Stories

Feature Story Students at a recent GRCC Lakeshore Campus event. (GRCC/Andrew Schmidt)

GRCC plans open houses at main, Lakeshore campuses

Those who attend the events – planned for April 16 at the main campus and April 23 at the Lakeshore campus –- have a chance to win a $500 scholarship. 

Longform An intergenerational Spanish class at the Ypsilanti Senior Center.

Intergenerational programs bring younger and older Michiganders together to promote healthier aging

With funding from the Michigan Health Endowment Fund, the national nonprofit Generations United is bringing generations together to build communities that work better for all.

Feature Story Macomb County Jail

Push to improve conditions for Michigan's incarcerated prompts research, proposals for new facility

A 2019 Michigan study found that nearly half of incarcerated individuals were charged with a “divertable" offense. Now, a decades-long effort from researchers, lawmakers, corrections professionals, and families is making a case for improved conditions for inmates with mental health and substance abuse disorders. Could a new facility in Macomb make a difference?

Partner Content Children in the Three Sisters Garden in Buckley.

SNAP-Ed programs grow change in Michigan's northwestern rural communities

Covering five northern Michigan counties, Northwest Education Services (NES) nutrition educators use a community-based approach that recognizes the unique strengths and challenges of each community they serve.

Innovation News women in construction

Construction industry is ‘not just a man’s world’ at CD Barnes

CD Barnes Construction uses its Women in Construction initiative to showcase the opportunities and future careers in the construction industry.

Longform Shelby Township resident Nicholas Tabarias has rediscovered his love of writing and performing music since recovering from gambling addiction.

Michigan tackles dramatic rise in problem gambling

Numerous Michiganders have struggled with problem gambling since online gambling was legalized in the state, but help is available.

Feature Story child getting vaccinated

Decline in childhood immunizations leads to risk of resurgence

While the pandemic emphasized the importance of the COVID-19 vaccine, it also highlighted a need for other vaccinations to be discussed. The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services reports significant drops in childhood immunization rates across both county and state levels.

Feature Story James Hurt

City Commission and DTE Energy partner with The Rapid to fuel vehicles with renewable natural gas

In an innovative three-way partnership, the city of Grand Rapids, The Rapid and DTE Energy look to repurpose waste into renewable natural gas to fuel city vehicles. This initiative seeks to decrease carbon emissions and improve the community.

Feature Story Spring Lake is hosting a community-wide Easter egg hunt.

Things to do in April: Spring Fling, hunt for eggs, free movie night

Spring has sprung and Easter is just around the corner. There are plenty of things to do along the Lakeshore in April from Easter egg hunts to watching live performances. 

Feature Story Guitarist Blake Rhein playing with his band Durand Jones and The Indications

Holland-raised musician shares about touring, making President Obama’s list of favorite music

From taking lessons in Holland as a teen to making President Obama’s list of favorite music, Blake Rhein, guitarist for funk and soul band Durand Jones and The Indications, talks about his journey.

Feature Story In the early 1940s, Sam Valenti married Grace Bommarito, and into a legacy bakery business.

How a small Italian bakery grew into a 90-year-old family legacy

Bommarito Bakery in St Clair Shores is the kind of place customers, who visited as children, now bring their children and grandchildren. Italian immigrants Jim and Rose started the family business in Detroit in 1925, selling cookies, lemon ice, gelato, and wedding cakes, but the next generation are bringing more even delights to their patrons. 

Innovation News Kyd Kane

Poetry project gives community opportunity for self-expression & art creation

Drawing on her personal experience using poetry as a form of self-expression, Poet Laureate Kyd Kane is giving the community a space to do the same through a new project that will turn into a traveling art exhibit.

Feature Story Samuel Coleridge-Taylor

How a small orchestra increased access to the music of once-renowned Black composer

The Holland Symphony Orchestra has made the music of Samuel Coleridge-Taylor available for orchestras around the world to perform. 

Feature Story man with puppet

KDL Strategic Plan uses system-wide teamwork to bolster culture

The Kent District Library (KDL) 2021-2023 Strategic Plan is well underway, with the goal of being an indispensable community resource. Jaci Cooper, director of projects and planning of KDL, provides an update on implementation.

Partner Content Signage promoting physical activity in Baldwin.

District Health Department #10 builds healthier communities in 10 Michigan counties

DHD#10 uses a variety of evidence-based programs and approaches to create a broader culture of health through their policies, systems, and environmental change work. 

Longform Devita Davison, executive director of FoodLab Detroit.

Michiganders take action against food apartheid

The term "food apartheid" has increasingly supplanted "food desert" as a way to describe the conditions affecting urban and rural communities that lack access to healthy foods.

Feature Story Health literacy classes

How addressing health literacy is more than just reading medications

Seniors, nonnative English speakers and other underrepresented populations face significant barriers to health literacy, which health professionals and educators say plays a key role in helping them overcome.

Feature Story Alyson & Mallory Caillaud-Jones

Rapid Reconnect: A Q & A with Chartreuse Sisters' Owners Alyson & Mallory Caillaud-Jones

As businesses continue to navigate the pandemic, it can be helpful to both take a step back to reflect on where they’ve been and look at what is to come. For the owners of Chartreuse Sisters, a French-American fusion patisserie, while the past two years have presented challenges, they have been able to roll with the changes thanks to their creativity, their team and a supportive customer base.

Feature Story Carolyn Stich and Joel Schoon-Tanis are using their artwork of sunflowers to support Ukraine.

Artists use their work to support Ukrainian resistance

Lakeshore artists Joel Schoon-Tanis and Carolyn Stich are using their creative talents to support the Ukrainians under siege by Russia half a world away.

Partner Content Students at Flint's Brownell STEM Academy participate in MI Apple Crunch Day.

Genesee County organizations collaborate to create healthy local places

Genesee Intermediate School District and Crim Fitness Foundation are encouraging Genesee County residents to eat healthy and move more, while also addressing barriers to make healthy choices more accessible to county residents.