West End News: April 30

The ice left Sawbill Lake on Tuesday, April 28th.  By noon, the lake was more than 90% open and by 5 pm there wasn’t a trace of ice left.  Less than an hour later the first car with a canoe on top pulled into the parking lot. 
 
When we got our first computer back in the late ‘80s, I used it to calculate the average ice-out date for Sawbill Lake over the previous 10 years.  May 1st was the average ice-out date at that time.  Today, I figured the average ice-out date for the last ten years and it came out to April 26th.  Statistics are funny things and ten years isn’t a very big sample, but it sure seems like the ice-out date is trending earlier over time.
 
I have seen ice records on Sawbill Lake going back to the early 1930s and the two earliest ice-out dates occurred in the last ten years – April 4th in 2010 and an incredible March 27th in 2012.  Even though the ice went out late in 2013 and ’14, that wasn’t even close to the record late ice-out date which is, in my memory, May 26th, back in the 1970s.
 
For the last 40 plus years, we’ve been sending our ice in and out dates to Dr. Ken Stewart, now Professor Emeritus at the State University of New York in Buffalo.  Dr. Stewart sends a stamped, self-addressed post card every spring and fall to remind us to send him our report.  This year, the post card arrived on the same day that the ice went out.  That could be a coincidence or Dr. Stewart is getting very accurate at predicting ice dates.
 
This is my last call for reminding everyone to buy tickets for the Gala For The Grove, which is on May 9th this year.  Opening day is probably not the best choice of dates for a fund-raising dinner, but any fisher-person worth their salt will have their limit well before noon, leaving plenty of time to attend the Gala.  The 9th is also Mothers Day, but that’s a win-win as it allows you to support Birch Grove Community School and take your mom out to dinner at the same time.  Call 663-0170 to make your reservations.
 
Cook County Higher Education is holding two important mental health training events on Thursday, May 7th, at the North Shore Campus in Grand Marais.
 
The first is about mental illness in the workplace. It will present strategies for employers to prepare themselves to help and provide support to employees and customers during episodes of mental illness.   This session runs from 11:30 to 1 pm on the 7th and is part of the ongoing Brown Bag Lunch sessions hosted by Cook County Higher Ed.
 
The second session is Suicide Prevention Awareness Workshop from 6 to 7 pm on May 7th. This workshop focuses on how to identify the warning signs and risk factors of suicide, how to ask a person if they are suicidal, and where to refer them for professional help.
 
We’re lucky to have good local and national resources for both people who may feel suicidal and people who know someone who may be having suicidal thoughts.  There is hope and help available by simply picking up any phone and dialing 211.  You can also text the word “life” to 61222.  The national hotline number is 1-800-273-8255 -- that’s 800-273-TALK.  Of course, in any emergency, dialing 911 will connect you to help immediately.  If you feel like someone you know is feeling suicidal, stay with them until professional help arrives.
 
Thanks to Cook County Higher Education for hosting these important and useful training sessions – and for everything else they do, by the way.
 
Many people in the West End fondly remember Neal Grage who lived in Schroeder for 33 years.  Neal passed away last week at the age of 86.  He was a mainstay in the community when he lived here, and a respected employee at Erie Mining’s Taconite Harbor facility.  Neal is survived by his wife, Arlene, and the five children that they raised here in the West End - Becky, Steve, Dave, Kathy and Shelly.
 
For anyone who knew Neal, they knew that he was just about the nicest person you could ever want to meet.  He was mild mannered, had a good sense of humor and could be relied upon to be steady and thoughtful in everything he did. 
 
I’m sure the whole West End joins me in wishing condolences to his family.
 
The Forest Service has a contractor working around the Sawbill Lake Campground this week, removing small balsam fir from the forest.  This is a fire prevention strategy that will keep a forest fire from crowning into the tall treetops in and around the campground.
 
The sound of continuous chain sawing in the background makes me feel even more like I’m living in an episode of the late, great “Red Green Show.”  So tell my wife I’ll be home right after the show and keep your stick on the ice.