Advisor-Chronicle by Tim Sutton

April 14, 2012 • Vol. 133 No. 15 514 S. Kalamazoo Ave. in Marshall, MI • Phone 269-781-5444 and FAX 269-781-7766 • www.advisor-chronicle.com

In The News: Easter blaze destroys six apartments

A four-alarm fire on Easter Morning at Walden Pond Townhomes on Arms St. in Marshall left six apartment units destroyed but all residents able to be evacuated safely. “It was just a little fire, but then it jumped and hit the wall and it just spread like you wouldn’t believe,” said one resident, who called 911 at approximately 8:30 a.m. Crews from Marshall, Marshall Township, Marengo and Fredonia fought the blaze and had the fire under control by 9 a.m. See story on page 54

Stacks of knowledge

Council debates cutting services, raising taxes

at the Marshall District Library

On April 10, the Marshall City Council held a budget workshop for the proposed fiscal years 2013 and 2014. What was an estimated $373,940 budget shortfall for 2013, grew to $537,718 when the tax revenues came back with a 7.4 percent decrease instead of the estimated 2.5 percent decrease. But with six proposed cuts to city staff, a 1 percent administrative fee for tax collection, cuts to city services and $54,104 used from the city’s reserves, the administration presented the council with a balanced budget for 2013. See story on page 9

Jim Dobbins awarded “Outstanding Citizen” by Marshall Exchange Club Marshall resident Jim Dobbins took his seat at the Marshall Exchange Club meeting on Monday, April 9 planning to be the guest speaker about Wilder Creek, only to find out he was the recipient of this year’s Golden Book of Deeds Outstanding Citizen Award. “Well, this is a surprise,” said Dobbins, red faced, as he made his way to the front of the room. “I can’t believe this. I really can’t believe this.” The Golden Book of Deeds plaque presented to him read: A man who is known for his caring and sincere manner, his attentive and listening ear and his ability to effectively lead. He is a physician treasured by his patients...and a community leader respect by all who know him. See story on page 56

Dispatchers, officers recognized for teamwork Seven dispatchers and eight local law enforcement officers were recognized on April 10 by the Marshall Police Department for their collaborative efforts in assisting the MPD with the arrest of three subjects after a high-speed chase that ensued in the early morning hours on Feb. 10. “The cooperation between all six entities was seamless due to the professionalism and training,” Police Chief Jim Schwartz said. “Therefore all persons involved in this incident were recognized for their commitment to excellence.” See story on page 44

Joe Cooper and John Ramos reflect on baseball in Marshall John Ramos was 8 years old when he first met Joe Cooper in the mid 1950s. “I kept hearing about this baseball clinic going on,” said Ramos. “So, I went down to the field. I didn’t even have a glove. Joe put me in line and gave me somebody else’s glove.” Cooper arrived in Marshall in 1948 after serving in the military during World War War II (“The Battle of Tampa Bay,” he jokes on his stateside service) and earning his college degree at Western Michigan University. “We didn’t have much of a summer baseball program,” said Cooper, who, in 1950 started a summer baseball program in Marshall that would field as many as 400 players each summer during its heyday. See story on page 40

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Word on the Street

Can too much happiness make you unhappy? Editor’s Corner by John Hendler So, I read a few days ago that a Yale University study has shown that happiness causes depression. Say what? Yes, apparently researchers found that too much happiness makes people selfish, less successful and in some cases, suicidal. What you talkin’ ‘bout, Willis? Yale psychologist June Gruber warns that it’s important to experience positive moods in moderation. As they say, everything in moderation. Less is more. Apparently, other studies have shown that those who who early in life reported the highest life satisfaction, judging it a 5 on a 5 point scale, for example, years later reported lower income than those who felt less happy. They also dropped out of school earlier. Lesson learned: Don’t peak too soon, whatever it is your doing. It seems that really happy people are more likely to make snap judgments, whereas sad people pay more attention to detail. I find some truth in the findings. I mean, how many of us think if we could only do this one thing or buy this one thing, it would make us happy, only to find that it wasn’t as happy-inducing as we first thought? What happens next? We feel down, perhaps even more down than if we didn’t seek out the thing we thought would make us happy. But wait, this just out: text messages boost happiness. Seems new research shows that both sending and receiving text messages can improve one’s mood if they are feeling stressed or lonely. Again, I find some truth to that. In today’s speeded up culture thanks to technology, we can instantly send a message to someone to say hi, ask them out on a date or say we love them? Instant gratification, a win-win for both parties, right? That is, of course, until we don’t get as many messages this week as we got last week and all of a sudden, or quite predictably, we feel let down or not as important. Remember, everything in moderation. Or, as my dad used to say: Don’t get too excited and don’t get too down. Words to live by. Until next week, may the good news be yours.

A recent study published by Yale University found that too much happiness can make some people more selfish, less successful and more unhappy. What do you think?

Melanie Rogers, Marshall

Chris Rogers, Marshall

Jeff Lillrose, Marshall

“I don’t think it makes you unhappy. How can you be too happy?

“The more happiness you have in your life, the less room you have for unhappiness.”

“Happiness is great. Anything in moderation is good too. If someone is always happy, a let down can be a big disappointment.”

Robin Johnston, Marshall

Tiffany Tucker, Marshall

Rachel Goheen, Coldwater

“Too much happiness can make you unhappy, but too much joy cannot. Joy is an internal thing, not external.”

“I think to an certain extent, yes. You need a balance to appreciate when you’re happy.”

“There needs to be a balance. You can’t always be happy. It’s just not realistic.”

Letters

cont. to next page

Residents still interested in Enbridge’s clean up status To the Editor: On Tuesday, April 17 the Environmental Protection Agency will host a public meeting at Marshall High School. The EPA’s website and meeting notifications advise that the EPA, DEQ and other agencies will provide updates on the current status of the 630-day clean up of Enbridge’s 6B pipeline spill.

They also will discuss future activities and their projections for reopening portions of the Kalamazoo River. Previous EPA meetings have yielded low turnouts by the public and last fall local media reports even alleged that area residents were no longer concerned about the oil clean up. For many of us impacted residents, this is far

from the truth. We are very concerned about our property, wells, health and the future of our river. While portions of the creek and river may look nice on the surface, the fact is, as much as 200 acres of submerged oil remain. I hope you will attend this meeting. This is an opportunity for the community to show the unified command

agencies, the agencies that are responsible for oversight of the spill cleanup, that even after 630 days, residents are still interested in the status of clean up and concerned about future plans for the river and the spill’s impact on our communities. Deb Miller, Ceresco

Ott Biological Preserve doesn’t need plastic surgery To the Editor: A year ago, Calhoun County Commissioners gave the Calhoun County Trailway Alliance a directive to run its bicycle trail down the Consumers Energy powerline right-of-way on the west boundary of Ott Biological Preserve. This could have entailed a bridge over a tributary, a floating boardwalk over a pond at E. Michigan Ave. and the installation of a footbridge the county already owns, to cross the road. But to cut costs, the Alliance tried to get fancy and sought to weave their trail around the powerline right-of-way onto the private property of two landowners. If the Trailway Alliance wanted to save money, they should have steered clear of Calhoun County’s only nature preserve. Supposedly, in a whole year, all they accomplished was getting an answer

of “no” from the two landowners; now the Alliance has come back claiming that the route “fell through.” The powerline trail “fell through” because the Alliance didn’t want to make it work because it wouldn’t get them in the Preserve and because it required more fundraising to take the powerline straight to the road and across—potentially costing twice as much as they had planned. Now the Alliance is acting frantic, saying that a “no” vote from commissioners on the latest plan could lead to losing their grant. This project should never have included Ott Preserve, which the Alliance is already calling a “park” in its plans. In fact, according to MDOT, Ott Preserve can be excluded completely from the Trailway Alliance’s plans without them losing the grant money—all with just update to their appli-

cation. Now, the most recent plan carves mostly new trails around the entire inside edge of the north and east side of the preserve. The weed-infested backfill they haul in will spell an invasive species disaster. The majority of these statewide “Lake to Lake” connective bicycle trails the Alliance are developing are created on pre-existing road bicycle lanes, so why trample through our whole preserve when you have bike lanes right down Wattles Rd.? Include those bike lanes in this latest plan and you’ll the cut negative impact on the preserve in half. Once at the northeast corner of the preserve, instead of heading south inside the eastern edge, just run the trail 1,200 feet further east out the county’s own right of way, right to the Wattles bike lanes.

As tempting as it must be to the Calhoun County Commissioners to trade the Trailway Alliance’s garish development in Ott Biological Preserve for $500,000 in DNR grant money, hopefully they consider how insignificant that sum is compared to what the preserve’s unspoiled natural features provide for Michigan nature lovers. Ott Biological Preserve doesn’t need plastic surgery, and in terms of county tourism, it’s far more valuable as a wild preserve, like a taste of North, not as a highlight on an urban bicycle highway two cars wide. I don’t recreate around those places. They’re voting on this thing April 19 at the County Building in Marshall. Bill Johnson, Battle Creek

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MHS girls track and field stuns Sturgis in opener By JOHN HENDLER News Editor Not a bad way to start off the season. The Marshall High School girls track and field team beat three-time defending regional champions Sturgis, 89-63, April 10 in conditions that were better suited for skating than running as athletes battled wind chills in the 20’s with gusty wins and snow showers. In all, Marshall athletes finished first in 10 events: 100 Hurdles – 1st Kelsey Darling, 3rd Danae Dow, 4th Paige McMillon 300 Hurdles – 1st Dow, 3rd Brogan Williams, 4th McMillon 100 Meters – 1st Sharissa Meeks 200 Meters – 2nd Meeks, 3rd Cassandra Barlow 400 Meters – 1st Sarah Huffman, 3rd Barlow, 4th Corrin Russell

800 Meters – 1st Tevy Wheatley, 4th Kilee Debrabander 1600 Meters – 2nd Wheatley, 4th Debrabander 3200 Meters – 2nd Emma Bisgaard, 3rd Maya Williams, 4th Caitlin Schalow High jump– 1st Darling, 3rd Huffman, 4th Dow Shot put – 2nd Alyssa Shumaker, 3rd Hope Earl, 4th Alecia Dennis Discus – 2nd Gabby Graves, 3rd Shumaker 400 Relay – 1st Meeks, Darling, McMillon, B. Williams 800 Relay – 1st Meeks, Darling, Huffman, Barlow 1600 Relay – 1st Wheatley, Russell, Huffman, Barlow 3200 Relay – 1st Wheatley, Russell, Debrabander, M. Williams “The girls did an outstanding job in horrible weather conditions,” said

coach Steve Wissink. “We have my smallest team ever as a number of girls that should be doing track decided not to, but the girls we have stepped up and were outstanding. “Kelsey Darling, Tevy Wheatley, Sharissa Meeks, Sarah Huffman, and Cassandra Barlow all scored in four events. We have a nice blend of veteran athletes and newcomers. We have a lot of work to do, but this was an amazing start to what looks like a really fun season.”

Danae Dow, at practice April 11, took first in the 300-meter hurdles at Sturgis on April 10. photo by John Hendler

photo by John Hendler photo by John Hendler

Kelsey Darling won the 100-meter hurdles and high jump at Sturgis Aptil 10.

MHS boys track defeated at Sturgis The Marshall High School boys track and field team opened its season April 10 with a 90-61 defeat at Sturgis. Marshall’s Lucas Blanchard had four victories on the day, winning both the 100 (11.58 seconds) and 200-meter (25.39) dashes as well as being part of two winning teams in the 400 (Isaiah Fountaine, Sergeo Brown, Jaquil Short) and 800-mete (Fountaine, Brown, Short) relays. Also taking first for Marshall was the 1600-meter relay team of Jesse Bouwens, Travis Mumaw, Bobby Owens and Jeremiah Grant. Individually, Owens placed first in the 300-meter hurdles (45.5), Bouwens finished first in the 400-meter dash (56.37) and Fountaine won the long jump (19’ 3”). Left: Jaquil Short was third in the 300 hurdles at Sturgis and was part of two winning relay teams

Right: Jake Esselink practicing the pole vault on April 11.

photos by John Hendler

Gabby Graves watches her discus throw at practice last Wednesday. Graves finished second at teh Sturgis meet on April 10.

Sell’s late goal lifts Marshall over Three Rivers 1-0 Vicki Sell’s unassisted goal with just under nine minutes remaining broke a scoreless tie and gave the Marshall girls varsity soccer team a 1-0 victory and remain unbeaten on the season after three games (2-01). For the game, Marshall outshot Three Rivers 18-3 and goalkeeper Monica Lubis had three saves in the shutout. “I was very pleased with how we started the game,” said Marshall coach Adrian Harkey. “We played, by far, the best soccer we've

played this year for the first 20 minutes of the game. We played quick and aggressive and had six shots in the first 10 minutes. If we continue to develop and can play like that throughout the season we will have a lot of fun this year. I think we will be a very dangerous team.” Today, the Redhawks host the Marshall Sports Festival with the first game getting underway at 10 a.m.

photo by John Hendler photo by John Hendler

Vicki Sell, seen here in a pre season scrimmage, scored the game winner for Marshall April 10 versus Three Rivers.

Tierra Orban brings the ball upfield during the first half versus Three Rivers.

Girls JV soccer wins big, stays undefeated

photo by John Hendler

Marshall’s Brittany Knightkeeps the ball inbounds and away from her Three Rivers counterpart.

Braving the cold

The Marshall High School girls junior varsity team improved its record to 2-0 following an 8-0 home win over Three Rivers on April 10. Chelsea Tobias, top left, led Marshall with four goals. Shannon Hicks, above right, No. 16, is greeted by teammates Sammi Price, No. 4 and Anyah Preston after Hicks scored the first of her two goals. Preston also scored a goal. At right: Price tries to get past the Three Rivers defender.

photo by John Hendler

This is spring? Working the soccer main gate entrance April 10 was Jewel Palmer who endured wind snow and wind chills in the 20s.

photos by John Hendler

MHS varsity baseball earns split with highly ranked Parchment Following a first game loss (5-4) at Parchment on April 11, the Marshall High School varsity baseball team took game two, 7-3, to earn a split against the top five-ranked team in the state. In game two, Marshall pitcher J.T. Hicks went the distance, striking out 13. Hicks was also 3 for 4 with a single, double and triple. Collin Neal had a pair of hits including a two-run double and Ryan Konkle had an RBI double as well. “Overall we were able to hit the ball to the right side moving runners over and did a nice job getting some bunts down,” said Marshall coach Trevor Kelly. “It was a very nice, unselfish win for the Redhawks against a Parchment team ranked in the top five

in the state.” In the opener, Kelly said Konkle was “outstanding” on the mound, pitching five innings and leaving the game with Marshall ahead. Neal took the loss as Parchment scored twice in the bottom of the sixth. Offensively, Chase Bennett was 3 for 3 while Hicks, Ben Walton, Neal, Dan Welke, and Mitch Konkle all had hits. Walton's hit was an RBI double off of Parchment ace pitcher Brady Vanderweele. The split evened Marshall’s record at 2-2. Today, Saturday, April 14, Marshall hosts the MArshall Sports Festival and is scheduled to play at 9:30 a.m.

J.T. Hicks pitched a complete game in the second game versus Parchment on April 11, striking out 13. Hicks also went 3 for 4 with a single, double and triple.

Ryan Konkle had an RBI double in game two versus Parchment and pitched five innings in game one.

Redhawk girls tennis hosts Marshall Sports Festival today

photos by John Hendler

The Marshall High School girls varsity tennis team hosts the Marshall Sports Festival today, Saturday, April 14 beginning at 10 a.m. On April 11, Marshall hosted Lakeview. Results were not available at press time. Above from left: Jamie Dimoff, Ashley Earl and Amanda Genise.

Marshall Red Cross swimming varsity lessons begin softball today swept at Red Cross swimming lessons at the Marshall High School begin its six-week sessions today, Saturday, April 14 Parchment Pool with weekly lessons running through May 19. The Marshall High School varsity softball team saw its season record evened to 2-2 following a doubleheader loss at Parchment on April 11 by scores of 10-0 and 11-1. Marshall’s only hit in game one came from Emily Parks. In game two, Parks, along with Katie Jarvis and Cassidy Crouch, each had singles. Today, Saturday, April 14, the softball team hosts the Marshall Sports Festival beginning at 10 a.m.

Level III-Level VI: 9-9:45 a.m. $37.50 Level II (ages 6+) 10-10:30 a.m., $30 Level I (ages 3-5)10:45- 11:15 a.m., $30 Parent/Tot (up to 3 years) 11:30-12 p.m., $30 Family Swim begins April 15 and will be held each Sunday from 2-4 p.m. and each Saturday beginning April 21 from 1-3 p.m. The cost is $4 per individual and $6 per family. Lap swim runs through June 9 at a cost of $2 per visit. Lap Swim is held Monday and Wednesday from 5:30-6:30 p.m.; Tuesday and Thursday from 6-7 a.m. and Saturdays from 121 p.m. A Competitive Stroke Clinic Begins April 16 and will run until May 11. The clinic will be held Monday through Friday from 4-5 p.m. The cost is $40 per participant. For more information, contact the pool at 269-781-1331 or online at marshall.k12.mi.us/community

Marshall JV baseball action

photos by John Hendler

Marshall JV baseball players Drew Maisner, left, with the RBI single and pitcher August Tierney April 11 versus Parchment.

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