Squaw Island memories

When we were young, my parents often took us to Squaw Island at the north end of Canandaigua Lake. There we enjoyed a day of swimming, picnicking, snorkeling, "exploring" and searching for "hidden treasures."

It was not unusual for us to head out late in the fall, when it was even too cold to swim, and so it was on one Thanksgiving Day.

We pulled up in our little outboard motorboat, and dragged it onto the sandbar that points back to the canal and boat launch. We cuddled up on the then-sandy beach, wrapped up in a blanket — three little girls, and mom and dad. (My brother hadn't yet been born.)

Mom brought out the cooler that held our Thanksgiving dinner and opened the top. Reaching deep, she pulled out a plate for each of us, and handed them out, with great ceremony. Each held a few kernels of dry corn and not much else.

We were dumbstruck. Mom was always the picnic queen. What was happening?

Then came the life lesson that resonated for decades to come. 

The people who first settled in North America had little to eat over a harsh winter, mom and dad explained. Abundance was not to be taken for granted, and when you do find yourself with even just a morsel, it's important to be grateful, and to give thanks to God for supplying enough to meet your needs. 

We later had a traditional Thanksgiving feast... but that moment, that morning, that lesson, taught me to be thankful for food, for necessities, for my family, and for the God who gave it all.

A half-century later, Canandaigua lake-dweller Brandon Kirshner is working to recapture a little bit of his own story.

Squaw Island, and all the memories his family, my family and many others made there, are at grave risk of being lost forever. The tiny island is eroded and overrun with contamination.

So Brandon is employing some creative means to recapture and restore both the island and public interest in it.  Here's what he had to say in a popular short documentary he posted on YouTube: The Squaw Island Initiative Phase I.

I like his methods and style of getting the message out. Here's why: 1) this guy knows how to paint a picture; 2) he understands camera angles; 3) he's got a great sense of pacing; 4) he gets what it means to be real and genuine; 5) he's got a sense of humor; and 6) he's not sitting at home complaining about how someone else isn't doing their job correctly.

Online people are commenting about his initiative, saying, "Good effort. I hope he doesn't run out of steam."

He won't. How about you? Stop talking, get in your canoe or kayak, and join Brandon in his efforts to clean up Squaw Island. Write letters, make phone calls, round up volunteers, and show up to help out.

Thanks for what you've started and you're doing, Brandon. The island isn't just for the seagulls. It's for people like you me who have so, so many rich memories there.

Video: Taking Back Squaw Island

News story about Brandon's efforts.

Photos, video by Jack Haley/Messenger Post Media