January 2006

Twenty-two brave (or crazy, depending on how you look at it) people briefly got wet at the third annual Posey Lake Polar Bear dip on Sunday. It was the third year in a row for Doug Morningstar and Patrick (Hugger) Wollet, who made a second trip into the freezing water in honor of Marine Adam Baker, a last-year dipper currently serving in Iraq. The oldest dipper was Jane Tucker at 64; the youngest was Mary-Pat Wollet, at age six. A crowd of onlookers approaching a hundred people looked on.

Work is continuing on or a little ahead of schedule on the addition to the Hudson Market House.  Things are still on track for the new building to be open later this year.

The Board of Trustees of the Toledo Community Foundation has approved a grant from the Berlin Family Fund to the Boys & Girls Club of Lenawee in the amount of $7,000.00. These funds will be used to fund the operations of the new Hudson Extension. The Toledo Community Foundation grant will be used to provide safe and constructive after school programming for children ages 7 to 18 years.

The Hudson City Council held a long discussion on housing and neighborhoods for the Project Good Start Revitalization plan being developed in cooperation with the Community Action Agency. In the course of the discussion, the council explored several ways to work toward reaching several goals, including encouraging maintenance of the existing housing in the community, encouraging development of new housing connected to existing neighborhoods and streets; encouraged the development of a housing center for senior citizens, and encouraging the development of starter homes for younger citizens.

Students at Hudson Middle and High Schools are participating in the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s Pennies for Patients Program, which raises funds to find cures for leukemia, lymphoma, myeloma and sponsors services designed to support patients from diagnosis through treatment and recovery.  Pennies for Patients is one of the Society’s National School & Youth Programs that teach young people compassion while they learn the value of helping others.

February 2006

Winter homecoming saw Noah Radoy and Brittany Smith getting named King and Queen. To make the evening sweeter, the Tigers pulled out a 63-58 win over visiting Washtenaw Catholic.

Students from Hudson Middle and High School's S.W.A.T. team (Students Working on Assets Together) got a lesson in energy and recycling as they visited the Material Management warehouse in Hudson, run by Mr. Duane Sanborn. Students learned, by pedaling a bike, that it takes much less energy to produce electricity to an energy saving light bulb than to a traditional light bulb. 

Seven boys and girls from Hudson, Pittsford, Waldron, Cement City, Brooklyn, and Hillsdale area schools, ages 10 to 14, were named local champions of the 2006 Knights of Columbus Free Throw Championship and have earned the right to compete at the regional level. There were 20 boys and girls that participated in the Contest Hudson Council, #3221 sponsored the local competition at Hudson Area High School.

The sweeping curve connecting Cadmus Road to Munson Highway near Butch's Tavern will stay, the Lenawee County Road Commission board decided at their meeting Friday.

Department of Environmental Quality Director Steven E. Chester announced that a settlement was reached with Hoffland Dairy LLC, formerly doing business as VanderHoff-Haley Dairy.  The lawsuit was initially filed in August 2004, and supplemented in March 2005 after DEQ staff documented numerous discharges of agricultural waste to the Rice Lake Drain and other area waterways.

Kent Nickolaus, store manager of Lowe’s in Adrian, spent part of Friday in Hudson at Lincoln Elementary to share in the celebration of the school’s honor in receiving a Lowe’s Toolbox for Education Grant.  Mrs. Marcie  Brown, Lincoln first grade teacher, wrote the grant.

M&S Manufacturing Company will idle several plants around the community in the interest of improving efficiency, says Doug MacArthur, a spokesman for the company. "Consolidating the plants will reduce extra floor space, cut travel time, and improve communications within the company by putting people together," MacArthur said. The consolidation will bring on economies of scale and cut expenses, such as heating costs. Some of the plants that M&S has been operating have as few as six people.

The Hudson Township Board passed an ordinance to recover costs incurred by the township for assistance in deliberately or negligently caused fires, toxic or hazardous materials emergencies, false alarms, and response to vehicle accidents.

On Thursday, February 9, students at Lincoln Elementary School jumped all over heart disease and stroke by participating in Jump Rope for Heart. The students raised more than $2,700 for the American Heart Association.

A Lincoln Elementary School teacher, Mrs. Rebecca Lawrence, has been awarded  Model Classroom.  This national award, given by Renaissance Reading, recognizes outstanding performance in reading education.

Employees at Central Michigan Lumber Company on the east side of Hudson were informed Monday afternoon that the company will be closing immediately. Five employees will be laid off as a result of the action.

The Hudson Schools bus fleet is aging, and several buses are overdue for replacement, Transportation Superintendent Bill Stump told the meeting of the Hudson Area School Board. It has been five years since the schools have replaced a regular bus, although a special education bus and a van have been purchased in the interim. In years past, it had been the policy of the board to replace a bus or two a year. Now, the oldest buses have well over a hundred thousand miles and some are approaching twice that figure.

Damage was extensive in a fire that broke out Tuesday morning at the James Lee residence on North Street in Clayton. The Clayton, Hudson, Morenci, and Madison fire departments were among those that responded to the scene.

March 2006

The Hudson Planning Commission recommended that the city earmark at least a hundred thousand dollars annually to do a better job of reconstructing local streets. The city has carrying on street rebuilding on major streets such as Maple Grove, Railroad and Munson Highway over the last few years at a cost of as much as $250,000 annually.

The Hudson Floor Hockey Program wound up its season  with their annual tournament held at the Hudson Area High School gym. As always, action was fast and furious in the popular game. Floor hockey is now into its third decade at Hudson.

Dr. Dan Spencer and Dr. Jim Spencer, Jr., brothers and practice partners from Hudson, are the subject of a cover story in the February issue of Chiropractic Products magazine. The two have served on the physician staff at Hillsdale Community Health Center for the past five years, and their experiences were the basis of the article.  

Kyle, Brett and Scott Rupnow each made the Dean's List academically at their respective colleges for the fall semester of 2005.  Kyle attends Michigan Tech in Houghton, Michigan and majors in engineering technology.  Brett attends the University of North Dakota in Grand Forks and majors in air traffic control.  Scott attends the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York and is unable to declare a major until the spring of 2007.

Lance Corporal Adam Baker arrived at the New River Air Station, Jacksonville, North Carolina on February 9, 2006 after a 12 month deployment to Al Asad Air Base with Marine Aircraft Group 26.  He was among one hundred and five “Flying Diamonds” from Marine Aircraft Group-26 that were welcomed home during a ceremony Feb. 9 at the Station gym.

Just in time for reading month, the Lincoln School Library was reopened.  The library was damaged and had to be closed when a heating system burst and flooded the library several weeks ago. About a hundred books were lost, but have been replaced.  The library has received new carpeting, and new shelves are on the way. 

The girls competitive cheer-leading team brought home from Grand Rapids the highest finish ever in school history last Saturday. Hudson was the class C-D runner-up placing just behind Breckenridge. "We are thrilled and the girls were ecstatic about how well they did," said Hudson head coach Kelly Bailey. "We did great and the girls performed very well. There was no disappointment in taking second. Not at all because we did our best and we were right there battling for first after the first two rounds. It was very close and we are proud of being the runner-ups."

On March 11 Lincoln Elementary sent students to compete in their first Tri-County Science Olympiad, which took place at Vo-Tech. The fifth graders were awesome. The finished in first place bringing home blue ribbons and a trophy.

Hudson Wrestlers had a good weekend at the state individual wrestling finals held at the Palace at Auburn Hills last weekend. Above, Dan Hoffman wound up taking a fourth place medal in the state at 140 pounds; below, Dan Hartman also took a fourth place medal in his 114 pound class.  Hudson wrestler Taylor Smith also took a medal, sixth place, in the 103 pound class.

The Bank of Lenawee held the formal ribbon cutting of their new office on US-127 on Monday morning. The new office, at 539 S. Meridian Rd. is on the same site as the bank's previous South Meridian Branch. The old bank office downtown was closed last Friday.  There are three drive-up lanes, and an efficient, pleasantly decorated interior layout. The bank has a number of activities this week to celebrate the grand opening of the new office.

Hudson Area High School announced the Top Ten students for the Class of 2006.  Four seniors have the honor of being named Valedictorian and three seniors have tied for tenth place. Valedictorians are Chelsey Berlin, Tyler Haber and Rachel Ham. The Salutatorian is Holly Roney. The remainder of the Top Ten includes Emmi Nastase, Danielle Spencer, Sarah Hillard, Tyler Koske,   Emily Kline, Ashley Curtis, Summer Gritzmaker,  and Andy Monahan.

The Hudson Area School board approved a proposal first made by Bob Snow of County National Bank to allow electronic fund transfers, where families will be able to make on-line payments for such things as lunch, parking fees, class dues, participation fees, and the like. The program, called E-funds for Schools, is without cost to the district. It is supposed to be up and running before next school year starts.

Customers will soon begin to reap the benefits of the enlarged Market House, as the store gradually begins its move into the new structure.

Market House manager Tim Sallows said that the move will begin on April 6, with the move of the dairy section into its new quarters on the west end of the store. "We will continue to expand into new sections on a weekly basis for the next eight weeks after that," he said. The next section to move to its new quarters will be the meat department.

On March 21, Hudson Area School students, Joseph Beaubien, Kim Boyoung, Rick Burciaga, Mykahla Frayer, Heather Israel, Jake Koske, Josh Manor, Nathan Riley, Nicole Smith, Samantha Stem, Mitchell Webb, Nicole Wright and invited Community Leaders Mike Osborne, David Sheely, Bruce VanWieren, Chuck Weir participated in the Communities In Schools of Lenawee Youth Summit.

April 2006

The Hudson City Council at their meeting Tuesday evening approved the renewal of the Consumer's Energy Franchise agreement, for a period of thirty years. The agreement allows Consumers Energy the right and authority to construct, maintain and use electric lines and supporting structure on public property in Hudson, and to continue to do the local electric business.

Hudson Township  will have to seek a renewal of the existing fire department and Advanced Life Support millages at the primary election in August, Township supervisor Art Capper said. Both the fire and ALS mills are one mill each.

Hudson Area Schools went many years without ever failing a single school bus inspection, but the long string came to an end when seven buses failed a  State Police inspection and had to be pulled off the road. Two of the buses were repaired to the inspector's satisfaction immediately, and three more were back on the road the next day.

In order to handle the transportation needs of the district it was necessary to borrow three buses from other area school districts, one each from Pittsford, Sand Creek and Addison.

Developing a program for "latchkey" children has been debated for a number of years, School Superintendent Kathy Malnar told the Hudson Area School Board, but the costs of the program and the necessary paperwork and licensing issues have kept it from becoming a reality. However, most surveys of student needs show the service as one being highly desired. Malnar recommended issuing Requests for Proposals to solicit bids for a third party to operate a latchkey program.

The Hudson City Council rejected a proposal by City Manager Bruce VanWieren to add a full time billing clerk to the city office staff. VanWieren made the proposal citing an increased work load on city office employees. The growing work load comes partly from new programs such as Project Good Start and the Downtown Development Authority, and from increased administrative needs from such things as the Rental Inspection Program and Property Maintenance Code.

Dr. Dan Spencer of Hudson was re-elected as 1st Vice-President of the Michigan Chiropractic Society at the group’s annual Spring Convention at the Grand Traverse Resort near Traverse City.

The Hudson Summer Recreation Department is offering swimming lessons again this summer. The lessons are held in Adrian at Bohn Pool.

The William G. Thompson House Museum and Gardens is adding items from the Museum’s quilt collection to the online gallery. The online quilt gallery was designed by Jill Griffiths, a graduate student in the School of Information at the University of Michigan.

The Hudson High School and Middle School S.W.A.T. teams joined efforts with city and school personnel to clean up the banks of Bean Creek near Bobbyes, to prepare for a planting project that is part of the citywide Project Good Start Revitalization Plan. Five students took part in the clean-up that will prepare the site for a huge planting  banks of the creek and the area by the landmark railroad bridge.  A ceremony this summer will mark the historical significance of the bridge.  Volunteers are sought for planting part of the project.

May 2006

Once again the schools are facing a tough financial picture made all the more uncertain by questions about the size of the state funding package and the student count. The schools have been able to keep acceptable service levels by dipping into the district's fund balance, but there is a limit to the depth of that well, and it's getting closer. School Superintendent Kathy Malnar told the Board that her preliminary budget figures are based on an increase of the state per pupil foundation allowance of $200, to $7075, and a blended student count of 1034, which is this year's count.

The Hudson Fire Department, Ambulance Service and the Life Flight Helicopter teamed up to present a mock accident to the students of Hudson Area High School last Thursday. The drill graphically depicted a fatal accident, and was scheduled just before the annual Prom to make students more aware of the dangers of drinking and driving.

During the month of March the students of Sacred Heart School had to read over 4,500 books to get their teachers to dye their hair for a day.  The students went beyond that and read 5,126 books.  The teachers kept their word and dyed their hair for the whole day.  The kids loved it!

Jonna Leigh Schmidt, M.D., P.C. has received MPRO’s prestigious 2005 Governor’s Award of Excellence for Improving Care in the Ambulatory Care Setting. Sponsored by MPRO, Michigan’s Medicare Quality Improvement Organization and Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm, the award promotes quality improvement initiatives in the physician office setting that enhance the quality of care received by Medicare beneficiaries.  There are 1.5 million Medicare beneficiaries in Michigan.

The Hudson City Council gave their preliminary approval to the 2006-07 city budget. The total size of the budget is $4,116,250. It's not greatly different from last year's budget, but includes some new figures, such as a $5,000 equipment replacement fund for the police department. In spite of a proposal to equalize pay for city department heads, the Council decided to just set a pay raise of three percent across the board for them.

Lincoln Elementary held its Science Fair, Tuesday, May 2nd in the schools cafeteria. As usual the fair was a success with many interesting projects. These projects were completed at home with the help of parents. Among the projects displayed were volcanoes, which erupted, instruments, solar systems and the effect of mountain dew on plants. Students were also given the opportunity to try a few Science Olympiad competitions guided by Marissa Timko. The science fair was on display all day to students and parents, and was also available in the evening for people to see and try the projects out for themselves.

The 45th annual Scholastic Banquet sponsored by the Hudson Kiwanis Club was held Tuesday, May 2 in the high school cafeteria with a dinner and program.   This banquet is held to honor those students who have shown outstanding scholastic achievement in their curricular areas.  A total of 101 students were invited to participate in the dinner and presentation of awards. 

Claude Rowley was named President of the Hudson Area School Board in order to fill out the term of former Board President Dave Berlin. Berlin had been in his first term as President of the Board, when he decided to move from the school district and resigned the post. Berlin's departure also opened up a seat on the board;  the Board named Rex Murphy to the fill the seat until the board's organizational meeting in July. Murphy was the highest vote getter at the recent school election.

The new Hudson Ministerial Association Food Pantry, located at the corner of St. Giles and Mechanic Streets in Hudson was dedicated. The dedication is a landmark in the history of the Association, which has been helping needy families since the late 1980s.   Twenty-four volunteers from various area churches help to keep the pantry open. Food is donated by area people and area churches, especially at Thanksgiving and Christmas.

The Hudson City Council rejected a previously passed plan to expand the area of the Downtown Development Authority north and south along US-127. Council last July voted to carry out the expansion, but for one reason and another nothing was done to follow up on it. A month ago, a majority of council voted to not go through with the expansion, but not by a sufficient majority to rescind the July action. Seeking clarification the measure was brought up again at the last meeting, but put off until the current one for the sake of having a full Council present.

June 2006

The gym at Hudson Area High School was filled on Sunday to watch 75 members of the class of 2006 get their diplomas. The commencement speaker was former Hudson graduate Dr. Brian Beal.

In spite of a hot day, there was a good turnout for the Memorial Day Parade Monday. The parade went to Maple Grove Cemetery. Rev. Mark Johnston was the keynote speaker. John Stanley presented Logan's orders, and Rachel Ham gave the Gettysburg Address.

On Saturday, May 13th, Matthew Hartley, son of Phil and Linda Hartley was ordained a Catholic priest at the Cathedral in Denver, Colorado. Fr. Hartley grew up in Hudson and graduated from Hudson High School in 1995. After graduating from Siena Heights University in 1999, he entered St. John Vianney Theological Seminary where he has been studying for the priesthood for the past 7 years.  There were a total of 14 men in Fr. Hartley's ordination class, the largest in Denver in 40 years and the third largest in the United States this year. On Saturday May 20th, Fr. Hartley celebrated Mass at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Hudson.  He has been assigned to Our Lady of Loreto Catholic Parish in Foxfield, Colorado, a parish with approximately 2500 families.

Livonia resident Karen Marry Sanborn, daughter of Delmar and Peggy Marry of Hudson, recently joined Madonna University as director of marketing, where she leads all advertising and media relations efforts for the 4,600-student, private, Catholic university.

Lincoln Elementary said Good-Bye to some special people. After 34years of teaching Kathy Smith, Dave Rickard with 35 years of teaching and Jo White with 32 years of teaching retired at the end of the school year.

Members of the Hudson Tiger baseball team celebrated winning their first District Championship in nine years in a thrilling game at Sand Creek last Saturday. Tiger runners also did well at the State Meet in Grand Rapids.

The fields are quiet now as the spring season has come and gone. The eleventh season of soccer in Hudson has ended for the ultra popular youth athletic league. The annual season ending awards banquet was held this past Monday evening at Memorial Park to honor the over 250 players and the almost two dozen coaches that made up the spring campaign.

Sacred Heart Church and School had a successful Spring N-2 Summer Festival last weekend. A lot of people took advantage of the Swiss Steak and Chicken Dinners, the kids games were busy and there were many people patronizing the bingo, Las Vegas and Texas Hold 'Em games. 

The latest step in the development of the new shopping complex at the Market House was the opening this Monday of the County National Bank Branch. The beautiful facility features a long-desired drive-up window and an increased staff now that more space is available.

Judy and Ike Schlantz are in the process of doing major renovations to an old house on Fayette Street. In the walls of the house they discovered an ancient harnessmaker's ledger book, with entries that date back as far as 1825. It's in remarkably good shape, considering that it's been buried in the walls of the house for possibly a century or more. They've found a number of other interesting artifacts while in the process of gutting the interior of the house.

The Hudson Girls Minor League softball team traveled to Onsted over the weekend to play in their first tournament of the year.  The girls went  2-1 on the road to win the tournament over a very tough Onsted team in the final 11-19.

The Hudson City Council once again discussed the major structural problems at the Hudson City library caused by deterioration of the eaves.  The City had budgeted $40,000 for repair of the eaves and supporting structure of the historic building, but had been unable to find a contractor willing to take on the job.

While the Hudson Area Schools budget approved by the Hudson School Board still is a deficit budget, the school's financial difficulties experienced for the last few years show signs of easing. The board approved a 2006-07 budget showing revenues of $8,079,562 and expenses of $8,235,875, for a projected operating deficit of $166,313. The projected budget deficit is mitigated by the board's approval of the final 2005-06 budget, which came out considerably better than anticipated, with a figure that is approximately $250,000 better than anticipated  at the budget revision held early in the year.

A heavy summer storm swept through the area last Wednesday evening, but the local area escaped with only relatively light damage. The main problem was heavy rain -- the rain gauge at the Waste Water Treatment Plant had a full six inches in it on Thursday morning. Rainfall varied greatly around the area, from as little at 2 1/2 inches north of town to eight inches southeast of town. Two tornado touchdowns were reported in the area, one near North Adams, the other northeast of Rollin. No particular damage was reported.

                        Continued next week
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