By Corin Blust Sun contributor Timothy Lewis, an Empire watercolorist, was raised in Midland, attended Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo, and lived in New York City for most of his adult life, but he spent his childhood summers hanging out at his grandfather’s barbershop in downtown Empire. “I could go down and hang out at […]
By F. Josephine Arrowood Sun contributor Leelanau County artist William Allen has been known both locally and nationally as a metal sculptor, with works included in permanent collections as diverse as the American Visionary Art Museum in Baltimore, the University of Florida, the Detroit Zoo, Crystal Mountain’s Art Park and the collection of Jeopardy’s Alex […]
By Nadine Gilmer Sun contributor Part two in a series on local Hispanics living in northern Michigan I remember two childhoods. There is one in Mexico, with my cousins and my numerous relatives, and good food, and noise and life filling every nook and cranny. I also remember my childhood in the United States This […]
By E. Byron Dennis Sun contributor An experience of a lifetime. When Hurricane Katrina relieved us of all our material possessions, it led us into one of the highlights of my life. At age 81, my wife of less than a year and a half, Bettylu and I were faced with the prospect of beginning […]
Dick DeVinney of Glen Arbor aims to change this trend, in Leelanau County, at least. Three years ago, the intrepid choir director began Summer Singers, sponsored by the Glen Arbor Arts Association, as a way to offer musical participation to anyone who wanted to sing, regardless of their experience or perceived ability.
By F. Josephine Arrowood Sun contributor When I heard in July that Glen Lake Community Schools’ bus driver Chad Kahler had been hired as the new middle school science teacher, my first thought was, “Brilliant!“ My second thought was, “From bus driver to middle school teacher? That seems like leaping from the frying pan into […]
By F. Josephine Arrowood Sun contributor Amy Marowitz always knew she wanted to be a midwife. Yet the journey along her chosen career path has followed a circuitous route that has taken her from her native Ohio to western Leelanau County, from the bustle of Midwest academia to a remote Indian reservation, and from the […]
By Helen Westie Sun contributor Some residents of Empire refer to Dave Taghon as “Mr. Empire”. He certainly deserves such an appellation because he has done more for the town than any other single person. Affable and always upbeat, Dave knows everyone in town and also knows every facet of Empire history. Born in the […]
By Maggie Meyers Sun contributor Have you been surprised to notice someone walking on local trails or roads with what appear to be cross-country ski poles? What you have actually seen is a new fitness trend that is rapidly gaining steam in Glen Arbor, and beyond. Ski Walking — an off-season training technique that world-class […]
By F. Josephine Arrowood Sun contributor Octogenarian William Bricker doesn’t typically practice inverted postures, but he does turn on its collective head some stereotypical notions of what it means to grow old in youth-obsessed America. In appearance, the white-haired, tanned Glen Arbor resident blends in with many a retiree as he negotiates his three-wheeler bike […]