quality representative Jen Ball at this year’s Michigan Lakes and Streams conference in Muskegon, Michigan. I’m pleased to say that we both came home thinking how lucky we are to be at Birch Lake where water quality is high on the priority list. As homeowners it is in our best interest to keep our lake clean and safe for all to enjoy. To this end the Homeowners Association has invited a representative from the DNR to attend one of our board meetings to discuss the steps that have already been taken to eliminate runoff from surrounding farm fields, and to answer any questions we might have. When that date is confirmed it will be included in the Barker if any resident would like to attend. More on Water Quality can be found in subsequent Barker articles. While on the topic of Water Quality, I found an article from the South Bend Tribune from September 5, 1912, titled “Birch Lake, a Cass Gem, has attractions all its own.” The following excerpts from this article you may find interesting: The waters of Birch Lake are the deepest, the coldest, the clearest, and therefore its fish are the best to be found in any of Michigan’s small inland Lakes. Not withstanding the coldness of the deep waters, the shallow beaches are unsurpassed for bathing and the sun warms the water to an agreeable temperature. Its waters have that deep clear greenish blue cast that Lake Michigan has, which indicates great depth and a clean bottom free from mud. Birch Lake is encircled by a ridge of hills that rise within 200 feet of the shoreline to a height of 100 feet and these bluffs are covered with trees of large size, vines, saplings and undergrowth, so that the setting for the lake is agreeable to lovers of the beauty of nature. Birch Lake is fed by springs, and scientists have advanced the opinion that it’s source of supply may even be as far away as northern Wisconsin and the big upper Lake region, which would count for the coldness of the water supply and it’s resemblance to the big lakes in color. A fact that is not generally known is that the Birch Lake region has the highest elevation of any in southern Michigan and is several hundred feet higher than Niles.” Referring to the spring on the north side of the lake, “ the spring that gushes up at the very edge of the lake, the water being as cool as if it’s from a refrigerator and of a quality that excites the desire for more. This water has no mineral taste, but it’s said to compare with the finest waters in the world." Let’s do our best to try to keep Birch Lake “ a Cass Gem” Until next month, “May the memories remain and the view stay the same“ on our golden Pond. ~Commodore Sue Davis Deadline for Spring Diner reservations is May 10 New rule for parking at the boat launch Starting April 1 anyone who parks at the boat launch will need an annual pass sticker from the Cass County Parks. Costs are $15 for county residents and $30 for non-residents. Anyone can still use the launch, but if you want to park, an annual pass will be required. Passes can be obtained from the Cass County Parks office in Cassopolis, or pick up an envelope at Dr. Lawless entrance and send in your payment. This pass is good for parking at all the Cass County parks. ~Birch Lake Home Owners Association Spaghetti Dinner will be June 29 Fleet Captain's Corner Based upon recent Interlake Regattas at Diamond Lake and Corey Lake in which some of us BLYC Sailors participated, we expect 10 to 15 off-lake boats to attend. Most, if not all, of these boats will arrive at the public launch on race day, between 7:30 a.m. and 9:45 a.m. This could get very crowded if everyone tries to launch using their vehicles. But the standard practice at interlake regattas is to use a tractor or golf cart with a hitch ball, that can launch the sailboats much more nimbly and faster than cars or trucks. We are very grateful to Ben Wozniak, who has generously volunteered to use his tractor, equipped with a hitch ball, to launch the off-lake MC's once the masts are raised; and to pull them out after the regatta. Last summer, several of us saw this method used very quickly and efficiently at the Corey Lake Regatta. But it's an unfamiliar process here at Birch Lake, and since practice makes perfect, we need some practice before the regatta. So Ben has also generously volunteered to bring his tractor to the public launch on Saturday, May 18 at 1:00 p.m., for regatta launch practice. And the practice session will "kill two birds with one stone" by raising the masts and launching a few of our BLYC MC's for the season. Don't worry, we are going to be VERY careful about the overhead electric lines above the entrance to the public launch! On the afternoon of Saturday, May 18, before the Spring Dinner, you'll be able to see Ben on his tractor moving some sailboats around at the public launch while a group of sailors help out with raising the masts, and you'll know why! Commodore Sue Davis promises to come down and supervise, so things are likely to go very smoothly! ~ F.C. Steve BLYC Dues, Contribution & Donation Form |
2024 Birch Lake Events MAY May 18 -Board meeting - 9 am, BLYC May 18 - Spring Dinner @ 5:30 pm Pineview Golf Club -"Derby Days," Sue Davis, Julie Dickey May 25-26 - Memorial Day Weekend Sailboat Races Races Sat/Sun, with Monday as backup May 30 - Card night -7 pm, BLYC JUNE June 1 - Board Meeting - 9 am, BLYC June 8 – Boating Safety Course 10am-4 pm, BLYC June 8 - Trivia night - 6:30 pm, BLYC, Holly Troeger, Sue Williams, Blair Garceau June 15 - Commodore/Vice-Comm. Stock the Bar Party - 6:30pm, BLYC, Jimmy Buffett Tribute Night "Margaritaville," Sue Davis, Julie Dickey June 29 - Spaghetti Dinner, Cam Butler, Stacia Andriano June 27 - Card night 7 pm. BLYC JULY July 6 - Boat Parade - Line up at 2:30 pm at Waxmans', 3pm, theme TBA, Dan Waxman July 6 - FIREWORKS, 10 pm, Bernie Garceau July 6-7 - Fourth of July Regatta July 13 - Board Meeting - 9 am, BLYC July 19 - Women's Golf Outing - Details TBA, Blair Garceau July 20 - Family Picnic, Details TBA, Sara Petty July 20 - Kidz Triathlon - Details TBA July 25 - Card Night - 7 pm, BLYC July 26 - Men's Golf Outing- 8 am, Hampshire Golf Club, John Ball July 27 - Don Harman Kidz Sunfish Regatta (Tentative date), Bob and Leslie King AUGUST Aug 3 - Corn and Sausage Roast 5:30-7pm, BLYC, Blair Garceau Aug 10 - Board Meeting 9 am, BLYC Aug 17 - Earl Troeger Memorial MC Interlake Regatta - Details TBA, Barb Cassidy Aug 23 - Women's Style Show and Luncheon - Woodfire Restaurant, Details TBA, Ronni Eshleman Aug 24 - Fall Dinner and Annual BLYC Meeting - Details TBA, Vice-Commodore, Julie Dickey Aug 29 - Card Night - 7 pm, BLYC Aug 31, Sept. 1- Labor Day Regatta, Sat/Sun, backup Mon. SEPTEMBER Sept. 7 - Board Meeting - 9 am, BLYC Sept. 7 - Sailing Award Luncheon, 1 pm, BLYC OCTOBER October 19 - Bad Patty Luecht Crockpot Challenge - Karen Curtis-Miller (tentative) BLYC Classified Ads BLYC Contacts BLYC OFFICERS Sue Davis (E) Commodore 574-993-6031 eyesnd76@gmail.com Julie Dickey (E) Vice Commodore 574-220-9132 jdjuls@aol.com Deb Spratt (N) Treasurer debspratt@comcast.net Mike Sheffieck (W) Secretary 708-220-1506 mcsheffieck@gmail.com Steve Frew (E) Fleet Captain 708-285-2999 stephenbfrew@gmail.com BLYC DIRECTORS Dave Carroll (W) 574-850-8359 arrolldavid39@gmail.com Barb Cassady (E) 574-229-9815 barbcassady49@gmail.com Ed Chester (E) 476-1010 ed@chesterlawoffice.com Karen Curtis-Miller (E) 574-261-6712 krcurtismiller@gmail.com Bernie Garceau 476-9862 bgarceau@norcoind.com Deb Hall (C) 219-765-8691 debbershall@gmail.com Pat McGann (E) 574-532-5377 pat@mcgannhay.com Ron Niezgodski (W) 574-532-6710 birchbass1@gmail.com Laura Pence (E) lpence3@gmail.com Sarah Petty (N) .574-274-9202 sarahkpetty@gmail.com Claudia Phipps (N) 476-7073 claudia2154@gmail.com Vickie Rogers (C) 476-2383 tvrogers@frontier.com Rick Russwurm (N) 476-2407 paramountp@aol.com Ray Scholes (S) 567-429-9569 rqs72@aol.com Scott Troeger (E) 476-9898 scott.troeger@btlaw.com Phil Vitale (E) 476-1680 sailorphil@philvitale.com or onlinebarker@gmail.com Sandy Vitale (E) 476-1680 sv6102@gmail.com Dan Waxman (E) 317-506-1680 DWaxman131@outlook.com Denny Weesner (S) 219-765-8602 dkwees@cs.com Sue Williams (S) (574) 298-2839 smwilliams226@gmail.com OTHER CONTACTS OF INTEREST Paul Fallon (E) Chairman, Water Quality 476- 1467 pauljfallon49@gmail.com Blair Garceau (E) Chairman, Homeowners 476-9862 blairgarceau@gmail.com Barker Funnies PONDERISMS: So now cocaine is legal in Oregon, but straws aren’t. That must be frustrating. Still trying to get my head around the fact that ‘Take Out’ can mean food, dating, or murder. The older I get, the more I understand why roosters scream to start their day. Being popular on Facebook is like sitting at the ‘cool table’ in the cafeteria of a mental hospital. You know you’re over 50 when you have ‘upstairs ibuprofen’ and ‘downstairs ibuprofen’. If only vegetables smelled as good as bacon. I woke up this morning determined to drink less, eat right, and exercise. But that was four hours ago when I was younger and full of hope. Anyone who says their wedding was the best day of their life has clearly never had two candy bars fall down at once from a vending machine. The biggest joke on mankind is that computers have begun asking humans to prove they aren’t a robot. It’s weird being the same age as old people. We celebrated last night with a couple adult beverages, Metamucil and Ensure. After watching how some people wore their masks, I understand why contraception fails. Someone said, “Nothing rhymes with orange.” I said, “No, it doesn’t.” The pessimist complains about the wind. The optimist expects it to change. The realist adjusts his sails. There’s a fine line between a numerator and a denominator. Only a fraction of people will find this funny. Reading gives us someplace to go when we have to stay where we are. I have many hidden talents. I just wish I could remember where I hid them. My idea of a Super Bowl is a toilet that cleans itself. THE BARKER ONLINE... The Online Birch Barker is owned and operated by the Birch Lake Yacht Club. It is produced voluntarily (without pay) by Phil Vitale. You may subscribe to receive this e-mail monthly (or as regularly as I get it out) at no cost and you can unsubscribe at any time or simply add this site to your favorites and check it monthly for updates TO SUBSCRIBE: We are always collecting e-mail addresses for lakers, ex-lakers and friends; if you think a friend/neighbor hasn't seen this yet, you can send it to them by clicking here, or send just the e-mail address to sailorphil@philvitale.com TO UNSUBSCRIBE: If you do not wish to receive this e-mail in the future, please e-mail me by clicking here: unsubscribe me If you change email address, let me know me at onlinebarker@gmail.com or sailorphil@philvitale.com |
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