Young children plundered the neighborhood. There were fewer munchkins so the bounties were more plentiful for those who knocked on doors and dared to trick or treat.
Wednesday, October 31, 2012
Halloween at the Alpine Township Library
Each Tuesday before Halloween, the children participating in the Alpine Township Library's Storytime program enjoy fun and games. Before they go home, they have the opportunity to go trick or treating at the Alpine Township offices. This Tuesday was no exception as the children proudly paraded in their costumes from station to station.
Alpine Township Fire Department Receives Grant
The grant request was prepared and submitted by Alpine Firefighter Brian Stalsonburg. Chief Klomparens wishes to thank Brian, Mr. Van Haitsma, and TransCanada Corporation for their efforts and generosity.
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| Kenneth Van Haitsma Sr., Chief Dave Klomparens, Brian Stalsonburg |
TransCanada is the largest shareholder in, and owns the general partner of, TC Pipelines. The company was founded in 1951 in Calgary.
Alpine Township appreciates their commitment to our community.
Alpine Township Recognized for Fostering Economic Growth
UM-Dearborn’s
iLabs eCities research recognizes 54 Michigan communities developing a positive
entrepreneurial climate
An additional 46
communities across the state are also recognized as five and four star
performers.
About University
of Michigan-Dearborn
CONTACTS:
DETROIT,
October 30, 2012 – Eight communities across the state of Michigan are top
performers at fostering entrepreneurial growth and economic development
according to the annual eCities study. The study, conducted by iLabs,
University of Michigan-Dearborn’s Center for Innovation and Research,
identified Alpine Township, Grand Blanc, Grand Rapids, Imlay City, Meridian
Township, Midland, Sterling Heights and Troy for their incentives, innovative
programs and best practices geared toward business development.
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Alpine Township Supervisor Alex Arends flanked by U of M Dearborn College of Business Interim Dean Lee Redding on your left and Tim Davis, Director of iLabs on your right.
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“The
top performing communities understand what small
businesses need to be successful,” said Tim Davis, director, iLabs. “The communities
communicate with their business owners and provide connections to broader
resources and insight on trends.”
“It was such an honor to be asked to
serve as one of the judges for the 2012 eCities,” said Merrill Guerra,
principal, Guerra Consulting LLC. “This project gives participating communities
the unique opportunity to get feedback on the business growth strategies and
messaging they have developed directly from their target - business people.”
The eCities
research surveyed 114 communities from 40 counties in Michigan that are home to
34 percent of Michigan residents and nearly half of its college graduates. More
than 125,000 entrepreneurs with over $3 billion in self-employed income call
the participating communities home. These communities also had more than $1.5
billion in 2011 commercial construction and more than 70 percent share services
with other communities.
“We are pleased to
have had more communities than ever from throughout the state participate this
year in the eCities research,” said Davis. “This project assists local communities
by identifying best practices and methods that they can implement to aid in job
growth, economic diversification and development of entrepreneurs.”
The communities
were honored at a ceremony at UM-Dearborn on Tuesday, Oct. 30, which included video profiles of each of the top performers. Support for eCities 2012
is provided in part by the DTE Energy Foundation, the Michigan Economic
Development Corporation (MEDC) and UM-Dearborn’s College of Business.
The annual eCities
research project, which began in 2007, uses data supplied by the participants as
well as other public records to assemble a six-factor, 32-item index of
entrepreneurial activity, looking at such factors as clustering, incentives,
growth, policies, community and education. The study focuses on
entrepreneurship because of its importance to expansion and diversification of
Michigan’s regional economies and the impact small businesses have on job
creation. To date, 165 communities across Michigan have participated in the
study.
Founded in 1959 with a gift of just
over 200 acres of land and $6.5 million from the Ford Motor Company, University
of Michigan-Dearborn is a metropolitan university serving southeastern
Michigan, committed to excellence rooted in strong academics, innovative
research and programming and civic engagement. The University
has nearly 9,100 students pursuing more than 100 bachelor's,
master’s, doctoral and professional degrees in liberal arts and sciences,
engineering, business and education. A top-ranked university with a faculty
devoted to teaching, and students committed to achievement, UM-Dearborn has
been shaped by its history of partnering with local leaders and communities,
and is committed to finding solutions for the challenges that face the region.
Monday, October 29, 2012
Saturday, October 27, 2012
Greenridge School Hosts Halloween Carnival
With Stony Creek School currently under construction, a Halloween Carnival was hosted by Greenridge School this past Saturday. Kids had a chance to participate in games, drawings, purchase raffle tickets, and show off their costumes.
Friday, October 26, 2012
Alpine Township Introduces Rose Kogge
Alpine Township's Planning and Building Inspection Departments are pleased to introduce Rose Kogge, who serves as part time Administrative Assistant.
Rose comes with a wealth of knowledge and experience having served as Program Coordinator and Executive Assistant for Community Services at several school systems. She has also served on the Planning Commission of the Village of Caledonia.
If you are in the neighborhood, please feel free to stop by the Township Office on Tuesdays and Thursdays to say hello to Rose. The coffee is always on.
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| Rose Kogge |
Wednesday, October 24, 2012
Hunter Safety Course in Session
Alpine Township is hosting its second Hunter Safety Course of the season this week. The three day course, offered by the Michigan Department of Resources, is being taught by Community Policing Officer Deputy Nate Ertle, seen here in the center of the back of the room.
Tuesday, October 23, 2012
Lead, Connect, Serve - INTERACT
Students at Kenowa Hills High School who have been involved in community service projects voted today to affilliate with Interact, Rotary International's Service Club for young people ages 14-18. The club is sponsored by the Comstock Park Rotary which will offer support and guidance.
Last year, under the guidance of Mrs. Laura Fair, students involved in community service were part of a group known as TOG (The Opportunity Group). The group is excited about affilliating with Interact and is looking forward to associating with other clubs. One of the projects already planned for this fall is mentoring students at Alpine Elementary School, in particular to those students to whom English is not their first language. Several fundraisers are also planned to brighten the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays for families in need. The group also hopes to have representation at weekly Rotary meetings. It has the full support of Kenowa Hills High School Principal Katie Pennington and Superintendent Gerald Hopkins. So far, 20 dedicated, concerned and committed students joined the group, which is being led by seniors Chris Castro and Yesenia Lopez.
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| Twenty students attended today's meeting |
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| Yesenia Lopez, Mrs. Laura Fair and Chris Castro |
Monday, October 22, 2012
York Creek Halloween Parade is back!
THE YORK
HALLOWEEN PARADE IS BACK!!!!!!
Before you head out for trick-or-treating,
stop into the York Creek Office by October 27th to register for the parade.
**Youngsters will need to be accompanied by an adult at all times
Sunday, October 21, 2012
Haunted Westgate
For one reason or another there is a concentrated number of homes in the Westgate neighborhood of Alpine Towship (Comstock Park) that appear to be haunted. This is more apparent the week of Halloween as the earth seems to move and ghosts, zombies and other creatures take over the landscape.
More information can be found at //www.hauntedwestgate.com/
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| Shipwreck at 5013 Wallingford NW |
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| After dark scary |
A Michigan Polar Bear Confronts the Bolsheviks
Godfrey Anderson was a local farm boy born in Sparta and raised in the Marne area (Berlin). In 1918 towards the end of World War I he was drafted and by September of that year found himself assigned to a unit sent to Archangel Russia. He was part of a contingent of about 5,000 soldiers referred to as the Polar Bears. At the time, Russia was no longer at war with Germany, but the British were trying to to keep the Bolsheviks from controlling the two main Russuan sea ports, and there was also an effort to recover western issued weapons that had been sent to Russia by the allies that had fallen into the hands of the communist rebels. Godfrey wrote a book titled "A Michigan Polar Bear Confronts the Bolsheviks". It is a story about his adventures from the time he was drafted until he returned to Michigan in 1919.
On Sunday, Gordon L. Olson presented an illustrated program from the war memoir at the Alpine Township Historical Committee's monthly meeting. Olson is the editor of this memoir and is Grand Rapids' Official Historian.
As Grand Rapids’ official historian, Mr. Olson has authored numerous books and articles on the history of the area, produced live and videotaped programs, and collected various historic manuscripts, photos and related material for the Grand Rapids Public Library.
Olson's "A Michigan Polar Bear Confronts the Bolsheviks" is available at Amazon.com
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| Alpine Township Trustee Bill Schweitzer and Historian Gordon Olson |