Plainwell meeting set for Jan. 12
By John RaffelCorrespondent PLAINWELL — The next meeting of the Plainwell City Council is set for 7 p.m. on Jan. 12.At the council’s most recent meetings the council was to consider Plainwell City Charter having an annual audit of all…
MHSAA postseason attendance remains near 1.4 million
Attendance at Michigan High School Athletic Association postseason tournaments remained near 1.4 million spectators for the third straight school year in 2024-25. An overall attendance record in baseball and several additional all-time bests for specific tournament rounds helped keep totals…
Martin leads area schools in multi-sport participation
Martin High School is among the state’s leaders in multi-sport participation, according to the Michigan High School Athletic Association’s latest Multi-Sport Participation Survey, which shows continued growth statewide during the 2024-25 school year.The survey, conducted last spring, marked the seventh…
Mike’s Musings: Airing the Grievances: The Worst of Washington’s Waste
Every December, Sen. Rand Paul releases his annual Festivus Report, a nod to the fictional holiday made famous by Seinfeld. The tradition includes an “airing of grievances,” and for taxpayers, there is no shortage of them.I just got the opportunity…
Life as Performance Art
When the holiday season began to wind down I checked the little recipe box that contained the names and addresses of people on our Christmas card list. Every year a few new names are added. Every year a few more names get…
Governor orders flags at half staff in honor of Chief Haverdink
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has ordered all U.S. and Michigan flags to be lowered to half-staff on Tuesday to honor the late David Haverdink, who died on Christmas after being hit by a vehicle while on duty as the chief of the Hamilton…
Dorr Township residents oppose, question potential data center
By Jordan WilcoxAssistant Publisher In the latter half of 2024, Microsoft Corporation completed one of the largest single-use land purchases in Dorr Township history, paying approximately $48 million for a 272-acre parcel off 144th Avenue near U.S. 131. The property…
Revelers usher in 2026 at Allegan riverfront and elsewhere
By Gari Voss The traditional welcoming of 2026 in Allegan was designed to accommodate all ages. The celebrations began at the Allegan District Library as the youth, their caregivers, and young-at-heart gathered for fun activities that culminated at high noon…
Otsego City Manager takes look back at year that was 2025
By Aaron MitchellOtsego City Manger The year 2025 was a great one for the City of Otsego!We started with a few plans and ideas that we planned on tackling throughout the year, but as you could imagine, there were a…
Otsego Library hosts ‘Reading is Snow Much Fun’ program
By Jason WesseldykSports Editor For more than a decade, patrons of the Otsego District Library have been treated each winter to the annual early literacy fundraiser, which has transformed the library into immersive, storybook-inspired experiences featuring themes such as Charlotte’s…
Bicyclist killed on Christmas night in Gun Plain Twp.
By Jason WesseldykSports Editor A day that many consider to be one of the most joyous of the year took a tragic turn in Gun Plain Township on Christmas night.On Thursday, Dec. 25, a 52-year-old Plainwell-area man was killed after…
Allegan swim alumni visit current Tigers at recent meet
By Jason WesseldykSports Editor It was a blast from the (not-so-distant) past for Allegan swim & dive coach Carol Gephart when the boys’ team hosted Sturgis on Dec. 16.Six former Allegan swimmers who are now competing at the collegiate level…
Life as Performance Art
In the 1950 movie “Harvey” Jimmy Stewart plays Elwood P. Dowd, a certifiable eccentric befriended by 6-foot invisible rabbit named Harvey.It’s a light comedy, but at one point Dowd says something meaningful: that in order to be liked, one had…
Mike’s Musings: When Silence Walks Louder Than Shouting
In a world addicted to outrage, the most radical protest I’ve seen lately involved no slogans, no megaphones, and no demands shouted into the air. It was a line of Buddhist monks walking.I first noticed this on Facebook. The monks…
Hamilton / Allegan County mourn death of Chief Haverdink Struck by vehicle while assisting at accident scene
By Gari Voss The call began as a medical incident on M-40 near 136th Avenue in Heath Township in Allegan County at about 6pm on Tuesday, December 23, 2025, but in an instant, everything went wrong when the announcement came…
Michigan’s largest New Year’s Eve Ball Drop in Allegan
By Parker Johnson Bundle up and count down to 2026 with the LARGEST New Year’s Eve ball drop in Michigan!Downtown Allegan doesn’t have much in common with New York City, but one thing this small West Michigan community mirrors each…
DeVries reflects on time as assistant director at ODL
By Jason WesseldykSports Editor Wednesday, Dec. 3, marked the end of an era at the Otsego District Library.That’s when the library hosted Santa Storytime, which was the final program for Diane DeVries after a decade of service as the ODL…
OHS National Honor Society hosts annual toy drive
By Jason WesseldykSports Editor Each year, members of the Otsego High School chapter of the National Honor Society conduct an annual toy drive to support the efforts of the Otsego Christmas Ministries.This year’s drive raised approximately $9,000, which was used…
City of Plainwell looks at fire gear
By John RaffelCorrespondent At its meeting earlier this month, the Plainwell City Council was to consider purchase of Fire Gear according to NFPA Standards, which provide guidance on the lifespan and replacement criteria for turnout gear.It calls for mandatory retirement…
Allegan girls come up just short in season opener
By Jason WesseldykSports Editor It was a game of two halves for the Allegan girls basketball team in its season-opening contest against visiting Watervliet on Friday, Dec. 12.The Tigers started strong, taking a 20-12 lead into halftime.But foul trouble plagued…
