Tag Archives: Chris Hall

Snapshots: Fun news you need to know from Wyoming and Kentwood

3-bottom, Citizen Journalism, City of Kentwood, City of Wyoming, , , , , , ,

WKTV Staff

joanne@wktv.org

 

 

Quote of the Day

 

"Being the Queen is not all about singing, and being a diva is not all about singing. It has much to do with your service to people. And your social contributions to your community and your civic contributions as well." _ Aretha Franklin

 

Making a difference

 

Having lived in Wyoming all of his life — except for a short time when he was away at college — Chris Hall felt he knew a lot about the community he lives in. Then in 2003, he joined Wyoming’s Community Development Committee and discovered even more about his city. “It is really cool because you hear from folks who have been a part of [the Community Development Committee] and they’ve learned about stuff — me included — of things that I didn’t know existed and ways that I can help out, and I think I am a better resident, a better citizen. Because of my involvement in this committee, I am able to serve my neighbors better.”

 

 

 

Time to Sparkle

 

The Grand Rapids Ballet will celebrate the arrival of its newest artistic director, James Sofranko with a gala Oct. 18. The Wild Sweet Love Welcome Gala, so named after a ballet that will be performed that event, will start at the L3VEL at The B.O.B. and then head to the company’s Peter Martin Wege Theatre. To find out why “Wild Sweet Love” was selected and how it connects to Sofranko, click here.

 

Opa!

 

Or rather Yassou!, which is the Holy Greek Orthodox Church’s annual celebration of the culture and traditions of the Greek Orthodox community. The event takes place Aug. 17 – 19 and includes music, dancing, and of course, lots of Greek food favorites. This year’s event will be supporting the Children’s Advocacy Center of Kent County (CAC). The church is located at 330 Lakeside SE.

 

While My Guitar Gently Weeps

 

Also this weekend is the popular JazzFest taking place in downtown Grand Rapids at Rosa Parks Circle. The event, which is Saturday and Sunday, Aug. 18 and 19, features a host of jazz musicians from noon to dusk both days. Edye Evans Hyde, Kevin Jones, Grupo Ayé, and Marcus Anderson are just some of the performers slated for the seventh annual event. The entire two days are free, although if you plan on sitting, you might want to bring your own chair.

 

Fun Fact:

300,000 bulbs

That is how many tulip bulbs are planted in Holland every year for the annual Tulip Time, of which 50,000 are hand planted on the Window on the Waterfront Park. Organizers for Tulip Time just recently announced submission dates for the annual Art In Bloom competition, which are Sept. 29 - Oct. 4.

For one Wyoming resident being on a city committee has helped him become a better citizen

3-bottom, Citizen Journalism, City of Wyoming, , , , ,

By Joanne Bailey-Boorsma

joanne@wktv.org

 

Having lived in Wyoming all of his life — except for a short time when he was away at college — Chris Hall felt he knew a lot about the community he lives in. Then in 2003, he joined Wyoming’s Community Development Committee and discovered even more about his city.

 

“It is really cool because you hear from folks who have been a part of [the Community Development Committee] and they’ve learned about stuff — me included — of things that I didn’t know existed and ways that I can help out, and I think I am a better resident, a better citizen.

 

“Because of my involvement in this committee, I am able to serve my neighbors better.”

 

The Community Development Committee is an advisory board to the Wyoming City Council with its focus on the federally funded Community Block Development Grant program. Enacted by Former President Gerald R. Ford in 1974, the Community Development Block Grant or CDBG is one of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s longest-running programs. It funds local community development activities such as affordable housing, anti-poverty programs and infrastructure development. 

 

The funding is distributed mostly to state and local governments which controls how the funds are used.  

 

“As an advisory panel we kind of get to determine where those dollars should be spent,” Hall said. “So we make recommendations to the city council, usually it is around community development-type work, strengthening neighbors, helping with education with housing, those types of issues.”

 

Projects funded through the CBDG program have included several park improvements such as the snack area at Pinery Park and a monument at Veteran’s Park. The program has worked with various non-profits that provide affordable housing and home repair services along with helping with other needs such as English is a Second Language programs. 

 

The Community Development Committee is looking to fill some open spots. The person has to be a Wyoming resident and should be engaged in the community. The time comment is not much, about one meeting a month for a couple of hours, according to Hall.

 

“What you find you are doing is that you are more engaged between the meetings throughout the month looking for opportunities to find a nonprofit who can benefit from this or just be more engaged as a resident,” Hall said. “It’s a great opportunity for a resident of the city to participate and maybe be part of the solution.”

 

Hall went on to state that “A lot of people like to think of us as the suburbs. We are a pretty diverse city. From one end of the city to the other, there is a lot of different things happening in Wyoming. We have a lot of the same challenges we have in the urban core but the architecture is different. The cool thing is we have the ability to work on those as a community.” 

 

To learn more about the Community Development Committee or the other volunteer committees, commissions and boards at the city, visit the city’s website or contact the city clerk’s office at 616-530-7296.

WKTV Journal: Hugs, Metro Cruise, and Getting Involved

3-bottom, City of Kentwood, City of Wyoming, , , , , , ,

 

In the latest segment of the WKTV Journal, we sit-down with Kentwood artist Meoshia Thomson who discusses the power of hugs, a key element in her 2018 ArtPrize submission.

 

We also take a sneak peek into the upcoming 28th Street Metro Cruise, which is set for Aug. 24 and 25 at Rogers Plaza and catch up with a group of Wyoming and Kentwood actors who are in one of Agatha Christie’s most famous plays, “And Then There Were None,” set to be performed at the Jension Center for Performing Arts.

 

Wyoming resident Chris Hall visits with us to talk about the Wyoming’s Community Development Committee, which serves as an advisory board to the Wyoming City Council on the federally-funded Community Block Development Grants. The committee has openings for Wyoming residents with Chris noting it is an excellent way to get involved with the Wyoming committee.

 

Lastly, we take a trip down memory lane with Wyoming History Commission member Bill Branz and WKTV Contributor Katey Batey as they talk about S&H Green Stamps.