A LONG WALK—City Manager Michael Young, who pledged to walk the entire 24 hours of the Rockford Relay For LIfe, about to enter the 5th hour. With 19 hours to go Young was being given encouragement by his charming and delightful wife, Melissa. On Sunday, May 17, Young’s feet were still so swollen from the 24-hour walk he couldn’t put his shoes on. photo by Cliff Hill

In seventh year, American Cancer Society event tops $2 million

When the American Cancer Society (ACS) promotes Relay For Life, they will be using Rockford to do it. Videographers and photographers from the national organization were on hand this past Friday and Saturday, May 15 and 16. The images they captured will appear in brochures, commercials and other promotional material.

“They realized we have something special here,” said organizer Carol Delp-Korzeja. Carol said the story of Rockford’s Relay, this year the seventh, is inspirational.

THREE BLONDES—Kathy Christensen, Miss Relay for Life Contestant Tim Dahlke, who is certainly into body building, and Carolyn Reed. “Miss” Dahlke had just finished collecting donations from the two young ladies.

It is also nothing short of amazing that Relay ’09 brought in $336,992, bringing the seven-year total to  $2.1 million. There were over 300 cancer survivors (up from 263 last year) at the survivor reception and  84 teams participated (up from 77 last year). The top money-raising team was Friends For Life, which raised $24,000.

There is a story behind every person who chooses to participate in Relay For Life. This year five City of Rockford employees, including the City Manager Michael Young, walked the whole 24 hours to show support for police officer Ian Graham, diagnosed with lymphoma this spring.

PLENTY OF DELICIOUS FOOD—At Relay. The Young Marines make Hobo Stew, a mix of every kind of Campbell’s soup. The recipe was discovered when a group didn’t receive their shipment of food for an outdoor excursion. As part of survival training, Marines carry a can of soup. Eveyone had a different favorite. They mixed them all together and discovered it is delicious. At right James Gray, Regiment Commander of the Grand Rapids Young Marines, mugs for a photo.

Carol shared another story that should give goose bumps to even the most hard-hearted. Rockford’s Relay was started by good friends Shannon Oulette and Brent Deuel. Shannon had lost her mom, Paula Banfield, to cancer. Shannon’s brother, Jason Banfield, recently lost his mother-in-law to cancer. Jason’s son, Carson Banfield, having lost two grandmothers to cancer before the age of 9, decided to raise money this year by writing letters to everyone he knows, asking for donations for ACS. His efforts alone netted over $1,600.

FIGHTING BACK—Top right, Denise VanPelt signs up for the ACS Cancer Prevention Study 3. Her sister just finished chemotherapy for breast cancer and her father lost his fight against cancer. “We need to stop it. I don’t want to see any more people go throught it. I have five kids, I’m doing it for them,” VanPelt said. At right Wally Kurzeja, Relay’s disc jockey, gives blood while signing up for the study.

“This is a third-generation Relayer,” said Carol. Carson received a Relay Champion award this year for his efforts. “Our kids are becoming our next generation of Relayers. We bring them and they see what it’s all about.”

Rockford Relay has enjoyed the strong support of both the Rockford School District and the City. On the committee from day one were both Young and Rockford Superintendent Dr. Michael Shibler. Rockford has teams from every school in the district and has always had a City team. This year there were 84 teams participating, up from 77 last year, and the event remembered and honored more than 2,700 people.

“Many Relays are having a hard time this year because of the economy. We’ve been very blessed,” said Carol. She said some participants were people who have lost their jobs since last year’s Relay but still support the event.

Rockford was chosen to be one of the relays offering a chance to sign up as part of a life-long lifestyle cancer study. This once-in-a lifetime opportunity may help unlock the cure to cancer or someday prevent it.

The ACS estimated that Rockford might be able to get 450 people to enroll in the study in five hours.  Relay committee members had asked for extra sign-up kits because they were confident many would volunteer. The sign-up team had to stop of the process early, since the ACS ran out of enrollment packages at 472-more than 90 people per hour.

Winner of the 45-minute Miss Relay for Life Pageant, Miss Lakes Elementary, solicited an amazing $1,126.00 as “she” strolled around the track trolling for contributions. The winner of the Miss Relay for Life pageant was determined by which contestant could raise the most money for Relay in a 45 minute period. All of the contestants together raised $3,800. Stunning as Miss Lakes was we think she had better stick to her day job where she is known as Blake Bowman, Principal of Lakes Elementary School.

A spokesperson for the American Cancer Society praised the community and school district for the incredible support of Relay For Life.

“Two thirds of all cancers are preventable,” she said. “It would be great to find a cure for cancer, but can you imagine being able to stop cancer before anyone gets it? We see so many young people getting cancer. This study is our gift to the generations that come after us.”Young said he remembers the day Oulette came to him asking if Rockford would help host a Relay For Life. “We said, ‘Whatever you need, we’ll make sure it gets done. We don’t just allow Relay to be something that happens in our City, we embrace it.”

There are activities for children and adults all during the 24-hours of Relay.

Rockford firefighters traditionally lead the first hour of walking (in fire suits and wearing 100 pounds of gear)

CLASS ACT—The Cannon Classic Car Show steering committee, Jim Zanzig , owner of Pizzeria Grandé, Dennis Spitler owner of Clip-n-Go Mobile Pet Salon and Ted Trocke owner of Bella Vista Auto Service. Together, along with other CABA members, bring you a free day of family fun. Bring your tent and lawn chairs and enjoy the day. Those with classic cars to show can call Trocke at (616) 874-4444.

It doesn’t cost a lot of money to have a good family day out. On Saturday, June 6, it won’t cost anything at all. The second annual Cannon Classic Car Show, sponsored by the Cannon Area Business Association (CABA) will be from noon to four in the parking lot of Bella Vista Auto Service, 6533 Belding Road and Cannon Town Center, right next door.

Again this year see classic cars-25 years or older-and enjoy booths from many area businesses. Watch Dee-Jay the Clown perform for the crowds and enjoy the festival atmosphere. New this year is a pizza eating contest by Pizzeria Grandé at 3 p.m. Entry fee is $10 with half of that going to a local charity. Contestants (limited to 20) will be challenged to eat a 14 inch cheese pizza as fast as possible with a prize and bragging rights to the first finished. Sign up for the pizza eating contest at Pizzeria Grandé, 6575 Belding Road or call (616) 874-1111.

Trocke displays his own 1979 Corvette, which he purchased from a customer whose wife wanted the garage space. Other classic cars also have a story to tell, many restored from a dire condition to a pristine condition. Dennis Spitler said classic cars draw a crowd because people love the history and nostalgia of them. “They bring back memories from when these cars were new for many of us,” he said. Younger people enjoy seeing how different  older cars look compared to today’s models.

“I’d like to see more of the older cars this year,” said Trocke. He hopes local people who have a  classic car to show will call him beforehand or show up at 11 a.m. the day of the show to register. There is no charge to display your classic car and the first 100 will receive dash plaques. The show will be limited to  the first 150 cars. Visitors the day of the event will vote on their favorites and the three Peoples Choice winners will receive trophies. Last year’s winner was a 1912 Ford delivery truck. The oldest car in the show was a 1901 Ford Roadster. Many other classic makes and models are sure to be represented.

Each year the organizers chose a charity to benefit. Last year they asked Car Show registrants for a donation of a non-perishable food item to go to the North Kent Service Center.  The request was not a requirement to participate in the Car Show, so the steering committee had no idea how much food would be collected. To their surprise, people brought in enough to fill four 55-gallon containers-an amazing amount. This year CABA has picked the Susan G. Komen Race for a Cure for breast cancer as the recipients of donations. “Cancer has touched the lives of just about everyone you know,” Trocke said. “This is a very good cause.”

CABA was formed in 2005. Carl Shook was the chamber executive director at that time and Vicki Klinger was the president. Carl Stites, owner of  Stites Eye Care, said that he and other business owners had some meetings with Shook and Klinger to come up with ways to promote the chamber as more than an entity of downtown Rockford. “The chamber is all of the Rockford school district,” said Stites, “It’s the whole 100-square miles. We wanted to create an identity for the businesses in Cannon Township and offer some individualized events.” Stites said getting to know other business people in his area has also created strong friendships and business partnerships. “We’ve gotten to know just how much we have to offer over here and we are doing more business with each other, too,” Stites commented.

One of CABA’s first projects has become an annual favorite-the Cannon Treasure Hunt, which is always the third Tuesday in September. The Car Show, new last year, also promises to be a favorite. There are about 75 businesses in the CABA area, many along Northland Drive, Belding Road and around the lakes (Bella Vista, Silver and Bostwick lakes). Some of these businesses will be represented at the Car Show with tents or booths, including Acme Tire, James Rasmus All State Insurance, Bostwick Lake Inn, Chiro Health, Clip-n-Go Mobile Pet Salon, Herrington Disposal, Morris Builders, Ric’s Food Center, Pizzeria Grandé, S&H Gardens, Sweet Clover Company, the North Kent Service Center, Cannon Township and Simply Chiropractic.

To find out more about the car show, or sign up your classic vehicle for display at the show, call Ted Trocke at (616) 874-4444. To find out more about the Cannon Area Business Association, email Carl Stites at info@stiteseyecare.com. Be sure to mark your calendar for Saturday, June 6 noon to 4 p.m. to enjoy this family-friendly, free event. According to Trocke, “This is a great way to kick off our summer season.”

Michaela and Mackenzie Young win the number three doubles against West Ottawa for the regional championship.

Rockford High School’s girls’ varsity tennis team capped its remarkable season last week by winning a regional tournament for perhaps the first time ever.

“As far as I know, we’ve never won a regional championship,” Coach Tom Huizing said, “I’m extremely proud of my girls for how they played and how far they got. It was a team effort.”

This week, the squad was to head back onto the courts to prepare for the Division I state finals in Midland. It’s the second year in a row that Huizing’s spring players have made the trip, another unprecedented milestone for Rams girls tennis.

The Midland Community Tennis Center and Northwood University are scheduled to host the finals on May 29-30. Nineteen teams from across the Lower Peninsula will participate, including teams from two other OK Red conference high schools, Grandville and West Ottawa.

“We’re proud to be representing Rockford,” Huizing said, following Rockford’s May 14 win at the regional tournament at Jenison High School. “We’re going to work hard.”

At the regional contest, the Rams brought home the hardware in three flights. Fourth doubles players junior Lindsay Gauger and senior Meliah Mead topped off their undefeated season with a flourish by beating West Ottawa High School in two sets. Alex Stembaugh, sophomore at three singles, made her championship match against Grandville High School a nail-biter, but came up the winner on a third-set tie-breaker. Senior Michaela Young and junior Mackenzie Young, relying on a nearly flawless record, set back West Ottawa in two sets.

With three freshmen and a sophomore filling out the singles flights, the team’s storybook season wasn’t anticipated back in March. “It’s cool, because we weren’t expected to win with such a young class,” said senior co-captain Jillian Haverkate, adding that the Region I, Division I championship “took a lot of hard work.”

Rockford tallied 22 points and came in first, qualifying the team for the state finals. Tied for second at 18 points apiece were teams from Grandville and West Ottawa. First singles players Robyn Power of Grand Haven and Maria Tran of East Kentwood qualified as individuals.

Coach Huizing brought home his own honors with recognition as Regional Coach of the Year. He offered the credit to his players as well as to the junior varsity coaching staff for its effort in developing strong players for the varsity team. JV-A Coach Valerie Wallace was on hand at the regional tournament. JV-B Coach Matt Drolett assisted the varsity coach at the OK Red conference tournament, where the Rams tied for first with the Eagles of Hudsonville. Hudsonville, ranked fifth in the state in its division, will play in the Division II state finals at Kalamazoo College.

Grattan Academy learn internet safety.

Grattan Academy learn internet safety.

Everyone loves ACE Hardware, but would you raise your children there? The answer is yes, apparently, for a robin who has, for the past three years, chosen one of the hanging baskets in the greenhouse as a nursery. According to employee Jim Tol, the bird picks a different type of basket each year and raises her brood without fear of summer storms or too much sun.

New to the world.

Everyone loves ACE Hardware, but would you raise your children there? The answer is yes, apparently, for a robin who has, for the past three years, chosen one of the hanging baskets in the greenhouse as a nursery. According to employee Jim Tol, the bird picks a different type of basket each year and raises her brood without fear of summer storms or too much sun.

Eagle tending it's young ones. Photo by Jorge Rodriguez

Rockford residents have the opportunity to see what most Americans never will-a breeding pair of bald eagles right here in our own community.

People have been lining up with binoculars and cameras to see the magestic symbol of our nation caring for offspring.

To see the eagles and their young, take Ten Mile Road east to Wabasis Avenue, turn north and go to Twelve Mile Road, turn left and go to the second dip in the road. There is a pond and a large pine tree at the east edge of the pond.

We are inviting the community to help us plan our “garden.” Please join us on Tuesday evening, May 26, at 6 p.m. at the North Kent Service Center, 10075 Northland Dr. (just north of 12 Mile) for a planning meeting. We look forward to your suggestions and input. Besides the usual garden vegetables, we are also hoping to plant raspberries, blueberries and strawberries. Any donations to help the cause would be appreciated. To have your group volunteer to help tend our garden, call Karen Sanders at (616) 866-3478.

Exchange students attempting to get on the Hot Dog Hall of Fame.

Everyone  has heard of Corner Bar hot dogs, but how many people are prepared to sit down and eat 12 in a row? Two visiting students accomplished this feat to join the hundreds on the Hot Dog Hall of Fame at the Corner Bar.

Competing or offering support were: Nelson Nunes Filho from Brazil, Manuel Martinez from Spain, Anabel Carrillo from Ecuador, Lukas Kutilek from the Czech Republic, Kate Podhradska from Slovakia, and Jimmy Hunt from Kent City.

Lukas Kutilek from the Czech Republic and Nelson Nunes Filho (Filho means Junior, who knew?) from Brazil are the newest names that will go on the restaurant walls after eating the dogs Saturday, May 9. Saturday was Nelson’s 18th birthday.

Lukas ate 12 dogs in two hours and 25 minutes.
Nelson ate his 12 in just under 45 minutes, WOW! Manuel could only handle eight of the dogs, Kate managed four of them before admitting defeat. Kate opted for an ice cream/cookie desert before attempting her fifth hot dog and then stopped. Anabel is a vegetarian and had a veggie wrap. Jimmy, who hates hot dogs and chili both, managed to choke down two and a half of those chili dogs in support of his friends. A good time was had by everyone and the contestants entertained other patrons that were having lunch at the Corner Bar.

The Izaak Walton League, 5641 Myers Lake Road, Rockford has two more free kids’ fishing days left this month The gates are open to kids accompanied by an adult on Saturday mornings from 9 a.m. to noon. Bait, rods, and help are provided at our catch-and-release pond.

WINNING ESSAY—2009 teen journalism first place winner Emilie McNany accepting his award from Connie Taylor CEO of Rockford Community Federal Credit Union.

Authors ages 13 to 18 submitted their essays and poems to Rockford Community Federal Credit Unions annual Teen Journalism Contest. All qualifying entries had to be written on the financial topics of finance, credit or loans.

The entries were judged on the guidelines of creativity/presentation, content, spelling and grammar. The judges had a tough decision. In third place they chose East Rockford Middle School student Clair Marti with her essay titled “Saving Money.” The second place winner was Brenna Rafferty of North Rockford Middle School with her Poem “Loans” and the 2009 Teen Journalism contest first place winner was Emilie McNany a Squire delivery carrier of North Rockford Middle School with her story of two friends getting loan to start a small business. Good job to all who participated.