Manager Leaves Butterfly House

To the Editor:

After eight years of service as manager of the Mackinac Island Butterfly House, I have resigned.

I came to the Island in 1995, as many do, to work for a summer while in college. I worked as night security for Stonecliffe that summer. I met Doug Beardsley and fell in love with his vision. I worked four or five days a week as a volunteer in the Butterfly House.

Doug realized I loved butterflies and began to loan his books and other learning resources, and share with me every aspect of the job.

I took a job in Alaska in 1996 and returned the summer of 1997, thinking it would only be for one season. Finding that Doug had passed away was a real shock, but meeting Craig Starkweather gave me the opportunity to get paid and work in the Butterfly House.

For eight seasons I have strived to help make Mackinac Island Butterfly House the best it can be. It is a unique environment allowing for enjoyment, relaxation, and education, all at the same time. I feel I have had a hand in creating the flavor of the experience and, therefore, the reputation it has.

I love Mackinac Island and I love the Butterfly House and would not choose to leave either without much consideration. Life, however, makes demands on us all, and sometimes we must answer them. I am currently looking at other possible positions and will be leaving the Island to join my wife in Yuma, Arizona, where she is teaching sixth grade social studies at Gila Vista Junior High School.

From there, who knows where God and a love of butterflies will take us.

Rev. Fr. L. Lee Sissel