Markesan Retirement Home Entrance
Welcome to Markesan – Banner on Building in Town
A sunny early-spring day took me to the small farm town of Markesan, Wisconsin for my third Lights of the Lakes show of the year. Markesan is a small town in the heart of dairy farming territory west of Waupun. The venue was the Markesan Resident Home, a senior community. About 40 residents and guests from the community enjoyed the show.
Markesan Resident Home Sign
Roadside Promotional Sign
Above is the roadside sign which promoted the first Lights of the Lakes show of 2019. I’ll forgive them for leaving a letter out of the word lighthouse on the sign. It looks like they were unable to fit all the letters into the available space.
The show was presented to a small but hardy group at a meeting of the Historic Allouez Society. This is a historical society in Allouez, WI, which is near Green Bay.
Allouez Community Center Signs
Allouez Community Center Entrance
About 20 society members and lighthouse enthusiasts turned out to see the show.
Allouez Community Center Audience
After the show, one of the attendees wrote,
I would like to thank you for your great presentation on Saturday. The Historic Allouez Society is small but always eager to broaden our view of the world. Your pictures were excellent.
The second Lights of the Lake program in January was held at Samaritan Health Center, a large senior residence in West Bend, WI. This was my second show at this senior community. The last was in 2013.
Samaritan Health Center Entrance
Samaritan Health Center Sign
About 35 seniors enjoyed today’s presentation of Lights of the Lakes.
Samaritan Health Center Audience
The first Lights of the Lakes show in Illinois in many years was presented today at The Solana, a large senior community in Deer Park, IL.
The Solana at Deer Park – Sign and Entrance
About 35 seniors enjoyed the show. I was a little nervous about this one, because Lights of the Lakes features no Illinois lighthouses. No worries, however, as the audience really got into the show, even without local lighthouses being shown.
The Solana at Deer Park – Audience
The second scheduled Lights of the Lake program this month was held at Oak Park Place, a senior community in Burlington, WI.
Oak Park Place Burlington Sign
Oak Park Place Burlington Entrance
This was my fifth show at an Oak Park Place senior community. Earlier this year, Lights of the Lakes was performed at OPP facilities in Green Bay, Menasha, Wauwatosa, and Baraboo.
Oak Park Place Burlington Setup
We had a tremendous audience for this show, one of the largest of the year. This was a featured event for Oak Park Place. It had been promoted in advance to the community. As a result, an audience of 130 seniors turned out to see the show.
Oak Park Place Burlington Audience
One guest, Bill Williams of Wind Lake, WI brought three lighthouse models which added a nice to the decor.
Bill Williams and his lighthouse models
This was the 36th and last Lights of the Lakes show of 2018. Programs resume in January, 2019, and you’ll find the story of each one of them here. See you next year!
Meyer’s Restaurant Entrance
Meyer’s Restaurant in Greenfield, WI was the venue for the first Lights of the Lakes program in October. Thirty members of the Greenfield Historical Society enjoyed the show.
When asked for feedback after the show, Bob Roesler, society president, said,
Phil, your program is outstanding. I can’t say more. Bob Roesler, GHS
Whitefish Bay United Methodist Church
My second venue in October was the United Methodist Church in Whitefish Bay, WI. The program was hosted by PrimeTimers 50+, a senior group. I was graciously invited to lunch before the show, joining about 40 others for the meal. After lunch, Lights of the Lakes was shown in the Chapel to about 20 PrimeTimers.
Lippold Faith & Education Center at Luther Manor
October’s third and final Lights of the Lakes program took place at Luther Manor, a large senior community in Wauwatosa, WI. The show was presented in the Lippold Faith & Education Center, a large chapel on the Luther Manor campus. About 45 Luther Manor residents enjoyed the show.
I was intimately familiar with the room in advance, as my camera club, the Photo Pictorialists of Milwaukee, meets there.
Today’s travel took me to Baraboo, WI to present Lights of the Lakes at Oak Park Place, a large senior community. This was the first show I’ve ever done in this part of the state, and the audience loved it. A highlight for me was meeting a friend I haven’t seen in about twenty years, Keri Olson. She came up to me after the show and recalled a time long ago when we worked together on the Great Circus Parade. In a subsequent facebook post, Keri said:
Oak Park Place Baraboo EntranceThat’s my business card laying on top of the tri-fold brochure Oak Park Place sent out to publicize the show. They also produced the large poster shown below. This publicity drew many non-residents, who visited Oak Park Place for the first time.
Keri Olson’s Facebook Post
Lights of the Lakes at Oak Park Place Baraboo Poster
As usual, I photographed the sign out near the entrance to the Oak Park Place campus:
Oak Park Place Baraboo Sign
And here’s a shot of the audience watching Lights of the Lakes.
Clare Meadows Entrance
This afternoon occasioned the 29th presentation of Lights of the Lakes this year. The venue was Clare Meadows Senior Apartments in Franklin, WI.
Clare Meadows Sign
An appreciative audience of around 25 seniors enjoyed the show.
Clare Meadows Audience
Harbour Village Property Entrance
Today’s destination for another Lights of the Lakes show was Harbour Village in Greendale, WI. This large senior community includes independent living, assisted living, and memory care. About 25 seniors attended today’s program.
Concord Retirement Living Sign
Concord Main Entrance
Equipment Setup
In a welcome change from a long string of Lights of the Lakes programs presented to historical societies and senior communities, tonight’s show was delivered to the Vagabond Ski and Social Club of Milwaukee as a “Roundtable Talk.”
Prior to the program, the club publicized the show on their web site as follows:
Vagabond Ski & Social Club Event Announcement
The venue was the Knights of Columbus hall in West Allis, WI.
Knights of Columbus Hall – West Allis, WI
Tonight’s program drew an all-time-high audience of at least 180 people, a 50% increase over my previous all-time-high turnout of 120. What a thrilling surprise!
Vagabond Ski & Social Club Audience
Tonight’s show was actually the second performance of Lights of the Lakes at Newcastle Place, a large senior community in Mequon. I was invited back after a previous program four years ago. Same venue, different audience.
Welcome to Newcastle Place
Equipment Setup in the Chapel
Twilight Departure
On a summery June afternoon, I headed to the southwest Milwaukee suburb of Muskego, WI to present Lights of the Lakes for the third time this month. Prior to the show, the Friends of the Muskego Library prepared and published the flyer below to promote the show.
Friends of the Muskego Public Library Flyer
Muskego Public Library Sign
Muskego Public Library
The final Lights of the Lakes program in June was presented at Pitch’s Express, the snack bar located inside the Roundhouse at McKinley Marina in Milwaukee. The Roundhouse is a convenience/ship’s store and also serves as the nerve center of a busy commercial marina serving Lake Michigan mariners. It was a great location for a lighthouse show!
McKinley Marina Slips
McKinley Marina Fuel Dock
McKinley Marina Roundhouse
Today’s Lights of the Lakes program was sponsored by the Ovation Jewish Home of Milwaukee, as part of their monthly Memory Cafe series.
Memory Cafes are places where persons with MCI (Mild Cognitive Impairment), early-stage Alzheimer’s, or a related dementia can go with their care partners to socialize and have fun with other people going through similar things. There is no real agenda or stated purpose except to enjoy each other’s company and in this case, enjoy some entertainment. Cafes provide a time where participants do not need to focus on their cognitive impairment, but have a great time connecting with each other as a family or creating new friendships.
Memory Cafe Audience
Today’s audience was comprised of about ten seniors. The physical equipment setup to deliver the show was a little unusual, but did not detract from the enjoyment of the participants.
My first presentation of Lights of the Lakes this month took place at Oak Park Place, a large senior community in Wauwatosa, WI. The show was widely promoted by the professionally-produced flyer below. About 60 seniors attended.
Lights of the Lakes at Oak Park Place Wauwatosa
Oak Park Place Wauwatosa – Entrance
Oak Park Place Wauwatosa – Sign
Oak Park Place Wauwatosa – Audience
The second show in May will be a free public presentation at 7:00 pm on Monday, May 14th at the Menomonee Falls Library, W156 N8436 Pilgrim Rd, Menomonee Falls, WI 53051. All are welcome!
Prior to the show, the library prepared the following notice and placed it on their web site.
Lights of the Lakes at the Menomonee Falls Public Library
In anticipation of the event, the library set up a display of lighthouse books in the lobby.
Lighthouse Book Display
Lights of the Lakes was presented in one of the library’s large meeting rooms, which featured a built-in projector and large screen. Big screens really add impact to the photography in the show!
Equipment Setup
The meeting room featured a pair of ceiling-mounted screens near the back of the room. I’ve never experienced a setup like this in all my years of doing the show. Kudos to the Menomonee Falls Library for adding these extra screens!
Menomonee Falls Library Audience
As I was leaving the library after dark, I decided to take a photo of the library entrance at night. I was pleased at how this shot turned out!
Menomonee Falls Library
Today’s show was the third presentation of Lights of the Lakes at an Oak Park Place senior community. It followed an April 17th show in Green Bay and the May 2nd show in Wauwatosa. About 65 seniors attended today’s program.
Oak Park Place Menasha Entrance
Oak Park Place Sign
Oak Park Place Audience
Thus concludes another month in the 28-year run of Lights of the Lakes. The following shows are scheduled for next month:
Stop by again for the latest news!
My first show in April required an early-morning trip to Milwaukee at the Ovation Jewish Home on Prospect venue. The audience this time was about 12 members of the R&R Club.
The show went well. The audience didn’t come in until right around 10:30, and took their seats the Helen Bader executive conference room. The group was a mix of normal-looking and acting folks, and several with obvious health issues. Pretty typical for a senior care facility. What surprised me was the fact that there were three or four men in the audience, and they were all alert and seemed to be very interested in the program. I got a lot of compliments afterwards.
There was one unexpected disaster during the program. My foot bumped the surge protector/power strip under the table, turned it over, and shut it off. That killed the projector and sound system, which were plugged into that unit. I had to restart the projector and lost a couple minutes during the show as a result of this mishap.
As I was packing up my gear to go home, a vicious wind cutting into me, it was snowing heavy flurries. No accumulation, but snow twice in the same week in April tests one’s patience. Some mild weather would certainly be welcome!
I left at 1:00 pm today, headed for Dickson Hollow to do today’s Lights of the Lakes show. It took me almost exactly my estimated amount of time to get there: 45 minutes. I got there right on time and quickly found the room where the show would take place. It was the back half of a large room also used as a chapel and church on weekends. Since this was a Presbyterian Home facility, that makes sense. The altar was at the opposite end of the room from where I presented.
I was able to use the house projector via an HDMI cable connection direct from my MacBook. There was a new type of projector I’d never seen before. It stuck out only a couple of feet from the wall above the screen, and projected down onto the screen.
Dickson Hollow – Entrance
Dickson Hollow – Sign
Dickson Hollow – Audience
Today found me at the New Berlin Public Library at 9:00 am to set up for the ElderCare Focus Group Lights of the Lakes show. I was second presenter on their agenda. The first speaker was a woman who spoke on Wisconsin tourism and things to do and places to go to enjoy Wisconsin’s many attractions.
The morning commute was a hassle. As usual, there was an accident on I-43 which stopped southbound traffic at Mequon Road. The crash occurred just south of Brown Deer Road. In addition to that mess, there were at least three other places where the traffic flow came to a halt on I-43 and I-94. I profoundly hate driving the Milwaukee area freeway system at rush hour.
The show in New Berlin was a success. I didn’t do the Edmund Fitzgerald segment due to time restrictions, but everything else went well. They had a great ceiling-mounted projector that threw a 12-foot-wide image on the screen—wonderful! About 75 seniors saw today’s show.
On my way home, I went back to Dickson Hollow to get the location pictures I missed when I was there on Tuesday. I also stopped by Menomonee Place, the site of tomorrow’s show. I wanted to find the location, as well as take pictures of it, in case the weather is lousy tomorrow.
New Berlin Public Library
Well, I’ve arrived at the last day of this busy week. This morning I head out to do my third and final show of the week, at Menomonee Place in Menomonee Falls. As mentioned yesterday, I scouted this place the day before, in order to find it and photograph it in good weather. Next week will bring even more travel and more shows during this busy season for Lights of the Lakes.
Menomonee Place Entrance
Menomonee Place – Sign
4:00 pm – Days Inn & Suites, Green Bay. I left early enough this afternoon to get here with time to spare before tonight’s Lights of the Lakes show at Oak Park Place on the east side of Green Bay. I’m closer to downtown, about five miles away. I decided to spend the night here after the show, in order to avoid a long drive home late at night.
This place really got dumped on over the weekend. I took a wrong turn getting to the motel and Google Maps directed me to take a side street to get back on track. That road was the pits: poorly plowed; rutted; narrowed by cars parked along both sides. At least the main roads are OK, but in poor shape. It’s obvious that a lot of work is needed, at least on Mason Street, which is a main east-west thoroughfare in Green Bay.
Later – The show was a success. Big crowd: about 70 people. The best “refreshments” I’ve ever seen a host provide: sandwiches, chips, lighthouse-decorated cookies, soda, beer, wine, and coffee. Amazing spread! I deliberately skipped dinner, as I often skip meals before I speak. This was another of those show-off events intended to draw potential residents to the facility. My host, Tonya Slack, offered facility tours after my show.
On the way back to the motel, I heard on the radio that Barbara Bush died today at age 92. She was married to George Bush (41) with whom she held the record for the longest marriage of an American president: 72 years. Incredible first lady.
Oak Park Place Green Bay Sign
Oak Park Place Green Bay Entrance
Titletown Decor
Refreshment Table
Beer, Water, and Soda Station
Wine and Coffee Station
Lighthouse Cookies
Equipment Setup
Audience
The next Lights of the Lakes show took place at the Menasha Public Library, hosted by the Menasha Historical Society. 47 people enjoyed tonight’s show. Afterwards, Nicholas Jevne, MHS president, said:
Thanks for your fantastic presentation of the lighthouses on Lake Superior and Lake Michigan. The Library staff, attendees and the Menasha Historical Society were very enthusiastic in telling me how informative your program was. The Library informed me specifically that they would like to co-host future programs with us again.
Menasha Public Library
Electronic Event Board
Menasha Historical Society Audience
The final Lights of the Lakes show in April took place on the 19th at Oakridge Gardens Rehabilitation and Memory Care in Menasha. This was a small facility, which yielded an audience of about 15 seniors.
Oakridge Gardens – Entrance
Oakridge Gardens – Sign
