Vicksburg, in recent years a hub for a fall Bicycle Celebration Weekend organized by Bike Friendly Kalamazoo, will be the site of an event for children 5-11 at the Historic Village on May 13. That’s the first day of a county-wide Bike Week ending May 20.
The 9-a.m.-noon event opens at the Gazebo in the Historic Village. It then moves through four nearby stations where kids can get their bikes tuned up by Pedal Bicycle from Portage, get their helmet fitting checked by Safe Kids Kalamazoo County – or get a free helmet while supplies last. They can go on to learn hand signals for road safety, and put the signals to use at a Bike Rodeo in the Trust Shield Insurance parking lot across Richardson, opposite the Museum.
More information for the event can be found on Facebook and on the Society’s website: vicksburghistory.org. Those with more questions can call Leah Richard at 269.649.1733 or e-mail info@vicksburghistory.org.
There is no charge to participate in the event, although donations will be accepted and there may be a charge for some bike repairs.
Cyclists participating in the checkup and rodeo will be given a report card showing their bike is in good shape. The report card must be presented across the street to participate in the rodeo. There, owners will ride the closed course with stop signs, yield signs and an intersection. Volunteers will be at each location.
Other events in Kalamazoo County during the week include a Mayor’s Ride with mayors of Kalamazoo and Portage, safe-riding lessons including how to ride dirt and gravel roads (hint: not on skinny tires) and a show displaying exceptional bikes.
Vicksburg through 2022 has been the center of four Fall Bike Celebrations on long weekends in September, organized by Bike Friendly Kalamazoo. They included rides through the Vicksburg Quilt Trail and events showcasing the Farmers Market and the Mill Project. That event is scheduled the weekend of Sept. 17-19, with events planned in Vicksburg and other parts of South County.
Book Club for Adults – May 4 and June 1 from 9:30 – 10:30 a.m. Book club meets at this time the first Thursday of every month. May’s book is anything by Laura Lippman. Ask at the Circulation Desk for June’s book.
Comedy Movie Club – May 3 and June 21 from 6 – 8 p.m. Spend the evening watching a comedy movie at the library! Popcorn and drinks provided. We will watch “Free Guy”. Open to anyone 18 and older. Crafts for Adults and Seniors – May 9 from 1 – 3 p.m. Adults and seniors do crafts at the library. May’s craft is painting rocks to look like potted succulents. All you need to bring is yourself.
Robert Weir Presents “Great Crossings” – May 17 from 7 – 8 p.m. A presentation of sailing adventure by Robert M. Weir. Robert’s gorgeous photos, delightful stories, and interactions with people will enlighten us about the joys of international maritime adventures.
Anime and Gaming Social Group for 18+ — May 18 from 5 – 5:45 p.m. Social and discussion group for anime and gaming fans who are 18 and up. Come ready to discuss your favorite anime and games. Hot and cold drinks provided.
Recipe Swap Party – May 21 from 2– 4 p.m. Bring your favorite recipe and an example of the finished product to share.
Movie Club for Adults and Seniors – May 22 from 1 – 3:30 p.m. Come to the library to watch a movie, drink tea or coffee, and nibble on snacks. May’s movie will be “Jane Eyre”.
Writers’ Roundtable creative writing group – May 24 from 1 – 2:30 p.m. All are welcome. Bring a short piece to workshop.
Craft & Chat – May 26 from 12:30 – 1:30 p.m. Adults and seniors bring their current craft project (e.g., knitting, crocheting, coloring, cross-stitch, etc.) to work on while chatting with other crafters. Tea and coffee provided.
Vicksburg District Library at the Vicksburg Farmers Market – May 26 from 2 – 6 p.m. Stop by and craft with us. Pick up a library card application for youth and adults.
Karaoke for Older Teens/Early Twenties – May 31 from 6:30 – 8:00 p.m. We have the music, the microphone, and the drinks and snacks. You just come and have fun. Bring your friends!
Family Storytime – For children 18 months to 4 years old. Meets Mondays 10 – 10:30 a.m. (May 1, 8, 15, and 22). Rich language experiences with storytelling, reading, and music and movement.
Mugs & Hugs – For children 18 months to 4 years old, on biweekly Wednesdays (May 3 and 17) from 10 – 10:45 a.m. Fun learning and social time. Coffee and tea provided for adults.
Bouncing Babies – For babies to 2 years old every Friday from 10 – 10:30 a.m. (May 5, 12, 19, and 26). We start early to enhance language and social development
Bulldog Break Time – For teens in grades 6 – 12, held on the 2nd and 4th Thursdays of the month from 2:45 – 4:15 p.m. (May 11 and 25). A safe space for teens and tweens to get together and have fun. Crafts, games, social activities, and tasty treats provided.
Teen Space / Game Time – For teens in grades 6 – 12, held on the 2nd and 4th Thursdays of the month from 4:15 – 5:45 p.m. (May 11 and 25). Nintendo Switch and games for people under 18! All supplies provided along with fun snacks.
STEAM – Our STEAM programs, dealing with science, technology, engineering, the arts, and mathematics, provide opportunities for children K to 5th grade to explore and experiment with new concepts. Monday, May 15, 11 – noon.
LEGO Club – Free Build – Students in grades K – 5 can build their favorite design in Legos. They will choose their favorite creation, along with a label to put in the library display case. Tuesday, May 16, 4 – 5 p.m.
Ladies Library Auxiliary Meeting – May 5 from noon – 3 p.m. in our Lower Level space.
Quilters Class – May 22 from 7 – 8 p.m. in our Lower Level space.
Quilt-n-Friends Workday – May 27 from 10 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. in our Lower Level space.
Bridge Club meets every Tuesday from 9:30 a.m. – noon.
Tai Chi meets each Tuesday night from 7 – 8 p.m. and each Thursday morning from 10:30 – 11:30 a.m.
Glen Oaks Community College inducted Tom Horn of Vicksburg into its Athletic Hall of Fame at an annual All-Athlete Awards banquet April 30.
Horn was athletic director at the Centreville college from 1995-2005. He’s credited with leading Viking athletics through 11 years of high-caliber play while placing an emphasis on academics and ethical behavior. Several teams reached national honor in their NJCAA division II tournaments.
Horn had a much longer history with Vicksburg High School athletics – 33 years, coaching for 28 years, athletic director for two. He coached several sports including basketball, track, baseball and cross country. Under his leadership in cross-country, the team recorded 402 wins and only 59 defeats. His track teams compiled a 186 win and 59 loss record. He was named Michigan Class B Cross Country Coach of the year in 1963-64 and again in 1964-65, and his cross-country teams were undefeated 13 times. His teams won many championships: 21 Wolverine Conference championships, 11 regional and a State Championship in Cross Country in 1963. He’s credited with saving Glen Oaks athletics toward the end of his tenure there.
“In 2004, Glen Oaks had considered the elimination of athletics due to financial concerns,” said Joel Mishler, GOCC director of athletics. “At that time, Tom stepped up and advocated for keeping Viking athletics alive. He believed in the value that sports bring to our society as students learn patience, teamwork, ethics, hard work, and grit, as well as the individual and team successes that transcend throughout our students for the rest of their lives.”
Through Horn’s efforts and persistence, he found innovative ways to pave the way to continue the athletic program.
“We are grateful for the years of leadership and passion Tom displayed while at Glen Oaks, but also for his willingness to fight and manage something that is important to the campus experience and its student-athletes in 2023 and beyond,” said Mishler.
Remi Jones points out her drawing to her father, Kyle, and siblings Bailey and Lennon, during Vicksburg Community Schools “Celebration of the Arts” April 20 at Vicksburg High School.
By Jef Rietsma
For the first time since 2019, Vicksburg Community Schools showcased its full arsenal of fine arts during an evening-long open house last month.
The April 20 event at Vicksburg High School featured a buffet of everything related to the district’s cultural offerings.
The 2023 “Celebration of the Arts” provided music, dance, singing and visual arts.
Dusty Morris, chairman of the district’s fine arts, said Celebration of the Arts started in 2011 and was staged every other year through 2019. He said the concept originated rather spontaneously: Director of bands Ben Rosier raised the idea during a department meeting more than a decade ago.
“There’s a lot going on here at Vicksburg and Ben asked aloud what could we do to show the public all the things we have to offer,” Morris said. “Vicksburg is a Class B school and for a district that’s not huge, it’s pretty impressive how many different programs we have here.”
Morris said for at least the 17 years he’s been with the district it has shown time and again its unwavering support of the fine arts.
The April event featured talent from all grades in many areas. For example, artwork from the district’s five buildings was on display in the high school. Meanwhile, a portion of the event featured fourth- and fifth-grade choir members and musicians in the district’s string program, which also features fourth and fifth grades.
It also included the middle school band, both high school jazz bands, a number of high school concert bands, and several different choirs from Vicksburg’s elementary, middle and high schools.
Morris said the evening was structured so that events were staggered for maximum viewership. For example, a dance recital started at 5:30. Half an hour later, a student film festival was presented. A district-wide art show was available to view between 5:30 and 7, and the evening concluded with bands and choirs starting at 7 p.m. in the school gymnasium.
Morris said Celebration of the Arts also provides parents the chance to see components of the fine arts they might not otherwise take the time to witness.
“So, the parents of a fourth grader probably won’t attend a high school band concert, for example, and vice-versa,” he said. “If they come here tonight, they’ll have the opportunity to witness something they might not otherwise see.”
Patty Heintzelman, choir teacher at Tobey and Indian Lake elementaries, said she was excited to welcome back Celebration of the Arts. The program’s choral finale, Beethoven’s triumphant “Ode To Joy,” was intentionally chosen as a celebration to mark the return of such a beloved and popular community event.
She said planning a performance of such magnitude required fine arts teachers to work together with the intent of a seamless transition when elementary, middle school and high school students combined for the closing piece.
Kyle Jones, father of Sunset Lake kindergartener Remi Jones, said his daughter was thrilled to learn her artwork – a picture of her dog, Boomer – was chosen to be featured in the art showcase.
The Celebration “is the first for us so it’s been really nice coming into the high school and seeing all that there is to see,” he said. “Remi has been talking about this ever since I got a message from school that her picture was chosen and, I have to say, I think it’s real important that kids learn from a young age how important the fine arts are.”
Megan Oswalt, Sunset Lake art teacher, said she chose between 40 to 50 pieces of artwork from BK through fifth grade to feature during the program. Oswalt conceded it was difficult to limit the number of pieces to fewer than 50.
Meanwhile, dance studio instructors Dawn Simpson and RJ Robertson-Degraaf said they were happy that students were able to share what they’ve learned through various dance programs this year.
“What thrills me the most is the opportunity this provided to keep culture and the arts front and center,” Simpson said, noting the district’s dance program includes tap, jazz, hip-hop, gymnastics and ballet. “Tonight, we showcased hula and Tahitian dances, and a few hip-hop numbers.”
Vicksburg Community Schools appears poised to add new courses to its curriculum, including environmental science, personal finance, middle-school Spanish and a course for 7th and 8th graders incorporating a research project.
Board members heard pitches for the proposed new courses at an April meeting.
An AP environmental science course, outlined by Tina Porter, high school science department chair. “At the moment, we are trying to incorporate the majority of the environmental/earth science objectives into either our introductory chemistry, physics or biology classes with varying success,” Porter said. “With PFAS in our drinking water, lead (pipes) in Flint and even the railway collision that happened in New Palestine, Ohio, the importance of environmental science in legislation and in our daily lives can’t really be overstated.”
Porter said more exposure to such content and helping to develop critical-thinking skills are too important to overlook.
A personal finance course, described by District Curriculum Director Gail VanDaff, who said such a course would fall under economics. VanDaff said personal finance will soon become a required course and offering through economics appears to make the most sense.
“We’re looking at building (personal finance) into our econ course, so we are looking for resources that will support us,” she said, noting the district is contemplating the program “The Principles in Action” from Savvas Learning Company. “They do have a piece of the personal finance, a whole unit on personal finance that will align with those standards so students taking economics will be able to meet that requirement.”
Middle school language arts teacher Jody Young sought approval of adding an elective course for higher-achieving students in seventh and eighth grades. “The (proposed) elective is a semester-long course, so it will be offered two times during the school year. It will incorporate an I-Search philosophy, which is just a curiosity research involving all the reading and writing standards,” Young said, pointing out that it would be offered to seventh- and eighth-grade students.
The first half of the semester would focus on research of Vicksburg’s history. The second half would include a community-service project, the student’s own curiosity project,” Young said. Shannon Howard, high school Spanish teacher, proposed a one-semester elective in Spanish for sixth and seventh-grade students. The district is phasing out its French program, creating a need for more Spanish courses.
“All of those kids who were in French now are going to only have one language option,” she said. “So, more sections of Spanish mean we need more sections and more teachers.”
“This course will set the foundation for their language learning … offering it to our younger learners will hopefully set them up for success,” she added. “The course would be taught through natural acquisition … which focuses on high-frequency words and reading throughout the curriculum.”
The board approved first reading of the proposals and may take further action at its May 8 meeting.
The Vicksburg varsity baseball team is slowly finding its stride in the early part of the season. The Bulldogs have experienced various highs and lows after starting the season with a dominating 12-2 victory over Coldwater. The team has a mix of experience levels this season. Head Coach Brian Deal said all have contributed.
“Overall, we think it’s a pretty good group, we just haven’t really quite hit our stride yet, putting everything together, playing a clean game offensively or defensively yet,” Deal said after a doubleheader against Paw Paw suspended play in the second game. “That’s the one thing I’m still kind of waiting for us to do is put together a total game.”
In the meantime, the boys are showcasing some exciting baseball. The most notable game of the season was a nine-inning thriller on the road against Otsego. The Bulldogs were down 10-2 in the third inning before Jackson Bowles came in at relief and helped lead the comeback. Bowles only allowed three hits and an intentional walk as the Bulldogs came back for an 18-10 win.
The excellence in pitching is a carry-over from last season when Vicksburg also had tremendous depth. In the first game against Paw Paw, Caden Bowling only gave up one run in the game before Bowles came in at relief. He also gave up only a single run as the Bulldogs pulled away for a 4-1 win.
“To shut them down from the pitching perspective was incredible,” Deal said. “We had a timely hit with Brady Young putting the ball in play, and getting a base hit, scoring that run. That kind of got us the lead 2-1.
“And then we got some more guys on base, and Drew Habel came up and gave us some insurance runs with hitting the double and scoring two to make it 4-1. I just think we stayed persistent throughout the whole game and just kept battling in the batter’s box.”
There was a scary moment for the Bulldog faithful in the second game with the score 1-0 in Paw Paw’s favor. With one on, one out, and Carter Brown already on base, Habel took a hard pitch to the face which took him out of the game. Bryce Smith came on as a relief runner in his place. Logan Cohrs batted next and hit an RBI to bring Brown home to tie things up. Connor DeVries then brought Smith home on a ground out to make it 2-1.
The injury to Habel seemed to rattle the team. They gave eight runs over the next inning and half before the game was suspended with the score 9-2. Deal said the injury took the wind out of their sails, but he used it as a teaching moment.
“The thing I appreciate about it is our guys, they care more about Drew than they care more about winning a baseball game, which is commendable,” Deal said. “We talked about it. You’re going to have adversity in sports and you’re going to have adversity in life. It’s how do you handle it? How do you bounce back and get ready to go?”
Cohrs came in as catcher for the rest of the game and Deal said they are ready to use him if Habel is out for an extended period. Cohrs made first team all-conference as a freshman two years ago but was then sidelined with an arm injury. In the meantime, the team will stay focused one game at a time as they try to capture the conference and hopefully, their third district in a row.
