Trenton Times, March 23 – April 25, 2023

Holiday happenings

Pancakes with the Easter Bunny

Join us on Sunday, March 26 at 9 a.m. for the Trenton Recreation Department’s biggest annual event, Pancakes with the Easter Bunny!

This is our biggest and most popular event that has been going on for well over a decade. Come visit our historic fire station and enjoy breakfast!

This is a free event but donations are accepted.

Our pancake breakfast provides pancakes, sausage and beverages.

Either before or after breakfast be sure to get a picture with the Easter Bunny. Check out our fire trucks and visit with your Trenton Firefighters!

This event is held at our downtown fire station 200 Maple street. Fun for the whole family and benefits our Trenton Firefighter Charities!

EGGSTRAVAGANZA

Stronghold Church in downtown Trenton will sponsor its Eggstravaganza, a free family fun event, on Saturday April 1 from 10 a.m. until noon.

The event will feature professional photos with the Easter Bunny, crafts, snacks, an adopt-a(stuffed) bunny booth and coffee and pastries for

Trenton Times celebrates first anniversary

This month marks the first anniversary of the return of the Trenton Times to our community and we could not be happier with how the first 12 months have worked out.

After the closing of the Trenton Trib at the end of 2021, the Times has stepped in and since then we have covered all the wonderful and exciting things that have happened in the community.

Things like the hockey team’s run to the state championship game in 2022 and the softball team’s run to the championship game in that sport.

We’ve covered the Summerfest – and the Winterfest – as well as covering all the things that go along with being a Michigan Trail town.

We were there as curbside recycling came to Trenton and when Mayor Steven Rzeppa told us about the future in his 2023 State of the City Address.

Along the way we have given the Trenton business community a place to connect with their customers through specific advertising programs.

The Trenton Times is a historic newspaper nameplate, born in the 1800s. It survived for decades

before finally being absorbed in the local newspaper mergers in the 1980s.

We are happy to have revived the storied name and hopefully we will be here for many years to come bringing you, the reader, all the best news and entertainment that Trenton has to offer.

The Trenton Time is one of five monthly newspapers under the Go Big Multimedia umbrella. The others are the Grosse Ile Grand, The Wyandotte Warrior, The Riverview Register and The Southgate Star.

Civic Commission looking for deserving residents

Each year the Trenton Civic Commission recognizes outstanding Trenton citizens for their contribution to our community at the Annual City Awards Banquet.

A variety of award categories are available and the commission invites everyone to nominate residents worthy of such honor.

Citizens can be recognized in one of five categories:

TRENTONITE OF THE YEAR

This is an individual who has provided extraordinary leadership and service to the entire Trenton community.

GOOD NEIGHBOR OF THE YEAR

This is an individual or family who has distinguished themselves through their outstanding contributions to their neighborhood.

SENIOR CITIZEN OF THE YEAR

This is an individual, who is at least 60 years of age by December 31, 2022, and has served our community and

Please select nomination category below:

Trentonite of the Year

This is an individual who has provided extraordinary leadership and service to the entire Trenton community.

Good Neighbor of the Year

This is an individual or family who has distinguished themselves through their outstanding contributions to their neighborhood.

Senior Citizen of the Year

This is an individual, who is at least 60 years of age by December 31, 2022, and has served our community and residents with their time and efforts.

Nominator Contact Information: Name: _________________________________________Age:

residents with their time and efforts.

OUTSTANDING WOMAN

This woman, who is 60 years or younger on December 31, 2022 and has contributed and/or volunteered their time and energy to benefit our community.

OUTSTANDING MAN

This man, who is 60 years or younger on December 31, 2022, has contributed and/or volunteered their time and energy to benefit our community.

The nomination deadline is March

Outstanding Woman

31. For more information call 734-6757300.

The Trenton Civic commission is a 12-member advisory commission to coordinate and review all requests for civic events occurring within the city, such as the Christmas Parade, Memorial Day Parade, Bi-annual City-Wide Garage Sales, Easter Egg Hunt, City Awards Banquet, and organizational fund-raisers.

This woman, who is age 60 years or younger on December 31, 2022 and has contributed and/or volunteered their time and energy to benefit our community.

Outstanding Man

This man, who is age 60 years or younger on December 31, 2022, has contributed and/or volunteered their time and energy to benefit our community.

Phone: _________________________ Email: ________________________________________________

Nominator Contact Information:

Name: _________________________________________Age: ____________Address: ______________________________________________________

Phone: _________________________ Email: ________________________________________________

Briefly tell us why this person should receive this award (please attach additional sheet if needed)

Downriver Business’ Best Kept Secret?

Mark Tremper, Vice-President of Marketing & Business Development

Downriver Community Federal Credit Union

Hundreds of Downriver businesses have found tremendous value from the “Grow Your Business” Workshop Series, yet this unique opportunity hosted by the Downriver Community Federal Credit Union seems to be the best kept secret available to Downriver businesses. Each workshop in the series features topics relating to sales, marketing, and personal development, and is presented by a local, national, or international personal and business growth expert on the 3rd Wednesday of each month from 8:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m.

For over 15 years, hundreds of Downriver businesses have found

tremendous value from a monthly workshop presented by the Downriver Community Federal Credit Union called the “Grow Your Business” Series. The series is normally held on the 3rd Wednesday of each month from 8:00 AM to 10:00 AM and is designed to help people gain the knowledge and skills they need to grow their business in both prosperous and challenging economic times. Each workshop is presented by a local, national, or international personal and business growth expert on a topic relating to sales, marketing, and personal development

To date, there have been well over 200 workshops featuring a diverse line-up of speakers and topics, such as Michael Angelo Caruso, “Being the Best”; Billye Thompson, “Build Your Business Using LinkedIn”; Kurt David,“Face Change Like a Champion”; Josh Linkner, “Disciplined Dreaming: How to Drive Breakthrough Creativity”; Shawn

Duperon, “Demystifying Media: The Real Scoop on How to Get Free Press & Publicity”; and many others.

This year’s topics have or will include “Building a Stand-Out Brand with Behavioral Marketing” (Jay Johnson); “The Book Exchange: Books to Help You Grow Your Business, “Adding a Spark of Disney to Your Company” (Richard Paul), and “The Importance of Career Planning and Long Term Success” (Jim Jump).

“Downriver Credit Union is committed to providing resources that help people accomplish great things in their personal and business lives,” says Robert La Palme, Downriver CU’s President & CEO, “and these workshops have made a positive impact on hundreds of people in our community for many years now.”

The workshops are held at Downriver CU’s Southgate Office

(15261 Trenton Rd) in their Community Room, a multi-purpose room used for both Credit Union and community-oriented events, as well as by local community organizations such as the Downriver Business Association, Southern Wayne County Regional Chamber, Southgate Rotary, Downriver Toastmasters, and others.

A small registration fee of $5.00 is being charged for those who would like to attend the workshops, which includes breakfast, networking, and the workshop. Anyone with an account at Downriver Community Federal Credit Union may attend at no charge.

For more information about the workshop series, please contact Mark Tremper at 313-386-2200 x1202 or visit www.DownriverCU.com/ GrowYourBusiness.

Continued from page 1

adults.

All activities will be open the full two hours so come at your convenience.

There will be lots of fun Easter stations for your kids to enjoy - plus, coffee and treats for the parents.

Come enjoy yourself and get photos with our Easter bunny with a free digital image and more. Invite your friends and family and join us!

Stronghold Church is located in downtown Trenton at 2714 West Jefferson Trenton.

MARSHMALLOW DROP

The Wayne County, along with the Trenton Recreation department will host the annual Marshmallow Drop at Elizabeth Park on Friday, April 7 at 9 a.m.

A blizzard of 20,000 marshmallows will fill the sky as they tumble from the Easter Bunny’s helicopter. Those marshmallows can be redeemed for prizes. Each child only needs one marshmallow to get a prize at this holiday classic!

Also, there will be a special colored plastic egg. The participant who finds the colored egg will receive a special prize.

The event is open to kids 12 and under.

This is a free community event and no registration is required.

There are three drops at the Marshmallow Drop: Ages 4 and younger, ages 5-8 and ages 9 and older.

For more information, call 734-2611990 or go visit wyanecounty.com.

TRENTON COMMUNITY EASTER EGG HUNT

The Trenton Civic Commission will sponsor its annual Community Easter Egg Hunt on the grounds of the Westfield Center on Saturday, April 8.

The fun gets underway at 10 a.m.

There will be refreshments and goodie bags and participants will have a chance to get a photo with the Easter Bunny.

There will be separate egg hunts for children under the age of 2, 3-5, 6-8 and 9 and up.

The event will take place rain, snow or shine.

Register for TECH Academy, a free summer program for future skilled workers

High school juniors and seniors in Trenton and the rest of southeast Michigan who are interested in skilled trade careers can now apply for the BASF TECH Academy sponsored by BASF Corporation.

This week-long summer program will run from June 19 - 23 at the Wayne County Community College District’s Downriver Campus located at 21000 Northline Road, Taylor, MI, 48180.

During TECH Academy, students will combine morning classroom activities with afternoon visits to a wide variety of company workplaces to learn first-hand about technical careers and the education necessary for those jobs including manufacturing, robotics, auto, lab operations, and first responders.

“BASF’s TECH Academy provides a unique opportunity for curious teens to engage with professionals to learn about skilled trades,” said Joseph Dellamorte, BASF Site Manager in Wyandotte.

“We hope this opens up a new

Susie is Wonderful!

Susie responded quickly to our request for assistance in selling my brother’s house. She was easy to talk with, warm and inspired con dence. We had to return to our home across the country and Susie handled local things that needed to be taken care of in a generous and conscientious way. She arranged for remote signing of the closing documents and she kept in touch throughout the whole process, ensuring I knew what was happening. I would highly recommend her to everyone!

— Maureen S.

avenue for students to learn about a technical career path outside of the standard four-year degree program.”

The program, funded by BASF, is free for students and is part of BASF’s Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) education and workforce development efforts.

Space is limited and applications are being accepted through April 10, 2023, by scanning the QR code. Questions about the program should be directed to marika.diamond@basf. com.

ABOUT BASF

BASF Corporation, headquartered in Florham Park, New Jersey, is the North American affiliate of BASF SE, Ludwigshafen, Germany. BASF has approximately 16,000 employees in North America and had sales of $25.7 billion in 2022. For more information about BASF’s North American operations, visit www.basf.com/us.

9105 MACOMB GROSSE ILE

Friends of the Detroit River’s Spring Cleanup is April 22

Come join The Friends of the Detroit River (FDR) on Saturday, April 22 for their annual Lower Detroit River Cleanup event.

The event will start out from the Trenton Rotary Park boat launch at the foot of Harrison St. on the Detroit River. This year the event is sponsored by the DTE Foundation and EA Engineering, Science, and Technology, Inc.

For nearly two decades, FDR has been fortunate to attract a small army of dedicated volunteers. What makes their clean up event unique, from most other such clean-up events that take place in our local watersheds each spring, is that theirs relies on a small flotilla of boats to get their volunteers out to the various islands and shorelines that are only accessible by water.

Many of these sites are the recipient of much of the trash and debris that makes its way into the river from spring storm runoff and if it wasn’t for the dedicated work of their volunteers, this trash and debris would continue to collect along these otherwise inaccessible shorelines.

This year volunteers will meet at Trenton Rotary Park, in Trenton, for the

pre-cleanup orientation at 9 a.m. At that time volunteers who wish to get out on the river will be paired up with a boat and be assigned a cleanup site.

Volunteers should dress for the weather, wear boots, have gloves and bring an extra life jacket if they have one.

Those with boats on a trailer will be able to use the park’s boat launch to launch their boats free of charge or drive their boat up to the park to dock and pick up volunteers.

For those who would like to help out, but aren’t able to get out on the water, FDR is always in need of volunteers to help with shore-based cleanup locations as well as helping including unloading the boats as they come back to the park. Lunch will be provided to all who help out at the event.

This is a great opportunity to participate in a community event that gives back to the Detroit River.

If you have a boat that you would be able to supply, give us a call at 1-734676- 4626. You can also get additional information and register for the event on FDR’s web site at www.detroitriver.org.

Volunteers bring in boat loads of debris and litter picked up off uninhabited islands and dikes in the lower Detroit River to unload at the boat ramp at Trenton Rotary Park.

TRENTON PARKS & RECREATION

Trenton Parks and Recreation Come Out and Play at the Capitol Essay Contest

The Trenton Parks and Recreation department invites your child to participate in the mParks Come out and Play event at the Michigan State Capitol.

This exciting day will bring more than 1,200 youth to the Capitol grounds to experience,

explore and play in the outdoors. The day will create an opportunity for state elected officials and their staff members to view the impact of parks and recreation within the local community.

On the Capitol lawn, stations will be set up for groups to rotate through during their visit. The

Lawn will be divided in to 4 colored sections (Red, Blue, Green and Yellow). Groups will plan to spend 30-40 minutes in each section and have the ability to explore all the activities in the section.

Those interested in participating, please read the requirements listed below.

• Must be currently in grades K-6

• $5 fee

• Potential participants must submit an answer to their assigned prompt.

• Participants are required to bring their own labeled lunch, a labeled water bottle, and wear close-toe athletic shoes. They will receive a t-shirt to wear for the event.

• Transportation to and from Kennedy Recreation Center will be provided. Parks and Recreation staff and volunteers will accompany essay winners to the Capitol

• Essays may be hand written or typed.

• Essays must be submitted by April 12th, 2023.

Those interested in participating, please refer to the correct prompt below.

• K-1: “What do you like about living in Trenton?”

Requirements: 3-5 sentences (1 paragraph). 5 sentences max.

• 2-3: “What do you like about living in Michigan?”

Requirements: 12-16 sentences (3 paragraphs). 3 paragraphs max.

• 4-6: “What do you like about living in the United States?”

Requirements: One page max.

There will be a MAX of 15 participants selected.

Complete and return with essay to Trenton Parks & Recreation

Participant Name: ___________________________________ 22/23 Grade Level: _________________

Participant D.O.B: ______________________ Participant Shirt Size: ____________________________

Parent/Guardian Name: _______________________________ Phone Number: ___________________

Address: _____________________________________________________________________________

Email: _______________________________________________________________________________

Any Important Notes you would like us to know? ______________________________________________________________

Selected participants will be notified they have won on April 28th, 2023 Trenton

Florida Keys Vacation!

Beautiful Two Bedroom

Luxury Condo in Key Largo

Ahhhhh, you’re on vacation…

Your morning in paradise starts with sipping your coffee sitting at your nautical teak table overlooking lush tropical landscaping on your private balcony or taking a short stroll to the tiki hut at the end of the pier to watch the sunrise over the Atlantic. The perfect start in paradise.

After a fun filled day of boating, fishing, scuba diving or soaking up the sun relaxing by one of the largest pools in the Florida Keys or relaxing by the pool overlooking the marina and Atlantic ocean, or even sinking your toes in the sand like the song says “only worry in the world is the tide going to reach your chair” on our private upland sunning beach. There is always something for everyone!

Paradiseisn’toveryetasyouwalkthrough yourownprivatecourtyard,a brickedpatio gardenwithrelaxingfurniture,thenupjust onefl ightof stairs,yourprivateoasisawaits you…whereyoucanunwindfroma funfi lled day. Youcancookyourfreshday’scatchin yourfullyequippednewkitchenwithlotsof naturallightglisteningoff thesolidsurface countertopsandthestunningstainless steelappliancesandeatin comfort. Or go“outonthetown”andrelaxin someof thebestrestaurantsin theareawhereyou arepampered asyourfreshcatchis being preparedtoyourspecificationsasyourelax drinking a glass of wine watching the beautiful FloridaBaySunset. Theperfectendtoa wonderfuldayin paradise. Afterdinnerretreattoyour1480sq.ft.Newly DecoratedBeautifultwobedroomtownhouse withasmartopenfl oorplan,14’vaulted ceilings. RelaxwithELEGANT TommyBahama furnishingsand a 65”HDTVin thegreatroom. Nowtimefora perfectnight’srestasyou enjoyawonderfulviewfromthemaster bedroomgivingthefeelingof nestlingin thetrees. Abeautifullytropicaldraped four-poster,kingsizebedwithultracomfort mattressassuresa perfectnight’ssleepand offerstheidealspottoviewthe48”fl atscreen TV. Anensuitebathfeaturesa cornerspatub, theperfectwaytoenda dayof sightseeing.

Welcometo901MarinersClub! Wearegladtohaveyouhere!

Stacking up the wins Girls basketball team is a Downriver League powerhouse

HANK MINCKIEWICZ

When you are a program at a school loaded with good and great programs, it is sometimes easy to get lost in the forest of wins and titles and trophies.

Take, for instance, the Trenton girls basketball program.

At Trenton you hear a lot about football and baseball and the tennis and swimming teams are historically among the best in the area and, of course, the hockey team takes up a lot of oxygen, but it is not a stretch to say that the Trojans have been the best girls basketball program in the Downriver League since before the pandemic came around and scrambled all of our schedules.

Four years ago, veteran coach Chuck Perez came to Trenton. Prior to that, he had spent nine highly successful years at Allen Park, leading the Jaguars to two league and three district titles. Perez spent a year coaching ninth-grade boys at Woodhaven before he accepted the Trenton job.

While at Woodhaven, Perez teamed up with Adam Sayre, a Woodhaven native and graduate. Sayre became Perez’s assistant coach and when Perez came to Trenton, Sayre was happy to come along, too.

They’ve made a great team and they have been a great hire for Trenton.

Since Perez and Sayre arrived on the scene four years ago, Trenton girls basketball has been the big kid on the Downriver League block.

The Trojans have won three league titles in that span and the year they did not win they finished second and lost to the league champ – Carlson – by one point.

Perez, who has around 200 career victories, has those three league titles and an amazing four-year record of

55-6 in Downriver League games. The only league teams to have beaten a Perez-coached Trenton team are Woodhaven, Carlson, Allen Park, Lincoln Park and Wyandotte. Only Woodhaven has more than one win over the Trojans and they have two.

This year Trenton started the season with three non-league losses and then the Trorjans lost a close league-opener to Allen Park.

When the winless team looked to their coaches they saw no panic.

“We always preach, ‘on to the next play,’” said Perez. “We were 0-4, but we knew we were OK.”

In one of those early games, Trenton got blown out by a strong Farmington Hills Mercy team. Instead of forgetting the 30-point loss, Perez used it as a teaching tool.

“We played great against Mercy in the third period and we outscored them,” he said. “We used that fact. We’d always look back to that quarter

and show the girls how well they can play.”

Perez’s teaching and coaching paid off with huge dividends. After starting 0-4, Trenton went on to have an 18-5 season, 15-1 in league play, post an 18-game winning streak and win the 2022-23 league title.

And that three-point loss to Allen Park to start the league season?

The Trojans took care of that in late January when they went to Allen Park and beat the Jags by 14 points. The Jags finished the year tied for second with Woodhaven, The Trojans beat the Warriors by 19 in their first meeting and by one on overtime in their second.

Perez said he learned about basketball and about coaching while a junior high and high school student at Dearborn Fordson. He credits former coaches John Kreger and Richard Stehlik for instilling him with his basic coaching philosophy.

He also credits Bill Borg, his assistant while he was coaching at Allen Park. Borg was the former head coach at Gabriel Richard and Perez said his input was invaluable.

“He could have gone to coach anywhere, he decided to stay with me for many of our successful years,” Perez said.

The philosophy that Perez has developed revolves around an emphasis on defense and a strong work ethic. There is also a heavy dose of team building. Perez spends long hours before and during the season building the sense that every team member relies on every other team member.

It also hasn’t hurt the Trenton coaching staff that, without fail, the teams they have had at Trenton have been excellent students.

“We never, ever have to worry

League champ swimmers finish up at state finals

The deep and talented Trenton swim team, which was undefeated during the regular Downriver League season, capped a league championship year by winning the Downriver League Meet at Wyandotte on Feb. 24.

The Trojans, who had three individual championships, scored 816 points to easily outdistance runner-up Woodhaven, which scored 594.

Wyandotte (514), Allen Park (448), Dearborn Edsel Ford (251), Carlson (231) and Lincoln Park/Southgate (104) finished the meet in that order.

For Trenton, state-meet qualifier Zachary Schoen won two events. The freshman was first in the 200 freestyle with a time of 1 minute and 51.54 seconds and he won the 500 freestyle in 5:01.19.

The Trojans took both second and third in the 500 freestyle, as Schoen was followed home by teammates Ryan Bradburn (5:18.12) and Carl Pate (5:23.34).

Enrique Alcantar was the Downriver

League Meet champ in the butterfly, swimming 54.47 to capture first place. Alcantar finished second in the 200 IM (2:03.42) and he was on two top-three relays. He joined up with Schoen, Ethan Dorey and Sean Laney for a second-place finish in the 400 freestyle relay (3:28.32) and he teamed up with Austin Kettler, Mitchell Caldwell and Drew Martin for a thirdplace finish in the 200 freestyle relay (1:35.90).

The group of Dorey, Laney, Martin and Kaleb Cunnien (1:46.81) was third in the 200 medley relay.

After winning the league championship, a dozen Trojans attended the MHSAA Division 3 state finals at Oakland University.

At the final for Trenton were Schoen, Alcantara, Cunnien, Martin, Kettler, Dorey, Laney, Brandon Watkins, Will Taylor, Jonah Beaudrie, Douglas Tank and Jacob Smith.

The Trojans did not score at the finals.

STACKING

Continued from page 11

about the classroom,” Perez said. This year’s team GPA was around 3.7, said the coach. Under Perez, Trenton teams have been cited many times for academic proficiency by the league and by the Michigan High School Athletic Association.

When this year’s Michigan High School Athletic Association district tournament began, Trenton opened the tournament by trouncing Monroe 40-18.

Bri Thomas had 18 points and Malyah Bynum had 17 to lead the team that night.

Two nights later, however, the Trojans 18-game winning streak and their season came to a close with a 58-27 loss to Bedford. The

Mules were not able to do much after winning the district crown as they lost to Wayne Memorial in the regionals semifinals.

After losing to Bedford, Perez said he had his team sit on the bench and watch the Mules celebrate and collect their trophy. It was not punishment, it was motivation.

Perez and Sayre both admit that the lack of a district championship trophy is a bit of a hole in Trenton’s resume and, with a veteran team returning next year, they hope to correct that.

“I had them sit there and watch (Bedford after the game),” Perez admitted. “I want them to be hungry for it. (A district title) is obviously our next goal.”

Based on past performance, it would be wise to avoid betting against Perez and his squad reaching that goal.

Trojans hockey season come to premature close

At the 14:40 mark of the second period of Trenton’s March 4 Michigan High School Athletic Association Division 2 state quarterfinal game against U-D Jesuit, Trojan Carter Allen scored. Donovan Durbin assisted.

No one knew it at the time, but that was to be Trenton’s last goal of the 2022-23 season.

U-D tied the game midway through the second period and, after a scoreless third period, the Cubs scored at 5:37 of overtime, ending the game and ending Trenton’s season.

The Trojans, who won two state playoff games and a regional championship, finished the year with a 20-8 record.

The quarterfinal game was as close as close could be with never more than a goal separating the two teams. The score was tied for long stretches of the game and the shots on goal were nearly even. U-D had 27 shots at Trenton netminder Noah Miklos and Trenton responded with 26 shots at the U-D net.

U-D, it seems, simply had Trenton’s number this season. Of Trenton’s eight losses on the year, three came against U-D and two of them were one-goal games.

Despite third success against Trenton, U-D finished the year with a 14-14 record and they were beaten handily by Byron Center 8-4 in a Division 2 state semifinal game. Byron Center was then beaten by Birmingham Brother Rice 4-2 in the

championship game.

Rice had walked into the final with four easy wins, beating Birmingham Groves 8-0 and White Lake Lakeland 9-2 in the regionals, Alpena 4-1 in the quarterfinals and Saginaw Heritage 11-3 in the semis.

Rice, which beat Trenton in the only meeting between the two teams this year, finished with a 21-9 record.

Trenton reached the quarterfinal game against U-D by winning its regional with victories over Wyandotte and Allen Park.

Trenton easily handled Wyandotte in the regional semifinals, 8-0, but faced a real battle with Allen Park in the regional final before winning 2-1 in overtime.

The title game was 1-1 after the first period and it remained that way until the 2:29 mark of overtime when Trenton’s Nathan Sparks ended it with a goal. Will Barrett and Boston Bennett each drew assists on the game-winner.

It was a bit of a revenge game for the Trojans, who, despite outshooting the Jags by a wide margin, lost a regular-season contest to them, 3-2.

The Trojans won the shotson-goal battle by a wide margin in the playoff game, too but Allen Park goalie Jack Miller was a wall for most of the night. In the end, he stopped 55 of 57 Trenton shots. In the Trenton goal Miklos stopped 22 of 23 Jag shots.

Josh Bogema scored the first Trenton goal of the game with assists from Blake Boike and Owen McAlister.

The semifinal game against Roosevelt did not make it the full 51 minutes as Trenton scored four times in the first period, two times in the second and two more times in the first five minutes of the third period to invoke the 8-goal mercy rule.

The scoring was spread through the Trenton line up with Bennett leading the way with two markers. Individual goal-getters were Sparks, McAlister, Barrett, Micah Knieding, Jacob Wiseman and Finn Aitkens. Barrett, Sparks and Bennett each had four point nights and Landon Leone had three assists.

Photos by Dave Chapman

Trenton goalie Noah Miklos makes a save against U-D.

Landon Leone (2) handles the puck.

GREAT NEW GLASSES, SAVE SOME MONEY!

Many people - most, perhaps - go to an optometrist, get an eye exam and then follow the lady in the white coat over to the wall of frames and pick out a new set of glasses.

The story ends with the customer paying way more than he or she ever expected.

If that pretty much describes you, Bob Schmittou says there is something you should know: He can save you money, maybe lots of money.

Schmittou, a proud military veteran, owns New Eyes Optical, located on 1616 Ford Avenue, right at 16th Street in Wyandotte.

There are no doctors at New Eyes, just lots of frames and Schmittou, who can get you into fashionable new glasses for a lot less than all of the other chains and franchises out there.

Just bring your eyeglass prescription to him and see what kind of magic he can work for you.

“I am kind of like what the pharmacy is to your doctor,” Schmittou said. “Your doctor writes you a prescription. He doesn’t try to sell you the drugs. You go to the pharmacy. The same is true with us. You bring us a prescription and we will fill it.”

New Eyes Optical does not accept insurance, but their low prices mean that is often not an issue.

Schmittou has been in the eyeglass game for a long time. He enlisted in the Army after graduating from Lincoln Park High School and Uncle Sam sent him to school to learn how to make eyeglasses.

He did that in the Army for nearly four years and then worked for Lenscrafters and for private doctors after that.

In 2012 he opened New Eyes Optical and has been there ever since.

Schmittou said he has over 1,300 frames in his building and can make arrangements to get others if customers come in with a specific brand or style in mind.

For sunglass lovers, Schmittou said he has the largest selection of Ray Ban and Oakley sunglasses in the area.

If you come in, you will deal with Schmittou himself. He and his wife Pam are the only employees. Schmittou does the fitting of the eyewear, and Pam orders frames and keeps the shop looking fresh by arranging the frame displays and decorating.

So, if you are in the market for new glasses, would like a little personal attention and a really low price, give Schmittou a call at 313-587-4204, drop an email at neweyesoptical2012@gmail. com or contact them through their Facebook page, Facebook.com/neweyesoptical.

Trojans’ hoop season ends in districts

The Trenton boys basketball team played perhaps its best game of the season and earned its biggest win of the year in the first round of the MHSAA Division 1 state playoffs the first week of March.

Coach Jame Babyak’s team hung tough with Monroe all night long and snatched away victory with a strong overtime showing. With the help of the extra period, the Trojans won 51-44.

The fun ended two nights later for the Trojansm, however, as they ran into undefeated Downriver League champ Woodhaven in the semifinal and fell 66-30. It was Trenton’s third loss this season to the Warriors and left the Trojans with a final overall record of 7-15.

Woodhaven went on to beat Bedford 49-44 to win its second consecutive district championship

and advance to the regional round, where it was beaten 81-48 by Detroit Cass Tech.

In the district semifinal victory over Monroe, Trenton took an early lead, but watched as Monroe fought back. The game was tied after one period and it was 17-17 at halftime as each team played strong defense and was patient on offense.

Monroe entered the fourth quarter leading by two and they maintained a slim each as the quarter wound down.

With fewer than 20 seconds remaining in the game, Mike Alexander got loose for a lay-up and his bucket tied the game and led to the overtime.

To get to that game-tying shot, Trenton had to work hard and get some free-throw misses from Monroe.

Trenton had to commit multiple fouls to get Monroe into the free-throw bonus situation. When they did, things worked out as a Monroe player missed the front end of a one-and-one and Ashton Rooney snared the rebound. That possession led to Alexander’s tying bucket.

The extra period was pretty much all blue and gold as Jacob Keresi scored the forest basket of overtime, Eathan Fritz hit a back-breaking threepoint shot and Rooney iced the contest by going 6-for-6 at the free-throw line.

For the game, CJ Haddad and Keresi each had 12 points. Alexander and Fritz each had 10 and Rooney had 8.

Photos by Dave Chapman

Here comes the sun!

Spring sports season is right around the corner

JAMES TRUSH

Spring sports officially held their first tryouts and practices on Monday, March 13. There are many reasons to get excited for the upcoming season in addition to the weather continuing to cooperate with us.

Trenton welcomes first year Coach Dillon Dossey as the new boys varsity golf coach. He said he is excited to take over the team after 19-year veteran Coach Steve Burk retired last year. Having played at Trenton for Coach Burk himself, Dillon is excited to navigate the team moving forward.

The boys open up tournament play on April 20.

TENNIS

Girls Tennis is looking forward to getting the season going under Coach Rich Menzel, who is starting his 8th year as the girls varsity coach. Menzel said he is thrilled over the amount of athletes returning and also looking forward to new athletes joining the program

for their first time.

The girls opened up league play at Lincoln Park on April 11.

TRACK

Boys and girls track is introducing a first year Head Coach in Jared Rieden, who is also a new math teacher at Trenton High School. He will work hand-in-hand with Tom

Bridges, who will be starting his 30th season as the head track coach at Trenton High School. Both coaches are excited to get going. The first invitational was March 25 at Eastern Michigan University.

CREW

Boys and girls crew are coached by Matt Irvin, who is entering his second year,

and first-year Coach Cam Colwell. The team has been working hard in the offseason and still recruiting for any newcomers to the sport.

The dock at Wyandotte Boat Club should be in by the end of March and the coaches and team have been preparing during dryland workouts in hopes of an early spring.

The team’s first regatta is

April 29th in the Hebda Cup at Wyandotte Boat Club.

SOCCER

Girls soccer is led by Coach Mike Hatfield who is entering his 12th year at the helm. This year’s team returns many veterans and is looking to build on past accolades in hopes of an exciting and long season.

The girls open up their season at home against Riverview on April 3.

BASEBALL

Boys baseball has been coached by Todd Szalka for the past 16 years. He is also welcoming first year Assistant Coach Randy Woods, who has volunteered with the program in previous seasons.

Coach said he is thrilled to have so many players back and ready to get to work. This season should be fun!

The boys open up their season on April 8 with a doubleheader against Ypsilanti.

See SPRING, Page 17

SPRING

Continued from page 16

SOFTBALL

Girls Softball Coach Rick Tanguay is entering his fourth year as he was hired just prior to the pandemic. After losing that inaugural season to COVID, coach Tanguay has enjoyed his first couple of years with the team. This year he is welcoming new assistant coach Makenna Tanguay to the staff.

This year also looks to be exciting as many of the girls that helped make that state tournament finals run last year are back and ready for more.

We Provide Peace of Mind

With spring sports ramping up, we encourage everyone to come out and enjoy all of the sports we offer. We are proud of all of our programs, coaches, and athletes and hope you can stop by to share the memories. Visit trentonathletics.com for up to date schedules, and follow us on twitter @onwardtrenton or facebook @TrentonHSSports.

Thank you for your continued support of Trenton Athletics.

Go Trojans! Onward Trenton!

Bovitz CPA

The ladies open up their season on April 6 against Monroe St. Mary Catholic Central.

Trenton High School is a part of the Downriver Career Technical Consortium (DCTC) serving the school districts of Airport, Flat Rock, Gibralter, Grosse Ile, Huron, Riverview, Southgate, Woodhaven, as well as Trenton. The DCTC offers a program where local districts share their technical and academic programs. Students interested may participate at the beginning of their junior year and continue into their senior year.

The Trenton High School Technical Consortium plan of study is a coordinated secondary/post-secondary program that prepares students for the majority of jobs in the technical areas studied. Emphasis is placed on integrating academic and career technical courses so that students are better prepared for the advanced courses required by technical programs following their high school education

Students participating in the program have the opportunity to earn up to 24 college credits upon completion of the two year program. Students will participate in class activities on site at Trenton High School and attend field trips to WCCCD

**New CTE program- State Approved in 21-22 school year.

Level 2-4 courses require the entry Level 1 course in that specific program. *Criminal Justice is a Wayne County Community College Dual Enrollment Program and requires an application process for admission which can be accessed at: http://www.dctc-cte.org

All career and technical education programs follow the Trenton Public Schoolsí policies of nondiscrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin or ancestry, sex, disability, height, weight, or marital status in all programs, services, activities, and employment. In addition, arrangements can be made to ensure that the lack of English language proficiency is not a barrier to admission or participation

Friends of the Detroit River’s Spring Cleanup is April 22

Come join The Friends of the Detroit River (FDR) on Saturday, April 22 for their annual Lower Detroit River Cleanup event.

The event will start out from the Trenton Rotary Park boat launch at the foot of Harrison St. on the Detroit River. This year the event is sponsored by the DTE Foundation and EA Engineering, Science, and Technology, Inc.

For nearly two decades, FDR has been fortunate to attract a small army of dedicated volunteers. What makes their clean up event unique, from most other such clean-up events that take place in our local watersheds each spring, is that theirs relies on a small flotilla of boats to get their volunteers out to the various islands and shorelines that are only accessible by water.

Many of these sites are the recipient of much of the trash and debris that makes its way into the river from spring storm run-off and if it wasn’t for the dedicated work of their volunteers, this trash and debris would continue to collect along these otherwise inaccessible shorelines.

This year volunteers will meet at Trenton Rotary Park, in Trenton, for the

pre-cleanup orientation at 9 a.m. At that time volunteers who wish to get out on the river will be paired up with a boat and be assigned a cleanup site.

Volunteers should dress for the weather, wear boots, have gloves and bring an extra life jacket if they have one.

Those with boats on a trailer will be able to use the park’s boat launch to launch their boats free of charge or drive their boat up to the park to dock and pick up volunteers.

For those who would like to help out, but aren’t able to get out on the water, FDR is always in need of volunteers to help with shore-based cleanup locations as well as helping including unloading the boats as they come back to the park.

Lunch will be provided to all who help out at the event.

This is a great opportunity to participate in a community event that gives back to the Detroit River.

If you have a boat that you would be able to supply, give us a call at 1-734676- 4626. You can also get additional information and register for the event on FDR’s web site at www.detroitriver. org.

Volunteers bring in boat loads of debris and litter picked up off uninhabited islands and dikes in the lower Detroit River to unload at the boat ramp at Trenton Rotary Park.

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People stood up to save Humbug Marsh 25 years ago

JOHN HARTIG

On that September day in 1998, more than 1,000 rain-soaked and determined people stood up for what they felt was right.

People from all over Michigan and beyond attended the public hearing at Gibraltar Carlson High School, so many that there were traffic jams and the fire marshal had to lock the doors to prevent a larger crowd.

The issue at hand was residential development of the last mile of natural shoreline on the U.S. mainland of the Detroit River – Humbug Marsh.

The vast majority of these citizens strongly opposed the development and were in favor of preserving the rich and diverse coastline that was part of their home and heritage.

By allowing the development to proceed, they knew the precious life and rich history would forever be lost. This tremendous support was the key catalyst in saving Humbug Marsh and establishing the Detroit River International Wildlife Refuge.

The people spoke and those in charge listened.

By doing so, this area now belongs to wildlife and people for their stewardship, study and enjoyment.

Humbug Marsh will forever stand as a site of great determination and love by those in the Downriver community.

For centuries, the Wyandot of Anderdon Nation was attracted to Humbug Marsh for its natural resources and strategic location and revered it as sacred.

This 410-acre tract of undeveloped land is located along the lower end of the Trenton Channel of the Detroit River in the cities of Trenton and Gibraltar, Michigan. It consists of a coastal marsh, a barrier island and uplands.

In 1899, a fisherman lived on Humbug Island. During the 1930s and 1940s, a hunting club operated out of a cabin on the island and enjoyed waterfowl hunting in Humbug Marsh. During the 1940s and 1950s, the uplands of Humbug Marsh were farmed for alfalfa and corn, and sheep were periodically grazed on a portion of the land. During World War II, military vehicles were brought in by rail line at the adjacent Monsanto

Chemical Plant and temporarily stored on a portion of Humbug Marsh land.

During the 1950s, Humbug Marsh and Island were purchased by the former McLouth Steel Company for possible future expansion of operations that never materialized. Steel company executives used the marsh as their private waterfowl hunting grounds.

Then in the late 1980s, a company called Marina Ventures purchased Humbug Marsh for development into homes, a golf course and a marina. This first attempt to develop Humbug Marsh failed because it was not financially viable.

Waste Management purchased Humbug Marsh around 1992 and a conservation easement was placed on its wetlands, Humbug Island and a small portion of uplands in 1993 to protect them from future development.

This all changed in 1997 when a company called Made In Detroit bought Humbug Marsh with grand plans of luxury homes, a bridge to the island, a golf course, marina and more. This developer bought the property knowing that the conservation easement was in place.

For the proposed development to proceed, the developer would need several permits that would require public hearings.

That first public hearing was held at Gibraltar Carlson High School in 1998 and people from all over Michigan attended. People spoke out in opposition, the permits were not issued and eventually Humbug Marsh was purchased out of bankruptcy court in 2004 for $4.1 million by the Trust for Public Land to become the cornerstone of the Detroit River International Wildlife Refuge.

Humbug Marsh is now protected in perpetuity for wildlife as part of the National Wildlife Refuge System and plays a unique role in bringing conservation to cities as part of one of a few urban refuges in the nation.

It should be noted that in 2006, Made In Detroit filed a complaint in federal court claiming there was collusion between environmental activists and regulators to slow down or complicate matters for the project. Eventually, the case went to mediation and was settled for $5 million.

Locally, the saving of Humbug

Marsh was viewed as a citizen victory. Indeed, citizens and grassroots organizations like Friends of the Detroit River, Sierra Club, Detroit Audubon and others banded together for nearly 10 years in a campaign to preserve Humbug Marsh. Others like Congressman John Dingell, other local elected officials, scientists and natural resource managers also played critical roles. This tremendous public support was a key catalyst in establishing the international wildlife refuge and Humbug Marsh became its cornerstone.

There are over 2,400 Ramsar Wetland of International Importance designations worldwide, 41 in the United States, and only one in Michigan – Humbug Marsh. The Ramsar Convention on Wetlands is an international treaty that was signed in Ramsar, Iran in 1971 that provides a framework for voluntary international protection of wetlands.

Humbug Marsh is considered an internationally important wetland because of its ecological importance in SEE MARSH, Page 23

Bald eagles and eastern fox snakes are among the unique creatures that inhabit the Humbug Marsh

MARSH

Continued from page 22

the Detroit River corridor and the Great Lakes Basin Ecosystem. Oak trees on site have been aged at over 300 years old and were alive when Cadillac founded Detroit in 1701.

Indeed, the Michigan Natural Features Inventory has ranked this community as globally imperiled. It serves as vital habitat for 51 species of fish, over 90 species of plants, 154 species of birds, seven species of reptiles and amphibians and 37 species of dragonflies and damselflies.

Examples of unique species include:

~ Bald eagles

~ Two dragonfly species (i.e. Elusive Clubtail and Russet-tipped Clubtail) that are listed as “Michigan species of special concern”

~ The eastern fox snake that is designated as a “threatened species” in Michigan

~ A native Michigan orchid called Oval Ladies’ Tresses that is designated as a “threatened species” in Michigan and indicative of pre-settlement times

~ A rare sedge called the HairyFruited Sedge that is listed as a “special concern” species in Michigan

Located adjacent to Humbug Marsh was a former automotive manufacturing plant that produced brakes, paints and solvents for 44 years. It was cleaned up to industrial standards and sat vacant as an industrial brownfield for over 10 years.

In 2002, Wayne County Parks purchased this industrial brownfield in Trenton to become the future home of the refuge’s visitor center and to improve outdoor recreational opportunities like shore fishing, hiking, wildlife observation, kayaking and more. It then took 10 years to successfully clean up this former industrial brownfield and meet public use standards.

Today, it can proudly be said that 16 acres of wetlands were restored through this project on site along the Detroit River, which has lost 97% of its coastal wetlands to development. Also completed at the Refuge Gateway was the daylighting of a creek – taking it out from underground in a pipe, restoring 25 acres of upland buffer habitat, controlling invasive plant species on over 50 acres of upland habitats and controlling of invasive Phragmites along 2.5 miles of

shoreline.

This has resulted in merging the 44acre Refuge Gateway with the 410-acre Humbug Marsh into one ecological unit and is helping create a truly exceptional outdoor recreational and conservation experience in the Detroit Metropolitan Area.

Today, it is the only project in the world to successfully clean up an industrial brownfield to serve as an ecological buffer for a “Wetland of International Importance.”

On the Refuge Gateway are:

~ A 12,000 square foot, Gold, LEED-certified, visitor center

~ A 740-foot dock for the Great Lakes school ship that will use the adjacent waters as a living laboratory for children

~ A universally-accessible, 200-foot fishing pier in waters that support a high diversity of fish and that is widely acclaimed as part of the Walleye Capital of the World

~ A canoe and kayak launch

~ Three wildlife observation decks

~ An outdoor environmental education classroom

~ Over three miles of hiking trails connected to over 100 miles of regional greenway trails

The refuge already attracts over 100,000 people annually, and standing at the Refuge Gateway is like viewing three different centuries at once:

~ To the south is Humbug Marsh – the last mile of natural shoreline on the U.S. mainland of the Detroit River that has on its uplands an old growth forest with oak trees over 300 years old that were alive when Cadillac founded Detroit in 1701

~ To the north are a former chemical plant and fossil fuel power plant that

represent the industrial revolution of the 20th Century;

~ On the site can be seen a 21st Century example of sustainable redevelopment of a 20th Century industrial brownfield into the Refuge Gateway that is home to the Refuge’s LEED-certified visitor center

Many people still view the Refuge Gateway as a paradox of heavy industry and internationally recognized wildlife refuge. But it’s not. It’s a strategically planned destination of choice consistent with the philosophy of Abraham Lincoln who said: “The best way to predict the future is to create it.”

This project is now widely recognized as being transformational for Metropolitan Detroit because it is helping change the perception of the Detroit River from that of a polluted “rust belt” river to one of an international wildlife refuge that reconnects people to nature, promotes outdoor recreation, improves quality of life and enhances community pride.

In 2018, The Waterfront Center gave the Refuge Gateway and Humbug Marsh an Honor Award for protecting Humbug Marsh from development, cleaning up and restoring the Refuge Gateway, and creating a destination of choice that inspires an outdoor sense of wonder.

The Refuge is a unique urban place where the tapestry of life has been woven with elegance, where the music of life has been rehearsed to perfection for thousands of years, where nature’s colors are most vibrant and engaging, where time is measured in seasons and where the courtship dance of diving ducks takes center stage.

It is a gift given to us for

our appreciation, enjoyment and inspiration, but also with a responsibility for stewardship so that it can be passed on to future generations. It is a gift unwrapped each time a hunter sets the decoys, an angler lands a fish, an amateur photographer clicks the shutter, a birder lifts their binoculars, a paddler launches a kayak and a child catches a tadpole.

Today, 80 percent of all people in the U.S. and Canada live in urban areas. Most urban residents are still disconnected from the natural world. This cannot continue.

The Refuge Gateway and Humbug Marsh have been strategically planned as a destination of choice that will provide exceptional conservation and outdoor recreational experiences, inspire a sense of wonder in children and families and help develop the next generation of conservationists in urban areas because that is now where most people live.

On this 25th anniversary of the event that catalyzed the saving of Humbug Marsh, it is important to reflect on this history and recognize our responsibility to pick up the baton and continue the relay race toward the goal of a healthy and sustainable ecosystem where all species, including humans, can thrive.

John Hartig is a board member at the Detroit Riverfront Conservancy. He serves as a Visiting Scholar at the University of Windsor’s Great Lakes Institute for Environmental Research and has written numerous books and publications on the environment and the Great Lakes. Hartig also helped create the Detroit River International Wildlife Refuge, where he worked for 14 years as the refuge manager.

Dining & Entertainment

Famous Lenten

fish fry is back at Sacred Heart

A local tradition is back up and running as Grosse Ile’s Sacred Heart Catholic Church is again this year offering its famous Friday Fish Fries.

Run by the parish’s Knights of Columbus, the weekly dinners will be offered every Friday through April 7. The weekly events run from 4 - 7:30 p.m. Come and enjoy some great food and some fine entertainment,

The menu includes a choice of fried cod, broiled cod, fried lake perch, fried shrimp and fried walleye. Each meal includes a baked potato or French fries, house made coleslaw, a fresh Island Bakery dinner roll and house made tartar and cocktail sauce.

Side orders include crab cakes, jumbo shrimp, pierogi, fries and baked potatoes.

There is also a kid’s menu featuring cheese pizza and macaroni and cheese.

Adult dinners run from $12.95 to 17.95 and kid’s meals are $4.95. Prices include tax.

And don’t forget the soup.

The Sacred Heart Fish Fry is famous for its rotating variety of homemade soups.

And, if you have room, don’t forget dessert. Sweet options include, Hungarian cherry and apple strudel, famous Sanders hot milk chocolate fudge sundaes, strawberry sundaes, root beer floats and Boston coolers.

A variety of beverages is available, including beer and wine.

The fish fry is held in the Sacred Heart Parish Hall, located at 21599 Parke Lane. Carryout is also available

Sacred Heart Knights of Columbus • Grosse Ile

“Home of Downriver’s Famous Fish Fries”

DINNERS $12.95 - 17.95

Cod, Lake Perch, Shrimp & Walleye Dinners include Baked Potato or French Fries, Cole Slaw, Dinner Roll Extra Sides Sold Separately:

French Fries, Pierogies, Jumbo Shrimp, Baked Potato

Fridays during Lent: Feb 24, 2023 - Apr 7, 2023, 4:00 - 7:30 PM Ho

House-Made Soups (Varies Weekly) • Gluten-Free Items Available

Sacred Heart Parish • 21599 Parke Lane able

Children’s Dinner Menu:

Cheese Pizza (2 Slices), Macaroni & Cheese, Pizza Slice with Mac & Cheese

Credit/Debit Cards Accepted • LIVE MUSIC

CARRY-OUT AVAILABLE: 4:00 PM - 7:30 PM

See Complete Weekly Menu on Facebook and Website

Facebook: Sacred Heart Knights of Columbus Fish Fries • Website: kofcgi.com

Gabriel Richard Presents Little Shop of Horrors

By: Marohn Campena, GR Senior

Over the last year, the Thespian Guild at Gabriel Richard Catholic High School has shown many amazing productions. From the fairylike “Into the Woods” to GR’s Murder Mystery Event featuring “Three Doors to Death” and “Murder at the Banquet,” the Thespian Guild has truly worked hard to deliver breathtaking shows. Currently, Gabriel Richard is preparing for its production of “Little Shop of Horrors.” This musical tells the story of a meek flower shop worker named Seymour Krelborn as he attempts to win over his co-worker crush, Audrey, and get out of the slums of Skid Row. In addition to dealing with his crabby boss Mushnik and Audrey’s toxic boyfriend Orin, Seymour must face the greatest threat of them all, a man-eating plant named Audrey II that attempts to take over the rest of the world. “Little Shop of Horrors,” is Gabriel Richard’s first-ever show featuring a double cast. Gabriel Richard’s Skid Row cast, featuring Everett Knapik (Seymour), Sasha Murphy (Audrey), Autumn Stevens (Mushnik), and Brooks Natt (Orin), will star in “Little Shop of Horrors,” at 7:00 PM on Friday, March 31 and at 2:00 PM on Saturday, April 1. Gabriel Richard’s Downtown cast, featuring Marohn Campena (Seymour), Ava Abrahamson (Audrey), Brett Byrd (Musnik), and Logan LaPere (Orin), will take the remaining two shows at 7:00 PM on April 1 and at 4:00 PM on Sunday, April 2.

Please join us and watch “Little Shop of Horrors” this spring!

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Estate Planning 101 Which plan do you need?

Time to clear up the confusion about Estate Planning ... The following definitions lack legal precision, but makes it easier to get a clear picture of what may be needed in your case.

■ Will – letter of intent of where you want your personal property to go – or not go.

■ Living Will – Documents your wishes during your final days including final healthcare choices and possibly your burial wishes.

■ Trust – This is a “company” that you start, and you become the CEO, “Trustee” and “Settlor.” The company outlives you, but continues to manage your assets as if you were alive by the successor CEO – whom you designate.

■ Power of Attorney – Financial and Healthcare – you need both – the first so someone can pay your bills, the second, sometimes called a Patient Advocate, designates someone to make “hallway at the hospital” decisions to take the stress off the family.

■ Ladybird Deed – probably the best thing that has happened to owning a home. I love these deeds – you grant yourself a life estate – in your own property - but retain the power to sell or borrow against the property. If you do not sell before you pass, this “springs” the house out of your estate, and your heirs have instant ownership, subject to any mortgage or taxes owed or similar.

Again, this is just a general description of the more popular terms – no one choice is a “silver bullet” but depending on how your estate gets planned out you can expedite a clean and clear process for the assets you worked a lifetime to save. Why wouldn’t you want to do that? Stop by or call and make an appointment and I’ll tell you what you’re going to need to do this right.

To my numerous former clients – thank you for allowing me to draft your estate plan!

Annual Miss Amazing Pageant scheduled for May 6

It’s almost here!

The annual Michigan Miss Amazing Pageant is set for Saturday, May 6 at Novi Civic Center.

It’s open to girls ages five and up with a disability and there’s no fee to participate.

Spread the word! You can find out more about the organization, and sign up to participate or volunteer here: https://missamazing.org/chapters/MI

To kick it all off we have a prepageant event planned.

Tina Brossia, owner of Rags to Riches Designer Consignment Boutique in Brownstown, has generously offered to close their doors the evening of Tuesday, March 7 so participants can pick out a free dress. Participants must be signed up before March 7 to receive a free dress and free jewelry set.

The pre-pageant “Dress for

Success” event will include special guests:

~ Miss Amazing registered participants.

~ Michigan Miss Amazing Directors: Rachael Dooley - National Director, and Rachael HunterMorning Show 99.5 WYCD/Country Music Hall of Fame Recipient.

~ Jewelry Giveaway - Amy Douglas, Michigan Miss Amazing 2020 Senior Miss - Commercial Model, Actress and Spokesperson for people with disabilities.

~ Contenders Assistant and Encouragement Coach - Mrs. Michigan USA 2022 - Rachael Adams Logsdon - Actress, Model, Motivational Speaker, Entrepreneur.

~ Photographer - Joe Maroon Photography, special events photographer to the stars.

734-282-3939

NEWS FROM OUR NEIGHBORS

Go to... GoBigMultimedia.com to

read more news on our digital publications.

Still Rockin’ CF March 19 Race proceeds benefit research ...This year, the race will initiate a special “Kevin Wilson Memorial Mile,” which will become part of the race from now on.

gobigmultimedia.com/grosse-ile-grand

Township governmental duties clearly spelled out

TOWNSHIP SUPERVISOR

~ Moderates Board regular and special meetings and study sessions

~ Serves as Township’s legal agent

~ Serves as Township’s Chief Assessing O cer

~ Develops Township budget (with departmental input)

~ May call for special Board meetings

~ May appoint some commission members

~ Serves on Township Election Commission

~ May appoint a Deputy Supervisor

TOWNSHIP TREASURER

~ Collects Township real and personal property taxes

~ Maintains records of receipts and expenditures

~ Issues Townships checks for payments

~ Issues pet licenses

~ Receives and deposits all Township revenue

~ Invests all Township funds in approved depositories

~ Collects delinquent personal property taxes

~ Serves on Election Commission

~ Must appoint a Deputy Treasurer

~ Must post a surety bond

TOWNSHIP CLERK

~ Maintains custody of all Township records

~ Maintains general ledger of Township

~ Prepares and maintains Township board meeting minutes

~ Maintains Township Book of Oaths

~ Publishes all meeting notices and minutes

~ Maintains voter registration les

~ Administers all election functions

~ Serves on Township Election Commission

~ Must appoint a Deputy Clerk

~ Must post a surety bond

TRUSTEE

~ Serves as a Township legislator

~ Required to attend all Board meetings and vote on all issues Responsible for the Township’s overall fiduciary well being..

On page 3

To commemorate Kevin, the one mile segment will start one mile out from the finish line – the toughest part of any distance race for many runners.

concert on Feb. 16, which had the cutest songs that were all about love. The grand finale was “You are My Sunshine.” Thank you to Ms. Kruger, our third-grade teachers, Ms. Vollmerhausen, Mrs. Culverhouse and Mrs. Hilliard for this lovely event.

On page 1

Lemon Blueberry Cheesecake Cookies Cooking Class

Also, this year there will not be a two-person half marathon relay, as its popularity has seemed to run its course. But, interest is still strong for the 13.1 Half Marathon, the 5K Run or Walk, and the Virtual Half Marathon. So strong that the half and 5K races had caps – 700 for the half, 600 for the 5K. There will be a 3 hour and 30 minute time limit for the half marathon.

As of this writing, the Half Marathon is sold out! There are still spots left in the 5K and Virtual Half. You can still register online to run or make a donation @letsrockcf.org.

From the event, 100 percent of the proceeds go to the Rock CF Foundation, “changing the face of what living with cystic fibrosis looks like and giving those living with CF the tools to not only survive, but thrive.”

On page 7

gobigmultimedia.com/riverview-register

Music fills the air!

Ms. Kruger led our third-grade students at Memorial Elementary School in a beautiful Valentines-themed

Tuesday, May 9 7:00 – 8:15 pm

Lemon Blueberry Cheesecake Cookies are so cookies that will melt in your mouth! A perfect balance of tartness sprinkled with a sweet powdery sugar glaze. Add the lemon and blueberries into the cream cheese batter or don’t. Make the cookies to your liking. Perfect to make ahead for your holiday get together. ey freeze well for snacks, lunch treats or surprise for your coworkers. is class includes all supplies and samples to munch on during class.

Please bring a hand mixer and 2 large cookie sheets. Final baking will be done at home. Approximately 30 cookies.

Class fee of $30.00 must be paid by Friday, May 5th. No refunds a er this date. Limit of 20 participants per class. No walk≠ins. Register online! https://secure.rec1.com/MI/riverview-mi/catalog or cityofriverview.com under the recreation tab. Check or cash for in≠person registration at the Recreation Department. Call the Recreation Department if you have any questions regarding programs or issues with online registering.

Riverview City Hall/Senior Activity Room 14100 Civic Park Drive, Riverview, MI 48193 734-281-4219

Classes are for residents and non-residents. Age 12 & up Children aged 6 -11 are welcome to sign up and must bring an adult helper. If the adult helper wants to participate and make their own cookies they must register and pay also. A delicious class for friends and family to get together and have some fun!

On page 14. Available to non≠residents.

Pot, or not?

Residents to determine fate of retail marijuana stores

Riverview recently began the process of taking applications for licenses for retail marijuana stores a er the City Council voted 4≠3 to allow those businesses within the city limits.

Demand for those licenses has been high. But opposition to the stores has been pretty strong, too, and a group of citizens, spearheaded by

longtime resident and former councilman Elmer Trombley, circulated a petition designed to get the idea of marijuana stores in front of voters...

On page 1

gobigmultimedia.com/southgate-star

‘We are Plarners’

Group creates mats for the homeless while creating a bond with one another

A group of volunteers that turns used plastic shopping bags into comfortable sleeping mats for the needy just celebrated its sixth anniversary of making a difference throughout the Region.

Members of “We Are Plarners” have converted countless clean bags into “plastic yarn” – or “plarn” – and ultimately into thousands of mats that are used by the homeless, seniors and others who otherwise

struggle to provide suitable warm bedding or furniture for their families.

The group’s mission statement is “help others while helping the environment.” Founder Rita LaRosa Carioti of Southgate said each 3-by6-foot mat keeps 650 to 700 plastic bags out of landfills.

“The benefit is extraordinary,” Carioti said. “If we can take plastic bags out of the landfill and make it purposeful, it’s win-win.”...

On page 1

Guidance Center presents social media film

The Downriver Guidance Center in conjunction with Stop Underage Drinking and Drugs (SUDDs) will present the film “Like – A documentary about the Impact of Social Media on Our Lives” at 6 p.m. on March 21 at Crystal Gardens. The one-hour film will be followed by a question and answer session with the narrator of the film, Max Stossel.

The event is free, but you must register. Pizza, popcorn and soft drinks will be served. Like breaks down why we find social media so irresistible, examines who is controlling who and gives viewers the tools to pivot to a more balanced and contented relationship....

On page 16

gobigmultimedia.com/wyandotte-warrior

Wyandotte Soup Kitchen

Waynewright Community Meals serves dozens twice a week

Wyandotte resident Sarah Pettigrew and her “amazing network of volunteers” have been providing meals for “guests” for more than 16 years. They arrive early to the fellowship hall, get ready for the day, serve the visitors and stay after to clean up. Some of the same volunteers will be joined by others a few days later to do it all over again.

“For me, it was important to be called ‘community meals’ from the beginning,” Pettigrew said. “Our

philosophy is ‘everyone is welcome.’ If you’re just passing through or someone who is lonely or a senior citizen with limited income or someone with special needs, you’re invited to be our guest.

“A lot are struggling, whether with poverty or homelessness or the working poor. We see people struggling with mental health issues, drugs and abuse. We may see them one time and then never again. We also have regulars and people who only visit when their resources dry up.”

On a normal Wednesday or Saturday, guests line up outside the church between noon and 1 p.m. to receive a hot meal, complete with a main entrée, side dishes, vegetable, dessert and bread or salad – all served in a restaurant-size to-go box. They also receive a sack lunch for later, along with non-perishable food items, hygiene items and more, depending on the donations the soup kitchen has received.

As long as you’re in line by 1 p.m., you’ll be served, Pettigrew said. There are no papers to fill out; no identification or proof of income or proof of residency to show.

On page 1

Wyandotte cheerleaders 3rd at league meet

The Roosevelt competitive cheerleading team went to Carlson on Feb. 8 and finished third at the Downriver League meet.

The only teams to top the Bears were 2020-23 league champ Carlson, which was Division 2 state runner-up last season – and Allen Park, which was the D2 champ a season ago.

Wyandotte was third after the opening round, third after the second round and the Bears held third position through the third round.

On page 19

Bring your class to the Detroit River International Wildlife Refuge

The United States Fish and Wildlife Service recognizes that environmental education is important to connect youth to nature.

To encourage our youth to get out in nature, park rangers at the Detroit River International Wildlife Refuge would like to offer educators the opportunity to bring nature to their students through our Environmental Education Program.

Our program includes: field trips to the refuge, Park Ranger classroom visits to the school, loaning kits, Story Time with a Ranger Programs, and teacher workshops.

All these program options and materials for programs are free of cost and come with bus funding while available!

Through our Environmental Education Program, we have welcomed many students, teachers, and chaperones to the Detroit River International Wildlife Refuge. While at the refuge, they enjoy lessons about wildlife tracking, habitat exploration, archery, fishing, nature journaling, observation skills and more.

Through these lessons, our youth learn valuable nature skills and receive the chance to experience their

public lands firsthand. Some students experience outdoor recreation activities such as hiking through a forest, bird watching, archery and casting a fishing pole for the first time.

It is always wonderful to provide youth the chance to experience nature in a new and exciting way; however, we know not every student can visit the refuge.

For students and educators that cannot make it to the refuge we have programs which allow park rangers to visit the school. Additionally, we have programs that grant participants from our teacher workshop program to reserve education loaning kits. Educators can use these kits to teach their students at their own pace from the classroom.

The Environmental Education Program is available to school, scouts, homeschool, and other educational youth groups.

To learn more about the lessons we offer in our Environmental Education Program please check out our website at fws.gov/media/ driwr-environmental-program-descriptions-educators-only or email DetroitRiver@fws.gov.

Wyandotte Soup Kitchen

Waynewright Community Meals serves dozens of clients twice a week

DAVE GORGON

Without food from the Waynewright Community Meals at the First Congregational United Church of Christ, Vincent said he would not know where he would get his next meal.

Vincent hasn’t been the same since his mother died. He is “an actor, a student and kind of homeless right now.” On this Wednesday, he is first in line when the “Wyandotte Soup Kitchen” opens to serve hot meals to dozens at the church at 98 Superior Road.

“I’m thankful to God that a church gives out this stuff,” said Vincent, an Air Force veteran in his 40s. “It’s one of the only bright spots in my life right now.”

Wyandotte resident Sarah Pettigrew and her “amazing network of volunteers” have been providing meals for “guests” for more than 16 years. They arrive early to the fellowship hall, get ready for the day, serve the visitors and stay after to clean up. Some of the same volunteers will be joined by others a few days later to do it all over again.

“For me, it was important to be called ‘community meals’ from the beginning,” Pettigrew said. “Our philosophy is ‘everyone is welcome.’ If you’re just passing through or someone who is lonely or a senior citizen with limited income or someone with special needs, you’re invited to be our guest.

“A lot are struggling, whether with poverty or homelessness or the working poor. We see people struggling with mental health issues, drugs and abuse. We may see them one time and then never again. We also have regulars and people who only visit when their resources dry up.”

On a normal Wednesday or Saturday, guests line up outside the church between noon and 1 p.m. to receive a hot meal, complete with a main entrée, side dishes, vegetable, dessert and bread or salad – all served in a restaurant-size to-go box. They also receive a sack lunch for later, along with non-perishable food items, hygiene items and more, depending on the donations the soup kitchen has received.

As long as you’re in line by 1 p.m., you’ll be served, Pettigrew said. There are no papers to fill out; no identification or proof of income or proof of residency to show.

Prior to the COVID-19 global pandemic, guests were invited into the church hall and served at tables. Volunteers continued serving during the pandemic, but the process was changed to a carryout meal. Now, visitors line up on a ramp leading to the hall. A warm

volunteer greets them at the door wearing a mask starting at noon.

Pettigrew knows most of the guests by name. Many of them seem to have a story to tell. A local woman with baking skills talks about a cake she recently baked. Pat, a retired DTE worker, picks up meals and delivers them to others, calling it his “good deed for the day.”

“My gramma always said, ‘what are we here on earth for if not to help one another?’” said Susan Medley, Pettigrew’s mother and the cook who created the day’s homemade spaghetti sauce. “I have tried to pass that on to my children and grandchildren.”

As the Allen Park woman works over the hot stove in the kitchen, other volunteers from the Downriver area are nearby, working in assembly-line style to create sandwiches and combine them with a fruit, snack and drink in a sack lunch to go. They also gather donated goods so Pettigrew can take handfuls at a time to the arriving guests outside.

The visitors have battled chilly winter temperatures and strong winds to get there, many by foot, others by bus. They are allowed to take what they can use – what they need.

“What makes it very special and unique is that Sarah has a relationship with so many of the people that come to the soup kitchen and their families,” said Sakura Keast, a Wyandotte resident who volunteers. “She can go above and beyond when people need food, whether it is a resource or a jacket or something she remembers has been donated, like pajamas for kids. She’s very good at connecting people with things they need.”

Grosse Ile resident Liz Carter brings her own group of volunteers to the church on one Saturday a month. Over the years, some 150 different volunteers of all ages

have accompanied her to feel the joy of feeding those who need it most.

They bring everything to create a “hot meal to go” for an estimated 75 people. The needs include paper goods, plasticware, side dishes, juice boxes and more. Last month, they made sloppy joes and homemade macaroni and cheese, mixed vegetables and cookies for dessert.

“It’s one of my favorite things to do,” Carter said. “I’m grateful God brought Sarah into my life… Every month, I’m always blown away by God’s provisions for whatever is needed… It’s beautiful to see it come together: the ability to serve the community. With the way the economy is, there’s lots of people who need the help just to get by. They are grateful.”

Carter and Keast raved about the Christmas party that the organization hosts each year. They helped collect upwards of 125 gift cards to distribute along with toys for children and gifts for adults.

“This year, all of the toys were donated by people from the community,” Carter said. There were hygiene items, stockings, and a basket of non-perishable items. Someone knitted and crocheted winter gear.”

An estimated 400 to 500 individuals are helped through Christmas events at the church. Carter called it “a huge endeavor.”

Pettigrew said she was volunteering at a soup kitchen in Detroit when a minister, Father Jerry Brohl, asked her to help start a similar venture Downriver. The place is named “Waynewright” by combining the first name of the Rev. Wayne McKenney, pastor of the church for 28 years, and a “wainwright,” a tradesman that made wheels for carts and wagons.

The minister suggested Pettigrew get the soup kitchen up and running, stay a year and hand it off to someone else, although that wasn’t her intention. Pettigrew and a host of volunteers, friends and even family members have been there ever since.

“Kindness is free,” said volunteer Renae Affholter of Wyandotte. “We are blessed.”

No one gets paid for his or her efforts, but the reward is huge.

“My favorite thing about it is watching people’s generosity and graciousness come together every month and every week,” Liz Carter said. “It’s quite the amazing family.”

Volunteers are always needed. Donations are always accepted. For more information, email Sarah Pettigrew at teampettigrew24@gmail.com and follow the Waynewright Community Meals Facebook page.

“Everything we have is due to the generosity of our volunteers and community members,” Pettigrew said. “We couldn’t do it without them.”

Sarah Pettigrew giving a hot meal and more to guest Vincent.

Photo by Dave Gorgon

Trenton Public Schools2022-23 General School Year Calendar

ELEMENTARY AND MIDDLE SCHOOL

Thursday, March 23: Spring vacation begins at the conclusion of the day

Monday April 3: School resumes

Friday April 7: Good Friday: No school district-wide

Thursday May 18: Morning only for students district-wide

Monday May 29: Memorial Day

Holiday – No school district-wide

Tuesday June 13: Last day for students/morning only for students / afternoon records

TRENTON HIGH SCHOOL

Thursday March 23: Spring vacation begins at the conclusion of the day

Monday April 3: School resumes

Friday April 7: Good Friday: No school district-wide

Wednesday April 12: State testing (SAT and PSAT)

Thursday May 18: Morning only for students district-wide

Monday May 29: Memorial Day Holiday – No school district-wide

Friday June 9: Adjusted schedule with 1 Exam

Monday June 12: Two exams - students dismissed at 10:30; afternoon records

Tuesday June 13: Two exams - students dismissed at 10:30; afternoon records

What’s happening Grosse Ile ...

TAKE

IT OUTSIDE PHOTO CONTEST

Sponsored by the Grosse Ile Nature and Land Conservancy. Entry deadline is Thursday, May 11, 2023 at 5 p.m. Open to high school students within Wayne, Washtenaw and Monroe Counties. We are searching for photos captured locally (within Wayne, Washtenaw and Monroe Counties) that inspire us to appreciate and steward our environment: air, water, land, wildlife, resources, and ecosystems. Categories are Dawn to Dusk; Fur and Feathers; Bark and Blooms. Total of $445 in prize money. For more information, visit see https://www.ginlc.org/photocontest.

MURDER MYSTERY DINNER

The Santa Rosalia Club is hosting a great event “A 1920’s Mafia Marriage” Interactive Murder Mystery Dinner at the Bentley Banquet Center, 646 Biddle Avenue, Wyandotte, at 7 p.m. on May 12. Tickets are $60 per person, or $55 for Santa Rosalia members. For more information

or to purchase tickets, contact Vita Giammalva at 734 558-6143

FREE SHRED DAY

At Dick Genthe Chevrolet. 15600 Eureka Road, Southgate, from 9:30 a.m. to noon on Saturday, April 29. Accepting donations for Veterans Project and non-perishable food items for a local food pantry. Accepted items: paper, credit card receipts, envelopes, checks, photographs. Not accepted: x-rays, magazines, books, computers and accessories. For more information, call Fran at 313-6339916.

AMERICAN FLAG DISPOSAL

Heart to Heart Hospice of Southgate is a local site for American Flag disposal. From 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday, Heart to Heart will allow the general public to bring their tired and worn American flags to our Southgate office. The office is located at 1 Heritage Place, Suite 107, Southgate,in the Real Estate One building. For more information, call 734-282-0209.

We let it get away from us, friends

These columns are all about the vibrancy of local economies. The matters I write about are not exclusive to these Go Big publications, but in writing them, they certainly help me focus on saying exactly what I mean. I have written a lot about the same topic, and I can’t express how good it feels to have people tell me that they read (and like) what I write.

Most that say anything say they agree with it all. Some consider me to be just too darned “liberal”, which is, for the record, one of the silliest “descriptors” I’ve ever heard. So is “conservative.” Neither one conveys anything at all. Seriously, literally nothing. Still nonetheless, that specific word is used to describe me by some that happen to support Small almost exclusively.

Even people that disagree with some of what comprises my views are ardent followers of what I espouse.

The advocacy for small is rooted in my history in my market. No question, my views developed as I looked back on my experience, wherein Big overran small by design.

In my field, that truth led to a revolting diminution in caliber of service and offerings to the American public. My “Baby Boom” generation insisted on it, we wanted it. Malls became the hip place to shop, and billions were raked from our community to achieve a world in which Small was drastically reduced in number.

Downtowns became tragically abandoned (coming back now!).

Funny, no matter how many times I write that in any of the variable ways I have, I never feel that I have explained the incredible phenomenon we watched wash over America and the world. We actually allowed, even demanded, more and more sameness with less and less service.

For all but the investors, we didn’t connect the dots and come to the correct conclusion: We were living through and eagerly accepting a

massive transfer of wealth from countless small businesses to publicly traded companies elsewhere.

Innocuous garbage was foisted on the American consumers, and we eagerly sucked it up. What a plan, what a scheme.

It was not just retail in which this transfer took place. In virtually every business niche we can rattle off, Big realized the riches to be captured and they brilliantly succeeded to create a very different world.

It happened systematically, not suddenly.

We didn’t really understand what was happening, but now, looking back, we can see it and understand it if we want to.

It is my generation’s contribution to the commonwealth – the creation of monolithic businesses that took advantage of the “trickle down economic theory” propaganda to mainstream their mission.

Trickle Down became so all pervasive that it was all we recognized anymore. The idea being to give more money and control to Big, which would then (in theory) trickle some of it back to the working public.

Of course, they kept 99 percent of it, and we just kept being lemmings.

Most do not consider the stranglehold that Big has on America, and that’s why this is more than just a sideline gig for me.

Most do not recognize that there has been a profound impact on local wealth as a direct result of the assault of Big.

It simply cannot be dismissed that in the 1970s, there were men that worked at places like Ford or McLouth Steel (for instance) and with that single income, they afforded a home, two cars, a decent comfortable living, with enough money to send two kids to college. This is related here anecdotally, but this really was the way things were.

It is not the way things are today.

Society has changed dramatically: The percentage of women in the workplace was dramatically lower 50 years ago, and that second income was not seen as a necessity.

Consider this: In 1965 the ratio of average American CEO pay to that

average worker above was 20-1. In 2021, that average ratio had become 399-1, a staggering change in the way those at the top are paid.

Now, before I get too far afield in the populist rhetoric, please understand that my point here is not the individuals in the examples that troubles me for purposes related to this explanation.

What obsesses me is this simple question: How much more disposable income would be floating around, circulating in our local economy if families still flourished like that today? Can you even imagine?

Being spent at local businesses because of my other obsession that asks how much different would our local economy be compared to 50 years ago if all those malls hadn’t sucked so many dollars out of the state to be shared by CEOs at countless publicly traded companies based elsewhere, that did not exist 50 years ago?

Look to other fronts, too. Almost all the local independent drug stores have been supplanted by CVS, Walgreens and Rite Aid, and all the corporate money that now leaves our state to feed their corporate machines elsewhere used to stay here,

circulating and benefiting us all.

Worse, those behemoth companies then collude with pharmaceutical companies to control supply, pricing and availability at remaining local and independent pharmacies. How much more money leaves the state through national restaurant chains than did in 1972? How much more money leaves the state through Walmart than did before that cancer wreaked havoc on the American local business scene, while making the Waltons the richest family in America?

How about the truth that 50 years ago, our entire health system did not include the healthcare insurance companies that now decide who lives and dies, while capturing a massive amount of money for their corporate infrastructures?

Lots of questions. They’re not rhetorical questions. They may be hard to definitively answer, but the general gist is really not hard to get if we simply look closer and consider how dramatic the change has been, by design of people that could get away with it.

They took control.

I, for one, want it back. I’m a capitalist that is disgusted with how we’ve failed to use that tool

PETER ROSE

Your Elected O cials

Mayor Steven Rzeppa

Email: srzeppa@trenton-mi.com

Councilwoman

Timber R. Baun-Crooks

Email: tbauncrooks@trenton-mi.com

Councilman

Nelson Perugi

Phone: 734-931-0327

Email: nperugi@trenton-mi.com

Councilman

Richard Benedetti

Email: rbenedetti@trenton-mi.com

Councilwoman

Wendy Pate

Phone: 734-692-7729

Email: wpate@trenton-mi.com

Councilwoman

Dora Rodriguez

Email: drodriguez@trenton-mi.com

Councilman

Scott Cabauatan

Email: scabauatan@trenton-mi.com

City Department Contacts

Administratorís O ce

Dean Creech, City Administrator

Phone: 734-675-6500

Email: dcreech@trenton-mi.com

City Assessorís O ce

Joanie Barnett, MAAO, City Assessor

Phone: 734-675-6810

Email: jbarnett@trenton-mi.com

Building Department

Virgil Maiani, Building O cial

Phone: 734-675-8251

Email: vmaiani@trenton-mi.com

Clerkís O ce

Debra R. Devitt, City Clerk

Phone: 734-675-8600

Email: ddevitt@trenton-mi.com

Controllerís O ce

Karen Sall, City Controller

Phone: 734-675-6510

Email: ksall@trenton-mi.com

Department of Public Works

Kevin Sargent, DPW Director

Phone: 734-675-8470

Email: ksargent@trenton-mi.com

Council

Zoning Board of Appeals

March 23, 2023, 7:00 PM

Cultural Commission Meeting

March 25, 2023, 10:00 AM

Council Regular Meeting

April 3, 2023, 7:00 PM

Tra c Safety Commission Meeting

April 5, 2023, 7:00 PM

Planning Commission Meeting

April 12, 2023, 7:00 PM

Council Regular Meeting

April 17, 2023, 7:00 PM

Recreation Commission Meeting

April 18, 2023, 7:30 PM

Downtown Development Authority

Mayor Steven Rzeppa, DDA Liaison

Phone: 734-675-6500

Emergency Management

Paul L. Haley, Emergency Management Coordinator

Phone: 734-675-6500

Emergency: 734-676-3737

Email: phaley@trenton-mi.com

Engineering Department

C.E. Raines Company

Souheil Sabak, Engineer

Phone: 734-675-8251

Email: ssabak@charlesraines.com

Fire Department

Keith Anderson, Fire Chief

Phone (Non-Emergency Contact): 734-676-1314

Emergency: 911

Email: kanderson@trenton-mi.com

Human Resources

Elisabeth Sobota-Perry, Human Resources Director

Phone: 734-675-8585

Email: eperry@trenton-mi.com

Parks & Recreation

Tim Beaker, Director

Phone: 734-675-7300

Email: tbeaker@trenton-mi.com

Police Department

Mike Oakley, Police Chief

Phone: 734-676-3737

Emergency: 911

Email: agilstorf@trenton-mi.com

Treasurerís O ce

Michael McCullough, City Treasurer

Phone: 734-675-6510

Email: jcooper@trenton-mi.com

Waste Water Treatment Plant

Julie Willison, Superintendent

Phone: 734-676-0646

Email: jwillison@trenton-mi.com

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