Charlevoix Historical Society - Charlevoix, Michigan

Our annual Harvest Potluck is fast approaching! Hone your favorite hearty recipes and gather for this celebration of our beautiful fall season. (Again, lightly on the squash, please. Your editor hates squash. It tastes like it sounds.) Be sure to bring your own tableware and silver. We will supply napkins, cups, and beverages.

We have a very special program planned for the evening. Master dulcimer artist Mike Berst from Eastport will be with us to perform a variety of tunes selected from dozens of genres including Appalachian folk, square dance, foreign, and old-timey hymns. Mike has been performing for 35 years, and has been recognized as having elevated the dulcimer, whose roots are strongest in rural Michigan, to concert status. Bob Talbert of the Detroit Free Press said that Berst "... is my don't-miss concert of the year." He has produced 18 CDs and made over 2000 concert appearances. The rich, vibrant tones, overtones, and rhythms he conjures from his instrument must be heard to be believed. Try not to miss what should be an enthralling event.

Museum co-director Betsy Reynolds has resigned as of September 1 after close to ten years of excellent service to the Society. She took over from her son Geoffrey in October, 1993, and shared the directorship duties with David Miles starting in 2001. Her retirement from teaching a couple of years ago, combined with wanting more time down south in the winter and up north at the family cottage in the summer, plus other family obligations and interests, led her to make the difficult decision to relinquish her duties. She will remain on as a volunteer with special interest in genealogical research and the museum store, plus she'll fill in when needed. Betsy has been a bottomless source of information to everyone who came to her, always ready to help, always with a smile. We'll miss her a lot, and wish her well during a retirement well deserved.