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First some news… Michigan lawmakers are debating Senate bills that would raise hunting and fishing license fees to boost funding for wildlife management and fish stocking. But State Senator Samoose says he’s voting no, arguing the increases come at a time when families are already struggling with inflation. He says, “We want more Michiganders to enjoy hunting and fishing — not less — and families should keep more of what they earn.” Bridge Michigan reports today that the federal shutdown is starting to hit home in Michigan. Henry Ford Health says it will stop scheduling telehealth visits for most Medicare patients Monday, citing uncertainty over whether the government will pay hospitals while operations remain frozen. Officials say patients will now have to travel for care instead of meeting online. Meanwhile, Head Start programs across the state warn they may suspend services if federal grants don’t arrive by November 1. Researchers, courts, and federal employees are also feeling the strain as the shutdown enters its fourth week with no end in sight. The Petoskey News-Review reports today that it could cost nearly $20 million to fix the “Miracle Mile” stretch of the Little Traverse Wheelway near Petoskey, where erosion and bluff collapses closed part of the 26-mile trail connecting Harbor Springs and Charlevoix. The engineering plan includes slope stabilization, shoreline protection, and rebuilding the path. By comparison, a proposed fiber-to-the-home project on Beaver Island is estimated at $9.3 million—less than half the cost of repairing just one mile of trail. The Nonhuman Rights Project says it will appeal to the Michigan Supreme Court after the state Court of Appeals ruled last week that six chimpanzees at the DeYoung Family Zoo in Menominee County are not legal “persons” entitled to habeas corpus rights. The group argues the apes are unlawfully confined and should be moved to a wildlife sanctuary, but the court said animals are considered property under Michigan law — a standard only the Supreme Court can change. The annual Big Buck Contest is officially open on Beaver Island! Hunters can sign up at Powers Do It Best Hardware for a $20 entry fee and have a shot at getting their name on the Island Trophy — and those all-important bragging rights. Bucks must be taken and scored on the Island by Levi Connor, Tim Wamerdam, or Ben Mach. The entry deadline is November 14th at 5 p.m. For details, call 231-448-2572. The latest episode of the Island Heritage Podcast The Tides That Tie is out. Entitled Currachs on Beaver Island – How did THAT happen, it covers the history, craftsmanship, and cultural significance of the Currachs now gracing Beaver Island. There’s a link to hear it in today’s script online. |
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Now, here’s a look at events happening on your Emerald Isle… First your meeting planner…
On the fun front today… Wednesday is school picture day. Comb your hair and wear nice clothes. Also Wednesday, there’s bingo at the BIC Center at 1:00 in the Hangout and Wednesday evening, It’s Time for Art at 5:00 at the BIC Center. This week the session is on Junk Art Assemblage, with Cindy Ricksgers. Use all kinds of nuts, bolts, wire and other materials to turn flattened tin cans into unique humanistic refrigerator magnets, each with a personality of their own. Meantime, up in the hangout the Beaver Island Low Carb group is hosting Crocktober – a shared meal of lowcarb/keto-friendly dishes. Join their Facebook group for more info or just join the at 5:15 in the hangout on Wednesday. Highlights for the rest of the week include… Thursday, at 9:00, there’s Pickleball on the Peaine Township Courts. At 10:00, Tai Chi is in the Hangout at the BIC Center and there is Women’s Bible Study at the Christian Church. Thursday evenings are Burger & a Beer Night at the Shamrock, plus Thursday Night is time for Euchre at Whiskey Point Brewery. Cards hit the table at 7:00. Friday, gets underway with Senior + Vets Coffee + Donuts is on at the BIC Center from 9:00 to 11:00. Also on Friday at 9:00, there’s Chair Strength Training in the Hangout at the BIC Center. There’s Pickleball at 9:00, too, still outside the outdoor courts at Peaine Township Park. [On the radio, Kick off your weekend with our fantastic Friday lineup! After the 6:00pm news, enjoy “That Thing with Rich Appel” featuring top forty hits from the 70s. At 9:00pm, tune into “The Titus Jennings Experience” offering music from all genres, followed by “The Midnight Special” with Marilyn Rea Beyer at 11:00pm for music, farce comedy, and late-night escape.] Saturday, there’s Pickleball outdoors at 9:00. Fiero Coding club activities are on at the library at 1:00. There’s a special food and movie event at the BIC Center starting at 5:00. Chef Vicky Fingeroot will teach you how to make various sushi handrolls. Then enjoy your creations with a screening of the Ghibli Studio classic Spirited Away. It’s a Ghibli Feast at the BIC Center. Tickets are $15 and available online or at the Front Desk. The movie is rated PG. The sushi is rated yummy. And it’s Prime Rib Night at the Shamrock. [On the radio, tune in for Country Classics at 5:00 Saturday evening with host Sheri Timsak. At 7:00, Jackson Smith and Steve Girbach are in with Songs from the Trail. Mark Beltaire takes over at 9:00 with Rockin’ the Boat and continues at 10:00 with the Blues Cruise. Cousin Dan wraps up the evening with the Too Good Radio Show starting at 11:00.] Sunday, there are services at the Episcopal Mission at 9:00 and the Christian Church at 10:00, and Mass at Holy Cross at 12:15. Looking ahead to highlights for next week… It’s all you can eat pizza and salad night at the Shamrock from 5:00 to 7:00. After dinner head outside to search for Comet Lemmon in our night skies. It came closest to Earth last week, but is supposed to be its brightest and most visible this week. It will be visible in the Northern sky underneath the giant ladle shape of the Big Dipper in Ursa Major. Best viewing is said to be just before sunrise. There’s more info at Dark Sky Island dot org. Tuesday, there’s Chair Strength Training at the BIC Center at 9:00. Pickleball is now inside at the BIC Center at 10:00, and Babes and Toddlers mix it up at the library at 10:00. Also, Tuesday is a make-up day for S-A-Ts at school. |
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NAME OF DAY: The BIC Center Name of the Day is Kayleigh. If that’s your name, come on into the BIC Center today to pick out a free drink of your choice. BIRTHDAYS: Jenna Battle, Candice DeLaat and Aubrey Gillfillan are celebrating today. Happy Birthday to Aubrey, Candice and Jenna and, if we missed you on the list, Happy Birthday to you from everyone at WVBI and your Beaver Island Community Center! |
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TRAFFIC: No delays inbound or outbound to the airports. The island beltway is running smoothly with no bridge delays. But, let’s be careful out there—especially in the school zone. |
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For our this date in history yesterday we got a day ahead, so today we are going a day back. On October 21 in 1977, Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore is established along 35 miles of Lake Michigan’s eastern coastline. The park includes towering dunes, lush forests, and the North and South Manitou Islands. Chippewa legend has it that the dunes were created by the Great Spirit Manitou when a mother bear and her two cubs fled a Wisconsin forest fire. The mother bear arrived first and climbed up on a bluff to wait for her cubs. Sadly, the exhausted cubs drowned, and when the mourning mother died, the Great Spirit Manitou marked her resting place with a single forested dune called Sleeping Bear. Her two cubs are the Manitou Islands. Sleeping Bear Dunes now draws more than a million visitors each year to its sweeping views, sandy beaches, and miles of scenic trails. Sleeping Bear Dunes. Photo by Carol Spears from wikipedia.org |
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Our Merriam Webster Word of the Day is frolic (verb) [FRAH-lik]. To frolic is to play and move about happily. Frolic is a word rooted in pleasure. It joined the language in the 16th century as an adjective carrying the meaning of its Dutch source vroolijk: “full of fun; merry.” Shakespeare’s Puck used it this way in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, saying “And we fairies … following darkness like a dream, now are frolic.” Verb use quickly followed, and by the early 17th century the word was also being used as a noun, as in “an evening of fun and frolic.” |
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Now, to wrap up for this Beaver Island Wednesday… |
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Here’s a thought for the day from Pope John Paul the second, who was inaugurated on this day in 1978: “Freedom consists not in doing what we like, but in having the right to do what we ought.” |
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On a lighter note…with frolic… Why do witches fly on broomsticks? Because vacuum cleaners are too heavy. |
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That’s the W-V-B-I Community Calendar Report for this Beaver Island Wednesday, October 22nd, 2025. I’m Kevin Boyle reporting from W-V-B-I’s Langford Family Studios, wishing you a great day and asking you: why not go ahead and make it the best day ever? And thanks for listening. |
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Today A 40 percent chance of showers, mainly after 2pm. Partly sunny, with a high near 53/56. North wind 5 to 15 mph. Tonight A 50 percent chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 41/37. Breezy, with a northwest wind 15 to 20 mph, with gusts as high as 25 mph. Thursday Showers. High near 49/49. Breezy, with a northwest wind 15 to 20 mph. Chance of precipitation is 90%. Thursday Night Showers likely, mainly before 2am. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 41/37. Breezy, with a northwest wind 15 to 20 mph, with gusts as high as 30 mph. Chance of precipitation is 70%. Friday A 40 percent chance of showers, mainly before 2pm. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 50/53. Northwest wind 10 to 15 mph. Friday Night Partly cloudy, with a low around 41/38. Saturday Partly sunny, with a high near 55/57. Saturday Night Mostly cloudy, with a low around 47/43. Sunday Mostly sunny, with a high near 57/60. Sunday Night Partly cloudy, with a low around 48/44. Monday Partly sunny, with a high near 59/61. Monday Night A chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 48/44. Tuesday A chance of showers. Partly sunny, with a high near 57/60. |
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Fire Danger Level on the Island set at Low. AQI this morning 7:00 a.m. was 22.
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Out on the Big Drink… |
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Today NW wind 5 to 15 kt. Showers likely, mainly after 3pm. A slight chance of waterspouts before 7am, then a slight chance of waterspouts after 1pm. Waves 1 to 2 ft. Thursday NW wind around 15 kt, with gusts as high as 25 kt. Showers. A slight chance of waterspouts before 1pm. Waves around 2 ft. Friday NW wind 10 to 15 kt. A chance of showers. Waves around 1 ft. |
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Water Temperature: No report from Little Traverse Bay. The North Lake Michigan buoy southwest of Gull is reporting 59 with three to four foot seas.
Mid Lake Michigan photo at time shown. Provided by NWS |
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Photos from webcams at wvbi.net and mackinacbridge.org |
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Coming up in today’s Community Calendar Report: Senator DaMoose says no to higher hunting and fishing fees… The federal shutdown starts to squeeze health care and Head Start programs across the state… and fixing Petoskey’s Little Traverse Wheelway could cost a cool 20 million. Plus — an update on the chimpanzee rights case and details on Beaver Island’s Big Buck Contest. Those stories plus a look at this date in history, Saturday coding and sushi making, birthdays, a word of the day and a bad joke…all after a global and national news update from FSN. [timecheck] |
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Today’s featured image: Sleeping Bear Dunes. Photo by Carol Spears from wikipedia.org |
