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Nature Photo Contest Entries

Winter on The Beach Coast may not be for sissies, but it has an undeniable beauty that many of our readers have captured in the photos below.  We thank all of our contestants for their submissions and now it’s time for our readers to pick their favorite. 

Just scroll down and click on the link to register your vote.  Remember, you may vote every day until March 28 at 3:00 pm, when the voting will close. The winner will be announced in the April issue of TheBeachCoast.com.  In addition to winning a cool Beach Coast prize, the winning photographer will be profiled in a feature story.  Good luck to all and let the voting begin!

1) Anthony Gaul
2) Laura Kobat
3) Brett Maniscalco
4) Jeff Wolfe
5) Jennifer Heath

6) Pete Doherty
7) Ryan Bolger
8) Sandy Davis
9) Sue Kniola

10) Gayle Brandt
11) Becky Carter
12) Kent Lange
13) Jan Hoeppner
14) Mary Dean Moss

15) Dorothy Kesling
16) Rosanna Martin

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Michigan City Chamber Hosts Two Events

On January 12th, Ann Dahm hosted the First Quarter Membership Meeting since becoming President of the Chamber. The breakfast meeting was held at the Clarion Inn & Suites. Despite snowy conditions, thirty area businessmen and women braved the weather and made it the meeting, which was sponsored by La Porte Savings Bank. The following week, on January 18th, chamber members gathered at Swingbelly’s for the first Business After Hours of the new year. The luau theme made people long for warmer days on The Beach Coast.

1) Ann Dahm visits with Don Babcock of NIPSCO at Swingbelly’s
2) Jill Pluta (left) of The Arbors and Gail Mathews of Working Well made it to the Clarion for the Membership Meeting
3) Membership meeting sponsor and guest speaker, Kevin Beres of La Porte Savings Bank (left) and Tom Galovic of the Regional Development Company
4) Membership meeting guest speaker Joyce Dalton (Open Door Health Clinic) and Lance Werner (Chicago South Shore and South Bend Railroad)

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Business Women Unite Holds Winter Relaxation Retreat

Tower Hill Resort in Sawyer Michigan was the setting for BWU’s first retreat, February 3-6. Professional women from the region gathered for a weekend getaway in a beautiful rustic setting just footsteps from the lake. The weekend included business and self-improvement sessions conducted by members, and there was time built in to enjoy the beautiful Tower Hill grounds. The meeting ended on Sunday morning and everyone left relaxed, rejuvenated, and a little bit wiser—thanks to the wisdom members shared with one another.

 

1) Jill Rodriguez, Ann Lichnerowicz, and Shawn Tluczek
2) Ann Lichnerowicz and Maggie Reister-Walters
3) Front row: Randi Light, Joanne Baitup, and Donna Miller; Middle row: Deb Chubb, Maggie Reister-Walters, Barb Eastman, Angela Crossin, Belina Moran, Jill Rodriguez, and Amy Petri; Back row: Carey Yukich, Ann Lichnerowicz, Karen Atrim, and Shawn Tluczek; Not pictured: Tracy Pohlmann, Suzy Vance, and Diane Nelson

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Wine Tasting Benefits Art Initiative

Bentwood Tavern in the Marina Grand Resort, New Buffalo, Michigan, was the setting for the Harbor Country Public Arts Initiative’s 2nd annual wine tasting on January 14th. More than 230 guests enjoyed wine and appetizers prepared by Jenny Drillon (owner of Bentwood Tavern) and her staff. Music was provided by Venitia Sekema. The mission of the Harbor Country Public Arts Initiative is to unite Harbor Country communities in partnership to plan, produce and exhibit works of art in public spaces including publicly accessible buildings. This event raised more than $8,000.

1) John Grundy, Dr. Cynthia Lembcke-Grundy, and Cathi Rogers
2) Craig Smith, Harry Borgman, and Tim Rogers
3) Roger Harvey and Rick Ott
4) Larry Shawver and Eileen Kochanny
5) 50 birdhouses created by 39 local artists brought in big bucks, with one selling for $450!

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Fundraiser Benefits Haitian Children

A dinner and wine tasting benefit hosted by Valparaiso Mayor Jon Costas, Dave Rodgers (owner of Geiger Motors), and State Representative, Ed Soliday, was held January 16th at Don Quijote Restaurant in Valpo. The event helped raise funds for Kids Alive International to help with the relief efforts in Haiti, which left thousands of children orphaned following the devastating earthquake more than a year ago. Funds raised exceeded the Mayor’s goal of $100,000. To watch a video about the children rescued by these efforts, click here: www.Kidsalive.org.

1) Kristian and Mark Pruitt
2) Mayor Jon Costas
3) Clockwise, from top left: Marianne Rice, Christine Clute, Cathy Howard, Sue Blythe, and Daphne Stevenson

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Send us your photos!

We would love to share photos from your social events (parties, openings, benefits, etc.) in our Splash section. When sending photos to info@thebeachcoast.com, we ask that you provide:

• High resolution images (.jpg format)
• The name of the event with a brief description
• Date and location
• First and last names of people in the photo (we cannot check spelling, so we ask that you take special care when providing names) and clearly link the name to the person’s location in the photo (i.e. left to right)
• Hometown of each person in the photo, if known