Pemberville celebrating moms with blooming fun

 Artisan Pat Rollins will display glass garden stakes/accessories while Mary Nelson will display her botanical garden art bowls and birdbaths – handmade concrete treasures molded from real leaves. Downtown Deco will showcase a number of unique garden containers, many of which will be one a kind.

Children are invited to partake in the festivities at a special planting kiosk run by the Four Seasons Garden Club. Participating businesses will provide the necessary plant materials for young participants to make a complimentary Mother’s Day planter to take home. Pemberville’s Medicine Shoppe will also host a “make it, take it” area where children can create complimentary potpourri sachets. Kids can also share their Mother’s Day sentiments in a chalk art area.

The Pemberville-Freedom Area Historical Society will host a Mother’s Day Bake Sale under a tent in front of Riverbank Antique Market. Fresh kettle corn and French waffles will be offered in the downtown area as well.

Pemberville’s sidewalks will be “blooming” with floral stencils highlighting the path between participating locations.

Patrons may also register for a chance to win one of the beautiful “blooming” planters being given away at each of the participating locations.

Tea and tours
Beginning Sunday, May 3, the Oregon-Jerusalem Historical Society is launching a new program “Tea and Tours.”

Visitors are invited to take a tour of the museum complex at 1133 Grasser St. Trained docents will conduct the guided tours from2 to 5 p.m.

Connie Isbell, OJHS president, said, “This program is another means of acquainting residents of Oregon and the surrounding community with the facility, housed in the 1882 two-room Brandville School and the other buildings in the complex.”

The facilities and artifacts have been reorganized and a gift shop has been added, Isbell said.
Sweets and tea will be served at the conclusion of the tours. Admission is $3 for adults, $2.50 for seniors and $1 for students.

For more information, call 419-693-2956.

Oregon Fest planned for May 18
The 2008 Oregon Fest will be held May 18 from noon to 6 p.m. on Dustin Road.
The festival will include free admission, free parking and free stage entertainment. There will also be visits from Mud Hens mascots Muddy and Muddonna, living history exhibits, medical quality-of-life exhibits, arts and crafts, classic cars, festival foods, games, rides and a grand parade at 3 p.m.

For more information, call 419-691-9750 or visit www.OregonFest.net.

Two holes-in-one
Two skilled golfers recently hit holes-in-one at Hidden Hills Golf Course, according to Elizabeth A. Pierce, director of the course.

Last week, Mark Gill connected on the 171-yard par 3 number 16 with an 8-iron. The following day, Oregon resident Charlie Clark landed an ace on the 145-yard number 14 with a 5-wood.

Hidden Hills is offering two new special programs available for senior golfers 55 and older this year, Pierce said. A meeting will be held May 7 for interested male seniors and May 9 for female seniors. Both meetings will start at 8 a.m.

“The explosion of senior golfers has mandated that new programs be explored to accommodate the senior golfer. Most golfers are riding these days and the trend will continue to grow,” Pierce said.
She added that Hidden Hills offers a general golf etiquette program for junior golfers.

Call 419-849-3693 for more information.

Route 66
On May 6 at 7 p.m., Pemberville Library will host local author/photographer, Doug Grosjean, who will discuss travelling the full length of Route 66 last July in a Jeep with his 12-year old son, Jean-Luc.

Along the way, the duo visited sites made famous in the movie “Cars,” followed several abandoned segments and former alignments of Route 66 in each state that the route passed through and bonded as fathers and sons do on big adventures.

The presentation will include over 120 photos taken by Grosjean of well-known Route 66 icons, over half with antique panoramic cameras; a discussion of maps and guidebooks used and a question-and-answer session afterward.

The library is located at 375 E Front St. Call 419-287-4012 for more information.

International Migratory Bird Day
Birdwatchers and nature lovers are invited to celebrate the return of the birds from their wintering grounds in Central and South America on International Migratory Bird Day May 10.
Local events include:

Magee Marsh Wildlife Area, SR 2 between state routes 19 and 590, Oak Harbor. 419-898-0960.
• Sportsmen's Migratory Bird Center Breakfast served by Blackberry Corners 7:30 to 9:30 a.m.
• Back to the Wild live animal displays, including include eagles, owls, hawks, and more.
• Decoy carving - Maumee Bay Carvers and collectors.
• Free drawings for t-shirts and free bird tattoos.

Magee Marsh Bird Trail
• Spectacular bird watching (roving guides).
• Songbird Banding (7:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.) courtesy of Black Swamp Bird Observatory.
• Optics Demo Tent courtesy of Adray Photo.
• Food tent courtesy of Lake Erie Waterfowlers.
• Marsh wagon rides (weather permitting) 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Black Swamp Bird Observatory, at entrance to Magee Marsh Wildlife Area. 419-898-4070.
At the BSBO office:
• Book signing – Jim Mollenkopf from 1 to 3 p.m.
• Time and optics display.
• 14th annual “Big Sit” with Thomas H. Barlett, west end of boardwalk.

Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge, SR 2 between state routes 19 and 590, Oak Harbor. 419-898-0014.
• Auto tours between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m.
• Displays by local nature organizations, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
• Kids’ activities.
• Meet “Puddles the Blue Goose” at 1 p.m.
• Don and Lillian Stokes discuss optics, 1:30 to 3:30 p.m.
• Breakfast and lunch served by Oak Harbor Lions Club.

Maumee Bay State Park, Milton B. Trautman Nature Center, SR 2 west to N. Curtice Road, Oregon. 419-836-9117
• Morning refreshments available including Shadegrown Coffee, bakery fresh rolls and pastries.
• Children’s crafts and activities - ongoing from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
• Storytelling at noon.

For more information, visit www.friendsofmageemarsh.org.

Vail Meadows Festival set for May 31
More than 100 competitors, historical re-enactors, vendors and others have signed on to participate in J.D. Justus’ Vail Meadows Festival and 2008 International Mounted Police Ride Off  May 31 in Oregon.
The festival will be held from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. (rain or shine) at the Vail Meadows Equestrian Center, 6118 Cedar Point Rd., followed by live band performances from 5 to 8 p.m. by Kerry Clark, Attacked by Wolves and Groovemaster. Admission is $10 per person age 12 and older; those under 12 are free with an adult.
Vail Meadows’ therapeutic riding program for 45 adults from Luther Home at Vail with mental retardation and developmental disabilities will receive a 75 percent share of the proceeds from the event. The remaining 25 percent will be split between Luther Home of Mercy and the Ronald McDonald House.

Volunteers needed
Are you interested in wildlife and natural resources? Do you have even a small amount of time to spare and the desire to make a difference for nature?

The Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge is seeking volunteers interested in maintaining wood duck boxes, mowing, staffing the front desk, and more. Anyone interested should contact Laura Bonneau, the refuge’s volunteer coordinator, at 419-898-0014 for more information.

For more information about Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge events, visit www.fws.gov/midwest/ottawa. The Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge entrance is located 15 miles east of Toledo on SR 2.

Mascots promote Oregon Fest and reading
The 2008 Oregon Fest will be held May 18 from noon to 6 p.m. on Dustin Road.

The festival will include free admission, free parking and free stage entertainment. There will also be visits from Mud Hens mascots Muddy and Muddonna, living history exhibits, medical quality-of-life exhibits, arts and crafts, classic cars, festival foods, games, rides and a grand parade at 3 p.m.

For more information, call 419-691-9750 or visit www.OregonFest.net.

Muddy and Muddonna were also in Oregon recently for the Accelerated Reader Program at Starr Elementary School. The program is designed to encourage all elements of literacy by engaging students in reading.

“Students are able to choose from more than 500 book titles,” according to Amy Molnar, Starr principal. “Our Starr Elementary PTA and the Mr. Earl Fundraising Program help to provide the funding for new book titles yearly.”

When a student finishes reading an Accelerated Reading book, he or she is tested using a computerized quiz. Students who pass at least five reader quizzes or earn at least five Accelerated Reader points earn a quarterly incentive sponsored by the Accelerated Reader Committee, comprised of teacher representatives throughout the building.

“Students were excited as they were invited to the gymnasium and found Muddy and Muddonna,” Molnar said.

The students were also greeted by Oregon City Schools Superintendent John Hall, who enthusiastically shared the book, “Casey at the Bat” as Muddy and Muddonna acted out the book.

“Each quarter of our Accelerated Reader program, we have been fortunate to increase the enthusiasm and involvement and the third quarter was no exception,” Molnar said.

“This past quarter we had 248 participants that met the established goal and qualified for the quarterly incentive."