HARTFORD HIGH SCHOOL GOVERNMENT CLASS… visits Hartford City Commission meeting. Students (from the left) Inteus Dixon, Corey Arnold, Moses Beraza, Jose Villalbos, Caleb Weston and Xavier Salinas watched the workings of their home town governing body at the December 19 combined workshop/business meeting presided over by Mayor Ted Johnson (left) with City Manager Yemi Akinwale (right.) (TCR photo by Jon Bisnett)

Coloma School District seeking board member

By Annette Christie

The Coloma Community Schools is seeking applications for a vacancy on the board of education.  An individual will be appointed to fill the vacant position until December 31, 2018.  If the appointed individual wishes to continue in that role they would have to be elected to that position in the November 2018 general election.

Interested persons must submit a letter expressing interest in the board position and their qualifications for the position to the district office no later than 4:00 p.m. on January 6, 2017.

To be eligible to serve as a member of the Coloma Community School Board of Education, a person must be a qualified school elector. This means that the candidate must be a registered voter in the school district. All candidates must also be at least 18 years of age, a citizen of the United States of America, a resident of the State of Michigan for at least 30 days, and a resident of the school district on or before the 30th day prior to the date of the appointment.

Following a review of submitted materials, the board will schedule interviews with selected candidates. Not all candidates for the board vacancy will be interviewed. If anyone has questions concerning the role of the board of education and the responsibilities of a board member, please contact Pete Bush, Superintendent of Schools at 269-468-2424, ext. 16 or email to pbush@ccs.coloma.org.

All letters of interest / materials should be submitted to Coloma Community Schools, Administrative Offices, c/o Heidi Ishmael, Board President, 302 W. St. Joseph, Coloma, MI 49038.

The vacancy on the Coloma school board occurred when long-time board member Dave Vollrath announced at the close of the school board meeting on Monday, December 12, that he would be resigning at the end of the year.  Vollrath was elected as a Berrien County Commissioner in November of this year and the two positions are incompatible.

The next meeting on the Coloma School Board is January 9, 2017.  The Coloma school board meetings are held on the second Monday of each month at 7:00 p.m.

Retirement reception for Bob Banasik

 Bob Banasik, St. Joseph City Police Dept. sergeant, and son of former longtime Watervliet residents Gordon of St. Johns, Michigan, and the late Joan Banasik, is retiring after 28 years as a St. Joseph city police officer. He will be honored with a retirement reception on Tuesday, December 27, from noon to 4 p.m. at City Hall in St. Joseph.

Bob began his career with SJCPD in February of 1988. Officer Banasik has been a St. Joseph City Police Dept. sergeant for the past 13 years.

In 2011 when St. Joseph City Police Dept. transitioned to St. Joseph Public Safety Department, Bob was one of the first police officers to receive firefighting training. Bob, his wife, Sheila (co-owner of Perennial Accents in St. Joseph with Linda Frazee and Vickie Campbell), and their children, Vanessa, senior at MSU, and 8th-grader Grant all reside in Coloma.

Rep. Pscholka posts perfect voting record over six years

 State Rep. Al Pscholka finished his sixth year in the Michigan House of Representatives with a perfect voting record.

Rep. Pscholka, R-Stevensville, took part in all 1,532 roll-call votes in 2011 and 2012; 1,345 votes in 2013 and 2014; and every one of 1,263 recorded votes during the current session. He made it a priority to be present and representing the 79th House District when he sought his first House term seven years ago.

“When I started knocking on doors in 2009, the one promise I made was to be like Cal Ripken and not miss a game, to be a strong voice for Southwest Michigan.  Promise made – promise kept,” Rep. Pscholka said. “I never missed a vote on the floor or a vote in committee, where much of the hard work gets done. A handful of my Republican colleagues also had perfect attendance, a testament to our determined efforts to turn Michigan around.”

Rep. Pscholka said many of the votes were difficult and involved controversial subjects, but said setting the policy was necessary for the state’s continued success.

“I didn’t want to pass over important issues such as energy reform, fixing our roads and bridges and changing the culture of education in Detroit,” Rep. Pscholka said. “Far too often in the past legislators kicked the can down the road for someone else to deal with. I saw our role as putting a stop to that practice and achieving these goals.

“We also had several significant victories locally, whether it was long-neglected road projects, capital outlay projects for our community colleges, the Good Samaritan expansion, or clearing the Paw Paw River, being present and building relationships made a difference,” Rep. Pscholka said.