A twenty-year old dream for one local business owner is breathing new life into Sodus Bay non-profit, "Save our Sodus" (SOS), and bringing new opportunities for Wayne County families and tourism. SOS will begin operating the Rose Lummis tour boat on Sodus Bay this June! The Times of Wayne County got a chance to see her after delivery on April 26th. We interviewed SOS President, Don Riling, for the backstory.
“It’s an amazing story,” Riling told the Times. "SOS published its Strategic Plan for 2024-2025 at the end of 2023," he said, which included a vision for eco-tours on the bay.
“We wanted people to experience being on the water, and we also wanted them to have the chance to learn about the remarkable history of this region and why a healthy ecosystem is essential,” said Riling.
By Christmas week of 2023, a multi-generational local businessman and major donor contacted SOS, asking if he could purchase a boat to make that vision a reality.
“Our response was ‘WOW! and YES of course,’” said Riling. “It took us a little time to get our heads around the full scope of this opportunity!” Riling recounted, adding that SOS had been considering using a big pontoon boat, but the donor was thinking much bigger — a 50 PASSENGER TOUR BOAT!”
Finding ‘The One’
Finding that tour boat proved to be a lengthy process. The donor searched for almost a year without success.
Then, during a board meeting in late 2024, board member, Nell Gardner, asked, “Did you know that the Rose Lummis is for sale, in Appleton, Wisconsin?”
SOS quickly passed on the information to the donor.
“Within a few weeks the donor told me, ‘I bought a boat!’” Riling said.
Ironically, the donor had loved taking a tour on the Rose Lummis when the boat was on Sodus Bay in the 2000’s. In the 1980’s, it was owned by the Arney Family of Arney’s Marina.
The memory of that ride seeded the donor’s vision to bring a tour boat to Sodus Bay.
Fast forward some 20 years and Rose Lummis has received a complete $450,000 restoration.
The SOS organization is honored to have the opportunity to operate the boat for weekly eco-tours on Sodus Bay and Friday/Saturday sunset cruises —- all out of Pier 53 Bar and Brick Oven in Wolcott!
A Tour Boat for All
What really spoke to the SOS team when the donor first approached SOS, said Riling, is the underlying motivation to share Sodus Bay with those who don’t normally get to experience it.
“The donor said, ‘This Bay is an amazing place. Yet if you don’t own a cottage or a boat, you might never get to experience its beauty. I would like more people to have a chance to experience it, especially kids and families,’” said Riling.
At the same time, SOS has discovered research indicating that nature-based learning for kids can be trans-formational. According to the Child Mind Institute, nature builds confidence in children, promotes crea-tivity and imagination, gets kids moving, makes them think, and reduces stress and fatigue. Plus, said Riling, SOS wants to use the Rose Lummis to grow the next generation of environmental stewards on Sodus Bay.
That led "Save our Sodus" to begin working with researchers and academics to buttress to the vision for us-ing the Rose Lummis to educate kids. Dr. April Luehmann of the University of Rochester’s Get Real Science Program at the Warner School and Kyra Stephenson, nature-based learning coach in the Rochester City School District offered their guidance.
“Luehmann has spent 20 years in the Sodus School District and shared how 50 percent or more of kids who live a few miles away have never seen Lake Ontario or Sodus Bay,” said Riling. “That fact is shocking!”
Riling said SOS board members attended conferences at The Finger Lakes Institute at Hobart and William Smith colleges and discovered “floating classrooms are springing up around the country, and that kids never forget the experiences they have in these settings” he said.
SOS has also reached out to the eleven school districts in Wayne County to partner with them to offer ad-ditional curriculum and instruction opportunities on board.
SOS’s first pilot program is with the Marion School District, under the supervision of Superintendent, Dr. Ellen Lloyd. Marion students will be studying and researching MicroPlastics alongside University of Rochester fellows and then publishing their findings in a national publication designed for students.
Rose Lummis is being prepared for an early May Coast Guard inspection and mid-June test tours.
You can find the latest booking, scheduling and ticket prices information on the Rose Lummis and Sodus Bay Tours at www.saveousodus.com/sodusbaytours.
