Lange Trust celebrating 50 years

SANDUSKY — A trust donated $50,000 to help celebrate its 50th anniversary with the entire community it continues serving. During a recent public meeting, city commissioners announced the Lange Trust of the Sandusky Library provided this amount to, once again, offer a series of free concerts this summer in Sandusky. For three consecutive years, the trust gave money to offset expenses so out-of-town, star-studded acts can perform on Jackson Street Pier. "The Lange Trust provides free cultural and educational opportunities to the citizens of Erie County," trust chairwoman Sarah Prout said. "By partnering with the city, especially while the Sandusky State Theatre is being rebuilt, the Lange Trust is able to continue to offer these free events," said Prout, noting these events occurred at the landmark venue prior to 2020. "Also, by partnering with the city, we are able to extend our funds and provide more opportunities to our residents because the city is responsible for the production of and the venue for our events." In 2022, the trust put on four of roughly a dozen concerts taking place at Jackson Street Pier: The Drifters, The Boy Band Review, Mojo & the Bayou Gypsies and Bruce in the USA. Other local entities helped sponsor about eight other concerts, which included the Sugarhill Gang, Rumours and The Vindys. Prout answered some additional questions about the trust: • The funding: "The money does not come from the library. It comes from a trust fund managed by Key Bank. This trust fund was given 50 years ago by Norbert and Marion Lange, chemistry professors who lived in Sandusky. Marion Lange was a trustee for the library. The Langes decided on using the library as the recipient of the trust funds because they wanted a dependable entity that would likely maintain a presence for many years in the Erie County community." • The concerts in recent years: "The Lange Trust committee has enjoyed working with the city because the city has dependably supported our efforts. The Lange committee chooses the talent in an effort to provide a variety of events and to offer something that will enrich the community." • The forthcoming acts: "The Lange Trust committee generally chooses musical concerts because the Jackson Street Pier is so ideal to present those types of concerts, but speakers and other performing groups are also considered. Right now, we have three out of the four summer concerts lined up, and we are working on securing the last event." An announcement on who's performing should occur within the coming months. Prout then noted the 50th-anniversary celebration extends beyond concerts. "During the Fourth of July celebration in downtown Sandusky, the block of Adams Street in front of the library will be closed for a Squonkopera concert to celebrate this anniversary," Prout said. "Squonkopera is a boisterous, outdoor spectacle fusing a fantastical design of three-story, balloon-type manipulatives while adding high-energy music for a participating audience." Could sculptures stay in Sandusky? The Lange Trust also sponsors two sets of sculptures in various public spaces across Sandusky: • The eight-piece grounded Outdoor Sculpture Exhibit, which debuted in 2019 • The 21-piece overhead sculpture set, which debuted this past summer; These are the pieces balancing on tightropes suspended between trees. In the past, these on-loan sculptures coming to Sandusky generally return to a project curator or their original creator one year after first getting installed. But there might be an opportunity for these sculptures to stay in Sandusky, which can be found in Shoreline, Washington and Lions parks as well as the Sandusky Greenhouse and Mills Creek Golf Course. For legal reasons, the trust can't buy these pieces, however, a fundraising committee recently began to form. If enough money gets collected, then these sculptures, or a replica of them, could be endowed to Sandusky's government and stay in their current, albeit temporary, homes. Prout welcomes feedback from the community. People can email her at langetrust@gmail.com. "The hanging sculptures that we have now are on loan from Poland's Kedziora Art and Balance Foundation," Prout said. "Our contract to display them will be finished soon, and the sculptures eventually must return to Poland. They cannot stay indefinitely in the U.S. In fact, each art piece has its own separate Visa. If Sandusky is able to raise the funds to purchase any, the Polish artist, Jerzy Kedziora, would have to make new hanging sculptures specifically for Sandusky." Sculptures help satisfy the trust's mission by enriching "the residents of our county," Prout said. "By offering visual arts along with the performing arts, we think this happens from the variety of cultural offerings that we present," Prout said.