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A Guide to Fennville Cemetery

To discover a handy guide to Fennville Cemetery as well as why the cemetery drew unbelievable crowds in 2020, simply continue reading to discover a few interesting facts about Fennville Cemetery. Which was originally a private cemetery but has since been repurposed as a public cemetery which serves the local community of Fennville.

It’s located in Fennville, Michigan:

Fennville Cemetery is located in Fennville, Michigan. Fennville is located in Allegan County in Southwest Michigan and has a relatively small population of approximately 1,400 residents.

It’s located close to the Assembly of God Church:

One of the largest religious communities in Fennville is the Assembly of God Church which is located within a short walk of Fennville Cemetery.

It currently boasts over 3,037 memorials and graves:

Although Fennville has a small community of around 1,400 residents, Fennville Cemetery is home to over 3,037 memorials and graves. Partially due to the fact that Fennville used to have a larger community.

It’s not the other cemetery in Fennville:

Fennville is also home to another cemetery that is full of unmarked historic graves, Loomis Cemetary. Today most locals choose to bury their kin in Fennville Cemetary which is the more modern of the two community cemeteries.

The cemetery was overrun by tourists in 2020 who flocked to see the cemetery’s poppy field:

In 2020, Fennville Cemetry ended up closing its vehicle entrance as it was inundated with tourists who flocked to the cemetery in order to see the four-acre poppy field which was created to honor a local soldier who tragically lost his life during active duty.

The poppy field was planted by the parents of the fallen soldier Sargeant Mateo Donaldson, John Van Voorhees, and Joan Donaldson and was meant to serve as a tribute to their son. The poppy field backed straight onto Fennville Cemetery and the couple also intended for their son’s poppy field to bring joy to the living family members and friends of the individuals who are buried in Fennville Cemetery. However, the couple had no idea that their four-acre poppy field would draw such large crowds. In fact, the crowds quickly grew so large that the cemetery was forced to cut off the cemetery to traffic and to restrict the cemetery grounds to foot traffic, in order to protect the cemetery.

Shockingly the crowds who visited to view the stunning poppy fields ended up causing upwards of $1,500 worth of damage to the Michigan cemetery. Which is why the cemetery ended up blocking vehicles from entering the cemetery. As individuals would try and park in the cemetery in order to take photos of the poppy fields. Luckily a Go Fund Me page was launched in order to raise money to cover the damages that were made.

In conclusion, if you were looking for information about Fennville Cemetery which is located in the state of Michigan, hopefully, you found a few interesting facts that you found helpful. Especially if you were looking for information about the poppy fields which back onto the border of Fennville Cemetery.

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How to Make a DIY Family Memories Book

One creative way to display your family photos is to create a DIY family memories book that contains souvenirs, photographs, and journal entries among other items. To discover how you can get your family members to help you create your very first family memories book, simply continue reading.

Use special items to decorate the front of your DIY Family Memories Book:

You may want to use special items to decorate the front cover of your memories book such as a broken piece of jewelry or seashells which your family gathered together on a trip to the beach.

Place tickets from your family adventures in your memories book:

For example, you may want to paste plane tickets or attractions tickets from your family adventures around photos of your family on vacation. For example, if you kept one of your ticket stubs from the Eiffel Tower, you may want to place it next to the page of your favorite family photos from the top of the Eiffel Tower.

Get your kids to write journal entries that correspond to photos taken on your trip:

It’s a fun idea to encourage each of your kids to write a journal entry after visiting a particularly memorable location or attraction, which you’ll then be able to paste next to a photo of the chosen location or attraction. As years later, your kids will enjoy reading the journal entries which they wrote as youngsters.

Include your kids’ drawings in your family memories book:

After your kids have had their drawings on your fridge for a few weeks, you may want to consider placing them in your family memories books, so that they don’t get accidentally throw out and will remain safe for years to come. Just make sure to write the details of each drawing down, such as which kid drew each picture and which year each picture was drawn. You can even write your child’s age down next to each picture that they’ve drawn.

Write quotes that correspond with each photo in your family memories book:

For example, next to a photo of one of your kids as a toddler, it’s a great idea to write down their first words. You can even write funny quotes that your kids caught you saying next to photos of yourself.

Get your kids to paint their handprints which can be pasted into your family memories book:

Simply get your kids to cover their hands in kid-friendly paint, which washes off easily, and ask each kid to place their hand on a small piece of cardboard, which can then be pasted straight into your family memories book.

So if you want to remember all of the fun times which you plan to spend as a family as your children grow up, it’s a great idea to make your very first family memories book together. If your kids are crafty, it’s a great idea to let them help you make your memories book.

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Creating Memories on Vacation: Helpful tips

While vacation may be the perfect time to relax, if you’re going to invest a lot of money into your next vacation, it’s also important to focus on making the most of your trip by trying to create as many special memories as possible. Especially if you plan on spending your vacation with loved ones such as a romantic partner, your family, or a group of friends.

Be open to being spontaneous:

Even if you’re the type of individual who loves to plan out every moment of their vacation in advance, if you’re not open to being spontaneous, you could miss out on making memories of a lifetime. For example, while you may want to research local restaurants in advance, you may walk past a family-run restaurant that looks really busy and that is off the beaten tourist track which may offer the most authentic, delicious food in the city that you’re visiting. Or you may end up making friends who invite you to try out a fun activity with them such as beach volleyball, wine tasting, rock climbing, or taking a dance class. Alternatively, you may happen to walk past a local festival or fair, which you’ll be able to explore.

Purchase hand made souvenirs that will remind you of your vacations:

While you may not want to spend a small fortune on souvenirs, it’s a lovely idea to purchase at least one special, hand-made souvenir from every country that you visit. As every time that you look at your carefully chosen souvenirs, you’ll be reminded of the day that you brought it. For example, if you have a custom shirt made for you at a tailor in Thailand, you’ll remember your trip to Thailand. Or if you buy a Venetian mask in Venice, you’ll always remember your time in bella Italia.

Make sure that you have a portable battery for your phone:

As the last thing that you want to have happen on vacation is for your smart phone to run out of battery while you’re exploring a new destination, it’s a wise idea to make sure to pack a portable battery pack for your smart phone. So that when your phone only has 10% battery left, you’ll be able to quickly charge your smart phone back up to 100% battery. Which will allow you to continue taking photos and videos of your adventures. Which will help you look back at the special memories which you made overseas. Even if you plan on going camping, you can purchase solar-powered portable batteries, that you’ll find convenient.

Sign up for an online journal:

There are many online journals that will allow you to upload digital diary entries and photos that you’ll be able to look back on for years to come. All you’ll need to start writing your first diary entry is an account that is linked to your email. So you won’t have to worry about losing access to your online travel journal if you forget your password. As you’ll easily be able to reset your password.

So if you don’t want to forget the incredible memories which you’ll make over a lifetime of travel and adventure, it’s well worth remembering all of the useful hints and tips that are listed above.

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Everything that you need to know about Cortes Bank

Cortes Bank is an island which is located off the coast of California which is well worth reading about as there have been several shipwrecks next to Cortes Bank as well as a publicized treasure hunt. To discover a few fun facts about Cortes Bank and its history, simply continue reading.

It was originally charted on maps as San Juan Island:

Historically Cortes Bank was charted on maps as San Juan Island.

It is a shallow sea mount:

If you’re not sure what a shallow sea mount is, a shallow sea mount is a barely submerged island. Although at various points of history, Cortes Bank was less submerged by water and was more of a traditional island.

Bishop Rock Cortes Bank:

Today there is a buoy that warns seafarers about the location of Bishop Rock, in order to avoid collisions with the rock. If you’re curious about how the rock got its name, it was named after the Stillwell S. Bishop which was a ship that crashed into the infamous rock back in 1855. Luckily the crew of the Stillwell S. Bishop was able to mend their ship in order to continue sailing on to San Fransisco in California.

A widespread treasure hunt took place on Cortes Bank:

In 1957, a treasure hunt led by Mel Fisher took place on Cortes Bank. As Fisher was certain that there was a wreck of a lost Spanish galleon lying on the seafloor, close to Bishop Rock. The treasure hunt was unsuccessful much to the disappointment of Mel Fisher and his supporters.

In 1966 two entrepreneurs tried to turn the island into a constitutional monarchy:

In 1966 two creative entrepreneurs tried to turn Cortes Bank into their own constitutional monarchy, which they planned to name Abalonia. However, the duo’s dream of running their own constitutional monarchy on Cortes Bank, ultimately never eventuated.

Historically surfers would try to surf off Bishop’s Rock:

Tragically many surfers almost lost their lives trying to surf next to Bishop’s Rock. As an example, in 1973 a world famous surfer Ilima Kalama who was the father of professional surfer Dave Kalama almost lost his life in a fishing boat next to Bishop’s Rock. As he tried to use his fishing boat to get close to the rock to go surfing.

Today surfers still try to surf off Bishop’s Rock despite the obvious dangers. For example, back in 2004 Sean Collins who visited Bishop’s Rock with Billabong Odyssey counted 12 boats in the water and over 40 surfers.

It featured in the 2015 film Point Break:

Bishop’s Rock was one of the locations where the 2015 remake of the Point Break film was filmed. So if you want to check out Bishop’s Rock in a blockbuster movie, it’s well worth watching the 2015 version of Point Break.

In conclusion, if you enjoy discovering exciting facts about the Channel Islands which are located off the coast of California, hopefully, you enjoyed learning a few fun facts about Cortes Bank.

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The Best Travel Spots in America

Whether you’re fascinated by the US’ history, would love to see a natural wonder with your own eyes, or are keen to visit the birthplace of modern-day surfing, simply continue reading to learn about the 3 best travel spots in the US.

Salem, Massachusetts:

Salem which is located in Massachusetts is best known for being the location of the infamous Salem witch trials which took place in 1692. During which numerous locals were executed for being deemed witches. If you’re fascinated by the history of Salem, you’ll be able to visit Witch House, a 17th-century abode that once served as the home of one of the judges who deliberated on the witch trials. If you’re brave and don’t scare easily you can also choose to book a haunted tour of Salem.

However, Salem has a lot more to offer than haunted tours and witches and is also home to the inspiration for one of Nathaniel Hawthorne’s novels “The House of Seven Gables”. The House of Seven Gables, for which the novel was named is a colonial mansion that was built back in 1668 and actually predates the Salem witch trials.

Salem is also well worth visiting as it’s a charming, picturesque seaside town and is home to the oldest candy store in the United States, Ye Olde Pepper Companie, which specializes in serving old-fashioned and novelty fudge and candy.

Niagara Falls State Park, New York:

Niagara Falls is one of the world’s most impressive natural wonders and is well worth ticking off your bucket list. If you choose to view the world-famous falls from the United States, you’ll get to explore the oldest state park in the country, Niagara Falls State Park. Which is home to the American Falls, part of Horseshoe Falls, and the lesser-known Bridal Veil Falls. What you may not know about Niagara Falls State Park is that it has a lot more to offer than waterfalls alone and offers miles of hiking trails that are just waiting to be explored!

Oahu, Hawaii,

The beautiful island of Oahu is the most visited island in the state of Hawaii and is home to the most famous surf beach in the world, Waikiki Beach. Which is regarded as the birthplace of modern-day surfing. In fact, if you visit Waikiki you’ll see an impressive statue of the godfather of surfing Duke Kahanamoku.

If you don’t fancy a surf lesson, you’ll still be able to taste fresh pineapple Dole whip at the Dole plantation, visit Kualoa Ranch where countless movies and TV episodes have been filmed, tour the only royal palace in the United States, snorkel in a protected reef at Hanauma Bay and shop up a storm at the largest outdoor mall in the United States, the Ala Moana Center.

So no matter whether you’d prefer to learn to surf in the birthplace of modern-day surfing, to see one of the natural wonders of the world, or to tour Salem, it’s well worth picking one of the destinations listed above as your next travel destination!

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