Tuesday was primary election day in Michigan. (Photo by Jeff Miller/UW-Madison)
WKTV Staff
ken@wktv.org
Quote of the (Primary Election) Day
“Trust is not something that’s given because you win an election; it is something you have to earn.” — Tom Perez
Dead people should not vote
Michigan Secretary of State Ruth Johnson, left, with new voting equipment.(Supplied/SOS office)
The Michigan Department of State recently detailed that as part of the state’s election security readiness, Secretary of State Ruth Johnson and the state’s Bureau of Elections have cleared the state’s voting registration rolls of about 1.2 million names since 2011, including more than 500,000 dead people. To get the details, click here.
Some got talent; some …
Asamu Johnson and The Associates of The Blues. (Supplied)
Kentwood City Hall and the surrounding area will be buzzing with activity on Aug. 11 as the community’s Celebrate Kentwood event returns for a day of fun and celebration and music from both professionals and amateurs, as also returning to the annual festival will be Kentwood’s Got Talent. Modeled after the popular TV show, the talent competition will feature singers, dancers and other performers from the community. Show time is set for 7p.m. For more information, click here.
Give the gift of life, give blood
(U.S. Air National Guard photo)
Metro Health-University of Michigan Health will hold a blood drive Tuesday, Aug. 14, from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m., at the Manistee Community Room of the Metro Health Professional Building at 2122 Health Dr., Wyoming. For more on the drive, click here.
And today’s fun fact(s):
38 and 10
Approximately 38 percent of the national population is eligible to donate, but annually less than 10 percent actually does. Each year, 4.5 million Americans would die without blood transfusions.
As Michigan voters go to the polls this week for primary elections, there will be nearly 200,000 fewer registered voters on the rolls in Kentwood, Wyoming and around the state as there were prior to the 2016 election.
The Michigan Department of State recently detailed that as part of the state’s election security readiness, Secretary of State Ruth Johnson and the state’s Bureau of Elections have cleared the state’s voting registration rolls of about 1.2 million names since 2011, about 200,000 since 2016.
Call it voter “validation” or “scrubbing” or “purging,” the breakdown of the 1.2 million total, according to Johnson’s office, includes about 563,000 once-registered voters who have died, about 500,000 who moved within the state and re-registered, about 134,000 who moved out of state and have registered as voters elsewhere, and — Secretary Johnson specifically points out — “3,512 non-citizens”.
The Secretary of State and the Bureau of Elections Qualified Voter File upgrades are only part of a recent and ongoing voter security effort in the state, and WKTV has been covering those efforts.
Michigan Secretary of State Ruth Johnson, left, with new voting equipment.(Supplied/SOS office)
As part of “continuous voter-list maintenance efforts, the Bureau of Elections and local clerks regularly scrub the voter list to remove ineligible voters,” Johnson has stated a press release from her office and in an op-ed submitted to other media. This includes “an upgraded Qualified Voter File system used by the Bureau of Elections and local clerks to maintain the state’s registered voter list and other election-related data.”
Not everybody gives the state Qualified Voter File system as glowing a review, however.
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Michigan questions the claim of the non-citizen voters purged and advocates for another way the state’s system could be made better — by citizen action rather than government action.
“I haven’t seen any proof to substantiate the claim that thousands of non-citizens were purged from the voting rolls,” Sharon Dolente, Voting Rights Strategist for the ACLU of Michigan, said to WKTV. “Between 2013 and the present, the Secretary has offered numbers ranging from 11 to 3,500, but absolutely no proof.
“Michigan (also) needs a failsafe system that allows an eligible voter to re-register if they were improperly purged,” Dolente said. “Same Day Registration would provide that failsafe. Voters will have a chance to implement this policy measure through the Promote the Vote initiative this fall.”
The “non-citizens” total is 0.3 percent of all voters scrubbed from the rolls and 0.05 percent of the total number of registered voters in Michigan, which is 7,387,689 as of July 28, according to Johnson’s office.
In brief, local city and township clerks, including the cities of Wyoming and Kentwood, perform the actual scrubbing of registered voter files, as directed by the Secretary of State and the Bureau of Elections. The Kent County Clerk’s election division is not directly involved.
“Michigan’s Qualified Voter File (QVF) is maintained, and voters can only be added or removed, by the Secretary of State or Michigan’s municipal (280 city or 1,240 township) clerks throughout the state,” Robert J. Macomber, Chief Deputy County Clerk, said to WKTV. “A county clerk does not have the authority to remove voters from the QVF, even despite being the issuer of death certificates.
“While serving as the chief Elections Official of the county voting process, the County Clerk only serve as a pass-through with regards to the voter registration process. An individual may register to vote at their County Clerk’s office, but we forward that paperwork onto the local clerks, as they serve as the maintainer of the voter lists for their respective jurisdiction.”
Removal of voters who have died is a straight-forward process, and occurs if “the clerk receives or obtains information that the voter has died. (From) sources: QVF inbox notification; county clerk; death notices published in newspaper; personal knowledge,” as detailed in the elections manual.
Voters who moved out of state are removed after it is confirmed they have registered to vote using an out-of-state address that is newer than their Michigan home address and/or registration. But the removal of voters from Michigan voter rolls using the Interstate Crosscheck system takes time.
“All people believed to have moved away are sent mailings prior to the registration cancellation,” Fred Woodhams, spokesperson for the Secretary of State’s office, said to WKTV. “The actual cancellation does not happen until two federal election cycles (Novembers in an even year) have occurred. If the person votes or updates their voter information in Michigan before the cancellation occurs, the cancellation process stops.”
The Interstate Crosscheck system is run by the Kansas Secretary of State, according to multiple media reports. Other states send in their voter data and Kansas processes it, then notifies them if there are any possible matches. Matches can occur when people move to a new state and register to vote without cancelling their previous registration. In 2017, 28 states participated and 7.2 million potential matches were identified.
Use of the system recently suffered a legal setback as a federal court in June blocked an Indiana voter registration law which would allow the state to immediately strike voters from the electoral rolls.
Voters who have moved within the state of Michigan and re-register can, however, be removed from old voter rolls immediately.
Removal can and will occur if “a voter who moves to a new jurisdiction within Michigan has his or her voter registration address change along with the address for the person’s driver’s license or state ID card,” Woodhams said. “In this case, we can be certain the person has moved out of one jurisdiction into another.”
The process of determining if a person is not a American citizen was not detailed by the Secretary of State’s office.
Also, Woodhams said there is no statistics kept on how many voters were scrubbed broken down by political party. Michigan does not require voters to choose a party when registering and “only presidential primary ballots ore differentiated by party … August primary voters are all issued one ballot that contains columns of candidates for the Republican, Democratic and Libertarian parties. The voter marks the ballot only in the column for one of the parties.”
Various city leaders and local law enforcement were on hand for the official reading of the National Night Out proclamation at Consumers Energy this morning.
The annual morning event, which was at the Consumers Energy offices, 4000 Clay Ave., have officials and officers from Rockford, Walker, Grandville, Grand Rapids, Kentwood and Wyoming.
Wyoming Chief Kim Koster and Kentwood Chief Thomas Hillen
Kicking off at 5:30 a.m., Consumers Energy had two of its large trucks with buckets extended above U.S. 131 to help draw attention to the annual event. Consumers Energy employees were handing out light bulbs to those traveling down Clay Avenue.
For the 24th consecutive year, Consumers Energy has been recognized by the National Association of Town Watch as the recipient of “National Electric Utility Award” for its participation in National Night Out 2017. National Night Out promotes police-community partnerships and neighborhood camaraderie to make neighborhoods safer, more caring places to live. Area residents are encouraged to turn their porch light on and go out and meet their neighbors.
More activities will be taking place later this afternoon and evening in both the communities of Kentwood and Wyoming.
In Kentwood, the city’s big kick off will be at Woodland Mall from 3— 5 p.m. Residents will have to opportunity to met with Kentwood police and firefighters and get an up-close look at emergency vehicles. There will be a bicycle raffle and a special visit from McGruff the Crime Dog.
There is about 20 different neighborhood events taking place throughout the city, several of which will have a variety of entertainment. Those with special activities are:
• Christ Community Church, 2400 Forest Hill Ave. SE, 5— 7 p.m., will have water slides, games, food and beverages.
• Wingate Apartments, 3151 Wingate Dr. SE, 5— 7 p.m., will have a dunk tank and live music.
• South United Methodist Church, 4500 S. Division Ave., 6— 8 p.m, will have live music, a water slide, games, hot dogs, ice cream, snow cones and punch.
• Faith Church, 1412 44th St. SE, 6— 8 p.m., will have face painting, music, games, hot dogs, and pop.
Walker Mayor Mark Huizenga, Wyoming Mayor Jack Poll, Kentwood Mayor Stephen Kepley, and Grand Rapids Mayor Rosalynn Bliss.
• Pentecostals of Kentwood, 2627 44th St. SE, 6—8 p.m., will have a bounce house, puppets, live music, games, food and beverages.
• St. Paul’s United Method Church and Forest Pointe Apartments, 3334 Breton Ave. SE, 6—8 p.m., will have lawn games, sidewalk chalk, basketball, food and beverages.
In Wyoming, the city’s big event is the National Night Out Concerts in the Park hosted by the Wyoming Enrichment Commission. The event starts at 6 p.m. with activities and at 7 p.m. Chief Kim Koster will make a short presentation and announcing the Yellow Brick Road, dueling pianos that will feature the music of Billy Joel and Elton John.
The City of Wyoming has about 15 neighborhood parties ranging from small gatherings to those with an arrange of activities. Those open to the public are:
• Oriole Park Neighborhood Watch will host an event at Oriole Park, which is located off of 40th Street, from 6—8 p.m.
• South Godwin Neighborhood Watch will host an event at Southlawn Park, 4125 Jefferson Ave. SE., from 6—8 p.m.
• Grace University, 1011 Aldon St. SW, from 5—7 p.m.
Also near Kentwood Community Church will be the South Kent National Night Out event from 4—8 p.m.The event will include a number of emergency vehicles from several area departments, food and other activities. The event will have demonstrations by the K-9 Unit, vehicle extraction demonstrations, the Kent County Sheriff’s Mounted Unit, children ID packets, a bounce house and dunk tank. The church is located at 1200 60th St. SE.
By Beth Clawson, Michigan State University Extension
Michigan is home to more than 1.3 million onsite wastewater treatment systems. Most are for single family homes that include a septic system. Indeed, the onsite wastewater treatment system including a septic tank and soil absorption field is the most common domestic wastewater treatment system in rural homes in the United States. In Michigan, it is estimated that 10 percent of these systems are in some level of malfunction or have failed.
Malfunctioning and failed onsite waste water systems make our ground and surface waters susceptible to fecal contamination. Several rivers in the Lower Peninsula have been tested during low-flow conditions and were found to contain genetic markers indicating the presence of human fecal matter. This contamination can come from leaky septic systems. Keeping septic systems in good repair can protect Michigan’s water quality.
Rural homes in Michigan include onsite wastewater systems that require regular maintenance. Maintenance and inspection of your system depends upon its size, the number of people that live in the home and what county you live in. Michigan is the last state to still adopt uniform onsite wastewater regulations. Lack of uniform statewide laws leaves regulation and inspection laws up to local officials through county health departments and districts. This means that rules for onside wastewater system laws vary between counties.
Most counties have a sale transfer ordinance requiring septic tank inspections but few have the same or similar size and installation regulations. Most ordinances cite the average of pumping and inspecting recommendation of every three years for a family of four. Many also require inspection of newly installed systems. None return a year or two later to ensure that the system is functioning properly.
An onsite wastewater system typically consists of three basic parts:
The drain waste pipes from the house into a septic tank;
The septic or settling tank, sometimes divided in half with a baffle; and
The dispersion box and soil absorption or drain field.
Waste water flows from the toilets, laundry and sinks in the home through the drain pipes to the septic tank. The septic tank, made of solid cast concrete (in most cases) has an inlet and an outlet for effluent. Once the waste enters the tank the solids settle to the bottom to decompose and become the sludge layer. Effluent water is in the middle and the lighter grease and soaps float to the top to create the scum layer. The effluent water flows out through a pipe to the drain field. Newer tanks sometimes contain a baffle creating a second settling area before water is released to the soil absorption field. Michigan State University Extension’s webpage on Septic systems gives more detail on this topic.
If the sludge is not pumped out on a regular basis then the layer gets thick allowing solids to flow into the drain field. This plugs and compacts in the drain tiles and the soil causing failure. Many times people think that this is a sign that the septic is full, and indeed it is but it is also a failure. Drain field failure requires soil removal and replacement and can become an expensive repair. This is one of the most common failures. Other common causes of septic failure include tanks collapsing from being driven or parked on; tree roots; excessive water from parties or heavy rains; pipes clogged from flushing items other than toilet paper such as, feminine products and personal sanitary wipes; biological processes stopped from over use of chlorine or antibiotic soaps.
If you are experiencing sewage waste backup into your house from your septic tank this may indicate a total blockage of the tank and drain field and could indicate a costly repair or replacement. Regular inspections and pumping can prevent expensive repairs later. Just as it is recommended to regularly inspect our cars and furnaces, we should also inspect and clean out our onsite waste water systems. The average recommendation is every three years for a typical family home with three bedrooms equipped with a 1000 gallon tank. It’s important to know the size of your septic tank.
Older homes may have smaller tanks. Smaller tanks need to be pumped more often. For example, if a three-bedroom home has a 900-gallon septic tank with six people living there, they should schedule their pumping for every one and one half to two years to avoid failure. If a home uses a garbage disposal, consider that they are increasing the amount of solids (pre-digestion) going into the tank. This home will require more frequent pumping.
Concrete, plastic and fiberglass tanks are not infallible, lots of things can cause the material to fail resulting in collapse. Inspectors look at the integrity of your system. Fractures caused by frost/freeze break up, ground heaves, earthquakes, manufacturer defect, burrowing animals, and tree roots all have an impact on our systems. Michigan DEQ does have a guide on subsurface onsite wastewater treatment systems but its recommendations are not enforceable by law. Michigan County Environmental Health departments have laws, consult your County for its recommendations for onsite waste water system maintenance.
For more in depth information the National Environmental Services Center, West Virginia University has a good publication that includes a time table in years for pumping recommendations at http://www.nesc.wvu.edu/pdf/ww/septic/pl_fall04.pdf.
If you want to learn more there are videos available: Click here for a short video (under five minutes) about onsite wastewater septic systems, or click here for a longer training video (about 110 minutes) about onsite wastewater septic systems.
For more information about and water quality contact Beth Clawson, MSU Extension Educator. To learn more about onsite waste water treatment septic tanks, contact Michigan State University Extension Natural Resources educators who are working across Michigan to provide water quality and septic tank maintenance educational programming and assistance. You can contact an educator through MSU Extension’s “Find an Expert” search tool using the keywords “Natural Resources Water Quality.”
By Sonny Haskins, Master of Public Health Care Administration Intern at Wyoming Community Health Center
Colorectal cancer is the third most common cancer diagnosed in men and women. It is the third leading cause of cancer related deaths in women, and the second leading cause in men.
Lifetime risk of developing colorectal cancer:
1 in 21 for men
1 in 23 for woman
The American Cancer Society estimates that in the United States in 2017 there will be:
95,520 new cases of colon cancer
39,910 new cases of rectal cancer
Colorectal cancer is a concern throughout the United States, however death rates from colorectal cancer has declined over several decades for both men and women. This trend may be caused by the improved care to treat colorectal cancer over the years. The decline can also be credited to the ability to screen patients for early signs of the cancer; with these screenings, colorectal cancer can be prevented.
When you should get your colorectal cancer screening:
You should begin screening annually soon after you turn 50 years old
If you or a close family member have had colorectal cancer or signs of colorectal cancer
If you have been diagnosed with familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP)
If you have been diagnosed with hereditary non-polyposis colorectal cancer (Lynch Syndrome)
If you have not been screened for colorectal cancer contact your primary care provider to schedule your appointment today.
Remember with a colorectal cancer screening you can be preventing cancer!
Even with a six percent increase in fire and emergency calls in 2017, the City of Wyoming has been able to achieve a 4 minute and 27 second response time throughout the city.
And in some areas of the city, such as the southwest end, those response times have improved to just over three minutes with the re-opening of the Gezon fire station to 24/7 and the addition of two quick response vehicles.
The city plans to maintain those response times and its level of service through the passage of a permanent renewal of its 1.25 mills for public safety, which is on tomorrow’s primary ballot. Chief Kim Koster credits a number of programs that have been developed over the past eight years — when the millage was first approved — that have helped provide more efficiencies within the department so the city could maintain services to its residents.
One of those programs was the training of 22 city employees from the parks and recreation and public works departments as firefighters. This training allowed the department to call upon the employees to help with fires and other emergency calls when needed.
From the Wyoming Department of Public Safety 2017 Annual Report.
“So in a matter of minutes we would have more than the eight or nine firefighters that we had on, but we could have fourteen or fifteen people who are trained in fire to an emergency,” Koster said during a recent interview on WKTV Journal In Focus. “That definitely increased our service to the community and gave us a lot. It also really provided safety for our firefighters as well because they had more (people) on the scene.”
The program is unique and Koster said she is not aware of another city that has trained city employees to be firefighters.
“We do have paid on-call as well, but in today’s society it is more difficult for employers to let a volunteer or a paid on-called firefighter to leave their job to go fight a fire,” Koster said, adding that the paid-on call staff are still important to the department.
“Between the part-time, the paid on-call and those dual-trained employees, we feel we are addressing our staffing issues efficiently and using tax dollars very wisely with that,” Koster said.
The city also purchased two quick response vehicles, medical vehicles that have firefighting capability, Koster said. These vehicles only require two people to man versus an engine which needs three to four.
“So we were able to put two of those machines out along with an engine from our fleet and we would have three vehicles that would respond to emergencies versus the two,” Koster said. “So we increased our response times to our citizens that way.”
Chase, the Wyoming K-9 dog, at a recent public safety open house.
Also in the fire department, three full-time firefighters have been added and a program was instituted to utilized part-time staff during high call volumes to help increase staff.
In the police department, the city has been able to save dollars through consolidations and collaborations with other area departments that included the centralized 911 dispatch, Koster said. The police department is also accredited, which only about one percent in the United States are.
“And that, I believe, really tells the taxpayers that we take our job seriously,” Koster said. “That we are accountable and we are transparent using their tax dollars to the best of our abilities.”
Showing that the city would use the money raised from the public safety to the best of its abilities was a key reason that the city decided to seek only a five-year millage in 2010, according to Major Jack Poll.
“So we went with the five-year millage so that after five years we could go back and say this is what we promised, this is what we accomplished,” he said.
However with costs continuing to climb and state funding shrinking, city officials see a need for those funds in order to maintain the current level of public safety services, which is why the 2018 proposal seeks a permanent renewal, Poll said.
There were a number of new business openings this month with the Wyoming Kentwood Area Chamber of Commerce hosting several ribbon cutting events.
Triune Financial
On July 19, Grand Rapids-based bookkeeping company triune Financial hosted a ribbon cutting ceremony and open house. The business is located at 401 Hall St. SW in the Roosevelt Park Neighborhood and also has received accreditation from the Better Business Bureau. For more information on Triune Financial, visit the company’s website.
Hungerford Nicholas CPAs + Advisors
On July 12, there was a ribbon cutting ceremony for the accounting firm of Hungerford Nicholas CPAs + Advisors for its newly renovated building. The accounting firm has been a part of the Greater Grand Rapids area for more than 75 years and is located at 2910 Lucerne Dr. SW. For more about Hungerford Nicholas CPAs + Advisors, visit the company’s website.
The internet is full of job search tips. Weeding through the clutter can be time-consuming. How do you know which ones to trust? We’ve pulled together our favorite job search tips – all in one place – just for you. Bookmark this page for yourself, a friend or family member to reference while job searching.
The Honolulu House Museum again will be the center of home-tour activities. The eight private homes on tour will be announced soon. (Photo courtesy Marshall Historical Society)
The 55th Annual Marshall Historic Home Tour on September 8th & 9th will feature 19 homes, with one home having ties to a major motion picture being released later in September.
On tour for the second consecutive year is the 1873 Italianate-style home that inspired the 1973 novel The House with a Clock in Its Walls by Marshall author John Bellairs. The movie version starring Jack Black and Cate Blanchett will be released September 20th, 2018.
Marshall’s railroad center, an octagon-shaped building that once stored luggage at the city’s railroad depot, has been reconstructed just north of the city. Marshall had been a regular stop for trains running between Detroit and Chicago in the late 1800s.
The 2018 home tour will have 19 sites, including eight private homes and seven museums. Tour hours are 9am-5pm on Saturday, Sept. 8th and 10am-5pm on Sunday, Sept. 9th. The Honolulu House Museum, 107 N. Kalamazoo Ave., again will be the central hub for home tour activities.
The other buildings on tour represent a range of architectural styles and were built between 1850 and 1911. Related events will include an arts and crafts fair and a Civil War Ball.
“The home tour committee is thrilled to have more private homes on tour this year and a wonderful cross-section of homeowners,” said Jennifer Conley Darling, chair of the Marshall Historic Home Tour. “A younger generation is purchasing these historic homes and renovating them by honoring the original architecture with modern décor.”
Advance tickets cost $20 and are available through September 3rd at www.marshallhometour.org or by calling (269) 781-8544. Tickets will be $25 after September 3rd. Tickets are good for both tour days. Parking is free and free shuttle buses will run to the tour sites.
The Marshall Historic Home Tour began in 1964, and it has grown into the longest-running home tour in the Midwest. The Marshall Historical Society uses the home tour proceeds to maintain and enhance its three museums and to support community efforts to preserve, protect, and promote Marshall’s historic heritage.
The Grand Rapids Mini Maker Faire is back at the Grand Rapids Public Museum for a fifth year, on Saturday, Aug. 18, and Sunday, Aug. 19. There is still time for any makers interested in participating – the Call to Makers is now extended through Tuesday, Aug. 7.
Maker Faire celebrates community members who are making or creating things by inviting them to share with the public what they have made. Everyone is a maker, and unfinished products are also encouraged.
Part science fair, part county fair and part something entirely new, Maker Faire features both established and emerging local makers. The Grand Rapids Maker Faire is a family-friendly celebration featuring tech enthusiasts, crafters, educators, hobbyists, engineers, artists, students and commercial exhibitors.
This year, the Grand Rapids Maker Faire will feature an official Maker Faire beer, made by local brewery Two Guys Brewing. See what a brew day looks like at the Faire with Rivertown Homebrewers, learn more about Two Guys Brewing and enjoy samples of various craft beers and hard seltzers at the cash bar.
Also new for 2018 will be the Young Makers Area, with makers geared to inspire kids of all ages! This area will be comprised of makers who will teach children new skills and answer questions, as well as some of our youngest makers to show off what they have created.
The Faire will be open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 18, and Sunday, Aug. 19. Tickets are on sale at GrandRapids.MakerFaire.com.
Maker Faire is looking for participants who enjoy tinkering, hacking, building and designing new technology-based inventions. Any groups or individuals interested in participating in the Maker Faire should complete the application at GrandRapids.MakerFaire.com.
Spots are first come, first serve basis with openings inside and outside at the GRPM. Maker participation is free for those showcasing! Makers interested in selling products at their booth require a small commercial fee.
The Grand Rapids Mini Maker Faire is being organized by a collaborative committee that includes members from: DTE Energy, The Geek Group, Great Lakes Makers Grand Rapids Community College, Grand Valley State University, Kent District Library, Kent Intermediate School District, Michigan Crossroads Council- Boy Scouts of America, WMCAT and the Grand Rapids Public Museum.
Follow the development of the Grand Rapids Maker Faire on Twitter @makerfaireGR, as well as on its Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/makerfairegr/ .
Grand Rapids Mini Maker Faire is independently organized and operated under license fromMaker Media, Inc.
There are still a few days left to help area students get ready for school this fall by donating school supplies to the annual School Supply Santa campaign.
Set to wrap up on Aug. 8, School Supply Santa is actually the idea of Byron Center resident Denise Kooiker. In 2007, Kookier, a hair stylist, decided to hold a drive to collect school supplies when one of her clients told her about numerous families not being able to purchase backpacks, crayons, pencils, notebooks and other items that students need to start the school year.
Eleven years later, the program has grown, helping students in several school districts such as Kelloggsville, Godwin Heights, Wyoming, and Godfrey Lee. Now the organization collects boxes of school supplies that are distributed to the various schools.
There are numerous sites throughout the West Michigan area that are collecting items such at Kellogg Community Credit Union at the Metro Health Village and at its Patterson Avenue location; the YMCA Spartan location on Gezon Parkway; Byron Center’s South Harbor Church; Peach Wave along with several businesses in the Metro Health Village; For the Kids Gymnastics on 44th Street; and several local Starbucks. For a complete list of locations, visit the website, schoolsupplysanta.com.
Items that are needed are backpacks, crayons, colored pencils, dry erase markers, ear buds, folders, glue sticks, Post-it notes, Kleenex, pencils, markers, notebooks three-ring binders, and composition notebooks. Monetary donations also are accepted.
Once again the communities of Kentwood and Wyoming will be participating in National Night Out — this year on Tuesday, Aug. 7 — where residents are encouraged to turn their porch light on and come out and meet their neighbors. Go here for more info.
Wyoming hosts its last on-the-road meeting for the summer on Monday, Aug. 6.
“These are just great opportunities to get out in the community,” said Mayor Jack Poll during the meeting at Del-Mar. “We want our citizens to feel that we are very approachable and that they can come and talk with us.”
On Monday’s agenda are several items that will cover projects for the city’s parks and recreation and public works department along with several bid proposals and ordinance changes.
Michigan has an endless supply of grandchild-friendly activities, meaning long summer days filled with endless smiles and continuous laughter. These are the precious memories that last a lifetime.
The KDL Kelloggsville branch will host a Dot Mandala Painting Workshop Thursday, Aug 9. Go here for more details.
Fun fact:
Octopuses lay 56,000 eggs at a time.
The mother spends six months so devoted to protecting the eggs that she doesn’t eat. The babies are the size of a grain of rice when they’re born. (Source.) Then mom dies. And that's the thanks she gets.
The Wyoming City Council will have its last summer on-the-road meeting this Monday, Aug. 6, at Oriole Park, 1368 42nd St.
There will be a meet-and-greet from 6-7 p.m. with the meeting scheduled to start at 7 p.m. This is the third on-the-road meeting held this year with the first being in June at the Godfrey-Lee Early Education Center and in July at the Del-Mar Farms Community Room. Both of the meetings were well attended.
The on-the-road meetings were started last summer with the main goal being to provide an opportunity for residents to meet with council members in their own neighborhoods while taking part in council meetings.
“These are just great opportunities to get out in the community,” said Mayor Jack Poll during the meeting at Del-Mar. “We want our citizens to feel that we are very approachable and that they can come and talk with us.”
On Monday’s agenda is several items that will cover projects for the city’s parks and recreation and public works department along with several bid proposals and ordinance changes.
The council meets every first and third Monday of the month at 7 p.m. The meetings are broadcast live on WKTV Channel 26 and rebroadcast at 7 p.m. Thursday and Friday.
Members of The Salvation Army Kroc Center are encouraged to take advantage of a new offer this fall. All six-week programs in the fine arts will be discounted to only $5 for Kroc members when signing up before the early-bird deadline.
The new campaign is featured in the Kroc’s fall program guide, which is now available at GrKrocCenter.org. Interested non-members can sign up for a new membership for as little as $20 for a family of five (based on household income). Among the qualifying programs are classes in painting, clay sculpting, youth theater, and beginning ballet.
Non-members can enjoy discounts during the month of August as well. The Kroc Center will hold “Fine Art Fridays”on August 3, 10, 17, 24, and 31, where guests can receive 50% off each day pass by donating new, unopened art supplies like scissors, colored pencils, and watercolor paints.
“We are so excited to be expanding our fine arts programming this fall,” said Captain Bill Brutto, senior officer for The Salvation Army Kroc Center. “We know that our schools face many challenges that have reduced fine arts opportunities for kids, so we hope people will take advantage of these programs as we kick off the school year.”
Visit GrKrocCenter.org or call 616-588-7200 for more information.
Once again the communities of Kentwood and Wyoming will be participating in National Night Out — this year on Tuesday, Aug. 7 — where residents are encouraged to turn their porch light on and come out and meet their neighbors.
A nationwide movement started by the National Association of Town Watch in 1984, the annual event promotes police-community partnerships and neighborhood camaraderie to make neighborhoods safer, more caring places to live.
“The City of Kentwood is committed to fostering a strong sense of community where neighbors look out for neighbors, which is what National Night Out is all about,” Kentwood Mayor Stephen Kepley said. “The City’s police, firefighters, and entire leadership team encourage all to participate and to become active citizens in their neighborhoods.”
Various activities will be offered at several neighborhood National Night Out event.s
All residents have to do is turn their porch light on between 7— 10 p.m. to participate although many neighborhoods do much more hosting block parties that range from potlucks to an array of activities. Between the cities of Wyoming and Kentwood. there are about 35 different neighborhood parties taking place, most between 5— 8 p.m with local officers and firefighters attempting to make it to as many events as possible.
The day kicks off with Consumers Energy hosting an early morning event with both Wyoming Mayor Jack Poll and Kentwood Mayor Stephen Kepley there along with Kentwood Police Chief Tom Hilton and Wyoming Police Chief Kim Koster. The event also will be attended by officials from the Walker, Grandville and Grand Rapids communities as well as representatives from the Michigan State Police and the Kent County Sheriff’s Department.
Two large Consumers Energy trucks also will have buckets extended 75 feet above U.S. 131 to help draw attention to the event. which is from 5:30— 8 a.m. with a proclamation read at 7:15 a.m. Police and fire vehicles will line up in front of the Consumer Energy’s building at 4000 Clay Ave. SW.
City of Kentwood National Night Out Activities
The City of Kentwood will get its National Night Out activities started with an event at Woodland Mall from 3— 5 p.m. Residents will have to opportunity to met with Kentwood police and firefighters and get an up-close look at emergency vehicles. There will be a bicycle raffle and a special visit from McGruff the Crime Dog.
There is about 20 different neighborhood events taking place throughout the city, several of which will have a variety of entertainment. Those with special activities are:
• Christ Community Church, 2400 Forest Hill Ave. SE, 5— 7 p.m., will have water slides, games, food and beverages.
• Wingate Apartments, 3151 Wingate Dr. SE, 5— 7 p.m., will have a dunk tank and live music.
• South United Methodist Church, 4500 S. Division Ave., 6— 8 p.m, will have live music, a water slide, games, hot dogs, ice cream, snow cones and punch.
• Faith Church, 1412 44th St. SE, 6— 8 p.m., will have face painting, music, games, hot dogs, and pop.
• Pentecostals of Kentwood, 2627 44th St. SE, 6—8 p.m., will have a bounce house, puppets, live music, games, food and beverages.
• St. Paul’s United Method Church and Forest Pointe Apartments, 3334 Breton Ave. SE, 6—8 p.m., will have lawn games, sidewalk chalk, basketball, food and beverages.
“A strong alliance between citizens and law enforcement is necessary for achieving safer neighborhoods,” said Police Chief Tom Hillen. “Members of our department are always eager to connect with residents during National Night Out as it offers a great opportunity to build positive relationships and promote open communication.”
The City of Wyoming’s biggest National Night Out event is in conjunction with the Concerts in the Park series hosted by the Wyoming Community Enrichment Committee. There will be activities from 6—7 p.m. with Chief Koster making a presentation at 6:55 p.m. Then at 7 p.m. the Yellow Brick Road dueling pianos take over for a night of Billy Joel and Elton John music. The theme for the concert is super hero with everyone encouraged to dress as or where something from their favorite super hero.
The City of Wyoming has about 15 neighborhood parties ranging from small gatherings to those with an arrange of activities. Those open to the public are:
• Oriole Park Neighborhood Watch will host an event at Oriole Park, which is located off of 40th Street, from 6—8 p.m.
• South Godwin Neighborhood Watch will host an event at Southlawn Park, 4125 Jefferson Ave. SE., from 6—8 p.m.
• Grace University, 1011 Aldon St. SW, from 5—7 p.m.
Kent County Sheriff’s National Night Out Activities
The Kent County Sheriff’s Department will be part of the South Kent National Night Out event from 4—8 p.m. at Kentwood Community Church, 1200 60th Ave. SE.The event will include a number of emergency vehicles from several area departments, food and other activities. The event will have demonstrations by the K-9 Unit, vehicle extraction demonstrations, the Kent County Sheriff’s Mounted Unit, children ID packets, a bounce house and dunk tank.
For more on the South Kent National Night Out event visit its Facebook page.
Summer is in full swing here here in Michigan, and aside from the warm days and clear skies, summer means that the kids are out of school. Whether they’re around the corner or coming for a special visit, spending quality time with your grandkids is a great way to enjoy the season, and there are so many options for fun activities that everyone can enjoy. Having an itinerary for good weather and bad is essential for any grandparent, but which activities should be added to the list of must do’s? Here are 6 ideas for summer fun with the grandkids!
Rock Painting
Rock painting is a fun activity perfect for all ages. It’s also inexpensive, as most of us can find buckets of rocks in our backyard. Art projects are fun for everyone, but there’s more value in getting creative than just enjoyment: kids get to be expressive and work on problem-solving skills, and everyone gets a lasting keepsake from the visit.
There’s no right or wrong way to do rock painting. Just find any rocks, large or small, then wash them thoroughly to remove any dirt or sand on the surface. Acrylic paints are easy to find, washable, and dry quickly–just be sure to seal it with a spray sealant to make sure that your craft stays vibrant.
Baking
We all know how Michigan weather can be. One minute it’s a bright sunny day, and the next it’s a gloomy downpour. Baking is the perfect activity to make the most of less-than-perfect weather.
The family recipes will forever hold a place in your grandkids hearts, and passing along recipes is a meaningful way to make memories. But you can also consider mixing it up a bit with a more unconventional recipe. For example, kids love the creativity and silliness involved in making kitchen sink cookies. They consist of whatever you have lying around: nuts, candies, spices–the options are limitless. This is a great way to get your grandkids engaged and thinking creatively. You might end up with peanut butter and mint cookies with Cheerios on top, but you’ll have a blast bonding with your grandkids. Just remember, it’s best to make small batches.
Picnics
Everyone loves a good picnic. Getting away and eating a meal outside is a break in most people’s usual day-to-day, and they’re so easy to organize. Try picking a spot that’s near a nature walk or in a park. After you are done eating you can play and explore until your heart’s content.
Visiting an animal shelter
Visiting an animal shelter is another excellent rainy day activity. Many shelters have rooms for kids, under supervision, to interact and play with cats or dogs. Some shelters will even let you walk the animals. This serves a dual purpose: animals are socialized and more likely to make good pets, and your grandkids will have a blast interacting with them. Visiting animal shelters is also a valuable educational experience. It’s a way to build empathy towards animals, and inspire kids to give back to their communities.
Science experiments
Doing science experiments with your grandkids is educational and fun. It’s important to always keep children engaged with learning, even over the summer, and easy science projects are a great way to get them interested. There is nothing more memorable than watching their faces as they light up with wonder and amazement from a toilet paper rocket blasting off.
There are many science kits you can buy online or at the store, but you don’t have to spend a lot to create exciting projects. There are countless DIY experiments you find online. For example, try putting an egg in vinegar and watch as it dissolves the shell. Learn more about how plants grow by putting celery stalks in colored water. Or, you can always do the classic Mentos in diet soda trick to make an explosion–just put safety first, and be ready for some sticky clean-up!
Making jam
Michigan is full of amazing orchards and farms with a ‘pick your own’ option available. The summer offers a variety of fruit to choose from. The most popular ones include strawberries, peaches, blueberries, blackberries, cherries, and raspberries. Native Michigan fruits are a delicious treat when eaten fresh, but you can make them into another fun, educational activity by creating jams and preserves. Everything tastes better homemade, and jams are no exception. They’ll get to see the process from start to finish and bring home a sample of their work.
In the summer months, explore different ways you to connect with your grandkids. Michigan has an endless supply of grandchild-friendly activities, meaning long summer days filled with endless smiles and continuous laughter. These are the precious memories that last a lifetime.
Members of the awards committee for the Michigan Council for Exceptional Children spend hours debating applicants for the Teacher of the Year award. From videos of support to written testimonials, it is evident that each applicant is well-deserving of praise, but Michael Spagnuolo stood out and was named their 2018 Teacher of the Year.
Spagnuolo currently serves as the KTC CORE Program Instructor, a specialized training program in partnership with the YMCA that helps equip students with special needs with skills to help them become employable. He also works as the program director for the summer employment program, also for students with special needs.
Each day, he uses the motto “teamwork makes the dream work,” to encourage his students and remind them to work together.
“Michigan has some of the greatest educators in the country, and I feel incredibly honored and humbled to be the 2018 Teacher of the Year,” Spagnuolo said.
Spagnuolo credits his accomplishments to those around him at Kent ISD, Kent Transition Center.
“None of the accomplishments I have worked on would have been possible without the dream or the team,” he said. “I am elated to work for an organization that empowers their staff to ensure every student in every classroom achieves every day.”
Michael Spagnuolo (far right) with teachers from the KTC Core Program (School News Network)
Reflecting on his award, Spagnuolo dedicates his award to all the exceptional educators in the state of Michigan.
“I consider my career path my calling,” he said. “Receiving this award reinforces the joy I receive from being an educator and having the ability to positively impact the youth.”
Service dogs may help reduce levels of the stress hormone cortisol in military veterans who have post-traumatic stress disorder, a new study finds.
For the study, researchers compared a group of veterans with PTSD who had a service dog to a group of veterans on the waitlist to receive one.
“Our previous research suggests that the presence of a service dog reduced clinical PTSD symptoms and improved quality of life,” said study co-leader Maggie O’Haire. She is an assistant professor of human-animal interaction at Purdue University’s College of Veterinary Medicine, in West Lafayette, Ind.
“In this study, we wanted to determine if those beneficial effects also included changes in the physiology of stress,” O’Haire said in a university news release.
The researchers focused on cortisol, a biomarker involved in the stress response system, and one that is detected through saliva.
According to study co-leader Kerri Rodriguez, “military veterans with a service dog in the home produced more cortisol in the mornings than those on the wait list.”
Rodriguez explained that “this pattern is closer to the cortisol profile expected in healthy adults without PTSD.”
In addition, “having a service dog was also associated with less anger, less anxiety and better sleep,” she noted. Rodriguez is a human-animal interaction graduate student.
The findings are the first of their kind and offer insight into how service dogs may provide mental health benefits to veterans with PTSD, according to the study authors.
The researchers are now conducting a large-scale, long-term U.S. National Institutes of Health clinical trial comparing veterans with service dogs to those without.
The report was published in the journal Psychoneuroendocrinology.
Benefits of owning a dog:
Fight heart disease. Owning a dog has a positive impact on blood pressure, which is one of the main factors in heart attack and stroke, according to Thomas Boyden, MD, MS, Spectrum Health program director of preventive cardiology. The American Heart Association reports a link between pet ownership and lower cholesterol and triglyceride levels. Studies also show you’ll be more likely to survive a heart attack if you have a dog.
Relieve stress. “Being around pets, and dogs in particular, actually changes your body at a hormonal level,” Jared Skillings, PhD, ABPP, Spectrum Health chief of psychology said. Of course, it’s not a cure-all. “Getting a dog won’t cure depression or clinical anxiety, but it certainly can help.”
Reduce loneliness. Dogs provide unconditional love. They’re caring, excited to see you and glad to be by your side. Need to talk? “Dogs are good listeners and they’re not going to argue with you,” Dr. Skillings said.
Improve sociability. There’s also the added benefit of the camaraderie among dog owners. “Having a dog can connect people to other pet owners, which can reduce isolation, too,” Dr. Skillings said.
Inspire exercise. A study published in the journal BMC Public Health said the average dog owner walks 22 minutes more per day than those who don’t own a dog. Daily walks have lots of added benefits, from controlling chronic conditions to burning weight and improving moods.
Add purpose. Having a dog or any other pet can give you a reason to get going in the morning. Size doesn’t matter. In fact, cats, horses and birds can all have a similar effect. Even tiny pets—hamsters, mice, fish, insects—can imbue you with a sense of purpose. In one study, elderly people were asked to care for a cage of five crickets. After eight weeks, the people who had the crickets in their homes were less depressed and had better cognitive function than those in the control group.
As part of its Parks Master Planning events, the City of Kentwood has scheduled an ice cream social today, Aug. 1, at Northeast Park from 6 to 8 p.m.
WKTV Staff
ken@wktv.org
As part of The City of Kentwood continuing effort to seek public input for improving its Parks and Recreation Department programming through a series of Parks Master Planning events, the city has scheduled an ice cream social today, Aug. 1, at Northeast Park from 6 to 8 p.m.
Hosted by the city, the event will include complimentary ice cream for participants.
Residents of all ages will have the opportunity to help shape the future of Kentwood’s parks by sharing their ideas which will be used as a basis for future parks and recreation development.
“We welcome all residents and park users to join us at these events to help plan our parks,” Val Romeo, Kentwood Parks and Recreation director, said in supplied information. “We want to know what improvements the community wants to see. These events offer the perfect platform to share stories and insights as we begin to transform our parks.”
Following the event at Northeast Park, other opportunities for input will be offered during other upcoming community events including the Celebrate Kentwood gathering on Aug. 11, and the End of Summer Food Truck Festival on Sept. 15.
NOTE: As of 10:59 p.m. Aug. 2, the precautionary boil water advisory has been lifted and Clyde Park is now fully open to traffic.
The City of Wyoming is waiting for water test results to determine if a water advisory issued yesterday can be lifted.
Bacteriological test results should be available by midnight tonight, Aug 2.
A precautionary boil water advisory was put in place Tuesday evening due to a waterman break on Clyde Park between 26th Street and Cricklewood. About 45 customers are effected by the wtaermanin shutdown.
The area marked in black is under a precautionary boil water advisory.
The break caused a drop in pressure in the City of Wyoming water supply, bacterial contamination may have occurred in the water system. Bacteria are generally not harmful and are common throughout the environment.
What should a resident in the effective area do?
Do not drink the water without boiling it first. Bring all water to a boil, let it boil for one minute, and let it cool before using, or use bottled water. Boiled or bottled water should be used for drinking, making ice, brushing teeth, washing dishes, and preparing food. Boiling kills bacteria and other organisms in the water. Continue using boiled or bottled water until further notice.
The area marked in black is under a precautionary boil water advisory.
What happen? What is being done?
These precautionary actions are being taken due to the loss of water pressure in the water distribution system caused by a water main break on Aug. 1. Whenever a water system loses pressure for any significant length of time, precautionary measures are recommended. When a pressure loss occurs, water from inside a building may back flow into the water supply system.
The City has been working to get pressure restored, and water staff will be taking other remedial actions such as flushing and collecting bacteriological samples from around the system. The samples will be collected to determine that the water quality meets the state drinking water standard. Residents will be informed when tests show no bacteria and residents will no longer need to boil water. When water is restored, residents should remove aerators and flush water outlets for a minimum of five minutes.
The boil water notice shall remain in effect until results from the sampling verify the water is safe to drink. Customers will be advised when the boil water advisory has been lifted.
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).
Volunteer and Wyoming resident Leanne F. is no stranger to the strays in her area, but unfortunately there was one particular cat that was causing quite the commotion this spring (2018) when he kept harassing her newest porch resident who had been hanging around for about 3 months. It had taken about that long for her to gain this fine gray and buff tabby fella’s trust, as he would only appear to eat at her feral cat house when she wasn’t around.
Slowly, over time, he began to put on weight and build up his confidence and allow her to win him over. Although she has a heart of gold and will feed whomever is in need, she couldn’t allow this docile, gentle guy whom she nicknamed ‘Gray the Stray’ get the tar beaten out of him, so she enlisted Dr. Jen’s help when he appeared with an infected puncture wound on his head.
By the time schedules aligned, the topical medication she’d been applying had allowed the bite to heal and he was happily on the mend, having bonded with Leanne as she lovingly tended to him. However, it didn’t surprise anyone that Craig tested positive for FIV, which is transmitted solely by bite wounds. Even though you can’t find a nicer, more even-tempered cat that Craig here (who was born in the fall of 2016), ya can’t blame a guy for trying to defend himself, even if he failed. Now, he won’t have to worry about that ever again!
That. Face.
Once at the clinic Dr. Jen set to work neutering him and getting him program-ready, so this sweetheart could make his way down to our sanctuary in short order. His acclimation period was insignificant, as Craig obviously had been an indoor cat at some point and clearly remembered just how awesome that was. He made friends instantaneously, feline and human alike, and in no time at all had proven himself as one of the most easygoing guys we have. In fact, our cat care director stated that if all of our cats were like Craig, their jobs would be so much easier.
Craig is the perfect mix of playful and mellow, relishing time spent napping on the toddler beds as much as he does delighting the volunteers with his enthusiastic lust for life. He could really give or take another cat as a companion when he lands a home of his own, because as long as he has people to please, he is absolutely golden. One-on-one attention is what revs Craig’s engines, and when his rescuer came on shift the first Monday after his arrival, he literally galloped like gangbusters over to see her in response to her voice—how cool is that?
He is going to hands down (er, paws down) make the absolute BEST PET for a family who is looking for a fun, fine fella with lots of energy and eagerness to shower his human with affection!
More about Craig:
Medium
Domestic Short Hair
Adult
Male
Tabby (Gray/Blue/Silver)
House-trained
Vaccinations up to date
Neutered
Not declawed
Good in a home with other cats, children
Want to adopt Craig? 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.
Leah Davidson, 9, rolled down the hall in her hospital bed to visit Charlie in the playroom. Her mom and staff pushed her bed up to the door and Charlie walked up to the side of her bed to get some love from Leah.
She is being treated for osteogenesis imperfecta, a group of inherited disorders characterized by fragile bones that break easily. She smiled from ear to ear as she touched his nose, whispering, “Hi, Charlie.”
Photo by Taylor Ballek, Spectrum Health Beat
Charlie’s owner, Ronica Froese, especially enjoys Charlie’s visits to the hospital. They started their therapy visits in 2015 when Charlie was just a year old.
“I said if my horse can do this, this is what I want to do with my life,” Froese said. “And it turns out (Charlie) was made for the job.”
Froese handed out cards with Charlie’s hoof print on them, as well as small plush horses with Band-Aids on their legs that read, “Get well.”
Several children enjoyed their visit with the handsome miniature horse, who sports sneakers and a great attitude.
Froese’s favorite part is seeing the children’s big smiles.
“It’s good for everybody’s heart,” Froese said.
The Child Life team at Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital is always looking for community visitors to bring activities and events to the hospital for patients. If you are interested in having your group host an event, more information is available online.
Murari Suvedi came to the United States with little money but big dreams. Along with a wife and two small sons, he brought with him the core qualities of immigrants: a desire to learn and the ability to persevere. Fast forward several decades: has the “investment” in this Nepali family “paid off”? You be the judge. Join Alan as you listen to this father and son’s heart-warming story of hard work and success!
The City of Kentwood announced today that Kalamazoo Avenue from 52nd Street to 60th Street is slated to be closed from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 2 while the road receives a joint repair treatment.
The MSU Extension Master Gardener Program changes lives. Committed to improving the quality of life in Michigan through horticulture-based volunteerism and beautifying communities throughout the state, the program provides instruction in basic, research-based horticulture science to motivated and active gardeners through an adult (18 years or older) educational program offered by MSU Extension. More info here.
We’ve been fed alternative facts: There is no such thing as multi-tasking. You’re not doing two things at once, you’re switching back and forth. And if you have three or four or five things going, your performance suffers.
Kentwood’s Kalamazoo Avenue from 52nd Street to 60th Street to be closed Aug. 2.
City of Kentwood
The City of Kentwood announced today that Kalamazoo Avenue from 52nd Street to 60th Street is slated to be closed from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 2 while the road receives a joint repair treatment.
A detour route will be posted. Traffic delays should be anticipated.
The work is part of the City of Kentwood’s ongoing commitment to road repair and maintenance. Kentwood maintains the highest-rated major street network in Kent County according to data compiled by the Grand Valley Metro Council in its 2017 Regional Pavement Condition Survey Report.
For more information regarding Kentwood summer road projects, visit www.kentwood.us.
Your little one’s first day back to school isn’t that far off. Now is the time to think about new strategies for a productive school year. (Courtesy Spectrum Health Beat)
By Sue Gunnink, Spectrum Health Beat
It’s always difficult transitioning from the laid-back summer schedule to the hectic schedule of the school year.
It usually takes a good month or so to get back into the groove, at least to where you feel confident everyone in your household is back on track.
And once you’ve gotten into the groove again, don’t you wish you could keep it going all year long? Wouldn’t it be great to keep everything running smoothly ’til next June?
It just so happens that a few handy tips can keep your family functioning like a well-oiled machine, at least when it comes to nutrition and meal preparation.
We all know that one of the best tools in the toolbox is the lunchbox.
Here’s how to keep your meals on track all year long:
Pack ahead
Pack lunches the night before to avoid the rush in the morning. This gives you more time to plan meals, which increases the chances you’ll select nutritious foods. Have your kids get involved in the lunch packing, too. They’re more likely to eat the food in their lunch when they’re involved in the process.
Be a portion pro
To simplify lunch preparation, cut your fruit into individual portions for the week. For example: If you have three kids and want them to have fruit each day of the week, you can cut 15 containers of fruit on Sunday night.
Get stocked and ready
For after-school snacks, consider stocking healthier items that are easy to grab, such as trail mix, unbuttered popcorn, or peanut butter on sliced apples or pears.
Coordinate schedules
Plan dinners in advance. On Sunday night, take a moment to survey your family’s schedule for the coming the week, identifying nights that involve sports practice, school activities, special events and so forth. Plan the meals accordingly. Consider having one night where your child is responsible for coming up with a meal.
Prep and freeze
Consider preparing and freezing meals well in advance. Once every few months, you can make a large batch of a particular food item, such as lasagna, then divide it into dinner portions. These can be frozen and labeled for easy use later on.
Are you interested in learning more about balanced nutrition? Schedule a personalized appointment with a Spectrum Health registered dietitian or call 616.391.1875 to register for a group class series.
‘Launch Michigan’ members vowed to develop an agenda for implementing research-driven strategies for a student-centered system that will extend beyond politics and election cycles to give educators the support necessary to encourage, inspire and improve student performance
Business leaders, school management organizations, teacher and school staff associations and philanthropic groups are joining forces to make public education the cornerstone of Michigan’s continued economic recovery.
Launch Michigan, “a diverse, never-before assembled group of business, education, labor, philanthropic state and community leaders,” announced their desire to set aside differences and create a common agenda to improve and better support Michigan’s education system, in a news conference June 20 at the Impression 5 Science Center in Lansing.
So what, you may ask. What’s so unusual about all groups coming together to solve a problem? Unfortunately, it’s quite unusual.
School leaders could be criticized for having a bunker mentality, hunkering down in the face of criticism. Business leaders sometimes criticize without really trying to find a solution. Policy makers sometimes react to headlines without trying to determine the root cause of a problem. There is no one place or institution to draw disparate parties together, which makes it difficult to come together for a common purpose — or even to identify a common purpose.
Fortunately, we have a new set of leaders who have set the past aside in hopes of forging a different future. Rob Fowler of the Small Business Association of Michigan led the way by joining the School Finance Research Collaborative, asserting it is essential for all to have a common understanding of what the experts say is necessary — financially, at least — to achieve the standards Michigan has set for its students and schools.
The Business Leaders for Michigan took a leadership role by saying education is too important a piece of the essential infrastructure for economic growth to allow the current conditions to continue. Both recognized the states that have significantly improved their educational outcomes found business leaders were the catalyst for change.
So, to “Launch” this initiative, the new partners came to the podium two-by-two, with Business Leaders for Michigan’s Doug Rothwell and Michigan Education Association’s Paula Herbart joining together to proclaim the new partnership “a nonpartisan issue … critical to making Michigan a place that we can all live, work, raise a family and call home.”
Broad and Bipartisan Representation
Members — ranging from the American Federation of Teachers, the Detroit Regional Chamber, the Grand Rapids Area Chamber of Commerce, Kent ISD and all of the major Michigan education organizations — vowed to develop an agenda for implementing research-driven strategies for a student-centered system that will extend beyond politics and election cycles to give educators the support necessary to encourage, inspire and improve student performance.
Since this is nonpartisan, and the Michigan Education Association and the American Federation of Teachers were invited to the party, I suppose it’s safe to paraphrase Democratic political consultant James Carville, best known for his advice to Bill Clinton during his presidential campaign against incumbent George H.W. Bush. “It’s the economy, stupid,” Carville said in 1992 and, were he in Michigan today, he’d likely say something equally pithy about education.
Thanks to Business Leaders for Michigan, the Small Business Association of Michigan and the regional chambers that have signed on to this coalition for recognizing we need all segments of the school community, and the communities they serve, to rebuild our education system.
Teachers, be they affiliated with a bargaining unit or not, are our most important investment in the education system. They are an integral part of any reform, and it’s reassuring our business partners recommended their inclusion in Launch Michigan.
We’ve been divided too long. Superintendents and their associations shouldn’t be negatively judged for trying to work cooperatively with the associations representing their staff.
To bring 100 percent of Michigan’s 1.5 million students to proficiency, we must stop pointing fingers and instead extend our hands to forge relationships and partnerships to better understand, and resolve, the inequities and misplaced priorities that result in underachievement.
It’s difficult to predict exactly what will come of this new alliance. We can hope it resembles the close working relationship developed between business and education in West Michigan, where school superintendents and the captains of industry are working to better understand the skills students need to build successful careers, and to make sure they attain those skills.
It’s great to see our work recognized and modeled across the state. Godspeed.
Check out School News Network for more stories about students, schools, and faculty in West Michigan.
Photo of Daniel Miraval by Abbey Miller, Michigan State University Extension
ByAbbey Miller, Michigan State University Extension
Twenty-seven years ago, the Michigan State University (MSU) Extension Master Gardener Program changed Daniel Miraval’s life.
“I was an at-risk youth from the southwest side of Detroit and was given a scholarship to attend a Master Gardener Program, which I successfully completed,” Miraval said. “That program led me into an amazing 26-year-career in horticulture and arboriculture.”
“For me it was the first opportunity to actually engage in an advanced training related to my job which was in the green industry. I learned the basic building blocks and foundation of horticulture and arboriculture. Upon realizing that it was actually a learnable discipline, it was then I decided to stick with it as a career. It would be much later that I used that to make it a profession.”
The MSU Extension Master Gardener Program is an adult horticulture education and volunteer leader program committed to improving the quality of life in Michigan through horticulture-based volunteerism and beautifying communities throughout the state. The program provides instruction in basic, research-based horticulture science to motivated and active gardeners through an adult (18 years or older) educational program offered by MSU Extension. Once trained, Master Gardeners educate others in the community about environmentally and economically sound practices through horticulture-based volunteer activities.
In 1991 at 19 years old, Miraval did not have a clear picture of what he wanted to do. He struggled in school, eventually dropping out, and he had been in trouble with the law as a juvenile. Miraval needed a job and applied for a position at Marvin’s Gardens, a small landscape company, owned by Marvin Welch Jr.
“I’ve always said that the green industry saved my life,” Miraval said. “Had I not been given this opportunity, I may very well not have ended up as successful and accomplished as I have or be dead or in jail or prison.”
Shortly after starting at Marvin’s Gardens, Miraval realized that he had an affinity for and wanted to pursue a career in landscaping because as he says, “landscaping leaves a lasting mark.”
Welch showed an interest in Miraval’s progress and suggested Miraval take a Master Gardener class.
“He gave me a phone number for the Master Gardener Program,” Miraval said. “I called, they said the price and it was beyond my ability to pay.”
However, there was a hardship scholarship program. Welch advised Miraval to tell his story in a letter of application for the scholarship.
Miraval received the scholarship and attended the Master Gardener class. Looking back, Miraval recalls this class was one of the first major commitments he had ever made in his life.
“I was intimidated by Michigan State University in the title of the class,” Miraval said. “I didn’t graduate high school, but now was doing something with MSU.”
“The Master Gardener course provided me with the opportunity to explore the industry and guide me — it saved my life. I would not have put into practice follow-through and commitment. That was my first lesson. Taking the class opened doors for me. It also reaffirmed the fact that being broke is economic, but being poor is a debilitating state of mind. It taught me that when you do find success, you use it as a tool.
“I still refer to the Master Gardener curriculum from time to time,” he said. “The foundation of what I have learned as an arborist is in here [the Master Gardener curriculum] and whoever provided the funding that let me participate 27 years ago, when I had nothing, saved my life.”
Miraval credits the MSU Master Gardener program for helping people like him, who may not have succeeded in traditional education platforms, still attain levels of industry professionalism. He gives full recognition of his success today to where becoming a professional began for him in Welch’s class.
Following the class, Welch continued to serve as Miraval’s first mentor, but certainly was not his last mentor.
“Marvin said I should work for a nursery – a big one. Vidosh was one of those he suggested,” Miraval said.
During a job interview, Miraval recalled that Bruce White, Vidosh Landscape Center owner and operator and MSU horticulture graduate, asked what his 3- to 5-year plan was. Miraval told him he wanted to be like White. Miraval was offered the job where he continued to learn more about the green industry.
“Bruce was the one who recognized my passion for wanting to be a better person and to be part of a winning team,” Miraval said. “He was the one who taught me about hard work and following through with everything you set out to do. He really took me under his wing with the specific intention of recreating me. He became my mentor a month after I graduated from the Master Gardener class when I walked into his office, certificate and test score in hand, looking for more than a job but an opportunity. He served as a mentor for 19 years.”
Miraval then met White’s brother, Wayne White, owner of Emerald Tree Care LLC and MSU forestry graduate.
“Wayne has been a mentor of increasing involvement for the last 10 years, but his influence, commitment to my success and leaving a legacy has been an intense focus for the last 5 years. He is a true champion of mine and how my taking the steps and action to become a Master Gardener showed my passion for the green industry but more importantly it showed my determination to better myself by utilizing whatever means necessary and for me the first step was the Master Gardener Program.
“I think the bottom line is these mentors all taught me the basics of self-motivation, follow-through, work ethic and taking action,” Miraval said. “That seems to be what the Master Gardener Program scholarship contained. Being made available by some endowment I would imagine. I wish I could find out who those people were, and if they are still around, so I could personally thank each one of them. They believed in me without even knowing who I was. I want them to know that the program was a success for me and thank them. Every program needs metrics to prove its worth. I really don’t know what else to say other than thank you and the Master Gardener Program was like a magic carpet.”
Miraval continues to be surrounded by mentors that encourage his success and teach him lessons to live by. As he pursues Advanced Credentials in the Green Industry, he came in contact with Steve Martinko of Contenders Tree and Lawn, LLC from White Lake, Michigan. Steve has been a friend and mentor that has helped Miraval plan for the next ten years in his business.
Today, Miraval is a certified arborist with the International Society of Arboriculture (ISA) and a co-owner of Green Extraction Technologies LLC, based near Chicago. They specialize in root collar excavation, corrective pruning and provide contract digging services for nurseries and specialized plant health care for residents, homeowner associations, municipalities and other organized properties. Among Miraval’s clients are Virginia farms Ingleside Plantation Nurseries, located on over 2,500 acres with 1,000 acres of nursery production, and White House Natives, LLC, dedicated to growing and harvesting 96 different species of native plant materials on their 25 acre site.
In addition to being a professional ISA member, Miraval serves on the Chicago Region Trees Initiative Tree Risk Management work group and is an Openlands TreeKeeper. He is also a member of the Tree Care Industry Association and the Illinois Arborist Association, of which he is a current board nominee. He is a certified tree safety person (CTSP), a certified Illinois pesticide applicator and an Illinois real estate agent.
“When I decided to become a an ISA–certified arborist, I reached back to the Master Gardener Program in respect to compartmentalizing how again this daunting advanced studying I wanted to do was similar to the Master Gardener Program. The information is there, it’s well presented and laid out, and all you have to do is apply yourself and inject your passion, and success is imminent.
“I hope my story inspires someone else or at least the people who make the policies that make these programs possible so they continue to fund them.
“The green industry is a very powerful industry in many ways. Trees are life. They saved mine and now I save theirs.”
In a tech-centric world, it’s tough on the brain to focus on any one thing as it’s bombarded with data. (Courtesy Spectrum Health Beat)
By Don Shell, Spectrum Health Beat
It was another typically busy day.
In between testing patients, Michael Lawrence, PhD, ABPP-CN, a clinical neuropsychologist with Spectrum Health Medical Group, found himself answering instant messages and emails, grabbing a quick lunch, calling AT&T about his cell phone bill, racing to Blodgett Hospital for a meeting, and reading an article a certain Health Beat reporter had sent him for an interview.
If that sounds all-too familiar to you, you’re not alone. But if you think you’re multitasking, what you’re really doing is kidding yourself, Dr. Lawrence said.
“We all have to do it to some extent,” he said. “But we know multitasking is a misnomer. We have to be aware that you’re not doing two things at work, you’re switching back and forth. If we have three or four or five things, our performance suffers.
“The problem is, we don’t know how to deal with technology. We’re bombarded by things.”
Our cell phone addictions are doing more than stifling our real-world social lives: they’re stifling our creativity, too, Dr. Lawrence said.
“We used to think that different parts of the brain were responsible for controlling different abilities, but what we’ve learned with recent advances in neuroscience is that actually your brain is networked together,” he said. “The Default Mode Network, the DMN, actually encompasses the prefrontal cortex and the limbic system. That’s the part of the brain that turns on when you’re at a resting state. And studies have shown that creativity is increased when you do nothing at all first.
There’s an app for that
New app helps track your cell phone addiction.
Are you addicted to your cell phone? If you’re like a growing number of Americans, the answer is probably yes – and it’s likely worse than you thought.
Enter the new app called Moment, which can track just how often you check your messages, emails, Facebook or anything else.
You can even set daily limits on yourself and force yourself off your device when you’re over your limit.
“It’s the last thing you look at before you go to bed, and the first thing you wake up to,” Dr. Lawrence said. “That’s why this Moment app is so interesting. I don’t think people realize how addicted they are to their phones.”
“When you’re doing too much at once, this area of the brain is burning too much energy, and your capacity to do any one thing suffers.”
This flies in the face of the common belief that things such as music can help increase focus and productivity, Dr. Lawrence said, but that doesn’t mean people can’t juggle tasks at all.
“I think you can do two things at once, but the problem is, you don’t do any one thing as well,” he explained. “The research says the quieter the environment, the more sterile, the better you do. People say they focus better with music, but your brain has to turn on to process music, and if it’s expending energy to process music, that’s energy it’s not using on whatever else you’re doing.”
The multitasking myth isn’t age-specific, either.
“They talk about kids with video games, but I think adults are even worse,” he said. “I went to a meeting the other day and everyone was on their cell phone. They say technology is making everybody ADD. It makes our lives better in some way, but at what cost? There has to be some moderation.”
Dr. Lawrence said he has a simple way to fight the anxiety of overstimulation.
“We all have that feeling, when we’re being pulled in a million different directions,” he said. “When I do it, I realize it and get anxious. What’s the first thing I do? I turn off everything–my cell phone and email–and create a checklist of the things I need to do. That helps me focus and prioritize what I need to do.”
The bottom line, says Dr. Lawrence, “We have to learn to adapt, because technology isn’t going away.”
By Spectrum Health Beat Staff; photos by Chris Clark
Imagine snoozing comfortably at home while your bed measures your heart rate and breathing—and enters those vital signs into your medical record.
Imagine tapping an app on your smartphone when you want to ask your doctor about a new symptom.
As health care technology gets smarter—and more personal—patients will find new ways to monitor their medical conditions and connect with medical experts.
Spectrum Health staff got a glimpse of products under development recently at an open house organized by Spectrum Health Innovations. Two companies involved in the Seamless Accelerator, a collaboration of startups and industry leaders, displayed their new devices to get reaction from the experts.
A bed that communicates
Hoana Medical, a Honolulu-based company, showed off its LifeBed system, a mattress coverlet embedded with sensors that measure vital signs. It detects heart and respiration rates—and can indicate whether the patient is in bed.
Photo by Chris Clark, Spectrum Health Beat
Staff can view the data at a central nursing station or on a handheld device, such as a smartphone.
The device aims to eliminate the need to attach sensors, electrodes, cuffs and other monitoring equipment directly to the patient, said Edward Chen, president and chief operating officer of Hoana.
“I think in a med-surg world it could be beneficial to have this continuous monitoring available,” said Liz Schulte, an inpatient nursing supervisor at Spectrum Health Butterworth Hospital.
A rise in breathing or heart rate could indicate a patient is experiencing more pain, for example, prompting the nurse to check in. Or it might signal that a confused patient is becoming agitated, perhaps planning to get out of bed to use the bathroom.
“We can go in there and proactively act on that,” Schulte said. “A bed alarm is good only once a patient gets out of bed.”
The smartphone connection would be a big plus, she added. It would allow a nurse to view vital signs for a number of patients from any location.
The LifeBed system plugs directly into the wall, but also can operate wirelessly.
“It simplifies the process of having to move monitors,” Chen said. “It has been tested in ambulances and helicopters. Imagine deploying it for large-scale emergency triage on stretchers.”
Photo by Chris Clark, Spectrum Health Beat
The version displayed at Spectrum Health is intended for use in the medical-surgical, acute care or home care settings. A steady stream of nurses, doctors and therapists filed through the two-hour open house. Some tried out apps and lay on the LifeBed, watching their vital signs appear on a smartphone screen.
“I really thought the vital sign communication with electronic capability was great,” said Laura McPherson, pediatric lead therapist in respiratory care at Spectrum Health Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital.
The system would be even better, she said, if it could be converted to a hardback surface, which would be useful in reviving a patient in cardiac arrest.
“This could be the total package,” she said.
A doctor-patient app
Friendly Health Technologies of San Ramon, California, presented information on software and apps that connect patients with their doctor or other medical care providers.
Patients could log in to the app on a tablet or smartphone to report common illnesses.
The app asks a series of follow-up questions, using evidence-based guidelines, and enters the information into the individual’s medical record. The physician or care provider can then prescribe medication or request a face-to-face visit.
The company would adapt the software for different medical specialties, tweaking the questions to match the issues patients are likely to report.
“I’d like to see it in action,” Ginny Richards, a Spectrum Health Medical Group nurse educator, said of the telemedicine app. “It might have good potential for families that are reluctant to call.”
Photo by Chris Clark, Spectrum Health Beat
Customer validation is “an absolute necessity in product development,” said Brent Mulder, PhD, senior director of Spectrum Health Innovations. “If they get that extremely valuable feedback, it can validate their current course of action or cause a course correction.”
Spectrum Health is one of seven partners in the Seamless Accelerator, a collaboration that gives entrepreneurs access to industry expertise while offering experts the chance to influence the direction of next-generation devices.
About enhancing health
The evolving health care technology field encompasses a number of user-friendly apps and gadgets in development that will make it easier for patients to stay on top of their health care, said Eric Topol, MD, the author of several books, including “The Patient Will See You Now: The Future of Medicine is in Your Hands.”
They include:
A bandage that monitors how a wound is healing and delivers medication when needed
A ring that detects when a patient is asleep or awake and can be used in at-home sleep studies
A tiny device that measures blood sugar levels—without a needle poke or drop of blood. Someday, Dr. Topol predicts, “Fingersticks for glucose will be obsolete.”
Already on the market is an ear scope that attaches to a smartphone. When parents suspect their child has an ear infection, they can capture a video of the inside of the child’s ears and send it to the doctor for diagnosis.
Consumer-focused “on-demand medicine” can mean more efficient care, Topol said at a recent speaking engagement. Research shows the average wait for a doctor’s appointment is 2.6 weeks. And once they arrive at the office, patients wait, on average, 61 minutes.
By communicating electronically with their doctor or running basic tests with their smart phone, patients can save time and often rest comfortably at home when they aren’t feeling well.
“It’s really about enhancing the health of humans,” he said.
Learn more about new forms of health care technology at Spectrum Health Innovations and to learn about e-doctor appointments, visit the MedNow website or call 844.322.7374.
Apprenticeships have long played a major role in training America’s skilled workers, combining classroom learning, on-the-job training and wages that increase as skills are learned. Apprentices not only get paid while learning the skills for a high-demand job, they earn a nationally recognized industry certification.
With all these benefits, it’s easy to see why many job seekers are looking for apprenticeship opportunities.
What do employers look for in an apprentice?
Apprentices go to school for 2-4 years while working full time; they need to balance work, school and life. Employers are looking for individuals who are willing to commit to the process, are dependable, have a positive work ethic and a willingness to learn.
How can I find an apprenticeship opportunity?
Most often, employers with apprenticeship programs enter existing workers into their programs instead of hiring someone to enter directly into the program.
Custom Profile, a manufacturer in Grand Rapids, is one of many West Michigan employers who use apprenticeships to train their workforce.
“Our apprenticeship programs allow us to give our employees something really valuable: a chance to learn new skills,” said Jenny Redes, human resources manager at Custom Profile.
You can find employers in your area with apprenticeship programs by searching Career One Stop. Once you’ve identified employers with programs, check job search websites like indeed.com or mitalent.org to see if they have any openings. Apply for an entry-level position, express your interest in an apprenticeship and then show them that you’re worth investing in!
“One of our employees has been with us for twenty years. Through apprenticeship, he was able to get the skills needed to move up within the company,” Redes said. “We were so excited to see him take advantage of this opportunity!”
Occasionally, West Michigan Works! will have a cohort-style apprenticeship program, such as the Medical Assistant Registered Apprenticeship program. Check jobs.westmiworks.org for current opportunities and application periods.
Or visit a West Michigan Works! service center and ask to meet with a talent development specialist. They can help you with job search, resume writing, interviewing skills and connections with potential employers.
Employment Expertise is provided by West Michigan Works! Learn more about how they can help: visit westmiworks.org or your local Service Center.
At last month’s Board of Commissioners meeting, several community members and representatives of Movimiento Cosecha GR shared concerns about a contract between the Kent County Sheriff’s Office and Department of Homeland Security’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement Division, commonly known as ICE. Unfortunately, the meeting was temporarily suspended due to an interruption in the public comment process.
Representatives from the Administrator’s Office have invited Movimiento Cosecha GR leaders to meet about their concerns and hope to speak with them directly.
The Commission is committed to hearing public comments as it is an important element of our democracy that allows people to communicate directly with their government officials. In order to make sure all residents have an ability to participate, several years ago various rules were established that apply to everyone.
Since the June meeting of the Board of Commissioners, there have been several questions raised in the community about the ICE Contract with the Kent County Sheriff’s Department, including what the contract entails and the role of the Sheriff and Board of Commissioners. We believe it is important for the public to know the following:
Sheriff policy and practice
Sheriff deputies do not make arrests on civil immigration charges. The Sheriff decided years ago not to seek the required, special authority to make these types of arrests.
Sheriff’s Department staff members working at the jail make no determinations regarding the validity of an arrest or the appropriateness of charges. They work to treat every inmate in a humane manner, with high levels of respect.
When an individual is arrested for an alleged criminal act and taken to Kent County Correctional Facility, fingerprints are submitted to the State and Federal government. Submission of fingerprints is not optional for the Sheriff Department or any local law enforcement agency – with or without an ICE contract. State and Federal laws require correctional facilities to fingerprint all individuals and send those prints to both databases to confirm their identification. When the FBI receives these prints, the Secure Communities Program (www.ice.gov/secure-communities) requires prints be shared with the Department of Homeland Security. It is this interplay between the FBI and Homeland Security that can trigger action by ICE.
In 2017, the Kent County Correctional Facility processed 23,455 people. In less than 0.8 percent of those arrests – 185 individuals – ICE submitted paperwork to detain individuals with immigration infractions that could, upon conviction, result in the individual serving jail time.
The scope of services under the ICE contract signed by the Sheriff in August 2012 is very limited, and includes:
The provision of temporary secure housing for persons who are facing federal immigration charges detained by and under the authority of the federal government at a current rate of $85 per day.
It also limits the housing of individuals held under the authority of the federal government to no more than 72 hours to make sure the federal government either takes custody of the individuals being held or removes the hold, so they can be released.
Board of Commissioners’ role
The Board of Commissioners has no direct oversight of or control over this agreement.
The Sheriff is a Michigan constitutionally-elected official, and pursuant to state law, the Sheriff has the authority to enter into and manage the contract because state law provides the office of County Sheriff with significant latitude in running the jail. The Board is prepared to receive comment on the contract and can facilitate discussion on the topic, but it does not have legal authority to either terminate or renew the agreement.
The concerns expressed by Movimiento Cosecha GR about the separation of families arise from Federal immigration law and the activities of Federal agencies including ICE. Federal immigration law can only be changed by federal lawmakers. Neither the County Board of Commissioners nor the County Sheriff can control or change these laws.
Wine has been a part of the Michigan’s history since the late 1600s. However, the current trend of smaller individual wineries have been growing and developing since the mid-1970s and have lead to a robust wine industry in Michigan making winery tours a popular summer activity.
Round Barn Winery is an easy day trip from the Kentwood/Wyoming area.
Jeremy Witt, from the West Michigan Tourist Association, stopped by the station to talk about some of the many West Michigan wineries area residents can visit. Some of the highlights are Round Barn Winery, which is an iconic stop on the Lake Michigan Shore Wine Trail; Old Mission Peninsula located in the Traverse City area; and Castle Farms which recently opened the 1918 Cellar Wines Tasting Room.
The interview was part of our latest WKTV Journal newscast that is currently running on Comcast WKTV Channel 26 and on AT&T Channel 99 Government channel. The newscast airs at 7 p.m. Tuesday, 10 a.m. Friday, and 9 p.m. Monday.
All of the WKTV Journal newscasts are available on WKTV’s YouTube channel, WKTVVideos, and then go to playlists and click WKTV Journal 2018.
According to educational experts, 80 percent of learning is visual. So if a child can’t see well, he can’t learn. Yet most young children don’t get their vision screened until they have problems learning or paying attention in school, which maybe too late. Unless vision problems are detected early and corrected, those problems may become permanent by age seven.
On Wednesday, Aug. 1, the Wyoming Lions Club will be hosting a free vision screening from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m at the Byron Community Ministries, 8250 Byron Creek Dr. SW.
The goal of the screening is to determine if glasses are needed. There are no age restrictions. Parents and families are invited to bring their children to Byron Center community Ministries for vision screening to make they are on the way to learning in the fall.
For more information about the screening, visit 616-881-3012.
The Lions Club is an international non-political service organization established originally in 1916 in Chicago, Illinois by Melvin Jones. In 1925, the organization accepted Helen Keller’s challenge to become “knights of the blind in the crusade against darkness.” Since then, The Lions Club work has included sight-related programs such as collecting old glasses for redistribution to those less fortunate.
Are you looking for that extra burst of energy in the middle of the day? How about your teenagers? Are you or your teenagers consuming energy drinks? Frequently, parents question how safe energy drinks are, especially for teenagers.
Caffeine Content of Energy Drinks
Energy drinks contain caffeine and may contain other stimulants such as taurine and guarana. According to the Mayo Clinic, excess caffeine consumption can lead to irritability, nervousness, insomnia, an increase in heart rate and increased blood pressure. Caffeine consumption can be harmful for children with certain health risks. Another reason for concern is that the amount of caffeine in each type of drink varies considerably and the caffeine content may not be listed on the beverage container. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) provides a listing of caffeine content by specific energy drinks that shows caffeine content varying from 70 mg. to over 200 mg. per eight ounces. The AAP has also recommended that children and adolescents should avoid energy drinks altogether.
Calories from Energy Drinks
Energy drinks and other sugary beverages, like soda, add extra calories without other important nutrients that children and teens need for growth. For example, one popular energy drink contains 130 calories and 34 grams of carbohydrates in an 8.3 ounce serving. These calories and carbs in an energy drink are higher than a cola. The National Health and Nutrition Examination Report 2017 (NHANES) found that only 33 percent of youth ages two through 19 met the 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines for American recommendations to limit added sugars intake to less than 10 percent of total calories. With the higher prevalence of obesity in the United States, reducing sugar consumption is an important strategy towards achieving and maintaining a healthier weight.
Better Beverage choices
In order to avoid consuming caffeine and other stimulants from energy drinks and soda with added sugars, find other ways to quench thirst and to energize. Of course, water is the best choice when it comes to quenching thirst. Try adding fresh fruit slices, such as lemon or orange, to keep it interesting for kids. Low-fat milk and diluted fruit juices are also nutrient-rich choices. Limiting added sugars is recommended in the 2015 Dietary Guidelines. Consumption of beverages with added sugars can easily increase sugar intake above 10 percent of calories, which makes it difficult to achieve a healthy eating pattern.
Choose movement to increase energy
Physical activity increases our energy levels and burns calories too. The next time your children or teens are feeling tired in the middle of the afternoon, think carefully before reaching for an energy drink. Instead, suggest a short walk. Physical activity increases blood flow and results in feeling more energetic.
