Pentwater Service Club celebrates 50 years of giving back to the community.

Pentwater Service Club celebrates 50 years of giving back to the community.

PENTWATER — It happened 50 years ago Jan. 8, 1970. A few friends, who were also locally employed, gathered over their lunch hour in a downtown restaurant to proclaim their intent to form a club with the purpose of making Pentwater, already a great place, they said, an even better place by promoting good citizenship, engaging in worthy community projects, and by sponsoring gatherings that would lead to a better informed citizenry.

Appropriately, the friends decided to call the new club, the Pentwater Service Club (PSC) and Francis Mills became its first president.

“Today, we celebrate the men and women of the Pentwater Service Club, both young and old, and those no longer with us, who for a half century have donated tens of thousands of volunteer hours to help make Pentwater the place that it is today,” said Glenn Beavis, 38th and current president of the popular club for community doers.

To mark the PSC’s golden anniversary, members and their guests heard from speakers and long-time members about projects the PSC has undertaken over five decades that ranged from the construction of playground equipment for the community’s only school, to the renovation of a church into what is now the historical society building.

Most area residents are familiar with the club’s Duncan Wagon, which is staffed by members during community events to produce the club’s regionally-famous caramel corn and other great eats the club sells to help finance its many community projects.

Today’s club members can be seen assisting others in the community in a myriad of ways, from helping homeowners with chores, to serving on local civic boards to beatifying US 31 and many more.

But it doesn’t stop there. Since 1973, the club has encouraged exemplary contributions to the community through its Citizen of the Year program. A total of 48 Pentwater residents have been honored over the past 35 years, many of them stalwarts of the community in their time; often singled out for decades of sustained service to the community.

“It’s humbling to look back 50 years and realize that everyone here today is carrying on an institution started by our forefathers generations ago and that has played such a huge role in the development of our community,” said Kyle Jansen, who joined the PSC less than a year ago and says she likes having the ability to make a difference.

In celebration of the club’s 50th anniversary, the PSC recently announced an ambitious plan to build and donate a raised-bed garden for use by the people of the greater Pentwater area who want to garden, but may not have access to suitable land or the ability to prepare the soil.

The PSC meets from September through May of each year at the Pentwater School Library. Those interested in learning more about the PSC’s mission-driven programming should check out the club’s website at www.serviceclub.org.

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