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Organizers and exhibitors of this year's Great Lakes Lighthouse Festival were elated with the turnout for the 2nd annual lighthouse festival held in Alpena, Michigan.

Saturday, the first day of the festival, held this past October 11 and 12, saw nearly 7000 people jam the Alpena Civic Center, where the Festival was held. Proving that lighthouse items are "hot," by noon some of the vendors had sold over half of the products they had brought with them.

Over 100 volunteers were needed to coordinate the Festival, which officials hope will draw more public interest to lighthouse preservation.

It looked just like an old fashioned carnival with all the booths set up inside the convention center and the numerous vendors and tents set up on the grounds outside. Even the Mayor was on hand to proclaim October as Lighthouse Awareness Month. State Representative Beverly Bodem said she will ask the Governor to issue a special designation next year for the Festival.

Tourists from across the nation flowed into the area. The Chamber of Commerce found it difficult to find hotel rooms for the travellers and many had to stay in nearby towns.

Attendees were provided maps to the area lighthouses to tour on their own. Buses, which were nearly always packed, left the convention center on a regular basis for guided tours. The most popular attraction was the helicopter rides which offered spectacular views of the lighthouses on Middle Bay and Thunder Island.

Among the guest speakers were Bill Younger, founder of Harbour Lights, and Lynn Marvin of Marvin Aerial Photography. Marvin presented me with a beautiful large matted aerial photo of the Harrison Lighthouse in the West Indies, which will soon be proudly displayed on my office wall.

Cheryl Spencer Collin was also on hand to autograph her line of collectibles . She used the Festival to unveil her new replica collectible of the San Francisco Lightship which drew lots of interest from the crowd.

Another happy exhibitor was our friend from Holland, Michigan, Gary Odmark. Gary sold three original oil paintings and a large number of his limited edition lighthouse and ship prints.

If you did not attend this year's festival, we would suggest that you make plans to attend next year's event, which will be held October 9, 10 and 11. Although the town of Alpena has a small airport, it is serviced by United Airlines.

For those of you whodon't know, the Alpena Airport was used in the spectacular airport scenes in the movie Diehard II with Bruce Willis. The area is rich in spectacular beauty and close by is the world famous Mackinac Bridge and naturally, lots of lighthouses.

For information on next year's event, you can write to the Great Lakes Lighthouse Festival, 70447 Fisher Road, Romeo, Michigan 48065.

This story appeared in the November 1997 edition of Lighthouse Digest Magazine. For subscription information about the print edition, click here.

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