When I was asked to take over the Omena News, many things were going on in Omena, including:

• The formation of Omena Village Preservation Association.

• The combined effort of OVPA and Omena Historical Society to move the Putnam/Cloud house to Omena to become the OHS Museum.

• Leelanau Wine Cellars’ move to the old Harbor Bar.

Ongoing is a project to rid the village of overhead wires.

Because I was a small part of many of the above newsworthy happenings there were, often times, items for me to pass on to the people of Omena. When I accepted the offer to write news items for Omena I did so with the idea that it would be a community effort. I wasn’t prepared to go door to door for news of Omena’s organizations or personal family information. My phone number has always been part of the column heading. In the approximately two years I have doing the article I’ve had very little input from the people of Omena.

Therefore, I contacted Alan Campbell, owner of the Leelanau Enterprise, to let him know I will no longer be doing the Omena News. I would like to thank Mr. Campbell for the opportunity to be a part of his paper. A new reporter takes my spot, starting with this week’s edition.

I wish the new writer well and look forward to reading the articles, and will contribute when I can.

By Clay Coste