Allegan County News & Union Enterprise

Authorities rescue kayakers from Kalamazoo River

Authorities rescue kayakers from Kalamazoo River

Editorial Staff Jul 13, 2022 2 min read

By Jason WesseldykSports Editor GUN PLAIN TOWNSHIP—Authorities rescued a group of kayakers who were stranded on the Kalamazoo River in Gun Plain Township on Saturday, July 9.One of the kayakers reportedly had a deep facial cut. That individual was taken…

Obituary: Paul Victor Engelmann, 64

Obituary: Paul Victor Engelmann, 64

Editorial Staff Jul 13, 2022 3 min read

Dr. Paul Victor Engelmann, 64, of Plainwell, Michigan, passed away on July 5, 2022 at Vicinia Gardens Assisted Living and Memory Care in Otsego, Michigan, due to frontotemporal dementia. He was preceded in death by his mother, Patricia Park Engelmann,…

Obituary: Florence May Schafer, 92

Obituary: Florence May Schafer, 92

Editorial Staff Jul 13, 2022 2 min read

Florence May Schafer, 92, of Allegan, MI passed away Saturday, July 9, 2022 at her home. Born February 7, 1930 in Kalamazoo, she was the daughter of the late Alvis and Ann (Nowakowski) Kremer. She married Gerald Schafer on August…

Obituary: L. Jean Barnes, 88

Obituary: L. Jean Barnes, 88

Editorial Staff Jul 13, 2022 1 min read

L. Jean Barnes passed away June 30, 2022. Jean was born March 1, 1934 at her grandfather Barnes home in Bravo, Michigan. Jean attended several schools and graduated from Fennville High School in 1952. She also attended Nazareth College School…

Mike’s Musings: America at a Critical Crossroads

Mike’s Musings: America at a Critical Crossroads

Editorial Staff Jul 13, 2022 3 min read

Editors Note: I wrote this one year ago, and now find it more relevant than it was when it was written.I’m growing more and more concerned that our republic will struggle to maintain its standing as a leader in this…

Life as Performance Art

Life as Performance Art

Editorial Staff Jul 13, 2022 7 min read

   It was just after we returned from watching the Independence Day parade here in Saugatuck that our phone rang.  It was Pat’s oldest son, telling us that he and his wife were safe. At first, we were confused by their message,…

Authorities rescue kayakers from Kalamazoo River

Authorities rescue kayakers from Kalamazoo River

Editorial Staff Jul 13, 2022 2 min read

By Jason WesseldykSports Editor GUN PLAIN TOWNSHIP—Authorities rescued a group of kayakers who were stranded on the Kalamazoo River in Gun Plain Township on Saturday, July 9.One of the kayakers reportedly had a deep facial cut. That individual was taken…

Allegan City awarded $2 million for improvements

Allegan City awarded $2 million for improvements

Editorial Staff Jul 13, 2022 3 min read

The City of Allegan is proud to share that it has been selected to receive $2,000,000 in funding in the upcoming State budget to help rebuild Downtown Allegan’s infrastructure.The securing of this $2,000,000 award was made possible by a multi-disciplinary…

Council votes 4-3 to allow Pride event on riverfront

Editorial Staff Jul 13, 2022 4 min read

By Leslie Ballard The July 11 Allegan City Council Study Session lasted longer than anticipated while the regular meeting was brief.The City Council held a public hearing regarding establishing an Industrial Development District (IDD) for Tantrick Brewing Company at 138…

Perrigo asks FDA to approve first OTC birth control pill

Editorial Staff Jul 13, 2022 3 min read

Perrigo Company plc (NYSE: PRGO), a leading global provider of Consumer Self-Care Products, today announced that HRA Pharma, a Perrigo company, has submitted its application to the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the first-ever over-the-counter (OTC) birth…

Incident forces closure of US-131 for hours

Incident forces closure of US-131 for hours

Editorial Staff Jul 6, 2022 1 min read

By Jason WesseldykSports Editor On the eve of Independence Day, drivers traveling along US-131 in Allegan County were forced to find an alternative route.A stretch of US-131 near mile marker 50 near Plainwell was closed for approximately four hours on…

Plainwell reminds residents about guidelines for signs

Editorial Staff Jul 6, 2022 2 min read

By Jason WesseldykSports Editor Sign, sign, everywhere a sign.Those words are as relevant today as they were in 1971 when the Canadian rock group The Five Man Electric Band released their song “Signs.” Be they signs for garage/yard sales, political…

Otsego Library offers Nemo game

Otsego Library offers Nemo game

Editorial Staff Jul 6, 2022 2 min read

By Jason WesseldykSports Editor In the 2003 hit Pixar movie “Finding Nemo,” it’s the little clownfish’s father Marlin and his friend Dory the blue tang who find Nemo.Now, children and families in the Otsego area have the opportunity to try…

OPS urges familes to apply for free/reduced meals

OPS urges familes to apply for free/reduced meals

Editorial Staff Jul 6, 2022 4 min read

By Jason WesseldykSports Editor For the past two school years, Otsego Public Schools has been able to provide free breakfasts and lunches to all students thanks to the federally funded Universal School Meals Program.That will not be the case for…

Iva B. Sweet, 86

Iva B. Sweet, 86

Editorial Staff Jul 6, 2022 2 min read

Iva B. Sweet was born November 6, 1935 to the late Russell and Donna Wesseling in Allegan, MI. She graduated from Allegan High School and for a time worked at DeLano Printing and Allegan General Hospital. She married her husband,…

Patrick T. “Pat” McLaughlin, 83

Patrick T. “Pat” McLaughlin, 83

Editorial Staff Jul 6, 2022 2 min read

Pat passed away Wednesday, June 29, 2022 at his home in Martin. He was born June 30, 1938, in Lake Odessa, the son of Paul and Mabel (Weber) McLaughlin. He proudly served his country in the U.S. Army. He worked…

Life as Performance Art

Life as Performance Art

Editorial Staff Jul 6, 2022 6 min read

    For several years I was an adjunct college history instructor. On the first day of class, after the initial introductions and small talk, I would always ask for a show of hands from those who truly liked history.  If I was…

We can’t ignore Fentanyl any longer

We can’t ignore Fentanyl any longer

Editorial Staff Jul 6, 2022 3 min read

Made in China, transported by Mexico, fentanyl has risen to the top of the opioid chain as the leading cause of drug deaths in America. Unfortunately our leaders seem to be consumed with other situations, ie Covid and war, so…

Crowds gather on riverfront to enjoy festivities

Crowds gather on riverfront to enjoy festivities

Editorial Staff Jul 6, 2022 2 min read

By Leslie Ballard The July 3 Jubilee was quite a success judging by the crowds swarming the riverfront to enjoy the music, visit the food trucks and vendors, take advantage of the social district, and enjoy the zip line and…

Vigil held as Joseph Nagel’s mom still awaiting news

Vigil held as Joseph Nagel’s mom still awaiting news

Editorial Staff Jul 6, 2022 4 min read

By Gari Voss The evening of Thursday, June 30, 2022 was beautiful, but the air was somber as family, friends and adamant supporters of Joseph Maverick Nagle gathered in his memory on 26th Street north of 134th Avenue in Monterey…

By Mike Wilcox
Owner/Publisher

Every year, as the Christmas season draws near, I’m reminded just how generous our communities can be. For nearly two decades, Wilcox Newspapers has hosted what’s become one of my favorite traditions: our Annual Christmas Wish Program.

It started simply enough. We asked readers who were struggling to write in and tell us what would make their Christmas a little brighter. The idea was to connect local families in need with local people who wanted to help. Over the years, it’s grown into something truly special—and this year, we’re doing it again.