Glade Run Lake healthier than it has ever been
MIDDLESEX TWP — Those who enjoyed Glade Run Lake thought they never again would see it in its heyday after a 2011 decision to drain the lake.
But several of them returned Sunday to see the body of water healthier than it ever had been. These were the people who formed the Glade Run Lake Conservancy, which celebrated its 10-year anniversary Sunday with a community event and the dedication of a new facility.
“We all wanted to make a difference with the lake,” said T. Lyle Ferderber, treasurer of the conservancy. “This is now better than it was when it was built.”
Glade Run Lake was drained in an effort to prevent potential dangers related to its busted dam. The decision left several people who used and enjoyed the lake saddened.
According to Ferderber, the Glade Run Lake Conservancy started as a grassroots effort to save the lake, but it now has the support of thousands of people, and just as many people visit the lake each year. Its members started the organization as the lake was being drained in 2011, but by 2017 they had raised enough money not only to have it refilled, but also to have it stocked with fish and equipped with habitation devices.
On Sunday, the conservancy members started the anniversary event with the dedication of a new pavilion, dubbed “The Chappel” in honor of its original vice president, the late Bonnie Chappel.
The daylong event offered food vendors and a fishing contest for children. Tim Wilson, fisheries biologist with the Fish and Boat Commission, said the lake has been stocked with about 10 species of fish, and even more types of animals have populated the area since it was refilled.
“It's a fairly simple fish community, but in a lake this size, that's what you want,” he said. “We're really happy with the development of the lake.”
The lake has since been popular for fishers, boaters and kayakers, who go out onto the water for its unique setting. Karlee Holmes became a board member with the conservancy after kayaking on the lake a few times.
She said it is a fun place to kayak because of its accessible coves.
“I always liked to come kayak here,” Holmes said. “It's rewarding to see all the people who come now to kayak after it was empty before.”
Siggy Pehel, president of the conservancy, said the nonprofit's continuing goal is preserving and protecting nature. He said the conservancy has received money from the Butler County Tourism and Convention Bureau and from Middlesex Township for development in the past, and it is working to get grant money from the Division of Conservation and Natural Resources to pay for conservation easements.
“Those conservation easements mean properties can't be further developed on, but property owners still own their property,” Pehel said. “We do this for the love of nature and the environment and the lake.”
Throughout the day Sunday, people came through the area around the lake to eat and talk to members of the conservancy. Ferderber said through teary eyes that the dedication of the pavilion was his favorite part of the day.
“Seeing multiple generations out here enjoying it, that was my million dollars for the year,” Ferderber said.
