WHITEHALL — The White Lake Community Fund disbursed its latest round of grants to seven local nonprofits Monday, May 11 at the White Lake Community Library, totaling $44,800.
The biggest gift was given to the Playhouse at White Lake for $20,000 in support of the organization's Summer Theatre Festival. Playhouse director Beth Beaman said the festival will kick off earlier than usual this year - June 12-13, rather than its usual July. The event will start with Helen Welch, a regular performer at the Playhouse, who will perform a Women of Song-themed show. Further planned events during the festival include the Central Michigan University student theatre visiting with its Frog and Toad-themed show and a gender-swapped Odd Couple show featuring the characters Olive and Florence (the classic TV show featured Oscar and Felix). The Playhouse will also partner with the Muskegon Museum of Art in support of the latter's "Herstory of Animation" exhibit later this summer. Shelby Mason will, as always, cap the season with her show celebrating the works of Patsy Cline.
Beaman noted that the Playhouse is continuing its partnership with the library by offering 10 free tickets available for checkout for each show, and there is also a special senior show for which seniors can obtain free transportation to attend.
The Walk the Beat White Lake organization received $5,000 in support of its 2026 show, the fifth year of the White Lake festival. Executive director Sara Kane-Smart was on hand and told attendees that this year's show will bump up to 13 planned venues after last year's show downsized to 10 while still drawing over 1,000 people downtown despite rainy weather that forced several acts to go inside as the festival adjusted on the fly. The White Lake Community Garden and the Whitehall band boosters are joining this year's nonprofits that will sell raffle tickets for Walk the Beat; participating nonprofits receive half the proceeds from their sales.
Kane-Smart added that because Terry Graham, who joined Walk the Beat as a fundraiser this year, was able to have so much success in the job, the organization "went a little crazy" with its spring kickoff giveaway, donating over $16,000 worth of instruments and scholarships to the Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp.
"It takes a community to make it happen," Kane-Smart said.
This year, there will be a second and third-place cash prize to offer more bands the opportunity to win. In the past, only one band would win, and the grand prize was recording time at Third Coast in Grand Haven; however, this year the first-place winner will also have the option of accepting a cash prize instead.
The West Michigan Symphony was a $5,000 grantee as well, supporting its Link Up program, which offers local elementary school students the chance to put on a concert at the Frauenthal theatre in Muskegon. Each Link Up season features a different theme, with this year's being Orchestra Rocks, telling the story of a guitar player who discovers the joy of orchestral music.
The Arts Council of White Lake-Nuveen Center received a $4,000 grant to do facade tuckpointing on the building, which it recently purchased. The work will repair mortar damage to the building. Carolyn Carmel Dykman, chair of the ACWL's board of directors, said the organization received quotes from several local companies and hired Morden Construction to do the work, which was slated to be complete that week.
The Ferry Memorial Reformed Church received $4,000 to support its Food and More program, which has been in place for over 25 years, said Kathy Oakes, who volunteers for the church. In addition to weekly distributions - 250 boxes of food is assembled and given to participants in under 90 minutes each week, she said - and putting together hundreds of food baskets each Thanksgiving, Oakes said the church also contributes towards a school backpack program. Unused food is donated to local food pantries.
Lakeshore Keepers received a $3,500 grant to fund its education programs and support its being open for free during the Maritime Festival this August. Executive director Jack Greve said the organization will conduct lighthouse tours for free during the festival in an open house fashion, saying Lakeshore Keepers did not want to distract from the festival but wanted to participate in a way that gave visitors another option if they chose. Lakeshore Keepers also distributes kids activity books for free at the lighthouse and within the community, and participates through the senior millage and local libraries to help make lighthouse learning accessible to all.
The White Lake Chamber Music Society received a $3,300 grant to support a free family concert, set to take place July 19 at The Playhouse at White Lake as part of the Chamber Music Festival. The organization is partnering with the White Lake Community Library for the concert, which will feature music about Babar the Elephant and Paddington Bear. Anne Marie Hoover and Kuang-Hao Huang, both staples of the Chamber Music Festival, will perform the music.
