Encore November 2015

Face Off takes the stage

November 2015

Dean of Diversity Felix Brooks

Crazy for Kombucha

Meet Rob Underwood

Southwest Michigan’s Magazine

SALTY LAKES

Is road salt ruining Kalamazoo’s urban lakes?

up front encore

thankful There are many things about Kalamazoo to be thankful for — many reasons to love living here.

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2 | Encore OCTOBER 2015

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November

CONTENTS 2015

FEATURES Kalamazoo’s Salty Lakes

24

The Dean of Diversity

20

A Bridge to Russia

30

Road salt is contributing to high saline levels in Kalamazoo’s urban lakes, but what’s the solution?

Felix Brooks is making KVCC more inclusive

Now 25 years old, the Kalamazoo-Pushkin partnership continues to foster friendly relations

DEPARTMENTS 7 Contributors

Up Front 8 First Things — Happenings in SW Michigan 10 Service for Citizens — 60th District Service Office gives residents a link to Lansing and more

12

Good Works

‘Authentic' Volunteering — FOCUS Kalamazoo aims to reinvent the volunteer experience

15 Savor

Crazy for Kombucha — The drink’s enthusiasts are brewing their own

46 Back Story

Meet Rob Underwood — He makes concerts, shows and improvements happen at Wings Event Center

ARTS

35 An Illustrated Journey

Conrad Kaufman & Susan Harrison team up to turn a

song into a book

37 'Thought-Provoking' Theater

African-American company takes the Epic stage 39 Events of Note 43 Poetry

On the cover: WMU scientists are finding high levels of salt in Kalamazoo’s urban lakes and suspect sodium chloride used to deice roads is the culprit.

Photo illustration by Brian Powers

w w w.encorekalamazoo.com | 5

Face Off takes the stage

Dean of Diversity Felix Brooks

Crazy for Kombucha

November 2015

Meet Rob Underwood

Southwest Michigan’s Magazine

SALTY LAKES

Is road salt ruining Kalamazoo’s urban lakes?

Publisher

encore publications, inc.

Great flavor comes from deep roots.

Editor

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Copy Editor

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Contributing Writers

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olga bonfiglio, andrew domino, russell hall, kara norman, j. gabriel ware, robert m. weir

Photographer brian k. powers

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margaret deritter

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Office Coordinator hope smith

Encore Magazine is published 12 times yearly. Copyright 2015, Encore Publications, Inc. All rights reserved. Editorial, circulation and advertising correspondence should be sent to:

www.encorekalamazoo.com 117 W. Cedar St. Suite A, Kalamazoo, MI 49007 Telephone: (269) 383-4433 Fax: (269) 383-9767 Email: Publisher@encorekalamazoo.com

The staff at Encore welcomes written comment from readers, and articles and poems for submission with no obligation to print or return them. To learn more about us or to comment, you may visit www.encorekalamazoo. com. Encore subscription rates: one year $36, two years $70. Current single issue and newsstand $4, $10 by mail.

Back issues $6, $12 by mail. Advertising rates on request.

Closing date for space is 28 days prior to publication date.

Final date for print-ready copy is 21 days prior to publication date.

encore Contributors

Olga Bonfiglio

Andrew Domino

Russell Hall

Olga has a knack for finding stories about good works being done in our community.

This month she reports on Tinashe Chaponde and FOCUS Kalamazoo, which is trying to reinvent the volunteering experience for youth. Olga is a frequent contributor to Encore and has previously written for the Huffington Post, U.S. Catholic, Planning (the trade journal for urban planners), America, and the Kalamazoo Gazette.

Andrew is a frequent contributor to Encore and writes about the new Face Off Theatre company and kombucha this month. Andrew admits he hasn’t started drinking kombucha yet, but he’d like to try a healthy kind of pop for a change. You can find more of his writing at www.dominowriting.com.

Russell, who wrote about the 60th District Service Office in this issue, is a Kalamazooarea native who says he is “passionate about writing, politics and teaching.” A 2015 graduate of Beloit College, he wrote for that college’s newspaper, the Round Table, majored in political science and worked as a teaching assistant.

Kara Norman

J. Gabriel Ware

Robert M. Weir

A Kalamazoo-based freelance writer, Kara brings us this month’s story about Susan Harrison and Conrad Kaufman’s collaborative book and CD, Going on a Journey. Kara is also a prolific blogger whose work can be found at www.sutnambonsai.blogspot.com.

J. Gabriel profiles KVCC’s Director of Diversity and Inclusion Felix Brooks in this issue and says he was intrigued by the college’s and Brooks’ efforts to make the campus more inclusive. J. Gabriel served as Encore’s editorial intern this summer and is now simultaneously working on both undergraduate and graduate degrees at Western Michigan University.

Robert's desire for environmental preservation, especially in regard to water (he’s a Pisces), made him a natural to write Encore’s cover feature this month about about the unnatural salinization of Kalamazoo’s urban lakes due to road salt. A longtime contributor to Encore, he also brings readers this month’s story on the Kalamazoo Russia Cultural Association, which fosters ongoing city-to-city and person-to-person exchanges between the two cities.

w w w.encorekalamazoo.com | 7

up front encore

First Things

Something Short

Something Funny

Improv Fest at Epic Center Some funny people are promising an epic time at the Kalamazoo Improv Festival, Nov. 6 & 7 at the Epic Center, 359 S. Kalamazoo Mall.

Improv comedy teams from Chicago, Grand Rapids, Detroit and Kalamazoo will perform scenes created completely on the spot using suggestions from the audience. The event will also feature live music before shows by the local band Fishlips.

The fun begins at 6 p.m. Nov. 6 with a free Art Hop show, followed by shows at 8 and 10 p.m. and a free improv jam at midnight.

Improv workshops are offered at 1 and 4 p.m. Nov. 7, followed by shows at 8 and 10 p.m.

The cost is $10 per show or $25 for a festival pass. Workshops are $15.

For more information or to purchase tickets, visit crawlspacetheatre.com.

To sign up for workshops, contact the festival at info@crawlspacetheatre.com.

Something Delicious It’s the Great Pumpkin Soiree Hail

the pumpkin and all its deliciousness at the Great Pumpkin Soiree, 6:30-8:30 p.m.

Nov. 4 at Western Michigan University’s Fetzer Center.

This tasting competition features food made with pumpkin by local chefs and restaurant staffs and is an annual fundraiser for Kalamazoo in Bloom, a nonprofit organization of volunteers who beautify local public spaces by planting flowers and other plants. Proceeds help Kalamazoo in Bloom purchase more than 90,000 flowers that are planted each summer in places such as Bronson Park in downtown Kalamazoo and Library Lane in Portage.

Tickets are $25, or $40 for two people. Guests get to taste the dishes and then vote for a People’s Choice Award winner, while a panel of judges selects winners in the categories of Most Creative Use of Pumpkin and Overall Pumpkin. To purchase tickets or for more information, visit kalamazooinbloom.org.

8 | Encore NOVEMBER 2015

Saugatuck Shorts Film Competition

Movie lovers who like movies that get to

the point quickly will enjoy the Saugatuck Shorts Film Competition at 6:30 p.m. Nov. 7 at the Saugatuck Center for the Arts, 400 Culver St., Saugatuck.

The competition, now in its third year, draws entries from professional and student filmmakers across the state who compete for cash prizes for their short films. The films must be five minutes or less and include a Michigan connection.

A panel of judges will choose the top 10 films to be shown on screening night and the winners in both the student and adult categories. After the audience has viewed all 10 short films, they will cast votes for the Audience Favorite winner.

Tickets are $20, or $10 for students. For more information, visit sc4a.org or call 269-857-2399.

Find more happenings in Events of Note on page 39.

encore up front

Something Moving

Dancing with the (local) stars Just how well does Tim Terrentine tango? You can find out Nov. 13 when the Southwest Michigan First executive vice president is part of Dancing with the WMU/Kazoo Stars at 7:30 p.m. at Miller Auditorium.

The competition pairs up local notables with Western Michigan University dance students or faculty to perform ballroom dances in front of a panel of judges. The audience can weigh in as well by buying votes to choose a People’s Choice winner.

The program, which raises money for scholarships, is hosted by WMU’s Department of Dance, Partners in Dance and Office of Military and Veteran Affairs. Tickets are $85 per person, $50 of which is tax deductible, and include the entertainment, hors d’oeuvres and desserts.

To purchase tickets or for information, call the WMU Department of Dance at 387-5875.

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UP FRONT ENCORE

Service for Citizens

District office provides a link to Lansing and more RUSSELL HALL

Brian Powers

by

For 32 years, area residents have had an unusual pipeline to their

state representatives, but may not even have known it.

The 60th District Service Office, located at 315 N. Burdick St., provides a way for the citizens of Michigan’s 60th State House District to interact directly with their elected officials on a nonpartisan basis.

Founded in 1973 by then-State Rep. Howard Wolpe, the 60th DSO is a nonprofit endeavor with a mission of connecting the constituents of the state’s 60th District with the services that they need. That core mission has remained the same since its inception, according to Mary Brown, who served as the 60th District representative for 18 years, from 1976 to 1994.

The 60th District includes Kalamazoo and a small portion of Portage, and the District Service Office is a “go-to place for individuals seeking to connect with state services,” Brown says.

10 | ENCORE NOVEMBER 2015

Edie Trent, left, and State Rep. Jon Hoadley, right, talk with constituent Curtis Putman at the 60th District Service Office in downtown Kalamazoo.

In-district service offices are rare in Michigan. Each state representative gets two legislative assistants paid for by the Legislature, and most choose to keep both in Lansing. But State Rep. Jon Hoadley, who currently represents the 60th District, has opted, like his predecessors, to keep one assistant in Lansing and assign the other to the service office in Kalamazoo.

The 60th DSO is the only one of its kind in Southwest Michigan.

“The concept of a nonpartisan, nonpolitical office that you can go to and access your government services right where you live, that’s a concept that a lot of places don’t have,” Hoadley says.

Hoadley holds office hours at the DSO every Monday afternoon, but the office’s day-to-day affairs are managed by Edie Trent,

encore up front

Hoadley’s legislative assistant in Kalamazoo. Since joining the DSO in 2012 (when Sean McCann represented the district), Trent has helped individuals qualify for food stamps, negotiated with Consumers Energy to provide relief to customers struggling to pay their utility bills and helped constituents research proposed legislation. Businesses often come to the DSO for help in complying with state regulations.

A poignant example of Trent’s determination to help people occurred in the summer of 2013, when a disabled Vine neighborhood woman came to the District Service Office to report that her house was infested with bedbugs. The woman, whose immune system was compromised, could not tolerate the standard chemical treatment for the pests and could not afford the more expensive heat treatment.

Since there are no governmental programs designed to help lowincome individuals pay for pest extermination services, Trent’s task seemed hopeless. But she was able to work with Rose Pest Solutions to provide a reduced-price extermination service for the woman’s house.

Compared to other nonprofits, the 60th District Service Office is small. It relies on donations from individuals for its annual operating budget of about $15,000 (which does not include salaries). But size doesn’t limit its ability to forge connections with governmental agencies and charities.

“My job is to know where to direct people,” Trent says. “If we can’t provide the direct services they need, then we refer them to where they need to go.”

The number of individuals turning to the DSO for help spiked during the Great Recession, Trent says. Although Michigan’s unemployment rate has since crept down, Trent’s workload has not lightened.

“Increasingly, we are getting people who have never had to ask for help before,” she says. “Most of the time they are employed, but they are barely able to stay afloat.”

Trent says the struggles that many people have connecting with their elected officials highlight the value of having an in-district service office.

“They (most state representatives) expect that you are going to call in to the office in Lansing,” Trent says. “And for a lot of people who are dealing with complex issues, you can’t deal with it with just a phone call to someone in Lansing. You’ve got to be able to show them the documents, sit down with them and talk to them about what they need.”

For Trent, the greatest benefit of working at the DSO is giving back to her community.

“It’s rewarding when someone calls me back up and says, ‘Thank you for helping me.’ For me, that is the biggest reward for working at the DSO.” The 60th District Service Office is at 315 N. Burdick St., Suite 100, and is open on a walk-in basis from 9 a.m.–5 p.m. Monday–Friday.

Residents may also contact the office by calling 382-4676 or visiting its website at www.60thdso.org.

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Good Works encore

‘Authentic’ Volunteering

FOCUS Kalamazoo aims to treat volunteers ‘like royalty’ Olga Bonfiglio

Courtesy

by

When Tinashe Chaponda set out to connect college and high

school students with community service opportunities, he knew better than to reinvent the wheel. Instead, he created the organization FOCUS Kalamazoo, using the same model as Derek Jeter’s Turn 2 Foundation.

Chaponda, who moved to Kalamazoo from Zimbabwe in 2001, was a member of Jeter's Leaders, the youth leadership program of the Turn 2 Foundation, from 2009 to 2012 and says it was a Jeter's Leaders conference in 2013 in New Orleans that inspired him to create FOCUS Kalamazoo. Upon seeing the suffering caused by Hurricane Katrina, “I committed myself to helping others through volunteerism,” he says.

The result was FOCUS Kalamazoo, an organization he describes as a “community service network.” Chaponda, who is now 20 and a sophomore studying marketing at Western Michigan University, says one mission of FOCUS Kalamazoo is to alter the way youth view volunteering.

“Young people across the country have participated in volunteer service projects as part of their school curriculum,” he says. “However, this approach has become more obligatory than authentic and ‘free.’”

12 | Encore NOVEMBER 2015

FOCUS Kalamazoo members build a garden at Woodword School for Technology and Research in the Stuart neighborhood.

This obligatory approach has created negative stereotypes about volunteering, he says. FOCUS Kalamazoo seeks to change that, he says, by “treating our volunteers and partners like royalty,” giving them an experience they enjoy while helping others, making an impact on the community and developing their own skills and confidence.

“What we mean by treating them like royalty is that we put volunteers first,” he says. “The events and nonprofits that we partner with are based off what the volunteers want to do, instead of pushing random events for them to participate in. We are also researching new ways to volunteer that are more connected to students’ majors and careers.”

FOCUS Kalamazoo began in fall 2013 with 16 volunteers who cheered for participants at the Bronson Children's Hospital 5K Walk & Run. “We decided to make this first event social in order to have something easy to start out with,” Chaponda says. Since then,

Brian Powers

FOCUS Kalamazoo volunteers have served at 68 community events, with 260 volunteers giving more than 1,500 hours.

“Volunteers pick a project they want to do, and then we hold them accountable,” Chaponda explains. “They receive leadership training workshops, and we connect them with a community organization.”

For example, last year FOCUS Kalamazoo volunteers worked with Habitat for Humanity doing some construction and cleaning up the yard of a house on Kalamazoo’s North Side. This year FOCUS Kalamazoo received a $10,000 grant from the Turn 2 Foundation to build a house with Habitat.

One area that FOCUS Kalamazoo’s efforts are concentrated on is education and outreach to youth. In 2014, FOCUS Kalamazoo recruited 50 high school and college volunteers to enlarge and enhance the community garden at the Woodward School for Technology and Research in the Stuart neighborhood. The organization received a $6,000 grant from the Turn 2 Foundation to collaborate with Fair Food Matters to build a garden bed for each grade, clean up the pond and weed the baseball field. Volunteers also provided educational games for Woodward students.

Recently, through its Youth Engagement Program, FOCUS Kalamazoo worked with Kalamazoo Public Schools’ Phoenix High School to give students an opportunity to volunteer in the community. The students opted to hold a food drive — their first — and host a Literacy Night at KPS’ Middle School Alternative Learning Program. In addition, Phoenix students have established their own chapter of the organization, called FOCUS Phoenix High School.

FOCUS Kalamazoo picked Phoenix students to work with because Chaponda believes they are often overlooked for community projects and may not have the same opportunities as students at other high schools.

“They never had a voice, many options or resources,” he says. “However, after we contacted them, they came up with a threepage typed plan of action.”

FOCUS Kalamazoo and Phoenix students have also established a program to mentor middle school students. “Mentoring others can occur at any age,” Chaponda says.

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FOCUS Kalamazoo founder Tinashe Chaponda, left, and other members of the organization cheer on runners at the Bronson Children's Hospital 5K Walk & Run.

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“Everyone has insights about their present age that they can share with others who are both younger and older than they are. The Phoenix students are trained to make an impact.”

FOCUS Kalamazoo also engages in school visits and presents motivational speeches to young people. Chaponda spoke to 150 middle school students at Milwood Magnet School for Math, Science and Technology (his alma mater) about the importance of confidence in achieving success in high school. FOCUS Kalamazoo Vice President Joe Boggan spoke to African-American boys at Maple Street Magnet School for the Arts about achieving “black excellence” in order to be successful in high school and adulthood. Both talks were filmed and are available on YouTube.

FOCUS Kalamazoo has high aspirations.

Chaponda says the organization hopes to create a national organization called FOCUS-USA to provide the country’s largest volunteer database for college and high school students.

“We can be a voice for youth and be there for them when they need it,” Chaponda says. “They need someone they can look up to.”

encore SAVOR

Crazy for Kombucha

The drink’s enthusiasts are brewing their own Andrew Domino

Brian Powers

by

Move over, hobby beer brewers. There’s another beverage gaining

ground in Southwest Michigan’s home brewing circles: kombucha.

Kombucha, pronounced “kom-BOO-chaa,” combines the fruity flavor of pop with the fizz of beer. It is a fermented drink, like beer and wine, and leaves a similar tangy feeling on the tongue.

“My husband and I have about one bottle a day,” says Terri Tomac of Bloomingdale, who has been home-brewing kombucha for about a year and a half. “It’s real easy to chug down a bottle.”

As a fermented beverage, kombucha has some alcohol in it, but, according to getkombucha.com, an information website for

The bottles of kombucha that Terri Tomac brews begin in a large jar like the one at right.

kombucha, the alcohol content of the beverage is generally less than 1 percent by volume (about the same as a non-alcoholic beer).

According to the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau, kombucha must contain less than 0.5 percent alcohol by volume to be marketed and sold as a non-alcoholic beverage.

Fans of the drink swear it has improved their health, offering increased energy levels and “detoxification.” But there’s been little w w w.encorekalamazoo.com | 15

savor encore

formal research on kombucha, and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has not credited kombucha with any medical benefits.

The beverage combines steeped green or black tea and sugar with a soft, mushroomlike substance called a SCOBY, short for “symbiotic colony of bacteria and yeast.”

A SCOBY is also known as a “mother” or “mushroom.” The SCOBY floats in the tea for a week to a month, and a second SCOBY forms in the container. Once the SCOBYs are removed, fruit such as berries or citrus slices or even juice from concentrate can be mixed in to flavor the drink. The concoction then needs to sit somewhere without direct sunlight and at room temperature. After a few more weeks of fermenting, it’s ready.

“You can make it for less than a dollar a bottle, depending on the fruit you use,” Tomac says.

A SCOBY can be reused, much like sourdough bread starter, and each time a batch of kombucha is brewed, a new

SCOBY is created. Brewers will often share their SCOBYs, which are sometimes called “kombucha babies,” with friends looking to begin brewing their own kombucha. SCOBYs have even appeared on Craigslist.

If you aren’t quite ready to turn your spare room into a small-scale kombucha brewery, or just want to sample the beverage for yourself, several brands of kombucha are available at local stores, including Sawall Health Foods and the People’s Food CoOp. Popular brands include GT’s, which is made in California, and Kombucha Wonder Drink, produced in Portland, Oregon. Sawall Manager Ken Kulifay says customers regularly buy a dozen or more bottles at a time.

Sawall also carries a brand of kombucha made a little closer to home: Bloom Ferments, produced in Grand Rapids. It comes in Terri Tomac pours completed kombucha into bottles, like those pictured below. Like many kombucha drinkers, Tomac says the beverage has improved her health.

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two flavors, ginger and lavender-hibiscus, although a limited-edition blood-orange flavor was brewed for a week in June.

Emily Helmus, owner of Bloom Ferments, first tried kombucha in 2011, and by 2013 she was selling enough of her home-brewed drink to make brewing her full-time job.

Currently, Bloom Ferments is available in a few stores in West Michigan, and Helmus says she has a waiting list of stores in the Detroit area and along the lakeshore that want to carry her product.

“I cannot keep up with demand,” Helmus says. “My main goal is to get it into lowincome areas. I want it to be as accessible as possible.”

Helmus orders her supplies online and uses 55-gallon plastic tubs to brew the tea and create SCOBYs. Though some kombucha brewers say chemicals in plastic can leach into the liquid, Helmus says she’s seen no negative repercussions from using the tubs.

Like many kombucha enthusiasts, Tomac discovered kombucha after she and her husband started looking for ways to improve their health after suffering from a number of chronic illnesses. Research led her to a diet without processed foods and to the concept of cleansing, or washing unhealthy chemicals from the body with simple foods like brown rice, water and kombucha. Kombucha soon became one of her favorite beverages.

“People use it to wean themselves off pop,” she says. “It’s not as sweet, but it’s fizzy and fruity.”

Helmus, on the other hand, says she grew up eating healthy foods and wanted to keep up that tradition with her own family.

Before Bloom Ferments became a business, she traded bottles of kombucha for artwork, locally raised eggs or anything else a friend or neighbor wanted to trade.

Kombucha is a probiotic, meaning it contains live yeasts and bacteria, which proponents of the drink say helps with digestion. The FDA hasn’t created a definition for the term “probiotic” or produced official studies on the possible benefits of kombucha.

Regardless, Helmus says she has felt the health benefits from drinking kombucha.

“It can help your gut balance out,” she claims. “Even my kids are calmer.”

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KVCC's Felix Brooks is working to create a more inclusive campus

story by

J. Gabriel Ware

photography by

brian powers

elix Brooks has big shoes to fill, even though he’s the first person to step into them.

Hired in January 2015 as Kalamazoo Valley Community College’s first director of diversity and inclusion, Brooks is reforming hiring policies and practices at the college to create more diversity among its staff, faculty and leadership while creating a more inclusive environment on campus.

“When people think about diversity and inclusion, they tend to think about race, but it’s more than just about race,” Brooks says. “It’s about creating an equal and equitable environment for all people, regardless of their race, sex, gender, sexual orientation, disabilities,

20 | Encore NOVEMBER 2015

Brian Powers

Felix Brooks stands in a hallway at Kalamazoo Valley Community Collegeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Texas Township campus.

w w w.encorekalamazoo.com | 21

religion and special needs. Kalamazoo Valley had a great deal of diversity in regard to the student population, but less than 10 percent of our faculty, staff and leadership is made up of people from underserved backgrounds, which doesn’t reflect the community.”

KVCC had already begun taking steps to create a more diverse and inclusive campus before Brooks’ position was created. The college has a diversity and inclusion team and offers staff and faculty workshops and training through ERACCE (Eliminating Racism and Claiming/Celebrating Equality), a local organization that provides resources to help organizations become more diverse and inclusive. KVCC had also brought in the consulting firm Vicki Rosenberg & Associates to measure the college’s intercultural competence on a continuum in regard to its understanding of and behavior regarding cultural differences. The college ranked in the middle of the continuum, earning a ranking of “Minimization,” which meant that KVCC tended to “highlight cultural commonality and universal values and principles that may mask deeper recognition and appreciation of cultural differences."

Brooks says he interpreted the results as "a letter C grade." The college decided the next step was to create an in-house position that would serve as the umbrella for all diversity and inclusion matters.

“The diversity and inclusion team and the ERACCE training were separate entities and were geared toward the individual,” Brooks says.

“I was hired to have a collective impact across campus. The position is not about what we don’t do well with respect to diversity. It’s about what we can do to get better.”

THE MAN FOR THE JOB Brooks was already working at KVCC when the opening for a new director of diversity and inclusion was posted. He was working as a success advocate, mentoring KVCC students on how to handle the everyday challenges of academic, professional and social life. After reviewing the duties of the new position, Brooks concluded he had the skill set to do the job. He has a master’s degree in political science, 30 years’ experience as a juvenile probation officer at the Kalamazoo County Ninth Circuit Court, 20 years as an adjunct instructor at Western Michigan University, and a year as a community investment officer at the Kalamazoo Community Foundation, where he was in charge of initiatives to help increase literacy and high school graduation rates in Kalamazoo County. However, he had been working at KVCC for only three months and says he thought other KVCC employees who had more longevity would get the most consideration. But he applied anyway.

“When I came to KVCC, I decided it was going to be my last stop, and I wanted to be fully engaged in the college,” Brooks says. “And I believed being the director of diversity and inclusion would take my engagement to the next level — it was my opportunity to have a larger impact on campus.”

In an interview for the job, Brooks was asked to explain why he thought he was prepared for the position. Instead of detailing his 22 | Encore NOVEMBER 2015

Above: Brooks with his family from top to bottom, left to right: Brooks, wife Carol Cramer Brooks, grandaughters Galadriel Lindsley and Haley Anglemyer, grandson Quinn Anglemyer, daughters Ariel Ashcraft and Bree Anglemyer, and grandson Gabriel Ashcraft. Far right: Brooks in his office, but he prefers to be out talking with students and staff such as KVCC’s marketing director Linda Depta (center photo).

professional experience, Brooks gave an answer that delved into his personal life.

“I told them, ‘My lived life,’” he says.

“I said I was married to a white female.

I have one daughter that’s white and one daughter that’s biracial. I have four grandkids — two of which are white and two of which are biracial. Growing up in Pontiac, I never lived in a segregated neighborhood. I never went to a segregated school. That’s why I’m extremely passionate about the position. I know exactly what diversity is.”

KVCC apparently agreed. “Felix is mature, and he has a wonderful background when it comes to working with the community,” says KVCC President Marilyn Schlack. “He was the best candidate for the position.”

On Brooks’ first day as the director of diversity and inclusion, he walked around campus introducing himself to staff, faculty and students. He said they were enthused but skeptical.

“They were concerned about whether the administration was truly on board with this process,” Brooks says. “They didn’t want this to be another flavor of the month, which is what happens sometimes when institutions come out with new initiatives.

“I understood that this wasn’t going to be a one-person job. If we’re going to improve diversity on campus, we’re going to need support from all the key players.”

Among Brooks’ responsibilities is developing partnerships with organizations and groups outside the college that promote diversity.

Brooks has facilitated having these organizations lead workshops and discussion panels at KVCC and elsewhere. He was on an organizing committee for a health equity summit that the Center for Diversity and Innovation held at Kellogg Community College in October. The center is an organization that provides training and workshops to promote diversity and inclusion among companies, organizations and institutions in Battle Creek. Brooks is also on the advisory board of the Arcus Center for Social Justice Leadership at Kalamazoo College.

In addition, Brooks is a commentator on Critical Issues, Alternative Views, a YouTube discussion panel about current national and world issues. He says he was originally a special guest on the show but then was asked to be a regular by the show’s creators, Ron Kramer and Don Cooney, because they wanted the show to have more diversity.

“The outside connections we’re building put us and the organizations we partner with in a win-win situation,” Brooks says. “We need different perspectives on how to go about improving diversity and inclusion, and they need the same thing. No pun intended, but we need diverse opinions. We’re all involved in the same body of work, which makes these relationships more vital. In order to affect the community, it has to be a collaborative effort.”

Brooks says KVCC is taking some very positive steps to create a more diverse college, but he acknowledges it’s not going to happen overnight.

“Our president, Marilyn Schlack, is committed to this process,” he says. “I meet with her one-onone every Monday. If any institution wants to exhibit excellence, it must embrace diversity.”

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Salty Lakes Is road salt ruining Kalamazooâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s lakes?

WMU professors Carla Koretsky, center, and Kathryn Docherty are two of the researchers monitoring road saltâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s effect on Woods Lake in Kalamazoo.

24 | Encore NOVEMBER 2015

story by

Robert M. Weir

photography by

BRIAN POWERS

I

t’s nearly the season for road salt, and last year alone the city of Kalamazoo used 5,000 tons of it. While surface deicers keep the city’s roads ice-free and safer, all that road salt is polluting our urban lakes.

Road salt, or sodium chloride, is the most inexpensive and readily available surface deicer for slick roads. But after it has done its magic melting the ice and snow, where does it go? It runs off into city storm sewers and, in the case of Kalamazoo, ultimately ends up in urban lakes, such as Woods and Asylum lakes, changing the aquatic ecology.

Such was the unplanned discovery by students of Carla Koretsky, a professor in Western Michigan University’s Geosciences Department and Environmental & Sustainability Studies Program, and Heather Petcovic, a WMU associate professor of earth science education in the Geosciences Department. The pair launched an undergraduate class in 2009 to give students a professional field experience that included taking and analyzing water samples.

Koretsky, who became dean of WMU’s Lee Honors College in 2013, says she sought to use “new techniques of authentic learning” because she “had observed that geoscience graduates who learned only in the classroom don’t have the field and lab skills they need to be employed in the environmental industry.”

In the class, Koretsky says, she and Petcovic told their students, “Congratulations, you’ve graduated and been hired. And you’ve been presented with a problem: A lake in your community has water quality issues about which residents have been unhappy for a number years.”

The lake in question was Woods Lake, bordered by Oakland Drive, Parkview Avenue and various residential roadways. “It’s a beautiful lake for teaching,” Koretsky says. “It’s intricate, with a lot of connections between biology, chemistry, physics and weather patterns. It’s a kettle lake, formed by glaciers, 40 or 45 feet deep in the middle and very steep-sided, with only 26 acres of surface area — a good lake to study the way water moves through the hydrological system.”

Local residents had been concerned about the lake’s quality because of turbidity (lack of water clarity), accrued sediment, excessive nutrient buildup (eutrophication) and invasive aquatic plants. The apparent cause of these problems was phosphorous-rich sediment from stormwater sewer outlets constructed in the 1960s that direct roadway runoff into the lake.

In the 1990s, the Woods Lake Association, a neighborhood organization of shoreline residents, went to city officials to seek solutions. Frank Wolf, president of the association at the time, says city officials “responded favorably” and commissioned an extensive report by Kieser & Associates, a Kalamazoo-based scientific research and environmental consulting company.

The report, completed in 1997, confirmed “many water quality problems including … accumulation of numerous pollutants from roadway runoff.”

w w w.encorekalamazoo.com | 25

The report led to construction of a dry detention basin and treatment wetlands at the west end of the lake to help catch and hold pollutants. Financed with money from federal Clean Water Act grants and the city of Kalamazoo, the system went into service in 2003.

“The system is working as planned and is helping to keep phosphorous levels in the lake from increasing,” Wolf says.

In addition, the neighborhood association educated lakeside residents on practices to reduce pollution from their yards, such as not raking leaves into the lake, cleaning up pet waste and properly disposing of motor oil.

Koretsky says the Kieser & Associates study was a major factor in her selection of Woods Lake for the students’ fieldwork. “Your job,” she says she told her students in 2009, “is to go out there and assess the effectiveness of the storm water collection system.”

Unexpected d iscovery Equipped with three canoes, the latest field and lab techniques and state-of-the-art water-sampling equipment, the students “measured everything they could with the tools they had,” Koretsky says. And they found something they didn’t expect: Salt. A lot of it.

The students’ samples showed Woods Lake had concentrations of 200 to 250 parts per million (ppm) in the lake’s deeper waters, a level that, according to Koretsky, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency says is “the chronic toxic threshold for many freshwater organisms.”

“I looked at the students’ data and thought they made a mistake,” Koretsky says, “because those numbers were way, way, way too high based on my geochemical intuition and the known geochemical makeup of the area. I checked their standards and ran the tests again.

Sure enough, the data came back with a high number.”

Kalamazoo’s Waterways Kalamazoo has eight urban lakes: Asylum Lake, Woods Lake, Lake Hill-n-Brook, Pikes Pond, Whites Lake, Limekiln Lake, Spring Valley Lake and Averill Lake. In addition, a number of other water bodies, including the Kalamazoo River, creeks and ponds, dot the city’s landscape.

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WMU student Jake Tholen, left, and graduate student Denisha Griffey, at right, take a water sample at Woods Lake.

In addition, an exhaustive, 15-month study of Woods Lake by graduate student Ryan Sibert in 2010 and 2011 determined that the water in Woods Lake did not mix, top to bottom, in the spring and fall, as is typical of similar lakes. This stratification of layers — salty water toward the bottom and non-salty water toward the top — is the result of salt water’s greater density, which prevents or inhibits the strata from mixing.

“This mixing action is important for the biology of the lake because it delivers oxygen from the top to the bottom and nutrients from the bottom to the top,” Koretsky explains. Failure of the lake to mix, or “turn over,” seasonally causes the bottom to remain deprived of oxygen and very salty.

The students then addressed the next obvious question: Where is the sodium chloride coming from? It turned out it was from the same source that is guilty of pouring high phosphorous loads into the lake: nearby roadways, via the city’s storm sewer system, as well as surface runoff from residential driveways and sidewalks.

But, unlike phosphorous, salt isn’t being stopped by the detention pond built at the west end of the lake. “Salt is very soluble — it goes where the water goes,” Koretsky says. In this case, it goes into the depths of Woods Lake.

And Woods Lake is not alone. Asylum Lake, situated a mile westnorthwest of Woods Lake, was also found to have excessively high levels of sodium chloride.

From September 2012 to March 2014, WMU graduate student Davina “Allie” Wyman conducted a field study of Asylum Lake, which receives stormwater runoff from Stadium Drive, South Drake Road and US-131. Wyman reported that Asylum Lake contains “maximum chloride concentrations of 334 ppm” — a level even higher than that of Woods Lake.

To make sure they weren’t mistaken, the WMU studies utilized Brewster Lake, a rural lake at Pierce Cedar Creek Institute, in Barry

County, as a control water body for data comparison. They found that Brewster Lake’s salt levels were only a few parts per million, much lower than the concentrations found in Woods Lake and Asylum Lake.

‘Not a priority’

Shortly after the studies were completed, Koretsky and her students shared their findings with both the Asylum Lake Preservation Association and the Woods Lake Association.

The residents with property adjoining Woods Lake seemed to have mixed reactions to the students’ findings, Wolf says.

“We can see that the lake has a problem with sediment, phosphorous and algae,” he says. “But the salt, so far, is confined to the lower depths and hasn’t visibly affected water quality.”

He points out that the lake, which has two parks on its shores, is “heavily used” for swimming, kayaking and canoeing and has a good fishery, including largemouth bass and sunfish. “With all the forces that impact an urban lake, just holding our own is a good accomplishment,” says Wolf, who has monitored water quality parameters on the lake since the 1990s.

After Koretsky and her students shared their findings with the two lake associations, Wolf says he shared the findings informally with City Commissioner Jack Urban. “But city officials are more concerned with the budget and payroll,” Wolf says. “The salt issue isn’t upsetting anybody. It’s not a priority.”

And, indeed, Urban acknowledges the city does have higher priorities. These include, he says, safe neighborhoods, sidewalk and street repairs, insufficient revenue to maintain services at their current levels, land owned by nonprofit entities that don’t pay property taxes, and lack of economic recovery of the tax base from the 2008–09 recession.

“The city commissioners are very hesitant to spend money on things that people don’t regard as absolutely essential,” Urban says.

“This issue of salt in Woods Lake (or any other urban lake) is pretty far down on the list right now.”

Yet, that doesn’t mean that this economic and environmental issue is completely off the table or that efforts are not being made to reduce use of road salt here or across the nation.

“From the 1940s to the 2000s, the increase of salt applied to roads (nationwide) was

exponential,” Koretsky says. “The rate of usage is still rising, but at a lesser rate now, and the increase is mostly due to more subdivisions and more roads being built.

We’re salting more length of road, not using more salt per mile.”

John Paquin, environmental programs manager for the Environmental Services Division of Kalamazoo’s Department of Public Services, says the same is true locally.

And while he says the city’s first priority in winter is to keep roads safe, he adds, “Our field services management team is pretty innovative regarding how they achieve that — how much salt to use, how much sand to use. They keep up on weather reports and have learned that certain techniques are more effective than others, depending on the temperature, to enhance the effectiveness of snowplowing and deicing. They are aware of and sensitive to the environmental concerns associated with excess salting or sedimentation, so they utilize various strategies for the projected conditions. And they’ve used alternatives.”

One alternative is sugar beet juice. Robert McClenney, the city’s field services manager, says road crews have mixed beet juice with road salt under certain conditions since 2010.

McClenny says in the past six years, the city has used beet juice when it is available and the temperature is right, which reduced the amount of salt applied during that time by 30 percent.

Urban, a retired chemical engineer who worked for the former Upjohn Co. and the former Pharmacia, explains how beet juice works on ice. “What makes ice melt is the number of ions or the number of molecules per cubic centimeter in the slush that’s melting,” he says. “Sugar can do the same thing as sodium chloride, but it has bigger molecules. So it takes a lot more beet juice, it costs a lot more, and it’s more labor-intensive because you need more trips back to the salt depot to reload the trucks.”

In addition to beet juice costing more than sodium chloride, deicing products derived from agricultural byproducts “have the potential to adversely affect water quality if allowed to enter surface waters … (due to) high levels of organic materials,” says an online Frequently Asked Questions sheet posted by the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality. “… Fish kills, impaired biological communities, and noxious growths

Is Road Salt Behind Flint’s Water Woes?

The discovery of high levels of lead in Flint’s drinking water has been grabbing headlines for the past several months, and, according to a story on The Atlantic’s Citylab website, one reason for those high lead levels may be road salt.

According to the story, Flint began using water from the Flint River for its drinking water last summer and soon after received complaints from residents about the water’s quality.

Researchers from Virginia Tech tested water taken from nearly 300 homes in Flint and in nearly 20 percent of the samples found “‘serious” levels of lead — 15 parts per billion or higher in some homes and well above the EPA’s legal limit.

The water in the Flint River is highly corrosive, and that corrosiveness eats away at the old lead pipes and soldering that connect Flint homes to city water mains, according to Marc Edwards, lead hydrologist for the Virginia Tech team.

Many municipalities battle such corrosion with chemical treatment of water to control lead and copper levels, but, according to Edwards, Flint was not doing so at the time of his study of the city’s water.

What can make water so corrosive it can destroy metal? High levels of salt.

Edwards says that while salt in the Flint River occurs naturally, the likely culprit is road salt, which is mostly sodium chloride.

And Edwards says Flint is probably not alone.

“There are many other utilities in the Northeast that have been seeing these rising chloride levels,” Edwards told Citylab. “We’re working with utilities that had had no lead problem up until recently. As road salt use rose, it reached a trigger point.”

Source: “What’s putting the lead into the water in Flint, Michigan?” by Laura Bliss, Citylab.com, The Atlantic, Sept 23, 2015.

w w w.encorekalamazoo.com | 27

of bacterial slimes can result.” So beet juice or other agricultural byproducts aren’t the definitive answer either.

Another alternative, Koretsky says, is calcium magnesium acetate. “CMA has no chloride in it. It’s effective, but not as effective as chloride, and it’s about 200 times more expensive. The economy being what it is, that’s a major problem.” CMA is also biodegradable and, like beet juice, could potentially exacerbate eutrophication in lakes.

Applying greater quantities of sand to roads is also a possibility. But sand doesn’t wash away easily, and it clogs drains and causes turbidity. In addition, driving on sand can launch fine particles into the air that cause health issues for people with respiratory problems.

No simple solutions So what is the solution?

Koretsky somewhat jokingly suggests rerouting storm sewers — an expensive mitigation scenario also mentioned in Kaiser’s 1997 report — then quickly acknowledges that in the current economy that isn’t going to happen.

Urban says that baskets containing ion exchangers could be installed in sewer lines to capture and remove sodium ions and chloride ions from runoff, but he notes that the baskets would need to be removed, recharged and reinstalled periodically. “That

would be very labor-intensive and expensive,” he says, and is therefore not likely to happen.

Nor has desalinization technology advanced as an efficient and economical option to remove salt from small urban lakes.

Yet, doing nothing and letting waterborne sediments just run downhill isn’t the answer either. The often-criticized dictum from the 1970s that “dilution is the solution to pollution” doesn’t hold up in this case.

Koretsky notes that saline content in all of the Great Lakes, with the exception of Lake Superior, is increasing, with road salt suspected as a major contributing factor.

But solutions have to start somewhere, and perhaps the first step is awareness that a problem exists. The WMU students who discovered the high saline content in Woods Lake and Asylum Lake are now publishing their reports in scientific journals worldwide.

Koretsky speaks about this research at international conferences. Residents around Woods Lake and city officials know about the problem, and road crews are applying lower volumes of sodium chloride deicers.

This winter Koretsky’s colleague Kathryn Docherty, WMU assistant professor of biological sciences, will begin studying the microbial community in Woods Lake to determine how much methane is being produced at different water depths due to the lack of oxygen caused by the salt.

Methane is a potent greenhouse gas believed to be a significant cause of climate change.

Paquin points out that municipalities, both local and throughout northern climes, are partnering with county, state and federal agencies to share ideas, insights and innovations. And Koretsky wonders if homeowners and businesses, armed with the knowledge of the effects of road salt, might choose to apply less salt or utilize appropriate alternatives when deicing their properties.

Urban suggests that people simply drive more cautiously on snow and ice. “Fifty years ago we put chains on (the tires of) our cars. It was kind of a bother, but we did it,” he says.

And while the idea of everyone taking a “snow day” when winter storms hit might seem desirable, that concept doesn’t work for people who drive emergency vehicles — fire trucks, police cars, ambulances. Even in stormy weather, those public servants must go to work. And they need roads that are free of ice and snow in order to do their jobs quickly, efficiently and safely — for the greater public good.

At the same time, preservation of our natural resources, especially water, is essential to life. Therefore, most of the people interviewed for this article say that finding a balance between human and environmental needs seems to be the best available solution.

They hope that awareness of the lake pollution caused by road salt will lead to someone, somewhere, creating a heretofore unheard-of solution.

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The Bridge of

Friendship Kalamazoo’s 25 year relationship with Russia is still being celebrated

story by

Robert M. Weir

At the 20th Kalamazoo Russian Festival Nov. 7, many attendees will enjoy the Russian food, music and wares but not have any idea how such a festival came to be or that it celebrates a friendship forged 25 years ago between two cities a world away from each other.

How it began In the early 1990s, with the end of the Cold War, military and political tensions between the Soviet Union and the Western world disintegrated, and people across the United States sought to bridge the ideological gap that had divided the world since 1945. It was then that a few people in Kalamazoo boldly stepped forward to cross a newly constructed bridge of international relationships between the United States and Russia.

In November 1991, Janet Ferguson, director of the Council of International Programs (CIP) office affiliated with Western Michigan University’s School of Social Work, became one of the first Kalamazoo “ambassadors” to Russia, traveling to Leningrad (now St. Petersburg) to attend a conference that would help inform Russian municipal officials about practices within U.S. city governments.

Ferguson and other citizen ambassadors were taken, as a matter of protocol, to the nearby municipality of Pushkin. Having been the summer residence of Russia’s czars, Pushkin was rich with luxurious palaces that dated to the 1700s.

Because Pushkin approximated Kalamazoo in population and commercial enterprise, including paper production, Ferguson invited Pushkin officials to a CIP exchange program to learn about city government in a democracy, specifically here in Kalamazoo.

30 | Encore NOVEMBER 2015

Notes on the back of a photograph of Ferguson posing between Pushkin City Council Chair Yuri Nikiforov and Pushkin city official Pavel Mikhailov quote Nikiforov as saying, “A lot of Americans come here and promise good things. We never hear from them again!!!”

Ferguson’s reply, written on the back of the same photo, reads: “You will hear from us!”

And they did. Within two months, Mikhailov came to Kalamazoo for 10 days. An article in the Kalamazoo Gazette on Feb. 5, 1991, said Mikhailov, speaking through an interpreter, expressed his desire “to establish a long-term contact on issues of mutual interest between the two cities.” In the article, then-Kalamazoo Mayor Edward Annen said the city would send a delegation to the Soviet Union later that year.

On Feb.16, 1991, in the wake of Mikhailov’s departure, thenKalamazoo City Manager James Holgersson and his assistant, Doreen Baker (later Doreen Skardarasy), penned a thank-you letter to Ferguson. “We’ve been reveling that this dream of international governmental collaboration could have actually taken place here in Kalamazoo!” they wrote.

That dream, which the letter prophetically said “some of us will cherish for a lifetime,” evolved into the Kalamazoo—Pushkin Partnership (KPP), a sister-city-type agreement signed by city officials in Pushkin on Nov. 27, 1992, and by Holgersson and then-Kalamazoo Mayor Beverly A. Moore on Jan. 4, 1993. This document cited “our common interests to develop positive relations between the peoples and governments of Russia and the United States of America.”

Mike Stoline, who has hosted many KPP gatherings of Kalamazooans and Russians, recalls, “There was excitement at the very highest level.

story by

Robert M. Weir

We were thinking, ‘My, God, we can actually do something to help with this connection with Russians.’”

Six weeks later, Holgersson, Baker and a contingent of nearly a dozen Kalamazooans traveled to Pushkin. Citizen ambassadors from the beginning or early years — most of whom are still active — include James Butterfield, Luda Eliseeva (a translator who was born in Russia), Marlin Gerber, Nancy Helmic, Jackie Howlett, Garrylee McCormick, Ron Mosher, Betty Lee Ongley, Helen Palleschi, Judy Rypma, Jerolyn Selkirk, Marie and Mike Stoline, and Jackie Wylie.

But more than just forging international friendship, these citizen ambassadors also saw an opportunity to offer humanitarian aid to those in Pushkin who were caught in an economic malaise as the Russian government collapsed. “We received word that people in Pushkin didn’t have enough food, clothing and medical supplies,” Palleschi says.

In response, Kalamazooans, through Physicians for Social Responsibility and KPP, assembled 12.5 tons of medical items valued at $287,000 and shipped them in a land/sea container to NA Semashko Hospital #38 in Pushkin. Donations came from local pharmaceutical manufacturers and medical suppliers and shipping was facilitated by local packaging and freight companies.

Among the first shipments were cast-off hospital beds that had been removed from Bronson Methodist Hospital during an expansion project. But, as Palleschi and others discovered on a later trip to Pushkin, the beds were never used. “We didn’t realize the electrical

20th annual Kalamazoo Russian Festival features arts and culture When: 9 a.m.–5 p.m., Nov. 7 Where: The Fetzer Center, Western Michigan University Cost: $ 10, or students, $6; children ages 2–12, $3; Family Package, $25.

The Kalamazoo Russian Festival is a vibrant display of Russian music, dance, poetry and art, along with educational presentations and workshops.

“With entertainment and programs for adults and children, the festival is an opportunity to learn about the diversity of people from another culture,” says festival cochair Svetlana Stone.

The event will begin with a presentation by WMU President John Dunn, Kalamazoo city officials and Pushkin delegates.

The main-stage performers will include musicians — with a touch of comedy — from Russia, Wisconsin and Kalamazoo.

Entertainment in the children’s room will include a spoon musician, a juggling workshop, Russian folk dancing, face painting and coloring of Russian fairy tale characters.

Educational presentations will include a discussion of Russian culture and its impact on China, information on studying abroad in Russia, readings of Russian poetry and romance, and a guest speaker from St. Petersburg. There will also be workshops on making pysanky eggs and on ballroom dance.

The festival will feature as many as 30 guests from Pushkin, including musicians, artists and business people from a variety of industries, including the president of the Pushkin Chamber of Commerce.

Vendors will offer Russian wares, and a traditional Russian meal will be available. w w w.encorekalamazoo.com | 31

Personal Highlights of the Pushkin Partnership For many of the Kalamazoo citizen ambassadors who made a trip to Pushkin or met here with visitors from Pushkin, these experiences were not only memorable but significant in shifting attitudes and personal outlooks. A number of those individuals shared their personal highlights with Encore.

Ж Photographer Garrylee McCormick attained permission from the Pushkin police chief to take pictures of public service officers in 1991 when such a privilege was banned by law. On that initial trip, McCormick observed abdominal surgery on an 18-yearold. The surgery was done without anesthesia and under unsterile conditions, including a cat meandering through the operating arena.

As a former Trappist monk, McCormick also delivered authenticated relics to the Cathedral of St. Catherine in Pushkin in 2010 and was one of only three Americans to be invited inside to witness the cathedral’s rededication. (Jerolyn Selkirk and her grandson Josh Siegel were the other two.)

Ж Jerolyn Selkirk says she enjoys “the similarities within our different cultures.” When she hosted a Russian high school girl for a year of foreign exchange study, she discussed American slang, such as a boy’s request to “take you out (on a date).” Selkirk also hosted a child from Siberia who underwent several surgeries to correct a cleft palate. She says she loves it when children travel from the Russian embassy in Washington, D.C., to Kalamazoo’s Russian Festival. “Because they live in a compound in Washington, they can’t believe they can freely walk around the city here,” she says.

while sitting in the Cincinnati airport on the way back from Russia after helping to unload the first cargo container (of donated supplies in Russia),” Mosher says.

In 1996, Mosher and his wife, Luda, who was the translator on that first trip, created and taught a Junior Achievement class in Pushkin. “We assigned students to be guides for visitors from Kalamazoo,” he says. “They bonded so strongly that they still refer to us as their ‘American moms and dads.’”

Ж In 2010, Pushkin celebrated its 300th anniversary and several Kalamazooans were on hand to celebrate: Jackie Howlett went to Russia in 1972 as a student on a Russian language tour. There, she observed a May Day Parade and was taken by its size and duration. “We were the only people watching it, it seems, because everybody was in the parade.” When Howlett went to Pushkin to celebrate that community’s 300th anniversary in 2010, she and other Kalamazooans walked in the parade. “I couldn’t believe I was doing it,” she says. “I was in tears.”

Ж Frank Jamison recalls “much speechifying” at city hall that day along with “an opportunity to see these politicos in their own setting and meeting people from Pushkin’s other sister cities in Europe, Africa and elsewhere.” Jamison videotaped the 300th anniversary celebration, and he and his wife, Paula, produced an hour-long documentary, 2010 Pushkin, Russia, Tricentennial, which is regularly shown on public media channels in the Kalamazoo area.

Ж Betty Lee Ongley recalls learning that condoms were not available in Russia in the early 1990s. “Because of my connections with Planned Parenthood, we got them by the thousands,” she says. “Fire chief Marty Myers carried them over. When he told Russian customs officials about the condoms, they misunderstood our humanitarian intent and asked Marty, ‘How long are you going to stay here?’”

Mike Stoline, who plays upright bass in a local bluegrass band, says, “I love to entertain Russians.” In 1996, he and his wife, Marie, created a combined bluegrass festival and Russian fair, attended by 200 Americans and Russians at their rural home near Kalamazoo. That was the beginning of the Russian Festival, which is celebrating its 20th year in 2015.

Ж Ron Mosher, the first director of the Kalamazoo-Pushkin Partnership, recalls that, in addition to formal agreements by the city governments, “the real working relationship was people to people.”

“We made the decision to continue at the ‘citizen level’ in June 1993 32 | Encore NOVEMBER 2015

Ж Alice Asmus dressed as the Statue of Liberty and Paul Asmus (above with another parade goer) donned a beard and top hat to represent Abraham Lincoln for the festivities associated with the 300th anniversary. Paul found himself in a celebrity position. “Abe Lincoln is revered in Russia,” he says. “I was interviewed on television.

People wanted their pictures taken with Lincoln. Picture. Picture.

Picture.” Alice adds that she gave away numerous American flags to teachers who wanted them for their classrooms.

McCormick says letters written by families and inserted in the boxes were simple: “Hi. My name is John. My wife’s name is Mary.

We have a son named Junior, a pet dog named Spot and a cat named Kitty.”

On each package were the words “Just for you from Kalamazoo.”

Above: A photo from the early 1990s shows, from left, an employee of Ship Pac, Marie Stoline and Garrylee McCormick standing in front of a shipping container that will take donated items to Puskin, Russia. Below, participants in a parade celebrating Pushkin’s 300th anniversary.

wiring would have to be 220 volts,” she says. “And the doorways in Russian hospitals weren’t wide enough for the beds to go through.

What a shock to see the beds stacked in an old auditorium!”

Thus were the growing pains of two contrasting cultures coming together and meeting on that bridge of international relationships.

Yet, desire to participate overcame initial difficulties.

Concerned that the first container might fall into the hands of profiteers, several Kalamazooans decided to be present when it arrived in Pushkin. “Three or four days before its arrival, someone called to let us know it was close. Then we got our airline tickets,” Mike Stoline says. “When we got to Pushkin, we were working together with young military guys to unload it, and we were all eyeing each other somewhat suspiciously. Then, in mid-morning, we took a break, and the vodka came out. After that, we were all smiling and clapping each other on the back and saying, ‘We’re buddies now.’”

The containers, which Kalamazooans continued to ship through 1996, included boxes of personal items, dry goods and nonperishable foods packed by individual families. “It became a real people-topeople campaign, with a lot of personal involvement,” Selkirk says.

Throughout the past two decades, citizens from Kalamazoo and Pushkin have continued to visit each other’s cities, with some of the early KPP members making several trips to Pushkin as well as hosting their Pushkin visitors here for both short-term and extended stays.

When Pushkin celebrated its 300th anniversary in 2010, 25 Kalamazooans traveled there to make presentations in the Pushkin city hall on behalf of the city of Kalamazoo and to join the festivities, with many walking in the anniversary parade.

In January 2011, the Kalamazoo-Pushkin Partnership changed its name to the Kalamazoo Russian Cultural Association (KRCA). The new appellation reflects the organization’s original goal of establishing personal international relationships and shared knowledge but also signals a new, broader purpose of being a resource for people from all parts of Russia, not just Pushkin.

“It is run by Americans who are passionate about Russian people,” says KRCA member Svetlana Stone, who was born in Latvia when that nation was still part of the Soviet Union and came to the United States in 2002 and the Kalamazoo area in 2007.

The KRCA’s two long-standing events are an annual festival, now in its 20th year, and monthly potlucks at the Central branch

Robert M Weir

Courtesy

The partnership today

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of the Kalamazoo Public Library that feature Russian foods and presentations about Russian culture.

The festivals and potlucks offer opportunities for Americans to learn more about Russia and for Russians living in Southwest Michigan to meet other Russians in a comfortable social setting. Alexander Zendzov, who came from Russia with his wife, Yelena, in 1999, says, “Being here at the first is the hardest. People don’t know anyone. But they come to the festival or the potluck and meet new people with a common background who might become friends.”

Louise and Jerry Potratz, who coordinate the potlucks, note that attendees are people from Russia, Americans who have married or adopted Russians, and anyone who wants to learn about Russia. The public is always welcome, and curious first-timers need not bring food.

But the KRCA members’ passion to understand Russian culture also extends beyond the local community into the arena of ongoing international exchanges. “We’re talking about how to create more regular contact with people from Pushkin, with us going there and they coming here,” Mike Stoline says.

McCormick hopes to see artists in Kalamazoo and Pushkin visit each other’s countries to collaborate on art projects. With three Pushkin artists coming to this year’s Kalamazoo Russian Festival, the KRCA is taking a step in that direction.

Through these social interactions and programs, the KRCA plans to uphold a key concept in its mission statement: “The relationships among the peoples of the world are the single most important factor in promoting peace, understanding and respect.”

ENCORE Arts

An Illustrated Journey

Conrad Kaufman, Susan Harrison team up on book project by

Kara Norman

Visual artist Conrad Kaufman and musician Susan Harrison found synergy through their collaboration.

O

n a gorgeous fall day by the Kalamazoo River, musician Susan Harrison and artist Conrad Kaufman sit at an outdoor table at Arcadia Brewing Co., slowly turning the pages of their new project for a visitor to see.

The project is Going on a Journey, a picture book and accompanying CD. This collaborative effort turns the lyrics of one of Harrison’s songs into a story illustrated by Kaufman, a successful muralist, painter and sculptor whose work can be found in Kalamazoo and beyond.

“I’m a songwriter,” Harrison says. “Part of my mission statement is to heal the world one song at a time. I asked myself, ‘Which of my songs can do that?’ This was the one.”

Going on a Journey, released in May, tells the story of a dog who confronts his fears with the help of his friends. Harrison wrote the song years ago while working with Hospice Care of Southwest Michigan, as part of its Journeys of Grief program.

She recorded the song as a call-and-response but always felt it would reach more people if it were in visual form.

As Harrison describes how she conceived of the idea for the book, Kaufman interrupts. “Tell her the original title of the book,” he urges, then adds, “It was The Grief Journey.”

Harrison says that title was just too depressing. The book deals with symptoms of grief, but its audience is everyone and every age, she says. “If someone’s not going through tragedy in his or her life, the story can be read on a literal level,” she explains. “It can just be about a dog going for a walk.”

Kaufman says Harrison gave him a lot of freedom to create the illustrations for the book, something she credits to his immediate understanding of the story. He developed a visual metaphor of dark woods the dog has to traverse, which the dog does with the encouragement of his friends: a rabbit, a turtle, a duck and a squirrel. They are a no-nonsense crew that tells the dog he can’t skip around his troubles and simply has to go through them.

While Kaufman knew it made sense to represent the dog’s fears with ever-darkening woods, the metaphor gave him pause. “I love the woods,” he says. “But people feel uncomfortable there. It’s just a great metaphor.”

Amid the book’s sporadic dark pages are rich, light spreads where the dog’s friends offer refrains of advice about how to get through

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ARTS encore

Going on a Journey at Art Hop What: Celebration of Going on a Journey, featuring live music by Susan Harrison and accompanying musicians, a display of Conrad Kaufman’s paintings, and copies of the book available for purchase.

The artists and their project Going on a Journey is available at the Kalamazoo Public Library or for purchase at Michigan News Agency, the Kalamazoo Institute of Arts, Kazoo Books, Bookbug and Bronson Methodist Hospital’s gift shop. It is also available on Amazon.com and will be available at the December Art Hop.

When: 6—9 p.m. Dec. 4

For more information or to listen to Harrison’s music, visit palamazoo.com.

Where: Arcadia Brewing Co., 701 E. Michigan Ave.

To view works by Conrad Kaufman, visit FenceRows.com.

things he would rather avoid. When he runs into a new, uncomfortable feeling, his friends coach him: “You can’t skip around it. You gotta go through it.”

A complement to the book’s lush, perfectly composed pictures is a CD that features Harrison singing her song. The CD can be played on its own or while reading the book.

As artists, Kaufmann and Harrison come from different genres, but they still found a lot of common ground working together. Originally from Port Huron, Harrison attended Western Michigan University and “stuck around Kalamazoo” afterward. Raised on a farm in Bangor, Kaufman also went to WMU. Finding a career in the arts was a journey of a kind for each of them. Harrison started in fashion. Kaufman dropped out of graduate school nine hours short of a degree in anthropology. Somehow, though, both have found their way as artists.

36 | Encore NOVEMBER 2015

“Kalamazoo has one of the most supportive arts communities around,” Kaufman says, noting he’s been selfemployed as an artist for 20 years. Then he points to Harrison. “She makes her living as an artist too. It’s just a great community.”

Harrison agrees. “That’s one reason I wanted to work with Conrad,” she says. “He’s doing it, you know? Not just ‘hobby’ doing it.”

As if to prove Kaufman’s point about the Kalamazoo arts community, the book was made and printed in Kalamazoo and funded by the Dorothy U. Dalton Foundation, the John E. Fetzer Institute Fund of the Kalamazoo Community Foundation, and Hospice Care of Southwest Michigan.

Harrison says people have asked her how she persuaded Kaufman to illustrate her book, and her answer is simple. “Well, I asked him.

It’s just like anything else — people can always say no, but you have to ask.”

“Give them the opportunity to say yes,” Kaufman says.

ENCORE Arts

‘Thought-Provoking’ Theater African-American company takes the Epic stage Andrew Domino

The new Face Off Theatre Company aspires to be more than a

performance group. It sees itself as a bridge connecting the area’s African-American community with theater.

The company, which staged its first production in July, is composed entirely of African Americans.

“We’re not just telling stories that are relevant to us, but we are telling human stories,” says Marissa Harrington, one of the founders of Face Off. Harrington founded the group along with Mickey Moses, Tanisha Pyron, Janai Travis, Bianca Washington and Kendra Flournoy. It operates under the auspices of the Black Arts and Cultural Center, which supports African-American culture in Kalamazoo.

The BACC had a theater company, the Ali Players, until 2013 and was looking to expand its live stage performances from the one or two held since then, according to BACC Executive Director Yolonda Lavender. Harrington had directed two productions at the BACC and

had been trying to form her own theater company for several years.

It was kismet.

“We’d be doing (theater) anyway,” Harrington says. “With the Black Arts and Cultural Center, we’re working under an established nonprofit.”

For its first season, Face Off is planning four shows, “consistent enough that (audiences) know we do regular theater,” Harrington says.

The first, Been Lovin’ You — An Exploration of Black Love, was staged at the Epic Theatre, on the Kalamazoo Mall. A compilation of poetry, music and scenes from the plays of African-American playwright August Wilson, the one-night show drew about 150 attendees, according to Harrington.

“People were really impressed by the quality of the show,” she says.

“One of our goals was to showcase our training in acting, singing, even dancing.”

Members of the Face Off theater company include, clockwise from left: Tanisha Pyron, Kendra Flourney, Janai Travis, Bianca Washington, Mickey Moses and Marissa Harrington.

Brian Powers

by

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Lively performances that keep traditions alive

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The company’s second show, The Chain, ran Oct. 22—25, also at the Epic, and its third, The Mountaintop, is scheduled for January, although no specific dates have been set yet. The company is still deciding on a show for April. Harrington says it may be a familyfriendly performance with less serious subject matter than that of the company’s first three productions.

“In theater, spring is where the lighthearted show goes,” she says. “Some would consider our plays ‘heavy.’ We would use the word ‘thought-provoking.’”

All of the plays staged by Face Off Theatre Company are written by acclaimed playwrights, helping to give legitimacy to the productions, Harrington says. The immediacy of the theater, where actors are moving and speaking just a few feet from the audience, makes people confront subjects they might not otherwise, she says.

Face Off will also be conducting “talkbacks,” at which the cast and crew of a show sit with the audience after a show to talk about the production and its themes. Dealing with serious topics, like drug abuse and the civil rights movement, is part of what Face Off Theatre Company is for, Harrington says, and is even an inspiration for the company’s name.

“You have to take off your face to become a character (in a play),” she says. “We want to confront these issues head-on.”

Lavender supports this mission. “Activism has been intentional (for the BACC) since the beginning,” Lavender says. “We want to make sure there’s a message going out to the audience.”

Harrington says Face Off also aims to bring theater and art to Kalamazoo’s black community. There are many African-American writers, actors and musicians in the area, but people outside the theater may not be aware of that, she says. And while there are plenty of ways for people to entertain themselves, good art offers something more than entertainment, Harrington says.

“We want to provide an environment to talk about issues,” she says. “Life now is so impersonal — you can’t see each other or hear each other. Theater makes you connect as human beings.”

Learn more about Face Off Theatre at blackartskalamazoo.org or visit their Facebook page at facebook.com/FaceOffTheatre.

Ensemble Heinavanker — Guest artist recital, 8 p.m. Nov. 6, Dalton Center Recital Hall, 387-4667.

PERFORMING ARTS THEATER Plays The Country Wife — William Wycherley's bawdy Restoration comedy, 2 p.m. Nov. 1, Williams Theatre, WMU, 387-3220.

A Behanding in Spokane — A 2010 black comedy by Irish playwright Martin McDonagh, 7:30 p.m. Nov. 6–7, 12–14 & 20–21; 2 p.m. Nov. 8 & 15, York Arena Theatre, WMU, 387-6222.

Thunder from Down Under — Vegas-style male revue, 8:30 p.m. Nov. 14, State Theatre, 404 S. Burdick, 345-6500.

MUSIC Bands & Solo Artists Wayne Szalinski — East Lansing jangle-pop band, 8 p.m. Nov. 5, Bell's Eccentric Café, 355 E. Kalamazoo Ave., 382-2332.

Brandi Carlile — American country/folk rock artist, 8 p.m. Nov. 6, State Theatre, 404 S. Burdick, 345-6500.

Kalamazoo College Jazz Band Concert — 8 p.m.

Nov. 6, Dalton Theatre, Kalamazoo College, 337-7070.

Kalamazoo Philharmonia Concert — Featuring music of Austria, 8 p.m. Nov. 7, Dalton Theatre, Kalamazoo College, 337-7070.

Who's Bad: The Ultimate Michael Jackson Tribute Band — The tribute band in its symphonic world premiere, 8 p.m. Nov. 7, Miller Auditorium, WMU, 349-7759.

WMU Bronco Marching Band Concert — 3 p.m.

Nov. 8, Miller Auditorium, 387-4667.

Pharoahe Monch — Rapper from New York City, 8:30 p.m. Nov. 6, Bell's Eccentric Café, 382-2332.

Kalamazoo College Symphonic Band Concert — 4 p.m. Nov. 8, Dalton Theatre, Kalamazoo College, 337-7070.

The Infamous Stringdusters — Acoustic bluegrass quintet, 7 p.m. Nov. 7, Bell's Eccentric Café, 382-2332.

KSO Burdick-Thorne String Quartet — 7 p.m.

Nov. 10, First Presbyterian Church, 321 W. South St., 349-7759.

Megan Dooley — Album release of Made in Kalamazoo, 8 p.m. Nov. 12, Bell's Eccentric Café, 382-2332.

Jim Alfredson's "Dirty Fingers" Jazz Trio — 6:30 p.m. Nov. 14, Mangia Mangia, 209 S. Kalamazoo Mall, 226-3333.

Musicals

Dru Hill —R&B, rock and hip-hop group, 7:30 p.m. Nov. 13, State Theatre, 345-6500.

The Great American Songbook — Readers theater revue of 1920s–'60s music, 2 p.m. Nov. 1, Civic Theatre, 329 S. Park St., 373-1313.

Andy Frasco & the U.N. — Los Angeles singer/ songwriter and his blues-rock band, 8 p.m. Nov. 13, Bell's Eccentric Café, 382-2332.

Gilmore Rising Star Francesco Piemontesi — The Swiss pianist performs works by Haydn, Beethoven and Mozart, 4 p.m. Nov. 15, Wellspring Theater, 342-1166.

Aladdin Jr. — Center Stage Theatre's production of the Disney musical, 7:30 p.m. Nov. 13 & 14; 2 p.m. Nov. 15, Comstock Community Auditorium, 2107 N. 26th St., 348-7469.

Jonathan Richman — Songwriter performs with drummer Tommy Larkins, 7:30 p.m. Nov. 17, Bell's Eccentric Café, 382-2332.

Dracula — The classic gothic vampire tale, 8 p.m. Nov. 6 & 7, New Vic Theatre, 134 E. Vine St., 381-3328.

Fully Committed — One man portrays more than 40 characters, 8 p.m. Nov. 6, 7, 13 & 14; 2 p.m. Nov. 8 & 15; 7:30 p.m. Nov. 12, Farmer's Alley Theatre, 221 Farmers Alley, 343-2727.

A Christmas Carol — Adaptation of Dickens' holiday classic, 8 p.m. Nov. 20, 21, 27 & 28; 2 p.m. Nov. 28 & 29, New Vic Theatre, 381-3328.

The Mystery of Edwin Drood — A musical murder mystery based on Dickens' novel, 7:30 p.m. Nov. 13 & 14, 19–21; 2 p.m. Nov. 15 & 22, Shaw Theatre, WMU, 387-6222.

All Hands on Deck — A musical based on Bob Hope's 1942 USO tour, 3 p.m. Nov. 15, Miller Auditorium, WMU, 387-2311.

Mary Poppins — A “practically perfect” nanny teaches a family to value one another, 7:30 p.m.

Nov. 20, 21, 27 & 28; 2 p.m. Nov. 22 & 29, Civic Theatre, 373-1313.

Pigeons Playing Ping Pong — Maryland funk/ rock group, 8 p.m. Nov. 19, Bell's Eccentric Café, 382-2332.

The Ragbirds — Folk rock/pop group, 8 p.m. Nov. 21, Bell's Eccentric Café, 382-2332.

Jeff Daniels — The actor, singer and guitarist presents his original music, 7 p.m. Nov. 22, State Theatre, 345-6500.

Greensky Bluegrass — Kalamazoo-based bluegrass/rock band, 8 p.m. Nov. 27 & 28, State Theatre, 345-6500.

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer: The Musical — The classic Christmas tale, 7:30 p.m. Nov. 25, Miller Auditorium, 387-2311.

Orchestra, Chamber, Jazz & More

Opera

Gilmore Rising Star David Kadouch — The French pianist performs works by Bach, Schumann and Brahms, 4 p.m. Nov. 1, Wellspring Theater, 359 S. Kalamazoo Mall, 342-1166.

Amahl and the Night Visitors/The Beautiful Bridegroom — Two one-act operas, 8 p.m. Nov. 13 & 14, Dalton Center Recital Hall, WMU, 387-4667.

Other Cirque Mechanics: Pedal Punk — Steampunkinspired acrobatics, 3 p.m. Nov. 1, Miller Auditorium, WMU, 387-2311.

Kalamazoo Improv Festival — Teams from Chicago, Grand Rapids, Detroit and Kalamazoo showcase their improvisation skills, 8 & 10 p.m.

Nov. 6 & 7, Epic Center, 359 S. Kalamazoo Mall, 599-7390.

University Symphony Orchestra — 3 p.m. Nov. 1, Dalton Center Recital Hall, WMU, 387-4667.

Bullock Performance Institute: Western Winds — 7:30 p.m. Nov. 4, Dalton Center Recital Hall, 387-4667.

Collegium Musicum — 7:30 p.m. Nov. 5, Dalton Center Recital Hall, 387-4667.

Michigan Festival of Sacred Music — A 10day celebration of sacred music from many cultures, Nov. 5–15, various venues in the Kalamazoo area, 382-2910 or www.mfsm.us.

Kalamazoo Junior Symphony — Rachel Barton Pine performs Brahms' Concerto, 4 p.m. Nov. 15, Chenery Auditorium, 714 S. Westnedge, 349-7557.

Surround Sound Concert — 7:30 p.m. Nov. 16, Dalton Center Recital Hall, 387-4667.

Big Band Swing Tribute — WMU's Jazz Orchestra and Jazz Lab Band, 7:30 p.m. Nov. 17, Dalton Center Recital Hall, 387-4667.

International Percussion Concert — 8 p.m. Nov. 17, Dalton Theatre, Kalamazoo College, 337-7070.

Bullock Performance Institute: Birds on a Wire and Composer Robert Carl — Part of the New Sounds Festival, 7:30 p.m. Nov. 18, Dalton Center Recital Hall, 387-4667.

Gold Company Sneak Preview — 7:30 p.m. Nov. 19, Dalton Center Recital Hall, 387-4667.

Saint-Saens & Shostakovich — French pianist Pascal Rogé with the Kalamazoo Symphony Orchestra, 8 p.m. Nov. 20, Miller Auditorium, 349-7759.

Emmanuel Pahud & Christian Rivet — Fontana presents the flute and guitar duo, 8 p.m. Nov. 21, Dalton Center Recital Hall, 382-7774.

Pianist Lori Sims — Faculty recital, 3 p.m. Nov. 22, Dalton Center Recital Hall, 387-4667.

University Symphonic Band and University Concert Band — 3 p.m. Nov. 22, Miller Auditorium, 387-4667.

Western Horn Choir — 5 p.m. Nov. 24, Dalton Center Recital Hall, 387-4667.

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Events encore Vocal College Singers Concert — 2 p.m. Nov. 8, Stetson Chapel, Kalamazoo College, 337-7070.

Chris Young — Country music singer/songwriter, 7:30 p.m. Nov. 14, Miller Auditorium, WMU, 387-2311.

The Perrys — Southern gospel quartet, 7 p.m.

Nov. 15, Chenery Auditorium, 800-965-9324.

A Kalamazoo Singers Christmas: Our Gift to You — 3 p.m. Nov. 22, First United Methodist Church, 212 S. Park St., 373-1769.

DANCE Orchesis Dance Concert — Performance by WMU dance students, 2 p.m. Nov. 1, Dance Studio B, third floor, Dalton Center, WMU, 387-5830.

Dancing with the WMU/Kazoo Stars — Local celebrities dance in a ballroom competition, 7:30 p.m. Nov. 13, Miller Auditorium, WMU, 387-5875.

VISUAL ARTS Kalamazoo Institute of Arts 314 S. Park St., 349-7775 Common Ground: African American Art — Works from the Flint Institute of Arts, Kalamazoo Institute of Arts and Muskegon Museum of Art, through Nov. 15.

Kirk Newman Art School Faculty Review — A visual sampler of media and classes available at the KIA, through Nov. 29.

Flowers in Chinese Art — Chinese paintings and ceramics, through Dec. 9.

Manierre Dawson: Engineering Abstraction — Abstract painting collection, through Dec. 13, with gallery tour at 6:30 p.m. Nov. 19.

Sunday Public Tour — Walk through the exhibitions with a docent: Kirk Newman Art

School Faculty Review, Nov. 1 & 29; Flowers in Chinese Art, Nov. 8; Common Ground: African American Art, Nov. 15; Manierre Dawson: Engineering Abstraction, Nov. 22; all sessions begin at 2 p.m.

ARTbreak — A weekly program about art, artists and exhibitions: The Collaborative Nature of Dance, with choreographer Cori Terry, Nov. 3; Maria Martinez: Native American Pottery Maker of San Ildefonso, Nov. 10; Bush Tucker Series, with sculptor Edward Harkness, Nov. 17; Craft in America: Holiday! film presentation; all sessions begin at noon, KIA Auditorium.

Gwen Frostic School of Art Faculty Exhibition — Nov. 19–Dec. 17, Monroe-Brown Gallery.

Other Venues Art Hop — Local artists and musicians at various venues in Kalamazoo, 5–8 p.m. Nov. 6, 342-5059.

LIBRARY & LITERARY EVENTS Kalamazoo Public Library Meet the Author: Jacqueline Woodson — Awardwinning author of young adult literature, 6:30 p.m. Nov. 5, Central Library, 315 S. Rose St., 5537844.

A Night of Fire — A night of spoken-word performances and music inspired by the Common Ground exhibit, 6:30 p.m. Nov. 5.

First Saturday at KPL — Family event with stories, activities, guests and door prizes, 2–3 p.m. Nov. 7, Children's Room, Central Library, 553-7844.

Fall Lecture: Artist Renee Stout — Learn about the artist's exploration of the African Diaspora, 10 a.m. Nov. 11.

Meet the Author: Yolanda Neals — Founder/ visionary of the RED (Receiving Empowerment Daily) Panty Society, 5:30 p.m. Nov. 10, Alma Powell Branch, 1000 W. Paterson Ave., 553-7960.

Common Ground: A Reflection — The triumphs and achievements of the Common Ground works of art, 6:30 p.m. Nov. 12.

Get the Picture — Michelle Stempien discusses Richard Diebenkorn's Sleeping Woman, noon Nov. 19.

Richmond Center for Visual Arts Western Michigan University, 387-2436 Quintapata: Pascal Meccariello, Raquel Paiewonsky, Jorge Pineda, Belkis Ramirez — An artists' collaborative group from the Dominican Republic, through Nov. 6, Monroe-Brown Gallery.

Cat Crotchett: Surfacing — The artist combines Indonesian and Western techniques in different forms, through Nov. 13, Netzorg and Kerr Gallery.

Ed Harkness: Bush Tucker Series — The exhibition focuses on Aboriginal arts of Australia, Nov. 19– Dec. 17, Netzorg and Kerr Gallery.

The Great Grown-up Spelling Bee — A spelling competition benefitting Ready to Read, 6–9 p.m. Nov. 18, East Ballroom, Bernhard Center, WMU, 553-7800.

Board Game Night for Adults — 5:30–7:30 p.m.

Nov. 24, Community Room, Washington Square Branch, 1244 Portage Road, 553–7970.

Powell Book Discussion Group — Share insights about The Other Wes Moore, by Wes Moore; Truth or Dare, by Wayne S. Joseph; and Grindin',

by Danielle Santiago, 6 p.m. Nov. 24, Barnabee Gallery, Alma Powell Branch, 553-7960.

Portage District Library 300 Library Lane, 329-4544 Poetry Writing Workshop for Teachers and Teens — A workshop preparing writers for the "Poems That Ate Our Ears" contest, 5–7 p.m. Nov. 2; registration required.

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ENCORE Events Science Fiction and Fantasy Discussion Group — Marvel versus DC: Who has better writers and artists? 7 p.m. Nov. 2.

Reading and Conversation with Bonnie Jo Campbell and Diane Seuss — The authors read from their new collections and discuss the craft of writing, 7 p.m. Nov. 4.

Stories from the Front and the Home Front — In honor of Veterans Day, readings from the Combat Veterans' Writing Group, 2 p.m. Nov. 8.

Top Shelf Reads — A young professionals book group discussion of Life From Scratch, by Sasha Martin, 7 p.m. Nov. 9, Latitude 42 Brewing Co., 7842 Portage Road, 585-8711.

International Mystery Book Group — Discussion of The Vintage Caper by Peter Mayle, 7 p.m.

Nov. 12.

Great Books — Reading and discussion of Immigrant Voices: 21st Century Stories, 2 p.m.

Nov. 15.

Civil War Reading and Discussion — With Daneen Wardrop and Steve Rossio, 6:30 p.m.

Nov. 18.

Other Venues Kalamazoo Community Foundation Community Meeting: Ta-Nehisi Coates — Author of Between the World and Me speaks on race in America, 8 p.m. Nov. 3, Miller Auditorium, WMU, 381-3146.

"A Thousand Letters Home," with Author Teresa Irish — A presentation for Veterans Day, 6:30 p.m. Nov. 4, Parchment Community Library, 401 S. Riverview Drive, 343-7747.

Ferguson: A Report from Occupied Territory — Black Arts & Cultural Center hosts film and discussion, 5:30 p.m. Nov. 10, Epic Theatre, 359 S. Kalamazoo Mall, 349-1035.

Genre Gyration Book Club — Discussion of U2 Laser Show — Laser animation graphics set historical fiction Master and Commander, by to the music of U2, 8 p.m. Nov. 6.

Patrick O'Brian, 7 p.m. Nov. 11, 9 a.m. Nov. 13, Small Worlds — Learn about comets, asteroids Parchment Community Library, 343-7747. and dwarf planets, 1 p.m. Nov. 7, 14 & 21, November Book Group — Discussion of The Boys Planetarium. in the Boat, by Daniel James Brown, 7 p.m. Nov. Measuring the Night — How astronomers 12, Richland Community Library, 8951 Park St., measure cosmic distances, 2 p.m. Nov. 7, 14, 21 629-9085. & 28, Planetarium.

Book Discussion: The Painter — A discussion of Tapping into Brewery Wastewater to Generate the novel by Peter Heller, 2 p.m. Nov. 18, Meader Biofuels — Jakob Nalley discusses this Fine Arts Library, Kalamazoo Institute of Arts, alternative energy source, 1:30 p.m. Nov. 8.

314 S. Park St., 585-9291.

The Gift of Touch — Create a tactile gift for the Creative Writing Alumni Reading — Heather A. holiday, noon–4 p.m. Nov. 14.

Slomski, Traci Brimhall and Adam Pasen appear in the Gwen Frostic Reading Series, 8 p.m. Nov. Our Fires Still Burn: The Native American 19, Rooms 157–159, Bernhard Center, WMU, Experience — Screening of documentary, followed by Q&A with Audrey Geyer and Jason 387-2572.

Wesaw, 1:30 p.m. Nov. 22.

MUSEUMS Mystery of the Christmas Star — A modern Kalamazoo Valley Museum retelling of the Christmas story, 3 p.m. Nov. 27.

230 N. Rose St., 373-7990 Season of Light — Explore the nature of holiday Violent Universe — Learn about catastrophes of traditions, 11 a.m. Nov. 27 & 30, 2 p.m. Nov. 29. the cosmos, 3 p.m. Sun., Mon., Wed., Fri. & Sat. NATURE through Nov. 25, Planetarium.

Child in a Strange Country: Helen Keller and the Kalamazoo Nature Center History of Education for People Who Are Blind or 7000 N. Westnedge Ave., 381-1574 Visually Impaired — Exhibit exploring reading, Autumn Prairie Hike — Hike to the Emma Pitcher science, math and geography, through Jan. 10.

Tallgrass Prairie, 2 p.m. Nov. 8.

In the Dark — How plants and animals have Growing Herbs Indoors — Harvest fresh herbs in adapted to dark environments, through Jan. 17. the winter, 6 p.m. Nov. 10.

Art Hop Visual Experience: “Fragments: Jewish Kalamazoo River Valley Trail Exploration — A Life in Central and Eastern Europe, 1981–2007" guided walk with a KNC naturalist, 2 p.m. Nov. 15.

— The work of photographer and musician Yale Kellogg Bird Sanctuary Strom, 5 p.m. Nov. 6.

12685 East C Ave., 671-2510 Art Hop Musical Experience: Delilah and the Lost Boys with Megan Dooley — Vintage country/ Fall Migration Celebration — View migrating honky-tonk and torch-style music, 6 p.m. Nov. 6. waterfowl at Wintergreen Lake, 1–4 p.m., Nov. 8.

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Birds and Coffee Walk — A walk to view birds of the season, 9 a.m. Nov. 11.

Boxwood Wreath Class — Sherri Snyder demonstrates wreath making, 6–9 p.m. Nov. 19.

Owl Prowl — A nighttime walk to listen for owls, 6–7:30 p.m. Nov. 20.

Pierce Cedar Creek Institute 701 W. Cloverdale Road, Hastings, 721-4190 Environmental Issues Forum — Update on the Kalamazoo River oil spill, 11:30 a.m.–1 p.m. Nov. 5.

Geology Hike — Learn how seas and glaciers shaped the landscape, 9–11:30 a.m. Nov. 7.

Holiday Gift Show and Lunch —Handcrafted gifts by art vendors, plus a soup and sandwich buffet, 11 a.m.–3 p.m. Nov. 8.

Owl Prowl — Joe Rodgers shows and discusses Michigan owls, 6:30 p.m. Nov. 14.

Other Venues Ducks Unlimited Wetland Mitigation Program — Speaker Peter Wyckoff, 7 p.m. Nov. 23, People's Church, 1758 N. 10th St., 375-7210.

MISCELLANEOUS Kalamazoo Craft Beer Festival — Featuring craft breweries from across the country, noon–6 p.m.

Nov. 7, Wings Event Center, 3600 Vanrick Drive, 345-1125.

West Michigan Harvest Cluster AKC Dog Show All breeds in obedience and rally trials, 9 a.m.– 5 p.m. Nov. 5 & 6, 8 a.m.–6 p.m. Nov. 7 & 8, Kalamazoo County Expo Center, 2900 Lake St., 616-706-2314.

Kalamazoo Indoor Flea & Farmers Market — 8 a.m.–2 p.m. Nov. 10, 11, 14, 17, 18, 24 & 25, Kalamazoo County Expo Center North, 383-8761.

Annual Holiday Bazaar — Gifts, books, artifacts and baked goods, 10 a.m.–2 p.m. Nov. 13 & 14, Ladies' Library Association, 333 South St., 344-3710.

Kalamazoo Holiday Parade — Marching bands, floats, and giant balloons, 11 a.m. Nov. 14, downtown Kalamazoo, 388-2830.

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Kalamazoo Summit on Racism 2015: Educate, Collaborate, Empower — Community members and organizations discuss issues of racial inequity and methods of self-empowerment, 7:30 a.m.–noon Nov. 19, Lawrence Education Center, Borgess Medical Center, 1521 Gull Road, 381-9775.

Holiday Art Sale — 5–8 p.m. Nov. 19, 9 a.m.–8 p.m. Nov. 20, 9 a.m.–4 p.m. Nov. 21, Kalamazoo County Expo Center South, 873-0537.

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Weavers and Fiber Artists — 5–8 p.m. Nov. 19, 9 a.m.–8 p.m. Nov. 20, 9 a.m.–4 p.m. Nov. 21, Kalamazoo County Expo Center North, weaversguildofkalamazoo.org Chasing Shadows — Warren Miller snow sports film, 8 p.m. Nov. 20, 3 & 8 p.m. Nov. 21, State Theatre, 345-6500.

Fine Arts Sale & Holiday Bazaar — Jewelry, textiles, photography, pottery, specialty foods and fair trade gifts, 9 a.m.–3 p.m. Nov. 21, People's Church, 1758 N. 10th St., 372-3262.

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Kalamazoo Reptile & Exotic Pet Expo — 10 a.m.– 3 p.m. Nov. 21, Room A, Kalamazoo County Expo Center, 779-9851.

Kalamazoo Dance — Social dance for singles, couples, college students and all skill levels, 7 p.m. Nov. 21, The Point Community Center, 2925 N. 10th St., 344-2925.

2015 Holiday Walk & Market Tour — A guided tour of the W.K. Kellogg Manor House, noon–5 p.m. Nov. 27 & 28, 3700 E. Gull Lake Drive, Hickory Corners, 671-2400.

Circus Maximus Antique Toy Show — 9 a.m.–2 p.m. Nov. 28, Kalamazoo County Expo Center, 262-246-7171.

Messiah Sing — Sing along or listen to portions of Handel's oratorio, 4 p.m. Nov. 29, First Congregational Church, 345 W. Michigan Ave., 382-2910.

372-3400 42 | Encore NOVEMBER 2015

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Scribblers A kid complained to his teacher about another kid drawing. “He just scribbled and scribbled all hour, Mrs. Glover. He didn’t make anything.”

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The inevitable end is a mathematical impossibility, an eternal moving deeper within (despite my being very finite),

by halves of course, so that I never succeed in devouring myself. I am a dense knot, hoping to become a tunnel into an alternate universe.

— Bonnie Jo Campbell Campbell is the author of the new story collection Mothers, Tell Your Daughters (W.W. Norton) and the bestselling novel Once Upon a River. She was a National Book Award finalist and National Book Critics Circle Award finalist for her collection of stories American Salvage as well as a Guggenheim Fellow. She lives in Kalamazoo. This poem first appeared in Southern Review (Spring 2014).

w w w.encorekalamazoo.com | 43

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BACK STORY (continued from page 46)

For the most part, my job is finding people to play Wings Event Center and helping to put Wings Event Center back on the map.

How did you end up here?

I’ve been with Greenleaf Hospitality (owner of Wings Event Center, Wings West and the Radisson Plaza Hotel & Suites) for five years and was the company’s assistant corporate food and beverage director when my boss said, “Hey, we don't have anyone doing concerts, and you have a great personality and can build relationships. You’re not shy.

Do you want to start booking concerts?”

I said yes and started cold turkey three years ago. I had no idea what I was doing.

My first phone call was to a band called Grand Funk Railroad because I’d seen them in a magazine. But my different mentors said, “These guys play fairs, and you won’t sell enough tickets.” Then the lessons began.

My first couple of shows didn’t make a lot of money, but we’ve learned since, and now we’re doing fantastic. We’re getting good shows, talking to the right people. When I took this position, I didn’t want to be the guy who brought in acts who have been playing forever. I was told you’re either going to get acts that are on the rise or people at the end of their career. I said no to that. The music I like has a huge college following, like The Head and the Heart and Alabama Shakes, and we are a college town. There are a lot of bands that fit our mold: not big enough for Van Andel (Arena, in Grand Rapids), but too big for the Kalamazoo State Theatre.

What is your music?

I grew up in the ’80s — I had a pretty bad mullet — and listened to headbanger stuff.

Then in the ’90s I discovered Dave Matthews and the jam band thing. I’ve seen Dave Matthews 24 times and even took my three daughters on a cross-country road trip to Washington to see him.

It’s not really my music, but I did see Taylor Swift at Ford Field. It was amazing. I spent most of the time staring at the ceiling.

I was looking at the production and how much stuff was hanging from the ceiling and how they rigged it and the staging.

Man, the production that went into that was incredible. I was just a sponge, learning everything I could.

What’s a typical day at work like for you?

We have two seasons. Summer is when we spend a whole lot of time filling dates for fall, winter and spring. We are expanding our expo and conference events, so there’s a lot of time on the phone and cultivating relationships with those people.

The second season is when Oct. 16 arrives and the K-Wings start up. We still have to continue to foster those relationships from the summer while we execute and coordinate all the shows and events we’ve got lined up. It’s like “here comes this group and we have to move this floor to that floor” and coordinate all that.

What do people say when you tell them what you do?

They usually want to know more. They also want to tell me what bands to bring in, for sure.

What’s it been like to relaunch Wings Stadium as Wings Event Center?

We are doing tons of building improvements. We’ve added air conditioning for all three venues, (in addition to the main stadium, the Event Center Complex includes two other arenas — The Cube and The Annex), put in a new floor for the hockey team, added a new scoreboard and a new marquee out

by I-94. Inside we’ve changed our hospitality and catering, we’ve changed the food, we have new counters and new beer taps.

It’s a 41-year-old facility, and we’re putting a lot of love back into the building. And I think people can see that. We’re not the biggest, not the newest, but we have a great venue with great hospitality. We don’t have pillars to block the view, so there’s not a bad seat in the house.

What has inspired you the most?

I’ve been fortunate enough to work for great owners of companies and great leaders, and I’ve learned how to do things the right way from the beginning. It’s amazing to be given an opportunity and have the support of people that say, “Yeah, you can do this so go do it.” I’ve never lacked for confidence, but it was a boost to my confidence to know I can take on any challenge at any time. So when this opportunity came up three years ago, I wasn’t terrified. I knew it was a cool opportunity.

I love my job. During those certain moments when you’re backstage and the event is going great, it's the coolest job on the planet.

Everyone Deserves a Great Workplace

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BACK STORY encore

Rob Underwood Director of Entertainment Wings Event Center

Rob

Underwood says he has the coolest job in his whole company. That’s because he is responsible for all the events and shows at Wings Event Center.

He’s the one booking bands, setting up expos and conferences and making sure the ice is ready for hockey. In addition, he oversees the millions of dollars of building improvements that are helping to rejuvenate the 41-year-old venue formerly called Wings Stadium.

A trained chef (twice a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America) with some impressive credentials on his resume — (The Greenbriar, Great Wolf Resorts), Underwood is undaunted by the huge responsibilities on his shoulders.

“I’ve helped raise six kids,” he says, “so I can juggle a lot of things.”

What do you do at Wings Event Center?

I’ve got like 15 titles here. Basically I am general manager of the Wings Event Center and I oversee facilities, from housekeeping to renovations and concessions, security and parking. But at the end of the day, my drive is booking special events — sometimes they are big fun concerts and sometimes they are high school wrestling or inline roller hockey events. (continued on page 45)

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