2021 4th of July Activities

4th of July Activities

Let the celebration begin!!  Start with the 5th Annual 4th of July Parade Friday, July 2nd at 8:00p.m. This year’s theme is: “Salute to the American Farmer”.  We love our farmers. We love the work they do and the crops and livestock they provide our nation. Thank you for getting up and doing the work that makes America grow. Thank you to all the men and women who call themselves “farmers” and do it with pride. Entrants are encouraged to decorate their golf cart, UTV, ATV, or trailer with the emphasis of honoring the American Farmer. Classic cars and tractors are welcome. Lineup will begin at 7p.m. at the CLCA Clubhouse and the parade starts at 8 p.m. Judging will be prior to the parade and the winners will be announced at the Clubhouse at the conclusion of the parade.  Cash prizes will be awarded to 1st, 2nd and 3rd Place winners and 4th, 5th and 6th will receive a gift.

Join us Saturday morning, July 3rd for all you can eat pancakes, eggs and sausage at the CLCA Clubhouse from 7:30am to 10:30am. Dine in or carry-out. Breakfast is $7 for adults, $3 for children ages 5-10 and children under 5 eat free. We are always looking for volunteers to help with the breakfast. Please visit www.chapmanlake.com under the “volunteer” tab to sign up.

Chapman Lakes merchandise will be available at the breakfast and you can pay your 2021 Membership dues. We accept credit cards. 

Our celebration will conclude with a spectacular show of “fire in the sky” on Saturday evening at dusk, approximately 10:00pm. A rain date is scheduled for Saturday, July 10th. For your safety, the CLCA requests boaters please be respectful in keeping their distance from the fireworks barges. Boaters must keep a minimum of 600’ away from the barges and the sandbar vacated by 6:00p.m. 

Get your 2021 Limited Edition 4th of July t-shirt. Quantities are limited so make sure to order today on the Chapman Lakes website. All proceeds go exclusively to the fireworks fund. 

The fireworks are supported completely by donations. Thank You to all our supporters! Without you, this show would not be possible. Enjoy the Red, White & BOOM!

Life is like riding a bicycle

Letter from the President:

Change is inevitable!  We are either moving forward or backward, never staying the same. Albert Einstein said, “Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance you must keep moving.” I think we can all agree, after 2020, we are ready for a change and to move forward!  

Last year you elected some new members to the CLCA Board. Please welcome Maggie Bruner, Greg Hall and Don Kennedy. What a great addition!  Each brings a perspective and talent that helps us move forward.  Maggie and her husband, Chad live on Little Chapman. Together they have two children, one grandchild and another on the way. Maggie keeps busy spending time with her grandchild and recently has taken a 15-year passion and created a business, Cooper Anchor where she develops and sells essential oils. Maggie brings her entrepreneurial spirit to the board and serves as Secretary.  Greg Hall is no stranger to the community with his family owning property on the lake since 1985. In 1998 Greg purchased a house on Big Chapman. Greg was one of the founders of the Chapman Lakes Foundation and is currently President of The Watershed Foundation. He is a graduate of Ball State University with a degree in Marketing and works for Paragon Medical as Director of International Sales and Marketing. He and his wife, Lynnae have to children; a junior at Columbia City High School and a junior at Trine University. Even with Greg’s busy schedule, he is in charge of the clubhouse maintenance.  As long as I have served on the board, Don Kennedy has been behind the scenes of the CLCA organization. Don developed and maintains the Chapman Lakes website. The website is a great way for us to communicate with our lake’s community. On our website, Don has created a community page, kid’s corner and most excitingly the CLCA online Store! Look for more exciting things to come in the future! Don also serves as Chairman of the Merchandise Committee. Don’t you love all the new items? Don and his wife, Sarah along with their two children live on Little Chapman.  

There are so many Chapman Lakes people who deserve recognition for all they do. Without the many volunteers who so generously donate their time, we would not be able to do what we do.  One of those people in our community who has taken a huge burden off our shoulders this year,  is Gary Kiser. Gary has so graciously donated his lawn service, Golden Lawn Care to maintain the clubhouse lawn. When you see Gary, please tell him, Thank You!

In last month’s newsletter there was an omission in the “Calendar of Events”.  The Labor Day breakfast was not listed. There will be a Labor Day pancake breakfast on Saturday, September 4th from 7:30–10:30a.m. 

I want to thank everyone for your support during this past year. Because of COVID-19 it was a year of constant changes and a balancing act. Like Einstein said, “Life is like riding a bicycle”. We appreciate you riding along with us, keeping the balance and looking forward to a great summer!

Cathy Miller,

President

Behind the Scenes

There is no more magnificent and magical place than Disney. In 1971, when Walt Disney created Disney World in Florida, he built an underground tunnel system called the “Utilidors”, for the cast members and maintenance to travel underfoot, unbeknownst to guests.  The idea was that the tunnel network prevented anything out of character from ruining the magic of Disney World for the visitors.  You might be asking, what does Disney World have to do with Chapman Lakes?  I want to share what goes on behind the scenes to bring a magical, fireworks show to Chapman Lakes.

In years past, the barges were launched and many kind people along a channel shuffled their own boats to house the barges. Don Smith allowed the fireworks crew to load the barges from his property and once loaded, the barges were towed to the fireworks launching site. Every barge has a crew and every crew stays on their barge from the time they are launched until they are towed back that evening. Due to circumstances this year, Don’s property was not an option to facilitate loading the barges.

Loading the barges at the public access seemed like the next viable place until one starts calculating the number of people it takes, cars they drive, a big box truck full of explosives and then asking people to stay a minimum of 50 feet away, at a public access. Yikes!  If only we had underground tunnels. 

Since there are no underground tunnels, I started begging and pleading for help. Like Chapman Lakes people do, they come to the rescue.  Pat Higgins, Higgins Sport & Lawn serviced the CLCA pontoon boat and put it in the water to tow the barges.  He pulled all the barges stored at the clubhouse away from the trees so the crew could load them.  Once the barges were loaded, Pat started hauling the barges to the public access.  At the access, Tom Ross and Dave Wihebrink were ready to tow each barge to their destination. All was going well until some pop-up storms came as they were placing the second barge in place. Thanks to Tom Ross for some quick-thinking to cover the barge with the pontoon cover, only one barge of fireworks was ruined. Once again to the rescue, Tom towed the two barges and their crew back to shore in torrential rain while Pat hauled them back to the clubhouse. After they were able to assess the barges, a determination was made, the show will go on.

Back at the clubhouse all the other barges were covered and safe. The tent rented for that mornings pancake breakfast served as a shelter for the crew and their equipment. The crew dried off a bit, and the process started all over again until every barge was in place.

Once again, there are so many blessings in disguise. Of the things that went wrong, there were more that went right. Only 10% of the fireworks were ruined by the rain and we still had a great show. Please say, thank you to Pat Higgins, Tom Ross and Dave Wihebrink for hauling and towing barges in and out all evening, Don Smith for all the years he has so graciously allowed us to use his property and to all those in past years who have worked behind the scenes. We have an amazing lake community!

Also, I want to thank Mitchell Quartz, a photographer from Utah who was visiting his family on Chapman Lakes over the 4th of July weekend.  Mitchell so kindly donated his photography skills to capture pictures of the parade and the fireworks.  Please visit www.chapmanlake.com under the “Events” tab to see all the pictures he captured.

Behind all the magic, there is someone making it happen.  THANK YOU to all who are behind the scenes making magic!

Mid Summer Message

Most have heard the question, “Is the cup half-empty or half-full?” It is a common expression, a proverbial phrase used as a litmus test to determine an individual’s attitude or worldview. It demonstrates that a situation may be seen in different ways, depending on one’s point of view. Through the recent events we have experienced, it is easy to view our cup as half empty. However, I want to share with you my full cup experiences this past month. When the CLCA decided to proceed with the carry-out Memorial breakfast, there were so many unknowns. The board, volunteers, and our lake community came together and made it a successful event. As I was driving home after the event, I had a sense of relief and an overwhelmed sense of gratefulness. Everyone worked hard with a smile on their face, and our lake residents were the BEST, kind, understanding, and patient! The t-shirt, sweatshirt, and towel sales have been phenomenal this year. Once again, our lake community has adapted to a new way of doing things. The website has blossomed—what a great way to purchase items and communicate. If you haven’t noticed, there is a new Kids Section, which includes Red Cross safety, coloring pages, and scavenger hunt maps around the lake. When you see Don Kennedy, please thank him for all his work on the website. Look for more things to come! One of the most rewarding experiences I have encountered is meeting so many new people on Chapman Lake. There is a common thread with all I have met, we all love and have a connection with Chapman Lakes and are proud to be a part of this community. I have heard many stories of generations and how the family traditions at the lake continue to pass along. One family, in particular, is the Kilgore family on Osborne’s Landing. Ross Kilgore’s family has been coming to the lake since the ’60s. His family roots are from New Castle, IN, and he currently lives in Bluffton, IN. The week before Memorial weekend Ross, his wife, Ashley, and their two children, Naomi and Abel, were staying at the family lake house when Naomi picked up an old guitar in the house. Together, Ross and Naomi composed a song, “At the Lake.” Ross made a recording and video on Chapman Lake. I encourage you to go to www.chapmanlake.com and click on community to read their story and listen to their song and watch the video. I promise your heart will be full. Thank you, Ross and Naomi, for sharing with us! I feel so blessed to be a part of the CLCA organization and this lake community. Whether you are fortunate to live on Chapman Lake year-round or pack your bags and drive so far, lake living truly makes your cup overflow! Cathy Miller President

Letter from the President

One of my favorite quotes comes from the title of a book authored by Patsy Clairmont, “Normal is Just a Setting on Your Dryer.” I readily admit, I have never read this book, so this is not a promotion or endorsement, rather a concept I can identify, and it only makes me chuckle. Who would have thought that in 2020 this concept would bring new meaning to our “normal” daily lives? As your president, I feel like a dryer. My head spins, trying to process what to do, what not to do, how to do it, do we do it, and I am sure the CLCA board members will attest to this. In the past few months, I have bombarded them with e-mails, questions, scenarios, and zooming, and they are probably ready to hang me out to dry! So, let me tell you what our normal abnormality looks like for the upcoming Memorial Pancake Breakfast. This pancake breakfast will be carry-out only. Each breakfast will be boxed and include pancakes, eggs, sausage, butter, and syrup. There will be no beverages, and the price is now only $6.00 per breakfast. It will be a drive-thru concept, so you don’t need to get out of your vehicle. Volunteers will be wearing masks, gloves, and social distancing. Credit and debit cards will be accepted. Memberships will also be accepted, but we encourage you to have your form filled out in advance or go to www.chapmanlake.com to pay online. Due to the circumstances, there will be no membership stickers this year. Please light your luminaries at dusk Sunday, May 24 th, but note the CLCA will not be selling luminaries this year. T-shirts will also be available; however, we encourage you to order online through our website or by contacting me at cathymiller9@hotmail.com or 574-265-4170. Pre-orders can be paid and picked up at the Memorial pancake breakfast or shipped to you for an additional cost. New items available this year include sweatshirts and Chapman Lakes towels. I hope you enjoy the variety. At this time, the CLCA plans to have the 4 th of July pancake breakfast following Governor Holcomb’s recommendations and the CDC guidelines. However, in this uncertain time of the COVID-19 pandemic, all events are subject to change. Please follow us on Facebook and the CLCA website for any change announcements. It is a new normal for all of us, and I thank you in advance and appreciate your understanding and continued support! Events may change, but one thing I can assure you, the CLCA Board of Directors is continually striving to keep the best interest of the Chapman Lakes Conservation Association at the forefront of our mission. Like Patsy Clairmont, I declare normality abnormal. We are in this together, and together we will get through this. Most importantly, stay safe!

Cathy Miller, President