The December Wyoming-Kentwood Area Chamber of Commerce’s Government Matters Committee’s monthly forum at Kentwood City Hall. (WKTV)
By WKTV Staff ken@wktv.org
While local issues were discussed, the current governmental problems in Washington, D.C., took center stage as part of a wide-ranging inter-governmental leaders meeting Monday, Dec. 9, at the Wyoming-Kentwood Area Chamber of Commerce’s Government Matters Committee’s monthly forum at Kentwood City Hall.
At the meeting, Brian Patrick, Communications Director for federal Rep. Bill Huizenga (Michigan Congressional District 2), and Peter Dickow, West Michigan Regional Director for U.S. Sen. Gary Peters, both reported on their bosses’ efforts but also answered questions on the ballooning federal budget deficit and other issues.
The Government Matters meeting brings together representatives from the cities of Wyoming and Kentwood, Kent County commissioners, local Michigan state senators and representatives, as well as often representatives of Michigan’s U.S. senators and U.S. congressman who represent the Wyoming and Kentwood area.
The next meeting will be Jan. 13, from 8 a.m. to 9:15 a.m., at Wyoming City Hall.
The intergovernmental discussion hosted by the chamber focuses on issues that effect residents and businesses in the two cities.
For more information about the chamber and Government Matters visit southkent.org.
The meetings are on the second Monday of each month, starting at 8 a.m. WKTV Journal will produce a highlight story after the meeting. But WKTV also offers replays of the latest meeting on Wednesdays at 7 p.m., as well as on select Saturdays, on Comcast Cable Government Channel 26. For a highlight schedule of WKTV cable programs visit wktvjournal.org.
With his beaming grin, Wyoming High School junior Iyan Weidman-Gomez looked around the school gym trying to guess who might be the next Alpha Wolf 11 Champions of Character Award recipient to be announced.
He would, according to those who described him, do what he always does, be one of the first to jump up to congratulate his schoolmate. Except this time, it was his classmates congratulating Iyan.
Iyan was one of six students announced on Friday, Dec. 6, as the Wyoming High School’s fall Alpha Wolf 11 Champions of Character Award recipients. Started in 2014, every fall and spring semester, the Wyoming High School students and staff honor six exemplary students with the Alpha Wolf 11 Champion of Character Award — two sophomores, two juniors and two seniors.
These students are recognized not for their academic or athletic achievements but for treating others by “being kind, compassionate, and gracious” –which according to students and staff is Iyan Weideman-Gomez.
“He embodies everything an alpha wolf is about,” said the Alpha Wolf recognition team. “He is not the smartest kid. He is not the most athletic. Not the most popular but I can guarantee you he is the most compassionate, gracious and kind student who goes to Wyoming High School. He walks the halls with an undying light that is strong enough to brighten any kid’s day.”
Iyan Weidman-Gomez (left) shows off his smile as he awaits the announcement of the next Alpha Wolf 11, which was him. (Photo by WKTV)
It is for students like Iyan that high school teacher John Doyle wanted to bring the Alpha Wolf program to Wyoming five years ago. With a full high school gym that included school officials such as Superintendent Craig Hoekstra, and City of Wyoming officials such as Mayor Jack Poll, City Manager Curtis Holt, and Public Safety Chief Kim Koster, Doyle told how he was inspired by Grandville Middle School’s “Be An 11” program, which was started by Grandville Middle School physical education instructor Michael Lapciuk. Lapciuk said he wanted to change the culture at the school by promoting the students who were doing positive things. The Grandville program was later dedicated to Grandville’s fallen student-athlete Ryan Fischer, who according to Lapciuk set the bar on “what it meant to be an 11.” Doyle attended the program when his son Ian received the award.
“It was because of a seventh grader [Ian Doyle] who won this award who impacted at that time, a 40-year-old, to change his ways to make things different in his life,” Doyle said. “That’s me. We are all vulnerable. We all make mistakes. We might be that person we used to be but we certainly have the vision, that light forward to think ‘I can make a difference too.’”
According to peers and teachers these following six high school students made a difference whether anyone noticed or not, which is why they are more than ten, they are an Alpha Wolf 11.
Sophomore Alpha Wolf 11 Recipients
Far right, Aidan Curtis walks with his family after being announced an Alpha Wolf 11. (Photo by WKTV)
Aidan Curtis
A peer nominated Aidan Curtisnot because how kind he was, but how kind he is with everyone he has interacted with. In fact, about every reference about Aiden was that he was “kind” and “had kindness to others.”
According to his peers, simply put, he is helpful and generous to others along with being compassionate and putting the needs of the group over himself.
Victoria Pulaski accepts her Alpha Wolf 11 award from High School Principal Josh Baumbach. (Photo by WKTV)
Victoria “Tory Rose” Pulaski
For many, it is somewhat a mystery how the big personality of Tory Rose fits inside this Alpha Wolf. She is always adding new members to her family, sharing their joys and sorrows. She believes, according to her peers, that a community and family are stronger together and aims at making a stronger wolf pack.
Tory Rose, who according to the letters submitted, radiates postive energy. She participates in the school choir and does a lot of volunteer work.
“I love her,” wrote one student in their nomination letter.
Junior Alpha Wolf 11 Recipients
Ryan Weidman-Gomez gives the thumbs up after being named an Alpha Wolf 11 recipient. (Photo by WKTV)
Iyan Weidman-Gomez
“What do you say about this guy?” read the Alpha Wolf presentation team. “His classmates love him. He is not the captain of the football team. He is not the president of any clubs. He is not the drum major of the band. He is something more important. He is kind.”
From holding doors for others to helping clean up a classroom, Iyan is known not for doing things to impress, but out of kindness.
“I am voting for him because of the amazing person he is,” wrote one student. “Everytime I walk into the classroom, he greets me with a smile and a hello.”
Nichole Stark (purple shirt) with her family after being announced an Alpha Wolf 11 recipient. (Photo by WKTV)
Nichole Stark
When talking about Nichole Stark, the word positive showed up over and over again from the nominations for her to receive the Alpha Wolf 11 award.
A National Honor Society member, Nichole volunteers to help other with homework. She is extremely friendly and does not exclude anyone but creates a sense of belonging for others in the school, students wrote.
Both staff and students stated she demonstrates the three Alpha Wolf characteristics of kindness, compassion, and graciousness throughout the school day and in her community.
Senior Alpha Wolf 11 Recipients
Henry Nguyen (right) listens as the Alpha Wolf 11 recipients are announced. (Photo by WKTV)
Henry Nguyen
“I’m baffled that he hasn’t won this award yet,” wrote one student. A situation that was rectified on Friday when Henry Nguyen was named the first of two senior Alpha Wolf recipients.
According to students and staff, Henry radiates positive energy. Described as a kind and gentle soul, Henry does what he thinks is best. This was demonstrated when he tried out for a new sport only to break his arm after joining the team. His character and determination as he faced unexpected pain kept him going as he contributed to the team. His coach stated that he loves to serve others and his integrity, character, and selflessness are incredible.
Kyle Ratliff was the second senior to be named an Alpha Wolf 11. (Photo by WKTV)
Kyle Ratliff
Genuine, real, authentic, these were just some of the words to describe senior Kyle Ratliff.
“I don’t know him that well but I once had a conversation with him and from what I see he is an amazing person,” wrote one student in a nomination letter. “He is really helpful and always encouraging others.”
According to staff, Kyle is always kind with positive words for everyone he meets. He is the type of person who makes a student better inside and out.
“Bottomline,” according to the Alpha Wolf presentation team, “this student cares. Period.”
Several students received You Make a Difference awards:
South Christian High School boys basketball, from a 2019 game. (WKTV)
By WKTV Staff ken@wktv.org
WKTV has your weekly high school sports schedule, and our coverage crew will be out twice the week. The tentative Featured Game coverage schedule for December includes the following:
Tuesday, Dec. 10 — Boys Basketball, South Christian at Godwin Heights
Friday, Dec. 13 — Boys Hockey, FH Central at East Kentwood/West Michigan Aviation
Tuesday, Dec. 17 — Boys and Girls Basketball, Kelloggsville at West Michigan Aviation
Friday, Dec. 20 — Boys basketball, Sparta at West Michigan Aviation
Want to be a television sports announcer?
If anyone has ever thought about trying to announce a sporting event, WKTV has a great chance for you to do exactly that! The tentative schedule for May follows and we are always looking for additional announcers, especially for the spring games. If you would like to try it or have any questions, please email Mike at sportswktv@gmail.com.
Where and when to see the game
Featured games are broadcast the night of the contest and then at least once later in the week.
WKTV offers on-demand viewing of the Wyoming and Kentwood high school sports, community events, and government meetings. (WKTV)
WKTV broadcasts on Wyoming and Kentwood cable channels. On Comcast cable, Channel 25 is the Community Channel, where sports events and other community events are shown; Channel 26 is the Government Channel, where local government meetings and events are shown. The games can also be seen on AT&T U-verse 99.
All Featured Games, as well as other high school sports and community events covered by WKTV, are available on-demand within a week of play at wktvlive.org.
For a complete schedule of all local high school sports action each week, any changes to the WKTV feature sports schedule, and feature stories on local sports, visit wktvjournal.org/sports/.
Following is this week’s schedule:
Monday, Dec. 9 Boys / Girls Bowling Kelloggsville @ Grandville Wellsprings Prep @ Godwin Heights Wayland @ Wyoming South Christian @ Middleville T-K Girls Basketball Holland @ Godwin Heights Boys Basketball Fruitport Calvary Christian @ West Michigan Aviation
Tuesday, Dec. 10 Girls Basketball Grand River Prep @ Kelloggsville Hopkins @ Tri-Unity Christian South Christian @ Hamilton Zion Christian @ Saugatuck Hackett Catholic Prep @ Potter’s House Barry County Christian @ West Michigan Lutheran Boys Basketball Kelloggsville @ Wellsprings Prep South Christian @ Godwin Heights – WKTV Featured Event East Kentwood @ FH Northern Zion Christian @ Saugatuck Potter’s House @ Kalamazoo Hackett Barry County Christian @ West Michigan Lutheran Grand River Prep @ Saranac Boys Hockey Christian @ East Kentwood/West Michigan Aviation Boys Swimming / Diving @ East Kentwood
Wednesday, Dec. 11 Boys Wrestling Kelloggsville @ Holland Godwin Heights @ Unity Christian Wyoming @ Unity Christian Wyoming Lee @ Christian East Kentwood @ Hudsonville Girls Cheer Kelloggsville @ NorthPointe Christian Boys / Girls Bowling Wyoming Lee @ East Kentwood Wyoming @ FH Eastern South Christian @ Christian
Thursday, Dec. 12 Girls Basketball Ottawa Hills @ Godwin Heights Algoma Christian @ Zion Christian Sparta @ West Michigan Aviation Boys Bowling West Catholic @ Tri-Unity Christian Boys / Girls Bowling East Kentwood @ Jenison Orchard View @ Potter’s House Boys Swimming / Diving FH Central @ East Kentwood Boys Basketball Heritage Christian Academy @ Zion Christian
Friday, Dec. 13 Girls Cheer Kelloggsville @ Wyoming Lee – Elayna Durso Memorial Cheer Invitational Godwin Heights @ Wyoming Lee – Elayna Durso Memorial Cheer Invitational Wyoming @ Jenison Girls Basketball Potter’s House @ Kelloggsville Wellsprings Prep @ Tri-Unity Christian Holland Christian @ South Christian Lake Odessa Lakewood @ Grand River Prep Boys Basketball Hudsonville @ Godwin Heights Wellsprings Prep @ Tri-Unity Christian Wyoming @ Jenison East Grand Rapids @ East Kentwood Holland Christian @South Christian Potter’s House @ Laingsburg Sacred Heart @ West Michigan Aviation Lake Odessa Lakewood @ Grand River Prep Boys Wrestling Wyoming Lee @ Tri-County Boys Hockey FH Central @ East Kentwood/West Michigan Aviation – WKTV Featured Event West Ottawa @ South Christian
Saturday, Dec. 14 Boys / Girls Bowling Kelloggsville @ Cedar Springs Godwin Heights @ Cedar Springs Boys Wrestling @ Kelloggsville – Dave Fleming Memorial Tournament Godwin Heights @ Kent City East Kentwood @ Big Rapids – Cardinal Invitational Girls Cheer East Kentwood @ Jenison Boys Hockey FH Northern @ East Kentwood/West Michigan Aviation Rockford @ South Christian Boys Basketball East Kentwood @ Ottawa Hills West Michigan Aviation @ Detroit Southeastern
Monday, Dec. 16 Boys / Girls Bowling Kelloggsville @ NorthPointe Christian Wyoming Lee @ Hopkins Christian @ Wyoming South Christian @ East Grand Rapids Tri-Unity Christian @ Orchard View – Boys Girls Basketball Godwin Heights @ Muskegon Heights West Michigan Lutheran @ WMAES Boys Basketball Tri-Unity Christian @ Western Michigan Christian West Michigan Lutheran @ WMAES
The Last Apostle: Journeys In the Lost Holy Land will air on WKTV Comcast Channel 25 and AT&T Community Channel 99 at midnight Friday, Dec. 6; 11pm Monday, Dec. 9, and 3pm Thursday, Dec. 12. For the past 25 years, Dr. Mark Fairchild has discovered mysteries in the Turkish countryside, including the oldest synagogue in the world. In The Last Apostle, the film follows Fairchild as he travels one of the historic routes of the apostle Paul and explores Paul’s origins. Go here for the scoop.
Booyah!
WKTV is bringing you another exciting season of Boys & Girls High School Basketball! Each Tuesday game will be broadcast that night on WKTV 25 @ 11pm & repeat on Wednesday @ 5pm. Every Friday game will be aired that night on WKTV 25 @ 11pm & repeat Saturday @ 11am. The games can also be seen on AT&T U-verse 99. WKTV has got you covered! Here’s the schedule.
‘Listen To The music’
Tickets are available now for four-time Grammy Award winners and Rock & Roll Hall of Fame nominees The Doobie Brothers, who are performing in Grand Rapids on Saturday, Aug. 1, 2020, at 7:30pm at Van Andel Arena® on their tour celebrating the 50th anniversary of the band’s founding. Go here for info.
Fun fact:
Receptionists are underpaid
You know that one scene in Raiders Of The Lost Ark where Belloq opens the Ark of the Covenant, and a ghost floats toward the camera only to turn into a hideous visage? Yeah, that one. Well, to pull off the special effects, the filmmakers outfitted a Lucasfilm receptionist in long, white robes and painted her face a “ghostly shade of blue and white.” She then sat on a flat trapeze mechanism in front of a bluescreen and swung away from camera—which was run backwards in the final film to achieve a dreamlike quality. The end result is a composite with a grotesque, skeletal model. We sure hope she was paid well.
Wyoming Lee High School’s girls basketball team suited up only five players for this 2017 game. (WKTV)
By K.D. Norris ken@wktv.org
In the third year of what is literally a complete rebuild of the Wyoming Lee High School girls basketball program, head coach Tasha Wilson and her staff are measuring success by the number of players in the program and the positive attitude of those players.
The wins will come.
The Lee Legends girls (0-1) will try to get their first win of the season when they host a non-conference game against Byron Center Zion Christian Friday, Dec. 6, at 7 p.m., in a WKTV Sports Featured Game, which will be recorded and available on cable television and on-demand.
The Legends also return to an OK Conference Silver schedule this season after going 0-9 last season in a shortened independent schedule.
“At the moment I have a 16-player (varsity roster) — I know it sounds crazy but this is honestly the biggest team I’ve ever had in my career of coaching at Lee High School,” Coach Wilson said to WKTV. “Since I’ve been back its been a battle to pick the program back up. I started with 6 players my first year with some quitting, so we had to cancel our entire (2017-18) season.
“Then going into my second year blind, not knowing what was going to happen, we went with a independent schedule and successfully finished with 8 players. Now my third year I was overwhelmed with the amount of players that came out to play this year.”
While getting the girls basketball program back on the minds, and in the extracurricular plans, of the students at Lee has been an offseason priority, the in-season priority has been keeping the players positive about the program.
“Staying positive is huge for me. The score can be so ugly but all along my bench you hear positivity,” Wilson said. “My girls don’t look at horrible losses in a negative way, they look at them as learning experiences. They know that practice time is valuable and that’s when we need to work our hardest to get to where we want to be. We’re still putting together our puzzle here at Lee.”
The 2019-20 Legends will feature returning varsity players senior Taylor Weekly and junior Keanna DesArmo, and Coach Wilson pointed out junior Emily Martinez and freshman Mya Bruno as varsity newcomers she expects to contribute immediately.
“I’m so honored to have returning players like Keanna DesArmo and Taylor Weekley,” Wilson said. “They seen the program steadily grow now over the past years. Those two young ladies are huge pieces to the program, and I give them a lot of credit for helping me build this program back up as well. They were constantly getting the bug in everyone’s ear about basketball.”
Not only are numbers an issue to be overcome, but having players without much history playing the game is also something Wilson and her staff deal with.
“I’d say this year about 80 percent of my team has never played basketball before, so its been a struggle for me because I have to teach fundamentals for the first three weeks then we jump right into a game,” she said. “Which shows clearly from our first game final score. We weren’t able to get a set offense taught yet so I’m glad to say we’re finally getting there.”
Lee lost to Kentwood Grand River Prep, 67-4, to open the season.
Zion Christian, out of the Alliance League, lost at home to Ravenna, 40-37, on Dec. 3. In 2018-19, Zion was 8-12 (2-5 in league) and one of those wins was a 48-13 victory over Lee.
Lee Athletic Director Jason Faasse also sees progress in the program in terms of numbers as much as wins at this point.
“Coach Wilson … has a great ability to connect with students and make them feel a part of something special,” Faasse said to WKTV. “Year-round they are working to engage the elementary and middle school aged students in the Godfrey-Lee community with the sport of basketball. Her leadership and commitment have played a huge role in increasing the participation at the high school level and I look forward to seeing the development of the program continue in a positive direction for years to come.”
WKTV broadcasts on Wyoming and Kentwood cable channels. On Comcast cable, Channel 25 is the Community Channel, where sports events and other community events are shown; On AT&T cable throughout the Grand Rapids area, viewers go to Channel 99, and then are given the choice to watch Wyoming (or Kentwood) Community (Channel 25) or Government (Channel 26) channels.
All Featured Games, as well as other high school sports and community events covered by WKTV, are available on-demand within a week of play at wktvlive.org.
On a gloomy winter day, the bright colorful sign on the front of 2727 DeHoop Ave. SW only hints at what can be found when you go through the door.
Inside, you might feel as if you had been transported to the heart of Mexico in the brightly lit shop that is full of clothing, home décor and shoes all carefully curated by the shop’s owner Nancy Quero. Guelaguetza Designs, which opened in the City of Wyoming at the end of October, has always been a dream of Quero.
From home décor to shoes, Guelaguetza Designs features an array of items. (Photo by WKTV)
Quero, who started her business in 2005, said she wanted to make a connection between her home culture of Mexico through its clothing and art. She started by first featuring the work of her mother, who has been an artisan for 30 years. As interested in her mobile shop grew, Quero also cultivated relationships with other artists she has known for most her life.
Her clinetle started “asking more about who made it and that they wanted one. So I started getting more things.”
Soon Quero was once again thinking about a permanent store.
“The idea of the store, it was there in the back of my mind for a very long time,” she said. “I just did not have the time or resources to do it.”
Through a friend, she was introduced to the SpringGR program, which helped her see that her desire to have a brick-and-mortar store could become a reality.
“It is a unique store because Mexican-Americans and our community can have access to unique items from Mexico,” she said.
A new line at Guelaguetza Designs is the black pottery from Oaxaca, Mexico. (Photo by WKTV)
The store features an array of items such as clothing lines for children, women and men. Guelaguetza Designs also features jewelry, purses, and shoes. A popular items is the Alebrijes, the little colorful hand-painted animals from Mexico. Quero also has added a line of black pottery from Oaxaca, Mexico, which is distinguished by its color, sheen and unique designs and one of the most popular and appreciated styles of pottery in Mexico.
She selected the DeHoop location because of its close proximity to 28th Street, a street she calls very international.
“You can find basically anything from Africa or South America so that is why we decided to do this in Wyoming, specifically on 28th Street,” she said.
For more about Guelaguetza Designs, visit the store at 2727 DeHoop Ave. SW, the store’s website, guelaguetzadesigns.com, or follow the store on Facebook page, Guelaguetza Designs.
On the latest episode of WKTV Journal In Focus, we bring to light the urgent need and community efforts to battle family homelessness in the Greater Grand Rapids area. We talk with Kate O’Keefe, Director of Development and Community Engagement at Family Promise of Grand Rapids.
The local non-profit has the mission of ending “homelessness, one family at a time, by engaging faith-based and community organizations to provide emergency shelter and basic needs to families with children who are homeless and to provide additional programs to assist them in finding housing and sustaining their independence.”
Founded in 1997 as the Greater Grand Rapids Interfaith Hospitality Network, Family Promise (familypromisegr.org) now partners with local congregations, individuals, families, foundations and corporations to provide emergency shelter and “viable solutions” for families with children who are facing a housing crisis.
Kate O’Keefe, Director of Development and Community Engagement at Family Promise of Grand Rapids, on set with WKTV Journal In Focus host Ken Norris (WKTV)
WKTV Journal In Focus airs on cable television in the Wyoming and Kentwood areas on Comcast WKTV Channel 26 and on AT&T Channel 99 Government channel (see our Weekly On-air Schedule for dates and times). All individual interviews included in episodes of WKTV Journal In Focus are also available on YouTube at WKTVvideos.
Americans consume 100 billion single use plastic bags every year, but less than five percent of these bags are recycled, according to the U.S. government. (U.S. Military photo)
By Kent County
The Kent County Recycling & Education Center will no longer accept plastic shopping bags and shredded paper starting Jan. 1, 2020, the Kent County Department of Public Works (DPW) announced Dec. 3. Residents are encouraged to return plastic shopping bags to participating locations.
“Our goal is to get all materials that come into our facility into recycling markets,” said Dar Baas, Kent County DPW director. “Over the last several years, it has become increasingly difficult to sort bags from the other recyclables and the bags aren’t able to be recycled after they pass through a system like ours.”
Plastic bags create operational challenges at recycling sorting centers, including shutdowns from the bags tangling around machinery and bags mixing with bales of paper. Lacking a recycling market for bags from curbside recycling collection, Kent County has paid to send them to an engineered fuel facility in Indiana. This is the only recyclable item sorted by Kent County that does not go to a recycling market.
The recycling industry standard is to encourage residents to take bags back to retail shopping centers that offer a clean, dry collection system specifically for bags. If residents have clean, dry plastic bags they would like to recycle, Kent County DPW encourages people to drop off plastic bags at participating stores, such as Meijer.
“All Meijer supercenters accept clean, dry plastic bags which customers can place in receptacles at the front entrances of the store,” said Erik Petrovskis, Director of Sustainability for Meijer. “We send these bags to external partners who recycle them into high-quality manufactured goods. We also encourage customers to bring their own reusable bags or purchase reusable bags which are available in our stores.”
Additionally, the Recycling & Education Center will no longer accept shredded paper which is often too small to get detected and sorted accordingly. Kent County encourages residents to shred and dispose of only what is necessary for security purposes and recycle whole pieces of paper.
For more information about recycling plastic bags and other items, visit reimaginetrash.org/bags.
WKTV’s coverage of girls high school basketball continues this month. (WKTV)
By Mike Moll, WKTV Volunteer Sports Director ken@wktv.org
Football teams were crowned champions Thanksgiving weekend inside Detroit’s Ford Field and the calendars were then rolled over to December. That means the winter sports open their schedules with tip-offs in girls basketball during the first week followed by the boys openers the second week.
Boys hockey, wrestling, boys and girls bowling, and boys swimming and diving began earlier, and to round out the winter sports teams, girls cheer and dance begin their seasons.
WKTV will bring one or two events each week to viewers, mostly basketball but some hockey.
The tentative Featured Game coverage schedule for December includes the following:
Friday, Dec. 6 — Girls Basketball, Zion Christian at Wyoming Lee
Tuesday, Dec. 10 — Boys Basketball, South Christian at Godwin Heights
Friday, Dec. 13 — Boys Hockey, FH Central at East Kentwood/West Michigan Aviation
If anyone has ever thought about trying to announce a sporting event, WKTV has a great chance for you to do exactly that! The tentative schedule for May follows and we are always looking for additional announcers, especially for the spring games. If you would like to try it or have any questions, please email Mike at sportswktv@gmail.com.
Featured games are broadcast the night of the contest and then at least once later in the week.
WKTV broadcasts on Wyoming and Kentwood cable channels. On Comcast cable, Channel 25 is the Community Channel, where sports events and other community events are shown; Channel 26 is the Government Channel, where local government meetings and events are shown. On AT&T cable throughout the Grand Rapids area, viewers go to Channel 99, and then are given the choice to watch Wyoming (or Kentwood) Community (Channel 25) or Government (Channel 26) channels.
WKTV offers on-demand viewing of the Wyoming and Kentwood high school sports, community events, and government meetings. (WKTV)
All Featured Games, as well as other high school sports and community events covered by WKTV, are available on-demand within a week of play at wktvlive.org.
For a complete schedule of all local high school sports action each week, any changes to the WKTV feature sports schedule, and feature stories on local sports, visit wktvjournal.org/sports/.
Following is this week’s schedule:
Monday, Dec. 2 Girls Basketball Grand River Prep @ Wyoming Lee
Tuesday, Dec. 3 Girls Basketball Tri-Unity Christian @ Kelloggsville Orchard View @ Godwin Heights FH Central @ Wyoming East Kentwood @ Byron Center South Christian @ FH Northern Ravenna @ Zion Christian Potter’s House @ Kenowa Hills WMAES @ West Michigan Aviation Saranac @ Grand River Prep
Wednesday, Dec. 4 Boys Hockey South Christian @ Muskegon Reeths Puffer
Thursday, Dec. 5 Girls Basketball West Michigan Lutheran @ Athens Factoryville Christian
Friday, Dec. 6 Girls Basketball Kelloggsville @ Zeeland West Godwin Heights @ Union Zion Christian @ Wyoming Lee – WKTV Featured Event Tri-Unity Christian @ Belding Wyoming @ Comstock Park East Kentwood @ Muskegon Byron Center @ South Christian Hopkins @ Potter’s House Boys Hockey East Kentwood/West Michigan Aviation @ Kenowa Hills
Saturday, Dec. 7 Boys / Girls Bowling Kelloggsville – OK Silver Pre-Season Meet at Fairlanes Godwin Heights – OK Silver Pre-Season Meet at Fairlanes Wyoming – Tournament @ Eastbrook Lanes East Kentwood – East Kentwood Kickoff Invite Girls Dance East Kentwood @ Hudsonville Girls Basketball East Kentwood @ Kalamazoo Central
Monday, Dec. 9 Boys / Girls Bowling Kelloggsville @ Grandville Wellsprings Prep @ Godwin Heights Wayland @ Wyoming South Christian @ Middleville T-K Girls Basketball Holland @ Godwin Heights Boys Basketball Fruitport Calvary Christian @ West Michigan Aviation
Arlene Campbell, chief creator of opportunities for Spring GR, and Attah Obande, director of dream fulfillment for SpringGR talk to WKTV Journal’s Joanne Bailey-Boorsma. (Photo by WKTV)
Ideas for a business can come from about anywhere: watching a host stress over her event or finding a more affordable option for a custom suit.
Turning those ideas into a profitable business is often the challenge for many. However, in 2015, the third generation of the DeVos family decided they wanted to do something about encouraging entrepreneurship in Grand Rapids. The result was SpringGR.
“At the time, an article had come out and Gand Rapids was listed 51 out of 52 economically for African Americans,” said Attah Obande, director of dream fulfillment for SpringGR. “So it was very poor for African Americans, but then it was listed later, in 2018, as the second best city to start a business.
SpringGR is a 12-week training experience that people can apply to help develop their business, according to Arlene Campbell, chief creator of opportunities for Spring GR. It also includes a two-year mentorship program for SpringGR graduates.
“Usually when you have a program like this, you go through the program and you have your mountain top experience and then life happens,” Obande said, adding that the mentorship program gives SpringGR members the opportunity to network and connect with others in the SpringGR program. This also helps the entrepreneurs to not only building a social network, but continue to receive guidance as they develop and grow their business, he said.
With more than 450 people who have gone through the program, SpringGR has had a number of success stories.
“A lot of people have developed a part-time business, quite a few have started a full-time business and some are actually hiring people,” Campbell said.
The results can be seen in the cities of the Kentwood and Wyoming with the newest business in City of Wyoming being Guelaguetza Designs, owned by SpringGR graduate Nancy Quero.
“SpringGR made me realize that what we were doing was worth the shot,” Quero said. “It made me realize that there was a market for the products that we sell and gave me the tools to do what I am doing right now.”
This Thursday, Dec. 5, SpringGR will host its fall graduation at 6 p.m. at 818 Butterworth St. SW. Valet parking is complimentary and available for the event. Six SpringGR entrepreneurs will pitch their businesses to a group of judges.
For more about SpringGR and some of the entrepreneurs who have been a part of the program, visit the organizations website SpringGR.com.
Alan Headbloom (right) tapes his show here at WKTV. (Photo by WKTV)
“Feel Like You Belong” producer and host Alan Headbloom will be the featured guest at Mr. Sid’s Wednesday Afternoon Video Series Wednesday, Dec. 4, at Marge’s Donut Den, 1751 28th St. SW, in Wyoming.
Headbloom, who has 30 years of experience in cross cultural communication on six continents, will be discussing “Immigrants: Your Country Needs Them” at 2 p.m.
“Feel Like You Belong” is a show that features interviews of immigrants, refugees, and expatriates faced with the challenge of adjusting to a new culture. Headbloom will show an interview from his WKTV show and lead a discussion with the audience about First Generation Americans, who are aware of the challenges, but also thankful for the opportunities in their new country.
The last Mr. Sid’s Wednesday Afternoon Video Series for 2018 will be a Christmas Extravaganza on Dec. 18 at Marge’s Donut Den. Participants are encouraged to bring a treat to share.
Mr. Sid’s Wednesday Afternoon Video Series is named after Wyoming’s longtime veteran Sid Lenger, who hosted video series on his travels throughout Europe and India. Lenger died earlier this year. He was 100 years old.
The Kentwood-based Deaf and Hard of Hearing Services (D&HHS) will host a special “Signing Santa” event this week. (Supplied/D&HHS)
WKTV Staff ken@wktv.org
The Kentwood-based Deaf and Hard of Hearing Services (D&HHS) offers a multitude of programs with the goal to “provide equal communication access, education and advocacy to the Deaf, DeafBlind and Hard of Hearing in pursuit of all life’s opportunities.”
And, this time of the year, one of those opportunities often unavailable to local deaf and hard of hearing children is simply visiting — and communicating with — Santa.
So, for the 10th holiday season, a D&HHS event will present a deaf ‘Signing Santa’ on Saturday, Dec. 7, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Crossroads Middle School, 4400 Ambrose NE, Grand Rapids.
“To see a child who is deaf have that experience with a deaf Santa who literally speaks their language takes my breath away every time,” Deb Atwood, D&HHS executive director, said in supplied material. “It never gets old. Every time I see it, I see it through the eyes of the child, and it is amazing every single time.”
In addition to Signing Santa, the event also will feature two signed story times at 11:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m., and will also include holiday crafts, snacks and drinks.
Some of the guests at Deaf and Hard of Hearing Services (D&HHS) special “Signing Santa” event in 2018. (Supplied/D&HHS)
According to D&HHS, there also will be numerous interpreters at the event so that everyone has access. Interpreters at the entrance, interpreters at the crafts, interpreters for Santa and interpreters for the story. Every station will have ASL to English and English to ASL interpreters.
There will also be gifts will be available to the first 50 children, and gift donations from the public are still being welcomed. People who would like to donate can call 616-732-7358 for more details.
For more information about Deaf and Hard of Hearing Services, visit deafhhs.org .
When I stand before God at the end of my life, I would hope that I would not have a single bit of talent left, and could say ‘I used everything you gave me.’
Everyone has that nostalgic picture of the family heading off in the old red truck to get that perfect tree, followed by hot cocoa and holiday singalongs. Well before you head off to the woods (or the local tree lot), the Michigan State University Extension has a few tips to help you find that “perfect” tree, such as what are the best kinds of pine trees and how to make sure they last through the season. For more, click here.
Hark! GVSU Shall Sing!
Grand Valley State University will wrap up its Fall Arts Celebration with a special holiday musical performance featuring groups from GVSU and local school districts. The performance is set for 7:30 p.m. Monday, Dec. 2, at Fountain Street Church, 24 Fountain St. NE. And the gift to all? The performance is free. For more information, click here.
Area residents fill the truck at the Wyoming Gives Back.
Be Prepared
As you hit those holiday sales this weekend, do not forget that the Wyoming Gives Back is set for Thursday, Dec. 5, from 6-8 p.m. at Rogers Plaza. The annual event collects unwrapped toys for the Salvation Army’s Angel Tree. For every toy donated, a participate will receive a raffle ticket for prizes donated by area businesses. Also, the City of Kentwood will be hosting its annual Tree Lighting and Holiday Light Parade. Those interested in helping may sign up online.
More than 15 million trees
According to the U.S. Agricultural Department, in 2017, 15,094,678 million Christmas trees were cut down in 2017. The Wall Street Journal reported that growing all those trees would require 19.7 miles of square land, which is roughly half of Walt Disney World or 86 percent of Manhattan.
It was a record breaking year for Wyoming Gives Back in 2018 with the annual fundraising collecting more than 700 toys for the Salvation Army’s Angel Tree.
“It was awesome,” said City of Wyoming Administrative Assistant Jennifer Stowell, who helps to organize the annual event which this year will be Thursday, Dec. 5, from 6 – 8 p.m. at Rogers Plaza. “Because its our eighth year and people are aware of the event, attendees will go the day after Christmas to purchase the toys that are on sale and then they bring in garbage bags of toys to the event.”
Each year the City of Wyoming partners with local businesses to celebrate the holiday season and collect toys for the Salvation Army Angel Tree. Event attendees who bring a new, unwrapped toy as a donation to the Salvation Army Angel Tree will receive a raffle ticket in exchange for a chance to win prize packs that contain hundreds of dollars of gifts donated by Wyoming businesses.
Last year, local businesses donated about $4,000 in gift certificates and/or items to be raffled off as prize packages.
The jazz band from the Wyoming High School will once again close out the Wyoming Gives Back event. (Photo by WKTV)
“The businesses are extremely generous,” Stowell said. About 1,800 letters are sent out to Wyoming businesses in July and once again the businesses have put together some amazing prize packages for this year’s event, such as a tool chest full of tools donated by Rogers Plaza and a 40-inch TV donated Car City.
About 20 local businesses and organizations will be at the event. WKTV will be providing an opportunity for residents to record a free Holiday Greeting that will be available on the station’s YouTube channel, WKTV Videos.
Hosting this year’s event is Mayor Jack Poll who will be joined by Mayor Pro-Tem Sam Bolt and WOOD TV’s Eva Aguirre Cooper and, of course, Santa and Mrs. Claus will be stopping in for a visit. Also on hand will be firefighters and police officers from the Wyoming Department of Public Safety along with other city officials and staff.
Several school choirs and bands will be performing during the event. The Salvation Army Band will kick things off followed by the San Juan Academy. The Godwin Heights High School Choir will take the stage next, followed by the Kelloggsville High School Choir and then the Lee High School Varsity Voices Choir. Wrapping up the evening will be the Wyoming High School Jazz Band.
Cookies and hot chocolate will be provided by the Salvation Army Kroc Center.
The Dec. 5 event is free and open to the public. Rogers Plaza is located at 972 28th St. SW, along 28th Street between DeHoop and Clyde Park avenues.
For the Family Network of Wyoming, the SpartanNash Foundation’s recent donation of $5,100 will have a big impact on what the organization can offer.
“It is the single largest donation we will get this year,” said Dale Echavarria, co-executive director of Family Network of Wyoming. “For about every dollar we take in, we can get about $10 of food. We feed more than 10,000 people a year. So for a small pantry like Family Network of Wyoming, the recent SpartanNash Foundation’s scan campaign for hunger relief really does make an impact.”
The Family Network of Wyoming was one of the top 10 fundraising efforts for this year’s SpartanNash Foundation’s scan campaign for hunger relief. From Oct. 23 to Nov. 3, patrons were asked if they wanted to scan up to donate to a local food pantry.
“What that means is that say your bill was $45 and you handed the cashier $50, the cashier would ask if you want to scan up to $50 to make a donation,” Echavarria said. “People could donate a dollar, $5, or $10 or round up to the nearest dollar and people did.”
In fact, SpartanNash reported that it raised $271,150 to support more than 100 local food pantries and food banks in Michigan, Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, Ohio, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wisconsin. In addition to the scan campaign, the SpartanNash Foundation also granted $5,000 to 15 food pantries located near SpartanNash food distribution and MDV distribution centers, bring the total donation to $346,150, equivalent to 3.5 million meals.
“What better way to say ‘thanks’ this Thanksgiving and holiday season than to provide vital funds to more than 100 local food pantries and food banks?” said Meredith Gremel, vice president of corporate affairs and communicants and the executive director of the SpartanNash Foundation. “These funds will be used to put food on so many families’ tables both during the holiday season and throughout the year, providing hunger relief where it’s needed most.”
Each SpartanNash store, which includes the Family Fare chain, selected a local community food partner its campaign would support. Echavarria said Family Network of Wyoming was fortunate to receive support from the two Family Fare stores in Wyoming, the one at the Metro Health Village and the one located on Burlingame Avenue.
Family Network of Wyoming will serve more than 10,000 individuals this year. (Supplied)
“One of the things they let us do was set up a table and share flyers and brochures about what we do here at Family Network of Wyomig,” Echoavarria said. Family Network of Wyoming opened its doors in 2004. In its first year, the organization served 130,000 pounds of food to 1,400 households. Today, Family Network of Wyoming will serve more than 10,000 people. It has only two paid staff and operates with 43 volunteers who put n 1,200 hours a month.
Over the years, the Family Network of Wyoming has grown and expanded its services to offer food related programs: such as the the NOW program, as well as non-food programs and services: a durable medical equipment loan closet, annual Wyoming Christmas Store, and job skill classes. Echavarria said the organization also has developed the lead pantry concept, where it works with other pantries in the area to make sure that no extra food “gets wasted.”
Gremel said that an important aspect to the SpartanNash hunger relief campaign was to raise awareness about the Foundations food bank and food pantry partners — sharing the need for hunger relief with more than 2.7 million store guest during the 12-day program.
“They really walk the talk,” Echavarria said of SpartanNash, adding that along with the annual hunger campaign, SpartanNash has also provided food items to the pantry on a weekly basis.
“Wyoming has always been extremely generous,” Echavarria said, adding that last year a group of dentists and orthodontists, lead by Grandville’s Shannon Orthodontics, had a”food fight” with “us having a fleet of mini vans with all the donated food items.”
“It’s a joy,” Echavarria said of all the local support the pantry has received.
Kindergartners sat on the classroom carpet on a recent Tuesday morning, ready to start a day filled with words, numbers, songs and crayons. But the chatty, energetic students knew they would also have time for a little jumping, stomping, flopping onto beanbags, balancing and tossing.
At West Elementary, students have a new sensory room where they can let loose and move.
Brandon Chan Jorge leads the way with Mayri Morales-Escobar and Aleah Brandos close behind. (School News Network)
The kindergarten chatter included:
“I like the trampolines!”
“Me too!”
“I like the Sit ‘N Spin!”
They soon headed to the transformed classroom space where they moved from trampolines to beanbag toss, to balance boards to walking with cups on their feet and spinning on Sit ‘N Spins.
The room was created after West Elementary kindergarten teachers expressed concerns about increased academic requirements in kindergarten resulting in less play.
Teachers Julie Merrill, Dawn Brunik and Karen Dunn, who planned the space, said they are already seeing the benefits of 15 minutes of movement every day– in addition to recess.
“We are waking our brains up,” Brunik tells her students as they play in the room after a quick breakfast in the room.
Andrea Jose walks the balance boards. (School News Network)
Movement Benefits Learning
Merrill and Brunik attended a seminar called “Purposeful Play” led by educator Jacque Groendyk, who owns the company Brains in Motion, where they learned about the connection between movement and learning. Much of it they already knew: students sitting for long stretches aren’t able to pay attention, stay on task or learn what they need to.
“We are all seeing the articles about how academic kindergarten is and how kids are just not getting what they need,” said Merrill. “We know kids are sitting with tablets… They are not outside playing like we were when we were kids.”
But if students aren’t developing fine and large motor skills through physical activity, they suffer academically as well, she said.
“If you miss these developmental steps in your brain you can spend all kinds of money on academic interventions, but you are not going to make much progress,” Merrill said.
Since adding the sensory room, they are already seeing positive results.
“The biggest thing I see is their attention in class is so much better,” said Merrill, who breaks up a 90-minute block of literacy with time in the room.
Stephen Miles has fun in the new sensory room. (School News Network)
Developmental Kindergarten Added Too
The room is part of a larger effort to meet the needs of the school’s littlest learners. West this year is also piloting a developmental kindergarten class — the only in the district — for students who have late birthdays or who aren’t quite ready for the rigors of kindergarten. While students, by law, must turn 5 by Sept. 1 to start kindergarten, parents can sign a waiver to enroll children with birthdays up unto Dec. 1. Several students with birthdays later than the deadline enroll each year. Developmental kindergarten is ideal for many of them because it is more play based and meant to be fall between preschool and regular kindergarten.
“They just need that extra year of development,” said Dunn, who teaches the class.“It all has to do with the fact that they aren’t yet academically ready. They will do great with extra time. It’s just that gift of time.”
While still a full-day program, students in developmental kindergarten will attend regular kindergarten next year.
For more stories on local schools, visit the School News Network website, schoolnewsnetwork.org.
A patriotic welcome home for West Michigan troops and other festivities are on tap for the Thanksgiving holiday – one of the busiest times of the year at the Gerald R. Ford International Airport (GFIA).
On Wednesday, Nov. 27, airport volunteers including therapy dog teams, and the Patriot Guard Riders and Blue Star Mothers will participate in “Operation Handshake,” an event to welcome home returning military members and veterans, and to thank them for their service. Volunteers will staff both airport concourse exits from 9 a.m. – 7 p.m.
“We know that not every military member can make it home during the holidays because they are making other sacrifices for our nation. For those returning to West Michigan we want to make it extra special and let them know we are thankful for their service,” said GFIA President & CEO Tory Richardson. “The Patriot Guard Riders of West Michigan and the Blue Star Mothers do a tremendous job taking time out of their holiday week to welcome home our military, and we appreciate their loyalty to our community through events like Operation Handshake.”
The event is free and open to the public. Family members should notify the Patriot Guard Riders of returning military members’ arrival times and flight information. Information can be sent to Tony VanGessel at 616-862-1984 or tvange58@yahoo.com.
“This is what Thanksgiving is really all about,” said VanGessel, Captain of the Patriot Guard Riders of West Michigan. “What we see each year is an inspiration. We get a thank you from the military members, but it’s also heartwarming for the general traveling public around us to see what happens with just a simple salute, handshake, or a thank you.”
The Airport is currently under construction on Phase II of its Gateway Transformation Project, and along with the busy holiday traffic, lines could be longer than normal. The Airport encourages passengers to arrive at least two hours before their flight.
The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is expecting a record-breaking number of flyers this upcoming Thanksgiving holiday travel period with more than 26.8 million passengers traveling through security screening checkpoints around the U.S. from November 22 through December 2nd – an increase of four-percent from 2018.
Additionally, Ford Airport passenger numbers are up as October 2019 was the busiest October in GFIA history, and the airport has already served more than three million passengers this year. GFIA has seen passenger traffic increase for 25 consecutive months.
TSA also encourages passengers to stay up-to-date on the latest travel notices and information about what you can or cannot bring on your flight by visiting: www.tsa.gov. Additionally, travelers should keep these top three tips in mind:
Pack smart. Prepare for security when packing and ensure that there are no prohibited items in baggage. As always, passengers can bring pies, cakes and other baked goods through the checkpoints; however, liquids such as eggnog and maple syrup, and gels such as preserves and jellies, should go into checked bags. Liquids in carry-on must follow the 3-1-1 liquids rule. Download the MyTSA app or use the “What can I bring?” tool on tsa.gov. This allows you to type in an item to find out if you can bring it in you carry-on bag, checked bag, either or neither.
Renew your TSA PreCheck membership. Individuals who obtained TSA PreCheck five years ago are now able to renew their TSA PreCheck membership online. Individuals who do not have TSA PreCheck should enroll now to get TSA PreCheck benefits, available at more than 200 U.S. airports, in time for their holiday travel. Travelers enrolled in a trusted traveler program, like TSA PreCheck, do not need to remove shoes, laptops, liquids, belts and light jackets. To find the trusted traveler program that best suits your travel needs, use the DHS trusted traveler comparison tool.
Ask for passenger support. Travelers or families of passengers with disabilities and/or medical conditions may call the TSA Cares helpline toll free at 855-787-2227 at least 72 hours prior to flying with any questions about screening policies, procedures and to find out what to expect at the security checkpoint. TSA Cares also arranges assistance at the checkpoint.
Phyllis Lockhart (left) and Pat French ate part of the 2019 Santa Claus Girls army of volunteers. (WKTV)
By K.D. Norris ken@wktv.org
Even after 110 years, two things remain constant for the Santa Claus Girls this time of the year: an army of volunteers are working to wrap and package gift bundles to be delivered to thousands of Western Michigan kids, and they could always use a little more community support.
Undated historic photo of Santa Claus Girls. (Supplied/Santa Claus Girls)
The Santa Claus Girls’s history in Kent County dates from 1909 and these days they operate out of the Knoll Inc. building on 36th in Kentwood — from where they delivered more than 13,500 gift packages in 2018 and hope to meet or beat that number this year.
“We are all very excited to help our community,” Maggie Moerdyke, a buyer for the Santa Claus Girls, said to WKTV this week. “And we want the public to know that if you know somebody that has a need, or anyone who has been displaced, please have them register” for gift delivery, at santaclausgirls.org.
And while the kids each get a new toy and candy — What else would be expected? —they also get hand-made, knitted winter hats and mittens. And shine very young kids have other, very specific, needs which donors might not think about.
“Our donations are coming in hot and heavy, but we still need receiving blankets, crocheted or knitted or out of flannel, as well as infant toys, and 1-year-old and 2-year-old stuffed animals that have sewn eyes or painted eyes,” Moerdyke said. “That would be awesome.”
Steve Loar, a Santa Claus Girls volunteer. (WKTV)
Of course, there is still current need for gift wrapping and package-assembly help currently at their Kentwood location, as well volunteers to join the army of drivers to deliver the packages in mid-December.
“People can go too our website, santaclausgirls.org, to sign up as drivers for (Saturday) December 14 … they will be in half-hour blocks, and each driver will have approximately 10 to 12 on their route,” Moerdyke said. “And as to working on the line, that is also online … and we will need lots of help after Thanksgiving.”
While somethings do not change — the need in the community and the willingness of Santa Claus Girls to help meet that need, for examples — Moerdyke said every year something new comes along to inspire her and the army of volunteers.
This year, she said, there are five families that, in lieu of giving each other Christmas presents, are taking collections and making donations to the Santa Claus Girls efforts. “I think that is amazing.”
On any given day at East Kelloggsville Elementary, you’ll find teacher Jacky Hamann and a handful of students hard at work. Eleven students split their time between the traditional classroom and Hamann’s classroom. With Hamann, they do the same work their classmates are doing, but in a space dedicated to helping them cope with behavioral challenges.
Last week, second grader Eva Cavazos took a break from her math work, modeling two step word problems, to play with “silly monster”, a finger puppet reward she chose for a job well done. Eva is not shy about telling you why she’s come to SWAS.
“I’m here to do work,” she said.
Hamann’s classroom is known as a “school within a school” or “SWAS”, and for students like Cavazos and her SWAS peers, it’s been key to staying productive — and staying in school.
Kindergartners Payton Johnson and Daimyon Watson deposit tickets for a treat. (School News Network)
Suspending the Suspensions
The concept is simple: students struggling with behavior leave their classroom and work in SWAS, just down the hall. Some go at regularly-scheduled intervals — from 15 minutes to a half day — as determined by the classroom teacher and Hamann. Others drop in as needed, to cool down and refocus. The extra attention from Hamann, who is trained in emotional and cognitive impairments and learning disabilities, has proven effective. Just ask Anastasia Taggart, whose son Cardier Rogers was in the building’s SWAS room as a third-grader last spring.
Prior to the SWAS program, Taggart had been called so frequently to pick up Cardier from school that she lost her job.
“We had to try something because he was getting kicked out of school all the time,” said Taggart.
Cardier was among the building’s first SWAS students when it started in the spring of 2018. It was a rough start, said Taggart, as students with behavioral challenges converged in one space. But the district worked with Taggart and Cardier to identify challenges, implement a 504 plan and strategically time his SWAS visits for the most impact — like during math, which had been a struggle for Cardier. He thought some of his classmates made fun of him for that reason.
Kindergartner Daimyon Watson does his math work. (School News Network)
In SWAS, Cardier’s suspensions plummeted. Math became his favorite subject.
“I made the right choices. It’s helped me to be here…and I got better at math,” he said. “It’s fun in here. I get to do a lot of math and now I know division and multiplication.”
One year after Cardier started SWAS, Taggart said she was able to go to her job without fearing the dreaded phone call from the office.
“Sending a kid home, especially at this age, does nothing – studies have shown suspensions really don’t do much good,” said Hamann. “It’s better to have them here, having conversations. Behavior is not a road you take alone. We are a team – I work with our behavior specialist, the classroom teacher, the principal, and the parents.”
Daimyon Watson answers the questions of the day in the SWAS classroom. (School News Network)
A Careful Process
Implementing SWAS is methodical. Before opening her classroom to students, Hamann spends a few weeks observing classrooms, gathering data, and determining which students can most benefit from her classroom.
“They identify themselves fairly quickly,” said Hamann, who shares her observations with classroom teachers. “Their behaviors are crying out for help in some way. It’s our job to figure out how.”
Students can exit SWAS as maturity increases and behaviors improve.
“This is a chance to remove them from where they’re being escalated and give them a chance to get their work done, get a break from classroom triggers, and keep them here at school,” said Beth Travis, who implemented the SWAS room as principal at East Kelloggsville. (Travis helped roll out the middle school SWAS program as assistant principal there, and has returned to the middle school as principal this year.)
Besides East Kelloggsville, SWAS rooms exist at Southeast Elementary and Kelloggsville Middle School.
For more stories on area schools, visit the School News Network website, schoolnewsnetwork.org.
Teacher Jacky Hamann reads to kindergartner Daimyon Watson and second graders Johuan Howland and Eva Cavazos. (School News Network)
“I stopped believing in Santa Claus when I was six. Mother took me to see him in a department store and he asked for my autograph.”
Shirley Temple
Treat the kids to some holiday fun this Sunday
This holiday season, the Holland Area Arts Council is reprising their partnership with Grand Rapids Ballet in two special performances for children ages 4 to 10 and their adult guests on Sunday, Nov. 17th. The gallery will be filled with the enchanting giggles of children as they experience the magic of music, dance and storytelling. Performances will be held at 12:30 and 2:30pm. Details are here.
It’s the most wonderful time of the year (isn’t it?)
Courtesy Vista Springs Assisted Living
Visiting family this holiday season? Or is grandma bringing Uncle Dave and the wild bunch to your place? Here are some life-saving tips on how to survive. Go here.
Miss the Nov. 10th Community Conversation on Homelessness?
No worries, the podcast is available on-demand here.
Fun fact:
Santa Claus wasn’t always fat and happy
You’d be brooding too if you had to lug something like this around(to be fair, this is probably an image of Father Christmas, a precursor to Santa)
We know, we know. It’s not even Thanksgiving and here we are talking about Christmas. Well, the malls have holiday decorations up, right? So, fair game.
Early images portray the bearded one as gloomy and brooding — even kind of scary. As he evolved, he gradually looked more approachable. Then, in 1931, Coca-Cola commissioned Michigan-born illustrator Haddon Sundblom to develop advertising images portraying Santa as wholesome, warm, friendly — not just a man dressed as Santa.
Today, Santa’s still fat, jolly, red-faced and, to be honest, a bit nosy. Right? How else does he know who’s been naughty or nice? Oh, wait. Alexa…
The Veterans Day panel at the Wyoming-Kentwood Chamber of Commerce’s WKTV Government Matters discussion heard from veteran Travis Snyder and others. (WKTV)
By WKTV Staff ken@wktv.org
Federal, state, county and city government leaders and representatives listened to veterans telling their inspiring stories and express their concerns about government services Monday, Nov. 11, as the Wyoming-Kentwood Area Chamber of Commerce’s Government Matters Committee’s monthly forum was fittingly held at Kentwood’s AMVETS Post 23.
WKTV recorded the meeting, which also included some discussion on state government budget issues, and not is only rebroadcasting it on WKTV’s channels but also making it available on WKTV’s on-demand website (wktvlive.org).
The Government Matters meeting brings together representatives from the cities of Wyoming and Kentwood, Kent County commissioners, local Michigan state senators and representatives, as well as often representatives of Michigan’s U.S. senators and U.S. congressman who represent the Wyoming and Kentwood area.
The intergovernmental discussion hosted by the chamber focuses on issues that effect local residents, businesses — and veterans and their families.
For more information about the chamber and Government Matters visit southkent.org.
The meetings are on the second Monday of each month, starting at 8 a.m. WKTV Journal will produce a highlight story after the meeting. But WKTV also offers replays of the latest meeting on Wednesdays at 7 p.m., as well as on select Saturdays, on Comcast Cable Government Channel 26. For a highlight schedule of WKTV cable programs visit wktvjournal.org.
Eighty-one years have passed since the Kristainancht took place in Germany and Holocaust survivor Martin Lowenberg can still see the synagogues burning.
Lowenberg will share his story during a special program tomorrow, Nov. 13, at the Kent District Library – Wyoming Branch, 3350 Michael Ave. SW. The program is from 6:30 – 7:30 p.m.
Lowenberg was a young boy when the night of Kristalnacht, also called “Night of Broken Glass,” took place in Germany Nov. 9 to Nov. 10, 1938. Starting in the late hours of Nov. 9 and continuing on into the next day, Nazi mobs torched or otherwise vandalized hundreds of synagogues throughout Germany along with thousands of homes, schools, businesses, hospitals and cemeteries. Nearly a 100 Jews were killed during the violence.
Shortly after Kristallnacht, Lowenberg and his family, which included his mother, father, two older sisters and twin brothers were separated and sent to concentration camps. It was the last time he would see his parents and twin brothers, all of who died at Auschwitz. His twin brothers were six at the time. Lowenberg spent his teenage years living in five different concentration camps during World War II.
Along with telling his story of life in Nazi Germany, Lowenberg will share his compelling message of combating hate.
Bell’s Brewery’s is “Goin’ Dark” as it honored veterans, active service military members and their families with a special beer release on Veterans Day, Monday, Nov. 11, as part of its Celebration Series of special releases.
Don’t know the term? Think what happens when you know something and tell only a select few others — like military secrets or a great new beer find.
Goin’ Dark is a 6.3 percent ABV Coffee Milk Stout brewed with bourbon barrel-aged coffee beans. The beer was conceived, written, brewed and packaged by a committee of more than 20 Bell’s employees who either served in the military, are currently enlisted or are military family members.
“Celebrating diversity has always been core to our company,” Larry Bell, founder and president of Bell’s Brewery, said in supplied material. “It’s an honor to recognize the men and women in our military as well as their families and extend that celebration to those who make that sacrifice.”
Goin’ Dark is the third release in Bell’s Celebration Series that highlights different groups within the company. Earlier this year, Bell’s employees brewed Unite Hibiscus Saison as part of International Women’s Collaboration Brew Day, and then Alliance Lemon Lager to celebrate the LGBTQ+ community. And more celebration brews are being planned for 2020.
Goin’ Dark will be available on draft at the Bell’s Eccentric Café (355 E. Kalamazoo Ave. in downtown Kalamazoo), and 12-ounce bottles packaged in 6-packs are available at Bell’s General Store. (The group wanted to bottle the beer so it could be shared with family members when they return from deployment.)
As part of the event, Bell’s worked with Section Collection, a local nonprofit that provides direct support to veterans in need.
Kent District Library’s KDaLe schedule includes local events
TwoGuys Brewery’s tap room. (WKTV/K.D. Norris)
You got to love Kent District Library’s continuing efforts to get readers out of the book shelves and into local brew pubs with their KDaLe series of programs, and in the next few weeks there will be several local pub stops.
Tops on the schedule will be events at Wyoming’s own Two Guys Brewing and Kentwood’s Broad Leaf Local Beer in early December.
On Dec. 10, from 6-7 p.m., there will be a “behind the scenes” tour at Two Guys Brewing, 2356 Porter St. SW. Then, there will be a Dec. 11 KDaLe Kick Off fundraiser, for adults 21 and older, at Broad Leaf Local Beer, 2885 Lake Eastbrook Blvd, during regular hours from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Broad Leaf will donate a portion of all revenues to KDL on that day.
Other local KDaLe events include: Nov. 21 (and Dec. 19), 7-8 p.m., KDaLe Book Club (combine your love of books with your love of beer) at Osgood Brewing, 4051 Chicago Drive SW, Grandville; and Dec. 9, 7-8 p.m., KDaLe Book CLub at Thornapple Brewing Company, 6262 28th St SE, Cascade Township.
New Holland Brewery’s Barrel Bash is coming back to their pubs Nov. 22 through Dec. 1. Over the course of 10 days, they will be rotating through 20-plus barrel-aged beers — “Some are ones you know and love, others are new beers that are not to be missed,” they say.
Among the planned releases are New Holland’s Cabin Fever Brown Ale (6.5 ABV), which actually came out on Nov. 1. (And none too soon given the winter weather we’ve been experiencing!) Also planned are releases of Ride Those Ponies Home pastry stout and You Serious, Clark? spiced stout.
Good news: The Michigan Brewers Guild recently announced a new rsing festival to be held on Saturday, May 16, 2020, from 1-6 p.m., in Traverse City’s Pit Spitters Park (333 Stadium Drive; US-31 South). Bad news: Tickets will not go on sale to the general public until March.
“Over the past 22 years, the Michigan Brewers Guild has prided itself on hosting the best beer festivals in the state,” Scott Graham, Guild Executive Director, said in supplied information. “We started with the Summer Beer Festival in 1998 and have grown over the years in terms of the number of events as well as participating breweries and attendees. Adding a festival in northern Michigan rounds out the geographical footprint for our events.”
In addition to this new festival, the Guild has announced its complete 2020 schedule of festivals – which include changing two events back to one-day festivals, including the local Michigan Winter Beer Festival, scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 22, at Fifth Third Ballpark in Comstock Park.
For more on each festival, including ticket on-sale dates for Enthusiast Members and the general public, visit MiBeer.com/events.
A morning accident that involved a Wyoming police car has Wyoming Department of Public Safety officials reminding drivers to slow down.
At approximately 7:30 a.m., a Wyoming Police officer was policing a five-car crash on Chicago Driver near the westbound I-196 ramp. As vehicles were slowing down for the crash, one vehicle lost control and struck another vehicle before striking the police vehicle, according to a department press release about the accident. There were minor injuries in the original five-car crash and not injuries in the three-car crash involving the police vehicle.
Lt. Eric Wiler said during the first snowfall, there seems to be a number of crashes as people relearn how to drive in the snow. In fact, stations reporting the weather on Sunday night reminded viewers of being careful on the roads as West Michigan got its first taste of winter.
“We just want to remind people to slow down,” Wiler said. “Make sure they are leaving plenty of room between them and the car in front of them and approach accident scenes with caution.”
According to the AAA Foundation for Traffic Study, bad weather and sloppy road conditions are a factor in nearly half a million crashes and more than 2,000 deaths every winter. For winter driving, the National Safety Council and AAA recommend the following driving tips:
Avoid using cruise control in wintery conditions
Steer in the direction of a skid so when your wheels regain traction, you don’t have to over correct to stay in your lane.
Accelerate and decelerate slowly.
Increase following distances 8 to 10 seconds.
If possible, don’t stop going uphill.
According to the National Safety Council, if the weather looks iffy, wait out the storm if possible. The council also notes that there are a number of safety features built in on today’s cars. For more tips and what those car features are, click here.
Culver CPA Group open a second location in Wyoming. (Supplied)
This fall, the Wyoming, Kentwood Area Chamber of Commerce welcomed two new businesses to the communities of Wyoming and Kentwood.
On Oct. 22, the Culver CPA Group had an open house and ribbon cutting ceremony for its second location, 4211 Clyde Park Ave. SW, Wyoming. Started in 1977 by Earl Culver CPA, the West Michigan accounting firm serves individuals as well as small businesses. The company’s areas of expertise include real estate, hospitality, service providers, construction, skilled trades, job shops, and healthcare providers.
On Nov. 7, the Susan Sherwood marked the opening of her new Kentwood office, at 6650 Crossing Dr. SE. Sherwood is with Farm Bureau Insurance.
Susan Sherwood opened her new office in Kentwood. (Supplied
Mel Trotter Ministries lifts curfew, offers around-the-clock support
In preparation for plummeting temperatures, Mel Trotter Ministries (MTM) is shifting into a “code blue” status to ensure men, women and children experiencing homelessness are safe.
“Code blue” is a term used by MTM to describe the most extreme winter conditions in West Michigan, when temperatures stay below freezing for a period of time — putting those who are exposed to the elements at severe risk of hypothermia, frost bite or even death. MTM expects to serve 400-500 men, women and children on these cold nights.
MTM will provide:
Access to safe, warm shelter 24 hours a day with lifted curfew times.
Warm clothing; hats, gloves, hand warmers, for guests staying at the shelter.
On-site medical staff to assess for conditions caused from cold weather exposure.
Removing previous restrictions to enter shelter for people who have violated rules.
Staff doing outreach around the Mission to welcome everyone in and provide resources.
Various warming centers have been identified throughout the city, including at Mel Trotter Ministries | View complete warming center list.
Mel Trotter Ministries is asking for the community’s help to provide for the hundreds of men, women and children served each night in the shelter with the Code Blue Drive. MTM is collecting new and like new coats, boots and various other items for all ages and genders. Items can be dropped off at Mel Trotter Ministries downtown location at 225 Commerce Avenue SW and various locations throughout greater Grand Rapids. More information about the Code Blue Drive, drop off locations and other ongoing needs at www.meltrotter.org/codeblue.
This coming week, as the nation observes Veterans Day, several community events have been planned to honor area veterans.
Veterans Day, formerly known as Armistice Day, was originally set as a U.S. legal holiday to honor the end of World War I, which officially took place on Nov. 11, 1918. In legislation that was passed in 1938, Nov. 11 was “dedicated to the cause of world peace and to be hereafter celebrated and known as ‘Armistice Day.'” As such, this new legal holiday honored World War I veterans.
In 1954, the 83rd U.S. Congress — at the urging of the veterans service organizations — amended the Act of 1938 by striking out the word “Armistice” and inserting the word “Veterans.” Another change happened in 1968, with Veterans Day moved to the fourth Monday of October, however; that did not meet with much success so in 1975, former President Gerald R. Ford signed a law that moved Veterans Day back to Nov. 11.
City of Wyoming
The City of Wyoming will be hosting its annual Veterans Day Breakfast on Nov. 11 at 9 a.m. at the Wyoming Senior Center. The breakfast is free for veterans and $10 for non-veterans. Reservations for the breakfast are required. To make a reservation, call the Wyoming Parks and Recreation Department at 616-530-3164. For more on this event, click here.
Government Matters
This month’s Government Matters forum, hosted by the Wyoming Kentwood Area Chamber of Commerce, will be at Kentwood’s AMVETS Post 23, 98 52nd St. SE. The program, which is from 8 – 9:15 a.m., brings together representatives from the cities of Wyoming and Kentwood, Kent County commissioners, local Michigan state senators and representatives, as well as Michigan’s U.S. senators and U.S. congressman who represent the Wyoming and Kentwood area.
Several area businesses will be doing special promotions and events for veterans. All SpartanNash stores will be giving veterans an 11 percent discount on eligible products on Sunday, Nov. 10, and Monday, Nov. 11. The stores will also start carrying American Dream apples, with a portion of the proceeds from the sale of each bag of apples will support service members, veterans and their families.
True heroism is remarkable sober, very undramatic. It is not the urge to surpass all others at whatever cost, but the urge to serve others at whatever cost.
American Tennis Player Arthur Ashe
We Salute
Veterans Day is Monday, Nov. 11, with several local events schedule. The City of Wyoming will host its annual Veterans Day Breakfast at the Wyoming Senior Center and the Wyoming Kentwood Area Chamber of Commerce will be at Kentwood’s AMVETS Post 23. On Wednesday, Nov. 13, the Mr. Sid’s Afternoon Video Series will be hosting a program honoring local vets. For more information, click here.
Become Civic Minded
This Sunday, Nov. 10, City of Kentwood Commissioner Emily Bridson will host a Community Conversation on Homelessness from 2 – 4 p.m. at Broad Leaf Local Beer, 2885 Lake Eastbrook Blvd. SE. Keynote speaker will be Judge William G. Kelly, the chief judge for Kentwood’s 62B District Court. For more information, click here.
The Grand Rapids Symphony performs the music of “Home Alone” as the film is shown on Nov. 12.
Stay ‘Home Alone’ or hit some craft shows
The weekend will be full of craft shows such as the one at the Byron Center High School, 8500 Burlingame Ave. SW. The show runs form 9 a.m. – 3 p.m. Kentwood’s St. Mary Magdalen Catholic Church, 1253 52nd St. SE, also will be hosting its craft show from 9 a.m. – 3 p.m. On Tuesday, Nov. 12, get into the holiday spirit as the Grand Rapids Symphony presents the movie classic “Home Alone.” The symphony will perform the John Williams’ score as the film is shown.
Fun Fact: I’m not heavy, I’m a bridge
The world’s largest and heaviest vertical-lift bridge is the Houghton Hancock Bridge, also called the Portage Lake Lift Bridge, located in Houghton, Michigan, the home of Michigan Technology University. About 35,000 tons of concrete and about 7,000 tons of steel was used in the bridge’s construction. The double-decker bridge is the major connection across Portage Lake which cuts across the Keweenaw Peninsula with a canal that links to Lake Superior. And for the beer fans, Houghton is also home to the Keweenaw Brewing Company.
What happens at the federal, state, county and city government levels are of importance to everybody, including veterans, so the Wyoming-Kentwood Area Chamber of Commerce’s Government Matters Committee’s monthly forum will be fittingly held at Kentwood’s AMVETS Post 23.
“We thought there was no better time to take our Government Matters forum on the road than Veterans Day,” Bob O’Callaghan, president of the chamber, said to WKTV. “We wanted to honor our veterans, and the AMVETS in Kentwood stepped up.”
O’Callaghan also thanked Harold Mast, longtime local public servant and veterans advocate, for arranging the visit to the AMVETS post.
AMVETS Post 23 is located at 98 52nd St. SE. The Government Matters meeting runs from 8-9:15 a.m.
The Government Matters meeting is rebroadcast on WKTV’s channels and on-demand website (wktvlive.com).
The Government Matters meeting brings together representatives from the cities of Wyoming and Kentwood, Kent County commissioners, local Michigan state senators and representatives, as well as often representatives of Michigan’s U.S. senators and U.S. congressman who represent the Wyoming and Kentwood area.
The intergovernmental discussion hosted by the chamber focuses on issues that effect residents, businesses — and veterans and their families — in the two cities.
For more information about the chamber and Government Matters visit southkent.org.
The meetings are on the second Monday of each month, starting at 8 a.m. WKTV Journal will produce a highlight story after the meeting. But WKTV also offers replays of the latest meeting on Wednesdays at 7 p.m., as well as on select Saturdays, on Comcast Cable Government Channel 26. For a highlight schedule of WKTV cable programs visit wktvjournal.org.
Wednesday, Nov. 13, Mr. Sid’s Wednesday After Video Series will host a special program honoring area veterans.
The program will be at 2 p.m. at Marge’s Donut Den, 1751 28th St. SW. Feature presenter will be Fred Johnson, PhD, who is an associate professor of history at Hope College and a frequent presenter at Calvin Academy of Lifelong Learning.
The program will have a special guest, World War II Veteran Virgil Westdale, who is a 101-years-old. Westdale was a farm boy who was a pilot, TSA office and WWII solider serving with the all Japanese/American 442nd Regimental Combat Team and 522nd Artillery Battalion helping push the German’s out of Italy, France, and freeing prisoners from the Dachau Concentration Camp in Germany. Westdale’s book “Blue Skies and Thunder” will be available for purchase ($20) during the event.
Upcoming Mr. Sid’s Wednesday Afternoon Video Series programs are “Feel Like You Belong” host and producer Alan Headbloom on Dec. 4. Headbloom has 30 years of experience in cross-cultural communication on six continents. He is interested in the stories of those who are immigrants and refugees and the challenges that they face. “Feel Like You Belong,” which airs on WKTV, features interviews of immigrants and expatriates faced with the challenge of adjusting to a new culture.
On Dec. 18, the Mr. Sid’s Wednesday Afternoon Video Series will host a Christmas Extravaganza. Mike Martin and guests will lead the group through Christmas Season music, songs, video and surprises.
Mr. Sid’s Wednesday Afternoon Video Series is in honor of Sid Lenger, a former Wyoming resident and World War II veteran who loved to share his stories and video travelogues at Marge’s Donut Den. Lenger passed away earlier this year at the age of 100.
A part of her continuing Second Sunday community conversations, City of Kentwood Commissioner Emily Bridson will host a Community Conversation on Homelessness Sunday, Nov. 10, from 2-4 p.m., at Broad Leaf Local Beer.
The Keynote Speaker of the public event will be Judge William G. Kelly, the chief judge for Kentwood’s 62B District Court.
The panel will include Wende Randall, director of Kent County Essential Needs Task Force; Kent County Commissioner Stephen Wooden; James White of Cinnaire; and Cheryl Schuch, of Family Promise of Grand Rapids.
The event will be moderated by Bridson and Marshall Kilgore, Western Michigan Director for United Precinct Delegates. WKTV will record the discussion and post it on our WKTV Journal In Focus Podcast Channel.
“The more people I spoke with about housing, the more I realized we have several great community organizations working very hard in this area to make an impact,” Bridson said in her monthly community newsletter. “Homelessness doesn’t have a simple solution, but it does need a regional approach by various members of the community sitting down to compare our efforts, bring more awareness to all and work on more active solutions to keep chipping away at this issue.
“This issue is especially important to me because it disproportionately affects women, people of color and children.”
Bridson said in the community newsletter that she asked for information on homeless students in Kentwood Public Schools and found that, in 2018, Kentwood Public Schools had 283 students that were homeless, while Grand Rapids Public Schools had 671 students homeless.
She also states that Kentwood does not have a homeless shelter.
Have you seen my heart somewhere in your castle of yellow leaves?
A Waltz for Zizi, written by Yoko Kanno
Now Serving
Today’s the day! The Cheesecake Factory at Woodland Mall officially opens today. Started in 1978 in Beverly Hills, the popular restaurant, which has more than 30 different types of cheesecake, has its roots in Michigan. While living in Detroit, Everlyn Overton found a cheesecake recipe in a local newspaper. She made some tweaks and well, you can taste the results at the new restaurant, which also has 250 different entrées on its menu.
Just a ‘Goofus’
It was a single duck that brought a group of Wyoming residents together this summer. Freelance writer Estelle Slootmaker shared the story of Goofus, a Pekin duck, who along with another was left at Wyoming’s Lamar Park. Goofus proved, as Slootmaker put it, “different birds of a feather could flock together.”
Santa is Coming! Order Tickets Now!
The Grand Rapids Public Museum announced its popular Breakfast with Santa will return this year with the event taking place Dec. 14. There will be two sessions, 8:30 a.m. and 10: 30 a.m. with about 100 spots available for each. Tickets are expected to sell fast, so if you are interested make sure to snap them up quickly! For more, click here.
Fun Fact: On the Move
Anyone who has every visited the Niagara Falls probably have seen a boat lodged near the top of the Canadian falls. The boat, called a scow, has been lodged on the falls since 1918 and for more than a hundred years has rested against an outcrop of rock. That is until Halloween night, Oct. 31, when winds from a severe storm caused the scow to “flip on its side and spin around” bringing it closer to the falls. For more about the scow’s movement, click here. For more on the history of the scow, click here.
The Health Forum of West Michigan event hosted by Grand Valley State University last week included panelists, from left, Andrew Brisbo, executive director of the new Marijuana Regulatory Agency for the State of Michigan; Dr. Mandeep Bath, addiction psychiatrist for Pine Rest; Scott Rifenberg, deputy chief, Grand Rapids Police Department; and John Titley, partner and corporate attorney for Varnum LLP. (GVSU/Kendra Stanley-Mills)
By K.D. Norris ken@wktv.org
A panel of experts on the medical and legal aspects of existing medical, and pending recreational, marijuana use discussed a multitude of issues at Health Forum of West Michigan event hosted by Grand Valley State University last week.
While the event was focused on the implications of legalized marijuana for the health care industry, a wide range of information was presented and topics discussed, including how police will deal with suspected driving under the influence of marijuana, the current medical-community research on the short- and long-term effects of marijuana use, and ongoing state regulatory actions in preparation for the pending legalization of recreational marijuana.
Adult-use retail sales of marijuana is set to start by the end of the first quarter 2020, and while many local cities and townships have opted-out of having legal marijuana sales within their jurisdiction — including both Kentwood and Wyoming — the state is busy establishing rules and regulations associated with its sales and use.
At the forum, Andrew Brisbo, executive director of the new Marijuana Regulatory Agency for the State of Michigan, discussed the state’s new recreational marijuana commercial licensing and regulatory program, including that there will be a 10 percent excise tax collected on sales to fund state and local regulation and enforcement costs, that there is an initial $6,000 application fee and that the actual license fee will range from 3,000-$50,000, and that there will be specific rules for consumption at temporary events and “designated consumption establishments.”
The Nov. 1 free-to-the-pubic event was part of a planned series of health-care related forms hosted by the university’s Office of the Vice Provost for Health in the DeVos Center, on the Pew Grand Rapids Campus.
The Health Forum of West Michigan event hosted by Grand Valley State University last week included panelists, from left, Andrew Brisbo, executive director of the new Marijuana Regulatory Agency for the State of Michigan; Dr. Mandeep Bath, addiction psychiatrist for Pine Rest; Scott Rifenberg, deputy chief, Grand Rapids Police Department; and John Titley, partner and corporate attorney for Varnum LLP. (GVSU/Kendra Stanley-Mills)
Other panelists included Dr. Mandeep Bath, addiction psychiatrist for Pine Rest; Scott Rifenberg, deputy chief, Grand Rapids Police Department; and John Titley, partner and corporate attorney for Varnum LLP.
Bath detailed known and in-study health issues involving marijuana use, and included in his details were:
Approximately 2.6 percent to 5 percent of the global population (119-221 million individuals) use cannabis, with the rate of cannabis use in high-income countries almost twice the rate in low-income countries. A 2013 survey reported 7 percent of 8th graders, 18 percent of 10th graders, 22.7 percent of 12th graders used marijuana in past month up from 5.8 percent, 13.8 percent and 19.4 percent survey results from 2008.
Medical studies suggest 8.9 percent of cannabis users would become dependent on cannabis at some point in their lives.
While most of Dr. Bath’s discussion contained dry if sobering information, one bit of medical data drew a humorous reaction:
“During intoxication, user’s sociability and sensitivity to certain stimuli like colors is heightened, perception of time is altered, and appetite to sweet and fatty foods is stimulated,” he said, reading from a powerpoint script, before adding impromptu, “… the munchies.”
The event was moderated by Susan DeVuyst-Miller is associate professor of pharmacy practice at Ferris State University and clinical pharmacist for Cherry Health Services.
The next Health Forum of West Michigan will be “New Discoveries in Genetics” on Friday, Dec. 6, with guest Caleb Bupp, M.D., a medical geneticist with Spectrum Health.
GVSU’s DeVos Center us located at 401 Fulton St. W.. For more information on planned health forums, visit gvsu.edu/vphealth .
The City of Wyoming will host a Veterans Day Breakfast on Monday, Nov. 11. The breakfast, which is at 9 a.m., is free for veterans and $10 for all others to attend.
This year’s keynote speaker will be Diane Cimchowicz, who retired from the Navy. Also in attendance will be Mayor Jack Poll, who will host the breakfast, as well as Wyoming City leaders.
Last year, the City of Wyoming decided to change its Veterans Day program from an outdoor evening ceremony to a morning breakfast. The response to last year’s breakfast was very good, according to city staff.
The breakfast will be at the Wyoming Senior Center, 2380 DeHoop Ave. SW. Those interested in attending should pre-register by clicking here or contact the Wyoming Parks and Recreation Department at 616-530-3164. You can also email parks_info@wyomingmi.gov or stop by the parks and recreation office, located in City Hall, 1155 28th St. SW.
On the latest episode of WKTV Journal In Focus, we talk with Michigan State Sen. Peter MacGregor, who represents the City of Wyoming as part of a widespread Kent County area included in the 28th Senate District.
MacGregor is in his second term in the Senate, and is both the Senate majority floor leader and chairman of the important Appropriations Subcommittee on Health and Human Services.
We talk with the senator about health and human services issues, changes coming to the state’s auto insurance laws, and — of course — budget battles between the Republican-controlled legislature and first-year Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.
Taking about the budget process, in which the legislature develops and presents a budget to the governor for approval — or line-item veto — Sen. MacGregor said “The Governor was not as involved as she thought she should be. Not that we did not want them involved, just that there is a lot of politics involved with a split government.”
WKTV Journal In Focus airs on cable television in the Wyoming and Kentwood areas on Comcast WKTV Channel 26 and on AT&T Channel 99 Government channel (see our Weekly On-air Schedule for dates and times). All individual interviews included in episodes of WKTV Journal In Focus are also available on YouTube at WKTVvideos.
