File photo Michael Stephen Neumann, who plays David Lee Roth in the Van Halen tribute band JUMP, does an incredible toe-touch jump on Friday in the Veolia Big Tent at the Michigan Brown Trout Festival in 2025.

The former president Phil Paquette completed his term and wrote a letter of appreciation in December thanking supporters, sponsors, and community members, but stepped down.

Soltysiak explained her background and why she made the decision to step in and take the helm of the popular festival that has been a staple in Alpena for more than a half a century.

“I just really wanted to jump on board and keep the festival moving in the right direction,” Soltysiak said. “Engaging the community and helping to inform the public of the great resource we have in Lake Huron.”

Many of the same entertainment options will be returning this year, however, some of the fishing dates have been changed.

“We have live entertainment in the big tent and the small tent; we did move some of the fishing dates around,” Soltysiak said. “For example, the lady’s classic has always traditionally been on a Thursday, we have moved that to the first Saturday of the festival to hopefully boost participation.”

“Some of the feedback we have gotten was that it is hard to take off work on a Thursday for fishing, so we are hoping this will help,” Soltysiak added.

The high stakes tournament will not be returning this year, but all the crowd favorites are set to continue at this year’s festival.

“We will have all the others like the walleye tournament, the super tournament, the fishing all week, both the kids offshore and on shore fishing tournaments,” Soltysiak said. “There will be family day, a wine tasting event, and there are still a lot of moving pieces in regard to other plans for the festival.”

The festival is currently looking for volunteers, Soltysiak discussed how those interested in helping can sign up.

“We are always looking for volunteers, those interested should watch the website and our facebook page, once the links to fill out an application are finalized, we will make that known,” Soltysiak said. “We are going to do the same thing we did last year where people can go online, or on facebook, and sign up for a time slot to volunteer.”

“Those interested can also contact me, or any of the board members and we can direct them where they need to go,” Soltysiak added.

When asked why someone who has never been to a Brown Trout Festival should consider attending this year, Soltysiak said the following:

“When people think of Brown Trout they usually think of fishing, but it’s not just that, it originated because of fishing, and that’s how it started, but we have a lot of activities outside of the fishing tournaments,” Soltysiak explained. “We have family friendly activities, kids’ day, great local food vendors, live music in both the big tent and the small tent, and if you are interested in learning more about fishing, the Department of Natural Resources is available to answer all your questions.”

Regardless of your interest in fishing, the festival is a staple in the Alpena area, with events and activities for everyone.

“There is a sense of community, and fun and food, while getting together with family and friends and making memories,” Soltysiak said. “There is truly something for everybody.”