Lake Erie News

A collaborative effort blending the craftsmanship of the Lakeside Wooden Boat Society and the artistic expression of the Plein Air Art Festival will create one of Lakeside’s most unique weekends of the Chautauqua season from July 20-22.
This three-day event begins on Friday when plein air artists arrive at Lakeside to paint outdoor landscapes. The term “en plein air” means painting “in the open air.” The festival will host more than 30 plein air artists from across the Midwest. Guests are invited to watch them paint.
There will be opportunities to purchase artwork with the addition of the Open Air Gallery, located on the pedestrian walkway of Walnut Avenue, between Second and Third Streets in Lakeside. The Open Air Gallery will be open preceding the 8:15 p.m. Hoover Auditorium performance from 7 to 8:30 p.m. on Friday and Saturday.

The Whistling Wings Shooting Club will hold its sixth annual fish fry from 4 to 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 4, at Cooley Canal Yacht Club Pavilion off Ohio 2 in Curtice.
All-you-care-to-eat perch and walleye will be available for $10 per person or $5 for those under 12. Every ticketholder gets a door prize. Good food, fun and free soda will accompany the famous great wall raffle, 50/50’s, guns and more.
For information or tickets call Junior at 419-344-2068. Tickets will also be available at the door.

One of the grand traditions of our area is the annual National Rifle and Pistol Championships at Camp Perry. One of the even grander traditions of the National Matches is the First Shot Ceremony that opens the matches. Monday’s event was no different.
Lt. Gen. William E. Ingram, Director of the Army National Guard, made his remarks noting the history of Camp Perry and these shooting events. He noted how Camp Perry and the National Matches were begun under the leadership of then President Theodore Roosevelt, a former army officer himself who led a famous charge up San Juan Hill. He also took note of the poor shooting skills of the men in his charge. Ingram noted that President Roosevelt recognized the need for a continuing program to improve shooting skills of both the military and the civilian population.
Ingram was then handed a classic World War II vintage M1 Garand and fired the first shot downrange opening the 2012 National Rifle and Pistol Championships.