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View from the Lake: A mismatch made in heaven

Cathy Walton-Smith/View From The Lake
Grand Lake, CO Colorado

More than once, people who don’t know us have remarked that the General and I just seem a little mismatched. This week we celebrated our 17th wedding anniversary, and we’re still going strong – with more things in common than you might imagine. Without realizing it at the time, we were both born in Ohio. For several years, we led parallel lives in California. We both ended up in Grand Lake due to unusual happenstance. He’s a wild cowboy and I’m a wild dancer. What more in common do two people need? We have plans to renew our wedding vows on our 50th anniversary. You’re all invited.

The Grand Lake Area Chamber of Commerce has had a rough week here. You might say that they’ve had a pretty rough year to date, with not that great of an outlook for the near future. But what I have learned from my many years of involvement in our community, is that experts come and go. We listen to them, but don’t always agree – sometimes that results in expensive consequences. Our business community is strong and believes in the value of our Chamber. Community support and participation is strong. The Chamber of Commerce is too important to just go away. It may just take a little time here … but we’ll get back on track.

Thursday, Aug. 19, the Grand Lake Women’s Club members will take a boat ride on Grand Lake, with lunch on the beach at 11 a.m. If you don’t care to come for lunch, meet at the marina next to Lemmon Lodge at noon. Bring cash to pay for your ride; cost should not exceed $10. Following the ride they will have ice cream at Miyauchi’s. Call Muriel Johnson at 627-0874 or Ann Stark at 627-8208 not later than Monday, Aug. 16 with your reservation.



Tickets are still available for the Rockies/Braves baseball game Aug. 23. Peggy Mann will be singing the National Anthem at that game, and a block of seats behind third base has been reserved by the Grand Arts Council so that all of Peggy’s fans can sit together. In addition, the Rockies are generously donating half hte cost of each ticket to the Grand Arts Council. Get tickets on line at grandartscouncil.com.

Some people might think that Grand Lake – a laid back old fashioned town, with solid redneck values – may not be the best place to hold a FunkFest . . . whatever that is! But Larry Norman, president of the Center 4 Excellence, says “it’s all about the kids.”



This event is really a series of events including music, workshops, exhibits, tournaments, story tellers and much more taking place over Labor Day weekend, September 3-5. By selling tickets at $18 ($15 youth) in advance or $20 ($17 youth) during the event, the Center 4 Excellence hopes to raise a substantial sum of money to benefit local education in the spirit of “No Child Left Behind.” In addition, ticket holders will receive discounts at many Grand Lake businesses.

Tickets are available at the Grand Lake Visitor Center, the Granby Visitor Center and other business locations. Proceeds from the event will benefit Grand Lake Elementary School, Indian Peaks Charter School, all other schools in the East Grand School District, the Center 4 Excellence, Grand Lake Chamber and Grand Arts Council.

The annual Tombstone Tales historic tour through the Grand Lake Cemetery, is scheduled for Sunday, Sept. 5. This storytelling event has been a popular Labor Day weekend attraction for over 10 years. Six historic Grand Lake people will be characterized by costumed actors portraying their stories, at the grave sites.

Tickets are now on sale for the event which consists of a guided cemetery tour and takes about an hour and a half. Tours are scheduled every half hour beginning at 11 a.m. limited to 20 people in each tour. For tickets and more information about just who will be coming to life this year, stop in at the Grand Lake Art Gallery, or visit http://www.grandartscouncil.com. This event is sponsored by the Grand Arts Council.

– If you would like me to pass on information about what’s going on in Grand Lake, you need to make sure I know about it. Please email me at waltonsmith@rkymtnhi.com.


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