This year will be big year for Woodland Mall, with major retailers Von Maur and REI moving in, a unique restaurant opening its doors, and a general “new feel” for shoppers coming to the mall.
“As the Woodland Mall continues their redevelopment there are many new stores coming and renovation of some of the existing stores, which gives Woodland Mall a whole new feel,” Bob O’Callaghan, President/CEO of the Wyoming-Kentwood Area Chamber of Commerce, said to WKTV. “With Von Maur and other new stores coming in 2019, Woodland Mall is the place to shop in Kentwood.”
This week, Woodland Mall management gave an update as to the status of the redevelopment and there is good news all-round — including an on-schedule opening of Von Maur in an entirely new wing of the mall, an earlier-than-anticipated opening of West Michigan’s first REI recreation gear retailer, and several new stores already opened or renovated.
“We have been hard at work diversifying the retail mix at Woodland Mall and investing in ways to continue to create a premium shopping experience,” Cecily McCabe, Woodland Mall marketing director, said in supplied material. “We’ve had several new stores open since renovations began in the summer of 2017, and there are several more on the way, along with new programs and events throughout 2019.
“As our major redevelopment project continues through this fall, we are so excited to share our transformation with the community,” she said.
Retailer Von Maur, which will occupy 90,000 square feet in the former Sears space, is on schedule for an October 2019 opening. The location will be the high-end department store’s first in the region, as the Iowa-based store expands “its footprint across the U.S. with larger stores and new brands,” according to supplied information. “The strength of the Von Maur brand lies in its wide selection of brand-name merchandise, open and attractive store design, amenities that enhance the customer experience.” Von Maur’s customer experience includes free gift-wrapping year-round.
In 2019, shoppers can also anticipate the opening of REI, Urban Outfitters, A’Beautiful Soul, Bath & Body Works’ White Barn Shop, Black Rock Bar & Grill and more.
The opening of West Michigan’s first REI store is anticipated ahead of schedule this summer. Its 20,000 square-foot location will carry gear and clothing for activities including paddling, biking and running. Additionally, the recreation gear retailer will host workshops focused on outdoor recreation.
Also this summer, the mall plans a grand opening of Black Rock Bar & Grill in the expanded Von Maur wing. The first-to-market restaurant, according to supplied information, offers an experience in which guests sear their selection of meat or seafood on hot volcanic granite directly at their tables.
Woodland has scheduled numerous community events and programs planned all year long. Early in 2019, the mall will offer events such as a Mad Hatter tea party, photos with the Easter Bunny, employment expos, vehicle showcases and parties geared toward children, according to supplied material.
Later in the year, shoppers can look forward to family pet photos with Santa, Santa Fest, a Winter Princess Party and more. A new play area is also in the works.
“Let me start with the story of a little girl from Alabama,” said Houston METRO Police Chief Vera Bumpers to more than 150 attendees at the 12th annual Grand Rapids Legacy Luncheon on Feb. 5 at New Hope Baptist Church.
“This little girl would travel in the car with her family and during those travels they would be stopped by police officers,” she said. “During those travels, they would be hungry or need to go to the bathroom and their father would stop and ask if they could use the bathroom, and the people would say ’no.’
“And one day, the little girl finally asked her father why he did not stand up against these people and the officers and he said ‘because I needed to protect my family.’”
Houston METRO Chief Vera Bumpers with JA PR Group’s Jessica Ann Tyson.
Looking back at this story – her story – Bumpers said she believes it was the reason why she chose the career path she did – law enforcement. She broke barriers becoming the first African-American female on the Houston METRO Transit Authority Police Department, the largest and oldest transit law enforcement agency in Texas. This paved the way to her becoming METRO’s first female to attain the ranks of Sergeant, Lieutenant, Captain, and Assistant Chief. Two weeks after being named Assistant Chief, Bumpers would break the brass ceiling, being named as Chief, the first African American female to serve in this role.
Her reason for following that career path is her belief that the interactions between law officials and the public were important. She created the cooperative urban policing which includes strategies on addressing innate bias, peer accountability and law enforcement responsibility. She has become a sought out speaker about the program.
“We all have the responsibility that there is equity in the treatment of everyone,” Bumpers said to the crowd. “We all owe that to the next generation.”
This belief is also the reason why she joined the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives (NOBLE), which she was inducted as the organizations 42nd president this past August. Started in 1976, NOBLE was founding on the idea that black law enforcement executives could have a significantly more effective impact on the criminal justice system through a unified voice. Today, the organization serves as the conscience of the law enforcement by being committed to Justice by Action. NOBLE has nearly 60 chapters — including the West Michigan NOBLE Chapter — representing more than 3,000 members worldwide. Bumpers said membership is open to both law enforcement officials and civilians. For more on NOBLE, click here.
Bumpers served as the keynote speaker to the annual luncheon, hosted by Kentwood’s JA PR Group. The luncheon is a tribute to Black History Month. The annual event commemorates the scholarship recipients, recognize community leaders and celebrates the community. The Legacy Events has awarded more than $110,000 to students in scholarships across the State of Michigan.
This year, at the Legacy Luncheon, a check of $1,500 was presented to the Fostering Futures Scholarship Trust Fund of the Michigan Education Trust. According to Michigan Education Trust Executive Director Robin R. Lott, the Fostering Futures Scholarship assists former foster care students with college expenses. The fund recently was added to the list of charitable organizations that residents can donate their tax refunds to, Lott noted, adding that there is a fundraising luncheon for the fund set for June 26 at the Amway Grand Plaza Hotel.
Serving as masters of ceremony were Jeremiah White Jr. and Lee Stephen of “The Afternoon Throw Down Show” on Magic 104.9. Kentwood Mayor Stephen Kepley and Our Daily Bread Ministries Pastor and Manager of North American Outreach Clarkston Morgan offered the prayer and Kentwood’s The Candid Yam provided the lunch.
With a focus on safety, power restoration work is underway after an overnight ice storm cut power to approximately 50,000 West Michigan Consumers Energy customers – including residents in the cities of Wyoming and Kentwood – and created slick and hazardous conditions across the state.
Crews are assessing damage, securing downed wires to make them safe and beginning the power restoration process. The public is reminded to stay at least 25 feet away from downed wires and anything they are touching and to call 9-1-1 and Consumers Energy at 800-477-5050.
“We appreciate our customers’ patience as we make situations safe and begin restoring power,” said Guy Packard, Consumers Energy vice president of electric operations. “Safety of the public and our crews is our utmost importance.”
As of 11 a.m., 52,500 Consumers Energy customers were without power. Since 1 a.m. Wednesday, approximately 63,000 customers have been affected. Some customers who lost power overnight may not have their service restored until late Thursday night. With additional winter weather expected over the next two days, additional outages are possible, Packard said.
From damage assessors to call center representatives and lineworkers, more than 1,100 Consumers Energy employees and contractors are engaged in the restoration efforts. Twenty mutual assistance crews are headed to Michigan from Kentucky and other Consumers Energy crews from around the state are being deployed to the hardest hit areas.
Consumers Energy urges the public to keep tips in mind:
Stay at least 25 feet away from downed power lines and keep children and pets away. Call 9-1-1 and Consumers Energy at 800-477-5050 to report them.
Be alert to utility crews working along roads. Drivers should slow down or stop and wait for oncoming traffic to clear so they safely can go past workers on roadsides.
Never use a generator in an attached garage, basement, enclosed patio or near any air intakes. Doing so could cause a generator to produce hazardous levels of carbon monoxide, an odorless, colorless and deadly gas.
Call 2-1-1 if you are looking for help connecting to temporary shelter or other resources that offer assistance in your community. 2-1-1 is a free statewide service.
Customers can also report an outage, check the status of an outage and get useful tips what to do after a storm by visiting www.ConsumersEnergy.com/OutageCenter.
Consumers Energy, Michigan’s largest energy provider, is the principal subsidiary of CMS Energy (NYSE: CMS), providing natural gas and/or electricity to 6.7 million of the state’s 10 million residents in all 68 Lower Peninsula counties.
The West Michigan economy flattened in January, signaling a slow start to 2019, said Brian G. Long, director of Supply Management Research in Grand Valley State University’s Seidman College of Business.
Long surveyed local business leaders and his findings below are based on data collected during the last two weeks of January.
The survey’s index of business improvement (new orders) edged down to -4. The production index, which had been as high as +33 in November, softened to +4. The index of purchases flattened to +3, and the employment index came in at +14.
“The overall business outlook is much more cautious than it was just a few months ago,” said Long. “Several survey participants continue to voice concern over the price impact of the still unresolved tariff war with China. Others are cautious about the potential decline in auto sales. In contrast, firms associated with the office furniture industry remain watchfully optimistic.”
Long said the national economy turned out stronger than expected to start 2019.
“It is possible that the 2017 tax cuts may have a little more room to run than we expected,” he said. “However, the softening of the world economy will pull us in the opposite direction. The economy still has plenty of momentum to carry through the first two quarters of 2019 and quite likely beyond.”
Long said more than 58 percent of the Wall Street Journal’s panel of 60 economists expect the next recession to start in 2020, and 2019 could turn out to be just another year of slow growth.
The Institute for Supply Management survey is a monthly survey of business conditions that includes 45 purchasing managers in the greater Grand Rapids area and 25 in Kalamazoo. The respondents are from the region’s major industrial manufacturers, distributors and industrial service organizations. It is patterned after a nationwide survey conducted by the Institute for Supply Management. Each month, the respondents are asked to rate eight factors as “same,” “up” or “down.”
Pianist Xavier Davis will be the featured artist during a concert Sunday, Feb. 10. (Supplied/MSU/Christine Southworth)
By K.D. Norris ken@wktv.org
Continuing its fifth season of jazz in the historic — and visually and acoustically great — sanctuary at Grand Rapids’ Fountain Street Church, series host and curator Robin Connell will give up her usual seat at the piano as the Jazz in the Sanctuary returns this weekend.
Pianist Xavier Davis will be the featured artist during a concert Sunday, Feb. 10, at 3 p.m., at the church, 24 Fountain St. NE. Tickets are $15 general admission and $5 for students with ID, on-line or at the door.
People who have never heard a concert at Fountain Street before are in for a treat; people who have already know and probably already have their tickets as well.
Davis, born in Grand Rapids and an alumni of the Jazz in the Sanctuary series, is the son of local music educators Duane and Kay Davis. According to supplied information, Xavier was brought into the spotlight by legendary vocalist Betty Carter, who invited him to New York after witnessing his performance at the 1994 International Association of Jazz Educators convention.
“Today, he is one of the most accomplished working jazz pianists in the world,” Connell said in supplied information.
Xavier was a member of the teaching staff of the Juilliard School of Music for six years and now serves Michigan State University as Associate Professor of Jazz Piano. He has performed with dozens of world-famous artists like the legendary Freddie Hubbard, Tom Harrell, Christian McBride, Regina Carter, Stefon Harris, Abbey Lincoln, Wynton Marsalis, Don Byron, Nat Adderley, Nicholas Payton, Jon Faddis, Jimmy Greene, Steve Turre, Al Foster, and Jeremy Pelt. His piano playing has been featured on more than 50 albums.
In 2005, Xavier became the first person to receive the prestigious New Works Grant twice from the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation under the auspices of Chamber Music America. For more information visit his website.
Connell, no stranger to the local and regional jazz scene, received West Michigan Jazz Society’s 2017 “Musician of the Year” award for her widespread collaboration with area jazz artists and her work on this series. In 2016, she won the ArtPrize Public Choice Award for her original composition “Prisms”.
An advocate for jazz education, she co-directs the Youth Jazz Combo at St. Cecilia Music Center, teaches every June at Aquinas College Jazz Camp, and formerly served as summer jazz faculty at Interlochen Center for the Arts for 20 years. For more information visit her website.
For more information on the concert and the Jazz in the Sanctuary series visit fountainstreet.org/jazz .
(NOTE: This is an excerpt of the original story. For the complete article, click here.)
As classes resume this week, principals and teachers are scrambling to make up for lost instruction time.
Districts are required to provide 180 days and 1,098 hours of instruction time. If they fall short they will not receive their full state funding from the School Aid Fund. But they are automatically forgiven six snow days, and up to an additional three upon applying for a waiver, for circumstances beyond their control such as storms, fires and health issues.
In Rockford, last week’s five missed days — followed by this week’s ice storm — put the district’s total of closed days for the year at 11, counting days missed for extreme heat last August and for a power outage. That means Rockford has already surpassed the state’s legal limit for missed instruction days. Lowell has also had 11 snow days.
Rockford Superintendent Michael Shibler said he is talking with other superintendents in Kent County to craft a request for legislators to provide additional relief from the snow-day regulations, so districts don’t have to extend the school year further into June. Rockford and several other Kent ISD districts end June 7, while others end the last week of May.
Grand Rapids Public Schools has used eight snow days and will likely join other districts in asking for legislative relief, said spokesman John Helmholdt. Forest Hills has used nine.
Michael Shibler
Asking Snow Forgiveness
There is precedent for such relief, Shibler said, citing the 2013-14 school year when, following a winter in which districts missed an average of 9 ½ days. At that time, the Legislature and Gov. Rick Snyder allowed districts to add more minutes on to existing daysrather than schedule additional days. Given the unusual nature of last week’s storm, Shibler said it’s reasonable to ask for additional snow days to be forgiven.
“This is the first time I’m aware of that we’ve even used our six (allowed) days,” said Shibler, noting he’ll be requesting the additional three allowed by law. Even then, Rockford will need more relief because it has canceled school the maximum of nine times, he said.
Further, he doesn’t want to add more days beyond the district’s scheduled end date. Many families have already scheduled vacations, students have lined up summer jobs, and Shibler said he doesn’t want to have to cancel classes due to extreme heat as he did last August. Most Rockford buildings are not air-conditioned.
“I am going to be asking our state legislators to craft legislation to provide relief, and ask that the governor would sign that,” Shibler said.
Other school leaders are working on similar requests, said Chris Glass, lobbyist for the West Michigan Talent Triangle.
“I am hearing a common call for relief from my colleagues across the state,” Glass said. “The Michigan Association of School Administrators have also sent out communication to the superintendents across the state indicating they’re working on this as well.”
Although it’s too early to have received formal requests, “interest in forgiven days is high,” said William DiSessa, spokesman for the Michigan Department of Education. While districts may add time to each day to meet the instruction requirements, he added, the state recommends adding days, “because adding a few minutes at the end of each remaining day may not result in added learning by students.”
Each week WKTV features an adoptable pet—or few—from an area shelter. This week’s beauty is from Crash’s Landing. Crash’s Landing and Big Sid’s Sanctuary rescue organizations were founded by Jennifer Denyes, DVM (Dr. Jen), who is on staff at Clyde Park Veterinary Clinic (4245 Clyde Park Ave SW).
We certainly have a lot of gorgeous guys here at our sanctuary, but magnificent Marcellus (born in late 2015) is by far one of THE CUTEST cats around! We were fortunate enough to have been contacted by Dr. Paula Sauer from Schoolcraft Veterinary Clinic in December of 2018, when a client of hers brought this adorable stray cat that turned out to be FIV+. So she and her team took him in and gave him all of the necessary veterinary care (including neutering him) and contacted Dr. Jen to see if we perhaps had a space for this fantastic feline. On December 11th she drove him on up to the clinic, where he and Dr. Jen spent a few days getting to know each other.
Marcellus is an absolute doll, as darling as they come and as sweet as pie. More than likely he was the victim of unfortunate circumstance while he was out fending for himself and got bit by an infected cat; he is a faint positive for the virus. Although initially he was on the timid side, it didn’t take long for this magnificent specimen of a cat to find his brave side once down at Big Sid’s.
More about Marcellus:
Large
Medium coat length; Orange & white
Adult
Male
House-trained
Vaccinations up to date
Neutered
FIV+
Not declawed
Prefers a home without dogs, children
Want to adopt Marcellus? Learn about the adoption process here. Fill out a pre-adoption form here.
Can’t adopt, but still want to help? Find out how you can sponsor a cat!
Crash’s Landing and Big Sid’s Sanctuary have a common mission: To take at-risk stray cats off the streets of the Greater Grand Rapids area, provide them with veterinary care and house them in free-roaming, no-kill facilities until dedicated, loving, permanent homes can be found.
Amer Ahmed grew up in the United States in the awkward brown immigrant space between black and white. Hear how one Muslim boy’s diverse upbringing influenced a career of bridging differences and teaching others to work more inclusively.
Car seats and boosters can save lives. Just ask this family – The Smith kids, Olivia (4), Blake and Evan (1) get ready for a road trip. The Smith family, Ben and Janna, and kids Olivia, Blake and Evan, 1. (Courtesy Spectrum Health Beat)
In 2011, Janna Smith was riding in the back seat of the car with 4-month-old daughter, Olivia. Her husband, Ben, was driving when they were hit broadside by another car. The impact took place on Olivia’s side.
“I could see the base and carrier of Olivia’s car seat move slightly with the impact but then return to its original position, which was exactly what it was designed to do in an accident,” Janna explained.
While Janna suffered some painful injuries, Olivia was unharmed. And it was her car seat that saved her. While that’s a happy ending, the story doesn’t end there.
Always count on change
Fast forward to 2014.
After many struggles to become pregnant with Olivia, Janna and Ben decided to try for a sibling. They focused on their appreciation of Olivia, no matter what the future held.
When they found out they were having twins, they couldn’t have been happier. Nearly as surprising was how complicated it became to find a new car that would fit all three kids across one bench seat.
The Smiths knew from their scary accident how important it would be to have that row of car seats lined up in rock-solid, life-saving perfection.
“We looked at so many cars,” Janna said. “Will three car seats fit? No kids in the way back. Is there enough cargo room? Scratch that one, it’s got a console in the middle. Can it tow our trailer?”
Finally, they found a used Lincoln Navigator that fit the bill.
Brothers Evan and Blake, were born five weeks early on April 24, 2014. They spent their early weeks in the Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. Did Janna and Ben assume the knowledge they already had was up to snuff when it was time to take the new babies home?
“No way,” Janna said. “You can’t leave anything to chance. We knew all too well from our accident with Olivia how important it is to have everything snapped and perfectly adjusted. She was safe from the direct hit because the straps were adjusted for her body. You can’t underestimate the value of that, which is why we still have our seats checked as the kids grow. How do you know they are buckled right? You go to the pros. We’re on a first-name basis.”
What you might not know
While awareness of proper child restraint use in cars has increased, the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration still estimates that about 75 percent of child seats and boosters are improperly installed in family vehicles.
The Smiths considered themselves lucky to be part of the positive 25 percent.
In the Smiths’ case, and for all families whose babies are going home after a NICU stay, there is extra assurance that all is well. NICU babies must pass a car seat test with monitors attached, before they can be discharged from the hospital. This automatically ensures that NICU parents receive expert guidance from the first ride home. But every healthy baby going home is just as precious, and help is easy to find.
So, before Evan and Blake got to check out of the hospital, the Smiths consulted the experts at Helen DeVos Injury Prevention program, with Olivia and the two new car seats. They learned how to get all three seats properly secured on the bench seat and confirm how to assess strap and buckle placement for each child.
“It’s not just about the car seat user manual, either,” Janna added. “Look in your car’s owner’s manual to confirm how your vehicle is designed to work with infant/child safety seats. At the Safe Kids car seat safety check events, they thoroughly install your seat in your car with your kids. They installed an additional convertible car seat in my mom’s conversion van, too. If grandparents or babysitters will be transporting your kids, their vehicles are just as important.” To get started, watch our video on how to properly secure your baby in the car seat.
If possible, plan for each car to have its own car seats. If that’s not an option, make sure everyone who is moving the seats from one car to the next is completely educated on the details. If in doubt, stop in at a local fire department to have the seats checked or to be installed in the other vehicle before transporting. Having little ones safe at every trip, in every vehicle is critical.
Today, Olivia Smith is a charming, precocious 4-year-old. She loves her role as big sister of her equally adorable twin brothers, who just turned 1 year. And Ben and Janna Smith enjoy the peace of mind that comes with knowing their kids are as safe as can be, every trip, every car, every time.
Peppermint, Mentha piperita, is a cross between water mint and spearmint. Peppermint is associated with many health benefits, especially peppermint tea. Everything seems to be better with peppermint during the holiday season, such as peppermint lattes, peppermint bark, mint-flavored M&Ms, candy canes and more.
Here are some fun facts about peppermint.
Peppermint has a long history. Ancient Egyptian medical text dating as early as 1550 BC includes peppermint.
Early history mentions peppermint in Greek mythology, by Roman philosophers, Jesus in the Bible and Monks in the middle ages.
Peppermint has naturalized and can be found growing wild in North America and Europe.
Peppermint plants grow between 18-36 inches tall and 24 inches wide.
Peppermint spreads by runners that spread above and just below the ground’s surface.
Peppermint often becomes invasive in the home garden.
Specialized cells produce peppermint oil in the leaves of the peppermint plant. The oil is released once the leaves are crushed or chopped.
The best time to harvest peppermint is on a sunny day when the plant is just beginning to flower.
Peppermint is the most extensively used volatile oil, both commercially and medicinally.
Ancient Greeks thought it could cure hiccups.
Peppermint is the number one flavor for non-chocolate, hard candies.
Dec. 19 is National Chocolate Mint Day.
Dec. 3 is National Peppermint Latte Day.
Peppermint has been used in Eastern and Western traditional medicine as an aromatic, antispasmodic and antiseptic in treating indigestion, nausea, sore throat, colds, toothaches, cramps and cancers.
"Take care of the minutes and the hours will take care of themselves.”
― Earl of Chesterfield
Some of the runners at a previous Kentwood Valentine’s Dash 5K. (WKTV)
Kentwood hosts Valentine’s Day run
The City of Kentwood is hosting its second annual Valentine’s Dash 5K at 11 a.m. on Saturday, Feb. 9, an event that will feature candy stations, awards and after-party including music, snacks, a photo booth, and the award ceremony. For the complete story, visit here.
A scene form a previous Wyoming Daddy-Daughter Dance. (WKTV)
Wyoming hosts daddy-daughter dance
The City of Wyoming Parks and Recreation is currently taking registrations for its annual Daddy Daughter Dance, which will be Saturday, Feb. 9. The popular dance, which is for girls ages 3-15, will be at the Wyoming Senior Center, 2380 DeHoop Ave. SW. Cost is $8 for residents and $12 for non-residents. (Fee is per person.) For the complete story, visit here.
WKTV’s coverage of girls high school basketball continues this month. (WKTV)
High school sports action abounds
February will bring some MHSAA State tournaments starting already as the high school winter seasons begin to wrap up, this includes girls cheer, boys wrestling, boys bowling, girls bowling and, starting the last week of the month, boys basketball will tip off “March Madness” in February with the girls version starting the following week. For the complete story, visit here.
Fun fact:
4,2076,800 minutes
Number of minutes in the lifetime of a person living to the age of 80.
LAS VEGAS, NV – MARCH 23: Television host and comedian Bill Maher performs at The Pearl concert theater at the Palms Casino Resort on March 23, 2013 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Supplied/Photo by David Becker/WireImage)
For more than twenty years, Bill Maher has set the boundaries of where funny, political talk can go on American television. Now, the TV host, author, comedian, and Emmy-award winning producer brings his wits and commentary to Grand Rapids on Sunday, June 23, at 8 p.m. in SMG-managed DeVos Performance Hall.
Tickets go on sale to the general public beginning Friday, Feb. 8 at 10 a.m. Tickets will be available at the DeVos Place® and Van Andel Arena® box offices, online at Ticketmaster.com, and charge by phone at 1-800-745-3000. A purchase limit of eight (8) tickets will apply to every order. See Ticketmaster.com for all current pricing and availability.
First on “Politically Incorrect” (Comedy Central, ABC, 1993-2002), and for the last fourteen years on HBO’s “Real Time,” Maher’s combination of unflinching honesty and big laughs have garnered him 41 Emmy nominations. Maher won his first Emmy in 2014 as executive producer for the HBO series, “VICE.” In October of 2008, this same combination was on display in Maher’s uproarious and unprecedented swipe at organized religion, “Religulous,” directed by Larry Charles (“Borat”). The documentary has gone on to become the 8th Highest Grossing Documentary ever.
In addition to his television program – which has featured such visitors as President Barack Obama, Vice President Joseph Biden, Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, Kerry Washington, Michael Steele, Howard Dean, Michael Moore, Eva Longoria, Drew Barrymore, Rev. Jesse Jackson, Gen. Wesley Clark, Susan Sarandon, Kevin Costner, Gary Hart and Pat Buchanan. – Maher has written five bestsellers: “True Story,” “Does Anybody Have a Problem with That? Politically Incorrect’s Greatest Hits,” “When You Ride Alone, You Ride with Bin Laden,” “New Rules: Polite Musings from a Timid Observer,” and most recently, “The New New Rules: A Funny Look at How Everybody But Me Has Their Head Up Their Ass.”
Maher started his career as a stand-up comedian in 1979, and still performs at least fifty dates a year in Las Vegas and in sold out theaters across the country. Four of his ten stand-up specials for HBO – 2014’s “Bill Maher: Live from DC,” 2007’s “The Decider,” 2005’s “I’m Swiss,” as well as the hilarious, “Bill Maher … But I’m Not Wrong,” – have been nominated for Emmy awards.
Maher was born in New York City, raised in River Vale, N.J. and went to Cornell University. He now resides in Los Angeles.
WKTV offers on-demand viewing of the Wyoming and Kentwood high school sports, community events, and government meetings. (WKTV)
Mike Moll, WKTV Volunteer Sports Director sports@WKTV.org
February will bring some MHSAA State tournaments starting already as the high school winter seasons begin to wrap up, this includes girls cheer, boys wrestling, boys bowling, girls bowling and, starting the last week of the month, boys basketball will tip off “March Madness” in February with the girls version starting the following week.
WKTV will once again bring multiple events to the viewers throughout the month. Be sure to support your local school student-athletes in person by attending an event, but then watch for the broadcast.
This week’s featured game will be Tuesday, Feb. 5: Boys/girls basketball, Zion Christian at Wyoming Potter’s House.
The tentative monthly featured game coverage schedule is:
Friday, Feb. 15: Boys, girls basketball, Middleville T-K at South Christian Tuesday, Feb. 19: Boys basketball, Belding at Wyoming Lee Friday, Feb. 22: Boys Hockey, Grand Rapids Christian at East Kentwood Week of February 25–29: Boys basketball, TBD
In addition our featured games — where our sports crew and remote coverage truck will be on hand — we also have a weekly list of all local sporting contests for local fans to get out and enjoy in person.
Featured games are broadcast the night of the contest and then at least once later in the week.
WKTV broadcasts on Wyoming and Kentwood cable channels. On Comcast cable, Channel 25 is the Community Channel, where sports events and other community events are shown; Channel 26 is the Government Channel, where local government meetings and events are shown. On AT&T cable throughout the Grand Rapids area, viewers go to Channel 99, and then are given the choice to watch Wyoming (or Kentwood) Community (Channel 25) or Government (Channel 26) channels.
For complete schedules of programs on WKTV channels, see our Weekly On-air Schedule.
All Featured Games, as well as other high school sports and community events covered by WKTV, are available on-demand within a week of play at wktvondemand.com.
For a complete schedule of all local high school sports action each week, any changes to the WKTV feature sports schedule, and feature stories on local sports, visit wktvjournal.org/sports/.
Following is this week’s schedule:
Tuesday, Feb. 5 Boys Swimming Rockford @ East Kentwood Boys Basketball Godwin Heights @ Hopkins Kelloggsville @ Wyoming Lee – Hall of Fame Night Wyoming @ South Christian Lansing Christian @ Tri-Unity Christian Zion Christian @ Potter’s House – WKTV Featured Event West Michigan Aviation @ Creative Technologies Academy Libertas Christian @ West Michigan Lutheran Grand River Prep @ Wellsprings Prep Girls Basketball Hopkins @ Godwin Heights Tri-County @ Kelloggsville South Christian @ Wyoming – Teacher Appreciation Night Lansing Christian @ Tri-Unity Christian Zion Christian @ Potter’s House – WKTV Featured Event West Michigan Aviation @ Creative Technologies Academy Libertas Christian @ West Michigan Lutheran Grand River Prep @ Wellsprings Prep Boys Bowling Tri-Unity Christian @ Calvin Christian South Christian @ Zeeland Boys/Girls Bowling Grand River Prep @ Potter’s House
Wednesday, Feb. 6 Boys/Girls Bowling East Kentwood @ Grandville NorthPointe Christian @ Godwin Heights Belding @ Kelloggsville Wyoming @ Zeeland East Wyoming Lee @ Hopkins Boys Wrestling East Kentwood @ FH Central – MHSAA Team Districts Girls Basketball Grandville @ East Kentwood Kelloggsville @ Hopkins Wyoming @ FH Eastern Boys Basketball East Kentwood @ Grandville Hopkins @ Kelloggsville Wyoming @ FH Eastern NorthPointe Christian @ Wyoming Lee Girls Cheer Kelloggsville @ Godwin Heights Wyoming Lee @ Godwin Heights Wyoming @ Middleville T-K Girls Gymnastics Lowell @ Potter’s House
Thursday, Feb. 7 Boys Swimming East Kentwood @ West Ottawa South Christian @ Wayland Boys/Girls Bowling Godwin Heights @ Hopkins Kelloggsville @ Potter’s House Grand River Prep @ Tri-Unity Christian Boys Wrestling Kelloggsville @ Godwin Heights – MHSAA Team Districts Wyoming Lee @ Godwin Heights – MHSAA Team Districts Wyoming @ Grandville – MHSAA Team Districts Boys Basketball Zion Christian @ Wellsprings Prep Girls Basketball Zion Christian @ Wellsprings Prep
Friday, Feb. 8 Boys Hockey East Kentwood @ Chelsea Boys Basketball East Kentwood @ West Ottawa Belding @ Godwin Heights Kelloggsville @ NorthPointe Christian Wayland @ Wyoming – Coaches vs Cancer Tri-Unity Christian @ Holland Calvary Grand River Prep @ West Michigan Aviation East Grand Rapids @ South Christian Girls Basketball East Kentwood @ West Ottawa Belding @ Godwin Heights Kelloggsville @ NorthPointe Christian Wayland @ Wyoming – Coaches vs Cancer Grand River Prep @ West Michigan Aviation Holland Black River @ West Michigan Lutheran East Grand Rapids @ South Christian Girls Cheer Kelloggsville @ Caledonia – Scotastic Invite Boys/Girls Bowling South Christian @ Unity Christian
Saturday, Feb. 9 Girls Dance East Kentwood @ West Ottawa Boys/Girls Bowling East Kentwood @ Hudsonville Wyoming Lee @ Hudsonville Godwin Heights @ Muskegon Mona Shores Wyoming @ Muskegon Mona Shores Boys Wrestling East Kentwood @ Grand Haven – MHSAA Individual Districts Wyoming @ Grand Haven – MHSAA Individual Districts Godwin Heights @ Comstock Park – MHSAA Individual Districts Kelloggsville @ Comstock Park – MHSAA Individual Districts Wyoming Lee @ Comstock Park – MHSAA Individual Districts Boys Hockey East Kentwood @ Chelsea Girls Cheer East Kentwood – @ DeltaPlex Invite Wyoming – @ DeltaPlex Invite
Monday, Feb. 11 Boys/Girls Bowling Rockford @ East Kentwood Godwin Heights @ Wyoming Lee Hopkins @ Kelloggsville Wyoming @ East Grand Rapids Girls Cheer Wyoming @ FH Eastern Girls Basketball Zion Christian @ Saugatuck Girls Gymnastics Potter’s House @ Rockford Boys Basketball Muskegon Catholic Central @ Grand River Prep
Nigel Tau, right, working with Grand Rapids Ballet dancers on his new work, part of MOVEMEDIA: Handmade. (WKTV/K.D. Norris)
By K.D. Norris ken@wktv.org
James Sofranko, the artistic director of the Grand Rapids Ballet and a growing talent as a choreographer himself, is clearly an advocate of new contemporary dance by new artistic voices.
So it is only natural that, as an advocate for the team of dancers at the ballet, he would seek to include their voices in the upcoming MOVEMEDIA: Handmade program set to have its run Friday to Sunday, Feb. 8-10 at the Peter Martin Wege Theatre.
The headliner of the program is likely to be a powerful, searing work of “Testimony”, a work by the ballet’s continuing choreographer-in-residence, Penny Saunders, inspired by the U.S. Senate hearings for now-Supreme Court justice Brett Kavanaugh and his accuser Christine Blasey Ford. Although another new work by the Joffrey Ballet’s Nicolas Blanc — whom Sofranko worked with at the San Francisco Ballet — will undoubtedly be equally unique and impressive.
But the five other works on the program will be original choreographic efforts by members of the dance company, including Nigel Tau, who apprenticed with the Grand Rapids Ballet in 2015 before joining the company in 2016.
(WKTV/K.D. Norris)
“I think it is wonderful to give an opportunity to the dancers … you do not necessarily have a lot of opportunities given to you,” Sofranko said to WKTV. “This is a program that is about creating new works … you are experimenting and this is a program where it is meant to be an exploration.”
Tau, according to his supplied biography, began dancing at age 10 with The Academy of Dance in his home town of Savannah, Georgia. In 2013, he became a trainee with Next Generation Ballet, and performed in the school’s own productions as well as with Opera Tampa and the Florida Orchestra. He went on to train with BalletMet on a full scholarship, where he performed and rehearsed alongside the company.
Tau’s work, titled “Errant Thoughts”, will not only be the dancer’s first dance creation but will continue his artistic journey — the journey of all artists, really — where excitement and frustration often exist side-by-side.
(WKTV/K.D. Norris)
“This piece is about two different things,” Tau said to WKTV. “It is the story of someone who has had a passion project, or a work they have really be invested in … that feeling of inspiration and excitement … (but also) that continuing cycle of excitement and frustration — is it good enough?”
Bottomline: Handmade is usually pretty good, and Tau’s work, as with the others on the program, are handmade.
MOVEMEDIA: Handmade will be on stage Friday, Feb. 8, at 7:30 p.m., Saturday, Feb. 9, at 7:30 p.m., and Sunday, Feb. 10, at 2 p.m.
For tickets visit GRballet.com or call 616-454-4771 x10. The Peter Martin Wege Theatre is located at 341 Elllsworth Avenue SW, Grand Rapids.
GEM Theatrics presents “Give ‘Em Hell, Harry” Feb. 22-24 at the Lake Effect Fringe Festival. (Supplied)
By Mary Beth Quillin
The snow maybe over, but there is still flurries in the forecast..theater flurries as the Lake Effect Fringe Festival takes center stage this month.
The annual event, which is in its seventh year, celebrates local theater with a host of events taking place at the Dog Story Theatre, 7 Jefferson SE, throughout the month and into early March.
Activities kicked off Monday with the Dog Story Theatre’s popular Comedy Outlet Mondays that will run every Monday, Feb. 11, 18, and 25, throughout the Festival at 7 p.m. Comedy Outlet Mondays (COM) is an experimental comedy hub in the heart of downtown Grand Rapids.
New to the Festival is an improv workshop and Collywobbles Theatre Company from Fennville, Mich., will present Touch the Names for one night only. Also new this year: Industry Sundays! Bring a playbill or a website you can call up on your phone to show you’ve been involved in a West Michigan production over the past year and pay just $10. This offer is available only at Sunday performances and for ticket sales at the door.
Tickets for all events can be purchased in advance on the Dog Story Theater website, www.dogstorytheater.comand are $15/adults and $10/students & seniors.
This year’s full schedule includes:
February 11, 18, 25 & March 4
Dog Story’s popular Comedy Outlet Mondays will continue throughout the Festival at 7:00 pm each Monday night. Comedy Outlet Mondays (COM) is a staple for locals and visitors that takes place at Dog Story Theater in downtown Grand Rapids. The only one of its kind, COM is a weekly comedy variety show that features stand up, sketch, improv, and experimental comedic acts- now with live performances by local Musical Guest Artists! Audiences can look forward to a stage full of talent, special events, and a free improv jam for all skill levels after the show. Now in our fourth year, Comedy Outlet Mondays will be adding even more programming and opportunities for local comedic performers. The show is $6.
Feb. 8 – 10; 8 p.m. Friday & Saturday, 3 p.m. Saturday & Sunday The Brutal Sea presents The Day the Earth Refused to Die, by Declan Maher Follow a group of college students through the nightmare-proxy “Somnam” service as well as the planning process of their yearly celebration of the planet’s narrow survival. Along for the ride is the chronically-oversharing Priestess of the 1000th Dimension and her mysterious shadow, Agent Condor. A hilarious and frightening romp through dreamscapes and potential realities, this show will both delight and challenge its audience. It contains mature content and may not be suitable for young viewers.
Pigeon Creek Shakespeare Company will be presenting “The Seagull” Feb. 14 – 17. (Photo from production of “Caesar.”)
Feb. 14 – 17; 8 p.m. Thursday, Friday & Saturday, 3 p.m. Sunday The Pigeon Creek Shakespeare Company presents The Seagull, by Anton Chekhov In a version by Christopher Hampton, based on a literal translation by Vera Liber. The Seagull follows the contentious relationship between famous actress Irina Arkadina and her son, the aspiring playwright Konstantin Treplev. When Arkadina begins a relationship with the writer Boris Trigorin, whom she brings to her family’s summer home, jealousy and resentment break out. With a play-within-a-play, references to Shakespeare’s Hamlet, and an exploration of the world as stage, The Seagullhas many connections to Shakespearean theatre. Pigeon Creek’s production will employ many of the companies’ signature staging conditions, such as cross-gendered casting, direct audience contact, and live music and sound effects to bring Chekhov’s classic to life. Pigeon Creek Shakespeare Company is Michigan’s only year-round, touring Shakespeare Company.
Feb. 16, Saturday; 11 a.m. – 2 p.m. Alistair Watt returns to G.R. from Second City with an Improv Workshop! In this 3 hour workshop we will touch on the idea of going in the scene while taking care of yourself. Ever go into a scene and realize you didn’t bring anything to the table? This will help you practice always being prepared to play.
Feb. 19; 8 p.m.
Collywobbles Theatre Company of Fennvillepresents Touch the Names, by Randal Mylar & Chic Streetman
A staged reading with music, this touching play is based on letters and artifacts left at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall from fathers, mothers, daughters, sons, and comrades. The title refers to the memorial, in which the names of those who died in Vietnam are etched into a sunken wall of black granite, able to be felt by searching fingertips. Directed by Carole Fletcher-Catherine One Night Only!
GEM Theatrics presents Give ‘Em Hell, Harry, by Samuel Gallu
A one-man show starring Gary E. Mitchell as Harry S. Truman, our 33rd President, directed by Mary Beth Quillin.Written and performed after the Watergate scandal and Nixon’s resignation, the play and the Truman are surprisingly timely again as the nation faces yet another scandalous presidency, with an uncertain outcome. The play offers a refreshing view of a man who viewed public service as an honorable undertaking and a noble calling. It premiered at Ford’s Theatre in Washington, D.C. on April 17, 1975 and was attended by then President Gerald R. Ford. This production contains strong language.
Feb. 26 & 27; 7 p.m.
The Curious Arrow presents Polarea and the Cloud Weaver, by Stephen Douglas Wright: A reading of a new script, Tuesday, Feb. 26 only.
The suicidal Sun refuses to rise, leaving the burden of carrying “the light” to the Moon. When the exhausted Moon crash lands, it’s left to Polarea to get “the light” back in the sky.
Wednesday, Feb. 27
The Behavior of Wings, by Steven Bogart.
Mr. Bogart’s play Two Men and the Moon was chosen as an audience favorite for our Lucid Festival, so we are presenting a reading of this full length play. An eighteen year old college student drops out of her freshman year of college and shows up at her father’s campsite in the mountains of Mexico where he has been trying to protect the Monarch Butterflies.
The University Wits presentsIt’s Just a Play, by Terrence McNally
It’s opening night of Peter Austin’s new play as he anxiously awaits to see if his show is a hit. With his career on the line, he shares his big First Night with his best friend, a television star, his fledgling producer, his erratic leading lady, his wunderkind director, an infamous drama critic, and a wide-eyed coat check attendant on his first night in Manhattan. It’s alternately raucous, ridiculous and tender — reminding audiences why there’s no business like show business.
The Lake Effect Fringe Festival seeks to highlight performer-focused theater in a non-traditional theater space, creating an intimate performance experience for audiences who can expect different seating configurations and differing levels of interaction with the performers at any given performance.
All performances take place in the black box performance space of the Dog Story Theater, 7 Jefferson SE, Grand Rapids, 49503. Tickets for all events can be purchased in advance on the Dog Story Theater’s website: www.dogstorytheater.com, and are $15/adults and $10/students and seniors. “Industry Sunday
Your dishwasher may get those plates spotless, but it is also probably teeming with bacteria and fungus, a new study suggests.
Microbes—from bacteria to viruses to fungi—are everywhere, including within and on the human body. So it’s no surprise, the researchers said, that a kitchen appliance would be hosting them.
So do people need to worry about getting sick from their dishwashers? No, said Erica Hartmann, an assistant professor at Northwestern University who was not involved with the study.
“The risk is probably in the realm of a shark attack,” she said. That is, most people face little to no risk, but there are select groups who may be at higher risk—in this case, people with conditions that weaken their immune defenses.
Dishwashers are an interesting case when it comes to microbes because they are actually an “extreme” habitat, Hartmann explained.
“People don’t think of them that way. It’s just your dishwasher. But it really is an extreme environment,” said Hartmann, who studies the microbiology of the indoor environment.
Dishwashers create constantly fluctuating conditions—wet to dry, high heat to cooler temperatures, low to high acidity. They also harbor mixtures of detergents and dinner scraps. So, only certain microbes will thrive.
The new study looked at which bacteria and fungi are actually dwelling there, and what factors seem to influence that microbial makeup.
Specifically, the European researchers took samples from the rubber seals of 24 household dishwashers.
Overall, they found, the most common bacteria included Pseudomonas, Escherichia and Acinetobacter—all of which have strains that are “opportunistic pathogens.” That means they are normally harmless, but can cause infections in people with a compromised immune system.
The most common types of fungus were Candida, Cryptococcus and Rhodotorula—which also include opportunistic pathogens.
Nina Gunde-Cimerman, a professor of microbiology at the University of Ljubljana, in Slovenia, worked on the study.
She said dishwashers and other microbe-hosting appliances are “generally safe” for healthy people. It’s “sensitive groups,” she said, who may need to be more cautious.
Gunde-Cimerman said she and her colleagues suspect dishwashers might play a role in fungal infections called mycoses in certain immune-compromised patients. A fungus commonly found in those patients, she said, is known as Exophiala dermatitidis, or black yeast.
And while that fungus is “hardly known in nature,” she said, it’s easy to find in dishwashers.
However, Gunde-Cimerman stressed, that’s speculation. No one has yet proven a connection between dishwasher microbes and mycoses infections.
How do fungus and bacteria get into dishwashers? The “main entry point” for fungi is the tap water that supplies the appliance, Gunde-Cimerman said. But food, people and pets are other potential sources, she added.
As for the bacteria, the source isn’t clear, according to Gunde-Cimerman. “But we speculate that contaminated food is the main entry route,” she said.
It is possible for dishwasher microbes to break free from their home: They can get out via waste water, or through the hot air produced at the end of the dishwasher cycle, Gunde-Cimerman said.
So one way to keep the microbes contained is to avoid opening the dishwasher before it has cooled down, according to Gunde-Cimerman.
“Do not open the dishwasher when it is still hot and humid,” she said, “to prevent the release of aerosols in the kitchen.”
Wiping the rubber seal with a dry cloth at the end of a cycle can also limit microbe buildup, Gunde-Cimerman said.
Hartmann agreed that people who are concerned can wipe down the dishwasher seal.
But she also emphasized the positive aspects of the microbial communities living in all our homes: Scientists have made great discoveries by studying microorganisms.
Hartmann pointed to the example of a bacterial enzyme discovered in the hot springs of Yellowstone National Park. It was instrumental in developing a breakthrough technique called polymerase chain reaction, which is now used to study DNA in research and clinical labs everywhere.
“Your kitchen might not be Yellowstone,” Hartmann noted. But, she added, it may host some “pretty amazing” microbes.
So if you are ever presented with the opportunity to have researchers swab your kitchen, Hartmann said, consider it.
The study was published in the journal Applied and Environmental Microbiology.
Two Grand Valley State University writing faculty members will discuss the inner workings of their creativity and craft during the annual Grand Valley Writers Series.
Chris Haven, associate professor of writing, and Gale Thompson, visiting professor, will present a faculty reading on Tuesday Feb. 5, from 6-7:30 p.m. in the Mary Idema Pew Library Multi-Purpose Room, located on the Allendale Campus.
Haven teaches courses in intermediate and advanced fiction, beginning creative writing, style and techniques, and composition among other topics. His short fiction and flash fiction have appeared or are forthcoming in Threepenny Review, New Orleans Review, Arts & Letters, Massachusetts Review, Electric Literature, and Kenyon Review Online. His poems can be read in Cincinnati Review, Pleiades, Mid-American Review, and Beloit Poetry Journal, and prose poems from his Terrible Emmanuel series have appeared in Denver Quarterly, Sycamore Review, North America Review, and Seneca Review. He has been teaching writing at Grand Valley since 2002.
GVSU Associate Professor of Writing Chris Haven also will present on Feb. 5. (Supplied)
Thompson is the author of Soldier On (2015) and two chapbooks. Throughout her career, Thompson has received fellowships from the Vermont Studio Center and Kimmel Harding Nelson Center for the Arts. Her work has appeared in or is scheduled to appear in Gulf Coast, American Poetry Review, Guernica, jubilat, Bennington Review, and Colorado Review. She is also the founding editor of Jellyfish Magazine.
The Grand Valley Writers Series will offer two additional events this winter season:
Poetry Craft Talk and Reading with Janine Joseph and Oliver Baez Bendorf Thursday, March 14 Craft talk: 6:15-7:15 p.m., DeVos Center, room 121E, Pew Grand Rapids Campus Reading: 7:30-8:30 p.m., University Club, DeVos Center, Pew Grand Rapids Campus
Nonfiction Craft Talk and Reading with Sarah Einstein Monday, April 8 Craft talk: 3-4:15 p.m., Kirkhof Center, room 2270, Allendale Campus Reading: 6-7:30 p.m., Mary Idema Pew Library Multi-Purpose Room, Allendale Campus
For more information, contact Todd Kaneko, series coordinator, at kanekot@gvsu.edu, or visit gvsu.edu/writing.
Set phasers to stun and beam yourself to SMG-managed DeVos Performance Hall on Friday, April 5, 2019 at 7:30 PM for an unforgettable night with the one and only WILLIAM SHATNER, live on stage. Audiences will enjoy a screening of the classic film “Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan” on the big screen, followed by a live conversation with the one and only “Captain James T. Kirk.” A limited number of VIP tickets will be available which include premium seating and a photo opportunity with Mr. Shatner.
Tickets go on sale to the general public beginning Friday, Feb. 8, at 10 a.m.Tickets will be available at the DeVos Place® and Van Andel Arena® box offices, online at Ticketmaster.com, and charge by phone at 1-800-745-3000. See Ticketmaster for all current pricing and availability. A purchase limit of eight (8) tickets will apply to every order.
Shatner will be sharing fascinating and humorous stories from portraying the original Captain Kirk in the “Star Trek” television series and movies, and from his career spanning more than 50 years as an award-winning actor, producer, director and writer. Fans will also have a chance to ask Mr. Shatner their questions during the audience-led Q&A.
Don’t miss your chance to see a Hollywood legend in this thrill-of-a-lifetime evening. Produced by Mills Entertainment and The Backlot Project.
About William Shatner
William Shatner has cultivated a career spanning over 50 years as an award-winning actor, director, producer, writer, recording artist, and horseman. In 1966, Shatner originated the role of “Captain James T. Kirk” in the television series Star Trek, a show that spawned a feature film franchise where Shatner returned as Captain Kirk in seven of the Star Trek movies, one of which he directed. He’s won Emmys and a Golden Globe for his portrayal of lawyer “Denny Crane” on both The Practice and Boston Legal. He received four more Emmy nominations as well as other Golden Globe and SAG Award nods.
His love of music inspired him to record the critically acclaimed album Has Been. William Shatner’s book, Leonard: My Fifty-Year Friendship with a Remarkable Man, appeared on the NY Times Bestseller list, and his newest book, Spirit of the Horse: A Celebration in Fact and Fable, was released in May 2017. Shatner continues to act, write, produce and direct while still making time to work with charities and further his passion in equestrian sports. He and his wife, Elizabeth, and three married children live in Los Angeles.
When you think about your life, what comes to mind? Do you reflect on your job, on how your day and week is largely structured around it? Perhaps you think about your family members and how your interactions with them affect your mood. But how often do you think about how you think?
Mindfulness is one way that we can examine how we think about our patterns of thinking. This skill helps us to change how we think. Contrary to some misconceptions, mindfulness is not a religious ritual or a belief system. While some of its origins come from the Eastern cultures, mindfulness has found its way into Western spheres of thought and practice. Some of its techniques even mirror modern day cognitive therapy.
You may ask yourself why mindfulness matters in our 21st century culture. Consider this: According to the American Psychological Association, chronic stress can cause a variety of mental and physical health problems, such as anxiety, depression, insomnia, muscle pain, high blood pressure, and heart disease1.
While it’s true that we can’t change some of the circumstances in our life, we can change how we think about them. This doesn’t mean we need to be happy about things that upset us in our life, but we can look at such events more objectively and have a calmer, more accepting attitude. Research also shows that mindfulness can help reduce symptoms of anxiety and depression2.
There are hundreds of books and articles about the origin and techniques of mindfulness, but I will highlight some of the most common techniques and concepts. In short, mindfulness means paying attention to something in the present moment, and refraining from trying to change the situation around us. Remember, mindfulness takes practice and time, and results may not come right away.
Breathing: We all do this, but we often change how we breathe based on how we think and feel. If we are angry or nervous, we tend to breathe quickly into our lungs. If we are tired or falling asleep, we breathe from our diaphragm. To practice mindful breathing, take a slow, deep breath into your diaphragm, hold it for a few seconds, and slowly release it. Repeat this process for a few minutes, and pay attention to this pattern of breathing. Your body will naturally calm itself and put you in a more relaxed state of mind.
Body scanning: We tend to hold stress in different areas of our body, but because our attention is often used for other tasks, it’s easy to overlook cues our body sends us. To practice this technique, sit comfortably in a chair, and close your eyes. Allow your attention to start from the bottom of your feet. Can you focus on the feeling of your socks or the hardness of the ground? Allow your attention to slowly drift up your body. What are you feeling in your ankles? Do your lower legs feel tense? Can you feel the sensation of your upper legs against the chair? You can do this with all areas of your body, from head to toe. The key is to observe sensations in your body without judging them as good or bad. When you first do this, resist the temptation to “fix” the pain you may feel. You may be pleasantly surprised that sometimes, just examining how you feel will allow your bodily sensation to pass.
Five senses: This skill involves paying attention to our sensations based on our five senses. For example, if you are outside on a summer’s day, you can find a comfortable place to observe your surroundings. Listen to each sound you hear: the wind blowing in the trees, the birds singing in the distance, the sound of cars passing by. How does the sun feel on your skin? What smells do you notice? Are you able to pay attention to the colors and shapes in the leaves? If you choose to take a drink of cold water, can you pay attention to its taste? These techniques can be done anywhere, such as the mall or your office. The point is to become comfortable noticing your senses. Doing so can help you appreciate the moment rather than judging it or worrying about other things.
Thought monitoring: From my experience, this is perhaps the most difficult technique to practice and become comfortable with. It involves simply monitoring your thoughts and feelings as they come up, and not attempting to judge or stop them. Your thoughts and feelings will arise, settle, and pass. If you are new to this approach, it can be unsettling to become aware of something you typically don’t notice. But with practice, the approach can improve your awareness and allow you greater freedom from your thoughts. To practice thought monitoring, sit in a comfortable position in a quiet area with your eyes closed. Allow your mind to become still and free of any concerns that you are having. As you relax and allow the darkness and quiet to envelop you, some thoughts and feelings will arise. Notice them without judging or attempting to change them, and allow your mind to return to calmness. If you need a little more grounding to help you return to a state of calmness, you can use mindful breathing. These videos can help you practice this concept.3,4
Mindfulness takes practice, and it’s something that many, including myself, struggle to incorporate into daily life. Like any technique, it takes a commitment to make it a regular skill that we use in our normal daily function. The good news is that you are probably using mindfulness already, and you may not be aware of it. The choice is yours as to how much mindfulness you will incorporate into your life. If you choose to be more mindful in your life, you may be pleasantly surprised at how much peace and calmness you will find.
Local business and community leaders attended the Wyoming-Kentwood Area Chamber of Commerce annual awards event recently (WKACC)
By WKTV Staff ken@wktv.org
A manufacturer of rubber products and more, a provider of water and water systems of all kinds, and an organization committed to the deaf and hard of hearing were among the honorees as The Wyoming-Kentwood Area Chamber of Commerce recognized local businesses and persons at its 2018 Award event recently.
And WKTV was privileged to provide video stories for each of the business winners.
“We are so proud of Grand Rapids Rubber Products history,” Chamber President and CEO Bob O’Callaghan said. “They have been a family owned business operating in our area since 1943. They are your source for industrial supplies and custom fabrication in the Wyoming-Kentwood area.”
“Gordon Water Systems was selected as our Retail Business of the Year because in their seven years as a Chamber Member, they have been very involved with our events and committees, as well as serving our community needs,” O’Callaghan said.
“The Service Business of the Year is the Deaf & Hard of Hearing Services,” O’Callaghan said. “They were selected because they break down barriers for the deaf and blind in our area. They do not receive any government funding, but still make a difference for the people of Wyoming & Kentwood.”
Also honor at the event was Shane Myas of Axa Advisors, which was named the Dan Vandyke Outstanding Volunteer of the Year; Michelle Born of Fischer-Bratschie & Born P.C., who was given the Gerald E. Fessell Distinguished Service Award; and the Daniel T. McLaren Outstanding Committee of the Year was the Ambassador Committee.
In 1994, Rwandan native Angelique Mugabekazi’s life was upended when the Hutu majority government ordered the mass slaughter of Tutsis. Only five years old, Mugabekazi fled along with her family, but everywhere they went, conflict followed. The young girl saw people raped and killed in front of her, as well as starvation and disease outbreaks. She lost many family members, including her parents, uncles, and siblings, also neighbors.
“Before the genocide happened, my family was well off,” said Mugabekazi, a graduate of University of Massachusetts School of Law. “My dad was a civil engineer; we came from an upper-middle class country. And then we experienced poverty on a level that we had never seen before.”
Civil war conflict met the family when they reached the Congo. By that time, Mugabekazi’s mother and uncle were gone. The little girl and her family moved on to a refugee camp in Burundi, where they lived from 1994 to 1996.
“When you first come to a refugee camp, you get basic things like a tent and food,” Mugabekazi said. “When you have the means, you can make your own house. As a civil engineer, my dad built a really good mud house out of bricks.”
But her father lost his life in Burundi, and the remainder of the family had to move on when civil war broke out there, too.
“You see a lot of rapes and killings when you are a refugee in another country,” said Mugabekazi. “When you are in a camp, you don’t have laws that protect you.”
Mugabekazi said that the UN tried to protect them, but there were conflicts within the camps, and women and children were the most vulnerable.
“You are seeking shelter to keep yourself alive — shelter like a tent or mud hut. Basic, basic medical attention. It was hard. We starved a lot.”
The next move brought Mugabekazi to Tanzania in 1996 where she and her family stayed until 1998, when their house burned down. Next, she and four siblings made their way to a city in Zambia where they lived the next two years
“Then we had the opportunity to apply to come to U.S.,” she said. “We went through rigorous questioning, blood work, medical exams. It’s not an easy thing to come to this country. They interview family members separately, it’s a very invasive process.”
Mugabekazi and remaining family members settled in Boston, in the less-than-desirable Dorchester neighborhood, where gunshots were heard during the day. Culture shock added insult to injury. She was bullied in school because she looked and smelled different.
“It was not safe for us to keep living [in Dorchester], so we moved to a more Hispanic neighborhood, but it was still not safe. So we moved to Lowell, Massachusetts, where it was more predominately Caucasian but still had a diverse population. For the first time, I had friends who were white. That’s first time I enjoyed my experience in the states.
“It’s hard because I feel like I don’t have a home really. Although I know I’m from Rwanda, I feel that has been ripped from me. And moving from one place to another, even here in America, it just caused more trauma.”
Mugabekazi said that surviving all those tragedies has made her strong.
“Africa is a huge continent, so when I moved from each country, I learned a new culture and language — that was the benefit,” she said. “When I lived in more under-resourced communities, it opened my eyes to the poverty in this country. Before, I had this Disney picture of what America was. People of color don’t have wealth in this country.”
Mugabekazi has lived in Grand Rapids since 2013 and is a Community Health Worker with Health Net of West Michigan. She works with the African community; folks that come from same region she did, single mothers who are trying to navigate this culture, working, taking care of their homes.
“We work with them to connect with resources,” she said. “I get excited about social work and am passionate about injustice to women and children, especially because of my experience. I feel like my calling is international work. I feel there is more of a need there; they lack basic human rights.”
February is Career and Technical Education (CTE) Month, a national campaign to increase awareness and celebrate the value of programs that prepare students for the world of work.
What is Career and Technical Education?
CTE programs provide classes that directly prepare students for high-wage, high-demand careers. They are offered through high schools, CTE centers, charter schools, community colleges and four-year universities across Michigan.
CTE has come a long way in the last decade, but there are still outdated perceptions of what it is and isn’t. Today’s CTE programs deliver:
Real options for college and rewarding careers
CTE programs aren’t the shop classes of the past; they prepare students (middle school, high school and post-secondary) for both college and careers. While CTE used to be the collage alternative, it’s now more of a college pathway. Today’s programs provide opportunities for college credit, credentials and meaningful work-based learning experiences.
Fact: CTE students are more likely to have a post-high school plan, including college.1
Real-world skills
CTE provides hands-on learning and the skills and confidence to explore and pursue career options in industries that are in critical need of talent, such as health sciences and information technology. CTE students gain practical, relevant, marketable skills that will make them more employable.
Fact: CTE students and parents are three times more likely than those not involved in CTE to report they are confident in their ability to learn real-world skills as a part of their curriculum. 1
A valuable educational experience
CTE programs provide opportunities for specialized classes, internships and networking with industry experts. Student not only learn technical and academic skills, they learn critical employability skills1. Career and technical education helps students see how what they’re learning applies to the needs of employers.
The high school graduation rate for CTE students is 97 percent, compared to an average of 80 percent statewide. 2
This is the first in a series on career and technical education. Future articles will highlight CTE programs across West Michigan and how they’re helping students prepare for college and career.
Employment Expertise is provided by West Michigan Works! Learn more about how they can help: visit westmiworks.org or your local Service Center.
1. The Value and Promise of Career Technical Education: Results from a National Survey of Parents and Students, Advance CTE and the Siemens Foundation, April 2017
2. U.S. Department of Education, Perkins Data Explorer
Many kids love a quick bowl of instant soup or tasty noodles, but these fast foods cause almost 10,000 scald burns in children each year in the United States, a new study estimates.
What’s more, researchers found that two out of every 10 scald burns that send kids to the ER are caused by microwavable instant soup spills.
“We suspect that, in terms of risk, parents may think things coming out of the microwave may be somewhat safer than things coming off the stove,” said study author Dr. Courtney Allen. She is a pediatric emergency medicine fellow at Emory University in Atlanta.
But since so many burns are caused by microwavable instant soup and noodles, “any school-age child consuming these products needs to be adequately supervised,” she said.
Dr. Michael Cooper, director of Staten Island University Hospital’s burn center in New York City, said the study mirrors what he often sees in practice.
“We do see instant soup and noodle burns with kids in this age group,” he said.
The good news is that most of the children were treated in the emergency room and then sent home, Cooper noted. Most didn’t have to stay in the hospital and they would likely heal in two weeks or less.
“These burns are painful, but most appear to be superficial,” he explained.
Cooper said the scenario he often sees is that the parent has heated the prepackaged container of soup and given it to the child. While eating, the child knocks it over and gets burned.
A simple solution might be taking the noodles or soup from the original container and transferring them to a bowl the child is accustomed to using, Cooper suggested. A bowl probably isn’t as tall as some of the instant-food containers.
For the study, the researchers reviewed data from the U.S. National Electronic Injury Surveillance System from 2006 to 2016. They looked for kids aged 4 to 12 with scald burns caused by microwavable instant soup, instant noodles, cups of soup, or water for making instant soup.
Scald burns associated with instant soups and noodles affected more than 9,500 children each year, the findings showed. The average age of a child with such a burn was 7 years old.
The most commonly burned site was the child’s torso—about 40 percent of burns occurred here.
Allen said the database didn’t specify whether kids had cooked the foods in the microwave themselves, or if parents or another caregiver had done so.
She added that injuries may occur when someone grabs a hot container from the microwave and flinches because it’s so hot, spilling it on themselves.
Allen also noted that instant noodles absorb the liquid during cooking. So if a child drops a container of noodles, the hot food may stick to the body.
Cooper said the study shows a need for more education of parents, grandparents and other caregivers. “People need to be more aware that these burns can happen,” he said.
The study is scheduled for presentation at an American Academy of Pediatrics meeting in Orlando. Research presented at meetings should be considered preliminary until published in a peer-reviewed journal.
Disc golf in the snow? Always possible at the Kentwood Freeze Fest. (Wikimedia Commons)
By City of Kentwood
The City of Kentwood has partnered with Great Lakes Disc to host its fourth Freeze Fest, a doubles disc golf tournament and food drive, on Saturday, Feb. 16.
Community disc golfers of all levels are invited to partake in the event at Jaycee Park (1088 Gentian Dr. SE). Funds raised will be used for Jaycee Park disc golf course improvements and food donations will help stock Kentwood’s Little Free Pantry.
On-site registration begins at 9 a.m. and the first round of the tournament starts at 10 a.m. The cost is $40, along with one canned food donation per team. Preregistration is available online at: www.kentwood.us/freezefest .
“This disc golf tournament is back by popular demand,” said Val Romeo, Kentwood Parks and Recreation director. “We had a great turnout for last year’s Freeze Fest with more than 120 participants and a successful food drive.”
In addition to restocking Kentwood’s Little Free Pantry with canned goods, last year’s event raised nearly $2,300 for the Youth Scholarship Fund, which allows recipients to receive up to 50 percent off of one program per season. It also raised an additional $235 for the pantry.
Located in the Kentwood Activities Center at 355 48th St. SE, Kentwood’s Little Free Pantry is a year-round resource for area residents to take or donate food and personal care items. No applications necessary. No questions asked. More information about Kentwood Little Free Pantry, including a list of suggested donations, is available online at kentwood.us/littlefreepantry .
Well, at least to Spectrum Theater – which is on hill – to catch the latest production from Actors’ Theatre Grand Rapids The family-friendly musical “The Burnt Part Boys,” runs through Feb. 9. The country- and bluegrass-themed songs will get you humming as you follow this coming-of-age story set in the Appalachians.
The recent weather may not have been optimal for driving, but the weekend should be great to head over to the Michigan International Auto Show which is at DeVos Place all weekend. From classics to the latest vehicles, it should be a show worth a drive-by peek.
Fun fact:
Queen in Space
Queen guitarist Brian May combined his passion for astronomy (he has a doctorate in astrophysics) and his music to write a song of NASA’s New Horizon’s historic flyby of Ultima Thule, the farthest object in the solar system visited by a spacecraft. (New Horizon flew past it on Jan. 1, 2019.) It is exactly the kind of epic you would expect from the man who wrote “We Will Rock You” with soaring guitars and dramatic lyrics. Check out the video below.
Sisters Ruth and Eileen Sherwood leave behind their ordinary lives in a rural Ohio town in pursuit of fulfilling their dreams in New York City.
Filled with swinging show tunes, Grand Valley State University students will showcase how “Wonderful Town” captures the thrill of two sisters trying to change their lives.
GVSU Opera Theatre will present “Wonderful Town” Feb. 8, 9, 15, and 16, at 7:30 p.m. and Feb. 10 and 17 at 2 p.m. All shows will take place in Louis Armstrong Theatre, located in the Thomas J. and Marcia J. Haas Center for Performing Arts on the Allendale Campus.
Ruth is an aspiring writer played by Mikayla Berghorst, a junior majoring in vocal performance. Berghorst said her favorite aspect of adopting the character of Ruth has been portraying a different kind of personality than she is used to on stage.
“My favorite part about playing Ruth is being able to portray an older, strong-minded, sarcastic character because I have often played younger, weaker characters,” said Berghorst. “The most challenging part has been stepping out of my comfort zone on stage. Ruth is a wacky character, and I often find myself mentally and emotionally exhausted after rehearsals.”
Elise Endres, a freshman majoring in music, will portray Eileen in “Wonderful Town” — a dancer who wants to pursue a life on stage. Endres said her approach to the character is one of balance.
“Eileen is a very sweet people-person, but also a bit of a ditsy flirt and that element of this character has been fun to bring to the table and stage,” said Endres. “Having said that, the most challenging part of this character is really making her ditsy nature come to life while not making it too unbelievable!”
Dale Schriemer, GVSU Opera Theatre artistic director said “Wonderful Town” was an easy choice to bring to the Grand Valley stage. “It’s such a fun show and written by the genius team of Leonard Bernstein (music) and Comden and Green (book and lyrics),” he said. “It’s a delightful comedy with sing-along music, comic situations that are inventive and clever, and the whole cast gets to do a lot of different things.” “Wonderful Town” will be directed by alumnus, Christopher Carter, ’09.
Tickets for “Wonderful Town” are $15 for adults, $13 for seniors and Grand Valley faculty and staff, $7 for students, and $10 for groups of 10 or more. They are available at the Louis Theatre Armstrong Box Office, located in the Haas Center, or via startickets.com. For more information, contact the Louis Armstrong Theatre Box Office at (616) 331-2300 or visit gvsu.edu/theater.
The Grand Rapids Ballet and Spectrum Health have enjoyed a harmonious relationship for the past five years, with sports medicine professionals and athletic trainers helping dancers achieve ultimate health and conditioning.
“Spectrum sent someone right over,” Houser said. “She really helped me out a lot because I had an important rehearsal that day.”
‘Piece me back together’
Houser said he’s grateful for the quick response, and grateful he could continue his love of “expressing emotion, physically.”
He’s on the mend.
“There was a bunch of stuff out of alignment,” he said. “It sent everything into spasm. It took a couple of weeks to get to a normal place. I think without that quick response, it would have taken much longer to heal.”
Even when there aren’t unexpected injuries, Spectrum Health athletic trainers Emilee Van Hoven and Allie Hoyt visit the ballet twice a week; Heather Pietrzak and Paige Bachelor visit the ballet three times a week. They work with dancers who are recovering from injury.
“It’s a bit reoccurring, so they all help piece me back together,” Houser said.
After six hours a day of dancing—for six, sometimes seven days a week—even the strongest and most fit bodies tire.
“They keep an eye on things that could turn into something major,” Houser said. “My hip hurts a little bit today. My ankle feels a bit jammed. Those little things can become chronic if you can’t be seen quickly. Them being here so frequently is incredibly helpful.”
Photo by Chris Clark, Spectrum Health Beat
Houser said Fridays are typically the hardest day because the aches and pains compound over the week.
“Even if you’re just getting your calves to relax a little, it helps,” he said.
Depending on the nature of the injury, the sports medicine team will sometimes do soft tissue work, sometimes mobilization.
“Sometimes they’ll give you exercises and tools we can use on our own to maintain certain things, like stretches,” Houser said. “Or they’ll tape us up to help keep things in place.”
Hand in hand
Phillip Adler, manager of the Spectrum Health Medical Group Sports Medicine program, approached the ballet about a partnership in 2011. Dr. Axtman had previously worked with the Atlanta Ballet and other dance groups.
“The expertise he had really made the ballet believe we had the experience to manage this unique area of sports and performing arts medicine,” Adler said. “I was the primary athletic trainer that would go down whenever the ballet needed anything.”
And so began Spectrum Health’s performing arts medicine partnership with the Grand Rapids Ballet.
By the second year of the collaboration, Adler brought on additional sports medicine staff to help in the endeavor. They covered not only rehearsals, but performances.
“I have worked with a lot of high-level athletes and NFL players, but I’ll be honest, ballet dancers are not nice to their bodies,” Adler said. “They have to go on point balanced on one leg, with the hip bent at 90 degrees for 15 or 20 seconds with maybe a partner. They’re working eight or more hours a day.”
Ballet companies typically don’t have injury prevention or strength and conditioning programs like many other professional sports teams do.
“I don’t think the vast majority of people realize what goes into putting on a ballet performance,” Adler said.
Photo by Chris Clark, Spectrum Health Beat
Adler said the partnership can help extend dancers’ careers.
“They have such a finite time to be a professional ballet performer,” Adler said. “How can we help them prevent injury or manage injury so that it prolongs their career? Not so long ago a surgery for a ballet dancer was career-ending. We’re making sure if those things come up, how do we maintain careers?”
Ferraro said he has noticed a huge decline in injuries since partnering with Spectrum Health.
“It’s been a huge benefit to us,” the ballet manager said. “The dancers have absolutely loved it.”
The athletic trainers often spot and prevent things before they become serious injuries.
“If somebody starts to feel an issue or something isn’t feeling right, they can let us know and the athletic trainers will come pretty much any day they’re needed,” Ferraro said, noting he’s grateful for the assistance.
“A lot of bigger ballet companies don’t even have this benefit,” he said. “It’s just a phenomenal relationship for us.”
When was the last time you had a good cry? It is a natural human reaction to many emotions, beyond sadness. We cry in reaction to stress, frustration, grief and yes, even joy. Scientists have studied the content of our tears and have categorized them into three different types:
Basal — or the protein/antibacterial fluid that gets released when you blink
Reflex — the fluid that gets released in response to irritants like smoke
Emotional — this one in particular contains higher levels of cortisol and adrenaline, both stress hormones
Many people don’t like to cry for a variety of reasons. One is that people believe themselves to be ugly criers. They complain that their faces swell and turn shades of red, along with their eyes. It may seem to take forever to recover from crying also. This is a normal, physical reaction to crying. Additionally, people don’t like to cry because crying often means anger, and in the moment, individuals don’t want to come across as a weak person and not a warrior prince or princess they try to portray. The final reason people don’t like to cry is that it seems like literal flood gates open. Tears are not something that are easily turned on or off.
According to Marleen Becht, Department of Clinical Health Psychology at Tilburg University, Netherlands (2002) women cry more often to men, an average of 3.5 times per month for women as compared to 1.9 times per month for men. Considering our societies cultural norms, men are not encouraged or supported to cry. That is just a crying shame.
A Crying Proneness Scale (Denckla, 2013) helps mental health professionals measure how often people cry and looks at contributing triggers. Frequent crying may be a sign of something serious such as depression or other mental health issues. If a person is experiencing frequent crying and may be showing other signs of depression, they should talk to their doctor.
All humans can benefit from crying. Over the years, studies have shown that crying can help relieve stress and improve your mood. Tears help your eyes fight bacteria and irritants. In addition, tears trigger empathy and compassion in others and softens anger (Trimble 2013).
Have you ever laughed so hard that you cried? That is because the emotional and physical responses are quite similar. We cry in response to intense emotions of sadness, joy and laughter. Surprise, tear content is the same! Cortisol and adrenaline are released which help ease stress.
Not many people can say they have performed at the Metropolitan Opera and for Howard Stern on “America’s Got Talent,” but its only a couple of the many accomplishments opera star Sean Panikkar has on his résumé.
“With Forte, (the classical-crossover-operatic pop trio that Panikker is a member of), we have a popular music fan base that discovered us on TV,” Panikkar said. “It is quite different to perform for that base than opera crowds…
“There is some overlap and particularly right after we were on ‘American’s Got Talent,’ a number of Forte fans traveled across the country to see me in various operas. Forth Worth Opera had Forte perform at concerts the day after I sang a performance of Pearl Fishers on the same Bass Hall stage.
That was the perfect confluence of what crossover can do for the classical opera world as the majority of the Forte fans had never seen an opera, but made a week of it and attend both shows.”
Opera Grand Rapids is looking to have the same crossover connection as Forte performed for the Opera Grand Rapids’ 50th Anniversary Gala last May and now Panikkar will perform solo Thursday, Feb. 7, as part of Opera Grand Rapids’ newly launched Opera Unlimited Series.
“Opera Grand Rapids is a mission driven organization , that translates into our creating opportunities to engage all of our citizens through the power of music and opera,” said Oper Grand Rapids Artist Director Maestro James Meena, “By using these universal qualities, Opera Grand Rapids can bring people from diverse backgrounds together for a shared, positive experience.”
Panikkar too, believes it is important for opera companies to foster growth of classical music by doing more outreach and education in the communities.”
“If you ask any opera singer which audiences are the best ones they have performed for, it will always be a final dress rehearsal crowd where the company invited local school students to attend,” Panikkar said. “They are the most enthusiastic and receptive crowd. They experience opera the way it was meant to be experienced and it resonates more with them if the people on stage reflect the community they are in.”
Presentations in the Opera Unlimited Series that have taken place already this season include an appearance by Opera Grand Rapids at the Grand Rapids Hispanic Festival, a Season Kick-Off Party highlighting local talent, and two masterclass presentations by Meena.
Accompanying Panikkar is pianist Rohan De Silva, who was worked with violin virtuoso Itzhak Perlman and teaches as MSU. (Photo credit: Chris Beebe)
For the February program, Panikkar is set to perform with Rohan De Silva, who has partnerships with many of the leading violin virtuosos such as Itzhak Perlman and Joshua Bell. The evening will feature a mixture of opera and art songs in the Betty Vandel Opera Center.
“Choosing repertoire for recitals is a bit of an art form,” Panikkar said. “My goal in a recital is always perform things that are interesting to me, the pianist, and the audience. Too often, I have attended recitals that were focused soley on challenging the audience and while there is a value in that, I prefer to have a more balanced approach of styles while also presenting beautiful music.”
Originally from Sri Lanka, Panikkar grew up in Bloomsburg, Penn. He came to Michigan as an undergraduate at the University of Michigan and “I immediately fell in love with Ann Arbor.” He stayed at UofM for his masters and then moved to San Francisco to train as an Alder Fellow for the San Francisco Opera. Panikkar loves midwestern sensibilities and “the fact that we have four seasons,” so when his wife and him were expecting, they moved back to Michigan, living in Ann Arbor.
He looks forward to bringing his passion for music to the Grand Rapids area.
“I genuinely love everything I am performing in the moment and I approach every rehearsal and performance with an attitude of gratitude for the opportunity to sing,” Panikkar said. “It doesn’t matter whether I am singing Mozart, a world premiere, atonal music, or contemporary crossover, I love it all and I find the beauty in it.”
Panikkar, accompanied by Rohan de Silva, performs at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 7, at the Betty Van Andel Opera Center, 1320 Fulton St. E. Tickets are $25/general and $5/students with ID. For tickets or more information, call 616-451-2741, ext. 3, or visit operagr.org.
It’s a question that some people dread: how old are you? There are many reasons people don’t want to talk about their age, but dodging, avoiding, and sometimes outright lying about your age could be doing more harm than good for your health, both mental and physical. Whether you’re comfortable with your age or thinking about it makes you squirm, there are some real, measurable benefits of coming to terms with your number of years.
Perceptions of Aging and Healthcare
One study by the University of Michigan set out to determine whether or not the likelihood of seeking preventative healthcare in aging adults was linked to their satisfaction with aging. Older adults are less likely than young- and middle-aged adults to use preventative healthcare services, with less than 30% of people over 50 meeting benchmarks for core preventative services. Efforts to address this gap have focused largely on making healthcare more accessible, both in terms of cost and physical access, but they have only been able to do so much. What is holding seniors back?
The study, testing if personal beliefs were a bigger deciding factor than accessibility when it comes to senior healthcare, found that seniors who were more comfortable with their age were far more likely to obtain screenings for chronic diseases and get more regular preventative care than those who weren’t. That means, when it comes to health issues and conditions such as high cholesterol, which is a major factor in heart disease, breast cancer, and prostate cancer, people who were more comfortable with aging were better prepared.
Why the Taboo?
So why is age such a touchy subject? There are many reasons why someone may be uncomfortable talking or thinking about their age, and they are by no means invalid or unimportant. Here are some of the most common:
End of Life. Mortality is a fact of life, but one that no one likes to be reminded of. While lifespans are growing longer thanks to advancements in medical interventions and technology, aging and retirement living still signals that we’re getting to the final stages of life. Fear of death, or fear of leaving behind loved ones and friends, is completely rational, but it can cause dissatisfaction with aging.
Changes in Ability. As the human body ages, many changes occur – you may notice it’s harder to hear the person talking to you, or that reading strains your eyes. You may experience achy joints or loss of focus. While exercise, diet, and healthcare can all play a part in slowing signs of aging, these small, progressive changes can be frustrating and scary.
Changes in Appearance. Some may consider worrying about appearance changes to be vain or somehow attached to ego, but how you see yourself plays a large part in your mental health. Wrinkles and white hair change how you look, and it’s not vain to miss how you looked when you were younger. Just don’t let your appearance determine your self-worth!
Ageism. Ageism is, sadly, a common prejudice in the United States. Aging and elderly adults are often seen as less capable than younger and middle-aged adults. Whether in professional settings or on the road, younger people tend to doubt seniors’ ability to perform complicated tasks, and no one wants to be seen as less capable than they are.
Age may be just a number, but it’s also just part of living. Being more comfortable with your age can actually help you enjoy life more, but there’s no easy or quick solution. Coming to terms with how old you are requires introspection, discovery, and support from loved ones, so don’t worry if you still hesitate before stating your age or putting your birth date on a form. You’re on your way to a healthier, happier you.
Dan Sippel, Executive Director at the West Michigan Tourist Association (WMTA), will introduce M. Christine Byron and her husband Thomas R. Wilson when they present the 100-year history West Michigan Tourist Association to the Rockford Area Historical Society Thursday, Feb. 7. The 1 p.m. meeting is at the Rockford Community Cabin on Monroe Street.
The West Michigan Tourist Association was founded in Grand Rapids in 1917. Established as a non-profit organization based on membership, it was the first grass-roots tourist association in the country. At the time, the tourist industry was in its infancy.
The 1951 Carefree Days guide from the West Michigan Tourist Association (supplied)
Although railroad lines, steamship companies, and various hotels and resorts promoted the region they served, there was no concentrated effort to boost the tourism advantages of the state. With strong leadership and the committed members of WMTA, tourism has grown into one of Michigan’s leading industries. Byron & Wilson will feature some of the noteworthy efforts to advertise and promote our state over the last 100 years.
Byron is retired from the Grand Rapids Public Library and together she and her husband have written five books focusing on the history of West Michigan tourism. They have been collecting postcards and Michigan tourism ephemera for more than 30 years.
The public is welcome to this event. In the event that Rockford Public Schools close due to bad weather the Rockford Area Historical Society will not meet.
Families across Michigan are beginning to loose patience with the bitter cold temperatures that are forcing everyone indoors, and creating impatient children everywhere. Looking for activities to keep you and your children occupied as the cold weather drags on? Here are five fun activities, with educational value, to keep your children busy!
1. Make play dough.
Play dough is fun for children of all ages! Break out the rolling pins, cookie cutters and plastic knives, and make a great big batch of play dough. Many recipes can be found online, and extras such as cinnamon, glitter, or powdered drink mixes can be added for a fun sensory experience. Here is one quick and easy recipe that consistently yields good results:
Ingredients: 1 cup of flour 1 cup of water 2 teaspoons of cream of tartar 1/3 cup of salt 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil Food coloring as desired
Instructions: In a medium saucepan combine all ingredients. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly. Continue stirring as the mixture begins to form lumps. Mixture will eventually come together into a ball. When the ingredients are no longer wet, turn out onto a heat tolerant surface and allow to cool enough to handle. Knead dough for a few minutes. Recipe can be doubled, tripled, etc., as needed.
2. Feed the birds.
Lend a helping hand to our feathered friends as the thermometer dips below zero. There are many fun ways to make bird feeders with children. One of the quickest is to spread peanut butter over a pinecone and roll the pinecone in birdseed. Then, simply tie to a string and hang outside. An alternative to peanut butter is suet, which typically sold with bird food. Another option is to cut an orange in half, scoop out the inside and poke three equidistant holes in the orange. Thread string through each of the three holes for hanging and fill with birdseed, cranberries, suet or other treats!
3. Bake bread.
Have you ever made bread with children? It’s a fascinating process for them, with very little expense and work. Watching the dough rise, doubling in size, baking and then taking their own food out of the oven is very rewarding! Simple sandwich bread recipes can be found in most cookbooks or online and require just a few basic ingredients and a few hours of your time.
4. Make ice sun catchers.
This one does require going outside for just a little bit! There are many different ways to go about this project, so be creative! Bundle up and head outside to gather some bits of nature: pinecones, seeds, leaves, rocks, etc. Place nature items into an 8 or 9-inch cake pan and fill with water. You can even add food coloring for an additional dimension, and remember to place a loop of string or ribbon with the ends in the water to create a hanger. Once completed, place the cake pan outside to freeze. After it’s frozen, remove the ice sun catcher from the cake pan and hang on a branch to enjoy!
5. Read a book.
This is not a new activity, of course, but reading belongs on all good lists of things to do inside! Michigan State University Extension experts recommend all children engage in 30 minutes a day of reading or other literacy activities. Take time out from your busy schedules to curl up with your kids and enjoy reading together. You could build a reading fort and snuggle up inside, or enjoy a lazy morning in your pajamas reading together. Choose a chapter book to read out loud; even independent readers enjoy the experience of reading together as a family. A book such as Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder offers children a glimpse into what winter meant for families long ago. Use this to talk with your children about what modern conveniences make winter much easier for us now!
Kids’ Food Basket announced a collaborative partnership with several groups, including two in Wyoming, to provide emergency food assistance to families impacted from the extreme weather.
Wyoming High School and the Godfrey Lee Early Childhood Center, as well as Kids’ Food Basket, were distribution sites on Thursday, Jan. 313, and Friday, Feb. 1. Supplemental food and fresh produce will be distributed for families to take home to provide food assistance to any family in need of additional nutrition. Food items include bananas, pears, apples, carrot packs, pudding and fruit cups, meat sticks, cereal bags, etc.
In addition, The David D. Hunting YMCA will be a providing a full meal to Grand Rapids Public School students and families through their Food Service Program. The downtown locations are on The Rapid bus route so families can access the facility in a safe manner.
“For the kids and families, Kids’ Food Basket serves, snow days prevent access to meals families often count on. The United Way’s 211 line reported, they simply do not have food resources to share with people calling for assistance. We believe in breaking down barriers and increasing access to good nourishing food. In an emergency like this, we want to do everything we possibly can to make sure our community has the nourishment they need,” said Bridget Clark Whitney, Founding CEO of Kids’ Food Basket.
Sheila Gurd moves the Kids’ Food Basket sack suppers after delivery
The organization, best known for its flagship Sack Supper Program, provides a free, well-balanced nutritious evening meal distributed within classrooms at the end of each school day. Kids’ Food Basket serves over 8,000 children who attend schools where 70% or more of the student population receive free or reduced-cost lunch in Grand Rapids, Muskegon and Holland.
“During severe weather events like this one, we all have to pull together to meet the critical needs of our community. We’re glad Kids’ Food Basket reached out and are happy to support their efforts,” said The Rapids CEO Andrew Johnson.
“We are so grateful for these community partners, who understand the tremendous need for families during these extreme conditions. By working together, we are finding ways to break beyond weather and location barriers to get to families in need of food assistance,” Whitney said.
The organization is currently working to identify collaborative partners for safe distribution in Muskegon and Holland and encourages community members to call 211 to learn more about community-based organizations and government agencies providing services to families and individuals in need. For more information, please visit kidsfoodbasket.org.
Location information:
The David D. Hunting YMCA, 475 Lake Michigan Dr NW, Grand Rapids, MI 49504
Families visiting the downtown YMCA location can enter through the main entrance and follow the signage to the community room to receive your meal.
The Rapid Central Station, 250 Grandville Ave SW, Grand Rapids, MI 49503
Seymour Christian Reformed Church, 840 Alger St SE, Grand Rapids, MI 49507
Kids’ Food Basket, 2055 Oak Industrial Drive, Suite C, Grand Rapids, MI 49505
Kids’ Food Basket is nourishing children to reach their full potential. Through the Sack Supper program, Kids’ Food Basket serves over 8,000 students at 48 schools in Grand Rapids, Muskegon and Holland. More than 250 volunteers each day help prepare, pack and deliver Sack Suppers, a well-rounded evening meal that provides nutrition critical to the development of the brain and body. To learn more, or see how you can make a difference, please visit www.kidsfoodbasket.org.
Winter can sometimes lead to excessive screen time.
Kiddos may think it’s too cold, too snowy, or otherwise too gray to venture outside for play. So they resort to endless hours playing video games, messaging their friends, or binge-watching Spongebob Squarepants episodes.
This can be a bit of a problem.
The National Institute of Health defines screen time as activities done in front of a screen, such as playing video games, watching TV or working on a computer.
Screen time is an activity where you are sitting, using little energy and can be described as sedentary. This means that the activity burns little energy.
Why should we limit screen time?
It’s important to limit sedentary activity. To do this, it’s important to limit screen time.
Children who get too much screen time can have trouble sleeping at night and have a higher risk for anxiety, attention problems or depression. This can cause your child to have trouble paying attention and behaving while they’re at school.
These children are also at a higher risk of gaining too much weight, too quickly, thus leading to obesity.
What are the recommendations?
According to the American Academy of Pediatrics,
today’s children are spending an average of seven hours or more each
day on media, including cell phones, computers, video games, iPods and
tablets.
Children younger than 2 years old should have no screen time. Children older than 2 should have two hours or less. This includes all media combined.
Screen time for learning is still considered sedentary time and should still be monitored and limited.
How can I help my child?
There are many ways to work with your child to reduce screen
time. First, talk to them about why you’re monitoring screen time and
the health benefits of doing other activities.
Additionally, the American Academy of Pediatrics has made these recommendations:
Remove the TV or computer from your child’s bedroom.
Do not let your child eat while watching TV or using the computer.
Decide which programs to watch ahead of time. Then, turn off the TV when those programs are over.
Suggest other activities, such as family walks, bowling, roller skating or shooting hoops at the local gym.
Be a good role model as a parent. Decrease your own screen time to two hours a day.
This afternoon organizers for the Michigan International Auto Show announced that its Charity Spectacular preview event will take place tonight at DeVos Place and the Grand Rapids Symphony announced its sold out “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire” performances will take place as scheduled this weekend.
The Charity Spectacular preview is set to open at 6 p.m. at DeVos Place with the Auto Show running from 11 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. Thursday and Friday and 10 a.m. – 9 p.m. Saturday, and 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. Sunday.
“Many people have put in extra hours to set-up the displays, place vehicles and detail them to be certain that the show and building can maintain all hours of operation through Sunday.,” said SMG in a released statement. SMG manages the DeVos Place, DeVos Performance Hall, and VanAndel Arena. “All planned vehicles have arrived. The Grand Rapids Police and city services have assured that roads and traffic will be as safe as possible with parking ramps fully plowed.”
The Grand Rapids Symphony will be performing it “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire” at DeVos Performance Hall, 301 Monroe Ave. NW, Friday and Saturday. All performances are sold out. The Grand Rapids Symphony box office is scheduled to reopen to the public at 2 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 31.
“The Burnt Part Boys” runs Feb. 1 – 9 at Spectrum Theater.
Also this weekend, the Professional Bull Riders (PBR) Real Time Pain Relief Velocity Tour rides into SMG-managed Van Andel Arena. on Saturday, Feb. 2 at 7 p.m. Tickets are available at the Van Andel Arena and DeVos Place box offices, Ticketmaster.com, and charge by phone at 1-800-745-3000.
