Funding causes Wolverine Lake to scale back picnic

After nearly seven years of holding the Wolverine Lake Village Festival/Corn Roast, the Parks and Recreation Commission is shucking the large-scale event and instead hosting a village picnic/corn roast.

“The festival is a huge event to put on. It’s difficult to get enough volunteers and sponsors and to raise money in this day and age,” said Parks and Recreation Liaison Linda Champagne. “We’re returning to our grassroots and having a picnic — a hometown event.”

Though the event will be scaled back, it promises a day packed with fun and neighborly camaraderie.

“Our village has been hard hit by the economy and it gets harder each year to pay for itself, so we’re taking it down a notch,” said Parks and Recreation Commission Member Lynn Lewis. “The goal is to bring families together, control costs, and provide family entertainment.

“As a board, we wanted to give back to the community, have fun, and feature our only village park,” she said.

The Parks and Recreation Commission budgeted $6,500 for this year’s event, but informed the village council on Wednesday, June 8 that it will be diverting $4,500 toward improvements to the Vita Trail and disc golf course in conjunction with Commerce Township Parks and Recreation.

“It’s a way of sharing services and working together to improve our community parks,” Lewis said.

The village picnic will take place on Sept. 10 at Clara Miller Park, located just south of Glengary Road off of Benstein Road. Residents will dine free of charge, but donations are “greatly” appreciated.

Dinner includes hot dogs, old-fashioned roasted corn, and lemonade for village residents. Food will be available between noon and 2 p.m.

Fishing tournament results will be announced at 1 p.m.

More than likely, the annual village softball game will still take place.

No live bands or children’s activities such as inflatables will be lined up this year. However, emergency vehicles will still be parked for kids to climb into and tour.