Allegan County News & Union Enterprise

Colleges should focus on more practical, less theory

Colleges should focus on more practical, less theory

Editorial Staff Apr 13, 2022 3 min read

By Mike WilcoxPublisherI read a report a few days ago that lamented the decline in college enrollment in the state of Michigan, and the United States for that matter.Here, Central Michigan University was down nearly 50 percent over the past…

Life as Performance Art

Life as Performance Art

Editorial Staff Apr 13, 2022 5 min read

By G. Corwin StoppelRobert “Bob” Ingersoll died just before the 20th century started and his name soon slipped into obscurity. Like his father, Congregationalist Rev. Robert Ingersoll, he was a target and magnet because of his outspoken and frequently unpopular…

Otsego Main Street receives $20,000 Vibrancy Grant

Otsego Main Street receives $20,000 Vibrancy Grant

Editorial Staff Apr 13, 2022 5 min read

By Jason WesseldykSports EditorOn Wednesday, April 6, Governor Gretchen Whitmer and the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC) announced that eight communities in Michigan had been selected to receive grants to support downtown enhancement and improvement projects.Otsego was among them.The eight…

Senior Expo back at Plainwell Days

Senior Expo back at Plainwell Days

Editorial Staff Apr 13, 2022 5 min read

By Jason WesseldykSports Editor Organizers of the Plainwell Days Festival are planning to bring back a popular event following a two-year hiatus.The Senior Expo, which showcases products and services geared toward seniors, is scheduled to run from 10 a.m. to…

Plainwell seeks community input

Editorial Staff Apr 13, 2022 1 min read

40 lines (6 inches)By Jason WesseldykSports Editor Are you a resident of the City of Plainwell? Or perhaps you own a business in the city. Or maybe you’re part or a community investment stakeholder group.If so, then city officials want…

Art fundraiser to to be held to help Ukrainian refugees

Art fundraiser to to be held to help Ukrainian refugees

Editorial Staff Apr 13, 2022 2 min read

By Leslie Ballard Many people are asking what they can do to support the Ukrainians and help the Ukrainian refugees fleeing their war-ravaged country.One action is to attend the Sunflowers for Ukraine fundraiser sponsored by Brave Art Studios & Gallery…

Residents pack city council as ORV’s, marijuana facility debated

Editorial Staff Apr 13, 2022 8 min read

By Leslie Ballard Extra chairs were needed to seat the attendees at Monday’s City Council meeting interested in the Off-Road Vehicle (ORV) ordinance or the Special Use Permit for a Marijuana growing facility.The meeting began Lori Antkoviak, Executive Director of…

Safe Harbor “off to the races” on April 29

Editorial Staff Apr 13, 2022 5 min read

By Gari Voss The 14th Annual Lifeline Gala sponsored by the Safe Harbor Children’s Advocacy Center (CAC) will be “Off to the Races” on April 29, 2022 at The Silo in Allegan. To coincide with the Derby season, the evening…

Spoonfuls and Spirits back on in Paw Paw

Spoonfuls and Spirits back on in Paw Paw

Editorial Staff Apr 6, 2022 3 min read

After the last two years, going Back to the Future sounds very good. That’s why the Paw Paw Area Chamber of Commerce decided on that for the theme of its 2022 Spoonfuls & Spirits on April 23.Spoonfuls & Spirits has…

Obituary: Elaine Kay Liechti-Yarling, 75

Obituary: Elaine Kay Liechti-Yarling, 75

Editorial Staff Apr 6, 2022 2 min read

Elaine Kay Liechti-Yarling passed peacefully into the arms of our Heavenly Father on the 29th of March 2022, surrounded by her loving family at Rose Arbor Hospice in Kalamazoo following a short illness. Elaine was born on the 27th of June 1946 in…

Obituary: Don Swartzlander, 74

Obituary: Don Swartzlander, 74

Editorial Staff Apr 6, 2022 2 min read

Born February 18, 1948, in Chicago, IL to Joseph Edward Swartzlander and Alitta (Krieger), Don grew up in Watervliet, MI where he played baseball & basketball and spent time on Paw Paw Lake. After graduating from WMU, he met his…

Obituary: Bertha Irene “Betty” Reimink, 88

Obituary: Bertha Irene “Betty” Reimink, 88

Editorial Staff Apr 6, 2022 2 min read

Bertha Irene “Betty” Reimink, of Allegan, MI passed away Friday, April 1, 2022, her 88th birthday. Born April 1, 1934 in Grand Rapids, she was the daughter of the late Henry Patrick and Ivah (Reynolds) Smith. On July 25, 1952,…

Mike’s Musings: U.S. Congress needs term limits

Mike’s Musings: U.S. Congress needs term limits

Editorial Staff Apr 6, 2022 3 min read

By Mike WilcoxPublisherI’ve been a proponent of term limits for a long time. I believe at too many federal level lawmakers make politics a lifelong career, which was not the intention of our Founding Fathers.Don Young, Alaska’s congressman for 50…

Life as Performance Art

Life as Performance Art

Editorial Staff Apr 6, 2022 4 min read

By G.C. StoppelIf your vacation plans this year include Washington, D.C., be careful. Folks at the National Archives Museum are making sure you will not be traumatized, outraged or otherwise disgruntled by displays of historic documents.Next to an original copy…

Otsego track teams upend Plainwell to open season

Otsego track teams upend Plainwell to open season

Editorial Staff Apr 6, 2022 3 min read

By Jason WesseldykSports Editor PLAINWELL—Despite cold, breezy conditions that featured wind-chill temperatures in the low 30s, the Otsego track teams had a hot start to the season.The Otsego girls took first place in 11 of the 17 events to post…

Plainwell man urges others to sign up as organ donors

Plainwell man urges others to sign up as organ donors

Editorial Staff Apr 6, 2022 4 min read

Dominick Anastasi is back to playing catch and coaching his sons in basketball, baseball and football. He’s grateful for the experience, considering about two years ago, he was too weak to even throw a baseball.Initially diagnosed with pancreatitis, the 41-year-old…

Sugar Palace opens doors in downtown Plainwell

Sugar Palace opens doors in downtown Plainwell

Editorial Staff Apr 6, 2022 4 min read

By Jason WesseldykSports Editor Brandy Williams has felt at home in the kitchen from the time she was a child.“I got started when I was probably about eight years old,” Williams said. “My sisters and I started creating a lot…

Ransom Library offers ‘Spring Into Fitness’ series

Ransom Library offers ‘Spring Into Fitness’ series

Editorial Staff Apr 6, 2022 4 min read

By Jason WesseldykSports Editor With the doldrums of winter officially behind us, you may be interested in ways to ramp up your level of activity.If so, then Ransom District Library’s Spring Into Fitness Series might be just the thing for…

Otsego Destination Imagination team goes global

Otsego Destination Imagination team goes global

Editorial Staff Apr 6, 2022 6 min read

By Jason WesseldykSports Editor The Destination Imagination team from Alamo Elementary School in Otsego has conquered the state of Michigan.Now, it has its sights set on the world.The five-member Bubble Buddies team took first place in their division at the…

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.