6/12/24 C & G Special Edition — Oakland

NEWSPAPERS Special Edition

Local bike riders ready to ride to Washington to raise money, awareness for ALS

BY MIKE KOURY mkoury@candgnews.com

METRO DETROIT — Two metro Detroiters will test their limits by riding bicycles to Washington, D.C., to raise awareness and money to fight amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also known as ALS or Lou Gehrig’s disease.

Mike DeLorenzo, of Romeo, and Thomas Henry, of Ferndale, will be participating in Pedal4ALS, a more than 500-mile bike ride June 20-30 that will raise money for ALS of Michigan.

Raising awareness to fight ALS is a personal fight for DeLorenzo, as he has seen firsthand how the disease afflicted someone he loves. His father-in-law, Thomas Schippert, was diagnosed with ALS in 2015. DeLorenzo and his wife, Rebecca, were his caregivers for the next four years until his death in 2019.

“It hits close to home when you lose a loved one to the disease, and unfortunately ALS is a death sentence,” DeLorenzo said. “There is no cure for it. The average person lives about two years. So we felt blessed having my father-in-law live four years, but some people aren’t as fortunate.”

After Schippert’s passing, DeLorenzo took Schippert’s ashes and rode a bike to places that his father-in-law never got to see, such as the Olympic flame in Squaw Valley and Yosemite National Park, and spread them there.

DeLorenzo decided to raise funds while doing so and was able to raise around $3,000 for charity during that ride. The following year, he rode his bike from the Upper Peninsula to Detroit and raised $7,000.

“During that time period from 2015 to 2019, (ALS of Michigan was) instrumental in playing a role and keeping him comfort-

Troy High School senior earns 2024

U.S. Presidential Scholar recognition

BY SARAH WRIGHT swright@candgnews.com

TROY — Aanya Shah, a senior at Troy High School, has been announced as one of the many students in 2024 to be named U.S. Presidential Scholars by the U.S. Department of Education.

Created in 1964, the U.S. Presidential Scholars Program has honored over 8,200 of the nation’s top-performing students. 2024 is the program’s 60th anniversary.

The White House Commission on Presidential Scholars selects scholars annually based on academic success, excellence in the arts and in technical education, through essays, school evaluations and transcripts, as well as a demonstrated commitment to community service and leadership.

The 2024 U.S. Presidential Scholars comprise two students from each state, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, and U.S. families living abroad, as well as 15 chosen at large, 20 scholars in the arts, and 20 scholars in career and technical education.

U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona announced the 2024 winners and recognized 161 high school seniors. Shah is one of three Michigan scholars chosen,

Thomas Henry and Mike DeLorenzo will be partaking in a more than 500-mile bike ride as part of Pedal4ALS to raise money for ALS of Michigan.

Photo provided by Mike DeLorenzo

Aanya Shah

Summer Special!

Berkley - 12 Mile and Woodward 28983 Woodward Ave

Beverly Hills - 13 Mile and Southfield 17650 W 13 Mile Road

Birmingham - Maple and Woodward 725 East Maple Road

Bloomfield Hills - Square Lake and Telegraph 2207 S Telegraph Road

Chesterfield - 23 and Gratiot 50790 Gratiot Ave

Clinton Township – Groesbeck Hwy and near Cass Ave 40037 Groesbeck Hwy

Clinton Township - Canal and Garfield 41731 Garfield Road

Fraser - 15 Mile and Utica 34835 Utica Road

Grosse Pointe – Kercheval and St. Clair Ave. 17026 Kercheval Ave

Harrison Township - 16 Mile and I-94 26010 Crocker Blvd

Hazel Park - 9 Mile between John R and Dequindre 1162 E 9 Mile Road

Macomb - 23 Mile and Romeo Plank 50918 Romeo Plank Road

Macomb - Hall and Heydenreich 20807 Hall Road

Macomb - 23 and Card 21890 23 Mile Road, Ste. B

Rochester Hills - Rochester and Tienken 1416 N. Rochester Road

Rochester Hills - Walton and Adams 3216 Walton Blvd

Rochester Hills - M-59 and Adams 2540 S Adams Road

Rochester Hills – Hamlin and Rochester 1970 S Rochester Road

Roseville - Masonic and Gratiot 31965 Gratiot Ave

Royal Oak - 12 Mile and Stephenson 2130 East Twelve Mile Road

Saint Clair Shores - Jefferson and Marter 23195 Marter Road, Ste. 150

Shelby Township - 21 and Van Dyke 47647 Van Dyke Ave

Shelby Township - Hall and Hayes 45617 Hayes Road

Shelby Township - 23 Mile and M-53 12169 23 Mile Road

Sterling Heights - 16 Mile and Dequindre 2132 Metropolitan Parkway

Sterling Heights - 18 Mile and Ryan 40792 Ryan Road

Sterling Heights - 19 and Schoenherr 42938 Schoenherr Road

Sterling Heights – 17 ½ and Van Dyke 40048 Van Dyke Ave

Troy - South and Crooks 2125 South Blvd W

Troy - Square Lake and John R 5945 John R Road

Troy - Long Lake and Livernois 57 E Long Lake Road

Troy - Big Beaver and Rochester 3091 Rochester Road

Warren - 14 Mile and Schoenherr 13586 E 14 Mile Road

SECOND FRONT PAGE

Veterans recall life during WWII for 80th anniversary of D-Day

LEFT: Don Wilson, seen here in 1945, served in the U.S. Navy during World War II.

RIGHT: Ben Smith, seen here in 1944, served in the U.S. Navy During World War II.

BY CHARITY MEIER cmeier@candgnews.com

NOVI — June 6, 2024, marked the 80th anniversary of the D-Day invasion.

It was the day when troops from the Allied forces invaded the beaches of Normandy, France, to liberate Western Europe from Nazi Germany during World War II. The operation was known by the codename Overlord. In total, five naval assault divisions invaded the beaches of Normandy in what became known as the largest amphibious invasion in military history and what was a major turning point in the war.

Novi resident Ben Smith, 97, was just 17 when he enlisted in the U.S. Navy after graduating high school in Franklin Grove, Illinois, in 1944. However, he never left the country. He was stationed in California until he was discharged in June 1946.

“I heard of it and I was fully aware of it at that time,” Smith said.

“I know there was a big lead-up to it. We knew it was going to happen,” he said.

He said the word got to people even in his small hometown of Franklin Grove, Illinois, where his graduating class was a total of 20 kids — 18 girls and 2 boys. Smith said that because of the war effort, he had to complete his studies at home for most of his junior year, as he was needed to work on his uncle’s farm, because all the older men were off fighting. The last two months of his senior year, he had to drive a gravel truck to help repair the roads in his town.

According to Smith the buildup from the news made them aware that something was going to happen soon. He said they were aware that the Allied forces had driven Hitler out of North Africa.

THURSDAY

“You knew there was enough news going around that you knew that the war was winding down — that we were on the way to victory,” recalled Smith.

Smith said that one of his neighbors, a young man four years his senior, Bill Black, was killed in the D-Day invasion. He said that Black was a farm kid who grew up about a mile down the road from him. Smith said that Black’s death brought a lot of sadness to the town, as he said everybody knew Black.

“War is hell,” said Mary Smith, Ben Smith’s wife of 75 years, as to what can be learned from World War II.

“That was a time when things were really, really dicy in Europe,” said Don Wilson, 97, of Novi, who served stateside in the U.S. Navy during WWII. “Everybody they could get their hands on, they were giving them a gun and sending them to France. I did not want to be one of the ones that went to France to mop up the war. Those were rough times over there. So I was able to get into the naval ROTC.”

Wilson said he chose to enlist in the U.S. Navy just prior to his high school graduation, as he knew he didn’t want to be drafted into the Army. He said he elected to take a special class to learn how to take care of the electronics on the ships. Following that, he was transferred to the University of Louisville for officer training and was discharged from service a year later. He said he was very lucky, as he served in the Navy stateside in Kentucky and his brother was in the Army Air Forces but also served stateside in Florida, and they managed to be so far removed from the physical fighting and the danger. Wilson said that he didn’t know anybody personally that was involved in the

Photo provided by Don Wilson

Photo provided by Ben Smith

Wilson, left, and Smith pose for photos at Rose Senior Living in Novi May 30.

Photos by Charity Meier

‘Arsenal of Democracy’ beer honors wartime legacy, veterans

BY DEAN VAGLIA dvaglia@candgnews.com

METRO DETROIT — Nearly one year before the United States entered World War II, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt declared the country would be the “arsenal of democracy” and supply the free world with equipment and munitions to fight the Axis powers.

More than 80 years later, FDR’s iconic phrase will adorn cans across the city that served as the arsenal among arsenals. Over Memorial Day weekend, Detroit Liquid Ventures unveiled its new Arsenal of Democracy Detroit-style lager, made with support from the Detroit Arsenal of Democracy Museum.

“I have a good friend, John Lind, who runs the Arsenal of Democracy Museum in Detroit,” Mark Rieth, Detroit Liquid Ventures founder, said. “We had conversations months back about how it would be a cool idea to launch a beer called ‘Arsenal of Democracy’ on Memorial Day weekend. That was where it started and we just took it from there, and we were able to get it done in time, which was kind of fun.”

Arsenal of Democracy will be sold in 12- and 16-ounce cans and will be served on tap at Ford’s Garage restaurants in Dearborn and Novi. In line with its wartime-inspired name, the olive drab cans feature an M4 Sherman tank with bombers overhead. Both tanks and bombers were produced in the Detroit area. The Willow Run plant built B-24 Liberator bombers, while the Detroit Arsenal in Warren built 27% of the Sherman tanks used in the war.

“They built the tank plant, and then around that nucleus all the other plants were built,” said Lind, the director of the Detroit Arsenal of Democracy Museum. “Thousands and thousands of small feeder plants were built. Ford built the bomber plant out at Willow Run. And the rail spur, which is incredibly important for shipping and receiving, the main rail spur in Detroit fed not only Cleveland but Philadelphia and Chicago and Kentucky and Toledo, where the bulk of the Willys Jeeps were made.”

Tanks and planes were built in Detroit and used by all the major Allied militaries. British and Free French forces used Shermans alongside the U.S. military in North Africa and on the Western Front in Europe, while the Soviet Union and its tank forces had a significant number of Shermans aug-

Sherman tank and bombers. Sherman tanks were produced in Warren and bombers were built at Willow Run during World War II.

menting the Russian tanks produced on the Eastern Front.

“What we did is we equipped the rest of the world,” Lind said. “We fielded the equivalent of 250 divisions, but we equipped 2,000. And that was us, the great arsenal of democracy.”

The Detroit-style lager itself has a long history. Detroit breweries like Stroh’s, Goebel, Pfeiffer, and about 40 other breweries, were supplying watering holes around the city with cold suds for decades until prohibition came into law.

“I’m a huge lager brewer (and) fan,” Rieth said. “That started back in my Atwater (Brewery) days, and I always wanted to bring back that Detroit-style lager that had been made back in the 1800s. (Arsenal) is an ode to that style of beer that was made back in 1850 when Bernhard Stroh was hand-delivering kegs in wheelbarrows.”

When the ban on beer was lifted and World War II broke out, Stroh’s and other breweries around the country picked up contracts to supply U.S. service members with domestic beer overseas.

“Beer was sent overseas in large, large amounts, and that was to keep the GIs from trying to make their own and possibly poisoning themselves,” Lind said. “Beer was contracted out particularly to the Pacific. There was beer in Europe. That wasn’t a problem.”

The olive drab cans and tap handles of the Arsenal of Democracy Detroit-style lager feature an M4

Photo provided by Detroit Liquid Ventures

Southfield Public Arts Commission presents Jewish American

BY KATHRYN PENTIUK kpentiuk@candgnews.com

SOUTHFIELD — The work of 14 Jewish American artists will adorn the walls of Southfield’s City Hall, 26000 Evergreen Road, until July 31.

The “Perspectives” exhibit is part of the Southfield Public Arts Commission’s quarterly rotation of local artists.

“The artwork is very diverse. We have watercolors and multimedia displays. Then, of course, we contacted the right people to make certain that the food for the reception was kosher, and the entertainment is a young lady performing Jewish American songs, so we try to make certain that everything aligns with the reception, the food as well as the drinks and the entertainment,” Delores Flagg, the chair for the Southfield Public Arts Commission, said of the reception that was held May 16 honoring Jewish culture and the artists.

Michelle Sider is one of the artists featured in the exhibit. Sider uses mixed media to craft glass mosaics and watercolors.

She draws from her experience in a clinical psychology background and art therapy.

“I really value the power of art to not only teach but also express and also to heal. And I’m really hoping that this series can somehow find a path for me to start teaching healing in our community, you know, with learning about different cultures in a real open-minded way and valuing other people’s cultures and just kind of learning through art,” Sider commented. “So that’s been my goal for this series: to try to find venues in places where I can do that. And the city of Southfield is perfect. I grew up in Southfield, and my kids went to school in Southfield. It has always been this multicultural place where people grew up together and went to school together, went to movies together. I mean, Black, white, Arab, Protestant, Christian, Jewish, Islamic, you name it. All these people have been living very well together in Southfield for a long time.”

Four of her pieces are featured in the “Perspectives” exhibit: “Orphans Decree,” “Yemenite Coffee,” “Warrior” and “Women’s Roles.” The four are a part of her “I Am Yemenite” series, which she said combines art, history, culture and faith. She said that each piece is carefully researched and curated to reflect the values, culture and circumstances in Yemen throughout history. Sider said that she spent three years researching Yemen history before constructing “Orphans Decree,” which features ancient pottery that she found on an archeological dig.

“Her headdress and the jewelry that she’s wearing are very much true to the history of the time. The design of her headdress, the types of colors and the smaller

designs within it are all true to a young girl that would have been close to Sana’a, which is a little more northern Yemen,” she said.

Another artist featured in the exhibit is Mark Schlussel, a familiar face to Southfield. He and his wife, Rosie, have lived in Southfield for over 50 years. He recalls sitting next to the late Donald Fracassi while they both served as city councilmen in 1972.

Schlussel is a lawyer turned abstract artist.

“In the 1990s, I was a partner in a law firm, Pepper Hamilton, which is a national firm out

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Photos by Donna Dalziel ABOVE: Southfield resident Mark Schlussel poses next to his three pieces shown in the exhibit: “Triangulation,” “Song of Color” and “Song of Color Mirror.” LEFT: Pictured is Sarah Rose Sharp’s “Sagittarius Season.”

A MOMENT IN FASHION

LEFT: Kymiah Glass, from the Southfield A&T dance team, struts the runway in a late 1960s groovy mod sleeveless top by Alex Colman, from Fantoni.

BELOW: Michael Wilbert, a member of the Southfield High School for the Arts and Technology dance team, poses at the end of the runway in a 1972 stone-washed corduroy two-piece suit from Fantoni Vintage Couture in Berkley.

has embarked on a project painting 12 over 100-year-old sukkah boards that he inherited from his grandfather to give to his 12 grandchildren.

I moved to the place that I liked the best, which was Detroit and remains Detroit. This place really calls to me, and I love it here.”

of Philadelphia. We had a partner’s meeting somewhere in the Jersey Shore. I usually found these events with a lot of lawyers and long agendas distracting. So I was doodling using just an ink pen. And I drew some geometrics, and I would fill in certain boxes and others or whatnot. Somebody came by and said, ‘That’s really nice. Why don’t you try that in color?’ And so I thought, ‘Gee, that’s an interesting idea.’ So I went to the art store when I got home and bought some pencils and art paper and I started doing geometrics, very precise drawings.”

One of the three pieces shown in the “Perspectives” exhibit is “Triangulation,” which he made in 2001 when he first started creating art. Schlussel is also showing twin pieces, “Song of Color” and “Song of Color Mirror.”

He added that he is passionate about abstract art because it “gives people an opportunity to see what they see.” He explained that, oftentimes, people view his work with a completely different meaning than what he found in the same piece. Schlussel explained that he loves seeing how people interpret things differently.

In addition to abstract art, Schlussel

“As I look from the first one, I started to the ninth, they’ve changed dramatically. They’ve just really evolved. I don’t know how the last three are going to go. But after that, I decided I want to continue to do more of these. Because they’re so interesting. They’ve now become like multimedia, 3D or 2D, not just one-dimensional.”

Sarah Rose Sharp is showing three multimedia pieces, “Sagittarius Season,” “City Girl” and “Heroes Wear Masks.” Sharp learned to sew at a young age and became passionate about fashion design while she was in high school, often making her own clothes. With a background in theater costuming design and a keen eye for intricate details, she is a collector of strange wallpapers, unique fabrics and miniatures.

Sharp added that she is drawn to anything shiny. “I will sometimes say that I’m probably descended from crows, because I just pick up anything shiny.”

Sharp grew up in the San Francisco Bay area and lived in New York for a while. In 2009, after becoming disenchanted by city life in New York, she returned to California for a truck she’d left behind and began traveling to all 50 states. “Then at the end,

Sharp added that she loves Detroit for its strong sense of community and the art scene, which she said is full of artists supporting one another.

“Part of my decision to move to Detroit was that it felt very clear to me that I would have space to be an artist here, which in other cities that have a higher cost of living is just, like, untenable, because you have to work all the time to make money, and art is not the fastest way to make money. Especially the way that I make it, which is really

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ponderous and slow. But I mean, the people here are incredible. Detroit has so much generosity of spirit. And people here really support each other.”

For more information on the artists featured in the “Perspectives” exhibit, visit www.cityofsouthfield.com and search “Perspectives.”

To learn more about Michelle Sider, visit www.michellesider.com.

For more information on Mark Schlussel, visit www.markschlussel.com.

To learn more about Sarah Rose Sharp, visit www.sarahrosesharp.com.

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ABOVE LEFT: Southfield Mayor Ken Siver dressed to the nines in a 1980s double-breasted suit from his own collection at the Art and Vintage Fashion Show May 31 at the former Skyline Club.

ABOVE RIGHT: The Art and Vintage Clothing Show featured work from six artists: Lionel Hurst, Brian Nickson, Reggie Singleton, Samah Kthar, Priscilla Phifer and Rosemary Summers.

Photos by Patricia O’Blenes

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able and actually helping us understand what ALS is,” DeLorenzo said. “They were able to get us, like, the wheelchair and then a motorized cart, ramps for his house. And then therapy for him, physical therapy, and then they have a support group that we went to. They were so important to the well-being, for four years there, of my father-in-law and for us as caregivers. So after he passed, we thought we would do something for ALS for all the things they did for us.”

DeLorenzo will be riding with his longtime friend of four decades, Henry, who also rode with DeLorenzo last year to raise money for ALS of Michigan.

“We had a great time,” Henry said. “As the trip went on, our enthusiasm grew because our audience was growing and the interest was growing and we’re raising some money and we’re seeing some great things, but the greatest thing was the healthy emotion that you’re having that people care, that they’re kind and that you’re doing something that’s good.”

Once DeLorenzo and Henry get to D.C., they plan to meet with Michigan

lawmakers to share DeLorenzo’s story of his father-in-law and advocate on behalf of others with ALS in Michigan.

“Just like cancer, (ALS is) very indiscriminate, doesn’t care and disrupts lives,” Henry said. “It slowly saps away who you are. Your ability to communicate, your mobility and eventually you’re no longer able to eat or to breathe because your brain can’t fire the message to your muscles. So it’s devastating and we’re no closer to a cure and something that, gosh, of the many sad things that go on in this world, this one needs to be, I think, given a little more light and realizing that this is debilitating as cancer, but even more so.”

According to Rose Lull, fundraising and marketing manager for ALS of Michigan, Michigan has one of the highest rates for ALS. In the run-up to Pedal4ALS so far, the two have raised around $3,200 to fight ALS.

“Raising the money for ALS of Michigan, all the funds stay in the state of Michigan for those people who are suffering with ALS,” DeLorenzo said. “They are eligible for wheelchairs and whatever else they may need. So it’s important. It’s important that I am an advocate for ALS and Michigan.”

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BHHS breaks school record for twins and triplets

BY MARY GENSON mgenson@candgnews.com

BLOOMFIELD HILLS — The Bloomfield Hills High School Class of 2024 is graduating a record number of twins and triplets this year.

A total of 13 sets of twins and 1 set of triplets has broken the record for the most multiple siblings in the same grade level in Bloomfield Hills Schools history. Out of the 422 students in the Class of 2024, 29 belong to a twin or triplet set.

This school record was noticed when BHHS Secretary Laurie Mezey saw an article about a high school in Pennsylvania with 11 sets of twins. She realized that BHHS had them beat.

“In Bloomfield, we always try to be the best at everything. So when we saw the school in Pennsylvania claimed to have the record and when we found out we had them beat, we had to set the record straight,” BHHS principal Daniel Hartley said.

Some of the students shared their experiences of growing up with a twin by their side.

“I think it was a really great thing to be able to go through my whole education so far with having a twin, because it’s like having a built-in best friend,” Sydney Butler said.

Even though twins have many similar experiences, there are also areas where their experiences differ.

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Sydney said she and her twin sister, Jadyn, were never in the same class growing up, so they were able to make friends independently, but they always had each other nearby when needed.

Aaron Rose said he and his twin brother, Ryan, had every single class together up

until around 10th grade, and he always enjoyed being able to sit next to and study with him.

“We have the same friends. We do everything together. I just always like being with him. It’s super comfortable,” Aaron said.

See RECORD on page 11A

Bloomfield Hills High School is graduating 13 sets of twins and one set of triplets this year.

Photo provided by Bloomfield Hills Schools

physical war effort in Europe.

“I do remember that when the war was declared over, that we were all pretty happy about it,” said Wilson. “That’s for sure, because it meant a lot to everybody.”

Smith said the war taught people that relationships with countries and people are extremely difficult.

“We had a very difficult relationship with Russia for years, and then we had a relationship with Cuba — you had to be so very careful of that,” Smith said.

He explained how the world was different 80 years ago.

“During World War II, there wasn’t anybody that wasn’t involved. Everybody — they had children in service or they were working in the war industry, producing

Shahfrom page 1A

along with Anish Jain from Avondale High School in Auburn Hills and Olivia Jaden Stepnioski from Center Line High School in Center Line.

Shah was among 13 semifinalists in the state earlier named by the Commission on U.S. Presidential Scholars.

“I feel incredibly humbled and honored to be named a US Presidential Scholar,” Shah said in a press release. “With just a handful being selected from 3.7 million students, I would never have thought I’d win the nation’s top award from the White House and meet President Biden twice in a few months. I couldn’t have done it without the support of my wonderful mom, dad, grandparents, the Troy School District, and teacher, Mrs. Katie Vitale. I’m beyond inspired to contin-

things for the armed forces, and to think of doing anything like that now is just inconceivable. I just can’t imagine anything like that anymore. The world was different then. There was not the communication, there wasn’t television, and right now coming right into your home are all of these things that are going on in the world, and people had to write things for people to read and there was radio (back then). Thank God for radio, but it’s nothing like the way we communicate with each other nowadays on an international basis constantly. I hope we don’t get to the point where anything can start. I don’t know what’s going to happen in the world. People your age are raising children now and thinking about where are they going to be? What kind of a future they’re going to have. You hate to think about anything other than the way it is, say, now, which I think is maybe just getting better.”

ue my academic, research, social justice, and legislative work.”

Sen. Michael Webber also congratulated Shah.

“Her commitment and dedication to leadership, service and success throughout her high school career is truly inspiring and a great source of pride for Troy, the surrounding communities of the 9th Senate District, and the entire state of Michigan,” Webber, R-Rochester Hills, said in a press release.

“Aanya’s honor as a 2024 U.S. Presidential Scholar, distinguished participation as one of Michigan’s two student representatives to the United States Senate Youth Program earlier this year, and many other wonderful experiences have given her a great start toward achieving her dreams.”

Shah will attend Johns Hopkins University in the fall, majoring in public health and computational biology, which is on the pre-medicine track.

Abigayle, Aubrey and Anthony Agbay are triplets who are all going to different colleges after graduation.

“It’s kind of fun to go somewhere where it’s just me, but it’s also going to be hard because I’m so used to having my brother and sister with me for basically everything,” Abigayle said.

Abigayle and Aubrey play the same sport, and Aubrey pointed out how comforting it is to always have someone by her side, especially for scary situations, such as tryouts.

The Butler twins will also be going to different schools next year, but the Rose twins will be attending the same college.

The students shared that it was nice to have so many other sets of multiples in their grade because they were able to relate to their peers.

“It almost got to a point where just because there were so many, it didn’t seem that out of the ordinary,” Anthony Agbay said.

For many of the twins, they said they didn’t realize how unique it was to have so many sets of multiples in their grade until recently, because it is all they have ever known.

from page 4A

For as much relief as Detroit lagers provided service members during the war, Rieth plans for Arsenal of Democracy to be more than just a cold drink with a nifty name. Detroit Liquid Ventures plans on supporting veterans causes along with supporting the Detroit Arsenal of Democracy Museum through licensing its name.

“What we’re doing is we’re trying to support in different ways,” Rieth said. “Financially, as part of it, we can’t do it on a percentage of proceeds. It’s not allowed, so we

want to make certain that we make some donations to some certain charities throughout the year as good gestures. One would be the Arsenal of Democracy Museum. Obviously, we want to support them because they’re a big part of what we wanted to accomplish with the beer. Others we’re talking to are the VA hospital downtown and some others that we’ll announce over the next month or two.”

Arsenal of Democracy will be a regular part of the Detroit Liquid Ventures lineup, joining the company’s Old Head Irish-style beers and FÜL Beverages non-alcoholic drinks. A nonalcoholic version of Arsenal of Democracy is expected to be released in the future.