The Lakeshore Art Festival in conjunction with the Muskegon Museum of Art will host a public unveiling event on Thursday, July 5, to celebrate nine new sculptures in downtown Muskegon. The sculptures, which incorporate real kayaks, will be installed at various locations along W. Western Avenue and Clay Street, between 7th Street and Jefferson Street.
“We are very excited to bring this fun and unique public art initiative to our community,” said Lakeshore Art Festival Director Carla Flanders. “We are not aware of any other community that has featured kayaks in this way, and we know our residents and summer visitors will be impressed by the creativity of these nine artists.” The sculptures will be on display through Labor Day weekend.
The unveiling event will begin at 4 p.m. at the Olthoff Stage at the corner of W. Western Avenue and Third Street. Attendees will receive a map showing where the kayak sculptures are located and will be invited to participate in a “kayak crawl” to tour the sculptures from 4:30 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. The event will conclude with a reception at the Muskegon Museum of Art to honor kayak sculpture artists and Lakeshore Art Festival artists from 5:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. Light hors-d’oeuvres and a cash bar will be available.
The 2018 kayak sculpture project is one of the ways Muskegon is recognizing Sun Dolphin’s decision to locate their corporate headquarters in Muskegon. Sun Dolphin, the world’s largest kayak manufacturer, donated kayaks for the sculptures and is the project’s Signature Sponsor. “Muskegon has been a great business partner to Sun Dolphin over the years, and very supportive of our growing company,” commented Sun Dolphin CEO Chuck Smith. “We are pleased to express our continued support of the community through this unique kayak art event.”
The Lakeshore Art Festival is Friday, July 6, 10 a.m. – 8 p.m., and Saturday, July 7, 10 a.m. – 6 p.m., in downtown Muskegon.
A new exhibit titled, “Perceptions of Landscape — Reality and Remembrance,” by local artist Richard Muller, opens at the Leep Art Gallery on July 5 at the Postma Center on the Pine Rest Christian Mental Health Services campus in Grand Rapids.
Richard Muller has been an artist for much of his life, specializing in landscapes. He studied oil painting for nine years at the Vincent Trotta School of Art in Flushing, New York. His academic degrees are from Queens College, City University of New York, bachelor of arts; Union Theological Seminary, N. Y., master of divinity; and Duke University, postgraduate doctoral degree. Since moving to Lowell in 2006, he has been a member of the Lowell Area Arts Council, serving on the Gallery Committee.
“My artistic efforts have been directed, particularly in the last several decades, toward the development of a classical style with a view to the insights of the landscape traditions of the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries. I learn from the past by painting my own versions of classic works’” says Muller.
“My original paintings are typically done on the basis of sketches or impressions of places where I have traveled and been moved either by the natural force of the scene or by a striking feature of the landscape, whether a result of nature or of human activity. My intention is to more evoke a mood or a feeling than simply to represent — to call forth a sense of life and force in the natural order and our human connection with it. I prefer traditional pigments, especially the natural earths. I aim at a feeling of life and depth, a sense of the unity of the whole.”
Muller has exhibited works in the West Michigan Regional Competition, Celebration of the Arts, the Mid-Michigan Art Guild Annual Exhibition, ArtPrize, the Grand Rapids Art Peers Festival, the Fallasburg Festival, and in four solo exhibits since 2010. He is a member of the National Oil and Acrylic Painter’s Society.
The Pine Rest Leep Art Gallery exhibit will be on display at the Postma Center located at 300 68th Street, SE, Grand Rapids, Mich., from July 5 until October 2, 2018. The Leep Art Gallery is open Monday through Friday 9 a.m. – 3 p.m. and is free and open to the public. For more information, please call 616.222.4530 or go to www.pinerest.org/leep-art-gallery .
Becoming a caregiver for your spouse or partner can have a profound effect on your relationship.
Traditional marriage vows tenderly express commitment to love each other through the best that life brings as well as well as through the worst of times. As the journey of life continues, spouses and partners confidently face a barrage of changes and transitions together. Over time and through partnership efforts routines, roles and expectations naturally become established.
Identifying role changes and challenges
Changes in the physical, mental or emotional health of a spouse or partner can have a profound effect on relationships. This can include one partner taking on the role of caregiver of the other.
Regardless if the caregiving role developed gradually or if circumstances occurred that changed life instantly, navigating daily life and assuming and accepting the role of caregiver includes navigating both good and bad days. Grief, loneliness, anxiety and exhaustion are all natural feelings that spousal caregivers can experience as they tirelessly try to meet the needs of their loved one. Assuming unfamiliar tasks that their spouse usually completed previously and adding daily care responsibilities, often while still employed, is stressful and can take a toll on a caregivers’ health.
The isolation associated with caregiving
Spouse and partner caregiving is a labor of love. Loyalty is a significant factor that drives caregivers. Spouses often believe they should tackle caregiving single-handedly and do not readily accept offers of assistance from family and friends. Caregivers may feel they can provide the best care for their spouse and do not ask for additional help even when they are feeling overwhelmed. Most care recipients prefer their spouse to be their care provider. Yet care recipients are often dealing with multiple and ongoing health changes that make their own behaviors and needs unpredictable and sometimes challenging. Care recipients may experience a wide array of feelings like anger, grief and depression that spousal caregivers have to attempt to navigate on a daily basis.
Caregivers may experience varying degrees of guilt as they navigate and mourn the loss of what once was normal, and grapple with life as it is now. Pouring oneself into the daily care of another can also lead to isolation as caregivers slowly pull away from social engagements to spend most of their time at home. As a spouse or partner attempts to care solely for their loved one the risk of injury and other negative health factors can begin to appear in the caregiver, which can be amplified by age. It is typical for a spousal caregiver to neglect their own self-care in pursuit of immersing themselves in caring for their spouse.
Caregivers benefit from community resources and support
Every spousal or partner caregiver should be aware that they can equip themselves with new skills and knowledge through education and community support. This can help caregivers confidently provide care with sufficient help and also maintain their own self-care.
Most caregivers and care recipients experience continual transitions in their relationship and Michigan State University Extension highly encourages caregivers to seek support and help to find systems that benefit both individuals. There are evidence-based community programs designed to assist caregivers, including spousal caregivers, to maintain their own mental, emotional and physical health. The Powerful Tools for Caregivers program designed specifically for caregivers will increase self-care habits; build confidence in handling numerous caregiver responsibilities like making difficult decisions, dealing with challenging emotions and finding local community resources. To learn about the Powerful Tools for Caregivers program in Michigan contact your local MSU Extension office.
How can mutations in one supposedly single-function protein result in four unique diseases with symptoms ranging from strangely textured hair to early death?
That’s the question that biochemistry professor Rachael Baker and biology professor Amy Wilstermann are seeking to answer through three linked research projects this summer. Working with three student researchers to conduct experiments on the mitochondria of yeast and zebrafish, the professors are examining the effects of mutations in the protein’s gene to determine its other roles within the cell.
By discovering how each mutation results in each disease, Baker says they hope to more fully understand the mitochondrial system, leading to both “better treatments for people affected by rare diseases and a better understanding about health and wellness in general that could lead to treatments for things like cancer and other disorders.”
Beyond the lab
Baker and Wilstermann, however, view these direct applications as only one step in the larger process of improving the lives of those with rare diseases.
“There’s just a lot of uncertainty [around rare disease]; even when you get a diagnosis, you might not know what the prognosis is,” said Wilstermann. She and Baker aim to help remedy this through two key routes: improving the readability of scholarly work on rare disease and providing a website to collect information for patients and their families.
During the summer, Wilstermann says, the students will work toward both goals by reviewing the literature around a specific rare disease and writing a condensed summary for the website, giving them practice in “taking really complicated ideas and mak[ing] them accessible but still completely accurate.” Wilstermann says that the students will most likely start by covering the diseases which were represented at the rare disease symposium (in March 2018) and are present in the local community.
The website is broadly intended to function as a network for members of the rare disease community, including patients, families, clinicians, and researchers. “We want it to be a place where we can connect people with resources; we want it to be a place where people can connect with one another,” Wilstermann said. “There’s opportunity to bring people together and help build a supportive community around common experiences, and the common experience of being rare.”
A faith-driven approach
“This project, for me, encapsulates why I came to be a professor at Calvin college,” said Baker. “The way we do science looks different here,” she added. “We eat together each week, we value each other, and we [work] in a body of Christ model where different people have different strengths and interests [which we] bring together to be a functioning whole. We’ve employed various practices that are really rooted in Christian principles, and we’ve used those to shape how we run our research team.
“To me,” Baker said, “it’s really exciting that I get to do that and think about it explicitly.”
West Michigan Hindu Temple “pracharak,” or outreach minister Fred Stella listens as Forest Hills fifth-grader Krishna Mano talks about his family’s faith
Brothers Vishnu and Krishna Mano spoke of Hindu faith traditions they observe with their family: lighting a lamp in the evening to symbolize good luck, and praying in the morning and before bed.
The boys, eighth- and fifth-graders, respectively, who attend Forest Hills Public Schools, know a lot about Hinduism, and told 19 peers about the religion during the first-ever Interfaith Service Day Camp. They complemented Fred Stella’s lesson on the faith during a tour of the West Michigan Hindu Temple. Stella is “pracharak,” or outreach minister, at the Ada-based temple.
“I liked that I was educating other people about my faith,” said Vishnu, adding that Hinduism is a minority religion in the U.S. that not everyone knows much about. “Hinduism is not just religion, but the culture and way of life that follows it.”
Students learned details and histories covering Catholic, Jewish, Muslim, Hindu and Sikh religions.
“I experienced a lot of new things that were good for me,” Vishnu said. “I made new friends who are not in my faith. I feel like in these last four days I learned a lot about religion, not just through textbooks, but by experiencing it in their places of worship.”
West Michigan Hindu Temple “pracharak,” or outreach minister Fred Stella talks about Hinduism inside the temple
Forming Interfaith Friendships
Representatives from Kaufman Interfaith Institute, at Grand Valley State University, hosted the camp to connect students from different faith backgrounds, build relationships and add youth voices to interfaith conversations.
“The overall mission (of the institute) is to promote mutual understanding, respect and dialogue across different faith traditions and world views in West Michigan,” said Kyle Kooyers, program manager for Kaufman Interfaith Institute, which has a theme this year of interfaith friendship.
Forest Hills student Vishnu Mano talks about Hinduism while Xander Brown listens
Campers represented Christian, Baha’i, Muslim and Hindu faiths and included atheists and those with no religious affiliation. To culminate the week, they shared ideas about what comes next for students in the area of interfaith work and what camp could include next year.
Highlights were participating in meditation; observing Muslim prayer, during which five Muslim campers joined; and learning about holy books, like the Torah, students said.
“I didn’t know a lot about that religion,” said Jenison High School sophomore Kate Boutell of Sikhism. “They are very inclusive and they recognize diversity of religions.”
Grandville Middle School eighth-grader Radi Rashid said he enjoyed exploring other religions and comparing it to his own, Islam.
“It’s cool learning about all the other religions, and learning that a religion I really didn’t know about is not that different than my own.”
Check out School News Network for more stories about students, schools, and faculty in West Michigan.
Kentwood: City plans activities to celebrate 4th of July
Parades are big thing in Kentwood, so there will be one on July 4th. (WKTV)
All are invited to join the City of Kentwood’s annual Fourth of July Celebration for a full day of activities, including a pancake breakfast, a 5K race and a parade, followed by an evening complete with carnival rides, games and fireworks at Crestwood Middle School.
Music scene: Hot international band Kaleo in GR Sunday
Both dedicated and soon-to-be fans of Kaleo will get a chance to see and hear the group’s range when the band hits the stage of 20 Monroe Live Sunday, July 1.
WKTV YouTube Videos: Check out ideas from the West Michigan Tourist Association
West Michigan Tourist Association’s Jeremy Witt sits down with WKTV to talk about fun, educational adventures West Michigan residents can enjoy this summer.
Shannon Wilson, executive director of GRAAHI, speaks during a news conference about the Pathways to Careers in Health Care initiative June 28 at the Kent ISD Conference Center.
Grand Valley State University and six other area higher education institutions will work to increase the number of students of color who choose health care fields while in college, then succeed in the workforce.
The Grand Rapids African American Health Institute (GRAAHI) announced a “Pathways to Careers in Health Care” initiative to engage with area colleges and universities through a $400,000 planning grant from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation of Battle Creek. Shannon Wilson, executive director of GRAAHI, said the grant allows for college-specific plans of action to engage students of color and help reduce barriers to choosing to study in health care professions.
“This is by far the most influential grant we have received,” Wilson said during a news conference held June 28 at the Kent ISD Conference Center. “It has the potential to change how medical care is delivered in Grand Rapids, and by whom. We can reduce disparities in health care when our health care workforce mirrors the diversity of our community.”
President Thomas J. Haas said the Pathways initiative supports Grand Valley’s strategic plan to increase the diversity of its campus community to reflect that of West Michigan’s population. Hear more in this video.
“This work fits with the university’s other initiatives to prepare students of color for success in college and the workforce; and this project is aligned with Grand Valley’s commitment to the state of Michigan to fill the health care talent pipeline with qualified and diverse health care employees,” Haas said.
Pictured are leaders from area colleges and universities, plus staff members from Grand Rapids African American Health Institute.
Other institutions participating in the Pathways initiative are Aquinas College, Calvin College, Davenport University, Ferris State University, Grand Rapids Community College and Hope College. GRAAHI will engage with each institution in addition to connecting with parents and high school counselors.
Wilson said white health care workers represent more than 50 percent of employees in almost every occupation category. She cited a 2004 report from the Institute of Medicine and the Sullivan Commission that identified the lack of people of color in health care fields as a contributing factor in overall quality of care.
The Pathways project has overall goals of mirroring diversity in the community by 2040, establishing early exposure to advance health care practice careers throughout the K-12 experience, and developing a cohort of African American and Latino/a health care leaders.
Criminal justice in West Michigan was the stated topic of the American Civil Liberties Union Michigan’s “In/Justice” expert panel and community discussion at Grand Rapids’ Wealthy Theatre Wednesday, June 28. (WKTV/K.D. Norris)
Criminal justice in West Michigan was the stated topic of the American Civil Liberties Union Michigan’s “In/Justice” expert panel and community discussion at Grand Rapids’ Wealthy Theatre Wednesday, June 28.
“Questions about the relationship between police, prosecutors and citizens continue to dominate the American consciousness,” stated the flyer advertising the meeting, which was attended by more than 200 persons. “The forum brings together community groups and public officials to discuss the causes and solutions to problems with criminal justice in Grand Rapids.”
But Grand Rapids Police Department Chief David Rahinsky and Kent County Prosecutor Chris Becker, two of the forum panelists, fielded most of the questions from moderator and local attorney Anthony Green, and often had to defend the organizations they lead.
Responding to a question about the high number of persons who committed non-violent crimes but end up in prison, Becker pointed out that 73 percent of Michigan Department of Corrections prisoners are violent offenders and that while the federal prison average is about 50 percent drug offenders, the percentage in Kent County is about 7 percent.
In addition to Rahinsky and Becker, other members of the panel included Kent County Commissioner Robert S. Womack (District 17; City of Grand Rapids) and ACLU Michigan Legislative Director Shelli Weisberg.
Weisberg set the tone of racial disparity in Michigan’s criminal justice system early on when she said: “We incarcerate to many people, but we incarcerate far too many black and brown people.”
Responding to another question from Green, this one on race relations between the police force and minority communities — “The perception is that nothing has changed,” Green said — Rahinsky agreed that a recent report on GRPD traffic stops does show a level of disparity and that his department is taking action to improve race relations and lessen racial disparity in criminal justice.
“We took that report to heart,” Rahinsky said. “We are in the midst of a battle … collectively, we are making progress.”
Womack, at one point, while agreeing that problems exist with the Grand Rapids police force’s criminal justice enforcement involving minority communities, did offer his support of the police chief.
“We are far from having the relationship we need to have,” Womack said. But “I believe we have the right police chief.”
Other topics discussed in the early part of the community meeting related to bail recommendations and the inability of some low-income persons to pay bail for non-violent offenses, the idea of prosecutors over-charging crimes to allow for easier plea bargains, and action by the ACLU to bring about a fairer criminal justice laws in Michigan.
When the fear of falling fills your mind with negative thoughts and prevents you from participating fully take action to renew your confidence and strength.
The fear of falling is a common and prevalent concern for many older adults whether they have experienced a previous fall or not. Factors such as stamina, mobility, chronic illness, balance and strength can affect how a person thinks and feels about their ability to be active. When the fear of falling causes a person to restrict their daily activities and unplug from things they enjoy, it is important to recognize and evaluate the situation to regain the confidence to be as mobile as possible.
Do not let a fear of falling stop you from getting outside and doing the things you enjoy. Courtesy Michigan State University Extension
Recognize your fears and concerns about falling
First be honest with yourself and identify your thoughts, concerns, and fears about falling. Try to name the feelings you experience. Do you often worry about falling? Are you overly concerned if you fall, someone else will have to take care of you? Has a previous fall shattered your confidence? Have you bought into the belief that falling is inevitable? Are you thinking self-defeating thoughts or feeling hopeless believing you can do nothing about the situation? Do you feel you have lost the power to control your life? Are you concerned that you just have to accept this is how you feel? Are you afraid to tell anyone about your fear of falling?
Recognize the effects these fears and beliefs have on you
After you have identified your specific fears and concerns pause and recognize how these fears may be affecting you. Are you experiencing stress or anxiety, if so how often? Are you experiencing negative thought patterns because of your fear of falling? Are you making different decisions and changing your routine? Have you stopped getting out of your home and declined to attend activities you enjoy? Do your fears interfere with doing daily basic activities around your home? Do you feel you should just do less so you do not fall? Are you sitting down often and noticing changes in your strength or feeling fatigued? Are you cautious about sharing your fears with family, friends and your health care provider as they might not understand and believe they will not be able to help?
Challenge your negative thoughts and replace with positive thoughts
After you pinpoint your specific thoughts and emotions and discern how these potentially negative thought patterns have crept into your life, pause and look at the situation differently. You need to face the truth that being sedentary is not the answer — it only leads to continued loss of balance, strength and flexibility and increases the potential for falling. You have the ability within yourself to make positive changes. Fears, especially non-rational fears, need not rob you of a full life. Our minds are powerful and reframing our thoughts can significantly improve our beliefs and self-confidence. Turn your negative thoughts into positive thoughts. Stop buying into negative self-defeating thoughts, which are harmful. Positive constructive ideas can transform you. Look for simple solutions so you can re-engage in activities you enjoy. Do not hesitate to ask for accommodations to make getting out of the house a comfortable and safe experience. Advocate for assistance and enjoy the things you love to do.
Enroll in a community program to find support and tools to overcome the fear of falling
By Bethany Bohlen, W.K. Kellogg Biological Station
Need a little nature in your mornings? Spend a summer morning at the W.K. Kellogg Bird Sanctuary viewing birds on an expert-led walk through the Sanctuary’s picturesque trails.
The Sanctuary hosts Birds & Coffee Walks year-round on the second Wednesday of each month. Visitors can enjoy a leisurely birding stroll led by Sanctuary staff to locate and identify the many birds at the Sanctuary, including songbirds, waterfowl, gamebirds, and birds of prey. Join us afterward to talk about the morning’s finds over a cup of hot, bird-friendly coffee.
This is an excellent opportunity to learn about the variety of birds that can be found at the Sanctuary, and birders of all skill levels are invited. Visitors can bring their own binoculars or borrow a pair from the Sanctuary.
Each program runs 9-10:30 am. Program dates for the next three months are July 12, August 9, and September 13. Sanctuary members attend for free! The cost of attendance for non-members is Sanctuary general admission: $5 for adults and $4 for senior citizens (62+).
The W.K. Kellogg Bird Sanctuary is located at 12685 East C Avenue, one mile north of M-89 and just west of 40th Street. To learn more, visit birdsanctuary.kbs.msu.edu, email birdsanctuary@kbs.msu.edu, or call (269)671-2510.
The W.K. Kellogg Bird Sanctuary is part of the W.K. Kellogg Biological Station. Celebrate with us our legacy of conservation as we mark 90 years since W.K. Kellogg donated the lands that now make up KBS to Michigan State University. Our commitment to research, education and outreach stands on the foundation of W.K. Kellogg’s vision for cutting-edge science and learning.
As MSU’s largest off-campus educational complex, we’ve put our land-grant values into practice as we’ve provided the public with examples of science’s crucial role in sustaining natural and managed communities for nearly a hundred years. As we look forward, our students and faculty are working to understand and solve real-world environmental problems for a better tomorrow. To learn more about KBS, visit us online at kbs.msu.edu.
By Maram Hekhuis, LMSW, Outpatient Therapist at Heart of the City Counseling Center
You probably opened this blog for a reason: you are tired of feeling sad, angry, anxious, hurt, hopeless and helpless, and you want to feel happy in your life. You are probably asking yourself “why me?” “why does everyone have it all, but not me?” “why can’t I be happy?”
You may feel victimized by questions that don’t seem to have the answers. As a result, you may feel your life is narrowing in around you, you may feel darkness surrounding you, and you may want to just find a way out. Happiness is not something you inherit or just find. Happiness is something that you need to build up. Building happiness is a process that requires time, patience, effort, hope, and commitment.
If you fail once in building happiness, don’t give up but rather try it again and again. Remember that life is not easy. There is the good, and there is the bad. Just believe that there are better days ahead of you.
So, what is happiness then? According to this article, research suggests that happiness is related to life satisfaction, appreciation of life, moments of pleasure, and the experience of positive emotions. But, how could we experience these factors to build our happiness? The answer is: what we think (thoughts/cognitions) and what we do (behaviors) influence our feelings.
Now that you have learned that our thoughts and behaviors affect how we feel, let’s learn how to make changes in our thoughts and behaviors to build our happiness.
Changes in Cognition:
Positive affirmations: Positive affirmations encourage us to believe in ourselves. These types of statements empower us and motivates us to self-change. You need to begin your statements with “I” or “I am”. For example, “I can do it”. You could write down a list of positive affirmation statements in your diary, on a piece of paper, or on your smart phone apps. Read or/and repeat them daily to yourself.
Be aware of your self-defeating thoughts. “If I’m not successful, then I’m a failure”. Stop and challenge them. What are the evidences that support and don’t support your thoughts? Remember thoughts are just ideas, they are not facts or necessary true. Sometimes our thoughts happen so quickly that we fail to notice them, but they can still affect our mood. These are called automatic thoughts. Remember positive thoughts lead us to feel good and negative thoughts can put us down.
Be aware of and challenge your perspectives about yourself, people and the world. We all give different meanings to situations and see things from our point of view. Therefore, broaden your perspective and see the bigger picture. Ask yourself: “is there another way of looking at this?”
Acceptance. Be comfortable with who you are. “it is as it is”. We tend to fight against distressing thoughts and feelings as if our mind is in a war zone. Learn to just notice them and don’t fight the war. Some situations we just cannot change. We can surf the waves rather try to stop them.
Be appreciative and mindful. Notice what you have rather than what you don’t have. Live in the present rather the past or future.
Behavioral Changes:
Do things for others. This will help you connect with others. Helping and giving to others make us feel valued, appreciated, needed, and happier. We could give our time, attention, and ideas, not necessary money and gifts. You may want to volunteer somewhere.
Connecting with others. Strong social relationships lead to happier and healthier life, give us meaning, and sense of belonging, improve our self-esteem, and make us feel loved, and valued.
Do what you enjoy doing. You could engage in exercise if you enjoy it as being active makes us happier and healthier as our body and mind are connected.
Learn new things or skills. Increase your interest and confidence as this will give you a sense of achievement and success. Find a job, meet new people, try out something new.
Have goals to look forward to and never stop dreaming and believing in yourself and abilities. Feeling good about the future is important for our happiness. Goals motivate us to move forward in life. Make your goals achievable.
Born in 1947, in the vanguard of the “Boomer” generation, Barry’s journalistic work has long provided a humorous slant to that demographic lump in the American loaf. As he’s gotten older it’s worthwhile reading to see what Barry makes of how the overly self-absorbed generation has come to terms with its time on the field.
The chapter that resonated with me the most was the one where he is looking back on three generations, with a fourth one just coming onstage, and decides that his parents had more fun than he did.
“That’s not how it was supposed to be. My parents belonged to the Greatest Generation; they grew up in hard times. My mom was born in Colorado in an actual sod hut, which is the kind of structure you see in old black-and-white photographs featuring poor, gaunt, prairie-dwelling people standing in front of what is either a small house or a large cow pie…”
Dave speculates that the Greatest Generation may have triumphed by not realizing all the mistakes they were making — mistakes that the Boomers rectified by turning “parenting” into a verb, among other things. The laughter has a poignant bite to it, as Barry admits that “The harsh truth is that happiness is an elusive thing.”
But that does not slow the author down, as he travels to Brazil with his daughter for the World Cup, and goes to Russia with Ridley Pearson for a literature tour (the State Department tapped them to go). He meets David Beckham, tries Google Glass, and reveals a stunning secret confided to him by Johnny Carson about do-it-yourself home improvements. Great stuff!
Going back to a Dave Barry book was like meeting an old friend for lunch — you realize how much you’ve missed them, and wonder where the time went.
May 2018 is going down as the busiest May ever at the Gerald R. Ford International Airport (GFIA), and airport officials foresee the busy month kicking off an even busier summer schedule.
May passenger numbers were up 11.5 percent year-over-year; resulting in the busiest May ever, and marking the first time GFIA has served more than a quarter-million passengers in the month of May.
“We are happy to hear the first four months of increased traffic in 2018 were not just a fluke of winter and spring break traffic, but that our record-breaking passenger counts are continuing into the summer months,” said Gerald R. Ford International Airport President & CEO Jim Gill. “We are seeing increases in the upcoming months with American adding mainline service to Dallas, Delta adding more frequency to New York-LaGuardia, and United’s capacity to Chicago and Denver increasing.”
May 2017 saw 234,300 passengers, while May 2018 topped that in serving 261,281 – the third largest increase ever for the month of May.
Each month of 2018 has resulted in record-breaking passenger numbers, and the Ford Airport is coming off a 2017 that saw over 2.8 million passengers – the fifth straight year of record growth. GFIA has seen growth in 58 of the past 65 months.
“Our airline partners continue to invest here and are adding more service through the summer with more routes, and larger aircraft to accommodate our growing passenger traffic,” said Gill. “We expect the record numbers and trends to continue in the busy summer months as West Michiganders visit the world, and as the world visits our beautiful West Michigan region.”
The upcoming summer is expected to be the busiest summer in the history of U.S. air travel, according to trade group Airlines for America (A4A). The group estimates that over 246 million passengers will fly in the U.S. between June 1 and August 31, 2018. Historically low fares and a strong economy are noted for aiding in that forecasted record-breaking summer travel period.
Because of the increases both nationally and at GFIA, those traveling are advised to arrive at the airport at least 90-120 minutes before their flight. Updated security screening information, tips on what to pack/not pack, and more are listed at www.tsa.gov
GFIA has invested in new facilities to accommodate the growing traffic by recently completing Phase One of the Gateway Transformation Project – an upgrade in space, retail, food and beverage, restrooms, finishes, amenities, and customer service offerings. The project’s main feature is the consolidated passenger security checkpoint which centralized and combined security screening to one main checkpoint in the Airport. Construction also included new terrazzo flooring, lighting fixtures, pre and post security business centers, a military welcome center, kids play areas, and much more.
Phase Two of the Gateway Transformation Project is slated to begin in Fall 2018 with construction taking place at the airline ticket counters, baggage claim area, and ‘front of house’ area.
“As we continue to grow in traffic it is imperative that our facilities keep up with our passenger demand,” said Gill. “Our passengers keep coming back because we listen to their wants and needs, and as they do we will continue to do our part to improve our amenities, technology, customer service and infrastructure. We are excited to see what the future holds, and we hope to add more growth in the years to come.”
GFIA monthly passenger statistics are available on our website: grr.org/history.php.
The Grand Rapids Public Museum will be opening a brand new exhibition this summer, titled: Ralph W. Hauenstein: A Life of Leadership. The exhibition will open on July 21, and run through January 2019.
A Life of Leadership will explore the extraordinary life of Grand Rapidian Ralph W. Hauenstein. COL Hauenstein was a leader in the West Michigan community, remembered for his role as a journalist, his military and intelligence service, his dedication to the Catholic faith, his entrepreneurship, and his philanthropy in Grand Rapids. Hauenstein left a lasting legacy in the United States and around the world.
The exhibition will highlight Ralph’s extraordinary life, his contributions to our nation and community, and his legacy of leadership. Interactives will allow visitors to test out writing a headline for the newspaper on an antique typewriter and try their hand at cracking a secret code. Photography from around the world bring visitors face-to-face with Ralph’s impact globally.
“The family is thrilled to share Ralph’s rich history with our West Michigan community,” said Brian Hauenstein. “We hope his proactive lifestyle will encourage all generations to consider their lasting impact on their community and the environment around them.”
“On behalf of the Grand Rapids Public Museum, it was an honor to work with the Hauenstein Family and the Hauenstein Center for Presidential Studies at Grand Valley State University to share the important story of COL Hauenstein’s life in public service and leadership,” said Andrea Melvin, Collections Curator at the Grand Rapids Public Museum. “The many artifacts and images gifted by Ralph himself to the GRPM and the Hauenstein Family will fascinate and inspire all who visit.”
Ralph W. Hauenstein: A Life of Leadership will be included with general admission to the Museum, and will be located on the Museum’s third floor.
This exhibition is made possible through the generous support of: The Hauenstein Family and The Hauenstein Center for Presidential Studies at Grand Valley State University. Images and objects on loan courtesy of Brian Hauenstein unless otherwise stated. The images in this exhibition were first digitized for public display by the Hauenstein Center for Presidential Studies at Grand Valley State University. Thank you also to the National Cryptologic Museum, NSA, Washington D.C.
Ralph W. Hauenstein
Born in Fort Wayne, Indiana in 1912, Ralph’s family moved to Grand Rapids when he was 12 years old, where he graduated from Central High School in 1931. He was a public servant from his early years starting as a boy scout. Ralph was curious, inquisitive, and an exceptional storyteller, which led him to his first job as a police reporter for the Grand Rapids Press and later as a city editor with the Grand Rapids Herald.
Ralph joined the U.S. Army in 1935, serving first with the Civilian Conservation Corps. In 1941 he began working as an intelligence officer in Iceland and rose to the rank of colonel. During World War II, he was promoted to Chief of Intelligence for the European Theater of Operations under General Dwight D. Eisenhower. An important part of his experience was the liberation of the German concentration camp at Dachau. His WWII experiences opened his eyes to the need for ethical, effective world leaders.
Ralph saw first-hand that many countries face food shortages. After the war he returned to Grand Rapids and became an entrepreneur in international trade and food equipment manufacturing, designing equipment to make Goldfish Crackers. His success in business allowed for substantial philanthropic contributions in Grand Rapids. He gave generously to many local causes and established the Grace Hauenstein Library at Aquinas College, Mercy Health Hauenstein Neuroscience Center and the Hauenstein Center for Presidential Studies at Grand Valley State University.
Carillonneurs from around the U.S. will travel to Grand Valley State University this summer to fill the air around both campuses with music during the International Carillon Concert Series.
The 24th annual Cook Carillon International Concert Series will take place on Sundays at 8 p.m. on the Allendale Campus, beginning July 1.
Cook Carillon Concerts
July 1 – Student recital and open tower tours
July 8 – Lee Cobb (Cape Coral, Florida)
July 15 – Joey Brink (University of Chicago)
July 22 – Helen Hawley (Grand Rapids)
July 29 – George Gregory (San Antonio, Texas)
August 5 – Sally Harwood (Michigan State University)
August 12 — Carol Anne Taylor (Dallas, Texas)
August 19 – Dennis Curry (Birmingham, Michigan)
The Cook Carillon bells (Photo by Bernadine Carey-Tucker)
Named for major donors and longtime Grand Valley supporters Peter and Pat Cook, who died in 2010 and 2008 respectively, the Cook Carillon Tower contains 48 bronze bells created in the Netherlands. The bells range from 7.5 inches to more than 51 inches, and weigh from 14 pounds to nearly 3,000 pounds. Arranged in a chromatic series, a carillonneur plays the bells after climbing 61 steps to the playing cabin, just below the bells and clock mechanism. Cables connect the bells to a keyboard and pedal board that permit loud or soft tones through a variation of either hard or soft strikes by fists and feet. The size and weight of each bell determines the individual tones.
The 18th annual Beckering Family Carillon International Concert Series brings five concerts to the Lacks International Plaza located at the DeVos Center on Grand Valley’s Pew Grand Rapids Campus. These concerts will take place on Wednesdays at noon, beginning July 11.
Beckering Family Carillon Concerts
July 11 – Lee Cobb
July 18 – Joey Brink
July 25 – Tiffany Ng (University of Michigan)
August 1 – Duet: George Gregory and Julianne Vanden Wyngaard, Grand Valley university carillonneur
All concerts are free and open to the public, and last approximately one hour. They will take place rain or shine. For more information, visit www.gvsu.edu/music, or call Grand Valley’s Music and Dance Department at (616) 331-3484.
The Jared Veldheer Football Camp is ramping up for its fifth season of motivating youngsters while raising funds for Keeping the Beat, a foundation program that provides free cardiac screenings for local high school athletes.
The one-day camp for kids in grades 3 through 8 will be held July 11 at Grand Rapids Christian High School, 2300 Plymouth Ave. SE. The camp, which is from 5:30 — 8p.m., is conducted by Jared Veldheer, an offensive lineman for the Denver Broncos, with help from area football coaches.
“It’s a joy to work with young athletes and a privilege to share information about heart safety,” said Veldheer, a graduate of Forest Hills Northern High School and Hillsdale College. “By partnering with Metro Health, we can help educate kids and parents about how to stay safe in sports.”
To date, the annual camp has raised more than $87,000 for Keeping the Beat. The program invites area high school athletes to Metro Health physician offices throughout the year for enhanced screenings to identify potential cardiac abnormalities. More than 800 teens have received free heart screenings through Keeping the Beat, which supplements the annual physicals required for all high school athletes.
Cost is $20 per student. While students are in the sports clinic, parents are invited to attend an informational session on sports injuries, concussions and heart screen awareness.
Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard with her mother Carol during a recent visit in Wyoming
A possible 2020 Democratic presidential candidate, Tulsi Gabbard, made a stop in Wyoming this past weekend for her Aloha Michigan! fundraiser campaign.
Gabbard, who currently is the U.S. Representative for Hawaii’s Second Congressional District, toured through Michigan, making stops in Flint to talk to residents there about water issues and then to Ohana Gardens in Detroit.
The Congresswoman has a connection to West Michigan in that her mother, Carol Gabbard, who travelled with her, is from the area. Originally born in Indiana, Carol Gabbard moved to East Grand Rapids at a young age and graduated from East Grand Rapids High School in 1965. She then attended and graduated in 1969 from the University of Michigan before moving to Hawai’i.
Congresswoman Gabbard has lived on Hawai’i all of her life. At age 21, she was the youngest person ever elected to the Hawai’i State Legislature in 2002 and was the first person to voluntarily step down from public office to serve in the the Army National Guard in the Middle East in 2004. She was elected to the U.S. House in 2012. According to an article in The Washington Post, “11 Democratic women who could run for president in 2020, ranked,” Congresswoman Gabbard made waves during the 2016 primary race when she emerged as a strong backer of Bernie Sanders, resigning her post as vice chair of the Democratic National Committee.
Gabbard has not declared her candidacy however there is a Run Tulsi Run website which states it is a grassroots movement to encourage her to run for president in 2020 and Aloha Michigan! website run by the Tulsi for Hawai’i.
Parades are big thing in Kentwood, so there will be one on July 4th. (WKTV)
By City of Kentwood
All are invited to join the City of Kentwood’s annual Fourth of July Celebration for a full day of activities, including a pancake breakfast, a 5K race and a parade, followed by an evening complete with carnival rides, games and fireworks at Crestwood Middle School.
“Our Fourth of July celebration offers a variety of activities for the entire family to enjoy,” said Kentwood Mayor Stephen Kepley. “We welcome our friends and neighbors to celebrate our nation’s independence with us.”
The pancake breakfast will be held at the Kent District Library Kentwood (Richard L. Root) Branch community room, located at 4950 Breton Road SE, from 7:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. The $5 breakfast will include pancakes and sausage.
Beginning at 7:30 a.m., racers of all ages will gather at Kentwood City Hall, 4900 Breton Road SE, for registration for the NN Mobile Solutions 5K Race & Fun Walk. The race will begin 8:30 a.m., with the start and finish line on Walma Avenue SE near City Hall.
Following the race will be the annual parade at 9:30 a.m. The parade route will start at Crestwood Middle School, 2674 44th St. SE, then travel south on Walma Avenue SE to Breton Road SE, turn west on 52nd Street SE and end at Challenger Elementary School.
The evening celebration at Crestwood Middle School will begin at 6 p.m. and feature carnival rides, giant inflatables, food vendors and food trucks. Sweet J Band will perform blues, rock and soul music leading up to the fireworks show that will begin at dusk.
Kentwood Parks and Recreation is seeking volunteers for the Fourth of July Celebration. Those interested are encouraged to visit kentwood.us/parks or call 616.656.5270 to sign up.
More information about Independence Day activities in Kentwood can be found online at kentwood.us/parks.
The Gerald R. Ford International Airport (GFIA)’s Master Plan includes more covered parking options, concourse renovations and additions, and a Federal Inspection Station (FIS).
The 20-year Master Plan was presented to the Authority Board this morning, with a recommendation to submit the plan for review and approval to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). An Airport Master Plan Update is a management tool for strategic positioning that maximizes operational efficiency and business effectiveness through a pragmatic planning process. The Master Plan is an assessment of existing facilities and future demand based on FAA approved forecasts. It identifies future facility requirements and culminates in an implementation program. It is a sustainable plan and takes into account environmental considerations and the ability to timely finance development in the best sequence to meet future demand.
Major highlights of the 2018 GFIA Master Plan Update include airside renovations like relocation of the Air Traffic Control Tower (ATCT), and airfield improvements including taxiway re-alignment. Landside improvements include more covered parking options, access road improvements, terminal curb expansion, an increased cell phone lot, and mobile-app based rideshare lots. Terminal building plans include concourse widening and expansion, the addition of a new Concourse C, expanded baggage claim areas, as well as the addition of a FIS to accommodate commercial international travel.
“As we continue to grow it is imperative that our facilities, grounds, airside accessibility, and every facet of our airport keep up with the demand from passenger traffic,” said GFIA President & CEO Jim Gill. “Our planning and engineering team and consultants look and plan five, ten, and even twenty years out to predict what the needs of our facility will be. We look forward to continued growth in the coming years and we are excited about the plans for our future development.”
The Master Plan responds to the FAA’s requirement of updating its plan periodically to reflect community growth, expansion of facilities, and changes in federal standards. An Airport Layout Plan (ALP), part of the Master Plan Update, is a graphic depiction of existing and proposed development and is the basis for federal funding. To be eligible for federal funding, a project must be shown on the ALP.
GFIA last completed a Master Plan Update in 2004. Since then, the airport has implemented most of the projects in that plan – terminal expansion, parking garage, canopy between the terminal and garage, and relocation of the rental car service centers providing additional parking lot areas. At the same time, GFIA has seen its corporate aviation growth outpace national trends and play an important role in generating new opportunities for local businesses across the globe. The Master Plan also develops a strategy for maximizing revenue generation for GFIA’s aeronautical and non- aeronautical lands.
“Our growth opportunities do not only include the terminal building and airfield, but areas around our airport property where we can expand and continue to be an economic catalyst for West Michigan’s overall advancement,” said Gill.
On the latest episode of WKTV Journal: In Focus, WKTV caught up with U.S. Rep. Bill Huizenga, a Republican who represents both Wyoming and Kentwood in Washington, D.C.
Huizenga has been a strong supporter of the Republican-led federal tax cuts, which he said is good for West Michigan businesses large and small, and the state’s workers. He is also a strong supporter of President Donald Trump, but has disagreed with him on several issues, including trade tariffs. In the special “on the scene” interview, Rep. Huizenga addresses those issues as well as Michigan’s recreational marijuana ballot measure.
Also on the episode, In Focus is James R. Gill, President and CEO of the Gerald R. Ford International Airport Authority. Since coming to Grand Rapids, in January 2017, he has seen many changes, both large and small, in the airport. We talk about those, and what is coming in the future.
The entire episode of “WKTV Journal: In Focus” airs on cable television in the Wyoming and Kentwood areas on Comcast WKTV Channel 26 and on AT&T Channel 99 Government channel.
The episode will debuted on WKTV cable channels on Tuesday, June 26, and will again air on Thursday, June 28, also at 6:30 p.m., and will continue on the same days and times the week of July 2. But all interviews included in episodes of WKTV Journal: In Focus are also available on YouTube at WKTVvideos.
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket soars upward after lifting off from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida at 4:30 p.m. EDT, carrying the SpaceX Dragon resupply spacecraft. On its 14th commercial resupply services mission for NASA, Dragon will deliver supplies, equipment and new science experiments for technology research to the space station. NASA/Tony Gray, Tim Powers, Tim Terry
It is not another satellite or a Tesla but rather a toy dog named Seaman Jr. that will be heading to space this Friday.
Seaman Jr. heads to the International Space Station.
In celebration of NASA’s 60th anniversary and the National Trail System’s 50th anniversary, the two organizations have joined up by sending the toy dog. Seaman Jr. is a replica of Seaman, the Newfoundland working dog owned by Capt. Meriwether Lewis and accompanied Lewis and William Clark on their famous expedition to the West.
Seaman Jr. will travel on the SpaceX 15th resupply mission to the International Space Station. Coverage for this launch is set to being at 5:15 a.m. Friday, June 29, with the launch from the Kennedy Space Center targeted for 5:41: 42 a.m.There will be additional post coverage of the launch at 8 a.m. The coverage will be on WKTV Government Channel 26 on Comcast and AT&T U-verse 99 Government Channel 99.
Packed with more than 5,900 pounds of research, crew supplies and hardware, the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft will launch on a Falcon 9 rocket from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. About 10 minutes after launch, Dragon reaches its preliminary orbit, at which point it will deploy its solar arrays and begin a carefully choreographed series of thruster firings to reach the International Space Station.
In addition to bringing research and Seaman Jr. to the station, the Dragon’s unpressurized trunk is carrying a new Canadian-built Latching End Effector or LEE. This new LEE is being launched as a spare to replace the failed unit astronauts removed during a series of spacewalks in the fall of 2017. Each end of the Canadrm2 robotic arm has an identical LEE, and they are used as the “hands” that grapple payloads and visiting cargo spaceships. They also enable main truss.
It will take three days for the SpaceX to reach the space station. It is scheduled to arrive Monday, July 2. Coverage of the rendezvous and capture of the SpaceX CRS-15 Dragon Cargo Craft will begin at 5:30 a.m. July 2 with the capture scheduled for 7 a.m. Once again, the coverage will be on WKTV Government Channel 26 on Comcast and AT&T U-verse 99 Government Channel 99.
The Lewis and Clark Pups, from the left, Harper, Dakota, Rocky, and Keelie.
Seaman Jr. will be abroad the International Space Station through November 2018. You can follow Seaman Jr.’s journal on the Newfle News blog www.nps.gov/lecl/newfle-news.htm. The site also follows the Lewis and Clark Pups, Rocky, Harper, Dakota, and Keelie. The pups will travel more than 3,700 miles to to commemorate and protect the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail.
For more information on NASA TV or the International Space Station, visit www.nasa.gov.
Note: In this continuing series, we take a look at some of the 18 boards, commissions and committees that address specific needs within the City of the Wyoming.
Every second Wednesday of the month (except for July and August), you’ll find Dr. Lillian Cummings-Pulliams at Wyoming City Hall. A school psychologist for the Wyoming Public Schools. Cummings-Pulliams is at the city hall as a representative of the district on the city’s Parks and Recreation Commission.
She is not a resident of Wyoming, but lives in Kentwood. Since her daughter attends Wyoming Public Schools as part of schools of choice, they have participated in a number of Parks and Recreation programs and because of that, discovered she had an interest on serving on the Parks and Recreation Commission. Once she learned that the school district position was open, Cummings-Pulliams, along with a few others, applied for the open seat.
Dr. Lillian Cummings-Pulliams
“I put a plea into our superintendent to say ‘Hey, if anyone is as passionate as I am about this city and about the committee, then definitely put them in.’ and so I was picked,” she said.
It is an opportunity she has not regretted taking as it has given her an inside look as to what the Parks and Recreation Commission does and the work that goes into maintaining the city’s 21 parks along with the Wyomig Senior Center and library facility.
“When you go to the parks, at least when I do, I think that the parks are just there,” said Dr. Lillian Cummings-Pulliams. “I never have ever considered what goes on behind the scenes to make the parks what they are.”
The Parks and Recreation Commission reviews recreational program and park needs of the community and advises the City Manager and City Council on recommended changes. The commission also plans and coordinates recreational activities and park development.
Ideal Park
Most recently, the Parks and Recreation Commission has been focused on Ideal Park because of the tornadoes that came through in 2014 and 2016, destroying a portion of the park, and the Gezon Park master plan.
There are currently two at large positions open on the commission. For those positions, a person must be a City of Wyoming resident. Because the area public schools play such a role in the parks — several schools are located close or next to a city park — the board has positions for the following schools within the City: Godwin, Godfrey-Lee, Kelloggsville, Wyoming and Grandville. Currently the Kelloggsville and Godfrey-Lee school positions are open. A person for those positions should be a school staff member.
For more information about the city’s boards, commissions, and committees, click here. To apply, click here for the application, which must be sent to the City Clerk’s office, located in city hall at 1155 28th St. SW.
He’s “Mr. Rocket,” as dubbed by Superintendent Sam Wright, but he’s otherwise known as Bruce Foster, and he’s launched students toward great things over the past 40 years.
Foster, a lifelong Kelloggsville Rocket, has helped shape students’ lives through a combination of sports and academics, with skills learned on the field or court complementing those instilled in the classroom: teamwork, hard work and dedication.
“Those are building blocks to whatever career and avenue they go from here,” said Foster, who has worked in the district for for decades including 25 years as athletic director. He is retiring as the school year ends, though he plans to continue to be a presence at athletic events. As he steps down, he leaves a legacy of impacting lives through sports and doing what he can to provide an excellent program for student athletes.
He also leaves a gleaming new athletic complex within the newly renovated high school, including a new gymnasium with a second-story walking track, weight room and mat room. Foster played a large role in designing the facility, which was part of the $33.9 million bond issue, passed in 2015, for which $27 million went toward high-school improvements.
“That was one of my goals, to get the bond passed and give this community a great facility for future use,” he said.
Wright is thankful for that. “We are so proud of that facility,” he said. “It wouldn’t have happened if Bruce hadn’t been there every day, making sure things were done the way we wanted them to be done.”
Wright has known Foster for 25 years. “Bruce has done an excellent job in maintaining standards and developing high standards for student athletes, the coaching staff and the community. He has been consistently, year after year, enforcing those standards and we are very proud of our athletics program and our academic program.”
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His Place in the World
Foster attended Kelloggsville schools from kindergarten through high school, a three-sport athlete who graduated in 1974. He attended Grand Rapids Community College and Aquinas College before teaching business classes, heading in-school suspensions and coaching football, wrestling and track at Kelloggsville High School prior to becoming athletic director. His wife, Cindy, also graduated from Kelloggsville, in 1976. They have three children: Nick, Eric and Anna, and four grandchildren.
Bruce Foster adjusts track meet signage
“It’s a great community,” Foster said. “It’s a small-school atmosphere with large school programming. We have outstanding staff and administration, who are easy and great to work with on a daily basis.”
As athletic director, Foster has organized 18 varsity sports, adding soccer, bowling and competitive cheer during his tenure. Between 50 and 55 percent of middle- and high -schoolers participate in athletics. He’s been at the helm of district athletics for five state championships and one runner-up, plus numerous district and regional and conference championships.
He also has been instrumental in running the district’s intramural program, for which fourth- and fifth-graders play flag football, volleyball, coed soccer, wrestling, and boys’ and girls’ basketball over three seasons each school year, with between 50 and 80 students participating each season.
“The program is developed to give those students after-school physical activity, and so they can learn skills as they go through the (school system) to continue to play one or more sports,” Foster said.
Bruce Foster adjusts hurdles
‘A Walking, Talking Example’
Foster has stood out as a leader in the district, said head football coach Don Galster, who has worked with him for 29 years. “I’ve had a number of college coaches compare our facilities to their facilities when they’ve visited. Kelloggsville’s athletic programs and facilities have become what they are through the leadership of Bruce.
“He is a walking, talking example of Rocket pride.”
Foster sets high expectations for not only himself, but also for all the coaches on staff, Galster said. “As a coach, you always knew that Bruce had your back. His attention to detail is what sets him apart from other athletic directors.
“When you come to an athletic event at Kelloggsville you will notice that everything is first class; the fans, players, coaches and officials are well taken care of. He’s very proud to be a Kelloggsville Rocket, and that pride permeates throughout the coaching staff and our student athletes.”
Middle school Principal Jim Alston said it’s hard to imagine the district without Foster.
Bruce Foster stands in the new gymnasium he helped design
“Kelloggsville would not be what it is now if it wasn’t for Bruce Foster,” Alston said. “His influence in this community goes well beyond the wonderful, updated high school and gymnasium. Yes, he was instrumental in the building and the design of them both, but you can also see his influence in how our athletes prepare, perform, look, behave and win. Mr. Foster has his thumbprint on all of those things. Without him directing our coaches — including myself — we wouldn’t be where we are today.”
The relationships built and lives impacted are what have mattered to Foster, who said he loves to catch up with former student athletes and learn of the great things they’ve done in their lives with careers, families and in the community, long after their final game, match or race as a Kelloggsville Rocket.
“Everyone here has played a little part of making (those successes) materialize for them, and that’s always a good thing,” he said. “It’s like seeing a finished product.”
While Foster’s finished products may include a treasured new athletics facility, a time-honored program and a nurturing atmosphere, his legacy will continue to shine, like the contrail of a rocket still lighting up the the sky.
Check out School News Network for more stories about students, schools, and faculty in West Michigan.
What is a Japanese couple to do if their young son urges them to allow him to move to the United States to pursue his dream of becoming an astronaut? If you’re the mom and dad of Yuki Takahashi, you say, “(Gulp)…yes!” Via Skype across the Pacific, the global astrophysicist discusses saving wildlife, living in Antarctica, and playing tennis on the moon.
While the end of the school year may provide a respite for some young people who are the targets of these bullying behaviors, others continue to be targeted year-round through electronic forms of bullying. According to the CDC report, 16 percent of students indicated they had been electronically bullied during the 12 months before the survey through venues including e-mail, chat rooms, instant messaging, websites or texting. Cyberbullying also is an issue in online, cooperative game platforms, according to a Pew Research Center study. 16 percent of respondents stated that they have experienced being bullied in such games.
While the CDC report focuses on young people in grades nine to 12, electronic bullying, also referred to as cyberbullying, is an issue that affects a significant number of younger kids as well. Results of a 2016 study conducted by the Cyberbullying Research Center showed that nearly 17 percent of students ages 12 to 17 said they had been targets of cyberbullying. Conversely, 26 percent of those students admitted to participating in cyberbullying behaviors, including posting mean or hurtful comments, spreading rumors, posting inappropriate comments with sexual meaning, threatening harm, posting hurtful pictures or videos or impersonating someone else online.
As kids have increased access to mobile technology at younger ages (73 percent of teens have or have access to a smartphone), there are also more opportunities for kids to stay connected in positive and negative ways after the school year ends.
While many schools have incorporated programs designed to prevent bullying behaviors, it is important for parents and other adults to keep these conversations going with kids throughout the summer months. These discussions are enhanced when adults have a good understanding of what cyberbullying is and how children are using technology, followed up with discussions with young people about responsible use of technology and guidelines for positive online behaviors. See the article, “Cyberbullying: What it is and how parents can respond,” to learn more.
It is also helpful for adults and young people to recognize that, while online bullying and other forms of electronic aggression might be common, a lot can be learned from those young people who report using their voices to interrupt these negative behaviors. See the article, “Kids, kindness and cruelty – and lots of time online,” to learn more.
Experts also stress the importance of providing young people with a menu of strategies they can use for responding to cyberbullying situations. When adults share these strategies with kids, as well as help them use their voices to practice what these strategies might sound like in various scenarios, kids will be better prepared for real-life situations in whatever season or setting in which they occur.
If you are looking for more information or community support on improving your social-emotional health and well-being, Michigan State University Extension offers numerous programs that can assist in this process.
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).
Gorgeous Gus came to us under very sad, shocking circumstances in March of 2018 when his neighbor alerted us to his plight: his owner had passed away days before, leaving Gus and two other cats alone in the house without food or water; they were afraid and freaked out (as you can imagine).
The third cat in the house didn’t fare so well and passed on before we got approval from the police to remove the cats from the home. It appears that all three boys, along with their owner, were in need of medical care for quite some time and didn’t receive it. Thankfully for Gus (born in 10/2009), it wasn’t too late, but he was in dire need of both physical and emotional attention immediately after we retrieved him.
As you can see from the initial photos, poor Gus had a nasty, infected cystic mass on the top of his head that required topical ointment and injectable antibiotics to resolve. He also came in thin as a rail due to being undiagnosed as hyperthyroid, but we are able to manage this effectively and affordably with twice daily oral medication that he takes like a champ. Multiple teeth also had to be extracted after he had been with us for several weeks, allowing him to acclimate and get as comfy as possible in his new surroundings. As you can imagine that task was quite daunting and Gus has made it known that he would prefer to be back in a less crowded social situation, and believe it or not he has taken to bossing around most of the other residents, even though he is only about 9 lbs soaking wet.
Gus loves a good belly rub and is a very low-key, overall easy-going cat. I wouldn’t say he loves to be picked up, but he will crawl up on your lap and fall asleep. He loves to be up on the cat walk watching all the action. He’s a little quiet when it comes to seeking attention, but when he gets it, he loves it. A lot of the volunteers think he’s completely deaf, but I know he can hear a treat bag from the next room over.
He isn’t the playful, kitten-type cat, but the “I just want to lounge around like a lazy cat” kind. He loves bird watching on the window ledges and playing with feather toys on a stick. I think he’d be perfect matched up with an older couple. Gus is very social and is especially is known for following volunteers around demanding attention. Hee has been picking on other cats, so it may be best for him to be an only cat or at least be the dominant cat in the house.
So, there you have it! Come on down and meet this special boy.
More about Gus:
Medium
Orange/Red
Senior
Male
House-trained
Vaccinations up to date
Neutered
Not declawed
Special needs
Prefers a home without other cats
Want to adopt Gus? 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.
Wyoming: Roadwork, and delays, coming to 56th Street in early July
If 56th Street is one of your favorite routes to take to the RiverTown Crossings or to Maple Hill Golf Course, be warned: starting July 9 you will need to find a different route. 56th Street will be closed between Ivanrest Avenue and 56th Street for reconstruction that includes the road being widen to three lines.
Kentwood and Wyoming: Citizens invited to talk with Sen. Gary Peters
S.S. Sen. Peters will be in Grand Rapids on Saturday, June 30, at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum. (Supplied)
U.S. Sen. Gary Petters (D-Michigan) has announced that he will be traveling to four Michigan cities this summer for community meetings, and he will be in Grand Rapids on Saturday, June 30, for a 10 a.m. meeting at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum, 303 Pearl St NW.
WKTV on YouTube: U.S. Rep. Bill Huizenga talks tax cuts, recreational marijuana
U.S. Rep. Bill Huizenga (R-District 2) was the special governmental guest Monday, June 11, at the Wyoming-Kentwood Area Chamber of Commerce’s Government Matters Committee’s monthly forum at Kentwood City Hall. WKTV’s Ken Norris caught up with him.
UPDATED 6/28/2018: From the Wyoming Department of Public Safety, Marilyn June Lukso has been located and she is safe.
Wyoming Police are requesting the public’s assistance in locating a woman not seen by family since Saturday, June 23.
Marilyn June Lukso is a 62 year old white female, 5’-4”, 130#, has gray hair and green eyes. We are not sure what clothing she might be wearing. She is believed to be driving a silver 2008 Chrysler 300, four-door with a Michigan plate of 2LGK18. She may not have access to important medication.
If you have any information as to her whereabouts, please call the Wyoming Police at 616-530-7300 or Silent Observer.
U.S. Sen. Gary Petters (D-Michigan) has announced that he will be traveling to four Michigan cities this summer for community meetings.
Peters will be in Grand Rapids on Saturday, June 30, for a 10 a.m. meeting at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum, 303 Pearl St NW.
The other meetings will be held in Southfield and Flint. Peters has already started his summer tour in Ypsilanti.
Peters’ visit is meant to encourage Michigan residents to help their communities by voicing their opinions.
“I am proud to represent Michigan in the United States Senate, but I know the best ideas don’t come from Washington,” Peters said in supplied material. “As I travel across our state, I always look forward to hearing from Michiganders about what can be done in Washington to make Michigan the best place to live, work and raise a family.”
Peters also hosts “Coffee With Gary”, where Michigan residents traveling to the Washington area can talk with the senator on Tuesdays when the U.S. Senate is in session.
There’s perhaps no better way to inspire students to read than to put good books in their hands. That’s one message of Reading Now Network, and the motivation behind a $15,000 challenge grant from the Guido A. and Elizabeth H. Binda Foundation to enhance elementary classroom libraries.
New books should be on the shelves this fall, said Godfrey-Lee Superintendent Kevin Polston.
Enhancing the district’s classroom libraries was a key recommendation of the Reading Now Network earlier this school year, after a team of literacy experts visited classrooms, met with teachers and reviewed the literacy program at Godfrey Elementary School and the Godfrey-Lee Early Childhood Center. RNN is a collective effort of superintendents, school boards and school districts throughout West Michigan to improve early literacy and student achievement across all grade levels.
“We are honored that the Binda Foundation and Reading Now Network, in collaboration with Kent ISD, have invested in the students of Godfrey-Lee Public Schools,” Polston said in a press release. “Rich classroom libraries, filled with engaging texts, is a proven strategy to increase literacy achievement. We could not be more excited to do this work alongside our strong partners, to grow the learning of our students.”
The gift was given in honor of Vern Boss, retired superintendent of Kent ISD and a retired trustee of the Binda Foundation. The funds were issued as a challenge grant that calls for the school district to raise $15,000 in matching funds from individuals and community partners. Polston said Godfrey-Lee has already raised the funds.
The grant should be of great benefit to Godfrey-Lee students, said Kyle Mayer, assistant superintendent for Instructional Services at Ottawa Area Intermediate School District and a member of the Reading Now Network Leadership Team.
“We know that student access to abundant and culturally relevant reading materials is an essential practice in literacy and has been an ongoing focus of Reading Now Network for several years,” Mayer said. “We are so excited and grateful for this support at Godfrey-Lee. It’s going to be a difference-maker for the children. We can’t wait to watch them discover all of the new and interesting reading materials.”
ByLinda Cronk, Michigan State University Extension
Why is it so important for people with type 2 diabetes to maintain day-to-day normal blood sugar levels?As we have often been told, the complications of diabetes caused by high blood sugar levels can, over time, do permanent damage to many parts of our bodies. According to the book Living a Healthy Life with Chronic Conditions, by Dr. Kate Lorig, et al, the number one complication of diabetes over time is heart disease.
Other complications include:
nerve damage or neuropathy, which might mean burning, tingling, numbness or loss of feeling in our hands and feet
liver and kidney damage
vision problems such as cataracts, glaucoma or even blindness
infections that persist
gum disease
skin and foot problems from poor wound healing
sexual problems for men and women — erectile dysfunction, yeast infections, vaginal dryness or loss of desire.
What are the best ways to maintain healthy blood sugar levels day-to-day?Michigan State University Extension says that the most basic ways to prevent or delay complications of diabetes are to choose elements of a healthy lifestyle:
Keep yourself physically active
Pick healthy food options in portion sizes that are right for you
Don’t smoke
Be proactive to manage your stress levels
Take any medications as directed by your health care provider
Monitor your blood sugar levels as directed by your health care provider
Have regular tests to determine how your health strategies are working and to modify strategies, in consultation with your health care provider, if tests show you need to make changes
What are the tests and procedures that people with diabetes need to determine whether their health strategies are working? If you are not familiar with tests that all people with diabetes need on a regular basis, the book Living a Healthy Life with Chronic Conditions explains:
Blood pressure: should be measured at every doctor visit
Feet: should be checked for unhealed sores at every visit, and have a complete foot exam at least once a year
A1c: should be tested at least twice a year, A1c is a blood test to determine what your average blood glucose level was for the past 2-3 months. Most people should aim for an A1c below 7, or as recommended by your healthcare team
Kidney function: should be tested once a year by means of a blood or urine test or both
Blood lipids (fats): total cholesterol; LDL, low-density lipoprotein; HDL, high-density lipoprotein; and triglycerides should be tested at least once a yea
Eyes: should be tested once a year with a dilated eye exam, in which your eye care professional uses eye drops to dilate the pupils
Teeth and gums: should be checked by a dentist twice a year
Pneumonia shot: People with diabetes should receive a shot no matter what age. Even if you have had one shot and are over 65, ask your doctor about having another shot
Flu shot: recommended once a year for people with diabetes
As with all chronic diseases, active managing of Type 2 diabetes is an ongoing necessity to prevent or delay complications of the disease. Ensuring that your blood sugar levels remain within a healthy range is crucial.
Besides the medication management, the other requirements to manage diabetes are very similar to living a healthy lifestyle under all conditions: be physically active, choose a healthy eating plan, manage stress levels, don’t smoke and visit your health care provider regularly. For more information about managing Type 2 diabetes, visit the National Diabetes Education Program website. To find disease prevention programs available in your area please visit the MSU Extension website.
If you enjoy going to the Fulton Street Farmer’s Market, stopping at roadside vegetable stands, and “eating local” at restaurants, this is the book for you. Written by Jaye Beeler, former food editor and restaurant reviewer for The Grand Rapids Press, who aims to eat locally shares her favorite Michigan foods with us in this mouth-watering book. The stunning photographs are by Dianne Carroll Burdick, a veteran local photographer, whose work has appeared in six books and over fifty art exhibitions.
Jaye and Dianne’s year-long journey took them all over the state, driving 2,500 miles and taking 8,000 photographs. Michigan is the second-most agriculturally diverse state in the country. Jaye and Dianne visited small family farms growing everything from asparagus to zucchini. They sought out orchards that produce peaches, cherries and antique apples. They stopped by fisheries, meat markets, bakeries and restaurants. They tasted fresh milk, goat cheese and ice cream from dairies.
Some of my personal favorites in the book are the thimbleberry jam from the Jampot in Eagle Harbor, the Raclette from Leelanau Cheese in Suttons Bay, and smoked whitefish from John Cross Fisheries in Charlevoix. There are 26 pages of delicious recipes — don’t miss Zingerman’s Roadhouse macaroni and cheese, Christmas Cove’s apple pie and Rob Burdick’s roasted squash. This book is a perfect companion for any Michigan roadtrip.
So buckle your seat belt and loosen a notch in your belt and savor our state’s fine homegrown food.
If 56th Street is one of your favorite routes to take to the RiverTown Crossings or to Maple Hill Golf Course, be warned: starting July 9 you will need to find a different route.
It is around July 9 that 56th Street will be closed between Ivanrest Avenue and Byron Center Avenue for reconstruction that includes the road being widen to three lines.
“The addition of the left-turn lane has really helped us be able to put in a traffic light at 56th and Ivanrest, which has been long over due at that intersection,” said Russ Henckel, assistant director of the city’s Department of Public Works. Currently the intersection is a four-way stop. Without the left turn lane, it hindered the city in putting in the traffic signal, Henckel said.
Along with the widening of the road, on the north side, a regional pathway of a 10-foot sidewalk will be constructed and on the south side, a standard sidewalk of five feet will be constructed.
Regular traffic will be rerouted to 52nd Street and truck traffic will be rerouted to 44th Street.
“Out of all the road work that we have for the summer, the 56th Street project probably will have the most impact on drivers,” Henckel said.
The reason beinging is that the road will be totally shut down to through traffic (it will be open to local businesses and residents) unlike road resurfacing projects where a lane is maintained during a project to allow for traffic flow.
The City of Wyoming has a pretty extensive resurfacing program with this year focusing on a number of the city’s neighborhood roads, according to Henkel. A couple of the bigger resurfacing projects for the City of Wyoming are the west mile and a half of 44th Street from Burlingame to Clyde Park avenues and Michael Avenue from 28th Street to Prairie Parkway.
Bids for the city’s resurfacing projects just went out with the Wyoming City Council expected to review and approve final bids at its July 2 meeting, Henckel said.
Total cost for the 56th street reconstruction is around $2.4 million which includes the city’s portion of $630,500. According to city staff, the cost does not include the city’s engineering and other expenses, which will bring the total project to about $3 million. The city will pay for its portion of construction costs out of its Capital Improvement Fund.
Listeners who know Kaleo know the band is much more than simply “Way Down We Go”; but others know the band mostly via the 2016 single played almost to the point of no return on alt/pop satellite and terrestrial radio stations.
Either way, the haunting, infectious tune — anchored by lead singer JJ Julius Son’s mesmerizing bluesy voice —was undeniably a hit tune that announced the presence of a new band with maybe unlimited potential.
Both casual and dedicated fans of Kaleo will get a chance to see and hear the group’s range when the band hits the stage of 20 Monroe Live Sunday, July 1.
Kaleo comes to Grand Rapids from Iceland via either Austin, Texas, or Los Angeles —depending on where you hear/read the band now makes its home — after coming to America to seek a wider audience if not rockstar fame and fortune.
“It has obviously been a big change coming from a small country of 300 thousand people in Iceland to the USA with over 300 million people,” Julius Son (actual, but probably always mispronounced, name: Jökull Júlíusson ), says on the band’s official website. “We’ve learned a lot, and we are more experienced now than when we first came. Overall it’s been a great adventure.”
That great adventure — for lead singer and guitarist Julius Son as well as drummer David Antonsson, bassist Daniel Kristjansson and lead guitarist Rubin Pollock — includes the well-received, Nashville-recorded, 2016 release A/B, which included “Way Down We Go”; the first single off the LP and clearly country influenced “All the Pretty Girls”; as well as the Grammy nominated rocker “No Good”.
The concept behind A/B comes from Julius Son’s love of the split sides of vinyl records and their ability to showcase an artist’s different sides, according to the band’s website.
“I write very different songs that many would like to label into different genres,” he says. “The idea of A/B is to show the diversity and the two sides of the band.”
The “A” side is more rock ’n’ roll and blues, with “No Good”, “Way Down We Go” and “Hot Blood”. The “B” side, in contrast, is more mellow ballads including “All the Pretty Girls”, “I Can’t Go On Without You” and proof that the band is not hiding from their Icelandic home, “Vor I Vaglaskogi” (“Spring in Vaglaskogur”, I read), and the name of a forest in the north of Iceland.
While “Vor I Vaglaskogi” is a traditional Icelandic love song, and the only one sung in the band’s native language. However, looking for too many personal connections to Julius Son’s life is probably not productive.
“I prefer to let the listener decide what each song means to them instead of me telling my own personal connection,” he said on his website. “Some of the songs are very personal for me, though — some more than others. But it seems that different people connect to songs in a different way, often based on personal experiences or things that you are going through at that time.”
A/B was primarily produced and recorded in Nashville with producer Jacquire King, who has worked with artists as varied as Tom Waits, Kings of Leon, Norah Jones, Buddy Guy, James Bay, and (fellow Icelanders) Of Monsters and Men.
20 Monroe Live is located at 11 Ottawa Avenue NW, in downtown Grand Rapids. Tickets are $49.50 and can be purchased at livenation.com .
This photo was an entry in the 2017 West Michigan Photo Contest. Photo by Nathan Logsdon
By Jeremy Witt, West Michigan Tourist Association
The West Michigan Tourist Association (WMTA) is excited to announce the launch of their 2018 West Michigan Photo Contest. With so much beauty found in West Michigan, the West Michigan Tourist Association wants travelers to show off what they love most about this beautiful side of the state, and win some great West Michigan prizes! The contest is looking for traveler photo submissions from all around West Michigan. This region covers the entire west side of Michigan from the Indiana border to Mackinac Island and into the Upper Peninsula.
All photo entries must be received by July 31, 2018, for public voting by WMTA’s Facebook audience. Last year, more than 35,000 votes were cast during the public vote. All winning photos will be featured in WMTA’s upcoming West Michigan Carefree Travel Guide, printed in January 2019. The first place photo will also be featured on the cover of the Guide.
The accepted photo formats are high resolution (300 dpi+) jpeg or tiff. CMYK is preferred. Email submissions to PhotoContest@WMTA.org and include the full name of the photographer, the Michigan city in which the photograph was taken, and a short description of the photo. Submit one photo per email; multiple entries per person allowed.
UPDATED 6/28/2018: From the Wyoming Department of Public Safety, Marilyn June Lukso has been located and she is safe.
