Crossroads Health's second Soaring Hearts to refill the Mentor sky with kites

May 8—Kite flyers will descend May 18 on a Mentor beach to attempt to set a record while raising money for Crossroads Health, a Mentor-based nonprofit committed to offering recovery and mental health services to all people at all different times of their lives.

Headlands Beach State Park in Mentor proved to be an ideal place to fly a kite two years ago when kite flyers attempted to break a longtime world record for Most Kites Flown Simultaneously. That record was set in 2011 when Palestinian children flew 12,350 kites at the same time from a beach in the Gaza Strip — an effort organized by the United Nations Relief and Work Agency. Kites had to stay aloft for 30 seconds to qualify, and 2,000 other kites were disqualified.

The Mentor effort, organized two years ago by Crossroads Health with help from the Guinness Book of World Records and dubbed Soaring Hearts, set a local record for 2,000 kites. That was far short of the world record, but it drew thousands of kite flyers, onlookers, photographers and others to the mile-long sandy beach along the south shore of Lake Erie.

No record? No problem: 'Soaring Hearts' sets Mentor sky simultaneously streaming with kites

At that time, Crossroads Chief Development Officer James Wyman declared it a success.

"The concept for Soaring Hearts directly aligns our outreach efforts and special events with our community-based mission, vision and values," he said. "One of our core values is belonging, and I cannot think of a more inclusive event — an event for all ages, at all stages of life."

Guinness is not a part of this year's kite festival.

"Soaring Hearts is open to everyone," said Wyman, spokesman for Crossroads Health. "We want to be as inclusive as possible. We'll even have an area on the beach for those in wheelchairs to fly kites."

Strong winds are not needed for the successful launch and flight of a kite, according to folks from the Ohio Society for the Elevation of Kites, who gather on the second Sunday of each month to fly their kites at Edgewater Beach, a West Side Cleveland Metroparks facility. A 5- to 10-mph wind is fine for most kites.

Although kites made of tissue paper with strips of balsa wood and flown with a ball of string still work, they're not the elaborate ones seen in competition. Ripstop nylon, high-tech carbon fiber rods and a woven polyester cord are the ingredients kite experts use. Materials for making kites along with instructions can be found at hobby shops Target and elsewhere.

See fantastic shapes of crocodiles, birds, turtles and flying horses are seen in a video shot at Cape Fear on the North Carolina coast near Wilmington:

It's free to attend Soaring Hearts and fly a kite, but many teams are being formed by sponsor groups who pay $20 for VIP entry and receive a commemorative T-shirt. That's how money is being made.

The 2022 Soaring Hearts earned $100,000 for Crossroads, and Wyman hopes that figure will be surpassed this year.

Making and flying kites is a dying art, said Phil Salstein, president of the Ohio Society for the Elevation of Kites.

"Kids just don't do things outdoors anymore," he said. "I'm 66, and my wife is 64, and we're the youngest members of OSEK."

He makes and sells large kites — those requiring some muscle to be flown.

"Some have a 9-foot wingspan," he said. "When I stack 10 kites together and fly them at the same time, they're strong enough to pick me up off the ground — and I'm 6 feet tall."

He'll be among the spectators at Soaring Hearts, although the Ohio Society for the Elevation of Kites is not a sponsor.

"But the best way to learn to fly a kite is to come out and watch us from noon to 5 (p.m.) at Edgewater."

Steve Fisher of Perry, another Society for the Elevation of Kites member, also will be there. In addition to flying his own award-winning kites, he'll help teach others how to make and fly them. Crossroads also will have kites available.

Soaring Hearts

What: Kite-flying fundraising event for Mentor-based Crossroads Health.

When: Noon to 4 p.m. May 18.

Where: Headlands Beach State Park, 9601 Headlands Road, Mentor.

Note: There is no charge to fly a kite but registration is requested at 216-360-4445 or crossroadshealth.org/soaringhearts. Food trucks and vendors will be on hand.