A retired home economics teacher turned food service director, a fish and tackle business owner in Edwardsburg, and a another Edwardsburg native who is a fishing guide in Alaska, will provide evening presentations this season at the Edwardsburg Area Historical Museum.

Thurs., Aug. 19, 7 p.m.—Elizabeth Westfall Thompson

Because of the pandemic, this presentation by Elizabeth Westfall Thompson was moved to the 2021 season. A 1956 Edwardsburg High School graduate and an Edwardsburg Hall of Fame inductee, Thompson will give an oral history of growing up in Edwardsburg. She and her husband, Larry, who died in 2018, jointly received the Hall of Fame’s Lifetime Award from the Edwardsburg Public Schools in 2016.

Thompson put her degree in home economics to good use and taught for 35 years, both at Sand Creek high School and the Allegan County Area Vocational Technical Center. A dietitian, she also ran a catering business and worked as a food service director. She earned several state awards for her work in the Future Homemakers of the America and the vocational Industrial Clubs of America. She lives in Saugatuck.

Thurs., Sept. 16, 7 p.m.—Darrin Schaap

Darrin Schaap’s presentation, scheduled for 2020, also has been moved to the 2021 season. Schaap, the owner of Clear H2o Tackle in Edwardsburg, is a columnist for the Edwardsburg Voice. He will focus on changing technology in the world of fishing, as well as how to use different lures for different fish.

He graduated from Edwardsburg High School in 1995 and earned his business administration degree from Central Michigan University. He managed Brett’s Place on the Bay in Benton Harbor for five years.

His is the first of two presentations that complement the seasonal display, Hooked on Fishing.

Thurs., Oct. 21, 7 p.m.—Jeff Duck

Jeff Duck has the fisherman’s dream job. The Edwardsburg native, a professional fishing guide out of Port Alsworth, Alaska for nearly 20 years, will share highlights of that work as part of the Hooked on Fishing display. He will speak on the similarities between fishing in Michigan and Alaska and share photos of his experiences.

No amateur before the camera, Duck was a part of a documentary by the Discovery Channel, has appeared in an episode of River Monsters, and can be seen in professional videos on fishing for northern pike and rainbow trout. He heads tours for individuals as well as professional photographers in day trips in the Bristol Bay Region, an area covering thousands of miles south of Anchorage. While his focus is on five species of salmon, northern pike, rainbow and lake trout, steelhead and the graying, he also conducts tours of glaciers and volcanoes.