PETOSKEY — The Petoskey breakwater was buzzing on Friday, May 29, and with more than just mayflies.
The city hosted a ribbon cutting ceremony to officially unveil four new life ring stations positioned along the breakwater. During the busy summer season, the breakwater is a popular place for residents and visitors to jump into the refreshing waters of Little Traverse Bay.
The project was done in partnership with the Petoskey Yacht Club, which was started in 2023 by Bill Seguin, Gill Whitman and Kevin Srigley.
“The mission of the Petoskey Yacht Club is about connecting boaters in the Petoskey region both with each other on a social basis and also connecting our members with the waterways in our region. Now we’re up to about 425 total members in the last three years,” said Srigley, who is commodore of the club. “One of the big parts of the Petoskey Yacht Club is the desire to give back to the community that we live in, and another key focus of ours is helping to improve both the waterways around us and the safety of the waterways around us. And this was a project that actually checked both of those boxes.”
Srigley added that the city’s Parks and Recreation Director Kendall Klingelsmith had the initial idea and approached the club about the project.
“They had seen life rings in other markets that include Muskegon, Holland, Ludington and Grand Haven, and Kendall really wanted to bring it to Petoskey,” he said. “We get hundreds of people a week out here swimming, so if we make one swimmer just a little bit safer, it’ll be worth it just for that one swimmer.”
— Contact Jillian Fellows at jfellows@petoskeynews.com.
This article originally appeared on The Petoskey News-Review: Petoskey unveils new life ring stations on breakwater
Reporting by Jillian Fellows, The Petoskey News-Review / The Petoskey News-Review
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
