In Focus today is Michael Bulthuis of The Rapid public transit system. The Rapid, on November 7, will be asking for renewal of the system’s current 1.47 mil local property tax millage. (WKTV)
By Hannah Haviland, WKTV Editorial Assistant
news@wktv.org
At the upcoming Nov. 7 election, residents of the cities of Wyoming and Kentwood are being asked to consider a 1.47 millage rate so that The Rapid can continue serving these cities along with four other municipalities in the greater Grand Rapids area.
The millage request, which is listed as the Interurban Transit Partnership Board Transit Millage Ballot Proposal 2018-2019 on the Nov. 7 ballot, is not an increase, but rather would replace the current Rapid millage of 1.47 mills which is set to expire in July of 2018.
According to information supplied by The Rapid, for a $100,000 home with a taxable value of $50,000, the homeowner would continue to pay around $73.50 a year for the millage. The millage, which has been active for the past seven years, is about a third of The Rapid’s total budget of $44 million, covering about $15.5 million. The majority of the rest of the budget comes from the Michigan Department of Transportation’s local bus operating assistance and passenger fares.
Because the millage makes up such a large percentage of The Rapids’ operational expenses, without the renewal, most of the fixed route services that the millage helps fund would not be be able to operate, according to The Rapid Marketing and Communications Director Michael Bulthuis, who sat down to talk about the millage in a recent WKTV Journal: In Focus segment.
“Most of our riders are using the bus at least once a week, if not every day, for a work related activity,” Bulthuis said. “If you consider that we have between 11 to 12 million rides every year, 80 percent of those rides are work related trips.”
Each of the cities of Wyoming and Kentwood have nine Rapid routes not counting the Silver Line. These are among the 22 routes that would potentially be shut down if the millage doesn’t pass.
“You would start to see service cuts, frankly, because you’re not getting that $15.5 million in millage funding,” Bulthuis said. “That millage funding also helps leverage state funding so you’re losing millions of dollars in state funding as well.”
The millage has been active for the last seven years, and if it passes, will continue at the same rate of 1.47 for twelve more years. If, however, it doesn’t pass, all of The Rapids’ normal bus routes would cease. The Rapid would only be able to operate on a contractual basis for entities that would entirely cover the cost of its service. Go!Bus, the service for the elderly and disabled, would also be drastically decreased, putting people in that demographic at risk of missing doctor’s appointments or other needed services.
The millage funds are only used for everyday expenses such as wages for employees, fuel, tires, and other essential needs. It is not used for other projects such as new buses, buildings, or project construction. The Silver Line, which operates along Division Avenue connecting downtown Grand Rapids to the cities of Kentwood and Wyoming, would also not be affected since it is funded by state and federal grants.
The WKTV Journal: In Focus episode including the discussion about The Rapid millage, and a discussion with Wyoming Public Schools Superintendent Thomas Reeder on his district’s millage request, will air twice this week on WKTV channels but all interviews included in episodes of WKTV Journal: In Focus are also available on YouTube at WKTVVideos.
“WKTV Journal: In Focus” will air on Tuesdays and Thursdays, at 6:30 p.m., on cable television in the Wyoming and Kentwood areas on Comcast WKTV Channel 26 and on AT&T Channel 99 Government channel.
Maria Aguirre likes to help other people’s dreams come true: making sure a child has presents wrapped under the tree on Christmas morning, doing her part to fund cancer research, helping distribute grants to organizations doing good in her Wyoming community.
Through extensive giving back and taking a leadership role in doing so, she reveals the good in people and the community, making places and people’s days brighter. She’s a leader at Godwin Heights Public Schools, the newly-named president for Student Leadership Council, and continually organizing programs and pitching in on school-wide efforts.
“I like trying to get the better out of the community, and putting forward that good. It makes you feel good about yourself, bringing out what’s better in the world,” Maria said.
Maria is a scholar, a worker, a leader, and a Dreamer.
Godwin Heights High School senior Maria Aguirre has been recognized for leadership by teacher Katie Hoffman
‘It Makes me Feel Torn’
The 17-year-old senior arrived with her parents from Mexico when she was 3-years-old, and hasn’t been back there since. She doesn’t remember their home in Monterrey, the capital of the northeastern Mexican state of Nuevo León, or what it’s like there.
At age 15, she paid the $495 application fee for protection from deportation and a work permit through the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals policy, created under the Obama Administration. She enrolled as a Dreamer, along with her brothers, among 800,000 individuals in the program.
Now, with doubt cast on her permanent status in the U.S. by the Trump Administration, who rescinded the policy in September, Maria’s dreams are hazy. Trump’s decision officially ends the program in March and halts new applications, but those whose permits expire before March 5 can apply for a two-year renewal, which Maria did. (Trump called on Congress to pass immigration legislation to replace it, and tweeted that he will “revisit this issue” if Congress does not act.)
“It makes me worried if in the future I won’t be able to qualify for a replacement of DACA. Would I have to go back to a country that isn’t my country – that I don’t know anything about?
Would-be social worker Maria Aguirre is recognized school-wide for leadership
“It makes me feel torn. It makes me feel depressed.”
But Maria is the kind of person who keeps forging ahead at her school and in the community, despite what her future holds.
Beginning each November since her freshman year, she has been collecting as many toys as possible with the Student Leadership Council for DA Blodgett St. John’s Home. The Council invites Godwin teachers to adopt children at the foster-care facility and have them encourage students to bring in gifts.
Annually, she works with fellow members of National Honor Society to clean up nearby Hillcroft Park. She raises funds for Relay for Life, the annual 24-hour walk to raise money for cancer research. She’s planning an Unsung Heroes Dinner at school to recognize support staff, like janitors and paraprofessionals, who make a difference at the school. Maria gets to church early to help with Sunday School.
An ambitious student, Maria is dual-enrolled at Grand Rapids Community College, where she’ll tally up a year’s worth of college credit by the time she graduates in May. She has a 3.8 grade-point average.
She just joined the Wyoming Community Foundation Youth Advisory Council to help allocate grant money to local nonprofits and works part-time at McDonald’s.
“Maria is a great role model for her peers and is a positive presence in the school,” said Student Leadership Council advisor Katie Hoffman. “She stands out as someone who wants to make a difference and is willing to go above and beyond to make our school and community a better place to be.”
Maria is always looking for new ways to influence and encourage others, Hoffman said. “I know that she will be successful in whatever field she chooses to go into and we are lucky that she has been a part of our Godwin family.”
Maria Aguirre, president of the Student Leadership Council, explains to members how the Christmas adopt-a-child program for D.A. Blodgett-St. John’s Home works
Still Dreaming
Maria’s dreams are to go to Aquinas College or Grand Valley State University to pursue a degree in sociology and become a social worker. She dreams of making life better for people, and first and foremost, helping support her parents financially.
“Ever since I was little, I grew up struggling economically. I want to be able to, in the future, not have my parents have to work anymore,” she said. Her father is a dishwasher and her mother a stay-at-home mom.
She said growing up with limited financial resources made her passionate about doing what she can to get to college. “It was difficult, but you proceed through it and realize you need to get the education to do better.”
Godwin Heights staff members have been supportive, she said. During visits to college campus, counselors ask for any information pertaining to DACA students.
“I feel pretty confident that I am going to start college here. It feels unknown that I am going to finish it here,” Maria said.
When the DACA decision was announced, Maria’s parents were concerned for their children, who they raised as Americans. The family had already taken in children of a deported friend who wondered when their mother would be back. “They were really heartbroken. They were mostly sad.”
Encouraging Others and Getting Things Done
While leading the Leadership Team meeting on a recent Wednesday during lunch in Hoffman’s classroom, Maria told peers the details of the Christmas donation event for D.A. Blodgett-St. John’s Home. The collecting will kick off next month.
Team members said Maria stands out as a leader. As president of the Leadership Council, Maria knows how to get things done, said junior Luz Parada. She is a good example of how to lead a big group and be a positive influence on people. She is very supportive.
“I’ve known Maria for six years. She is my best friend,” said senior Kamille Martinez. “She stands out because she stands up for people no matter what the issue is. She stays ahead of her work. She is an encouraging person to others. She is an amazing person.”
After participating in discussion about popcorn sales and a new idea to greet students in fun ways as they arrive to school on Monday mornings, Maria wrapped up the meeting and prepared to head to GRCC for a college course. Despite what the future holds, she’s choosing a path for her dreams to become reality, being involved, pursuing education and helping others.
“You see all the bad that’s going on and all the suffering and you just want to get away from that and bring out the good that’s still left in the world,” she said.
Check out School News Network for more stories about students, schools, and faculty in West Michigan.
Alan Headbloom, host of “Feel Like You Belong” will co-moderate the Grand Valley State University’s Fourth Annual Civil Discourse Symposium, set for Friday, Nov. 2, at the Paul A. Johnson Conference Hall at the L.V. Eberhard Center on the Robert C. Pew Grand Rapids Campus.
The 2017 Padnos/Sarosik Civil Discourse Symposium offers a venue for the community to engage in a civil discussion on immigration by considering both its benefits and challenges. Through round-table discussion and panelist-let dialogue, the symposium offers opportunities to interact with community organizations engaged with immigrants and refugees and examine the dynamics driving global migration.
This year’s symposium topic is “Immigrants and Refugees: Celebrating Our Diversity” and will be facilitated by Dr. Jack Mangala, the 2016-2017 Padnos/Sarosik Endowed Professor of Civil Discourse
A light dinner will be served starting at 5 p.m. Parking is available at no cost Your RSVP is appreciated.
In 2013, Headbloom co-created the show “Feel Like You Belong,” a multi-resource web portal and TV show. Headbloom inviterviews immigrants and expatriate to learn how one goes about being long in a new land, new language and new culture. His guests have included “Sesame Street” pioneer Sonia Manzano and former Chicago Young Lords Jose Cha Cha Jimenez. “Feel Like You Belong” is filmed at WKTV.
Panelists
Dr. Mladjo Ivanovic is a visiting professor at the department of philosophy at Grand Valley State University. His research focuses on moral and political challenges tied with the forceful displacement and migration of people. He is also engaged with NGO communities in Serbia, Greece and Turkey, and serves as an advisor for various student organizations that deal with humanitarianism and social justice.
Steffanie Rosalez is the Program Director for the Grandville Avenue Arts and Humanities, Cook Arts Center. Using the arts, she has worked with children from immigrant families in various capacities, including as the manager of the after school program (LOOP) at Cesar Chavez Elementary School.
Kristine Van Noord is the Program Manager for Bethany Christian Services’ Refugee Adult & Family Programs. Kristine has 19 years of experience working with refugees including over seven years with Bethany. She also lived in the Middle East for five years.
Wyoming Public Schools, shown here in a photo supplied by the district, saw its number of students drop in the recent “Count Day” state survey of students. (Supplied)
Some local school leaders were braced for bad news, some confident of good news, as Wyoming and Kentwood area school districts held their public school “Count Day” early this month — a day when the number of students attending their schools directly relates to how much funding they will receive from the state.
The fall count, held Oct. 4, is worth 90 percent of the state per-pupil funding. The spring semester count, from the previous school year, is 10 percent of funding. This school year’s spring count date is scheduled for Feb. 8, 2018.
“We are still in the period where we identify the final number, but that is the formula that is used,” Wyoming’s Godfrey-Lee Public Schools Superintendent Kevin Polston said to WKTV journal. The “count impacts this years funding. We do not receive state aid in September, and begin receiving it in October after fall count. (So) this impacts our current budget.”
The local public school districts, as well as charters, are to receive $7,631 per-pupil for the 2017-18 school year. Godwin Heights Public Schools receives slightly more per student due to a historic loss of a substantial commercial tax base.
Godfrey-Lee counted 1,878 students for the fall count day, 72 below projections and down 84 students for the 2016-17 school year. So, if preliminary numbers hold, Godfrey-Lee would receive less state funding this year than last. But Polston says the district is prepared.
“This is the reason why it is important to have fund balances that can account for shortfalls like this,” said Polston, who is in his first year as superintendent. “We will maintain all current positions and programs, but immediately take a close look at all areas of the budget for both short and long term savings. We are fortunate to have a fund balance that can absorb a shortfall for this year.
“Our Board of Education has a policy of maintaining at least a 10 percent fund balance for times like this. We will need to backfill this deficit with next year’s budget. I’m confident in our team’s ability to strategically prioritize spending with a constant focus on keeping dollars in the classroom.”
His district will also look at the reasons why enrollment dropped.
“We have had a strong growth trend over the past few years, but that didn’t hold this year,” he said. “We are analyzing the areas where we fell short to identify contributing factors. We believe our best solution is to promote our district to our current residents to retain as many as we can in our strong, local, neighborhood schools.”
According to an analysis published on MLive, Michigan has more than 1.6 million kindergarten through 12th grade students in the 2016-17 school year, with about 1 million attending their local public schools. The other half million, or so, attended private or charter schools, or crossed home district lines to enroll in other public school districts.
Kentwood Public Schools is one of the districts gaining students, some from out of the district boundaries.
“We are up 136 — 9,121 total non-audited — students from last Fall count day,” Kentwood Public Schools Superintendent Michael Zoerhoff told WKTV. “The last three years we have seen an upward trend of our enrollment count. We are excited to see that Kentwood Public Schools continues to be a destination district for many families because of the great opportunities provided.”
Godwin Heights Public Schools, according to Superintendent William Fetterhoff, counted 2,166 students after budgeting for 2,145, so 21 over projection and 39 below last year. Fetterhoff told WKTV the trend is not unusual for his district, or across the nation for that matter, and he pointed to a decline in kindergarten through 3rd grade students as one reason.
Wyoming Public Schools, according to the district, counted 4,250, down 70 from last year.
Wyoming Public Schools students. (Supplied)
“4,250 is an appropriate estimate for our fall count … We anticipated a decrease this year,” Matt Lewis, Assistant Superintendent for Finance & Administrative Services for Wyoming Public Schools said to WKTV. “We budgeted to be down 75, and we’re on track to be down between 75 and 80.
“We’re approximately 70 down from last year which is right on projection. … I can’t give you a final number because there are 30 days from the count day during which students can still be counted if they were absent.”
The decline in enrollment is also not surprising to Lewis.
“Wyoming has averaged a loss of 108 students per year since the fall of 2004,” he said. “We’ve done many, many things to address the decline, cutting millions from our operating budget. We’ve become extremely efficient from an administrative perspective, closed buildings when necessary, including the consolidation of our high schools for 2012/13, and made countless adjustments to our contractual obligations and benefit costs. Our employees have (also) taken on a substantial portion of their healthcare costs over this period of enrollment decline.”
In other initial, unaudited numbers from local public districts, detailed in published reports, Kelloggsville Public Schools counted 2,327 students, 102 above projections and 79 more than last year.
Holland Home hopes to help the community better understand advanced care planning with its presentation of the documentary Being Mortal on Wednesday, Oct. 25, from 6:30-8:30 p.m. Based on the best-selling book by Dr. Atul Gawande, the film explores the hopes of patients and families facing terminal illness and their relationships with those who care for them. The film explores the intersection of life, death, medicine and what matters most in the end.
Following the screening of the film, Holland Home will hold a panel discussion on the importance of advanced care planning with local palliative care expert, Dr. John Mulder, of Holland Home’s Trillium Institute. What makes this panel discussion unique is that Dr. Mulder has had his own experience with end of life planning and values-based decision making, when he was diagnosed with terminal lung disease in 2015. Dr. Mulder brings not only his professional expertise, but his personal experience, to his understanding of the importance of end of life care and what is most important to the patient. He will be joined by Carol Robinson of Making Choices Michigan.
“Our hope is that Being Mortal will be a catalyst for families to take a deeper look at end of life care and what they desire the end of life to look like,” said Dr. Mulder. “The end of life can be more joyful and more meaningful when resources are in place to honor your wishes.”
The event is free and will be held at Holland Home’s Raybrook campus, located at 2121 Raybrook Drive SE. No registration is necessary. For more information, visit hollandhome.org or call 616-235-5000.
Eighth-grader Hien-Tran Bui entered coding commands for her website focused on tips for putting on makeup. She had just learned the basics of site-building from women who work in the Information technology field. Nearby, eighth-grader Mya Proctor designed a website about activities to do when you’re bored.
“I learned how to code and add links,” said Hien-Tran, who realized the information will be valuable in many fields including what she’s interested in: health care.
Eighteen seventh- and eighth-grade girls from Valleywood Middle School recently attended BitCamp, hosted by Software GR, a nonprofit association dedicated to building and supporting the software design and development community in West Michigan. The opportunity at Amway World Headquarters, in Ada, connected girls with women who work in local IT jobs for a day of coding and website creation. Instructors came from Amway, OST, Spectrum Healthand Software GR.
Eighth-grader Sandrine Ishimwe looks at her website with Anna Godfrey, Valleywood guidance secretary
Hien-Tran said she was impressed to learn from women who took various education paths to get to IT careers. Mya, who wants to become a teacher, agreed.
“Before I came here, I didn’t even know what I was doing,” Mya said. “I’m inspired to do more and go beyond my teaching career and do something like this.”
Showing Girls What’s Out There
BitCamp is a great opportunity to get girls out into the IT field, said Nancy McKenzie, Kentwood Public Schools STEM coordinator, who works to connect students with hands-on, real-world experiences. Girls from other Kentwood middle schools, Crestwood and Pinewood, have also attended or will later this semester.
According to Made with Code, while 74 percent of girls express interest in middle school, they at some point get turned off to science, technology, engineering and math careers. Only 0.4 percent of female college freshmen plan to major in computer science, even though CS jobs will be the highest-paying sectors over the next decade, paying almost $15,000 more than average.
“There is quite a lack of women in these fields,” McKenzie said. “And if they are interested, once they go to school and finish college, they can pretty much write their own ticket because there is such a huge gap of females in this industry.”
Having women teach BitCamp shows girls possibilities, she added: “It empowers them. They see these women doing these type of jobs and knowing that it’s something out there that’s needed now and in the future. It gives them exposure to something they can look into later.
From left, seventh-grader Alianny Daniel; Brittany Nielson, application developer for Spectrum Health; and eighth-grader Nhi Tong work on their websites
“It’s nice for the girls to see women that do these kinds of jobs, so they can have a model about what’s possible.”
Eighth-grader Katelynn Smallwood said she liked the in-depth instruction she received from the women. She hopes to be a medical transcriptionist someday.
“It’s inspirational,” Katelynn said. “It’s not just men who can do the job. There are opportunities for women.”
For Girls Too
Instructors, who presented their stories about going through college and into IT fields, said they hope girls start thinking young about going into what are currently male-dominated fields.
Brittany Nielson, application developer for Spectrum Health, said she knows how it feels to be the only girl in the room.
“When you are a woman going into a tech field that’s mostly men, it’s kind of intimidating,” Nelson said. “We want to make sure women are confident in themselves and their skills when they enter that environment so they can come join our workforce.”
Emotional Intelligence, also known as EQ, is a major indicator of success—even more than IQ, which looks at traditional intelligence. Studies have shown that 90% of top performing employees have high EQ. In fact, as EQ increases, so does average annual salary.
So, what is EQ?
EQ consists of two components—personal and social competence.
Personal Competence—your ability to recognize your emotions and use this self-awareness to manage your thoughts and actions.
Social Competence—your ability to recognize emotions in others and use this understanding to successfully manage your relationships and interactions.
Emotional Intelligence is tied to soft skills that employers are looking for, such as customer service, communication, team work, decision making and time management.
Here are five tips to help you improve your EQ:
Decrease negativity. It is easy to jump to negative conclusions when you don’t understand how others behave. For example, if your boss doesn’t greet you with a friendly “hello,” like usual one morning, don’t assume you did something wrong. He or she may be up against a deadline or distracted by other issues. Don’t make it about you; try to understand where they are coming from.
Take responsibility. Everyone makes mistakes and being able to admit it is a sign of emotional intelligence. When you make a mistake, look for ways to make things right instead of placing blame or making excuses.
Stay calm. Next time you find yourself in a stressful situation, take note of how you feel and how you react. If you find yourself lashing out, take a deep breath and count to ten. This can help you calm down and deal with the problem more effectively.’
Learn about you. Pay attention to how you react to different emotions. You can even take an assessment to find your strengths and weaknesses. This information can help you become more aware of your emotions and strengthen your interactions with others.
Be brave. The next time you’re faced with a challenging emotional situation, be willing to have a difficult conversation. It is important to respond respectfully to others and also create healthy boundaries for yourself. Try using the XYZ method to discuss your emotions, “I feel X when you do Y in situation Z.”
Employment Expertise is provided by West Michigan Works! Learn more about how they can help: visit westmiworks.org or your local Service Center.
Just a month short of the four-year mark when the City of Wyoming first introduced the concept of 28 West, city officials will gather with city leaders and business representatives to celebrate the the project that lead to the completion of the first half of the road.
This Saturday, Oct. 21, there will be a ribbon-cutting and grand re-opening celebration of the 28 West Place, formerly Wyoming Village Mall, at 1:30 p.m. with additional events to follow. The ribbon cutting ceremony is hosted by the Wyoming-Kentwood Chamber of Commerce.
“This is a hallmark change in the corridor here that we have been hoping for a number of years…” said Mayor Jack Poll.
The 28 West sign located in front of the former Studio 28 property. Construction for the 28 West project will actually start just east on the Wyoming Mall property.
In 2013, the City of Wyoming adopted a plan for the reimagine of the south side of 28th Street between Clyde Park and Burlingame avenues in to a mixed-use town center utilizing form-based code, which provides flexibility to developers. A key element to the 28 West concept was the construction of a curving slip street which would become the center’s new “main street.” The street was designed to run from the south side of 28th Street across from Hook Avenue to Jenkins Avenue, which runs next to the former Klingman/Rogers Department Store building. Because the plan involved demolition of buildings on privately held property, city officials knew it would take some time to get all parties on board with the plan.
Jumping forward to 2016 when Meyer C. Weiner Company, which owns 28 West Place, approached the city about renovation plans for the mall property which was originally developed in 1962 and known as Southland Mall. Those plans included 20,000 square feet of new entry efficient building space and two out-lot buildings of approximately 11,000 square feet, long with significant property improvements to upgrade the existing retail center and its surface parking lot.
Seeing the opportunity to move forward with the 28 West Street plan, the City of Wyoming officials entered into a $1.6 million agreement with Meyer C. Weiner Company so as to move forward with the first phase of the 28 West Street project from Hook Avenue to Michael Avenue. This past week, the City Council finalized some of the details by placing an all-the-way stop sign at the 28 West Place service drive along the west side of the mall.
“We are excited to commemorate this first stage of redevelopment,” said Megan Sall, assistant city manager and Downtown Development Authority director. “There are so many opportunities inherent in this area and we’re pleased to have a partner in Meyer C. Weiner Company as we set the stage for future growth.”
Overview of the new 2 West Place with the 28 West Street.
Matthew McDade, chief operating officer for the Meyer C. Weiner Company, also points to partnerships as being key to this project’s success. “The Meyer C. Weiner Company would like to thank all the staff and officials at the City of Wyoming who worked extremely hard to make this redevelopment possible, along with the stakeholders for the successful completion of this project.”
As the renovation project got underway, Mr. Alan’s, a clothing store, leased a 5,400-square-foot out-lot building and opened in June. Other new tenants include CSL Plasma which opened in April, and Simply 10, a clothing store, is expected to opening late October. The current tenants of 28 West Place also include a Save-A-Lot, DollarTree, Payless Shoes, and the children’s consignment store Once Upon a Child.
28 West Place retailers will be hosting a series of events from 2 – 4 p.m. which include the Grand Rapids Drive’s mascot Buckets, signed Red Wings photos, face-painting for kids, a live remote with 95.7 WLHT and WKTV also will be there as well.
Grand Valley State University’s new Linn Maxwell Keller Black Box Theatre is providing students and faculty who are studying and teaching the performing arts with opportunities to tackle new types of productions.
The Grand Valley community celebrated the formal dedication of the Keller Theatre, located in the Thomas J. and Marcia J. Haas Center for Performing Arts, on Oct. 17.
To honor Linn’s memory, the Keller family established the Linn Maxwell Keller Professional Vocalist Experience Endowment at Grand Valley in 2017. The fund provides enrichment opportunities for committed vocal performance students and will aim to encourage them in their professional career development. The Keller Theatre was named in appreciation for their generosity.
“The Linn Maxwell Keller Endowment will facilitate and empower our vocal students to move beyond their academic studies and ascend to distinguished achievement by providing needed resources to build artistic capability through advanced study, professional production and community outreach,” said Danny Phipps, chair of the Music, Theatre, and Dance Department. “These experiences are critical to their success as they launch their professional careers as the next generation of performing artists.”
Fred Keller, Linn’s husband, said that the endowment supports her long-held desire to inspire young, aspiring musicians, especially vocalists.
The dedication included an inaugural cabaret in the theater, including six vocal performances by multiple Grand Valley students and alumni of the Music, Theatre, and Dance Department.
“Linn was an incredible artist, and I’m so proud that we can have this space in her memory, and an endowment that is going to be inspiring students in the future,” he said. “You’ll never remember what somebody did or said, but you’ll remember how they made you feel, and that’s what Linn brought to the stage.”
Linn Maxwell Keller was a dedicated professional singer who performed in 28 countries throughout her career. The only child of two musicians, Linn was a mezzo soprano, performing on many operatic and concert stages, from the Essen Opera House in Germany to Puerto Rico and Carnegie Hall.
She went on to write and develop numerous original shows, including the critically acclaimed “Hildegard of Bingen and the Living Light,” and “St. Hildegard, Trumpet of God,” both of which were made into movies.
The dedication ceremony included an inaugural cabaret in the theater, including six vocal performances by multiple Grand Valley students and alumni of the Music, Theatre, and Dance Department.
President Thomas J. Haas said the endowment and the Keller Theatre align with Grand Valley’s mission of encouraging students to reach their full potential.
“No matter what we do in the Linn Maxwell Black Box Theatre, we are going to be driven by sustained attention to excellence and quality,” said Haas.
A black box theater is an indoor performance space with plain black walls and a level floor, typically designed to provide flexibility in stage configuration and audience seating. Black box theaters gained popularity in the 1960s and the unique performance space creates a closer proximity between the audience and performers.
After almost two years of fundraising, planning and obtaining the proper permits, renovations on The Bridge are underway!
The Bridge of Arbor Circle is a safe shelter program for youth who are facing homelessness or considering running away. Serving an average of 250 youth a year and operating 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year, The Bridge is a facility that is constantly in use and constantly in need of maintenance.
Construction begun in August 2017 will provide much-needed upgrades to the facility, improve the functionality of the existing space, and make The Bridge an even more welcoming space for the youth served each year.
Existing bathroom facilities are getting reconstructed to go from two, single-user bathrooms to 3.5 single-user bathrooms. This will double current capacity and streamline bathroom/shower scheduling, especially on busy school days.
The dining room is getting upgraded flooring, lighting, ceiling and furniture to support the family-style approach to meals at The Bridge.
In the program space, furniture is being updated and technology is being built in to support youth in their educational pursuits. A new staff office is being constructed to promote safety and privacy for individual meetings with youth.
In the middle of a crisis, the Bridge provides shelter, counseling, case management, group support, youth activities and connections to other needed services. The Bridge assists youth with meeting their basic needs, setting goals, building new life skills, and establishing connections with peers and mentors who can support them.
Ford Airport Officials & Ford Foundation Officials Celebrate the President Gerald R. Ford Tribute Room Ribbon-Cutting
Two organizations bearing President Gerald R. Ford’s name came together to celebrate a ribbon-cutting and dedication for a tribute room at the airport in the late president’s honor.
Gerald R. Ford International Airport (GFIA) and Gerald R. Ford Presidential Foundation
officials joined President Gerald R. Ford’s son, Steve Ford, Joan Secchia representing the
Secchia Family Foundation, and Gerald R. Ford Presidential Foundation Airport Tribute
Room Chairman Fred Keller, for the official opening of the President Gerald R. Ford Tribute
Room.
“Dad would be extremely proud to know that the foundation and the airport that bear his
name came together to honor him with this tribute room,” said Steve Ford. “He loved growing up in Grand Rapids, and it is humbling to know that he will always have a place to
be remembered. This tribute room at the Gerald R. Ford International Airport is a terrific
place for generations that knew my father to spend time reflecting on the past, but also for
future generations to learn about what he meant to our country and to West Michigan.”
The airport worked with the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Foundation to incorporate an
exhibit space dedicated to the 38th President, which is located pre-security as a part of the
newly renovated Gateway Transformation Project. The exhibit includes photos, an aircraft
carrier model, displays, and rotating historical pieces.
“Jerry would not have wanted this much attention on him, but I know he would be proud of this tribute room, and honored that so many came to celebrate his legacy,” said Secchia. “It was important for those of us that knew him well to give him full recognition in a space that bears his name. We appreciate this partnership with the airport authority, and we look
forward to opening this space for all visitors to enjoy.”
“When I approached Peter about having this room at the airport, it was a natural fit and he
and many others that knew President Ford personally jumped on board to make this
tribute room a reality,” said GFIA Board Chairman Roger Morgan. “Our Airport Board
appreciates those that helped raise the funds for this space, and we are anxious to show
this off to the millions of visitors that pass through our airport each year.”
The Tribute Room is open 24 hours a day to visitors and airport patrons.
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).
Sparky is a lovely cat, ready and eager for his forever home
When you take a gander at this gorgeous gray-and-white guy’s photo, you would have no idea that upon arrival back in October of 2015, his cheek and jaw were a swollen, infected mess. A victim of a nasty cat bite—a common occurrence in intact males— this 4-year-old (born in the spring of 2013) was suffering from a huge pocket of pus teeming with bacteria that caused a terribly high fever (105.7 degrees).
If it weren’t for the kindhearted Wyoming woman who cared for him for over six months noticing that something was awry, Uncle Fester (as he was named then) would have become even more ill than he was, risking widespread infection and devastating tissue damage. As luck would have it, Dr. Jen was able to surgically drain and flush the abscess and treat with heavy-duty antibiotics and pain medication; within a few hours his body temperature had normalized and Fester was no longer festering but eagerly filling his face with yummy canned food.
Further exam showed a previous injury that caused avulsion of his right thumb and a mild flea infestation, but both of those paled in comparison to that erupting volcano of goo and gore!
After a few days of rinsing, rest and relaxation, our beautiful boy was ready to make his way down to Crash’s, where he settled in nicely, totally digging his new surroundings and being doted on hand and foot. It didn’t take him long to win over the volunteers and roomies alike, and within a few short weeks of his arrival, he was out and about, meeting everyone who came to visit our shelter and charming them with his quiet sophistication and sultry good looks. He proved to be a very busy boy that involves himself in any activity happening around him—he loves being in the middle of the action!
Given his bubbly, outgoing nature, he wasn’t with us for a lengthy time period, and soon resided in a family home where he had tons of fun with the kids and adults alike. However, in late June of of 2017, Sparky (as he was renamed) ended up back with us due to unfortunate circumstances beyond his control; although his humans were so very sad to have to return him to us, rest assured he readjusted to life in our free-roaming facility, getting reacquainted with old friends—and making many new ones!
Sparky is an all-around good guy—adventurous and energetic yet gentle and sweet , all rolled up into one stunning perfect companion style package; we have no doubts that we will be able to send him into a home of his own again soon—and hopefully this time forever!
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.
Godwin Heights Public Schools Superintendent Bill Fetterhoff, center, listens as Michelle Krynicki director of instruction, and Title III, speaks to the State Board of Education. (Photos courtesy of School News Network.)
Superintendents from five Kent County school districts got the chance on Tuesday to tout their school improvement initiatives, when State Superintendent Brian Whiston and the eight-member State Board of Education visited Kent ISD.
Presenting superintendents were Michael Shibler of Rockford Public Schools; Gerald Hopkins of Kenowa Hills Public Schools; Thomas Reeder of Wyoming Public Schools; William Fetterhoff of Godwin Heights Public Schools; and Kevin Polston of Godfrey-Lee Public Schools.
Each presentation included what those districts are doing around one or more of the goals of the State Department of Education’s “Top 10 in 10” initiative to make Michigan a premier education state in 10 years.
Luke Wilcox, this year’s Michigan Teacher of the Year, also took part as a representative of Kentwood Public Schools.
Kent ISD was the first stop in the state BOE’s new plan to visit two intermediate school districts each year. The board will visit Wayne RESA in February.
Here is a brief summary of the superintendents’ presentations.
Luke Wilcox, Michigan Teacher of the Year, of Kentwood Public Schools, with State Board member Lupe Ramos-Montigny of Grand Rapids.
Rockford Public Schools: Action Model for Success
Since 1989, Rockford has involved the community, businesses, staff and students to help shape the district’s direction and priorities, resulting in three-year strategic plans. The district is currently finalizing its Rams X report for the next three years.
Key to that level of community engagement is accountability, said Superintendent Michael Shibler.
“This is, quite frankly, the reason we are an outstanding school system,” Shibler told board members. “And it fits your plan, the fact that you need to have stakeholder input to accomplish your goals.”
He shared that if an employer tells him an employee who is a Rockford graduate doesn’t have a skill he or she should have gotten in high school, “I’ll bring that student back free of charge to get those skills.”
Wyoming Public Schools Superintndent Tom Reeder tells the board of his district’s efforts to improve reading proficiency.
Wyoming Public Schools: Reading Now Network, Early Literacy and Literacy Coaching
The three components are key to district efforts to improve reading proficiency for all students. Highlighted for the board was the importance and purpose of early literacy work and literacy coaches throughout the buildings.
The district increased its reading scores through its participation in the Reading Now Network, a collaborative effort involving 100 districts to boost reading proficiency to 80 percent in 13 counties. Wyoming’s partnership with RNN also led to a $10,000 grant from the Herman Miller company, to help get more books into classrooms and create a more consistent book-leveling system.
“We all need to own that our students need to be reading much better than they are,” Superintendent Tom Reeder said.
Godwin Heights Public Schools: Fostering Shared Responsibility in School Improvement
After establishing a clear purpose and message about sharing the work of improvement, administrators and instructional coaches lead teams in highly focused learning. That begins with thoroughly understanding a district instructional goal and visiting classrooms to see it in action. Debriefing sessions within groups lead to possible steps for new improvements toward the goal.
Participants walk away with better understanding, new ways to explore meeting the goal, and a renewed sense of shared responsibility for all students to be career and college ready, said Superintendent Bill Fetterhoff.
Fetterhoff said the strategy has three elements: learning labs, where teachers observe, interact with and learn from one another; and administrators are exempt; learning walks, where administrators and instructional specialists create a consistent “lens” to support teaching staff; and school improvement, where participation is a blend of the other groups.
“So we see it in three different ways, but all the ways are there to enhance student achievement — to make our principals, our teachers, our coaches better,” Fetterhoff said. “It’s all about the learning communities and how the different cycles overlap. The greatest part about it is the feedback, and that’s been that they have confidence that we are doing this for the right reasons.”
Godfrey-Lee Public Schools Superintendent Kevin Polston and Assistant Superintendent Carol Lautenbach speak to the State Board of Education, as Michigan Teacher of the Year Lucas Wilcox, right, looks on.
Godfrey-Lee Public Schools: A Broader Definition of Student Success
The district’s design thinking process led to a redesign of its model of student success that addresses the needs of the whole child instead of simply providing content. This includes responding to research that indicates students need the 6Cs — communication, collaboration, creativity, critical thinking, confidence and content mastery – for success in the 21st century.
Educating the whole child also means fulfilling needs to ensure students are healthy and ready to learn, through programs like Kent School Services Network.
“First, we determine our values, and then we develop goals around those values,” Superintendent Kevin Polston told board members. “When we think about our traditional way of doing school, we’ve maxed out just about all the ways of tweaking how we’ve done that. We need to look at education through a different lens if we are going to significantly transform what we’re doing.”
Kenowa Hills Public Schools: Competency-based Learning
This paradigm-shifting approach to learning is part of a growing national trend in helping all students reach college and career readiness. In this approach, students move ahead individually as soon as they learn the material, and not together as an entire class. This allows some to move more quickly, while others get the support they need, enabling all to master the content.
The district began this shift in 2012 with K-8 mathematics, and has now implemented it districtwide. Administrators say they consistently see students who are more engaged, learning at deeper levels, and taking more ownership of their learning.
“It’s the reality of what all schools face: students who are not engaged, are not meeting the rigors and demands of school and they don’t know why,” Superintendent Gerald Hopkins said. “We don’t have all the answers, but we want to continue to learn and to keep looking for them.”
State Board members seemed to appreciate being able to meet superintendents on their own turf.
“This is the first time we’ve taken our meeting on the road,” said Eileen Lappin Weiser. “You folks are setting a horribly high standard.”
Check out School News Network for more stories about students, schools, and faculty in West Michigan.
One of the most famous eagle cams is owned and operated by Florida-based Dick Pritchett Real Estate.
The eagles are back!! Every year, eagles across the country return to their nests to prepare and raise their eaglets. As many of us wonder how any eagles survived the strong hurricanes, eagles, especially those in hardest-hit hurricane areas where their nest trees fell, have already started the rebuilding process — without a Lowe’s or Home Depot to run to for supplies. They must find everything they need in nature and have genius ways of using the smallest items to build or rebuild their nests. Even the skeleton of their dinner becomes part of their nest wall or floor. As the eagles build, fight to survive everyday and protect their young, their journey is filled with drama, life, death, and the most tender, uplifting of moments. So, eagle-watching is a huge past-time for millions of humans.
Two favorite eagles of many are Harriet and M-15, who reside in Fort Myers, Florida. As of this weekend, their site has had 112,628,281 views, with the count rapidly rising as they begin the new hatching season. A few years ago, an eagle nest was found on the Dick Pritchett Real Estate property in Fort Myers, Florida. During the off-season, the Pritchett family generously hung cameras with night vision so the public could share the drama and beauty they see daily, without disturbing the eagles. You can get their amazing, inspiring details and history at http://www.dickpritchettrealestate.com. On December 31, 2016, their eaglet “pipped” — started its hatching process. While one egg did not survive, viewers watched in awe as eaglet “E9” broke through the shell, was fed by mom and dad, endured challenge after challenge, until it fell out of the tree, found its way back, continued demonstrating one unique skill after another until it “fledged” (left the nest) not to be recognized again.
Eagles across the country are returning home to nest.
This year has already started with more drama than imaginable. Hurricane Irma destroyed many of the established eagle nests and preferred trees. That means there is already a life-or-death struggle for a new place to build and raise their families. It also means that eagles like Harriet and M-15 need to quickly rebuild their seriously damaged nests before their babies arrive while also aggressively protecting the nest they have used for years. Within the past 24 hours, Harriet and M-15 have had several “visiting eagles” check out their site — which they will protect at all costs to themselves. Even an owl “bumped” Harriet during the night. The battles between owls and eagles are epic and memorable! But for this calm morning, the eagles have put that behind, have eaten their breakfast of fresh fish and by 7 a.m. were seen carrying stick after stick to rebuild their nest that was damaged by the hurricane. They are totally focused on each other and getting ready for raising their next brood.
There are many eagles and many eagle live cams. The one in Washington D.C. gained heavy publicity last year when a brave man climbed into the nest of a deadly eagle to rescue an eaglet that had become stuck in the branches. Amazingly, the protective mother allowed him to do that. The cams in Decorah, Iowa showed extreme drama after drama. The eagles in Alaska are amazing to watch as they arrive in mind-blowing flocks around salmon-processing facilities. One in Michigan showed eagles covered in snow as they protected their eggs. And, it always amazes that a pesky owl attacks at night or knocks sleeping birds off their perches. The Pritchett site remains a fan favorite for many reasons. It has live cameras with night vision capturing many views, friendly chat rooms dedicated only to eagles, classroom internet classes, provides detailed histories, explains language used (like what a pip is, when fledging happens….) and some of the most friendly moderators who explain everything happening and why.
Whichever site you chose, watching the eagles also teaches us a lot about life, death, teamwork and ourselves. Be forewarned, eagle watching becomes addictive!
Wyoming-Kentwood Community Media’s VOICES: a community history projectpowered by WKTV is taking reservations for its appearance at Wyoming Public Library (3350 Michael Ave SW, Wyoming, MI) Monday-Thursday, Oct. 23-Oct. 26, from 10am-8pm*.
VOICEScollects, preserves, and shares the stories of West Michigan people from all backgrounds and beliefs, with a focus on Wyoming, Kentwood and the greater Grand Rapids area. It’s a free public service, offering a comfortable video recording studio with a relaxed atmosphere.
High-tech video and audio equipment records the stories of our neighbors, friends and family — any story from anyone — that make up the fabric of our lives and our community. Participants tell their stories of hardships and successes, of what shaped them and their families into the kind of people they are today. Our lives, experiences, joys, sorrows, triumphs and tragedies are what make us all human.
Interviews usually take place between two people who know and care about each other. They can be friends, family or mere acquaintances. At the end of each 40-minute recording session, participants receive a complimentary DVD of their interview. Each recording is also archived with the Library of Congress.
VOICES sign at the Wyoming Public Library
Interviews can be “life reviews,” conducted with people at the end of their careers. Or they can focus on a specific period or a specific event in people’s lives, as with war veterans or survivors of an earthquake, flood or hurricane.
The project launched at ArtPrize Nine, welcoming scores of visitors to tour our renovated 1958 Airstream® mobile studio and learn more about the oral history project.
Paul Haan, of the Health Homes Coalition of West Michigan, on the set of WKTV Journal: In Focus/ (WKTV)
WKTV Staff
news@wktv.org
On the latest episode of WKTV Journal: In Focus, WKTV’s public affairs show, program host Ken Norris talks with Paul Haan of Healthy Homes Coalition of West Michigan, a group which works to identify and address environmental health hazards in homes with young children, including lead poisoning.
“We were founded 11 years ago this summer and really grew out of a community response to the number of kids who were exposed to lead poisoning here in Kent County,” Haan said. “Our mission at that point was to end lead poisoning in Kent County — we are well on our way, we have more work to do, but that is what we were after. … the Health Homes Coalition grew out of that effort.”
Also on the new program is a discussion with Ethan Anderson, a local financial advisor with a common sense approach to retirement planning. The discussion focuses on retirement planning for the today’s young working families, and it just begins with why company pensions are almost a thing of the past.
The episode will air twice this week on WKTV channels but all interviews included in episodes of WKTV Journal: In Focus are also available on YouTube at WKTVVideos.
“WKTV Journal: In Focus” will air on Tuesdays and Thursdays, at 6:30 p.m., on cable television in the Wyoming and Kentwood areas on Comcast WKTV Channel 26 and on AT&T Channel 99 Government channel.
Missdalia Rios-Segundo talks to members of Lee Youth Trained to Serve about an upcoming volunteer trip to Feeding America of West Michigan. (Photos courtesy of School News Network)
It’s an extraordinary claim: During her 10 years working with middle school students, Missdalia Rios-Segundo says, not one has ever treated her with disrespect.
But when you meet her, it makes sense.
“They are good kids,” Rios-Segundo said, as if it’s that simple. And, really, it is. Rios, who has worked as a English-language learner paraprofessional at Lee Middle/High School for a decade, is simply kind.
“I’ve never had a situation where I’ve seen a student closed off to her,” said seventh-grade science teacher Janene Parney. “Children kind of sense the character of individuals. She is always so kind and patient and they recognize it and respect her for it.
“I’ve never heard a bad word about her from the students or the teachers, not even a muttering behind her back.”
Instead, students gravitate to Rios-Segundo, Parney said. “It’s nothing but a rally around an individual, completely because of her character.
“She a glue in this school.”
Rios-Segundo works with newcomers to the U.S. in sixth through eighth grades who come from Spanish-speaking countries and other areas of the world. In general-education classes, she helps them comprehend and keep up.
She recently helped sixth-grader Giovanni Chitic with a book in the “Diary of a Wimpy Kid” series. “She helps me become a better reader,” Giovanni said.
ELL paraprofessional Missdalia Rios-Segundo works with Giovanni Chitic
Rios-Segundo takes notes and completes assignments right along with her students, ensuring that when they ask a question she can help. “I definitely love my job and what I do every day with the kids. I love the interaction,” she said. “If I can make them smile a little, that is good.”
Teacher Emily Colletti said Rios-Segundo uses her special touch to make students feel at ease.
“She provides them with different strategies to be successful. They are very comfortable with her,” Colletti said. “She’s one of the kindest, most compassionate people I’ve ever worked with and she’s always looking for ways to help.”
Shining Bright in the Community
Outside class, Rios-Segundo leads middle schoolers in Lee Youth Trained to Serve, which includes 15 sixth- through eighth-graders who meet regularly for service projects. LYTS recently collected about $135 for DeVos Children’s Hospital by hosting Gridiron Giving at a recent football game, collecting donations in jars and selling doughnuts.
The group is now planning to volunteer at Feeding America West Michigan before beginning their next project, Operation Christmas Child, for which they pack shoeboxes with toys, hygiene items and school supplies for children in other countries. Last year, they collected 150 shoeboxes for the annual project.
Rios-Segundo said she wants middle schoolers to see how they can brighten people’s day.
“I like to help out the community,” she said. “I find so many good people out there and they are helping. I have been in situations when I have gotten help myself. I want the kids to see they can help someone else. We live in a community that’s not the wealthiest, but even if they don’t have a lot we can still give back to somebody.”
Seventh-grader Nuria Pablo said she appreciates the opportunity. “I wanted to join because we are helping kids in need,” she said.
Added seventh-grader Zusette Quinonez, “What I’m looking forward to do is help others and (Rios-Segundo) inspires me because she likes to help others.”
Missdalia Rios-Segundo is known as a pillar at Lee Middle/High School
Once a Newcomer Herself
Rios-Segundo immigrated to the United States at age 9 with her parents and three siblings 30 years ago. They came from Durango, Mexico, for work and education. She lived in California for one year and Illinois for 12 before moving to Michigan 17 years ago, settling in the Godfrey-Lee community with her husband.
Mom to Abel, a Lee High School junior, and Anahi, a Godfrey Elementary School third-grader, she knows what it’s like for students to begin school in a new country. “It was very difficult,” she said.
Now she brings her experiences to students and families, many who use her as a liaison. “I think that is why I love my job — I know where they are coming from.”
The Godfrey-Lee community is family-oriented and that makes it special, she said. “I think it’s the closeness you can get to the families and community. It’s small enough to know everyone. If your children are out with someone you know they are in good company.”
Lee Middle/High School Assistant Principal Rendal Todd said Rios-Segundo is a “pillar in the building.”
“Missdalia always has a positive outlook and comes in every day willing to help the students where they need to have support,” Todd said. “She is very integrated into the community and always willing to help.
“She’s a great natured person to talk to and be around and cares a lot about our children,” he added. “She goes above and beyond without ever being asked.”
Check out School News Network for more stories about students, schools, and faculty in West Michigan.
The high school football season has gone past way too quickly, and we are already to the final week of the regular season week, but once again WKTV’s featured coverage will have a great matchup as South Christian travels to East Grand Rapids.
South Christian and Grand Rapids Christian each are just a game behind EGR, which is trying to complete a perfect season. With a win though South will get a share of what could be “tri-champions in the OK Gold.”
Elsewhere in the area, Kelloggsville, with their big win over Belding last week, assured themselves of at least a share of the OK Silver championship. The team can clinch the sole championship with a final week victory against Hopkins, which will come into the game with a 4-4 overall record.
With the Godwin Heights victory last week over NorthPointe Christian, the team guaranteed themselves of being a part of the MHSAA playoffs by getting to the 6-win mark.
East Kentwood needs to get a final week victory at home against Caledonia to make it into the playoffs after their defeat last week at Rockford. The Falcons record is 5-3 but they have yet to defeat a team with a winning record so they might not make it as an “at-large” team with only the five wins.
The playoff matchups for all eight divisions will be announced Sunday evening, after the final Friday of games.
Planned WKTV featured coverage this month includes:
Friday, Oct. 20, football — South Christian at East Grand Rapids
Friday, Oct. 27, football – Playoffs TBD (after games of Oct. 20)
Currently, WKTV sports events will be broadcast the night of the game on Comcast Channel 25, usually at 11 p.m., and repeated on Saturday at 11 a.m. on WKTV Comcast Channel 25 and AT&T U-verse Channel 99 in Wyoming & Kentwood.
For a complete schedule of all local high school sports action each week, any changes to the WKTV feature sports schedule, and features on local sports, visit wktvjournal.org/sports/
Local high school sports events this week are as follows:
Monday, Oct. 16
Boys/girls Cross Country
South Christian @ East Grand Rapids
Boys Soccer
Everett @ Wyoming – MHSAA Districts
Wyoming Lee vs TBD – MHSAA Districts
Godwin Heights vs TBD @ Christian – MHSAA Districts
TBD @ East Kentwood – MHSAA Districts
Tuesday, Oct. 17
Girls Volleyball
South Christian @ East Grand Rapids
Wayland @ Wyoming – Dig Pink
Wellsprings Prep @ Zion Christian
East Kentwood @ Grandville
Holland Calvary @ Tri-Unity Christian
Boys/girls Cross Country
Wyoming @ East Grand Rapids
Wyoming Lee @ Calvin Christian
Godwin @ Calvin Christian
Kelloggsville @ Calvin Christian
Boys Soccer
Zion Christian @ Calvin Christian – MHSAA Districts
Wednesday, Oct. 18
Boys Soccer
Godwin Heights vs TBD @ Christian – MHSAA Districts
East Kentwood vs TBD @ FH Central – MHSAA Districts
Thursday, Oct. 19
Girls Swimming
South Christian @ Wayland
East Kentwood @ Rockford
Girls Volleyball
Middleville T-K @ South Christian
Wyoming Lee @ NorthPointe Christian
Union @ Kelloggsville
Zion Christian @ West Michigan Aviation
Calvin Christian @ Godwin Heights
East Kentwood @ West Ottawa
Holland Black River @ Tri-Unity Christian
Boys/girls Cross Country
East Kentwood @ Rockford
Friday, Oct. 20
Boys Football
South Christian @ East Grand Rapids – WKTV Featured Game
Forest Hills Eastern @ Wyoming – Community Night
Godwin Heights @ Wyoming Lee
Hopkins @ Kelloggsville
Caledonia @ East Kentwood
Belding @ Potter’s House/Calvin Christian
Boys Water Polo
East Kentwood vs TBD @ West Ottawa – MHSAA Districts
Saturday, Oct. 21
Boys/girls Cross Country
South Christian @ Kalamazoo Christian
Kelloggsville @ Gobles
Girls Volleyball
Wyoming @ Hesperia
Wyoming Lee @ Belding
Godwin Heights @ Belding
Kelloggsville @ Belding
Zion Christian – Alliance League Tournament @ Davenport
Tri-Unity Christian – Alliance League Tournament @ Davenport
Boys Soccer
Godwin vs TBD @ Christian – MHSAA Districts
East Kentwood vs TBD @ FH Central – MHSAA Districts
Boys Water Polo
East Kentwood vs TBD @ West Ottawa – MHSAA Districts
Kentwood Public School’s fifth graduating class came together recently to celebrate their 50th anniversary. The year: 1967, when Aretha Franklin was singing for respect, the first Boeing 737 rolled out, and Paris township became the City of Kentwood.
Steve Barnes with classmate Russ Bullis Russ’s wife Betsy.
“They incorporated all the schools that were connected and became part of Kentwood Public Schools which eventually lead into the City of Kentwood,” said Clare Harrington.
The old classmates were eager to recount stories from their time at Kentwood schools. These memories backtrack to a time before Kentwood was even a city.
“The high school was actually in the Townline building at the same time we were in the middle school before the actual high school was built on 44th Street,” Russ Bullis said.
The Class of 1967 had its 50th Class Reunion at the 84th Street Pub &Grille.
Later, the students would move from the Townline Elementary School to the new high school, today’s Crestwood Middle School located on 44th Street near Walma Avenue. Crestwood, which opened in 1960, housed students in grades 7th – 12th grade. The first Kentwood Public Schools graduating class was in 1963. East Kentwood High School, located on Kalamazoo Avenue, was built in 1969 and even through the Class of 1967 had graduated by the time the high school was built, many of the students could recall special events that took place at East Kentwood High School.
“I remember when the football field went in and the track, and they named it after Patterson,” said Steve Barnes, whose mother is credited in naming the City of Kentwood and whose father, Clifford, was on the Kentwood Public Schools Board of Education. Clifford Barnes served as the first board president. “And that was something big because we didn’t even have that.”
“We were a country school, bottom line,” Harrington said. “It was because of the country setting that we had there for Kentwood High School, they used to call us ‘silo high.'”
But nobody would call Kentwood Schools “silo high” now. The population of this city is 50,000 and growing. And much of that growth can be credited to former Kentwood students who chose to stay and build their lives in their home city.
“I’m just glad that I was a part of it because it’s kinda unique to see it happen,” Harrington said. “Now look at Kentwood today, it’s one of the industrial giants that we have around the whole Grand Rapids area.”
Russ Bullis looks over some of the Class of 1967 memorabilia.
Many have probably seen the animated ad with the house running away from its owner. The ad is for the state run program Step Forward Michigan, a federally funded program designed to help homeowners facing foreclosure. A program, Kent County Treasurer Kenneth Parrish strongly supports.
“I’m a big supporter of the Step Forward Michigan program,” Parrish said during a recent news conference that brought together county treasurers for Kent, Ottawa and Kalamazoo counties along with representatives from the Michigan State Housing Development Authority. THE MSHDA oversees the Step Forward Michigan program in collaboration with the Michigan Homeowner Assistance nonprofit Housing Corporation.
“Since 2010, the program has helped nearly 1,700 Kent County residents with over $15 million in loans making us the fourth largest user of the program,” Parrish said, adding that of that about $13.9 million was used to cover mortgage payments, $1.2 million for unpaid property taxes and another $15,000 for condominium payments.
From the Step Forward Michigan video.
Federal funded with $500 million, almost 35,000 Michigan homeowners have qualified for around $308 million in loans since the program started seven years ago. There is about $40 million left to help eligible households but the clock is ticking as the deadline to apply is 2020.
“The Step Forward Program offers great opportunities for families to stabilize their situation and to save their homes,” Parrish said. “We take no pleasure on foreclosing on homes here in Kent County. If you have fallen behind in your property tax, mortgage or condominium payments, I urge you to check out the Step Forward Michigan Program and see if you can get a load that will ultimately help you keep your home.”
Those who have been hit with a hardship – medical event, job loss or underemployment, death, divorce, one-time critical out-of-pocket expense – can get up to a $30,000 interest-free loan to get caught up on property tax, mortgage or condo payments. If the homeowner stays in the home for five years, the loan is forgiven and they do not have to pay back the loan, according to MSHDA Executive Director Earl Poleski.
Kent County Treasurer Kenneth Parrish talks about the Step Forward Michigan program at a recent news conference.
To qualify for assistance, a homeowner must be a Michigan resident, have an ownership interest in the property and be able to sign a new mortgage lien on property, occupy property as his or her primary resident, have enough income to cover the mortgage, condo association fees, and/or property tax payments going forward, and have cash reserves no greater than $10,000.
Any homeowner convicted in the past 10 years on a financial-related felony, including larceny, theft, fraud, forgery, money laundering and/or tax evasion, is not eligible for the program.
A homeowner can receive a loan only once from the program. The average loan amount has been $7,383. Loan payments go directly to the county treasurers office, mortgage lender or condominium association, not to the homeowner
According to state officials, the process to find out if a home owner is eligible is easier than filling out a full mortgage application. Those interested can go to StepForwardMichigan.org and fill out the questions to see if they are eligible or call 866-946-7432.
Kent County residents can also reach out to the Inner City Christian Federation or ICCF at 616-336-9333 or the Home Repair Services of Kent County at 616-241-2601.
Funny things are everywhere: Rachel Turner, Samantha Miheve, Aaron Siebelink and Jared Martin are in Grand Rapids Civic Theatre’s “Seussical the Musical.”
“A person’s a person, no matter how small.” – Horton Hears a Who.
You can easily say that Theodor Seuss Geisel, better known as Dr. Seuss, was definitely a man before his time. The words he penned in the late 1960s (“Horton Hears a Who” was published in 1970) have become almost a mantra for today as we celebrate the uniqueness every person offers.
“People come in all shapes and sizes,” said Jared Martin, a 10th grader at East Kentwood High School. “People are unique and we should celebrate that from the smallest of the small to the tallest of the tall.”
Starting Oct. 20, Martin, as Cat in the Hat, along with 29 other castmates celebrate the woods of wisdom of Dr. Seuss in the Grand Rapids Civic Theatre’s family production of “Seussical the Musical” at the theater’s downtown location of 30 N. Division Ave.
Today was good. Today was fun. Tomorrow is another one: The four local residents in Grand Rapids Civic Theatre goof around backstage after rehearsal.
“It’s bright and happy and I think that is something that we all need right now,” said Wyoming resident Rachel Turner, who plays a Bird Girl in the production. “It’s light, it’s crazy, and there is fun in everything you do. It’s a happy production with an elegant, good message.”
In Dr. Seuss’s writing he covered so many different topics, bullying, drug abuse, child abandonment, Martin said. Many of which are covered in the musical which blends several of Dr. Seuss’s most famous stories together. The elephant Horton (from “Horton Hears a Who”) discovers a speck of dust that contains Whoville. He meets Jo Jo, a Who child sent to military school for thinking too many “thinks.” Horton faces a double challenge: not only must he protect Jo Jo and the Who’s from a world of naysayers and dangers, but he must guard an abandoned egg, left in his care by the irresponsible Mayzie La Bird. All of which is narrated by the Cat in the Hat.
“I love the opening song ‘All the Things You can Think’,” said Wyoming resident Samantha Miheve, a 10th grader at Grand Rapids City High School who plays a Who. “It’s the first thing you see and it is so lively and fun and really sets the stage.” With Wyoming resident Aaron Siebelink, an 11th grader who is homeschooled and plays a Wickersham Brother, adding “It’s like getting hit in the face with a happy brick.”
But that is Dr. Seuss. The topics are serious, but the way he presents them are fun and light, Turner said, adding that it is what has made him such a classic but still relevant today.
Seussing it up: Rachel Turner, Aaron Siebelink, Samantha Miheve, all from Wyoming, and Jared Martin, from Kentwood.
“It’s going be the most fun you ever had,” Siebelink said. “It’s weird. It’s wild. It’s Dr. Seuss.”
The Grand Rapids Civic Theatre’s family production is a shorter version of “Seussical the Musical,” only 70 minutes with no intermission. There are nine shows from Oct. 20 – 29. Tickets are $16 – $10. For more information, calll 616-222-6650 or visit www.GRCT.org. There is a low sensory performance available for children with low sensory needs and their families. Call Chelsea at the Civic Theatre, 616-222-6650, ext. 0.
Whether you’re employed and looking for a new job, thinking about a new career or applying for unemployment insurance, use these tips to make the most of your visit to a Michigan Works! service center. (See a list of all ten locations here.)
Bring your resume
After checking in, one of our Career Navigators will ask you to create or update your MiTalentConnect profile on mitalent.org. Employers post jobs and search for candidates on this website, so a detailed profile is essential. Your profile mirrors your resume. Bring your resume to quickly complete your profile.
Employers can see when your profile was last updated. Make sure you update it once a month to let employers know you’re serious about your job search and are actively looking for jobs.
Ask questions
Tap our staff for their knowledge. They receive lots of job search related training and are ready for your toughest questions. If you need more help (resume revisions, interview prep), ask if you are eligible to meet with a Career Coach. They provide one-on-one help.
Go to the workshops
Our workshop instructors keep workshop content fresh and relevant. These free 60-to-90-minute classes cover lots of job search topics — from basic to advanced. If you have questions afterward, they are happy to answer them and to connect you with other resources. See workshop calendars here.
Employment Expertise is provided by West Michigan Works! Learn more about how they can help: visit westmiworks.org or your local Service Center.
Flashback: In celebration of Kentwood’s 50 anniversary, here’s a photo from a 1980s Halloween event.
Calling all ghouls, monsters, superheroes, princesses and other trick-or-treaters: You are invited to attend the City of Kentwood’s annual Trunk or Treat on Saturday, Oct. 21.
Trunk or Treat will be held from 10 a.m. to noon at Kentwood Department of Public Works, 5068 Breton Road SE, Kentwood. The City, which is celebrating 50 years in 2017, is inviting families from West Michigan to join in the event.
Children are encouraged to wear Halloween costumes and bring their own candy-collection bag. More than 20 businesses and City departments will be handing out candy and other treats throughout the morning. In addition to the trunks, there will be games, face painting, a bounce house and hay rides.
Some more flashback fun in honor of Kentwood’s 50th anniversary.
“Trunk or Treat gets bigger every year, which is really reflective of the growth in our community,” said Laura Barbrick, marketing and events coordinator of Kentwood’s Parks and Recreation Department. “It was created to provide families a safe and fun opportunity to trick or treat.
“Local businesses and organizations are invited to attend and decorate their vehicles with Halloween themes. It’s a great time for families to connect with local organizations and businesses in a fun, high-energy day.”
The event is free for those participating in trick or treating. There is no cost for those organizations wishing to reserve a parking space, however they must supply their own candy. For more information or to register a vehicle, please contact Laura Barbrick at barbrickl@ci.kentwood.mi.us or 616-656-5272.
Let’s talk about a glaring example of the disconnect between the workforce and the pipeline of students who will soon enter it.
Last spring, Kent ISD, in partnership with local school districts, area manufacturing representatives, and Grand Rapids Community College, started advertising Launch U. That’s an early middle-college program that puts students directly into training for jobs in manufacturing with local businesses, allowing them to earn a free associate degree and credentials in the field.
AutoCam training director Steve Heethuis talks to Byron Center students about the plant’s operations
One snafu in planning was that partner companies didn’t want to promise to hold off hiring until students completed the program. Take a moment to consider that: The company representatives wanted to be able to hire the students, potentially before they completed the program.
Now consider this: Not enough students enrolled in two of the Launch U programs, precision machining and industrial maintenance, for those programs to start as scheduled in late August.
“We couldn’t get 24 students to sign up,” said Bill Smith, assistant superintendent of instructional services for Kent ISD. The plan is to reintroduce the programs next fall.
Smith said he believes many students aren’t getting the message that there are quicker and more affordable routes than a four-year degree into industries where they can thrive and make high wages. “The system that markets to the kids is still leaning toward ‘every kid of value should go to a four-year institution,'” Smith said.
“Until we change that mindset we are going to have these types of jobs sitting open. This is free education, a free associate’s, free workplace-recognized credentials in fields where you are going to get a job and that job is going to pay $80 K.”
AutoCam machinist Richard Tobias shows a part to students including, from left, sophomores Carter hickson and Spencer Julien.
Jobs are Unfilled
Smith was recently part of a group that met with Gov. Rick Snyder and U.S. Secretary of Labor Alexander Acosta to talk about the gap between skilled workers and in-demand jobs, known as the “talent gap.” According to Snyder, 120,000 available jobs in Michigan are unfilled. Many are in the areas of manufacturing, engineering, information technology and hybrids of these fields.
“There is a need to have stackable credentials, and that need is greater than a college degree,” Smith said. “These jobs don’t go unfilled because people are unavailable; it’s because the talent isn’t aligned to get the job. We have to import workers when we really shouldn’t have to.”
Some companies have long vacancy lists of jobs, he added: “It’s almost impossible to fathom that we have that many jobs open and we can’t connect the unemployed to those jobs.”
With careers rapidly changing and college costs skyrocketing, it’s time for students to become exposed to the fact that there are post-secondary education and training options besides a four-year degree, he said.
Still, about 70 percent of all jobs require some kind of post-secondary education: technical certification, an apprenticeship, an associate or four-year degree.
“Kids have to be graduating from high school and they have to be going on to get some kind of post-secondary training, but it’s a wide range,” said Kevin Stotts, president of Talent 2025. Representing 115 area CEOs in manufacturing, healthcare, information technology, construction, engineering and business services, Talent 2025 works to align talent with workplace needs.
But ingraining that message into K-12 schools requires a shift, Stotts said.
Byron Center students watch a robot at work
“There was such an emphasis on ‘go to college.’ That was your ticket. (But) that could mean getting a degree in a field where there was no demand for that education and training.”
The “college” message was very strong during the economic downturn a few years ago and, though job losses occurred across many industries, manufacturing got a really bad rap, he said. Young people stopped considering it as an option, but the industry has since rebounded and revolutionized.
“We have more than recovered the jobs lost in the manufacturing industry since the Great Recession,” Stotts said. “The jobs that are back are better paying, require technical knowledge and skill, they are utilizing technology and they are in cleaner environments.”
Shrinking the Gap
With the gap becoming more evident, schools and businesses are working together to prepare students for the future West Michigan workforce.
Sixty Byron Center High School students recently toured four area manufacturers to get an up-close, hands-on look at operations that put them in touch with employers in the region’s biggest industry.
Junior Harrison Kosak said he wants to work in engineering or robotics, and that it helps to see what’s out there while still in high school.
“It helps me get more in-depth with what I want to do,” Harrison said as he toured AutoCam. “I can look at these different occupations and see what I might be interested in.”
Byron Center High School teacher Lary Shoemaker, who teaches drafting, CAM/CNC classes and pre-engineering, has 10 students taking his classes — more than 10 percent of the high school’s enrollment — proving that gearing up students for high-demand jobs is possible.
“In West Michigan, the school districts recognize that 25 percent of our jobs are in the manufacturing sector,” Shoemaker said. “We have companies right in Byron Center that are direct placement for students that enter this career path. We have great companies in Grand Rapids that support a manufacturing environment at the high school level.”
AutoCam is one example. Steve Heethuis, training director for the Kentwood firm, talked to the visiting students about career-pathway opportunities right at the company: apprenticeships and the Advanced Manufacturing Partnership, which gives employees the opportunity to receive an associate degree for free. Many go on to get engineering degrees. AutoCam also offers internships, scholarships and is a partner in the Launch U Program.
“We are interested in them getting curious about manufacturing,” Heethuis said. “If they have an opportunity to come work for us or any other manufacturer, we feel like it’s a success because we recognize that manufacturing is absolutely vital to our long-term economic regional success. We feel like it’s our leadership position to introduce students to manufacturing.”
Two years ago, Byron Center hosted a college and career day, which included several area manufacturers who presented educational opportunities and apprentice programs.
“Anytime you can have students really talk directly to the people that are potential employers, it’s good real world experience,” Shoemaker said. “It’s almost like a pre-interview.”
Shoemaker, who worked 22 years in manufacturing before starting his teaching career, said schools need to play a role in shifting the paradigm when it comes to how skilled-trades jobs are viewed. It’s possible to receive training and degrees, paid for by companies and allowing students to finish without debt and with direct access to jobs. He’d also like more teachers to come from manufacturing backgrounds.
A Tight Market, Rising Wages
With regional unemployment below 4 percent, the job market is tight, Stotts said.
“That’s a marked change from seven years ago,” he stressed. “The unemployment rate is significantly less than even just a year ago. Employers are trying to find any available talent, so the scarcity of talent to fill open jobs is being seen across every industry and at every occupation level. … It’s tight across the board, across all industries.”
As a result, wages are projected to rise by more than 20 percent in several industries over the next 10 years.
Employers are coming together with education and workforce partners to consider education and training requirements, and how they line up with talent-development programs, Stotts said.
Working together, businesses and schools can begin exposing students to careers as early as middle school.
“The more we can expose students to the variety of industries and jobs and career pathways,” Stotts said, “the more informed those kids and their families will be about what it’s like to work in a field like manufacturing, and where they can go to get education and training.”
As he toured the manufacturing area of AutoCam Precision Components, Byron Center High School junior Devin Merchant said he’s glad to have the opportunity to get out in the field.
“I’m interested in computer hardware engineering,” Devin said. “I think exposing myself to as many opportunities as possible will be beneficial to me in the future.
“There are so many opportunities out there that I didn’t even realize there were.”
Check out School News Network for more stories about students, schools, and faculty in West Michigan.
Each week, WKTV features an adoptable furry friend (or few) from various shelters in the Grand Rapids area. This week, we focus on Humane Society of West Michigan, located at 3077 Wilson Dr. NW in Grand Rapids.
Humane Society of West Michigan’s mission is to rescue hurt, abused and abandoned animals and find them new, forever homes. The 501(c)3 non-profit organization helps over 8,000 animals annually and is 100% donor-funded by caring individuals and businesses in the community. Additional programs help reduce pet overpopulation, provide assistance to low-income pet owners, behaviorally assess animals and reunite lost pets with their owners.
Ms. Grumble takes pride in her beauty mark and expects her adopter(s) to feel the same. That’s not too much to ask.
Ms. Grumble — Female Domestic Short Hair
I am a sweet and sassy 8-year-old cat looking for my forever home! I need to be the only cat in the house and would do best in a home with no children. I have a social personality and seek out attention from people, but on my own terms! I prefer not to be held. I would do well in a relaxed home where I had my own space when I needed it and affection from my people when I needed that too. Please come meet me at Humane Society of West Michigan!
More about Ms. Grumble:
Animal ID: 35837287
Breed: Domestic Shorthair/Mix
Age: 8 years
Gender: Female
Size: Small
Color: Black/White
Spayed
Declawed
The Humane Society of West Michigan automatically microchips all adoptable animals using 24PetWatch microchips, which include FREE registration into the 24PetWatch pet recovery service. For more information visit www.24petwatch.com or call 1-866-597-2424. This pet is also provided with 30 days of FREE ShelterCare Pet Health Insurance with a valid email address. For more information visit www.sheltercare.com or call 1-866-375-7387 (PETS).
Humane Society of West Michigan is open Tues-Fri 12-7, Sat & Sun 11-4.
Grand Rapids Treetop Adventure Park will be hosting Halloween-themed events this October designed to be fun for the whole family, and a great time as the leaves are changing.
Treetop Adventure Park is a high ropes and zipline obstacle course set in one of the many beautiful forests of Grand Rapids. The park is located right next to the Celebration North IMAX Theater off East Beltline and Knapp road in Northeast Grand Rapids.
An Adventure Park is a combination of suspended obstacles above the forest floor like bridges, cargo nets, swinging logs, rings, skateboards and ziplines. The courses range in difficulty from the easiest to most difficult, similar to ski resorts, with green, blue, and black runs, so there is something for every fitness and comfort level.
The park will feature Terror at Treetops every Friday and Saturday where the trees are lit up with LED lights, black lights, and halloween decorations. There will be a 20 percent off to anyone who comes dressed in their Halloween costumes. Experience the Haunted Forest during this time, recommended for children ages 12 and up. Sunday mornings, there will be cider and donuts on a first come, first serve basis.Also during the day, every day there will be trick-or-treating around the park with candy-filled pumpkins hidden around the park.
Student Scholarship Winners Amanda Barnett, Rachel Baas, Edward Johnson Jr., Ashlie Herrmann, Jarrod Bemjamin, Kristina Kercher, and Jesse Aronoff.
Experience Grand Rapids hosted a presentation and lunch celebration this week to announce the Restaurant Week Grand Rapids (RWGR) 2017 donation to the Secchia Institute for Culinary Education (SICE) Student Scholarship Fund at GRCC.
In 2017, there were more than 70 participating restaurants that donated $1 for every Restaurant Week meal sold. Since 2010, Restaurant Week participating restaurants and sponsors have contributed more than $126,906 to the scholarship fund. This year, a check totaling $16,200 was presented to the GRCC Foundation, growing the RWGR donation to $143,106.
Accepting the check on behalf of the Grand Rapids Community College Foundation were GRCC President Bill Pink and GRCC Foundation Executive Director Kathy Mullins. Dr. Pink also presented scholarships to seven students. Each scholarship winner received $1,000 to help support his/her continuing studies in GRCC’s SICE program. This is the seventh year that students have been awarded scholarship money from the fund established by Restaurant Week GR.
SICE Students who received 2017 RWGR scholarship awards include:
Amanda Barnett receives her scholarship check.
Amanda Barnett:Amanda was an English teacher before pursuing a culinary career. Six years ago, she started an after-school cooking program for her students because many of them didn’t have anything to eat in the evening. She loved the experience and last year, she finally made the leap to leave her full-time job and attend school. She says this scholarship will help her focus on her studies rather than how to pay for them. Amanda is now working at Brewery Vivant and her dream is to run an after-school cooking program and bake shop for youth.
Rachel Baas:Rachel works in the bakeshop of six.one.six at the JW Marriott. She has fond memories of baking with her grandmother as a child, and making no-bake cookies with her dad, but it wasn’t until her senior year of high school that she decided to pursue a culinary career. She plans to go on to earn a bachelor’s degree from Ferris State University after she graduates from the Secchia Institute and she’s grateful for scholarships like this that have helped her steer clear of student loans. She would love to open, manage and potentially run the foodservice portion of a bed-and-breakfast one day.
Edward Johnson Jr.:Edward has wanted a culinary career since 2nd grade, when he began renting out cookbooks and begging his mom to help him make recipes. He currently works at CityFlatsHotel and dreams of traveling the world to learn different cooking styles. In the meantime, he says, the Restaurant Week scholarship will help him graduate more quickly.
Ashlie Herrmann:Ashlie is working at Grove while she continues her schooling at the Secchia Institute. She says she may not have been able to go to school and accomplish her career goals without the generosity of others, including this scholarship. Her dream is to own a catering company with her mom and her best friend.
Jarrod Benjamin:Jarrod has wanted to work in the culinary field since he was five years old and his ultimate goal is to become a personal chef. He currently works at Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse while attending the Secchia institute. He says the school has afforded him many great opportunities and he’s grateful for scholarships like this as he’d be unable to attend the school without them.
Kristina Kercher:Kristina works at The Kitchen by Wolfgang Puck and also at Flo’s Sports Bar in Belmont while she continues her education. She knew she wanted to work in the culinary field when she realized that you can make it if you work hard enough – something she learned from Chef James Powell, who she says didn’t give up on her as she worked to get better. She appreciates this scholarship as a sign that people believe in her enough to help her reach her goals. Her dream is to become a chef with the creative freedom to make the foods she wants and get paid for it.
Jesse Aronoff:Jesse says this scholarship is meaningful to him not just because it will help him further his education, but also because this year’s Restaurant Week was “crazy.” Jesse didn’t have any ambition for a culinary career until he got his first job in the field at age 16. He currently works at Licari’s Sicilian Pizza Kitchen and he can’t narrow down his dreams for the future – he wants to do everything.
Restaurant Week GR took place from Aug. 9 – 20. More than 70 restaurants participated in the event this year. This was the eighth year for Restaurant Week GR which began in Greater Grand Rapids in 2010. Scholarships have been awarded each year since 2011.
The author of the Jedi Academy books and the Star Wars: Darth Vader and Kids Academy series will be visiting Schuler Books & Music Wednesday, Oct. 18.
Jeffrey Brown, a Grand Rapids native and New York Times bestselling author, will be at the store, located at 2660 28th St. SE, at 7 p.m.. He will be discussing his newest book, “Lucy & Andy Neanderthal: The Stone cold Age!,” the second in the series about two Neanderthal siblings.
Brown become well-known for his 2012’s “Darth Vader and Son” and its follow-up, “Vader’s Little Princess,” both of which reimagine the Sith Lord as a put-upon dad.
In 2016, Brown introduced brother and sister cave kids, Lucy and Andy Neanderthal, living 40,000 years ago, which has received praise from critics and authors. Lincoln Peirce, author the “Big Nate” series, said “Lucy and Andy are Stone Age rock stars! I loved this book,” while Kirkus Reviews called it “a fast, funny read.”
For more information about Brown’s visit to Schuler Books & Music or other activities at the store, visit schulerbooks.com.
The West Michigan economy is going strong and the trend should continue, according to a Grand Valley State University expert.
Brian G. Long, director of Supply Management Research in the Seidman College of Business, surveyed local business leaders and his findings below are based on data collected during the last two weeks of September.
The survey’s index of business improvement (new orders) came in at +21, above last month’s +19. The production index eased to +17 from +20. The index of purchases slowed to +14 from +24, and the employment index remained positive at +17, up from +21.
Long said for auto sales, the September report reversed the negative pattern of the past six months.
“Most auto parts suppliers have been concerned throughout the summer about the slower auto sales, so the September bounce in sales seems to have forestalled any immediate fear of an automotive recession lurking around the corner,” said Long. “The major office furniture firms still appear to be topping out at the present level, but the smaller firms are having a little more success.”
Business optimism is strong in West Michigan and the economy for the rest of the world continues to improve, Long said.
“Canada and Mexico, our two largest trading partners, turned in strong reports for September,” he said. “Whereas most of the major economies were improving over the summer, growth in September slowed in China, Japan and the UK.”
The Institute for Supply Management survey is a monthly survey of business conditions that includes 45 purchasing managers in the greater Grand Rapids area and 25 in Kalamazoo. The respondents are from the region’s major industrial manufacturers, distributors and industrial service organizations. It is patterned after a nationwide survey conducted by the Institute for Supply Management. Each month, the respondents are asked to rate eight factors as “same,” “up” or “down.”
For over 28 years, Dr. Brian Long has edited a survey of local purchasing managers for both the Kalamazoo and Grand Rapids areas, which has proved to be a major indicator of current and future business conditions. This survey appears in many local newspapers and national business publications, including the Grand Rapids Press, MiBiz, and the Grand Rapids Business Journal. The survey is also a component of the Federal Reserve’s bimonthly survey of business conditions.
On the latest episode of WKTV Journal: In Focus, WKTV’s public affairs show, program host Ken Norris talks with Ethan Anderson, a local financial advisor with a common sense approach to retirement planning. Their discussion focuses on retirement planning for the today’s young working families, and it just begins with why company pensions are almost a thing of the past (and ends with a surprising outlook on the future of Social Security).
(WKTV)
“The key word to focus on, when you are talking about that transition (away from pensions), corporations no longer want to be responsible for the income you receive in retirement,” Anderson said. “We have seen the transitions more toward defined contribution plans, where essentially you are looking at things like 401ks, or in the nonprofit world 403b and 457 plans. But the overall theme, amongst all those plans, and most corporate plans today, is that money is being put in with your name on it that you are essentially responsible for investing.”
Also on the new program is a discussion with Paul Haan of Healthy Homes Coalition of West Michigan, a group which works to identify and address environmental health hazards in homes with young children, including lead poisoning.
Ethan Anderson talks with WKTV Journal: In Focus host Ken Norris. (WKTV)
The new episode will air twice a week on WKTV channels starting this week and running through Oct. 24. Along with all episodes of WKTV Journal: In Focus, the interviews are also available on YouTube at WKTVVideos.
Anderson is a financial advisor with Rehmann, and has spent the last two decades building financial plans and managing investment portfolios for high net worth individuals and charitable organizations. He is a graduate of the University of Michigan and a life-long Grand Rapids resident.
“WKTV Journal: In Focus” will started airing on Tuesday, Sept. 26, and will air on Tuesdays and Thursdays, at 6:30 p.m., on cable television in the Wyoming and Kentwood areas on Comcast WKTV Channel 26 and on AT&T Channel 99 Government channel.
About 6,000 children, parents, and grandparents attended the Wyoming Pumpkin Path last year.
It’s time to get the kids together and pull out your favorite costume because Pumpkin Path is right around the corner!
The City of Wyoming Parks and Recreation Department is excited to once again host the 14th annual Pumpkin Path – a free event for kids and families on Saturday, Oct. 14 at Lamar Park, 2561 Porter St. SW. The event will be held from 4-6 p.m. Local businesses, clubs and organizations will host spaces along the path and will hand out candy, coupons and other goodies.
“Pumpkin Path was created to be a fun, safe, family-friendly event for the fall, providing an alternative to traditional Halloween events,” said Rebecca Rynbrandt, director of community services for the City of Wyoming. “Pumpkin Path gives families the perfect opportunity to interact with neighborhood businesses while enjoying the outdoors, Lamar Park and the beauty of the fall season.”
Not only should children expect to receive treats, they should also look forward to a DJ and dancing, jumping in the bounce house and games. Participants are welcome to come in costume or in regular clothes.
At last year’s Pumpkin Path event, 65 local businesses and organizations and more than 6,000 children, parents, grandparents and friends attended.
More than 1,200 runners and walkers laced up their sneakers for a behind-the- scenes 5K on one of the runways at the Gerald R. Ford International Airport (GFIA).
The Runway 5K is the first of its kind on airport grounds in over a decade. The last Runway 5K was for the Airport’s 40th Anniversary in 2003. The race began near the cargo facilities, continuing under a runway tunnel, looping around by the airport fire station, and wrapped around on Runway 8L/26R – GFIA’s general aviation runway. The Airport’s two other commercial aviation runways were operational, giving participants a chance to soak in an up-close-and-personal sight.
“This was a tremendous opportunity for runners, walkers, and families who wanted to experience a fun event on one of our runways that is normally only being used for aircraft,” said GFIA President & CEO Jim Gill. “It was exciting to see West Michigan come out and experience our facility like never before, plus support a wonderful charity at the same time.”
GFIA selected Make-A-Wish Michigan as its charity of choice to donate the race proceeds.
“We’re delighted that the Gerald R. Ford International Airport is hosting an event to benefit Make- A-Wish Michigan.” said Karen Davis, president & CEO of Make-A-Wish Michigan. “It’s through the generous support of our Michigan community, like our friends at GFIA, that we are able to grant life-changing wishes to Michigan children and bring hope, strength and joy at a time when they need it most.”
“Make-A-Wish Michigan does tremendous work in our community, and we are thrilled to be able to donate proceeds from our Runway 5K to this organization,” said Gill. “We see Make-A-Wish kids in our airport on a regular basis, and although we wish that was less frequent; we are happy to help grant more wishes in West Michigan through this donation.”
WKTV will continue its featured high school sports coverage this month as fall sports wrap up and winter sports are on the horizon. The WKTV crew will be bringing the viewers not only the featured football game of the week, but once again will showcase other sports including girls swimming along with boys water polo during October. Planned coverage this month includes:
Friday, Oct. 13, football — Belding at Kelloggsville
Saturday, Oct. 14, boys water polo — at East Kentwood
Friday, Oct. 20, football — South Christian at East Grand Rapids
Friday, Oct. 27, football – Playoffs TBD (after games of Oct. 20
Currently, WKTV sports events will be broadcast the night of the game on Comcast Channel 25, usually at 11 p.m., and repeated on Saturday at 11 a.m. on WKTV Comcast Channel 25 and AT&T U-verse Channel 99 in Wyoming & Kentwood.
For a complete schedule of all local high school sports action each week, any changes to the WKTV feature sports schedule, and features on local sports, visit wktvjournal.org/sports/
Local high school sports events this week are as follows:
Monday, Oct. 9
Girls Golf
South Christian – Ernie Popiel Invite @ Egypt Valley
East Kentwood – Ernie Popiel Invite @ Egypt Valley
Boys Soccer
Hudsonville @ East Kentwood
Boys Water Polo
Zeeland East @ East Kentwood
Tuesday, Oct. 10
Girls Golf
Hudsonville @ South Christian
Girls Volleyball
South Christian @ Wayland
East Grand Rapids @ Wyoming
Zion Christian @ Potter’s House
West Michigan Aviation @ Tri-Unity Christian
Boys Soccer
Covenant Christian @ South Christian
Wyoming @ Christian
Wyoming Lee @ Godwin Heights
Kelloggsville @ Hopkins
Zion Christian @ Potter’s House
Grand River Prep @ Kalamazoo Heritage
West Michigan Aviation @ Tri-Unity Christian – Senior Night
Boys/girls Cross Country
Wyoming @ Saranac
Wednesday, Oct. 11
Girls Golf
South Christian – MHSAA Regionals @ Quail Ridge
Boys/girls Cross Country
Godwin Heights @ Wyoming Lee
Kelloggsville @ Wyoming Lee
Boys Soccer
Rockford @ East Kentwood
Thursday, Oct. 12
Girls Swimming
South Christian @ West Ottawa
Grand Haven @ East Kentwood
Boys Soccer
FH Eastern @ South Christian
Middleville T-K @ Wyoming
Wyoming Lee @ NorthPointe Christian
Potter’s House @ Kelloggsville
Calvin Christian @ Godwin Heights
Zion Christian @ Heritage Christian
Grand River Prep @ Wellsprings
Algoma Christian @ West Michigan Aviation
Tri-Unity Christian @ Fruitport Calvary
Girls Volleyball
South Christian @ GR Christian
Wyoming @ FH Eastern
Godwin Heights @ Wyoming Lee
Hopkins @ Kelloggsville
Zion Christian @ Heritage Christian
Tri-Unity Christian @ Fruitport Calvary
Boys Tennis
East Kentwood @ Holland – MHSAA Regionals
Friday, Oct. 13
Boys Football
Middleville T-K vs South Christian @ Grandville
Greenville @ Wyoming – Homecoming
Wyoming Lee @ Hopkins
NorthPointe Christian @ Godwin Heights
Belding @ Kelloggsville – WKTV Featured Game
East Kentwood @ Rockford
Leroy Pine River @ Potter’s House/Calvin Christian
Boys Soccer
West Michigan Aviation @ Wyoming Lee
Saturday, Oct. 14
Boys Football
Tri-Unity Christian @ Grand Traverse Academy
Girls Volleyball
South Christian @ Troy
Wyoming Lee @ Godwin Heights – Pink Out
@ East Kentwood – EK Invitational
Boys/girls Cross Country
Wyoming Lee, Kelloggsville, East Kentwood and Tri-Unity Christian @ Grand Rapids Christian – Kent-Ottawa Invite
Girls Swimming
East Kentwood – MISCA Meet
Boys Water Polo
@ East Kentwood – EK – Mini Tournament – WKTV Featured Event
Monday, Oct. 16
Boys/girls Cross Country
South Christian @ East Grand Rapids
Boys Soccer
Everett @ Wyoming – MHSAA Districts
Wyoming Lee vs TBD – MHSAA Districts
Godwin Heights vs TBD @ Christian – MHSAA Districts
Lexis Pearson was a self-described troublemaker when she was in seventh grade. Her poor choices led her to the office of social worker Brooke Davis.
But by her junior year, Pearson had turned herself around to the point of being named an Alpha Wolf 11, a character recognition from her high school for being an “11 on a scale of 10” in the areas of kindness, compassion and graciousness.
She said the role Davis played in helping her change was huge. “If it wasn’t for her, I wouldn’t have graduated high school,” Pearson said. “She was that little bit of motivation I needed; actually she was a lot of motivation.”
Pearson, who graduated from Wyoming High School in the spring, is one of many students Davis has impacted over the years as a school social worker. Now splitting time between Kelloggsville and Kenowa Hills public schools — and, on top of that, providing consulting services for educators — Davis’ presence in the lives of young people, like Lexis, is having a wider impact.
Fellow educators say that what Davis does, for any student, in any way they can benefit, is steer them in the right direction. She offers a listening ear, helping hand, sage advice or just information to get them where they need to go.
Spreading Her Influence
Davis started her career as a counselor in Kelloggsville in 2004. She has returned to the district part-time as a social worker and trainer at 54th Street Academy, which serves students from several Kent County districts. She also works part-time as a social worker at Alpine and Zinser Elementary schools, in Kenowa Hills.
Brooke Davis discusses goals with a student in her 54th Street Academy office. (School News Network)
“Kelloggsville is so excited to have Brooke Davis back,” said Assistant Superintendent Tammy Savage. “Brooke has such a passion for working with students, staff and families and this comes through in everything she does. … Having Brooke back is just like finding a long-lost friend or relative; they have come home and everyone’s life is better because of it.”
When she’s not working with students, Davis is training staff members in various districts through her company, BTD Consulting, on how to reduce suspensions in their buildings. (Not one to shy away from work, she also works retail at Younkers department store.)
She said her roles are about being a servant leader in every aspect of her life. “You always have more to give,” Davis said. “I love being back at Kelloggsville because it gives me the opportunity to work with economically disadvantaged and culturally diverse students. It is really hitting that passion that I have.”
Her passion developed over time. Davis, originally from Detroit, received her bachelor’s degree in communication arts from Aquinas College. “I thought I was going to be a speaker and urban planner,” she said.
But when she began working at St. John’s Home (now D.A. Blodgett-St. John’s), which offered residential care for foster children, she fell in love with the work. She decided to return to Grand Valley State University for a master’s in social work. At St. John’s, she connected with a Kelloggsville principal who hired her to work as a counselor. Over the next five years she worked at the elementary and middle school levels there, then for 11 years at Wyoming Public Schools at the elementary and secondary levels.
Last year she joined the staff at Kenowa Hills and started her consulting firm to work with principals, superintendents and teachers to set up systems concerning student behavior, and to teach them how to look at data to address behavior.
Many students have a hard time re-acclimating to school after they are suspended, she said, which puts them at a higher risk for dropping out. “The nice thing about Kelloggsville is we still have an alternative program that really seeks to get those students into school, and to know the barriers that keep them from learning in a traditional program. It helps them overcome those barriers so they can transition back into a traditional program.”
Brooke Davis sits down with junior Sky Hommerson to help her get back on track in school (School News Network)
The Ability to Connect
Davis said she was raised by good role models, but can relate to students with whom she works. Her parents emphasized education and demonstrated a great work ethic. Still, “I was a little tough as a kid — with really no reason to be be tough — but I was very verbose. I had two parents that loved me, and a great education, but coming from the city of Detroit, I want kids to have those same things that I had.”
At Kenowa, Davis works with the elementary students and does it well, said Alpine Elementary Principal Jason Snyder. “She is phenomenal,” he said. “The thing with Brooke is she has a passion for kids that is unmatched.”
She steps up to meet the needs of every child she works with, going “above and beyond” to make sure that child is successful. “She’s inspiring to me and pushes me to be a better leader,” Snyder said.
‘Little, Life-Changing Things’
Davis said she loves her jobs because she wants to serve others, to share knowledge and resources. That’s the “why” of it: “If you call me and I have it, I’m going to give it you,” she said.
That mentality is what made the difference for Lexis Pearson, the Wyoming grad who now is a certified nursing assistant and works in a nursing home. “To repay Brooke, I would have to give her the world,” she said.
Davis showed her possibilities. Pearson said she had a rocky life at home and was looking at the future through a narrow lens. “I grew up in a rough neighborhood. For me to see an African-American woman who was this successful … She is my inspiration.”
Brooke was just always present, she said. “When trouble came to find me, she was there to redirect me and let me know that the choices I was making were poor.
“It was the little things that counted,” she added. “Little things that, for me, were life changing.”
Check out School News Network for more stories about students, schools, and faculty in West Michigan.
Today, there are over 5,000,000 people living with dementia. They are members of our churches, our workplaces, our neighborhoods, and our communities. They shop in the same stores we do, dine at the same restaurants, attend the same events, and utilize the same public transportation system. Despite living with dementia, they continue to be vital members of our communities and valued for their contributions. This is the ideal, anyway.
The reality is, for people living with dementia, their world tends to become slowly and consistently smaller, and a lot of this has to do with the difficulty they experience interacting with the world around them. We’ve all come into contact with a person who seems lost, is taking an extremely long time to make a decision, or is ‘holding up the line’ because they are confused about a process. We become exasperated; they become upset, and no one leaves the experience feeling good about ourselves.
While we can go about our day, collecting better experiences, a person with dementia will be reluctant to have that experience again, and will begin to avoid doing anything that may recreate it — shopping for groceries, riding a bus, ordering in a restaurant. They gradually become more isolated, less independent and separated from their communities. The isolation and separation people with dementia experience can actually contribute to the acceleration of their dementia. This isolation takes a great toll on care partners as well. Since they spend most of their time in the company of their loved one, they experience the same isolation and detachment from community.
Dementia Friendly Grand Rapids (DFGR) is part of a national movement working to create aware and supportive ‘Dementia Friends’ throughout all sectors of our community so that people living with dementia can comfortably navigate daily life. DFGR strives to move Grand Rapids toward becoming a more aware, accessible and inclusive city. A dementia-friendly city improves the community for everyone and is more livable through implementation of universal design. Dementia-friendly communities are more attractive, competitive and sustainable when they become more accessible and inclusive for everyone.
We’re learning more everyday about the various dementias, like Alzheimer’s, and the ways we can help people with dementia live fuller, more active and engaged lives, and extend independence and participation in their communities. For this to happen though, everyone needs to work together to create communities where any person, including a person with dementia, can live and thrive. This is dementia friendly.
DFGR’s main focus right now is creating awareness. This is done by teaching people about dementia and helping participants develop practical actions they can use to help someone they may encounter in the community who has dementia. Jennifer VanHorssen, DFGR Program Coordinator, says, “Whether it be the checkout at a grocery store, on the bus, serving coffee at a coffee shop, or at an art or music performance, each of us can be supportive and help people living with dementia feel welcome and included.” In the last year alone, volunteers with Dementia Friendly Grand Rapids have provided over 30 trainings enabling more than 400 people to become new Dementia Friends.
Creating a dementia-friendly city requires participation from all sectors of society — business, local government, transportation, financial institutions, neighborhood associations and faith communities, emergency responders, healthcare and the legal sector. DFGR’s focus for 2017-2018 is business. VanHorssen’s hope is to focus on sub-sectors “like restaurants, grocery stores, hair salons/barber shops, local retail, libraries and other public spaces” where business owners and/or employees are interacting with customers who may have dementia.
Often the slightest shift in our approach to working with a customer who seems indecisive, confused, or unsure of themselves can help them feel safe, supported and empowered. “In a dementia friendly community” VanHorssen cites, “people living with dementia have autonomy, a high quality of life, and are engaged with the community.”
Grand Rapids is experiencing an enormous amount of growth and development – we have the opportunity to do things differently so all Grand Rapids residents and visitors can have autonomy while navigating our city. It begins with awareness. If your business/organization would like to learn about becoming a dementia friend, contact Dementia Friendly Grand Rapids by calling (616) 222-7036 or email info@dementiafriendlygr.com. You can also learn more about DFGR and the dementia friendly movement on their website: www.dementiafriendlygr.com
