Grace College’s water research center, Kosciusko Lakes and Streams, hosted the fifth annual Northern Indiana Lakes Festival. The festival was on Friday in downtown Warsaw, Saturday at Center Lake and Sunday at Winona Lake. Nate Bosch, director of Kosciusko Lakes and Streams and the Lakes Festival, said, “We went from having about 2,000 attendees last year to over 4,000 this year.” Bosch said he is excited that more people were involved and hopes that more people get involved next year. The 2014 Lakes Festival will be June 14 and 15. The event was made possible by the efforts of more than 200 volunteers and more than 100 community businesses and organizations. “The lakes are vital to our economy, environment, recreation and our very sense of community,” said Anna Burke, Lakes Festival coordinator and Kosciusko Lakes and Streams program manager. “The Lakes Festival was able to celebrate this by creating opportunities to both experience and be educated about the lakes.” Children and adults learned how to keep lakes and streams clean from displays in the Lake Education area. There also was participation in the Art Around the Lakes activities, Run for Others 5K, Warsaw Aqua Mile, and several new events associated with the festival. Activities included the live animal show, canoeing and kayaking, bounce houses, 5,000-gallon aquarium, and the Lake City Skiers performance. The Lakes Festival is organized by Kosciusko Lakes and Streams, a center for water research, education and collaboration at Grace College. Sponsors for the Lakes Festival included Toyota, Biomet, Zimmer, CenturyLink, Kosciusko County Community Foundation, Louis Dreyfus Commodities, Silveus Insurance Group and Trupointe. To learn more about Kosciusko Lakes and Streams visit www.water.grace.edu
