School News – by Steve Poe, Superintendent

The Harvest Dinner on November 8 was a huge success.  We want to thank the many businesses who donated food and the Niese family for allowing us to use Tipper’s Lounge.  We especially want to recognize the efforts of Woody Widmar who worked in the kitchen for three days preparing the delicious turkey meal.  Money earned from this event is deposited in the Heineman Scholarship Fund.

We would like to thank Eric Booker and the Booker family for raising money for the Jeffery Verhoff Scholarship Fund.  The Boardwalk Restaurant offered dinner specials on Sunday, October 27 and donated a percentage of their proceeds to this scholarship.  This year, $3,000 was raised!  We appreciate all the people who supported this Boardwalk fundraiser!

Our National Honor Society has been very busy this fall with three worthy causes!  NHS collected excess Halloween candy from our students to donate to the children and families staying at the Toledo Ronald McDonald House. Every other Tuesday, NHS hosts Study Buddies after school for students in grades 3 through 12.  Students are encouraged to bring homework to complete or books to read with an NHS member. Lastly, NHS is currently sponsoring a family coat drive to support families of Ottawa County.  Coats will be given to the Salvation Army of Ottawa County to be distributed to area families.  The coat drive will continue through December 4 and community members are encouraged to drop off their gently used coats at the school.  Great job, National Honor Society!

Our island was well-represented at the Great Lakes Islands Summit held on Mackinac Island this past October.  Superintendent/principal Mr. Steve Poe was in attendance along with eighteen other local island residents and officials.   In all, fourteen islands and over one hundred participants attended this conference.  It was the belief of many who attended this event that all of the islands have similar challenges.  Island residents and officials discussed these challenges and shared possible solutions. It was also interesting to hear the many accomplishments of other islands.  The objective of the Summit was clear:  have a united voice on island issues when working with news media and lawmakers to advance all aspects of island living.  The 2020 Great Lakes Islands Summit is scheduled for October 4 – 7 on Put-in-Bay, Middle Bass, Kelley’s, and Pelee.

The Put-in-Bay High School Sailing Club had a very busy fall season. With practices three times a week, the team prepared for four regattas to compete against other high school sailors throughout Ohio and Michigan. Our seven sailors:  Alex Knauer, Nora Ladd, Talii Steidl, Kate Byrnes, Macy Ladd, Hope Cooks and Emil Michael had a strong showing at all four regattas. The team started and ended the season at The Foundry Sailing Center in Cleveland. Most notable was our first home regatta held right here at Put-in-Bay Yacht Club on October 13. Not only did the team host seven other schools from Cleveland, Columbus and Toledo, but our Varsity Blue team (Nora, Macy, Talii and Hope) came out on top, scoring first of nine teams. Thank you to the parents and volunteers for helping make our home regatta a great event. Following our home success, the team traveled to Holland, Michigan to compete against 18 Michigan teams. At the Michigan Sunday Funday Regatta, Put-in-Bay finished 10th overall. Each of the sailors contributed to the team’s efforts at each regatta, with several two-person teams getting multiple top 5 finishes at each event. Congratulations to our sailors.  Look for the team in the spring when they start practicing for our short spring season.

Our basketball teams open their season on Tuesday, December 3 before hitting the road for the second annual Great Lakes Island Schools Tournament on December 6 and 7.  The schools competing in this tournament include Washington Island, Wisconsin; Beaver Island, Michigan; Put-in-Bay, Ohio; and host, Mackinac Island, Michigan.   Coach Schuffenecker returns a number of talented players from last year, including seniors Joe Byrnes, Hannah Lentz, and Cecelia Glauser.  Go Panthers!  If you are not able to make the trip north, please tune into WPIB radio to follow all the games live.

Next year in December 2020 we plan to host to this tournament.  Like the Great Lakes Islands Summit in October, we will be needing parent, business, and community support for food, lodging, and activities for our guests.  Please mark your calendars now!

Our annual holiday concert is scheduled for Wednesday, December 11 at 7:00pm.  Students in grades K – 8 will perform songs to ring in the holidays and new year.

We are looking for parent volunteers to help with opening and maintaining the ice rink.  From snow removal to watering, drying out and coiling hoses to ice repair . . . this is not a one-person job.  Please contact Steve Poe at the school if you are willing and able to help with the ice rink.  We are also looking for parents to help monitor and supervise the ice rink when it is in use.

The last day of school prior to winter break is a half day on Friday, December 20.  We return on Monday, January 6.  We advise all parents to keep their telephones close by on mornings when there is “questionable” weather.  This year we will again announce delays and closings via our “School Messenger” instant messaging system.