Up North Progressive

The Daily Beast reports Jeffrey Epstein funded a log “scholarship lodge” at Michigan’s Interlochen Center for the Arts and donated to the fine arts center during the 1990s. After his 2003 conviction, Interlochen broke all connections with Epstein and removed his name from everything associated with the fine arts center.

Epstein attended Interlochen Fine Arts Camp in 1967 where he studied bassoon, orchestra, and radio. In 1994, Jeffrey Epstein funded a single story log home at Interlochen that would generate scholarship funds. The log structure became known as the Epstein Scholarship Lodge. Epstein also held events for Interlochen alumni in New York at his townhouse and office. No reports of incidents with Epstein and any children exist at Interlochen, but one 13-year-old girl’s mother claimed Epstein tried to groom her daughter while she attended Interlochen in 1994. The girl was Nadia Bjorlin.

Founded in 1928, Interlochen is a 1200 acre fine arts center located in the forest of Grand Traverse County, Michigan. The center offers summer camp programs for children in grades 3 to 12, a fine arts boarding school for grades 9 to 12, adult arts programs, and a full season of performances. Interlochen Public Radio provides NPR programming for the region.

Interlochen is one of the most prestigious centers for the advancement and education of fine arts in the world. The school attracts adults and children from all over and provides world-class instruction in the fine arts. As the case against Jeffrey Epstein reveals more about his life and horrific criminal activity, it’s likely there will be more surprises with his connections with respectable institutions he once donated funds or frequented in the past.