By Kevin Greer
Lakeside Communications Manager
When Gwen and Brian Nichols met at Otterbein University, they quickly discovered they had much in common, including a connection to a small community along the shores of Lake Erie.
“We found out we had a shared love of Lakeside,” Gwen said.
Introductions to Lakeside
The couple took different paths to the Chautauqua community. Brian began visiting as a toddler, when his grandfather, a United Methodist minister in the East Ohio Conference, brought family to conference week each summer. His visits paused during high school as sports took priority, but the connection remained.
Gwen’s introduction came later as a high school student traveling with a group called Youth Musicale. She arrived in the middle of a July heatwave to rehearse at Hoover Auditorium.
“I stepped off a school bus and somehow ended up on the stage of Hoover Auditorium,” Gwen recalled. “We stayed in Hotel Lakeside before it was renovated. That was my first visit, and I immediately fell in love.”
The experience left such an impression that she brought her mother and a friend to visit weeks later over Labor Day weekend.
Returning to Lakeside
After marrying in the mid-1990s, the Nicholses began returning to Lakeside to visit friends, staying at the Campground or Hotel Lakeside.
With both sides of the family participating in annual conference, Brian’s parents as West Ohio delegates and Gwen’s mother as an East Ohio delegate, they soon found themselves back for conference weeks, in a large rental with extended family.
In 2011, the family decided to make Lakeside a bigger part of their lives and purchased their first cottage. At the time, their children, Carson and Mabry, were 11 and 9.
They wanted their kids to fully experience Lakeside. This meant friends were always welcome, even if meant sleeping on floors or on the back porch. The kids and their friends even helped renovate a second cottage, pitching in with cleaning and trips to the dumpster.
By 2017, the family needed more space.
“Brian and I joked that our kids and their friends outgrew the cottage,” Gwen said. “We were fortunate to find a larger place and went from 700 square feet and one bathroom to 1,600 square feet and three bathrooms.”
Growing up in Lakeside, Carson and Mabry filled their days with bike rides, mini golf, sidewalk chalk art, rock painting, lemonade stands during conference weeks and saving up money for trips to Marilyn’s. Both attended ReachOut.
Today, Carson and Mabry are 26 and 23. Carson works in the scrap metal industry in Orlando, Florida, and Mabry is employed by Safelite Solutions in Columbus, Ohio.
Still Enjoying Lakeside
Still based in Westerville, Ohio, Gwen and Brian continue to spend as much time in Lakeside as possible.
Brian, a special education teacher at Westerville Central High School, enjoys extended stays during the summer. After stepping away from coaching when their children were young, he returned to coach high school baseball five years ago.
Gwen is President and CEO of Nichols & Company, CPAs, where she leads a team of 40 guiding businesses and families through tax and accounting challenges from strategy to compliance. She joined the Lakeside Association Board of Directors in 2022 and was named Board Chair in February 2026.
When in Lakeside, Gwen paddleboards while Brian reads from an Adirondack chair at the Pavilion, they sit on the Dock, ride bikes inside and outside the gates, walk their dog along the waterfront and attend Hoover shows and Lakefront Worship. Gwen sings with the Chautauqua Choir on Sundays, and Brian attends Men’s Bible Study on Tuesdays. They are gradually learning to play pickleball.
The Fourth of July remains a highlight each year, when their children return with their significant others for a full week together.
“A lot of people may not like how busy July 4th week is in Lakeside,” Brian said. “But that is part of what I enjoy. There are so many people, and being together as a family that week is what matters most.”
Gwen agrees.
“For us, that time is almost as important as Christmas,” she said. “There is no competition for time with extended family. Our college friends are here, and our kids grew up together and enjoy reconnecting.”
What Makes Lakeside Special
For the Nicholses, Lakeside’s appeal cannot be reduced to a single moment or activity. They believe it’s up to each person whether to fill their day with plans or simply sit on a porch or relax at the Pavilion. Any choice is fulfilling.
“I don’t think you can boil it down to one thing,” Brian said. “You can do as little or as much as you want in a day or a week, and the experience is just as meaningful. There is so much to experience here, all in such a beautiful setting. The four Chautauqua pillars ensure that Lakeside offers variety for multiple generations.”
Gwen sees it in the people.
“The people we know who love Lakeside have amazing experiences to share and are fascinating to learn from,” she said. “When you have experienced Lakeside, and it gets into your soul, you leave a little of yourself behind when you go home. Lakeside is a sacred place; open to all, grounded in faith and alive with purpose – it deserves to be shared with others.”
