Take a day to enjoy the bay
Friends group to host Winter Bay Day Feb. 4
Bay Day is back.
The Friends of St. Joseph Bay Preserves invite everyone to attend the winter Bay Day fundraiser on Saturday, Feb. 4 from 11 a.m. until 2 p.m. EST.
The event will be held at the Preserves Center, located at 3915 SR 30-A in Port St. Joe.
October Bay Day was a success with more than 250 in attendance.
The event will feature a low country shrimp boil, open house of the buffer preserve center, live music, photo exhibits, raffles, backwoods tram tours and more.
This Bay Day fundraiser has historically allowed The Friends to purchase lots for inclusion in Buffer Property; paid for WIFI, appliances for the Lodge, projection equipment, educational displays and various tech equipment; and allowed for the purchase of electric vehicles and their support and buoy markers for Saint Joseph Bay.
However, Bay Day does more than raise money for the preserves. It promotes the role of the preserves by creating an opportunity for members of the surrounding community and visitors to visit the Buffer and learn about the precious ecological resources we strive to protect.
Tram tours, educational displays, and interaction with Preserves personnel provide a connection with The Friends’ mission that goes beyond dollars. It tells people that the Preserves are an important part of their community and the larger world beyond.
Tour the Preserves
Explore the preserves on a guided Tram Tour through the backwoods trails of the Buffer Preserve and learn about the native animal and plant life. Tour departure times are 9:30 a.m., 11:00 a.m., 12:30 p.m. and 2:00 p.m. EST.
Reservations are recommended and will be available at the Bay Day event. Bay Day tram tour seating will be first come first served.
Meet the Editor
Wendy Weitzel, The Star’s digital editor, joined the news outlet in August 2021, as a reporter covering primarily Gulf County.
Prior to then, she interned for Oklahoma-based news wire service Gaylord News and for Oklahoma City-based online newspaper NonDoc.com during her four years at the University of Oklahoma, from which she graduated in May with degrees in online journalism and political science.
While at OU, Weitzel was selected as Carnegie-Knight News21 Investigative Fellow among 30 top journalism students from around the country. She also was senior editor managing a 12-person newsroom in coordination with Oklahoma Watch, a non-profit news organization in eastern Oklahoma.