Empire community glimpses life in space

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By Pat Stinson Sun contributor Hard work, enthusiasm and a sense of humor can take you pretty far in this world. If you’re Greg Johnson, a NASA astronaut and retired Air Force colonel, that combination and a diverse skill set can also propel you 200 miles into space and onto the orbiting International Space Station […]

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Bobby Jones wails the blues on Arizona Princess

By Norm Wheeler Sun editor (Editor’s Note: Bobby’s CD was released back in 2008, and the Sun apologizes for the delay in trumpeting the coolness of his musical project in his own hometown’s paper!) There comes a time in the life of any amateur musician who has picked with a band or two over the […]

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Glen Lake bids goodbye to 137 years of teaching experience

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By Chloe Gribbin Sun contributor As an alumna of Glen Lake Community Schools, I finally feel that I am able to appreciate, without any bitterness or hard feelings of a looming assignment to cloud my view, all of the character and effort it takes to be a full-time educator. These men and women become second […]

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Running in the family

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By Nadine Gilmer Sun contributor I used to call myself an avid runner, but after hearing about Norm Plumstead, I think I’ll call myself an avid couch potato now. Plumstead has lived in Empire’s “New Neighborhood” for seven years, he is a father, husband and Honor State Bank employee, and he recently raced 100 miles. […]

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Meet the Grand Marshals

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By Michael Buhler Sun editor Lou Batori claims to be running out of steam. “As you age, your energy depletes by 5 percent each year, so I’m in negative territory now,” he chuckles. But this 99-year-old Glen Arbor resident is actually full of vigor, skiing virtually every day last winter at Crystal Mountain, and riding […]

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With a hoe in his hand

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By F. Josephine Arrowood Sun contributor On a bright June afternoon, a first glimpse of Irwin “Irv” Beck, Jr. reveals the 82-year-old sailing along on his red Farm-all tractor, as proud as a mariner, through the furrowed expanse of his 10 acres in Empire Twp. It’s the middle of strawberry season, and Irv is taking […]

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Bobby Jones wails the blues on Arizona Princess

By Norm Wheeler Sun editor (Editor’s Note: Bobby’s CD was released back in 2008, and the Sun apologizes for the delay in trumpeting the coolness of his musical project in his own hometown’s paper!) There comes a time in the life of any amateur musician who has picked with a band or two over the […]

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Thirty Times Two

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By Brooks Vanderbush Sun contributor Glen Arbor’s greatest claim to fame with both locals and visitors alike is its unmatched sense of community. If one were to spend any time in Glen Arbor, they would find that everyone is on a first-name basis and life moves at a pace that many can only dream of. […]

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Finding America

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Oomen will read from her new book, An American Map, on May 8 at 3 p.m. at the Top of the Park in Traverse City’s Park Place Hotel. Proceeds benefit the Fresh Food Partnership. By Tim Bazzett Ever since reading with great enjoyment and admiration Anne-Marie Oomen’s first memoir, Pulling Down the Barn, I have […]

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Karner named Environmentalist of the Year

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From staff reports Rob Karner, a biology teacher at The Leelanau School, a private boarding school located north of Glen Arbor, won the Northern Michigan Environmental Action Council’s (NMEAC) award for Environmentalist of the Year in education on Friday, April 16. The Glen Arbor resident is also a watershed biologist with the Glen Lake Association. […]

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