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Local News

Will Bendik Disc Golf Course Opens With Tournament September 25th

Disc Golfing is hot right now with lots of interest in the outdoor sport. St. Clair County is now the place to be for disc golfing with the new Will Bendik Memorial Disc Golf Course at Columbus County Park.

The Grand opening will be on September 25th at 1:00 p.m. at the park, located at 1670 Bauman Road in Columbus Township. A tournament will be held on opening day with both men’s and women’s divisions. The registration deadline for the tournament is September 23rd.  There are cash prizes to the winners.

The course has been a labor of love for many months as the state-of-the-art course has been constructed in the beautiful Columbus County Park setting. The course was professionally designed by Jeff Bauman with “Gold Level” tees as well as fun tees for beginners.

Funding for the course was provided by the family of Will Bendik, in his memory. Cooperation with St. Clair County Parks and year-round hard work from disc golf enthusiasts have made the disc golf course a destination.

Links to more information and tournament signup:

https://www.discgolfscene.com/tournaments/Will_Bendik_Memorial_2021

https://www.facebook.com/groups/2783535091863861/

Reporting for WGRT – Jennie McClelland

What is There To Do in the Port Huron Area?

If you have guests visiting from out of town, or you are a native looking to see your city with fresh eyes, you can take multiple tours of Port Huron on Google and discover much of what the area has to offer.

The Blue Water Convention and Visitors Bureau has created several community tourism maps on Google that feature shopping, dining, and indoor and outdoor recreation and entertainment options in the city of Port Huron and the Thumbcoast region.

Maps include Discover Port Huron, Thumbcoast Beer, Wine & Spirits Tour, Michigan Thumbcoast Heritage & Lighthouse Tour, Michigan Thumbcoast Road Trip M29 – M25, and Haunted Sites.

According to Katie Stepp, Marketing Manager for the Blue Water Area Convention & Visitors Bureau, they are working on maps for each of the major shoreline communities. They are also active on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and, more recently, TikTok spreading the word about our region and its amenities.

For more information, visit: bluewater.org

Reporting for WGRT – Jessie Wiegand

 

 

Help Feed the World on September 25th

The Blue Water Feed the World Project is having its annual food packing event on Saturday, September 25th from 8:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at Landmark Academy. Many volunteers are needed to make this endeavor a success.

The Project is really a huge production line that prepares and packages 150,000 meals to be used both locally and worldwide. The cost of each meal is 35 cents and each package contains six adult meals. The Blue Water Feed the World Project has a goal of raising $52,000. They were at about $33,000 earlier this week.

Volunteers are needed to help with the packing. Shifts are from 8-10:30 and 10-12:30 on Saturday, September 25th. Sponsors are also needed to help fund the project.

The Blue Water Feed the World Project is part of the Kids Coalition Against Hunger. Once the food, a mixture of easily digestible protein, carbohydrates, and vitamins, is packaged, it is sent to local food pantries as well as international aid groups.

https://www.kidscoalitionagainsthunger.org/

Sign up to help

Reporting for WGRT – Jennie McClelland

Lexington Bach Festival Returns this Weekend

Everybody needs a little Johan Sebastian Bach every now and then. The Lexington Bach Festival is bringing three days of world-class classical music to the Blue Water Area.

The festival opens this year with free performances at noon and 7 p.m. today at the Fine Arts Building at St. Clair County Community College.

Today’s concert features the Lexington Bach Festival String Quartet playing J.S. Bach, Prokofiev, and Haydn. If you miss the Thursday concert, there are three more days of classical music.

Friday, Saturday, and Sunday’s shows will be held at St. Denis Catholic Church in Lexington. The shows will feature a pre-concert talk with Music Director John Thomas Dodson 45 minutes before the performance time.

Friday’s show is at 7 p.m. showcases the talents of pianist Mark Markham. Saturday’s show is at 7 p.m. also and will be hosting Chicago’s renowned brass quintet, Axiom Brass.

Sunday’s show is at 4 p.m. and brings pianist Mark Markham back joined by acclaimed soprano Leah Crocetto.

Further information and tickets are available at Weekends in Port Huron and Lexington, or on

www.lexington-arts.org or www.lexingtonbachfestival.org or by phone 810-689-4250.

 Reporting for WGRT – Jennie McClelland

Sandy Hunwick Harrison Center PHASD

Harrison Holding Walk-in Registration for Adult Learners

Harrison Center in Port Huron provides adult learning opportunities for those who want to complete their high school diploma or study for their G.E.D. tests. The school is open for walk-in registration from now until September 30th  from 8 AM – 1 PM Monday – Thursday and Tuesday & Thursday evenings from  4:30 – 7 PM.

Those who want to enroll should bring their birth certificate, driver’s license or state ID, and their social security card to register. Students who previously attended Harrison Center can log in to Skyward to update their information in the “Returning Student Verification” section.

Sandy Hunwick has been teaching at Harrison for 5 years. Prior to her position at Harrison she had retired after 17 years with Port Huron Schools.  “We are just trying to help adults in our community succeed,” said Hunwick.

Last year, Harrison Center had 40 graduates , and their goal this year is 50 grads. They have already had their first GED graduate.

Hunwick wants to encourage anyone in the community who was approved for the Futures for Frontliners program to enroll in the program as soon as possible. “They must register by December 31st or they will lose that scholarship,” she said.

September 19 – 25 is National Adult Education and Family Literacy Week which helps raise awareness of the need for adult education and family literacy programs in communities.

Harrison Center enrolls students all year long. After October 1st, registration is by appointment only.

To learn more, visit their website here:

http://www.phasd.us/our_schools/harrison_adult_learning_center

Reporting for WGRT – Jessie Wiegand

 

Christine McNabb is NACW’s Woman of the Year

The Port Huron Chapter of National Association of Career Women provides a place for professional and personal development of women, and each year they select a Woman of the Year at their annual meeting. This year’s honoree is Christine McNabb.

Christina McNabb is the Branch Manager at Northstar Bank in St. Clair, and she is active in the St. Clair Rotary, St. Clair Police Foundation, and Marine City Chamber of Commerce.

The Port Huron Chapter of NACW selected Christine as their Woman of the Year because of her work on the board of the organization and her commitment to teaching banking and financial responsibility to St. Clair and Marine City high school students.

The NACW’s Woman of the Year is a woman whose “conduct exemplifies the highest standards, personally and professionally, while remaining active in her career. Women who are interested in learning more about NACW can visit their website at nacwonline.org.

Reporting for WGRT – Jessie Wiegand