Whether you’re in the area looking for a souvenir, or simply love the Great Lakes, you can show off your pride with a Great Lakes Sticker. Roughly 3”x5”, this bright blue sticker is cut in the shape of the five great bodies of freshwater: Ontario, Erie, Huron Michigan, and Superior. Perfect for your car, window, or wall décor, this neat little sticker can let the world know of your love and affection for the Great Lakes.

Origin

The Great Lakes Proud Sticker was originally designed by Austin Holsinger of Michigan. Along with a small team of friends and experts, Austin came up with the idea to show his pride about the Great Lakes. Holsinger grew up in Wolverine and now lives part time in Traverse City and throughout his life he has made it his goal to be socially and environmentally responsible.

In the Petoskeynews, Austin reported, “I love Michigan, and it’s where I wanted to be. I wanted a product where people can display their pride for the Great Lakes.”

Details

Stickers are currently selling for $5 each (tax and shipping not included) and are only available online, though discounts are available. Great Lakes Proud is a non-profit business, and every sticker purchased goes toward supporting the Great Lakes.

The great best part about these stickers is that you can use your imagination to place the great lakes in any environment you want – letting natural colors fill the empty space around the Great Lake shapes. So far, stickers have been seen on cars, bicycles laptops, water bottles, and even Smartphones and iPads. If the stickers continue to be successful, Austin and his name may even produce additional Great Lakes Proud products such as T-shirts and coffee mugs.

“Our plan is to do as much as we can to give back (support) other Great Lake organizations,” Austin explained.

You can check out the Great Lakes Proud Facebook page here to show additional support.

If you’re looking for something hot ‘n’ spicy to warm you up this October, then you might be interested in the Great Lakes annual Chili cook off. After 16 successful years of food and fun, Plymouth’s popular chili cook-off features tasty chili, exciting games, and upbeat music from 11 a.m. to 5 pm and funds will go toward aiding local charities.

How it Started

With the help of her husband, Annette Horn started the competition as a way to share their love of food and friends. “When we moved to Plymouth, we always thought downtown Plymouth would be a fabulous location for a chili cook-off,” Horn said. Now, many years and chili recipes later, this annual event draws almost 15,000 visitors each year, gaining in popularity with every bite.

The situation is considered to be a win-win for both locals and tourists. Businesses flourish with the increased business brought in for the annual chili cook off, and tourists get to enjoy the fabulous recipes and family-friendly environment.

About the Cook Off

Great Lakes Annual Chili cook off has more to offer than a mean recipe for a burnt mouth. This year, the chili cook off has a grand prize of $1,000, bringing in cooks from across the country to show off their cooking prowess.

“When we moved to Plymouth, we always thought downtown Plymouth would be a fabulous location for a chili cook-off,” Horn said.
Additionally, winners will advance to the world championships next fall.

The chili cook-off will be divided into three categories: red chili, chili verde, and salsa. Each category will be judged individually, and cooks must abide by competition rules fi they hope to advance in the competition.

A restaurant chili challenge will also be held, featuring 15 local restuarants in a best judge category and a people’s choice.

The Great Lakes Annual Chili Cook-Off serves as a fundraiser for 2 local charities: the Penrickton Center for Blind Children and Habitat for Humanity Western Wayne County. Participants can donate a dollar for a sample of chili or a $4 per bowl.

With their beautiful beaches and charming locals, the Great Lakes are excellent tourist locations.

However, there is one unwanted tourist that has recently invaded the great lake ecosystem: the zebra mussel.

Quick Facts about the Zebra Mussel

• Small, freshwater mussel originally native to Russia
• About the size of a fingernail but can grow up to 2 in. in length
• Notable striped patterns on shells
• Are filter feeders
• Can live up to 4 or 5 years
• May produce 30,000 to 1 million eggs a year
• They can live up to 3 or 4 days out of the water if needed

Why Zebra Mussels are Bad for the Lakes

These mollusks compete with native mussels, devouring available food and reducing grounds for local fish. Like a horde of locusts, Zebra mussels attach themselves to native mussels by the thousands, making it impossible for native mussels to function and reproduce.

Zebra Mussels are algae feeders, filtering the water of microorganisms necessary for other native fish to survive. Although this gives the water a “cleaner” appearance, in all actuality, Zebra Mussels leave a surprising amount of detritus behind.

Additional Concerns

Zebra Mussels come in such high numbers that they can even clog and block major pipes to utility and manufacturing industries, causing an estimated $5 billion dollars in damage over the next decade.

Zebra mussels are an especially large nuisance when they wash up on shore, their sharp shells can cut unsuspecting tourist’s feet and resulting in the need for water shoes.

What can we do to help?

In order to control these tiny invaders, it is absolutely critical to observe their behavior and biology. The USGS (United States Geological Survey) has made it their focus to document Zebra Mussel behavior.

Methods used to control Zebra Mussel population near power plants are as follows:
• Manual removal (high pressure wash)
• Electrical current
• Acoustical vibration
• Filters and Screens
• Toxic and non-toxic coatings such as copper and silicone
• Ultraviolet light

Meanwhile, please don’t take it upon yourself to reduce mussel population by catching Zebra Mussel to use as bait, food, or pets.

Great Lakes Brewing Company is a principle-centered, environmentally respectful and socially conscious company committed to crafting fresh, flavorful, high-quality beer and food for the enjoyment of our customers. We aspire to maintain our status as the premier craft brewery in the Great Lakes region and are dedicated to uncompromising service, continuous improvement and innovative consumer education.

History

“In the 1870s, Cleveland had 30 breweries. By the early 1980s, the last one had shuttered its doors. So when brothers Patrick and Daniel Conway opened Great Lakes Brewing Company on September 6, 1988, it not only signaled a new era in Cleveland brewing, it was also the first microbrewery in the state of Ohio. And the idea of a craft brewery in Cleveland caught on fast, as curious patrons hurried in for a pint crafted in the styles of old and drawn from the taps of the beautiful Victorian era bar. The company’s commitment to sustainable business practices greatly contributed to its early popularity and success. Before long, Great Lakes Brewing Company had become one of Cleveland’s most popular destinations for both dining and a fun night out.

Master Brewer Thaine Johnson and engineer Charlie Price joined the Conways during the company’s early days. Their three decades of brewing and managing experience at various U.S. breweries—including Christian Schmidt, Cleveland’s last brewery—played a key role in developing the recipes for GLBC’s first beers. Raw materials used by European brewers (malted barley instead of corn and rice) were incorporated into the craft brewing process, which included using only the freshest ingredients, no preservatives or chemicals and no pasteurization (which ultimately compromises flavor). Approximately 1,000 barrels were produced during the first year.

The original beers included The Heisman, a Dortmunder-style beer named for the famed football player (and future trophy) who lived around the corner from the Brewery. It was immediately followed by Eliot Ness Amber Lager. Both were overnight successes; the Heisman was later renamed Dortmunder Gold for both its golden color and the Gold Medal it won at the 1990 Great American Beer Festival. Dortmunder Gold and Eliot Ness were soon joined by an exceptional family of award-winning year round, seasonal and pub exclusive beers including Burning River Pale Ale, Edmund Fitzgerald Porter, Commodore Perry India Pale Ale, Conway’s Irish Ale, Blackout Stout, Oktoberfest, Nosferatu and Christmas Ale.

In 1992, to meet growing demand, the Brewery expanded to the adjacent Fries & Scheule Building—and as the popularity of Great Lakes beer continued to grow, so did the Brewery. In 1998, it moved into what now consists of six buildings—three that originally served as horse stables, keg facilities and bottle storage for the 1879 Schlather Brewing Company. Today, these same facilities help GLBC serve a distribution area that extends throughout the Great Lakes region and surrounding areas.

While GLBC now produces upwards of 100,000 barrels a year and has become Ohio’s most celebrated and award-winning brewer of lagers and ales, thankfully, some things haven’t changed—most notably, an unwavering commitment to brewing only the freshest exceptional family of beers.”

Why would the addition of flying fish endanger the Great Lakes? Well flying fish, specifically the Asian carp, are not native to the Lakes and would cause ecology shifts and predicaments, should they keep migrating from the Illinois River. This possible danger would first impede Lake Michigan. Since Lake Michigan is connected to Lake Superior, the entire Lake system is then threatened. If flying fish reach Minnesota, they will spawn rapidly, creating a whole new fish population. This type of fish has already been spotted several times in the surrounding areas. Flying fish live on plankton, as do the other small fish of the Great Lakes. Adding an entirely new species disrupts the circle of life. More fish means less food for the already inhabiting species. Local politicians are currently working to keep the Asian carp out of Great Lake waters.

Just like America was discovered by Columbus—though American Indians already inhabited the area—someone also discovered the Great Lakes. Technically it is unknown who really was first to mark claim to these lakes. Even today neither Canada nor America have sole claims to the lakes. The first known voyage towards the lakes was made in the summer of 1679. René Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle commissioned the Le Griffon and sailed towards the upper lakes in early August from the Niagara River.

Over the next two centuries the area was inhabited by the western civilization. At this time the lakes became the means of transporting freight from one place to the other. Thanks to the Great Lakes middle Northern America could transport goods to the Atlantic more easily. This was increased even more in 1825 when the Erie Canal opened. Two decades later Illinois was opened with the Michigan and Illinois Canal at Chicago. This linked the lakes to the Mississippi River, creating an unbroken route from New Orleans to New York. Throughout the nineteenth century the lakes also serves as immigrant transportation from one city to another as they moved with the freight. When trains became more popular, ferries were instead used to transport people short distances rather than long journeys.

Immigrants of certain ethnicities continue to make this trip, namely those of German, Dutch, Finish, and Polish descent. In today’s economy trucks and railroads transport freight more often than via the Great Lakes. Certain industries, however, still rely on the lakes, such as coal, iron ore, steel, grain, and limestone. The communities around the lakes have even come up with specific lingo for the traveling freight ships. Ships are always called boats on the Great Lakes, even if they are vast in size. Steamships are steamboats, like those of the Mississippi. Ships that trade mostly on the lakes are called lakers, while foreign boats are called salties.