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Island Diary February 2024
Thu., Feb. 1st – The first day of the month starts with temperatures in the 40s. With the past few days of warmer than usual temperatures, the ice in the lake is worthless for any winter fun.
Fri., Feb. 2nd – Eric and Jen Booker are in the Florida Panhandle at Perdido Key. There’s a birthday party for Teddy Koehler in the evening.
Sat., Feb. 3rd – The PIB School basketball team plays its last game of the season. PIB High School senior Joe Blumensaadt, the son of Todd and Jennifer Blumensaadt, is honored for his participation and contributions to the PIB Panther basketball team at a ceremony at the school gym. Tom Thanasiu and Bill Sulesky from The Perry Group move their office from the airport terminal to the Duff Homestead and then help the Lake Erie Islands Conservancy and Put-in-Bay Township Park District with their office move too. Mike Byrnes and Russ Brohl are busy painting inside the Duff house,
Sun., Feb. 4th – Fog prevents the Tai Kwon Do and dance lessons from taking place. Meredith Cooper draws this week’s winning ticket for the PIB Yacht Club’s Rolling Raffle. Marilyn Paselsky is the winner.
Mon., Feb. 5th – There’s a pretty low ceiling that curtails air traffic on and off the island. Ottawa Co. Sheriff Deputy Allred is on the island with the islands’ new K-9 officer Storm.
Tue., Feb. 6th – Try outs for the spring play, Peter Pan, take place at the Town Hall.
Wed., Feb. 7th – On this day, Feb. 7, 1920. Kelleys Island was hit hard by a Spanish Flu outbreak. Every house hit, half of the population was ill. There was only one doctor and no nurses to treat those ill. PIB Brownie Troop 1314 delivers homemade trail mix to the fire station. Greta Koehler is celebrating her 5th birthday with a party at the town hall in the evening.
Thu., Feb. 8th – John and Carol Rees from New Colony Rd. in Duff’s Woods celebrate their 60th wedding anniversary. The temperature at PIB hits 60 degrees! Barry Koehler kayaks to Starve Island and videos much of his adventure.
Fri., Feb. 9th – The Science Fair and Pinewood Derby race are held at PIB School. Cody Kowalski takes home the Newton Cup, the overall points winner for all events. A 21-year old island woman is Lifeflighted off the island after she runs off the road and plows the pickup she’s driving all the way into the restrooms/kitchen at Joe’s Bar. Response and rescue workers cut off the door of the truck to get the trapped driver removed. With the temperature reaching 60 degrees by dinner time, the ice is leaving the island area including most of it in the harbor.
Sat., Feb. 10th – Fishermen in boats are spotted off the West Shore.
Sun., Feb. 11th – A bit of ice is back in harbor, but the lake is pretty much open. The Put-in-Bay Volunteer Fire Department holds a fundraiser pancake breakfast at the fire station in the morning. Nik Pettenski is the lucky winner of the department’s meat raffle. St. Paul’s Episcopal Church holds its 2024 Annual Meeting in the church’s Undercroft. The meeting is live-streamed. The main item on the Agenda is the election of two new members to the Vestry. The seats of Paula Hubner and Mary Ann Meyers are taken by Cathy Domer and Kira Hubner. It’s Superbowl Sunday on the island just like everywhere else in America.
Mon., Feb. 12th – On this date in 1933, two ice boats coming from Port Clinton went through the ice into open water. The occupants swam to solid ice and three of them walked ashore. All were able to walk home after their rescue. They were G. Hallock, Alf Parker, Russ Stoecker, Willard Senne, Wilbur Dodge, Jr., Charles Fuchs and Ed Morrison. There’s a birdhouse building program at the Nature Center. In the evening, they are playing volleyball at the school gym and the baton twirlers start their new winter session in the town hall.
Tue., Feb. 13th – Happy Fat Tuesday! The fastnacht-making tradition continues at the Dress household. Billy Market’s tradition of being the “official” taste tester also continues. In the evening, there’s Bingo and fastnachts at the Town Hall. The PIBHS Basketball Team has their annual awards ceremony in the school gym.
Wed., Feb. 14th – Girl Scout cookies arrive on the island. On this date in 1940, tragedy strikes as the island doctor, his wife and two children perish when their car goes through frozen Lake Erie as they drove over the ice to Middle Bass Island.
Thu., Feb. 15th – The rescheduled regular meeting of the PIB Twp. Trustees takes place in the meeting room in their building at the entrance to the transfer station. It’s McMarc night at the Forge. Bob Gatewood is playing his first show that is part of Put-in-Bay Days in Key West!
Fri., Feb. 16th – On this day in 1905, the owner of Gibraltar Island, Jay Cooke, died. Kate Hubner wins the spelling bee at PIB School. PIBVFD has ice training off the downtown boat launch ramp in the afternoon. A dusting of snow covers the island overnight.
Sat., Feb. 17th – Several of the island’s young ladies are selling Girl Scout Cookies outside of the entrance of Topsy Turvey’s in the afternoon. There won’t be any door to door sales until after winter break. Pat Dailey’s son, Reese Dailey, and Ray Fogg perform a tribute to Pat’s songs at the Key West Theater in Key West.
Sun., Feb. 18th – Over on Middle Bass Island there’s a breakfast at the Town Hall to help fun the fireworks show at the last ferry sent off in the fall.
Mon., Feb. 19th – We hear the first rumors about ferry service beginning for the 2024 season. Fishermen are reporting schools of walleye off Rattlesnake island. Fishing by boat is the only option this winter.
Tue., Feb. 20th – Miller Boat Line posts its Early Schedule for March 2nd through March 10th. That’s good news for island families returning to the island from the mid-winter school vacation. Several island parents attend the PIB School Board of Education meeting in the afternoon to voice their opinion on split K/1st Grade classes. On this day in 1920, Dr. Jump, who was Kelleys Island’s only doctor that has been treating Spanish Flu outbreak, is in critical condition having contracted the virus himself.
Wed., Feb. 21st – Several families fly off the island in anticipation of the rainy and low ceiling weather coming. The Chamber of Commerce has it’s monthly executive board meeting via zoom in the afternoon. There’s still a bit of life at the Yacht Club where there’s Euchre and a meeting of the Wine with Words group.
Thu., Feb. 22nd – It’s a rainy morning and those who got off the island to begin their mid-winter vacations made a good move getting off the day before. Colleen White is celebrating her birthday. Jeff Bast, KC and Jacob Seaman set sail on a 4-day Bahamian cruise.
Fri., Feb. 23rd – PIB’s students have no school as the winter vacation officially begins. The coming 10 days are the quietest time of the year on the island. Unfortunately for those heading out for winter vacation, dense fog delays flights off the island in the morning.
Sat., Feb. 24th – The 8th Annual Burning Snowman Festival takes place over in Port Clinton. Several popular Put-in-Bay bands are performing at the event, including the Killer Flamingos. A red fox is spotted on Copper Drive in the morning! Lisa Brohl says she is glad to see some are around. They eat mice and she hopes they can take some small rabbits that ate her garden last summer. Tom Thanasiu has a good day. He spots an 8-point buck resting in the woods, plus he retrieves the PIBYC burgie from the top of the flag pole with a broken halyard at Put-in-Bay Yacht Club. There’s a bachelorette party for Gwena Market (PIBHS Class of 2018 )in Ellicottville, NY.
Sun., Feb. 25th – The temperature is in the mid-forties. The next couple of days are forecast to be unseasonably pleasant.
Mon., Feb. 26th – Islanders are saddened to hear of Ted McCann’s passing. Ted, always a favorite of kids growing up on the island, was the owner of Ted’s Tackle Shop for many years.
Tues., Feb. 27th – Jim and Sandy Yelensky, former vineyard tenders from North Bass Island, are working in Walt and Sue Duff’s vineyard getting the grape vines ready for the 2024 growing season.
Wed., Feb. 28th – Temperatures fall during the day from 60 degrees at 2 a.m. to in the 20s just before midnight. Miller Ferry announces a new way to save on transporting your vehicle to and from the islands. You’ll have the option to purchase 5 (or more) round-trip vehicle tickets and receive a discounted round trip vehicle fare of $42 for Put-in-Bay and $57 for Middle Bass Island.
Thurs., Feb. 29th – Two leap years ago in 2016, PIB students were returning to class at PIB School after the Winter Break. This year it’s still a vacation day for them.
Putinbay.com is proud to present the Put-in-Bay Gazette’s Island Diary for February 2024, in the March 2024 issue of the Gazette.
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