The Lake Erie Islands Conservancy is excited to announce that we have reached our fundraising goal to
purchase the Duff Homestead and Bayfront Preserve. The Put-in-Bay Township Park District will be
closing on the two-acre woods first and then the remaining 4.5 acres of buildings, field, and lakefront in
the next few months. Financial assistance for the project has come from the Clean Ohio Conservation
Fund, the Lake Erie Islands Conservancy, the Park District of Ottawa County, the Julene M. Market Fund,
and other sources.
The Lake Erie Islands Conservancy also received a number of donations from private individuals as
noted in our New and Renewing member section. The LEIC is extremely grateful to all of you for donating
to this project!
The LEIC is grateful for the generosity of Scott and Caroline Jackson for their donation of the proceeds of
beer/food sales at the Biergarten at the Goat on Saturday May 20, 2023 $5,333.71 in all!! The location
gave us a great spot to hold a basket raffle and silent auction to raise an additional $13,000!! Thanks to
Kendra Koehler and Colleen Kerkay for assembling baskets and to Susan Thwaite at the Picnic Basket,
Kevin Daily and Mary McCann at the Boat House, Dan Savage at the Lake Erie Islands Historical Society,
Kendra Koehler and others for the donations for the baskets. Kendra and crew worked their usual magic
in making them beautiful!! Amy Huston also did a wonderful job of taking the donated silent auction
items and dressing them up for presentation that day. Thanks to Julene Market at the Miller Boat Line,
Helen Brohl, Russell Brohl, Lisa Brohl, Susan Byrnes, Brian Alford, Kendra and Jeff Koehler, Ed Heineman,
Jill Cerny Kirby, Travis Kowalski, Rick and Paula Ziebarth, Val Chornyak, Karl and Patty Lo Presti for
donating items/services for auction. Thanks to Stacy Clink, Patty Lo Presti, and Colleen Kerkay who sold
raffle tickets and assisted bidders with the silent auction. Brian Alford was MC for the auction-we found
a hidden talent as an auctioneer in our Conservancy board member.
Once again, the LEIC really appreciates everyone who bid, bought raffle tickets, brought checks, and
came to eat or drink that day at the Goat! It was a fun and productive afternoon.
We have received a $20,000 challenge grant from an anonymous donor if we can raise the matching $20,000 by September 15. This grant will be for the restoration of the Duff home for adaptive reuse as a visitor contact station for the Park District. It will also serve as office space for the Park District and the Conservancy, which are both currently housed in the Put-in-Bay Township Port Authority building at the airport. The garage and out buildings will serve as a base of maintenance operations for the Park District.
