May 7, 1915
Nearly 1,200 people died when a German torpedo sank the British liner Lusitania off the Irish coast.

Birthdays Today
Peter I. Tchaikovsky Composer b: 1840 - 1893

Local Goings On

• Longtime islander follows lake's ups and downs  -- Larry Havens has a homemade chart documenting the ups and downs of Lake St. Clair since 1935, spread out on an old metal bench at Delta Hardware on Harsens Island.  He traces the lake's swings with a finger work-roughened from a lifetime of driving sheet piling and building docks and seawalls.  "They used to say there was a seven-year cycle, but that's not true at all," said Havens, a longtime Harsens Island resident and a retired marine contractor.  "Bottom line is precipitation."  That squares with what Keith Kompoltowicz, a meteorologist for the United States Army Corps of Engineers, is seeing.  "The largest factor in all of the Great Lakes in terms of water levels is the changes in the weather patterns and the changes in the hydrologic cycle -- the movement of water in the system, how much is coming in through snow and rain, how much is leaving through evaporation and through the normal outflow of a lake," Kompoltowicz said.

• Scientists wade into water level worries  A group of scientists on both sides of the border is trying to figure out what is affecting water levels in the upper Great Lakes.  And the group is looking for the public's help.  The International Joint Commission, a binational agency formed by the United States and Canada to administer the Boundary Waters Treaty of 1909, launched in March 2007 the International Upper Great Lakes Study to investigate water levels. The study team will have a public meeting from 7 to 9 p.m. Tuesday at the Great Lakes Maritime Center, 51 Water St., Port Huron.  Chief among the issues to be addressed at Tuesday's meeting is how dredging and possible erosion in the St. Clair River could be accelerating water loss from Lakes Michigan and Huron.  Gene Stakhiv, the U.S. co-chairman of the study team, said the meeting will give ordinary people a chance to comment on how water levels in the Great Lakes and connecting waters such as the St. Clair River affect their lives

• Cemetery fees rescinded  The Clay Township Board of Trustees has rescinded an increase in the fee people must pay to have a graveside service at Oaklawn Cemetery.  Township Supervisor Jon Manos said the fee has been rolled back to $150 for township residents and $300 for nonresidents, which is what it was before it was increased last year to $650 and $800, respectively.  Board members unanimously approved the rate reduction on Monday.  "We re-evaluated and found that not to be what we really wanted," Manos said. "That raised the ire of some people so we just re-evaulated."  The graveside service fee is added to all other costs involved with having someone buried at Oaklawn and applies only if a family chooses to have a small ceremony or prayers said at the cemetery.

• Legislators plan to meet with islanders   State Rep. Phil Pavlov, R-St. Clair Township, and State Sen. Jud Gilbert, R-Algonac, will meet with constituents from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. Saturday at Delta Hardware on the island. "They'll come down and talk to the folks," said Nick Sarzynski, owner of Delta Hardware. St. Clair County Commissioner Pam Wall, who represents District 7, which includes Harsens Island, also will be at the meeting, Sarzynski said. Delta Hardware is at 3062 S. Channel Drive. For more information, call Delta Hardware at (810) 748-3368.

• Coyote clean-up proves difficult  Officials could need backhoe to clear carcasses  Crews may have to use a backhoe to effectively remove a large pile of animal carcasses discovered Sunday in a Cottrellville Township drainage ditch.  St. Clair County Drain Commissioner Fred Fuller said crews from his office visited the Marine City Dredge Cut, which is beneath Roberts Road, Tuesday morning and attempted to start cleaning it up by lifting the carcasses out of the water with long hooks.  But "they were just coming apart," Fuller said.  Fuller said the carcasses could go beyond what St. Clair County Sheriff Department officials had determined were between 20 and 25 coyotes. There likely are carcasses from a variety of animals in the ditch, which drains into the St. Clair River.
   

• Algonac grad receives top Palace honor  The Palace Sports & Entertainment recently honored its employees for their contributions in 2007.  And one of the biggest winners was a former Blue Water Area student-athlete, who grew up watching the Detroit Pistons.  Dennis Sampier, a Harsens Island native and an Algonac High School graduate, was selected the Employee of the Year during the recent Annual Employment Appreciation Dinner at The Palace.  "Dennis is one of the hardest-working people in our organization," said Tom Wilson, the PS&E President and CEO. "Under his guidance and by his example, our Pistons Community Relations department has become one of the most successful and best respected staffs in the NBA
   

• Algonac Community Theatre is presenting You Can't Take It With You, a comedy, on April 24, 25 & 26 at 7:30  PM at Algonquin Middle School's Auditorium, 9185 Marsh Road, in Algonac.  Play tickets at the door are $10 Adult, $8 Senior/Student.  Advance Tickets are $9 Adult, $7 Senior/Student.  All tickets are available at Water Lily Florist, and the Kroger service Desk in Algonac. Dinner & Theatre $20  Dinner at "Club Capri"  (Choice of Soup or Salad, Chicken Picatta, Chicken Marsala, Fish & Chips or Manicotti, Coffee, Tea or Soft Drink and Ice  Cream for Dessert) a $15 value  Tickets must be purchased & Reservations made in advance for the dinner  810-794-7431 For more information call Shirley at 810-794-5097
   

• 'Green' boat group seeks clean lakes  The ice is off the lakes and out of the rivers, and boaters are beginning to look at the open water with desire in their eyes.  Scott Bell would like them to "think green" while contemplating lazy summer days on the water.  We feel it's important to clean (Lake St. Clair) up," said Bell, commodore of the Anchor Bay Yachting Association and a Chesterfield Township resident.  "The lake was basically polluted and in spots unusable," he said. "We're trying to educate our boating community, 4,000 members, on products they use, refueling procedures, etc.
   

• Pesky plant clogs island Invasive phragmites hurt Michigan wetlands  Bob Williams treats the cattails on his 53-acre piece of Harsens Island as if they were an endangered species.  On Harsens Island and in much of St. Clair County, they are.  "I've got one or two in the marsh here that I keep an eye on," said Williams, who owns historic Stewart Farm on Harsens Island.  "I go around them when I'm working on the phragmites, hoping to get something that will spread later..

MAKE TODAY A GREAT DAY!