The Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) is once again making game-day traffic information for University of Michigan and Michigan State University football fans available on the MDOT Web site at www.michigan.gov/mdot.

You can find “Getting to the Game” information at www.michigan.gov/gettingtothegame or by clicking on the “Getting to the Game” icon on the home page of the MDOT Web site. Game-day travel alerts will be updated regularly. Lane closure information for all MDOT projects also is available by county and route from the department at www.michigan.gov/drive (http://www.michigan.gov/drive).

“We want fans to get to the game safely and to make their travel as smooth as possible,” said State Transportation Director Kirk T. Steudle.

Source: News release from Michigan Department of Transportation

LANSING – Governor Jennifer M. Granholm has ordered United States flags throughout the state of Michigan and on Michigan waters lowered for one day on Friday (August 29th) in honor of Army Staff Sgt. Kristopher D. Rodgers of Sturgis who died August 16 in Korengal, Afghanistan, while on active duty supporting Operation Enduring Freedom. Flags should return to full-staff on Saturday (August 30th).

Staff Sgt. Rodgers, age 29, died when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle. He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 26th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, Fort Hood, Texas.

Under Section 7 of Chapter 1 of Title 4 of the United States Code, 4 USC 7, Governor Granholm, in December 2003, issued a proclamation requiring United States flags lowered to half-staff throughout the state of Michigan and on Michigan waters to honor Michigan servicemen and servicewomen killed in the line of duty. Procedures for flag lowering were detailed by Governor Granholm in Executive Order 2006-10 and included in federal law under the Army Specialist Joseph P. Micks Federal Flag Code Amendment Act of 2007 (Public Law 110-41).

When flown at half-staff or half-mast, the United States flag should be hoisted first to the peak for an instant and then lowered to the half-staff or half-mast position. The flag should again be raised to the peak before it is lowered for the day.

When a member of the armed services from Michigan is killed in action, the governor will issue a press release with information about the individual(s) and the day that has been designated for flags to be lowered in his or her honor. The information will also be posted on Governor Granholm’s Website at www.michigan.gov/gov in the section titled “Spotlight.”

Source: News release from office of Governor Jennifer Granholm

The Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) will begin rehabilitating four bridges on I-94 and US-12 in Berrien and Cass counties on Tuesday, September 2nd.

Work includes structural steel repairs, joint replacement, resurfacing, and substructure repairs.
The locations are:

• East- and westbound I-94 over Amtrak at Stevensville
• Eastbound I-94 over the CSX Railroad at New Buffalo
• And US-12 over M-60 at Niles.

During this work, at least two lanes of traffic in each direction will be maintained on I-94.  One lane of traffic in each direction will be maintained on M-60 in Niles.

The work is expected to be completed in November.

This $940,000 project will preserve and extend the life of these bridges by approximately five years.

The City of Sturgis reports that the seat refurbishment project at the Sturges-Young Auditorium began last week with the removal of all seats in the auditorium.

According to The Sturgis eWire, the seats will undergo repainting and upholstering. They are scheduled to be returned and re-installed in early September.

While the seats are being refurbished, the floor and ceiling of the auditorium will get a fresh coat of paint. Painting is expected to start late next week and take a week or two to complete.

The Club of Little Gardens has announced the second round of prizes in its “Prize Patrol,” a project aimed at telling homeowners that people notice and appreciate their hard work.

Additional information about the winners appears below, courtesy of the club, which thanks the businesses that have supported its efforts.

The next round of prizes will be awarded on September 13th. A panel of judges – not affiliated with the club or the city – will select one grand prize winner for 2008. A plaque suitable for outdoor use will be awarded at the September 16th meeting of the Three Rivers City Commission.

FIRST DISTRICT WINNER:

Janice & Maurice Ashby

Mayor Allen Balog (left) presents a gift basket and certificate of recognition to Janice Ashby and Maurice Ashby.

The committee is sure that many people have seen and admired the work the Ashby’s have done on their house and their garden. Anyone who does a mail drop behind the post office will have noticed this garden. This was one of the Three Rivers gardens that gave us the idea for the “prize patrol”. The Club of Little Gardens was hoping to find a way to tell homeowners that people notice and appreciate their hard work.

There is a trick to having a beautiful garden that blooms all summer long and Janice has done just that. She also has a bumper crop of tomatoes that she has been sharing with friends and neighbors.

SECOND DISTRICT WINNER:

Jerry and Sharon Payne

Mayor Allen Balog waits for the Payne’s to return home so they can accept their award. The sign next to him reads “gardening is cheaper than a shrink” that’s food for thought.

We were all disappointed to miss the owners. The Payne garden is another one that was discovered thanks to a “hot tip” from a city employee who had driven by and admired their work. They have a good size lot and have located several gardens around the yard. There are lots of perennials with some annuals for color in the shady spots and a good use of conifers and shrubs. This is a well groomed garden with a good use of the entire site.

THIRD DISTRICT WINNER:

Robert and Doris Krull

Allen Balog, garden club member Barb Bendure, Doris Krull and Awards Committee members Marie Mann and Pat Thompson presenting the award at Meijer on Saturday morning.

The prize patrol caught up with Doris Krull who was out shopping. When we arrived at her home her husband Robert was disappointed that she was not home to receive the prize stating that “she does all the work” in their gardens. So we accommodated him by hopping back in the “prize patrol vehicle” and tracking her down at Meijer. Although concerned when she heard the page to come to the service desk she was thrilled and surprised by the recognition of her years of dedicated gardening.

Her garden was nominated by a phone call from her daughter. We would have never found it on our own as we wouldn’t have seen it from the street. Doris even has some lilies that belonged to her Mother and are still blooming every year. She is especially proud of her morning glories. Lots of beautiful perennials and it’s all neat as a pin! We won’t mention her age but she is an inspiration to all of us to keep gardening.

FOURTH DISTRICT WINNER:

James and Diana Everett

Barbara Bendure, Marie Mann, Diana Everett, Allen Balog and Pat Thompson in the garden of Diana Everett.

We received a call from Diana’s husband Jim who said “You really have to come see my wife’s garden. She’s done a fantastic job and is working on it all the time”. We found out that her own garden is not the only one she works on. Diana estimates that she has worked over 100 hours this year on the Master Garden at the St. Joseph county fairgrounds where she is in charge of the vegetable garden. Diana is an advanced master gardener and mentioned that another class would be starting this winter in Centreville. She also has a full time job.

Walking through her garden makes you smile, there are so many things to catch your attention and delight the eye. What we didn’t know was there was a vegetable garden behind her garden shed. Neat as a pin it is not, but what a fun, alive place. Her garden is an event!

Local Patriot of the Year:

Last week I wrote about our Patriot Day Celebration Picnic at Thurston Woods Park in Sturgis on September 13.  This week I’m staying with the Patriot theme and reporting on our most recent FAFSOM meeting.  Mike Wilson suggested we recognize a local Patriot at our annual dinner. The response was a resounding YES!

We decided to open the nomination process up to the broader public.  This means we needed criteria that will help people easily recognize a local Patriot and be able to state the case for that person, group, or company to be selected for the award.  As a result we have decided on the following criteria:

• The Patriot can be an individual, a company, or an organization
• The Patriot should have gone above and beyond the call-of-duty to support veterans, current military personnel, a National Guard or Reserve Unit, and/or families of any and all of these. Examples might be:

• Assembling care packages to send to deployed troops
• Continuing the insurance coverage for the family of a mobilized National Guard Member
• Driving disabled vets to the VA in Battle Creek or elsewhere
• Paying deployed troops the difference between their civilian and military pay while they are mobilized
• The Patriot should be located in our Service area which includes St. Joseph, Cass, Branch, Berrien, Calhoun, and Kalamazoo Counties in Michigan and LaGrange, Elkhart, and Steuben Counties in Indiana.

FAFSOM has witnessed some of the best of local people over the last 2 years.  We’ve also noticed that most folks don’t take the time to thank people who do the right thing but there is no shortage of criticism for those that make mistakes.  We see our group as being one that can shine a bright light on what’s right with our area.  This award will allow us to recognize the best of the best.

Here’s what you can do to participate.  First of all, if you are aware of a person, business, or organization that fits the criteria we’ve established, write out a brief statement of why we should select that person, business, or organization as our Patriot of the Year.  Please include appropriate contact information for the nominee as we want to send a special invitation to them for our November 6, 2008 dinner. This is not an essay contest so don’t worry about how flowery your writing is.  Send your nomination to FAFSOM; 971 S. Centreville Rd. PMB 197; Sturgis, MI 49091.

We will recognize all nominees at this year’s annual dinner and present a plaque to our selected Patriot.  The dinner will once again be held at the Sturgis National Guard Armory and will feature General Warren Lawrence, Michigan Army National Guard, Retired as our speaker.  We are working out the details for our menu and Judy Jacobs will once again be our Chef and meal coordinator.  We had 134 people last year and expect around 200 this year.  We know it will be a grand event.

Here’s a travel advisory from the Michigan Department of Transportation:

The ramp from Oakland Drive to eastbound I-94 will re-open on Friday (August 29th).

This ramp was closed as part of the I-94 widening project in Kalamazoo County.

The St. Joseph County Intermediate School District Board of Education held its regular monthly meeting on Monday, August 18th. For “Board News & Views” providing a summary of information from the session, click here.

Source: Information provided by St. Joseph County Intermediate School District

The American Red Cross Bloodmobile will visit Three Rivers on Wednesday (August 27th).

The Bloodmobile will be in operation from 11:30 a.m. to 5:15 p.m. at the JoCo Center on Wood Street, just north of Kadant Johnson, Inc.

Energy is a key issue in the presidential election process now underway in the United States.  It’s also an important issue in the contest between Republican incumbent Congressman Fred Upton of St. Joseph and Democratic challenger Don Cooney of Kalamazoo in Michigan’s Sixth Congressional District, which includes all of “River Country.”

The differences between Upton and Cooney on energy are the focus of a news report on WMUK, Western Michigan University’s public radio station.  To access this story – and an interview with Kurt Cobb, a freelance writer who reports on energy issues – click here.