Encore January 2023

KVCC is teaching the Fundamentals of Food

Help for Historic Houses

FOR ALL

Serving the Greater Kalamazoo and Portage communities through Youth Development and Healthy Living programs to ensure that everyone has an opportunity to thrive, grow, and reach their fullest potential.

For a better you.

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From the Editor

Some of us lament the new year while others relish the new opportunities, lessons and insights that another trip around the sun promises. Encore is firmly in the second camp. You never know who you'll meet in the pages of our magazine, and we delight in finding folks who make our community better and letting our readers know all about them.

To that end, this month our cover story profiles instructors and students in the Sustainable Food Systems: Culinary and Brewing program at Kalamazoo Valley Community College. This unique program, which launched in 2015, teaches students not only how to prepare food, but also how to cultivate and grow it and to work in the food-service industry. Chances are, next time you eat at an area restaurant, a graduate of this program will have had a hand in creating your meal.

We also profile Jason and India Deibler-Love, who epitomize the term "boundless energy." The couple have transformed the shuttered Paw Paw Playhouse into The Lucky Wolf, a new venue featuring a café and market as well as a performance space. They did all this while adding twins to their family, which also includes a 5-year-old.

Speaking of renovations, owning a historical home in Kalamazoo often comes with rules and regulations about the modifications and changes you can make. This can be very costly for those homeowners who don't have the income or know-how to make repairs. We highlight a Community Homeworks program funded by the O'Connor Fund for Historic Preservation that will help five of these owners make the repairs necessary to maintain their homes. It's a win-win situation: Homeowners get needed assistance to help keep them in their homes, and historical homes are preserved.

We also meet Jamie Stuck, chairman of the Nottawaseppi Huron Band of the Potawatomi. For nearly 18 years, Stuck has overseen the tribe's growth and interests while also being active in Native American affairs on the national and state levels, including having just been chosen as president of the United Tribes of Michigan.

Finally, this year Encore will turn 50 years old, celebrating being the greater Kalamazoo community's go-to magazine on the area's culture, lifestyles and arts for half a century. We never would have made it this far without our loyal advertisers and readers. We thank you all for your role in our longevity. Here's to 2023!

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OntheCover: Chef and instructor Joel Boone shows hors d'oeuvres prepared by students at the Kalamazoo Valley Community College's culinary arts program. Photo by Brian K. Powers.

Works Helping with Historical Homes — Community Homeworks helps low-income owners keep their homes in shape

Jamie Stuck — The tribal chairman of the Nottawaseppi Huron Band of the Potawatomi is helping indigenous people forge forward

Katie Houston, who wrote this month's feature story about the culinary arts program at Kalamazoo Valley Community College, says she's been a fan of the program's studentrun restaurants since they opened. “I heartily recommend them for freshly prepared, affordable meals downtown, especially if you can snag a reservation at the 418 Restaurant,” she says. Katie is communications manager for The Gilmore.

Heidi admits she enjoyed learning about a Community Homeworks program funded by the O’Connor Fund for Historic Preservation that helps at-risk homeowners of historical houses in our community maintain their homes. “Every day there are people in our city facing the very real dilemma of whether they can afford to buy groceries or fix the toilet in the one bathroom in their home, and this program provides assistance to homeowners who need it most,” says Heidi, who wrote this month’s story about the program. Heidi has also written a novel, Chasing North Star, which is available at Kazoo Books and This is a Bookstore and online. You can follow Heidi at heidimccrary. net and facebook.com/HeidiMcCraryAuthor.

Jessi grew up in the Paw Paw area and, like many locals, remembers seeing musicals at the Paw Paw Village Playhouse as a child. The playhouse is under new ownership and has been transformed into a café and performance space called The Lucky Wolf, which she profiled for this month's Encore "The building is kind of a landmark in the area," she says.  "It's very cool to see it thriving." Jessi is a writer and musician.

Jessi Phillips

Heidi McCrary

Katie Houston

First Things

Something Funny Nikki Glaser to perform

Nikki Glaser will bring her shockingly honest, no-holds-barred style of comedy to the State Theatre Jan. 20.

Glaser, whose humor often focuses on her most humiliating moments as a woman, is the host of The Nikki Glaser Podcast and a new HBO Max reality dating series, Fboy Island. She was also the host of the show You Up with Nikki Glaser for Sirius XM and starred in her own 2019 Netflix comedy special, Bangin'.

The show begins at 7 p.m., and tickets are $43.50–$53.50. For more information or to purchase tickets, call 345-6500 or visit kazoostate.com.

Something Musical Lake Street Dive to play at Miller

When the band Lake Street Dive performs Jan. 31 at Miller Auditorium, you can expect a revue of its 18-year catalog of music.

The eclectic jazz-pop group will present a semi-acoustic evening as part of its Gather Round Sounds Tour supporting its new EP, Fun Machine: The Sequel, and 2021's critically acclaimed album, obviously. The band, which has been together since 2004, has recorded eight albums and two EPs. Singer Monica Martin will open for the group.

The show will begin at 7 p.m., and tickets are $39–$64. For more information or to buy tickets, call 387-2300 or visit millerauditorium.com.

Something Small

Community-created tiny art on display

In December, the Kalamazoo Public Library gave out free Tiny Art kits to aspiring artists to paint mini-masterpieces. This month those creations will be on display from Jan. 3–15 at the Central Library and all of the library branches.

The art kits contained a 4-inch-by-4-inch canvas, acrylic paints and paintbrushes, but artists can use other supplies as long as what they made still fits on the canvas. All participants in the Tiny Art Show will be entered in a contest offering a package of art supplies as a prize.

For the hours of each library branch, visit kpl.gov.

Something Good Events to observe MLK Jr. Day

People can observe Martin Luther King Jr. Day through events being held throughout the month in the Kalamazoo area.

There will be a Martin Luther King Jr. Exhibition on the life and legacy of MLK, at the Portage City Hall lobby, 7900 S. Westnedge Ave., from Jan. 3–31. The exhibition was created in partnership with the Society for History and Racial Equity (SHARE), Kalamazoo Valley Museum and Portage District Library and will be available to view from 8 a.m.–5 p.m. weekdays.

In honor of the 60th anniversary of King's “I Have a Dream” speech, a celebration and discussion of the speech will be held from 6–7 p.m. Jan. 9 at the Kalamazoo Public Library’s Eastwood Branch, 1112 Gayle Ave.

Visualizing and Executing the Dream, a community-wide celebration of King will be held at 4 p.m. Jan. 15 at Mt. Zion Baptist Church, 120 Roberson St. The celebration is presented by the Northside Ministerial Alliance in partnership with the city of Kalamazoo, Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo College, Kalamazoo Valley Community College and contributing businesses.

Performances and speakers will be part of the National Day of Racial Healing event from 5–8:30 p.m. Jan. 17 at the State Theatre, 404 S. Burdick St. The event is presented by TRHT Kalamazoo (Truth, Racial Healing & Transformation).

Something Crafty

Enjoy local libations during Craft Beverage Week

You can learn all about local wines, craft brews and spirits during Kalamazoo Craft Beverage Week, Jan. 13–21.

This is the 13th year of the weeklong celebration of the area's thriving craft beverage industry. Through self-guided tours and events within Kalamazoo County, participants can meet brewers, distillers and winemakers and learn about what it takes to develop these products.

For more information, including a schedule of events and participating breweries, wineries and distilleries, visit discoverkalamazoo.com/craftbeverage-week.

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Five Faves

'Wild' creations by a master elixir fixer

BY ANGIE JACKSON

The idea that we can drink things that are delicious, good for us and good for the wild world is the focus of Drink the Wild, a book I developed with Austin Wines that was published in 2021.

All it takes is the right proportions of culinary mixology, herbalist tradition and your inner kitchen witch. That’s where I come in — the Traveling Elixir Fixer and self-proclaimed kitchen witch. Drink the Wild is a seasonal culmination of some of my favorite recipes from my career as a culinary mixologist, built with elixir essentials from my home apothecary. Here are some of my favorite things in or about the book:

Ginger Honey Syrup

I love to have a versatile syrup on hand at all times, and this combination of fresh ginger root, honey, cane sugar and distilled water is ideal for crafting cocktails, teas and soda water and even calming the stomach. The key to a quality result here is to source your honey locally. It’s the best thing to do for the community, but it also tastes better and has more nutritional value. Without bees and other insects, nothing in Drink the Wild would exist. Our future very literally depends on their future. Supporting the people who care for the bees is one of the simplest ways to ensure that healthy populations of these crucial pollinators are here with us forever.

Motherwort Tincture

I’ll never forget the first time I tried motherwort in tincture form. I remember it well because I screamed to myself, “Motherwort! Where have you been all my life?” Motherwort, which is a wild, stubborn and resilient plant, calms the waves of life. Ingesting it is like getting a big hug from your guardian angel, your favorite kitchen witch or your mother. Motherwort’s extremely bitter flavor profile (with notes reminiscent of cacao) can be overpowering, however, so I use Ginger Honey Syrup to sweeten a dried motherwort leaf tea. You can also use motherwort tincture, which I make with overproof wheat vodka, to add a chocolate note to a cocktail or elixir.

White Pine Needle Tincture

White pine is a botanical that has been used since the Middle Ages. The indigenous people of North America taught early settlers how to use white pine needles, bark and sap in a variety of ways for consumption and healing. They’re an excellent source of vitamin C and can be used for an effective preventative health ritual in the dark season of the year. Because pine trees are common and native to the Northern Hemisphere with many varieties, most Americans won’t need to go far to forage a few clusters of white pine needles for wild-crafting tinctures and teas or for an oxymel (an herbal tonic).

The Gibson Smokestack

This cocktail was born in the same city as Gibson guitars — our hometown of Kalamazoo. I developed the drink for Old Dog Tavern, a wonderful live music venue with equally eclectic food, drink and regulars, to celebrate the beloved guitar factory that was founded more than a century ago. The drink is named for the iconic brickand-tile Gibson smokestack. May this cocktail, which features bitters, bourbon, a rye syrup and a freshly smoked glass topped with flaming marshmallows, be a timeless tribute to the famed Gibson Guitar company and to the stack's timeless, smoky bricks.

Please send your questions to: Michael J. Willis, J.D., C.P.A. Willis Law

491 West South Street Kalamazoo, MI 49007 269.492.1040 www.willis.law

THE BUSINESS AND ESTATE PLANNING

Ask LAWYER

A. Both a General Power of Attorney and a Durable Power of Attorney will give your named agents broad powers to dispose of, sell, convey and encumber your real and personal property. The key distinction is that the powers under a General Power of Attorney terminate upon the grantor’s disability or incapacity, whereas powers granted under a Durable Power of Attorney remain in effect upon a grantor’s disability and incapacity.

Q. What is the difference between a General Power of Attorney and a Durable Power of Attorney?

Michael J. Willis is the Managing Partner of Willis Law, Attorneys and Counselors at Law, is licensed to practice law in Florida and Michigan, and is registered as a certified public accountant in the state of Illinois. Attorney Willis is rated as an A V -Preeminent Attorney by Martindale-Hubbell. This rating, according to Martindale, which has been rating lawyers for over a century, signifies that an attorney has reached the heights of professional excellence and is recognized for the highest levels of skill and integrity.

Co-author Austin J. Wines

Drink the Wild would not exist without Wines, a writer and designer as well as a fellow mixologist and forager. In the late summer of 2021, we began our Drink the Wild writing project. We gave ourselves a 90-day timeline that revolved around the lunar cycle. Austin’s incredible writing and design skills brought Drink the Wild to life. Although he proclaims he is a “lifelong student” of mine, Austin is a lifelong friend, a true companion whom I will cherish and hold near to my heart my entire life.

About the Author

Angie Jackson, known as the Traveling Elixir Fixer, is a master culinary mixologist, brand consultant and author. In her 25-year career, she has designed and executed award-winning beverage programs for Chicago's top bars and restaurants, numerous Midwest distilleries and national distributors, and global brands and celebrities. Drink the Wild is available at Kazoo Books, This is a Bookstore, Michigan News Agency, and Ayurvedic Wellness Center.

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Helping with Historical Homes

Community Homeworks program helps low-income owners

BY HEIDI MCCRARY

Brian Powers

If you drive along North Street in Kalamazoo, you may notice a particular house sitting on a corner lot — a large three-story home with plywood boards covering many of its windows, the uncovered windows broken and open to the elements. A sign reading KEEP OUT hangs on the front door and on the plywood nailed to the front of the house. It's hard to look beyond the structure's chipped, faded paint to see the remnants and history of a home that once stood tall in a neighborhood that housed a plethora of beautiful dwellings. Instead, this house is a shadow of its former self, an example of urban blight and a sad reminder of the importance of maintaining historical neighborhoods.

Urban blight can be a contagious thing, embodied in deteriorating and abandoned homes and buildings as well as vacant lots with trash, high weeds and grass. Social scientists James Wilson and George Kelling explain this phenomenon by invoking the “broken window theory,” a theory that says one broken window has the power in any type of neighborhood to lead to more vandalism and more broken windows until the area has many broken-down homes. “One unrepaired broken window is a signal that no one cares, and so breaking more windows costs nothing,” they wrote in a 1982 article in The Atlantic.

Pam O’Connor — a historic preservation consultant and founder of the O’Connor Fund for Historic Preservation in the city of Kalamazoo, which is administered through the Kalamazoo Community Foundation — understands the importance of minimizing urban blight.

From left: Chris Praedel, executive director, and Kaylen Humes, deputy director of Community Homeworks, with Pam O'Connor, who founded the O'Connor Fund for Historic Preservation.

“Helping homeowners in making critical repairs is how we can combat the 'missing tooth' syndrome,” she says. “When a house has to be demolished because its owners could not afford to get their water heater fixed and it floods, not only do people lose their homes, but their street and neighborhood take hits too. If it happens again in that same block, the negative effect on the neighborhood multiplies.”

Much of Kalamazoo County's housing stock is more than 50 years old, and many of those homes fall within historic districts that have specific standards for structural updates and changes, according to the Kalamazoo County Housing Plan, released by the county commission in July. Those rules add costs or complications for owners, many of whom have low to moderate incomes, according to the report.

That's why, in 2001, O'Connor established the O’Connor Fund for Historic Preservation — to provide assistance to those living in older homes in Kalamazoo so they can stay in their homes and ensure that the houses are preserved. Now the fund is making its firstever gift to Community Homeworks (CHW), a local nonprofit that aims to help low-income families maintain safe homes by assisting with home repairs, both financially and with labor and installation. Through CHW's Critical Repair Program, the $10,000 direct gift will help at least five families whose older homes are in need of repairs, providing funding to hire contractors and purchase materials for work ranging from furnace and boiler repairs to critical flooring and porch repairs.

Kaylen Humes, deputy director of CHW, says the goal of the gift is in line with what CHW does: help fill the gaps for those struggling to make essential home repairs.

Humes notes that the people who are at the greatest financial disadvantage are often the ones most likely to be hit with code violations for their homes, ranging from faulty wiring to lack of water.

“Code violations often serve as nothing more than a ‘poor tax’ on a society that is already knocked down, and only adds to their problems,” Humes says. “What we provide is basic human kindness. Everyone deserves to feel safe in their home, whether it’s having heat in the winter or running water.”

CHW offers a variety of services, from financial help for basic home repairs to inperson and virtual workshops on maintaining and repairing homes. CHW also has an onsite “store” where homeowners can purchase necessary items at cost, such as tools and furnace filters.

CHW also partners with other area organizations, including the Stryker Johnston Foundation, the United Way of the Battle Creek and Kalamazoo Region and the Upjohn Foundation, to maximize the financial-aid sources that homeowners have at their disposal.

“The average annual income for the typical household that seeks out our assistance hovers around $23,000,” Humes says. “This income barely gets a family through the needs of home ownership and certainly doesn’t allow for any catastrophic damage

Above: Tools and materials used to repair homes at Community Homeworks. Far right: Home repair supplies can be purchased by homeowner in the store at the nonprofit.

or needed repairs that happen in homes that are 50-plus years and older. Add to that an unstable economy which triggers lower levels of donations, and the result is a multitude of families falling more and more behind."

Humes works alongside CHW Executive Director Chris Praedel, who has been with the organization since 2020. Praedel, who

Brian Powers

is also a Kalamazoo city commissioner, appreciates what the gift will do for some of the constituents he serves.

“The grant will enable us to preserve historic structures and neighborhoods while simultaneously providing homeowners and families health and safety repairs when they have nowhere else to go,” Praedel says. “This will ensure historic homes will exist for another 100 years or longer, and homeowners can remain lifelong homeowners.

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“While I’m free from financial stress, I realize that’s not experienced by everyone, and I’m just thankful knowing that we are able to help enrich people’s lives one home at a time.”

For O’Connor, seeing the fund she started 20 years ago finally being utilized is gratifying. “When we created the O’Connor Fund in 2001, I knew it would be a while before we could actually ‘do stuff’ while we waited for the fund to grow," she says. "CHW’s Critical Repair Program is like a trifecta of best preservation practice. It literally saves older homes, and the carryover effect saves streets and neighborhoods, and, most important, it vastly improves the lives of the people it serves.

“2022 will go down in my personal history as nothing short of life-changing — for making a decades-long dream finally come true with a partner like Community Homeworks," O’Connor says.

TIME TESTED. TENACIOUS. TRUSTED.

James R. Shinar

F: (269) 323-3418 8051 Moorsbridge Rd. Portage jim@shinarlaw.com www.shinarlaw.com

T: (269) 329-4625

Fundamentals of Food The

Brian Powers

Kalamazoo Valley culinary program director Chef Stephanie Hughes-Winfrey, center, in one of the school's kitchen labs with students, from left, Jennifer Burnett, Christian Reisig, Jan Haan, Heather McLogan and Ryan Egeler.

KVCC's culinary arts program trains chefs, brewers and others for the ever-growing food service industry

by KATIE HOUSTON

Mike Olinger admits his cooking skills “weren’t much” before he enrolled in the culinary program at Kalamazoo Valley Community College’s downtown campus.

“I had an interest but none of the fundamentals,” says the 45-year-old. “Now I understand more of the how and the why.”

While Olinger now cooks only for family and friends, the kitchen skills he learned have strengthened his success as general manager of 600 Kitchen and Bar, in downtown Kalamazoo. He has worked 50-hour weeks there since 2019 while acquiring an associate degree in culinary arts and sustainable food systems. He gained the degree in 2021.

“I had always worked in hotels and bars, but I wanted to learn more, so when I went to manage a team I had a better understanding of the whole system. Now when I’m involved in menu planning, I can look at a recipe and understand what’s going on,” he says, adding that he has hired several Kalamazoo Valley culinary students. “I’ve seen some real shining stars coming out of that program.”

The Sustainable Food Systems: Culinary and Brewing program was launched in 2015 in the newly built Marilyn J. Schlack Culinary and Allied Health Building, at 418 E. Walnut St., which was constructed on land donated by and next to Bronson Hospital.

The program offers certificates in baking and dietary management and certificates and associate degrees in sustainable brewing and culinary arts and sustainable food systems.

Top: Horticulture student and farm lab assistant Emily Demorest, left, and Director for Sustainable Food Systems Rachel Bair harvest hydroponic lettuce in the grow room at the Food Innovation Center. Above: Hydroponic romaine lettuce in the grow room. Right: Kalamazoo Valley students and food hub lab assistants Sylvia Anderson and Ryan Sink shred celery root for sale through the ValleyHUB Food Hub.

Stephanie Hughes-Winfrey, director of culinary and brewing education and chef instructor, has been with the program since the start. Her background is diverse: a bachelor’s degree in food marketing from Western Michigan University, working with beverage giant Coca-Cola, a year of study at New York’s French Culinary Institute and even a stint as a private chef for a Kalamazoo-raised NFL star.

“Our students learn food from seed to table, not just working in the kitchen, but getting their hands dirty planting and processing fresh food at the Food Innovation Center (FIC) down the street,” HughesWinfrey says. “This helps them understand best practices in sourcing fresh local food.”

Pairing food and health

As the program's director for sustainable and innovative food systems, Rachel Bair directs the FIC, which together with the Schlack building are part of the Bronson Healthy Living Campus.

“The whole focus of this campus is the intersection of food and health,” Bair says. “Food as medicine is the philosophy behind

the interdisciplinary approach we take to everything. Our programs address goals and objectives around food, health, environmental sustainability and community vitality.”

Bair oversees indoor and outdoor growing spaces, a processing and distribution facility for produce and a quality assurance testing lab and classrooms, and she points out that program alums are making institutional food decisions that can greatly help local food producers.

“We are actually on the verge of making huge shifts in how food dollars are spent in Southwest Michigan because of the graduates we have and the relationships we’ve built,” Bair says.

The program is even tackling food insecurity among its students, something Bair notes is a problem on campuses everywhere.

“A team of faculty and staff put together the Valley Food Share program in 2019 to provide boxes of staples and fresh local produce sourced from Loaves & Fishes, (from) our food hub of local farmers, or grown on our urban farm for current students,” Bair says. The program currently packs 100 boxes

From left: Student Fernando Minich is in the hors d'oeuvres class; Chef Andrew Eggert works with student Aub Carey to assemble Beef Wellington in the restaurant production course; Hughes-Winfrey leads the batch cookery class, which runs the Havirmill Café; and student Ryan Egeler makes sandwiches for the café.

a week, up from the 50 boxes per week when it started but down from the fall term’s first week, when requests topped 150.

Feeding students and others

Instead of a laptop and a pile of books, supplies for culinary school students include a knife and utensil kit and “chef whites” — that familiar double-breasted jacket and toque (a French word for puffy hat). Such was the garb one day for seven students in the summer Baking and Dessert Fundamentals class, which takes place in a spacious bakery with a dozen workstations and a huge commercial oven.

By 10:30 a.m. that day, students had already de-panned 50 cakes that had been baked the day before and washed those pans. Then they stood at rotating cake stands to add the thin, preliminary layer of icing known as a “crumb coat,” which levels the cake’s top and sides and keeps crumbs from marring the final product.

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Student Abby Johnson, who works at Gull Meadow Farms, was using lemon buttercream frosting and said she loves the class, though she doesn’t have a long-term plan for herself yet.

Another student, Brenda Potter, was infusing simple syrup with blackberry liqueur to drizzle on her cake and said she hopes to work as a baker part-time, along with working her part-time job as a nightshift nurse.

Arianna Weddington, who discovered nursing wasn’t for her, said she wants to “bring smiles to people’s faces” with her food and is planning to bring her cake flavored with lime, vanilla and almond buttercream to colleagues at the Applebee's restaurant where she works.

While students like Weddington may already have experience working in the food industry, the school's two student-run restaurants at the Schlack Building offer many that opportunity. The restaurants operate when school is in session. The Havirmill Café features regional American cuisine, with menus that change weekly and include salads and sandwiches along with hot entrees, soup, sides and desserts. It will be open Mondays to Thursdays from Jan. 17 through Feb. 16 and will open again in March.

The 418 Restaurant, which offers a limited menu in a fine-dining atmosphere, will also open later this month for lunch for the first time since 2020, by reservation on Tuesdays and Thursdays through mid-February. And the school's after-work Taps on Tuesdays program, a collaboration of students in the sustainable brewing and culinary programs that offers beer and appetizer pairings, is also expected to return.

Jennifer Burnett, 46, who is scheduled to graduate at summer’s end, said she has a dream of opening a café and bakery. At some schools she might be called a nontraditional student, but not at KVCC, where a broad range of ages is represented. She credits the state of Michigan’s Reconnect Program with helping her pay for school. Through that program, high school graduates over age 25 can attend in-district community colleges tuition-free.

“I’ve been working on my chili recipe for about 16 years,” Burnett said. “I just want a little place for homemade food, a bakery on the side and an art nook.” She now works for Comstock Township and as a part-time educator with Zoo City Farm and Food Network, which involves a local food policy council, an industry association and a network of cottage food businesses, urban farmers and conscientious consumers.

Burnett, who started the day getting her hands dirty in an agriculture class at the FIC, prepped lunch during a batch cookery class in the school's production kitchen, behind the Havirmill Café. “There are six of us, and we’re a really good team,” she said.

The café menu that week was devoted to Louisiana Cajun Creole and included gumbo, jambalaya, red beans and rice, creamy asparagus soup, and beignets — small pillows of fried dough dusted with powdered sugar that are a specialty of New Orleans.

Brian Powers

Burnett said she received assistance from the Kalamazoo Valley Accelerated Associate Program (KVAAP), which helped her pay for her knife kit, her uniform and even “a good pair of shoes.” KVAAP offers financial and advising assistance to help KVCC students obtain their degrees at an accelerated pace by attending school full time. The program's office in Anna Whitten Hall is now on Burnett's delivery route to share treats she makes in class.

“I just took them a whole meal yesterday because they can’t get over here for lunch — shrimp bisque, jambalaya, red beans and rice, and beignets,” she said.

It might surprise you to learn that students from both the Kalamazoo Valley nursing program (housed in the same building) and nearby WMU Homer Stryker M.D. School of Medicine take nutrition classes to better understand the impact of food on health. Dr. Tonya McFadden, dean of health care career programs, says the last class for nursing students is all about the healing properties of the right diet.

“The course includes a case study of a patient with co-morbidities, for whom they create a meal plan. It might be someone on a low-

Above: Student Britany Williams, left, listens as Chef Joel Boone talks during the cookery class, where students learn about hors d'oeuvres and creating their own recipes. Center: Student Jordan Johnson begins to assemble his Beef Wellington. Right: An Spanish spiced tuna canape is prepared in the hors d'oeuvres course.

sodium or diabetic diet, or a combination. Perhaps they are lowincome as well,” McFadden says. “The students learn how to put together a healthy, nutritious meal and then get into the kitchen themselves and prepare them (the meals) so they can better educate their patients.”

“It's never been more important to know how to care for people with dietary restrictions and allergies,” agrees Chef Hughes-Winfrey.

A respiratory therapist by training, McFadden says that diet can even impact patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, since “carbohydrates turn into carbon dioxide, which interferes with your ability to breathe.” She says respiratory therapy students might in the future be studying nutrition as well.

For the culinary-curious who aren't looking for a certificate or degree but want to improve their kitchen skills, learn to grow

mushrooms or step up their horticulture knowledge, classes open to the community come around every semester — and often sell out. A new schedule is set to start in March and will be announced soon. Past classes have focused on knife skills, galettes (free-form pies), kombucha and Mediterranean cuisine, and a three-hour holiday appetizers workshop had a wait list.

And this month, new certificate programs in greenhouse or landscape management and an associate degree program in sustainable horticulture are set to begin. The courses will use Kalamazoo Valley's urban and suburban campuses as lab space, and the programs will include internships, industry certification and work opportunities.

'Food is happiness'

Kalamazoo Valley culinary grad Leshieka Williams, 39, got her associate degree in culinary arts and sustainable food systems in 2020. She is the grill master at downtown Kalamazoo’s JungleBird kitchen, which opened in September and where she helped develop the menu “even before we had a kitchen.” Her dream is to have a food

TheArts

Spotlighting greater Kalamazoo's arts community

Playhouse Reborn The Lucky Wolf gives new life to Paw Paw landmark

by JESSI PHILLIPS

The imposing brick edifice at 404 E. Michigan Ave. in downtown Paw Paw has housed many establishments and enterprises over the years. It was built in 1857 as First Baptist Church, and then, for 45 years, it was home to the Paw Paw Village Players, a community theater group. Its ground floor has been a candy shop, an interior design firm, a bookstore and a dance-clothing store.

Likewise, its new owners, Jason and India Deibler-Love, have gone through some drastic shifts in the 10 years of their relationship.

Before landing in Paw Paw, they lived in Palm Springs, California; New Orleans; New York City; Austin, Texas; and Los Angeles.

In 2021, they found out they were expecting twins, and, like many people during the pandemic, they began to examine their priorities, envisioning a different lifestyle for themselves and their now-5-yearold son, Sebastien Wolf.

Above: A sample of the food available at The Lucky Wolf.

“I’d only visited Michigan two times in the middle of winter. I came during probably the worst time as a visitor,” says India, who grew up in the Pacific Northwest. “We wanted to have our own property and grow our own food, have animals. Michigan was one of the (possible) states (for doing those things) because of its seasonality.”

Jason grew up in the Detroit area, and proximity to family (“a drive instead of a flight”) was also a factor in the couple’s decision to move to Southwest Michigan. In the summer of 2021 they purchased an 1860 farmhouse outside of Paw Paw, sight unseen.

“We’ve always loved historic buildings and homes,” says Jason. “It needed just enough work that people weren’t buying it.”

They’d never been to Paw Paw either, but they say they were immediately taken with its small-town charm.

This page, from top: The stage of the former playhouse continues as a performance venue; the café makes the best of the building's interior character; and the Deibler-Love family: India and Jason (back row), Juniper Moon, 13 months; Sebastien Wolf, 5; and Henning Rayne, 13 months.

“We fell in love with it,” says India. “I was like, ‘It looks like the setting of Gilmore Girls!”

After recuperating from the crosscountry move, the couple began to plant seeds for phase two of their plan: starting a business together, something that felt more like a passion project than another job. They originally envisioned opening a hotel or inn — Jason has more than 25 years of experience in the hospitality industry, primarily in boutique hotels, while India’s background is in opening and managing specialty coffee shops. They went on the hunt for a suitable building and, after driving by the For Sale sign in front of the Paw Paw Village Playhouse many times, decided to stop by, just in case.

“We both thought, ‘What are we going to do with a playhouse?’” says Jason. “Then we kind of both walked upstairs and were like, ‘What is this?’ It’s a gem.”

India gave birth to twins, Juniper Moon and Henning Rayne, in November 2021, and the couple closed on the building a month later.

“It’s kind of a blur,” says India. “There are certain meetings and things that Jason will tell me happened that I don’t remember. I felt like I was so much more there than I was.”

They spent the next eight months establishing what is now called The Lucky Wolf — a café, market, event space and community hub that the couple hopes will bring new life and energy to the Paw Paw landmark.

"We’ve had people thanking us for building community, creating this place for people to come," says India. "It’s not like get your coffee and go. It’s a space to really be welcomed and be here."

The downstairs café is currently open 11 a.m.–6 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 10 a.m. –5 p.m. on Sunday and offers a menu

Brian Powers

of baked goods, brunch items, specialty coffee drinks and cocktails designed and prepared by India. The menu focuses on unique, fresh preparations using whole foods — like house-made granola, vegan banana bread and toast with almond butter, sliced strawberries and chia seeds, as well as lunchtime staples like grilled cheese and India’s take on the Cubano.

The Lucky Wolf's coffee and espresso are supplied by Greenglass Coffee Co., another Paw Paw business, and, in addition to all the standard coffee drinks, The Lucky Wolf offers creative options like the “P.S. I Love You A Latte,” a pumpkin spice latte with vanilla ice cream that India says offers a perfect afternoon sugar and coffee pick-me-up.

For the first few months after it opened in September, The Lucky Wolf was open seven days a week, with Jason and India taking on all of the service, food prep and management — a demanding schedule for the parents of three small children.

“We literally are a mom-and-pop business,” says Jason. “We expected to be working a lot in the beginning, to make sure we kicked it off right. I don’t think we would have people coming back for a second, third and fourth time if we didn’t have that.”

The Lucky Wolf doesn’t offer a full bar yet but does have a selection of specialty cocktails, like mimosas, Bloody Marys and beer floats, featuring porter and soft-serve ice cream.

India also has a passion for unique wines, so both the café and the market offer selections of organic, sustainable, “natural” wines that can be hard to find in the area. In addition, the café and market offer spices, candles, olive oil and crackers — ingredients to liven up a gathering or inspire a meal.

The Lucky Wolf has also been building an audience as an event space, in both its downstairs café area and upstairs theater, which seats 161. So far, the venue has hosted touring comedians like Jeff Leeson, glow-in-the-dark dance parties for kids, community theater shows, wreath making and cocktails, and Wine and Vinyl, a wine

The Lucky Wolf

Where: 404 E. Michigan Ave., Paw Paw

When: The downstairs café is open 11 a.m.–6 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 10 a.m. –5 p.m. on Sunday.

More info: For information on events happening at The Lucky Wolf, visit theluckywolfpawpaw.com.

tasting where guests are encouraged to bring their own records to play. Every Wednesday there's an open blues jam session, and the couple is hoping to build the infrastructure to be able to host touring bands as well. The plan is to bring a taste of what we might think of as “big-city culture” to small-town Michigan.

“We love where we are. We would never want to live in sprawling Detroit. We love what’s here,” says Jason. "We don’t want to bring that aspect of the cities here but bring great culture, great coffee and great food. There’s no reason you can’t have that.”

The couple are also looking forward to bringing a few staff members into the fold, eventually upgrading the building to make it more accessible, and adding an outdoor patio.

When asked about the future, India describes their mood as “optimistically tired.”

TheArts

ARaisinintheSun and ClybournePark   Civic Theatre

The Civic will stage a sequence of two plays this month that explore racial prejudice, gentrification and the concept of home.

The first of these plays, A Raisin in the Sun, will be staged Jan. 13–22 at the Civic Theatre. The play, set on the South Side of Chicago, follows the events that happen when Lena Younger’s deceased husband’s insurance money comes through and her family embraces new hope and inspiration for their lives.

Lena hopes for a new home in a better neighborhood; her son, Walter Lee, aspires to start a new liquor business; and her daughter, Beneatha, dreams of going to medical school. Show times are 7:30 p.m. Jan. 13, 14, 20 and 21 and 2 p.m. Jan. 15 and 22.

This second production is the twoact play Clybourne Park, to be performed Jan. 27–Feb. 4. at the Civic Theatre. In this sequel to Raisin in the Sun, it is 50 years later and the neighborhood of the house that the Youngers owned is now in a neighborhood that has changed from predominantly white to Black and become a target of gentrification by developers. Show times are 7:30 p.m. Jan. 27, 28, Feb. 3 and 4 and 2 p.m. Jan. 29 and Feb. 5.

Tickets for each show are $17–$30 and can be purchased at my.kazoocivic.com or by calling 343-1313.

Mark Nepo

Jan. 18

Kalamazoo Public Library

Dontrell,WhoKissedtheSea

Jan. 27–Feb.

5

WMU Theatre & Face Off Theatre

Western Michigan University Theatre and Face Off Theatre are teaming up to present Dontrell, Who Kissed the Sea

This play follows Dontrell Jones III, an 18-year-old who decides to venture out to sea in order to find an ancestor who was lost during the Middle Passage, the voyage of enslaved Africans to the New World. However, his family is not ready to abandon their prized son to the depths of the sea and a mysterious and haunting past.

Show times are 7:30 p.m. Jan. 27–28, Feb. 2–4 and 2 p.m. Feb. 5 at WMU’s Williams Theatre. Tickets are $5–21 and available at 387-6222 or wmich.edu/theatre.

TheGreatLeap

Jan.

27–Feb. 12

Farmers Alley Theatre

This play explores how a Chinese-American community is developing its relationships with both China and the United States.

It centers on a college basketball team that travels to China for a “friendship” game in the 1980s, after the Cultural Revolution. As both teams tease out the politics behind this game, cultures clash, tricks are stolen, and spies run amuck.

Show times are 7:30 p.m. Jan. 27–28, Feb. 2–4 and 9–11 and 2 p.m. Jan. 29 and Feb. 4 and 12. Tickets are $25 and available at farmersalleytheatre.com.

LITERATURE

Spiritual teacher and poet Mark Nepo will explore the art of finding the strength to meet adversity in this “Meet the Author” event set for 5:30–7:30 p.m. in the Van Deusen Room of the downtown library.

Nepo is the best-selling and award-winning author of 22 books and has recorded 15 audio projects on the journey of inner transformation. His talk will be based on his latest book, Surviving Storms. He will discuss inner explorations people must map for themselves so they can help each other endure a tumultuous world.

For more information, visit kpl.gov/event/meet-the-author-mark-nepo.

TheArts

ExpressionsinPaperandClay

Jan. 28–May 14

Kalamazoo Institute of Arts

Vibrant and innovative traditions of Japanese printmaking and ceramics spanning the last 50 years will be highlighted in this new exhibition.

It features prints on loan from Joy and Timothy Light and from the Carol and Jeffrey Horvitz Collection. The artists featured will include potters Yoshitaka Tsurara, Ken Matsuzaki and Takuo Nakamura and printmakers Toko Shinod, Reika Iwami and Mayumi Oda.

VISUAL ARTS

Art,MusicandFeminisminthe 1950s

Jan. 21–May

7 Kalamazoo Institute of Arts

Art and music created by women during the 1950s, an era of social change for American women, is the focus of this exhibition at the KIA.

It features works by women artists such as Marion Greenwood, Mary Abbott, Perle Fine, Olga Albizu, Georgia O’Keeffe, Lois Mailou Jones, Ruth Asawa and Helen Frankenthaler and shows how their personal passions inspired new prospects for women artists in subsequent decades.

Some of the works are from the KIA permanent collection, and others are on loan from other museums and from private collectors.

The KIA is open 11 a.m.–5 p.m. Wednesday–Saturday and noon–4 p.m. Sunday. Admission is $5, or $2 for students and free for members. For more information, visit kiarts.org.

Annual Group Exhibition

Through Jan. 27 Ninth Wave Studio

What 15 Southwest Michigan artists believe is their best work makes up this exhibition.

It features works in a variety of media by Melody Allen, Michael Dunn, Karen French, Maryellen Hains, Mary Hatch, Tamara Hirzel, Anna Z Ill, Alexa Karabin, John Kollig, Honore Lee, Dave Middleton, Nancy Payne, Linda Rzoska, Vicki VanAmeyden and Donald VanAuken.

To schedule a visit, call or text 271-3161. For more information, visit nwsvirtualgallery.com.

TheArts

is published in partnership and funding provided by

Perle Fine, The Sea's Throat, 1954, oil on canvas. Doris Caesar, Standing Woman, 1952, bronze.

Kenzo Okada, Vase with Stream Pattern, 1987, stoneware.

AnIntimateEvening withSunnyBleau

Jan. 14

Dormouse Theatre

Sunny Bleau and The Moons, based in Rochester, Michigan, are ranked as one of the hottest roots and blues-rock bands by the Roots Music Report. The band will perform acoustic roots, blues, blues-rock and jazz in this local show.

Show time is 7–9:30 p.m. Tickets are $10 and available at dormousetheatre.com.

ModernMarvels

Jan. 29 Kalamazoo Symphony Orchestra

Some of the new music in today's classical music catalog will be offered in this performance at 3 p.m. in Western Michigan University’s Dalton Center Recital Hall, as part of the KSO's Chamber Music Series.

The series features a smaller group of musicians performing in a chamber orchestra setting. Tickets are $5–$35 and available at kalamazoosymphony.com.

Carl Ratner Lori Sims Dalton Center Recital Hall

Western Michigan University's Bullock Series this month will feature concerts by baritone Carl Ratner and pianist Lori Sims.

Ratner, a professor of voice and director of opera for the WMU School of Music, will sing operatic selections and other works at 7:30 p.m. Jan. 18. He will give a pre-concert talk at 7 p.m.

An internationally known baritone soloist, stage director and opera consultant, Ratner has performed in concert and recital in 10 states and six European countries and has sung in 14 languages.

Sims, who is one of the most respected pianists of today, will perform at 7:30 p.m. Jan. 25. She will give a pre-concert talk at 7 p.m.

Sims has performed throughout North and South America, Europe and China and made seven appearances at the prestigious Gilmore International Piano Festival as a featured recitalist, chamber artist and master class instructor. She was named Distinguished Professor in the WMU College of Fine Arts in 2020.

Tickets for each event are $5–$15 and available at wmumusic.ludus.com.

Lori Sims

Carl Ratner

PERFORMING ARTS THEATER Plays

ARaisinintheSun— In this play set on Chicago’s South Side, the members of the Younger family share divergent dreams and struggles when insurance money comes through, 7:30 p.m. Jan. 13–14, 20–21, 2 p.m. Jan. 15 & 22, Civic Theatre, 329 S. Park St., 343–1313, kazoocivic.com.

Dontrell, Who Kissed the Sea — Eighteen-yearold Dontrell Jones III decides it’s his destiny to venture into the Atlantic Ocean in search of an ancestor lost during the Middle Passage in this story that blends poetry, humor, wordplay and ritual, presented by WMU Theatre and Face Off Theatre, 7:30 p.m. Jan. 26–28 & Feb. 2–4, 2 p.m. Feb. 5, Williams Theatre, WMU, 387-6222, wmich. edu/theatre.

Clybourne Park — In this sequel to A Raisin in the Sun, a home in a predominantly Black neighborhood holds its ground in the face of gentrification, 7:30 p.m. Jan. 27–28, Feb. 3–4, 2 p.m. Jan. 29 & Feb. 5, Civic Theatre, 343–1313, kazoocivic.com.

Musicals

The Book of Mormon — A musical comedy about two mismatched missionaries sent halfway across the world, 7:30 p.m. Jan. 27 & 28, 2 p.m. Jan. 28, Miller Auditorium, 387-2300, millerauditorium. com; contains explicit language.

MUSIC

Bands & Solo Artists

Gun Lake Live Winter Sounds — Indoor concerts on Wednesday nights: Michele Moretti, Jan. 4; Mike McIntosh, Jan. 11; Steffan Copenhaver, Jan. 18; Lynn Thompson, Jan. 25; all shows 5–9 p.m., Bay Pointe Inn, 11456 Marsh Road, Shelbyville, 888–486–5253.

Shelagh & Robbie – A mix of country and pop originals and classics, 2 p.m. Jan. 8, as part of Parchment Community Library’s 2nd Sundays Live! free concert series, 401 S. Riverview Drive, 343-7747, parchmentlibrary.org.

Handturner Record Release — Performance celebrating the band’s first album release, Good Moon, with guests Via Ferrata and Beth McDonald, 7:30 p.m. Jan. 13, Dormouse Theatre, 1030 Portage St., dormousetheatre.com

AnIntimateEveningwithSunnyBleau— Roots and blues-rock band, 7 p.m. Jan. 14, Dormouse Theatre, dormousetheatre.com.

Bell’s Eccentric Cafe Concerts — The Way Down Wanderers, Jan. 19; Bonny Doon, Jan. 27; both shows begin at 8 p.m., 355 E. Kalamazoo Ave., 382–2332, bellsbeer.com.

Lake Street Dive: Gather Round Sounds Tour — A semi-acoustic evening as the multi-genre band plays a revue of their 18-year catalog of songs, 7 p.m. Jan. 31, Miller Auditorium, 387-2300, millerauditorium.com.

Orchestra, Chamber, Jazz, Vocal & More

Student Recital — Featuring Concerto Competition Finals, 1 p.m. Jan. 14, Dalton Center Recital Hall, WMU, wmich.edu/music/events.

Baritone Carl Ratner — Performs in WMU’s Bullock Series, 7:30 p.m. Jan. 18, Dalton Center Recital Hall, WMU, with pre-concert talk at 7 p.m., wmich.edu/music/events.

Pianist Lori Sims — Performs in WMU’s Bullock Series, 7:30 p.m. Jan. 25, Dalton Center Recital Hall, WMU, with pre-concert talk at 7 p.m., wmich.edu/ music/events.

KSO Chamber Music Series — Chamber musicians from the Kalamazoo Symphony Orchestra perform, 3 p.m. Jan. 29, Dalton Center Recital Hall, WMU, 349-7759, kalamazoosymphony.com.

COMEDY

Nikki Glaser — Award-winning comedian, podcaster and host of the hit HBO Max series Fboy Island performs, 7 p.m. Jan. 20, State Theatre, 404 S. Burdick St., 345-6500, kazoostate.com.

VISUAL ARTS

Kalamazoo Institute of Arts 314 S. Park St., 349-7775, kiarts.org

Exhibitions

Captive Beauties: Depictions of Women in LateImperialChina — How artists have depicted the lives and duties of these women, through Jan. 15.

What Is Going On in This Picture? — Explores Visual Thinking Strategies (VTS) to analyze artworks, stories, billboards and more, through April 1.

Art, Music and Feminism in the 1950s — Featuring women artists during a complicated period of change for women, Jan. 21–May 7.

Expressions in Paper and Clay — Vibrant and innovative traditions of Japanese printmaking and ceramics spanning the last 50 years, Jan. 28–May 14.

Events

ARTbreak — Programs about art, artists and exhibitions: Mark Cassino shares his 20 years of experience in snowflake photography, in-person and virtual event, Jan. 10; Moment in Time: The Kalamazoo County Photo Documentary Project, discussion by Regina Gorham, in-person and virtual event, Jan. 17; Look and Listen, talk by Jessica Sundstrom on the What Is Going On in This Picture? exhibit, in-person event, Jan. 24; The Chrysalis Institute for Emerging Artists: A Model for BIPOC Creators, talk by Alessandra Pye, in-person and virtual event, Jan. 31; sessions begin at noon; reserve tickets online.

Book Discussion: The Night Watchman — Discussion of the book by Louise Erdrich, 2 p.m. Jan. 18; reserve tickets online.

Artist Talk: Architectural Influence and Effectual Travel— Seth Green shares experiences with international travel and influences on his artwork, in-person and virtual event, 6 p.m. Jan. 26; reserve tickets online.

Other Venues

Lee Ann Frame: The Art of Relationship Exhibition— Prints inspired by nature using handpulled multi-print media techniques, through Jan. 20, Kalamazoo Book Arts Center, 326 W. Kalamazoo Ave., Suite 103A, 373-4938, kalbookarts.org.

LIBRARY & LITERARY EVENTS

Comstock Township Library 6130 King Highway, 345-0136, comstocklibrary. org

Adult Book Club — Discussion of Steeped to Death, by Gretchen Rue, 5:30–7 p.m. Jan. 30; registration required.

Kalamazoo Public Library 553-7800, kpl.gov

Tiny Art Show — Tiny canvases painted by the public for a Jan. 2–15 exhibition at Central Library and branch libraries.

Mobile Library — 1:30–3 p.m. Jan. 6, Texas Township Hall, 7110 West Q Ave.

60th Anniversary of “I Have a Dream” Speech — Celebrating and discussing the impact of Martin Luther King Jr.'s speech, 6–7 p.m. Jan. 9, Eastwood Branch, 1112 Gayle Ave.

Reading Race Group — Discussion of How to Be an Antiracist, by Ibram X. Kendi, 6:30 p.m. Jan. 10, Central Library, 315 S. Rose St.

Coffee Talk — Watch and listen to a short talk on “Can a Computer Write Poetry?” and engage in a discussion while drinking coffee, 10:30–11:30 a.m. Jan. 11, Oshtemo Branch, 7265 W. Main St.

Block Party — All ages can build and play with LEGOs and search for minifigures during Block Party weekend, Jan. 13–14, Oshtemo Branch, with prizes, a themed challenge and a city built from LEGO bricks.

Meet the Author: Mark Nepo — Discussion of his book Surviving Storms, which explores ways to find strength to meet adversity, 5:30–7:30 p.m. Jan. 18, Central Library.

Classics Revisited — Discussion of A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, by Betty Smith, 2:30–4:30 p.m. Jan. 19, kpl.gov/live; registration required.

Chinese New Year Celebration — Activities to celebrate the Year of the Rabbit, organized by the Light Center for Chinese Studies at WMU, 5:30–7 p.m. Jan. 23, Oshtemo Branch.

Parchment Community Library 401 S. Riverview Drive, 343-7747, parchmentlibrary.org

Parchment Book Group — Discussion of The Book of Lost Friends, by Lisa Wingate, 6 p.m. Jan 9.

Mystery Book Club — Discussion of A Fatal Grace, by Louise Penny, 6:30 p.m. Jan 17.

Yum’s the Word: Cheese 101 – Cheese tasting with Natalie Fuller of The Cheese Lady, 6:30 p.m. Jan. 25; limited seating, with $10 paid reservation required.

Portage District Library 300 Library Lane, 329-4544, portagelibrary.info

Muffins and the Market — Librarian Warren Fritz discusses recent stock market trends, 9 a.m. Jan. 5 & 19.

Plots and Pages: A Local Writers Group — Author Mark Love discusses the craft of writing, 6:30 p.m. Jan. 9.

Science Fiction/Fantasy Discussion: Superman — A discussion of the DC Comics superhero, 7 p.m. Jan. 10.

International Mystery Book Club — Discussion of Black Ice, by Carin Gerhardsen, 7 p.m. Jan. 12.

Documentary and Donuts — Viewing of the film Brother Outsider, about Bayard Rustin, a freedom rider and an adviser to Martin Luther King Jr., who was denied a place in the limelight because he was gay, 10 a.m.–noon Jan. 13.

Kalamazoo Valley Genealogical Society — Open to anyone interested in genealogy, 7 p.m. Jan. 16; in-person and online.

Open for Discussion — Discussion of The House in the Cerulean Sea, by T.J. Klune, 10:30 a.m. Jan. 17.

Cookies and Conversation: Heartwarming Reads Book Club — Discussion of Britt Marie Was Here, by Fredrik Backman, 2 p.m. Jan. 18.

Kalamazoo Macintosh Users Group — Providing help with Macintosh programs and accessories, 9 a.m.–noon Jan. 21.

Kalamazoo Plant It Forward Swap — A plant swap social event, 10 a.m.–noon. Jan. 21; registration required.

Richland Community Library 8951 Park St., 629-9085, richlandlibrary.org

Bridge Club — Noon–3 p.m. Tuesdays.

Classics Film Club — Discussion of 2001: A Space Odyssey, 7 p.m. Jan. 12.

Richland Area Writer’s Group — Open to new members, 10–11:30 a.m. Jan. 14 & 28, in person and via Zoom.

Team Game Night — Teams of two to four people playing Wheel of Fortune, 6 p.m. Jan. 17; registration required.

Richland Genealogy Group — Roundtable discussion group, 10–11:30 a.m. Jan. 19, in person and via Zoom.

Evaluation & Care of Trees and Shrubs

Kalamazoo, MI

269-381-5412 • www.arboristserviceskzoo.com

Books with Friends Book Club — Discussion of The Magnificent Lives of Marjorie Post, by Allison Pataki, 7 p.m. Jan. 19 & 10:30 a.m. Jan. 20.

Team Trivia — Teams of two to six people test their knowledge on a variety of topics, 7 p.m. Jan. 26; registration required.

MUSEUMS

Kalamazoo Valley Museum 230 N. Rose St., 373-7990, kalamazoomuseum.org

Wonder Media: Ask the Questions! — This interactive exhibition tests visitors’ literacy skills and shows how to discern misinformation and disinformation in the media, through 2023.

Sand Painting — Artists Ralph and Genevieve Stocker create a series of winter-themed sand paintings projected onto a big screen and set to music, 1:30 p.m. Jan. 4, Stryker Theatre.

A HeLa Story: Mother of Modern Medicine —

An exhibit and a theatrical play video telling the story of Henrietta Lacks, whose unique cells led to medical breakthroughs; exhibit runs through Feb. 27; screening of video, 1:30 p.m. Jan. 15.

Moments in Time: The Kalamazoo County Photo Documentary Project — Documenting life in Kalamazoo since 1984, through June 4, with a celebration in honor of the volunteers for the project, 1:30 p.m. Jan. 21.

NATURE

Kalamazoo Nature Center 7000 N. Westnedge Ave., 381-1574, naturecenter.org

Returning and Reskilling Series — Learn how to use a variety of natural materials to navigate and explore the world around us, 10–11:30 a.m. Jan. 7 & 28, Feb. 11 & 25, DeLano Homestead, 555 West E Ave.; registration required.

Mindfulness Yoga — Enjoy a relaxing session of yoga with meditation and mindfulness experiences, 6–7 p.m. Jan. 11 & Feb. 8; registration required.

Winter Feeder Counts and Bird-Friendly Coffee — Learn about common birds seen at feeders during the winter, 10–11:30 a.m. Jan. 21 & Feb. 18; registration required.

Kellogg Bird Sanctuary 12685 East C Ave., Augusta, 671-2510, birdsanctuary@kbs.msu.edu

Birds and Coffee Chat Online — Grab your morning beverage and learn about Michigan’s rare birds, 10 a.m. Jan. 11; registration required.

Volunteering at the Sanctuary — Four online sessions to learn about volunteering opportunities, 10–10:30 a.m. Jan. 19 & 26, Feb. 2 & 9; free but registration required.

Other Venues

Kalamazoo Astronomical Society Meeting — 7–9:15 p.m. Jan. 6, Kalamazoo Area Math and Science Center, 600 W. Vine St..; register for in-person or online viewing at kasonline.org.

Kalamazoo Astronomical Society Online Viewing — Enjoy the wonders of the universe through the “eyes” of the KAS Remote Telescope, located in southeastern Arizona, 9–11 p.m. Jan. 14 & 28; cloud dates Jan. 15 & 29; register online at kasonline.org.

MISCELLANEOUS

The Harlem Globetrotters — World-famous exhibition basketball team combining athleticism and comedy, 7 p.m. Jan. 3, Wings Event Center, 3600 Vanrick Drive, wingseventcenter.com/events.

Martin Luther King Jr. Exhibition — On the life and legacy of MLK, in partnership with the Society for History and Racial Equity (SHARE), Kalamazoo Valley Museum and Portage District Library, 8 a.m.–5 p.m. Jan. 3–31, Portage City Hall Lobby, 7900 S. Westnedge Ave., portagemi.gov/calendar.

Kalamazoo Craft Beverage Week 2023 — Learn about local brewers, distillers and winemakers at events hosted by local restaurants and retail establishments, Jan. 13–21, discoverkalamazoo. com/craft-beverage-week.

Beat the Winter Blues Craft Show — More than 120 booths of crafters, artists and vendors, 9 a.m.–3 p.m. Jan. 15, Kalamazoo County Expo Center, 2900 Lake St., 903-5820.

National Day of Racial Healing — Join TRHT Kalamazoo (Truth, Racial Healing & Transformation), featuring performances and speakers, 5–8:30 p.m. Jan. 17, State Theatre, 404 S. Burdick St., kazoostate.com.

Kalamazoo Beer Cup: Bourbon-Barrel-Aged Stouts — A craft-style beer competition for Kalamazoo-area breweries, with blind tasting by the public, 6:30–8 p.m. Jan. 20, Kalamazoo Beer Exchange, 211 E. Water St., westmichiganbeertours. com/tour.

Kalamazoo Reptile & Exotic Pet Expo — Buy, sell or trade a variety of reptiles, amphibians, small mammals and other exotic pets, plus supplies & food, 10 a.m.–3 p.m. Jan. 21, Kalamazoo County Expo Center South, 2900 Lake St., kalamazooreptileexpo.com.

Traditional Archery Expo — Try new bows and shop for archery supplies at this expo featuring traditional bowyers, dealers and traditional craftsmen, 2–6 p.m. Jan. 27, 9 a.m.–5 p.m. Jan. 28, 9 a.m.–noon Jan. 29, Kalamazoo County Expo Center, kzoobowworks.com.

John Ball Zoo: Growing Up WILD — Meet and greet ambassador animals and learn how their young and different animals grow up, led by John Ball Zoo staff, 10 a.m. Jan. 28, Schrier Park, 850 W. Osterhout Ave.; registration required, portagemi. gov/calendar.

Jamie Stuck (continued from page 33) KVCC Culinary (continued from page 21)

truck to serve late-night patrons downtown. She has taken additional training with the Can-Do Kitchen, and her go-to dish at the moment is a grilled salmon taco salad with smoked chimichurri and homemade pico de gallo, which she describes in loving detail.

“I don’t want to toot my horn, but I’ll do it just this once,” she says with a smile. Her only regret is missing the chance to thank her instructors, since her graduation ceremony was a drive-by event because of the pandemic.

“I wish I had the chance to thank Chef Stephanie (Hughes-Winfrey), because she was one of my biggest motivators. I’d be saying to myself, ‘I feel like I can’t compete against these kids.’ My mind isn’t as quick, or my body. I was putting all this doubt in my head, but Chef Stephanie sat me down and said, ‘You can’t let your feelings stop you. You’ve got to learn how to sit on your feelings and buckle down.’”

Williams and Hughes-Winfrey will likely cross paths again. Hughes-Winfrey says she can hardly dine anywhere in downtown Kalamazoo that doesn’t have her students working there. “It’s exciting to go out to restaurants and know that your students are back there — and then when you get a great meal, I feel pretty proud of that,” she says.

Like Burnett, Williams credits KVAAP for giving her assistance when she was facing tough times.

“I was homeless at one point, and they helped me with housing and food, even childcare. If it wasn’t for that, I would never have been able to graduate. Everyone is meant to be something. I was meant to be a chef,” she says, crediting her grandmother with showing her how to take a few ingredients and make something great. “It made us happy and made me want to make people happy, because food is happiness.”

What is the most gratifying part of your job?

I always think of my ancestors and my relatives that are no longer here, who paved the way for me. They sacrificed so much for us to be where we are and to be in the position to help continue their work. We plan for seven generations ahead. I'm somebody's seventh generation, and there's going to be a seventh generation for me, and what I do right now impacts them. That's my job, to be the voice for those that didn't have it in the past, that may not have it now, and that don't exist yet. I'm making good on what my ancestors started, and I'm creating a better environment and a better community for the generations that come after me.

— Interview by Marie Lee, edited for length and clarity

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Jamie Stuck (continued from page 34)

"After thousands of years we are finally getting acknowledgment and forming government-to-government relationships that allow people to see who we really are in an accurate perspective," Stuck says.

Stuck was elected to the tribal council of the Nottawaseppi Huron Band of the Potawatomi (NHBP) in 2006 at age 30 and became its chairman, a full-time job, in 2016. In November, he was elected president of the United Tribes of Michigan, a coalition of the state's 12 sovereign tribes. Stuck says much of the progress realized by indigenous people has come from their hard work to assert their own voices.

"All too often in the past, tribes were told, 'You're going to do this. This is what we've decided for you,'" Stuck says. “It's important for us to be at the table. If you're not at the table, you don't get to be a part of the solutions and decision making. Economic development has benefited us in a way where we do have more of a voice and influence because of what we're providing the local areas and the state in terms of job opportunities, tax revenue, contributions, and supporting social issues. We're making really good leaps and bounds."

What do you do as tribal chairperson?

I wear a lot of different hats. I chair the legislative body of the tribe, sit as chairperson of the FireKeepers Development Authority Board, which is the board that owns, operates and manages FireKeepers Casino Hotel, and sit on the board for Waséyabek Development Co., the tribe's economic development arm. I chair our Education Committee, Journey to Wellness Committee and our Health Compliance Board and the Michigan Native American Heritage Fund.

What is the Michigan Native American Heritage Fund?

It's an initiative that we established in 2016. Up to $500,000 of NHBP’s state revenue-sharing payments go into the fund to help create cooperative and respectful relationships between indigenous communities and non-indigenous comm-

A (Very) Brief History of the Nottawaseppi Huron Band of the Potawatomi

In 1840, members of the Nottawaseppi Huron Band of the Potawatomi (NHBP) were forcibly removed by the U.S. government from their lands in southern Michigan to relocate to Kansas, in what became known as the Potawatomi Trail of Death. A small group, estimated at 40 to 60 people, escaped and returned to their native lands.

By 1848, they had pooled their annuity money owed to them in accord with the 1807 Treaty of Detroit and purchased 120 acres of land, settling on what is now the Pine Creek Indian Reservation, northwest of the Calhoun County town of Athens.

It was not until 1995 that the NHBP was officially recognized by the federal government as a tribe, giving it the rights of self-government (tribal sovereignty) and entitling it to receive selected federal benefits, services and protections through the U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs.

Jamie Stuck, a Battle Creek native and chairman of the tribe, is a descendant of some of the first chiefs of the tribe, including Phineas Pamptopee, who became the chief in 1864, after the death of Pamptopee's half-brother, Chief Moguago.

unities. It supports all 12 sovereign nations within the state and is a really good opportunity for us to be part of the solution.

We work with universities and schools to try to enhance the correct teaching of our history, language and culture and assist schools with mascot or imagery revisions. Since 2018, we've either helped retire or rebrand 12 different school districts' mascots and imagery. There are now only two in the state that still could change. Along those same lines, we worked with the city of Battle Creek to fund the removal and replacement of the stained-glass city seal in City Hall that depicted a white settler clubbing one of our ancestors. We also worked with the city of Kalamazoo to help pay for the removal of the "Fountain of the Pioneers" statue in Bronson Park.

What issues are the United Tribes of Michigan working on?

We are really making sure that we bring awareness of missing and murdered indigenous people, especially indigenous women. When our people come missing, or if they're murdered, little attention is paid to them. No disrespect to the families dealing with the tragedy in Moscow (Idaho), but

you can't go through a day without hearing about the four college students murdered there. Why isn't that attention being put on indigenous people? At the same time, we have had our ability to prosecute nonnatives that commit these crimes on our tribal lands taken away.

We also are very adamant about making sure that the Indian Child Welfare Act is adhered to (the act seeks to ensure that Indian children removed from their homes are placed with Indian families) and making sure the Michigan Indian Tuition Waiver (which waives tuition costs for eligible Native Americans in public community colleges or universities in Michigan) continues. Past governors have wanted to get rid of it, but it's a testament to the state's Civil Rights Department that it is still here.

We'd also like to get a seat at the stategovernment level. There are liaisons for each department, but we don't have that one go-to, full-time person who just focuses on Native American issues. Having an indigenous Cabinet member at the state level would be very helpful for the 12 tribes, especially in terms of policy.

Jamie Stuck Chairman, Nottawaseppi Huron Band of the Potawatomi

Jamie Stuck says "right now is a good time for us." By "us," he means indigenous people of the United States. In recent years, Native Americans have been appointed or elected to high-level government positions, including U.S. Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland and U.S. Reps. Sharice Davids (Kansas) and Mary Petola (Alaska). In December, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer appointed the first Native American, Judge Allie Greenleaf Maldonado, to the Court of Appeals, the state's second highest court.

(continued on page 33)

Brian Powers

Lewis Reed & Allen P.C. attorneys

Front row, center: Richard D. Reed