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Photo Contest Rules: The contest is open to amateur photographers and persons who’s main source of income is not derived from any activity in which their primary duties are related to the field of photography. (no professional photographers please.)
Length of Contest: The contest period begins June 21st, and the deadline for submissions is December 31, 2006. Judging will take place in January and announcement of category winners will take place February 6, 2007.
Subject Matter: Submissions will be considered for entry if the images contain subject matter relating to categories listed - (a) places, (b) activities, (c) landscapes, (d) lifestyles, (e) occupations, (f) historical sites which are related to Rogers City and surrounding areas including Presque Isle County. Photos taken prior to the announcement of the date of this contest are acceptable for submission. Digitally enhanced or created images of the above listed subjects are allowed and will be judged in a separate category. Digital images should be marked as such on the back of the photo when submitting.
Number of Entries: Each person may submit a maximum of (5) five photographic images. Color or Black and White images
are acceptable. Each image must have the following information attached to the back of the photograph:
(1) Name of the Photographer
(2) Address (Street, City, State & Zip)
(3) Telephone ( e-mail address is optional)
(4) Location (and year, if known) where the Photograph was taken
(5) Camera Type (Make, SLR, digital, etc)
(6) Any optional information about the Photograph the entrant would like to include (keep it brief - 25 words)
Entrants with digitally produced images must still submit a hard copy print of the image for judging and display.

Entry Fee: There is a non-refundable entry fee of $5.00 that must accompany the submissions and the entry form.
For entries by mail, payment must be either by check or money order. Please do not send cash.
Entries submitted in person at the chamber offices may use cash, check or money order for payment of fee.
Requirements & Responsibilities of Contest Entrants: In submitting a completed entry form along with the required entry fee the entrant agrees to allow the Rogers City Area Chamber of Commerce the rights to use any of the entrants images submitted in various promotional activities such as but not limited to flyers, magazines, brochures, billboards, websites, audio visual programs, gallery and public displays, etc. for a period of four (4) years. Entrants also agree to indemnify and hold harmless the Rogers City Chamber of Commerce from any actions that may arise related to the image(s) submitted. Images containing recognizable images of people must include a signed and dated model release form.

Prizes: The number of prizes and awards may increase during the contest period and the value of these prizes and awards may also increase over the contest period. An announcement for prize awards for winning category images will be made periodically as contest sponsors are solicited for support. At this time there are three (3) awards:
(1) 1st Place Overall - $150.00
(2) 2nd Place Overall - $100.00
(3) 3rd Place Overall - $50.00
Selection of Winning Images: Winning images will be selected by a panel of judges from the community. The decision of the judges will be final.
Miscellaneous: Prizes and awards may increase in number and amounts as sponsorships are added. Not all prizes and awards will be monetary.

Special thanks are in order to the Hammond Bay Anglers, Micheal Veine and Julie Shafto as well as a number of other charter operators and residents for the information they have provided to the Chamber concerning recreational fishing in the Rogers City Area this season.

Last year, many discouraging comments were made and quite a few articles were written concerning the quality of fishing in our area. So far the action on the lake at start of this season is contradicting the negative opinions of last year with reports ranging from very good to "awesome". The salmon, while smaller than in years past are being described as "plump" and well-fed - something that last season was a concern. Good luck with Lake Trout, Brown Trout, Atlantic and Chinook Salmon, Steelhead as well as some Walleye has been reported.

Recreational fishing is an important part of Rogers City's economy and it is vitally important that we work to get the word out about the opportunities available to the sportsman and women not only in our local area but downstate and out-of-state as well.

Thanks to the experience and knowledge of those mentioned above, a better assessment of the fishing activity has been made and from comments received here at the Chamber, many feel that this is going to be an excellent season for those choosing to make their way up to Rogers City. Our website, www.rogerscitychamber.com has these reports posted for all those who visit to read. We will continue to update the information as we receive it throughout the season.

Have you noticed how many tourists are around, even though the gas prices are high? I believe that people are going to take time for recreation and travel no matter how much it costs. The big question is -how can we bring more tourists to the Rogers City area? This is one of the many reasons I need the Rogers City Chamber of Commerce. The Chamber has provided P.H. Hoeft State Park with valuable information, and together along with other organizations, we are building a network and becoming part of the team to bring tourists to Rogers City. Did you know that P.H. Hoeft State Park has over 63,000 visitors a year ? The park is open April through October and busy in July, August and on Labor Day weekend. The rest of the season the park is still busy, but the sites are not all filled.

Do you ever have questions about State Parks and Recreation Areas? Please let me share a few things. Did you know that your state park and recreation system….

Is one of only two in the nation to have zero state tax financial support - and has not since 2003.
Includes 97 state parks and recreation areas, 829 developed boating access sites, 16 harbors, 10 lighthouses, six scenic sites and two boat locks.
Has the second highest number of campers and the seventh highest visitor counts of any state park system in the nation.
Ranks 2nd in revenue generated from camping, 3rd in revenue from entrance fees and ranks 4th in overall revenue generation from visitors.
Contributes more than $600 million annually to local economies.
Is always close by. In fact, you are never more than an hour away from a state park or recreation area.
Protects more than 200 different rare or endangered species of plants and animals.
Includes 147 exemplary locations of 43 different Michigan ecosystems.

The preceding information was provided from the Citizens Committee for State Parks. This Committee is a 17 member group of citizens appointed by the Governor and functions as an advisory body aiding Parks and Recreation Division of the Michigan Department of Natural Resources in fulfilling our mission.

The park is continuing to provide more services and activities. By providing activities and quality service, more and more park users will return. The bike trail has been a success for the park and Rogers City and many of the campers come because of the bike trail. The fishing has also been excellent this summer! The 40 mile Point Lighthouse Park is in excellent shape, with a new gift shop. Everything is here to bring the people! The Chamber of Commerce with membership support, is telling the story and working to bring people to Rogers City. Taking advantage of the tourist season, and providing services, events, and activities will keep people coming back.

I’m excited to live in this beautiful area, and I will continue to work with Chamber and community to bring more tourists to the area. Our area businesses will benefit from campers and park users visiting this area. Please call 734-2680 if there is something I can do to help Rogers City reach out to the campers and help bring the campers to your business, event, or activity. Have a great summer!

We received an unexpected surprise late last month when Art Ross from Design Team Media Consultants called to inform us someone in the community had donated a brand new computer system to the Chamber.

Adding to the surprise was the request that the donor identity be kept a secret. We are extremely grateful for the generosity of the donor and would like to express our sincere gratitude at this time.

As hard as we tried, we could not pry the secret out of Mr. Ross as to the identity of the donor. If you've got a secret to keep, Art Ross might be the place to keep it!

The new system makes it possible to increase productivity by allowing two people to be working simultaneously on tasks that previously could only be done one at a time. The enhanced performance and added capacity is a great improvement and the addition of the new computer now provides us with a much needed backup system.

Once again we would like to offer our sincere thanks to our mystery donor for their generosity to the Chamber of Commerce which will help us in our efforts on behalf our membership and the community as well.