An early patron of the Lake Vermilion Cultural Center, Iron Ranger Alex Batinich was enamored with historic St. Mary’s Church. As a carpenter/builder, he was adamant that the building should be moved, preserved, and expanded to become the LVCC. A group of his friends, along with many family members, held a fundraiser in honor of Alex on his 100th birthday and were able to raise enough funds to finish insulating and shingling the expansive roof.

Now funds are being raised to complete installing the siding and inserting the leaded stained glass windows.

The past year and a half have been unusual for all nonprofits as well as for the rest of us. In spite of the difficulty in fundraising and building, we have managed to make great progress on our building in Tower. Elsewhere in this newsletter you can find information on some of our progress. What you can’t see yet is the beautiful change this has made to Tower’s Main Street.

Many people have come through with donations and pledges to enable us to finish this wonderful addition to our community. Thank you for your generosity and kind comments. Now we ask you to seriously consider making a pledge for the next five years so that we may finish the interior and continue our programming. No, we don’t mean it will take five years to finish the LVCC, but the financial planning of income for five years would be the best of all worlds.

If you have access to trust funds, a company which matches gifts, or any other way of helping us achieve our goal, we want to hear from you. We would be happy to send one or more of our board members to speak to anyone you deem appropriate. We also still have a few spaces that could be named for a loved one or for your family or company.

Our profound thanks for all you have done and for continuing to support us, our community, and the cultural center.

Best wishes.

Don Erickson, Chairman
Jim Marttila, President
Lake Vermilion Cultural Center