Category Archives: Lake Odessa

My World ~ Lake Odessa, Michigan Pt 2

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If today is Tuesday this must be Lake Odessa, Michigan, USA. Last week I told you that Lake Odessa is a village and not a body of water. There are two lakes here, Tupper Lake and the larger Jordan Lake. From those two comes the name, “Lake.” “Odessa” is the name of the township.


Independence, patriotism and family values are very strong in this part of our nation.


Jordan Lake is on the south side of town. Part of the lake is in Ionia County the rest is in Barry County. This is the entrance to the village park.


Jordan Lake comprises 430 acres and is enjoyed by fisherman, swimmers, skiers and other boating enthusiasts.


The lake is surrounded by year-round houses.


Cargill Kitchen Solutions is the largest employer in this part of the county. This business was previously owned by Sunny Fresh and it specializes in egg products.


This is the narrow end of the Cargill plant.


As you leave the village headed north, Viking Car Wash is on the edge of town. Last year, this do-it-yourself car wash was completely renovated. Like Cargill, which is located just across the road, this is a symbol of optimism. Clean, bright, and do-it yourself. For most of us, it is our way of life.

My World ~ Lake Odessa, Michigan

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The mailing address here is Lake Odessa, Michigan. Sylvia and I live 5 miles north of the village and a couple of miles west. The village is located on the north shore of Jordan Lake. The name of the village comes from Odessa Township, where it is located. “Lake” is added to recognize Tupper Lake and Jordan Lake. There is no body of water here called Lake Odessa.


The main street is called Fourth Avenue, and it is the heart of the business district. A decade ago, there were two rival pizza restaurants on Fourth Ave. And then the rivals fell in love and got married. He closed his shop and together they run Penny’s Pizza.


The busiest restaurant in town is located next to Penny’s. It is C&R’s Home Style Cafe. A great place to eat. Ask anyone from the Lake Odessa area. We’re sure to see someone we know when we stop here. It may be difficult to find a convenient place to park on Sunday, but you can probably find room at a table. Good food nice folks.


Just off of Fourth Ave on M-50 (state highway) is the oriental restaurant, Chee Peng. It is one of our favorite places to eat. That’s our car parked there last Sunday. We had spicy pork and chicken. Yummy! We go for that — big time!


Chee Peng serves Chinese and Thai cuisine. It can be difficult to choose an item from the menu. It is all good! I always go for something spicy. To make it more interesting, I sometimes have Chinese and sometimes I go for a hot Thai dish. Never a disappointment here.


Looking north up Fourth Ave. I took this shot through the windshield while we sat in front of Central United Methodist Church, which is located across from the Post Office. Notice the grain elevator on the left.


Atop the elevator you can see an array of antennas.


These antennas are of interest to me, because they belong to my ISP, Reliable Internet, LLC. By radio waves this is about 6 miles from our house. We connect into this site on a microwave link and from there we are connected at high speed to the Internet.

Next time I’ll show you some more of the Village of Lake Odessa. I hope to see you again.