02-27-2020 Letters and Commentary

Correction In the February 20, 2020 issue of Tri-City Record, an error was made on Page 11 in the cutline under the photo of the Watervliet High School wrestlers that received medals at the SAC conference championship. The name of the student athlete in the back row at the far right was listed as Evan Orlando. It should have identified him as Dominick Morrison. Tri-City Record and submitter Robert Pelton are sorry for any inconvenience or confusion this error may have caused Dominick and his family.

Ian Ishmael Dear Karl, I enjoyed the front page article in last week’s [Feb. 20] Tri-City Record on Ian Ishmael’s appointment to the U.S. Naval Academy. He is a great young man, and will represent our local community well. The only other naval academy attendee and graduate from our area was Otto Helweg Jr. who graduated from Watervliet High School in 1954; and was a classmate, at the academy, and longtime friend of John McCain. Otto Helweg Jr. died in 2009 while campaigning for John McCain’s run for the presidency against Barack Obama. Don Oderkirk, Cdr. USNR Ret.

Be a hero for patients: Donate blood during Red Cross Month The American Red Cross urges the public to join its lifesaving mission by giving blood and platelets this March in celebration of Red Cross Month. Donors of all blood types, especially type O, are urgently needed to help ensure blood is available for patients this spring. Every day, thousands of patients depend on blood donations to help save their lives – patients like Heath Cornford who spent his first 217 days of life in the hospital. Born in February 2018 with an abnormal narrowing of the heart, Heath has undergone many complex surgeries – including a heart transplant – and required a number of blood transfusions. “I can’t tell you how thankful we are for the lifesaving donations that saved our son,” said his mom, Mylinda Cornford. “Blood is something you can donate for free. You can make an impact, save a life and give back to your community.” Heath recently celebrated his second birthday and is a thriving, energetic toddler. Be a hero for patients in need Heroes of all blood types, especially type O, are urgently needed to provide hope and help for patients across the country. Make an appointment now by downloading the free Red Cross Blood Donor App, visiting RedCrossBlood.org, calling 1-800-RED CROSS (1-800-733-2767) or enabling the Blood Donor Skill on any Alexa Echo device. A blood drive is being conducted in this area on Tuesday, March 10 from 12 p.m. – 5:45 p.m. at Moose Lodge 697, 1025 Wells St. in South Haven.

V.B. County Treasurer providing foreclosure prevention assistance Van Buren County Treasurer Trisha Nesbitt has announced her plans to help Van Buren County residents keep their homes and avoid foreclosure. Her plans include an open-door policy for residents who need assistance and mobile office hours in March. “As Van Buren County Treasurer, my No. 1 goal is to prevent foreclosure and keep families in their homes,” Nesbitt said. “My office’s hardship extension program has proven to help homeowners catch up on their back taxes and avoid foreclosure.” The hardship extension program gives county residents who owe 2017 property taxes an opportunity to set up a manageable monthly payment plan so they can avoid losing their home. Last year, more than 150 Van Buren County residents participated in the program to avoid foreclosure. Residents who are interested in the program can visit the Treasurer’s office at 219 E. Paw Paw St., in Paw Paw from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday. Treasurer Nesbitt will also travel throughout the county to meet with residents in the coming weeks. She will be at the Van Buren District Library Covert Branch from 10 a.m. to noon Thursday, March 5, the Hartford Public Library from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday, March 9, and the Van Buren District Library Bangor Branch from 9–10:30 a.m. on Friday, March 13. “Whether I am in the office or on the road, my team and I are ready to help find a solution for any residents at risk of losing their home,” Nesbitt said. “As Treasurer, my mission is to create a culture of compassion, kindness and respect within our office and to use these values to drive our approach to serving the people of Van Buren County.” If taxes from 2017 and prior years are not paid on or before March 31, 2020, the property will be foreclosed, and the Treasurer’s office will be unable to assist residents in keeping their home.

Alone Ever try to look into faces of individuals in a crowd, especially their eyes? We can’t know what someone else is thinking, but sometimes their faces can reveal something inside – worry, anger, impatience, happiness, sadness, fear. We can’t know. There’s a proverb that says, “Each heart knows its own bitterness, and no one else can share its joy.” (Proverbs 14:10, NIV) We all become alone in a crowd of strangers – each one isolated from everyone else. Disconnected. Some are on their phones or texting as they move along to the next destination. Sometimes eyes will meet. I’ve found that even in a busy city, a passing friendly nod and smile can at least anonymously acknowledge mutual humanity. Everyone hurts about something. An uncle once told me, “It doesn’t cost anything to be nice.” So, why not? Jesus saw individuals in crowds. “When He saw the vast crowds of people, Jesus’ heart was deeply moved with compassion because they seemed weary and helpless, like wandering sheep without a shepherd.” (Matthew 9:36, TPT) Jesus cared. And He cares. Sometimes He cares through us. One of our worst lonelinesses is loneliness for God. When we sense His presence He seems like He’s right there. Our situation may not have changed but to sense His hand in ours, His arm around our shoulder, His smile and nod, gives a great peace anyway. And when we estrange ourselves from Him by our own actions, His absence is painful. Alone again. Getting reconnected with God is a need sensed by many. Being alone, without His presence, produces a gnawing emptiness. We need reconciliation with the God who sees us in a crowd and acknowledges our humanity through His great love. He paid the price, suffered the loss, removed the barriers and became our Great Shepherd. Nothing else is needed. And no need to be alone anymore. God’s eyes have met ours.

Record lake levels threaten communities Last week, I spent time with local and state officials touring some of the record lake levels and erosion taking place on the shorelines of Lake Michigan. On my tour, I saw how the water levels are affecting marinas by submerging docks and increasing the risk of electric shock, drowning, and slippery dock surfaces. Michigan is one of the top recreational boating states in the country, so I am concerned by the impact this will have on our local economy. Our communities thrive in the summertime because of our beautiful beaches and shorelines. In addition to the tour, we also discussed long-term solutions and ideas to address these conditions. One possible idea is the SHORE Act, which is bipartisan legislation I recently helped introduce that will direct the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Office of Management and Budget to account for recreational harbors when considering the cost and benefits for harbor maintenance projects. Recreational harbors, such as the ones in New Buffalo, South Haven and Saugatuck, would absolutely benefit from this legislation. We also are looking to send a letter to the International Joint Commission – an organization that helps manage the Great Lakes – to request help to mitigate the impact of the water levels. To learn more about important legislative issues, follow me on Twitter at @RepFredUpton or sign up for my weekly newsletter by visiting my website: upton.house.gov. You can also call my offices in Kalamazoo (269-385-0039), St. Joseph/ Benton Harbor (269-982-1986), or Washington, D.C. (202-225-3761).

2020 #SWMISpirit tournament nears tip-off With March comes the longer, sunnier and warmer days of spring and the return of the beloved Southwest Michigan Spirit Tournament, which will tip-off on Monday, March 2. The #SWMISpirit tournament is a popular communitywide event, bringing together students, parents, alumni, and ordinary citizens in support of our great schools. Participants supporting all 31 area schools have submitted thousands of photos during previous competitions to showcase their outstanding school spirit and to determine the winning schools. However, I am excited to announce that we are shaking things up a bit, to both make it easier to participate and to simplify scoring. So, while photo submissions will be still welcomed this year, they will not factor into the tournament outcome. This year, as before, the 31 area high schools in the tournament will be divided into four brackets, like in the NCAA basketball tournament. The schools will compete in a single-elimination bracket contest with those earning the most points advancing to the next round each week. Voting will take place in either of two locations: Facebook.com/SenKimLaSata and at www.StateSenatorKimLaSata.com. On Facebook, each matchup in each round will feature a graphic of the competing schools’ mascots. To vote, participants will “react” to the original graphic with a “Haha” to vote for one school or a “Wow” to vote for the other. Each graphic will indicate which reaction method to use for each school. This will provide a real time score for all to easily follow. Please note that while I encourage everyone to share the graphics, the official score will only be tallied from reactions to the original post on my Facebook page. The second way to participate will be on my website. Each week a new poll will be posted, allowing participants to select their favorite school in each round’s matchups. At the end of each round, the votes from Facebook and from my website will be combined and winning schools will advance to the next round until a winner is determined. This year’s tournament will begin on Monday, March 2 and will continue for five weeks, ending at noon on Friday, April 3. Please visit my Facebook page for the bracket, tournament rules and, of course, to participate! The #SWMISpirit tournament has been a great success, and I encourage everyone to join in and continue to show that no one has more school spirit than Southwest Michigan.

Craft brewing legislation sails Last week, the Michigan House of Representative overwhelmingly passed my 16-bill package aimed at helping Michigan craft breweries grow and invest in their businesses. I initially unveiled the legislation in Kalamazoo at the Michigan Brewer’s Guild Winter Conference and Trade Show in early January, where it quickly gained the support of brewers and industry stakeholders across the state. Most importantly, it gained the support of businesses right here in Southwest Michigan. In addition to local brewers visiting Lansing to advocate on behalf of my bill, Round Barn Brewery and Public House, as well as Arclight Brewery, support my legislation. The main bill in the package, HB 5343, allows microbrewers to self-distribute up to 2,000 barrels of beer to a retailer or wholesaler annually. Any on-premises sales from a micro brewer’s taproom would not be included when calculating the 2,000-barrel limit. Additionally, the package gives more flexibility to beer festivals conducting licensed events, clarifies regulations surrounding the manufacturer and wholesaler relationship, reduces the frequency of when beer and wine taxes are paid from monthly to quarterly, and eliminates redundant product registration requirements. Craft brewing is a billion-dollar industry in Michigan, providing nearly 10,000 jobs in communities like ours throughout our state. In our county alone, there are more than 20 breweries that give jobs to our residents, host events to bring our community together, and support our local economy. Our state sits near the top of every list as it relates to brewing, and I hope that this package will help create an even better environment that allows these small businesses to grow and thrive. I want to thank my colleagues for supporting this legislation, and I look forward to seeing these bills signed into law. If I can ever be of assistance to you, you can reach me via email at PaulineWendzel@house.mi.gov or by phone at 517-373-1403. You can also visit my website at www.RepWendzel.com.

WHAT HAPPENED TO ME TOO? Surfing the TV channels Sunday evening, I spotted a station offering a block of Carol Burnett shows. I happily switched over and watched the first four of the initial shows. I was thoroughly entertained, as I was back in the day, 1967. By the fourth show… I was jaded by the leering slavering of the ladies on the show over the male stars, lead by Carole herself. The rest of the programming was of the male stars leering and slavering over the ladies. I started thinking perhaps the programming should have sparked several sexual harassment cases. Carol and her friends weren’t the initiators of the variety show with lots of double entendres and sight gags. Broadcast television was rife with programming that mirrored the culture of the time that women were sex objects to be pursued … even the nickname of television is a double entendre “boob tube”. Comedian Red Skelton’s shows were full of winks and hijinks. His favorite guffaw was something like … I got a graduation present from my dad, he sent me abroad. All of it with the same goofy grin he used to say goodnight. Jack Benny’s show, as I recall, was a bit more sophisticated. Maybe because Jack fancied himself a violinist. What created much of the humor was the repartee between the star and his black butler Rochester. There was racism in the side glances and Jack’s famous slow burn. Considering what I watched in those days, there were many shows using good looking girls in short tight dresses as targets of humor or prurient interest. Hee Haw is still a huge favorite; you can find it almost daily on cable channels. Star Trek had tall handsome crewmen in uniform and inexplicably the female crew all wore short skirts (even on away missions). There wasn’t much allusion to sex, except when the Enterprise visited a pleasure planet for much needed shore leave. Even the monstrous extraterrestrial beings, like the Klingons, were costumed in studded leather and tall boots with curved knives on the toe. The lady Klingons were attired the same except for the V-neck uniform shirt that plunged nearly to their weapons belt. In my mind English TV was by far more blatant, at the time, than U.S. TV could ever hope to be. Programs like the Benny Hill Show was made up of skits that always ended up with a half-naked girl being chased by a leering Benny Hill. Steptoe and Son was the original English version of Stanford and Son. The American version had Fred Sanford and his son as junk yard operators. Steptoe and son were “rag and bone men”. Steptoe Sr., despite the script, always worked in a long leering look at the young girls and boys. So, back to the future, now. Harvey Weinstein, Hollywood producer was found guilty of sexual assault and rape Monday. He now faces up to 29 years in jail. His court trial seemed to bring the Me Too movement a finish of sorts. Over the past six years or so, there has been a plethora of prominent entertainment types charged with rape, harassment, and stalking and a larger number that said they were the victims. I was surprised the Me Too movement had been around so long. According to Wikipedia, “The Me Too movement (or #MeToo movement), with a large variety of local and international related names, is a movement against sexual harassment and sexual assault. The phrase “Me Too” was initially used in this context on social media in 2006, on MySpace, by sexual harassment survivor and activist Tarana Burke.” As the national media and public interest in sex crimes seems to be waning and the upcoming presidential election is consuming all the air time … who knows if the fuel to the Me Too movement has run out. Somehow, I doubt it.

Send me a letter via email record@tricityrecord.com or drop a line to Tri-City Record, PO Box 7, Watervliet, MI 49098