Celebrating The Ones Who Inspire Us

By Linda Lovely

It’s been five years since I had the privilege of doing a book signing at the Iowa Great Lakes Maritime Museum in Arnolds Park/Lake Okoboji, Iowa. All profits from the museum’s sales of my mystery, NO WAKE ZONE, benefited the museum, which still sells copies in its museum store.

In the last month, Historic Arnolds Park Inc. announced its plans for a major renovation to the facilities of the 128-year-old amusement park. Plans include an expansion of the Maritime Museum, new parking, completion of the restoration of The Majestic Pavilion, a new Roof Garden, and many more improvements. An anonymous group of donors have pledged to match up to $6 million for the renovation project.

I believe this announcement and Arnolds Park’s continued success owe a great debt of gratitude to my late cousin, Stephen Ross Kennedy. So in this blog I’d once again like to salute Steve, one of the Maritime Museum’s founders and its first director. Steve also was the first captain of the Queen II, an excursion boat that plies the waters of Okoboji West every summer. NO WAKE ZONE is dedicated to his memory.

Statue of Steve Kennedy at Park

While book launches and signings are always fun, this one was truly special. It let me spotlight a life that mattered. In no small part, Steve’s infectious enthusiasm is responsible for helping a number of the lake region’s family fun staples continue to flourish. His life and contributions should be a lesson to us all when we’re tempted to shrug our shoulders and ask “why bother?”

Steve didn’t graduate from college. It wasn’t his cup of tea. But he loved the Iowa Great Lakes and read any book about the region’s history he could lay his hands on. He worked in a drug store, joined the Chamber. When the idea of bringing a grand excursion boat back to the lakes took root, he sought donations door-to-door. When the Queen II was christened, he was ecstatic to be asked to be its first captain. Never mind that he’d never driven anything larger than his beloved Hafer motorboat. As Steve guided the Queen II around Lake Okoboji, his humor-laced patter brought patrons back again and again. Soon the Queen paid off its debts and banked profits were saved to build the Maritime Museum, a magical time capsule that includes all types of memorabilia from nineteenth century ladies’ bathing suits to boats with gleaming mahogany exteriors.

Steve and me at Lake Okoboji.

While the “cousin” in NO WAKE ZONE is fictional, there’s no doubt who inspired my affable character, Captain Ross. And I’m delighted to report the institutions that play major roles in my novel are real treasures of the Iowa Great Lakes. While I hope you’ll read my mystery, I hope even more that you have occasion to board the Queen II for a cruise and visit the Iowa Great Lakes Maritime Museum located in Historic Arnolds Park. Maybe you’ll even hear Steve’s good-natured chuckle on the breeze.

Do you like to read books set in real locations? Authors, do you ever salute your loved ones by incorporating their personalities in your cast of characters?

      

Hooray for Grass-Roots Nonprofits

By Linda Lovely

Many well-known nonprofit/charitable organizations are national—even international—in scope. Such organizations often have paid staff and sizeable budgets for promotional mailings, websites, and brochures. They may even have celebrities to champion their causes.



Iowa Great Lakes Maritime Museum



That’s seldom the case for grass-roots nonprofits—ones started because a single dreamer or perhaps some like-minded folks see a community need that’s going unmet, a wrong that needs to be righted, or they have a quality-of-life vision. This blog salutes the tireless heroes and heroines who have such dreams and won’t stop working until they breathe life into their goals.   



Captain Steve Kennedy



My late cousin, Stephen Ross Kennedy, was one such hero. A native of Spirit Lake/Lake Okoboji, Iowa, he loved the history of the Iowa Great Lakes. Steve lamented the passing of the golden era when tour boats plied the lakes, ferrying passengers from one grand resort to another, or giving folks who couldn’t afford a boat a chance to experience a sunset cruise. Steve wasn’t alone. Working through the Chamber of Commerce, Steve and his friends raised funds to build the Queen II, a double-decker tour boat. After tour revenues paid off the Queen II mortgage, profits built the Iowa Great Lakes Maritime Museum, located in Historic Arnolds Park, an amusement park that’s entertained Midwesterners for over a century. The museum is another nonprofit gem.

My family with Steve's statue.

Steve became the first captain of the Queen II and the first director of the Iowa Great Lakes Maritime Museum. However, borrowing one of my cousin’s expressions, he’d have been “happy as a clam” even if he hadn’t been honored with these opportunities. He’d also be surprised to know his statue now stands on the Arnolds Park pier. Steve’s love for the lakes was contagious, and the Queen II and museum are gifts that continue to give. The Iowa Great Lakes Maritime Museum offers fun history lessons for every member of a family—from bathing suits our great grandparents might have worn to the evolution of motorboats. The Queen II also retains her regal status as the first lady of the lake. 

 

NO WAKE ZONE, the second book in my Marley Clark Mystery Series, is set in Lake Okoboji/Spirit Lake and opens with a billionaire’s death aboard the Queen. The Iowa Great Lakes Maritime Museum also figures in the mystery. Last summer, I did a book signing at the museum with all profits going to support the museum. I hope every

Has a grass-roots nonprofit made a difference in your hometown? Are you helping?