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Berrien County remained in high COVID-19 transmission early this week
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CITY OF NEW BUFFALO JOHN HUMPHREY, MAYOR CITY COUNCIL LOU O’DONNELL, IV. MARK ROBERTSON, JOHN HUMPHREY, ROGER LIJESKI, BRIAN FLANIGAN City Council meets on the 3rd Monday of each month at 6:30PM CITY OF NEW BUFFALO PLANNING COMMISSION MEETINGS to be determined NEW BUFFALO TOWNSHIP BOARD PETE RAHM, MICHELLE HEIT, JUDY H. ZABICKI, PATTY IAZZETTO, JACK ROGERS Board meets on the 3rd Monday of each month at 7PM NEW BUFFALO TOWNSHIP PLANNING COMMISSION Meets on the 1st Tuesday of each month at 6:30PM
NEW BUFFALO AREA SCHOOLS BOARD CHUCK HEIT, PRESIDENT HEATHER BLACK, VICE PRESIDENT JOHN HASKINS, TREASURER LISA WERNER, SECRETARY JOYCE LANTZ, TRUSTEE FRANK MARGRO, TRUSTEE PATRICIA NEWSTON, TRUSTEE CHIKAMING TOWNSHIP CHIKAMING TOWNSHIP BOARD DAVID BUNTE, PAULA DUDIAK, LIZ RETTIG, RICHARD SULLIVAN, BILL MARSKE Chikaming Board meets on the 2nd Thursday of each month at 6:30PM CHIKAMING TOWNSHIP PLANNING COMMISSION Meets on the 1st Wednesday of each month at 6:30PM THREE OAKS THREE OAKS TOWNSHIP BOARD Meets on the 2nd Monday of each month at 7PM VILLAGE OF THREE OAKS BOARD Meets on the 2nd Wednesday of each month at 7PM GRAND BEACH VILLAGE OF GRAND BEACH COUNCIL Meets on the 3rd Wednesday of each month at 7PM MICHIANA VILLAGE OF MICHIANA COUNCIL Meets on the 2nd Friday of each month at 1PM
Berrien County remained in high COVID-19 transmission early this week
BY FRANCESCA SAGALA
As of Tuesday, Aug. 31, Berrien County was categorized as still having “high” transmission, according to the CDC Thresholds and Indicators for Community Transmission.
According to the MDHHS MI Safe Start Map, for the week of Aug. 24-30, the county had 167.5 new cases per 100,000 and a test positivity at 12.7 percent.
On Wednesday, Sept. 1, the Berrien County Health Department said that the county is averaging 37 new cases per day from Aug. 2430.
“Why are we back in this situation? It’s primarily the delta variant, which is probably twice as infectious, as well as a combination of that with just a relaxing of a lot of mitigation measures that we had before… We all thought we were out of this but we’re seeing even with a rise in vaccinations we’re not quite out of the woods,” Dr. Rex Cabaltica, medical director for the Berrien County Health Department, said at a joint Facebook Live update with the health department and Spectrum Health Lakeland Wednesday, Aug. 25.
Cabaltica said that contact tracers are ramping up their efforts and asked members of the public to answer any questions “as thoroughly as possible, which will help us flatten the curve once more.”
Dr. Loren Hamel, president of Spectrum Health Lakeland, said that the transmission has been up 10-fold over a month and hospitalizations have been up four-fold over the last month at Spectrum Health Lakeland. This is no surprise, as he said hospitalizations tend to “lag a bit.” “We’ve been here before…We were here in November; we were here in April. We’re now on a steep increase in cases and we expect a steep increase in hospitalizations a few weeks later,” he said. On Aug. 25, Hamel said that there were about 16 COVID-19 patients in the hospital, adding that they’re “somewhat younger than previous inpatients” and that patients are “almost entirely the unvaccinated.”
“Your protection if you’ve had a vaccination, even against this delta strain, will lower your risk for hospitalization and death up to 25 times less – that’s a pretty significant reduction,” he said.
On Tuesday morning, Aug. 31, the health department reported 18 nonICU hospitalizations and four ICU hospitalizations. Last week, the FDA granted full approval to Pfizer-BioNTech’s coronavirus vaccine. For children 12 to 15 years old, the vaccine continues to be under
“Why are we back emergency use authorization (EUA). in this situation? It’s primarily the delta variant, which is probably twice as infectious, as well as a combination of that with just a relaxing of a lot of mitigation measures that we had before… We all Last month, the FDA and CDC shared guidance on a third dose being needed for those who are immune compromised, and a booster shot being needed for all people beginning in late September and early October for all of those who received thought we were out of that mRNA vaccine. this but we’re seeing Hamel said those who are immune even with a rise in compromised might not make vaccinations we’re not antibodies as well as others and a “third quite out of the woods,” dose helps you make more antibodies.”
Dr. Rex Cabaltica, The disease tends to be more difficult in medical director for the those who are immunocompromised – Berrien County Health another reason to get third dose.
Department, said With the case of booster shots, Hamel at a joint Facebook said it’s accepted that, over time,
Live update with the antibodies will “wane.” health department and Spectrum Health Lakeland Wednesday, Aug. 25. “We’ve seen some evidence that the antibodies are waning, and booster shots will likely be necessary,” he said. He advised everyone to “stay tuned” for when booster shots will be available in Berrien County. A recent newsletter stated that the health department is developing plans to roll out the booster shots to Berrien County residents beginning late September or early October contingent upon further guidance from the CDC.
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Fatal traffic crash kills one, leaves driver with serious injuries
LIFEGUARDS, BEACH AND WATER SAFETY...
First, thank you, New Buffalo Times for the large illustration every week during the summers on what to do if in distress in the water. “Flip” (over on your back), “Float” (keeping head above water - the starfish float with legs and arms spread out is very helpful), “Follow” the current back to shore, is a great visual and hopefully visitors as well as residents see this.
Our beach and any beach with a jetty or pier on the Great Lakes is a known danger with rip and structural currents. This year so far in Lake Michigan, there have 22 drownings and 56 drownings in 2020. The south end of Lake Michigan is particularly dangerous. Lifeguarding is mostly about preventative actions, lifeguards are trained to recognize a person in distress.
Drowning is not the Hollywood version of someone dramatically waving their arms and yelling for help. Usually, the person in trouble has their head back and arms under water in a stair step motion and NOT yelling for help! Recognizing this, pinpointing where distressed swimmer is if they should submerge, and how to proceed next, requires training and experience. Lifeguard are our first responders on the beach.
New Buffalo’s rock jetty also continues to be a problem with folks trying to walk on the slippery rocks. Many of the lifeguard recorded injuries happen on the jetty in spite of warning signs not to walk on the rocks.
Many residents and visitors know that The City of New Buffalo Beach has lifeguards, even with the lifeguard shortage and struggles with having a budget that can be competitive with wages, equipment, training, and supplies. This year we are extremely fortunate to have three experienced guards in their third season here; Gavin Ales, Head Lifeguard, Alex Tellez, Captain, and Evan Moyer (all from Bridgman). Also on staff are newcomer Zoey Price, (New Buffalo) and returning, part timer, Carey-Rose Tharp of Chesterton, IN). With covid, most pools were shut down last year, however our guards were able to get recertifications before season, at Bridgman Aquatics Center and also participated in the Great Lakes Surf Rescue Project training in St. Joseph in early June.
Still with such a small staff, lifeguards are not on 7 days a week this year. Police are helping on days with no lifeguards. Kristen D’Amico, Parks Supervisor and Rich Killips, Police Chief have worked these last three years with the volunteer Lifeguard Committee to find ways to secure lifeguards, train and keep our beach safe for all visitors. Since 2018 our beach has had a record number of visitors, well over 1,000 people daily at times. Kristen has continually strived to improve working conditions for our guards. Information about swimming conditions is posted on City website and Flags (Green - safe conditions, yellow - swim with caution, red-dangerous swimming conditions) are updated at least once a day. We also have youth and adult life vests available for public use at the beach, thanks to the Deputy Grant and Third Coast Surf Shop.
Information is knowledge and, on the beach, the more information out there, the better! Thank you, City of New Buffalo, our Lifeguard Staff, and the New Buffalo Times for your support in this effort.
— NORA HOWE
SHOULD WE HAVE LEFT AFGHANISTAN...
Twenty years ago, the U.S. entered Afghanistan to root out Al Qaeda terrorists and topple the Taliban government for attacks against the U.S. on 9/11. American troops quickly crushed the Taliban forces who offered an unconditional surrender in Dec 2001, which unfortunately the U.S. rejected. We then decided to take our turn at “Democratic Nation Building” and spent billions trying to build up a poor, fractious country devastated by years of conflict (conflict we helped create).
Others have tried and failed to place Afghanistan under their influence. The Soviets fought a nine-years (1979-1989) against Afghan insurgents. The U.S. backed those insurgents with expertise and weapons. The Soviets walked away defeated after losing 15,000 dead.
For 20 years we backed a corrupt Afghan government in a country with minimal income sources and, in many cases, an Afghan military unwilling to fight. During this time, 80% of Afghanistan’s budget was financed by the U.S.. Afghanistan’s biggest economic activity is supplying 80% of the world’s heroin.
Sadly, many U.S. lives have been lost – 2,461 military and 3,846 contractors. We have spent $2 trillion dollars.
So why did we stay? Unfortunately, once entering a conflict, our military leaders and key advisors find it impossible to disengage because the military doesn’t admit failure. “We’ll have this won shortly, just give us another 10,000 personnel and another 2-years.”
I served 20 yrs. in the U.S. Army and watched this same scenario occur in Vietnam, an intervention in a guerrilla war while supporting a corrupt government and a poorly led military. It didn’t end well. We don’t seem to learn.
Trump’s disastrous agreement with the Taliban set the stage for our chaotic Afghanistan exit. The agreement, negotiated without Afghan government involvement, required the U.S. remove Taliban sanctions, release 5,000 Taliban/Isis prisoners, and evacuate all U.S. troops by 5-1-2021. This agreement did not stop the Taliban from attacking Afghan military or civilians. It did not guarantee safe passage for U.S. citizens or Afghan special visa holders. We needed more time, better concessions from the Taliban, and more coordination to pull all Americans and our Afghan allies out sooner.
I’m afraid every evacuation from a war is messy. However, President Biden is totally correct in his actions to exit America’s Longest War, and the U.S. has done an exceptional job of evacuating 120,000 personnel.
Yes, we needed to exit from our latest failed intervention.
A— KEN PETERSON, BUCHANAN A traffic crash killed a passenger and injured a driver on the evening of Saturday, Aug. 28, in Chikaming Township. At approximately 7:43 p.m., officers from the Chikaming Township Police Department were dispatched to the area of Warren Woods Road, near Prairie Road, for a report of a personal injury traffic crash, Sgt. Brandon Jones from the Chikaming Township Police Department said in a press release. “Preliminary facts gathered from the scene show a vehicle driving eastbound on Warren Woods Road was struck by a vehicle driving westbound on Warren Woods Road,” the press release states. This case remains under investigation with the help from the Berrien County Sheriff’s Department Traffic Crash Reconstruction Team. The driver of the eastbound vehicle, 58-year-old Nancy Jule Hudson, from Three Oaks, suffered serious injuries. She was transported to the hospital and is currently in stable condition. The passenger in the eastbound vehicle, a 58-year-old Gerald Louis Hudson, from Three Oaks, was pronounced dead at the scene. The driver of the westbound vehicle, Thomas Joseph Pappa, was not injured. Alcohol and drugs do not appear to be a contributing factor in this crash. Assisting on scene were the following agencies: Chikaming Township Fire Department, Berrien County Sheriff’s Department, Three Oaks Police Department, Pokagon Tribal Police Department, and Medic
Guests mingled in the lower level Ashlie Cordova, Alissa Johns, Aimee Freyenberger, Val Freyenberger and Kimberlee Wendt cut the ribbon on Bell Mare
Sisters debut Bell Mare Weddings and Events in former livery barn
Sisters Ashlie Cordova, Alissa Johns, and Aimee Freyenberger were already well versed with country living before venturing out to Galien, Michigan, a village that’s nestled in the wideopen fields of southwest Michigan, to open Bell Mare Weddings and Events.
“We’re farm girls,” Freyenberger said, adding that they grew up on a farm in northern Indiana.
It’s fitting, then, that the building that houses Bell Mare once served as a livery stable for horses in the 1800s. “It was right off the train tracks there - so people would come into town on the train and rent horses from the livery stable because there were no cars at the time,” Cordova said.
The sisters officially cut the ribbon on the new wedding and event venue with members of the Harbor Country Chamber of Commerce, as well as several other guests, Thursday, Aug. 26.
“We’re so happy that these ladies, after two years of really hard work, are able to finally open their doors - we’ve had a relationship with them all this time and I’ve seen everything they had to do to come to this point,” Kimberlee Wendt, executive director of the Chamber, said.
Wendt added that the fact that the sisters had chosen to preserve a building that’s located in the heart of downtown Galien is “just icing on the cake.”
The sisters have talked about opening a wedding venue since 2009.
“We always like old barns because it (a wedding venue) is always out of an old barn,” Freyenberger said.
“We like the renovating aspect of it – but we also like hosting,” Johns added.
The wheels to open a venue were set in motion when they tried to get approval for a venue in Indiana but the “county wouldn’t grant it to us,” Freyenberger said. It was then that they decided to buy the Galien venue.
“We bought it in 2018 – it was a wedding venue - but we didn’t have all these permits so when we bought it, we had to go to state to get permits and we started construction in December and then we’re just finishing now,” Freyenberger said.
From the beginning, the sisters knew their wedding venue would stand out from the rest.
“There’re lot of rustic barn venues around but we just want to differentiate ourselves a little bit and make ourselves unique – we’re in a downtown setting, so I think that makes us a little different than some of the other barn wedding venues around here, but we also wanted to bring the French inspired theme to differentiate ourselves a little too,” Johns said.
“We know Galien has a lot of French roots, which was kind of our inspiration for the French inspired wedding venue,” Freyenberger said.
Upstairs, guests can have their ceremony. Later, they’ll step downstairs for the cocktail hour.
“We’ll flip this space (downstairs) and they’ll go back upstirs for the reception, so they won’t know what’s going on upstairs,” Johns said.
Downstairs, a wide bar spans almost the entire length of one wall (a little bar area is also located upstairs). Guests can also step onto the elevator to get to the ceremony upstairs. The venue also features a dressing room – a
BY FRANCESCA SAGALA
“boudoir” - for the bride and her attendants.
Currently, Bell Mare is offering a special promotion: For those who book their wedding in 2021, the Day of Planning Services will be included in their Basic Rental Fee.
It’s been two years since the sisters first decided to buy the Galien venue (and five years of actively trying to open one). Still, they agreed that the long journey was worth it.
“We love Michigan - we like the town, we like being a part of the community,” Freyenberger said.
“The people of Galien have been so accommodating to us – they’ve made it so easy for us, we really like it here,” Johns added.
Bell Mare Weddings and Events is located at 119 S. Cleveland Avenue in Galien. To book a wedding or other event, visit www. bellmareevents.com/ or call 269820-1905.
New Buffalo varsity volleyball team off to solid start after weekend tournament
BY STAN MADDUX
The New Buffalo High School volleyball team is off to a solid start despite going through a along with a new job left him no other choice. He said the added responsibilities of raising a new born and longer commute from major transition following two consecutive district titles.
The Lady Bison with a new head coach and losing three key players from last season came in second place in a season opening weekend tournament at Eau Claire High School.
New Buffalo scored relatively easy victories over Countryside Academy and Eau Claire and split two sets against Bloomingdale.
The Lady Bison came up short in both sets to Berrien Springs 26-24 and 25-18.
New Buffalo was undefeated last year until losing the opening match in the regionals in four sets to Battle Creek St. Phillip, the winner of 20 consecutive district titles.
Bruce Mollineaux, the former girls’ volleyball head coach at Michigan Lutheran High School, is roaming the sidelines for the Lady Bison this year.
The Titans lost to New Buffalo in the district finals the past two seasons.
Kevin Labaj, the former Lady Bison head coach, stepped down.
Labaj said a baby on the way his new employer in Valparaiso would have taken from the time and energy he was able to dedicate to the program. “If I can’t give the girls 100 percent of my time, how can I expect them to give 100 percent of their time,” he said. Labaj said he might get back into coaching at some point in the next couple of years.
This year’s squad is without leading scorer and first team all-conference player Sophia DeOliveira to graduation.
Ava Mullen, who also made the first team all-conference squad, and Kelsey Corkran, a member of the second allconference team, unexpectedly transferred to other schools.
In the tourney, the Lady Bison were led offensively by Amelia Selir with 17 kills and 18 aces.
Amanda Jones led all defenders with 47 digs.
Ava Johnson racked up 37 assists.
Jane Funk, who had 15 kills, recorded three blocked shots.
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COLUMN BY KURT MARGGRAF IN CHICAGO
This past weekend was
