Local News

Michiganders woke up to a barrage of information this morning that could cause more confusion than clarity. A  struggle between legislators and the governor yesterday resulted in the Michigan Legislature allowing the emergency disaster declaration to expire and authorizing a lawsuit against the governor. Governor Whitmer’s response was to declare another state of emergency and state of disaster effective through May 28th and express her intention to veto any bills that “constrain her ability to protect the people of Michigan from this deadly virus in a timely manner.” Now, citizens are wondering who to listen to.

Some legislators are telling their constituents that they don’t have to follow Whitmer’s directives, but Shane Hernandez, State Representative for the 83rd District, said that the Governor’s orders can continue to be enforced until a court says otherwise.

“We didn’t extend. She thinks she can extend. Her orders stand until a court says otherwise.” said Hernandez. When asked what the legislature hopes to accomplish, Hernandez expressed concern that the people’s voices are not being considered in the Governor’s process for deciding what actions should be taken to confront COVID-19 in Michigan. Until the governor decides to take input from the legislature (the elected representatives of the people), the people of Michigan do not have a say in important decisions being made that dramatically affect their communities.

“When people call the governor’s office with questions about the unemployment system, she tells them to call their State Rep.” said Hernandez, noting the legislature’s role as advocates for their constituents. “We are the voice for the people, but we haven’t been able to be part of the process the governor has for deciding how to handle this.”

The legislature passed Senate Bill 858 on April 30th which puts several key directives to contain COVID-19 into temporary law. They include preventing employers from taking disciplinary action against any employee who elects to stay home from work because of COVID-19, expanded unemployment benefits and eligibility requirements, measures to prevent price gouging, and many others.

Whitmer’s office said in a press release that Senate Bill 858 “does not comply with constitutional requirements” and “the governor intends to veto this bill when presented to her.”

Reporting for WGRT – Jessie Wiegand

The Sarnia Community Foundation will join community foundations across Canada on Saturday, May 2 from 7:00 to 9:00 PM in a virtual “Stay At Home Gala.” They are asking their supporters to “wine & dine at home” to raise funds for managing the impact of COVID-19 on Canadian communities.

Funds raised locally will be donated to Lambton Mental Wellness and St. Clair Child and Youth to expand their mental health programs in the county. Additionally, a number of local food banks will be supported from this event.

Even though it’s virtual, it aims to offer all the familiar elements of a standard gala. The foundation is working with several local restaurants to provide choices for take-out options for dinner. Menu options and details on how to order are featured on their website at: sarniacommunityfoundation.ca. On top of this, the gala will feature speakers, entertainers, musicians, and more!

A foundation spokesperson wrote, “Everyone has been looking for a reason to get dressed up, kick back with a drink, and what better way to do so than by raising critical funds to help your community. All proceeds stay local.”  Tickets can be purchased online or by calling the Sarnia Community Foundation’s office at (519) 332 2588.  If you just want to donate to this event, you can purchase a ticket and not use it, or call the foundation for donation options.

Reporting for WGRT – Marty Doorn

Southeast Michigan Construction Academy (SEMCA) is taking scholarship applications from women interested in attending their skilled trades training program. SEMCA has four locations that offer registered apprenticeships in four skilled trade areas: electrical, carpentry, sheet metal and HVAC. Their main campus is in Madison Heights, and there are satellite campuses in Lapeer, Monroe, and Adrian.

Tuition costs an average of $3,500 a year, and the scholarships will cover the cost of first semester tuition for one returning student and one new student. The two and four year programs at SEMCA are taught by Masters in their trade. They include hands-on training as well as classroom learning, and classes are at night to enable students to work throughout the program.

Applications for the scholarship are online <HERE> and must be submitted by July 1st. The Women in Construction Committee is part of Associated Builders and Contractors of Southeastern Michigan. Their goal is to increase the number of women in the construction industry as a whole and encourage more young women to choose the skilled trades as a career path through community service, outreach, fundraising, and networking.

Reporting for WGRT – Jessie Wiegand

The Compassion Fund was created in response to Lambton County not-for-profits who needed assistance during the COVID-19 pandemic. Donations to the fund are used to support local agencies with 100% of all donations directed to help Lambton County’s most vulnerable. The Board of Directors would like to thank Scotiabank for its $2,500 donation to the fund. “Thank you to Scotiabank for making a difference in the lives of others,” said Vicky Ducharme, Campaign Chair for United Way of Sarnia-Lambton. “We couldn’t help the citizens of our community without your generosity.” 

Two more grants have been issued from the fund:

Huron House Boys Home – $5,000

The Huron House Boys Home works to develop and implement programs to enable their residents (boys aged 12-18) to make positive changes in their lives. Staff are now required on site when the residents would typically be offsite in school. Funds will be used for additional staffing costs as well as food, personal and cleaning supplies. 

Don Adam, Executive Director of Huron House said the grant is very  appreciated. Since the boys in residential care have been off school, his staff has been helping them access their online course work and oversee completion of homework. “The kids have been quite resilient, and our staff has been absolutely incredible, ” he said.

North Lambton Community Health Centre – $5,000

The Harm Reduction & Hepatitis C Care Team at North Lambton Community Health Centre continues to provide modified services during COVID-19. Funds will help clients who need transportation to Sarnia for services such as Opioid Substitution Therapy and laboratory services; provide home delivery of harm reduction supplies, non-perishable food, hygiene products and other essentials, and provide phone cards to continue to conduct all appointments over the phone. 

The Compassion Fund is comprised of community donations from those who want to help our most vulnerable in the wake of COVID-19. Donations can be made online at www.theunitedway.on.ca or by calling 519-336-5452. 

Rep. Shane Hernandez of Port Huron today voted for a plan to end the governor’s unilateral control during the COVID-19 response and restore the balance of powers between the branches of Michigan’s state government.

Hernandez said he and other members of the Legislature have heard countless complaints about many of the governor’s decisions in the past month – all made without input from the Legislature, the elected representatives of the people.

“We are not trying to end the state’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic. We are simply trying to ensure the state’s response includes representatives of Michigan taxpayers and families,” said Hernandez, chair of the House Appropriations Committee. “The people demand and deserve a seat at the table when decisions are made that dramatically affect their health and livelihoods. That representation comes through the Legislature.

“The governor forced our actions today by refusing to work with the Legislature and going out of her way to publicly end potentially productive discussions aimed at helping Michigan overcome COVID-19 and reopen the economy. She forced this action by failing to fix the state’s broken unemployment filing system, and by refusing to answer questions about why she is making certain decisions – such as why some workers can’t return to their jobs even though they could do so safely. It is my hope she will put partisanship and politics aside and begin to work with us in a collaborative, constructive way.”

To ensure measures remain in place to protect public health and help families who have been hurt by the economic impact of the virus, the House took action to put some of the governor’s previous orders into state law with specific expiration dates. This includes preventing employers from taking disciplinary action against any employee who elects to stay home from work because of COVID-19, expanded unemployment benefits and eligibility requirements, measures to prevent price gouging, and many others.

Restrictions on public gatherings would remain in place, but the governor’s stay home order would expire.

Hernandez sponsored a resolution authorizing the Speaker of the House to take legal action on behalf of the House to challenge the governor’s authority and actions during the COVID-19 response, if necessary.

“The governor was elected to work with other branches of government in the best interests of Michigan,” Hernandez said. “She was not elected to make decisions without checks and balances.”

Submitted by Tim Martin

The port Huron Police Department launched a new app available for free on the Google Play Store, iTunes App Store, or by visiting the Port Huron Police Department’s website at www.porthuronpolice.org and clicking on the CAPTURE symbol.

“The Port Huron Police Department responds to community needs through a combined strategy of preventative, proactive and reactive policing programs, said Chief Joseph Platzer. “This is a combined effort – not just with our officers, but with our residents as a whole, and I believe our new Port Huron PD app will help us work even more closely with the public to keep our community safe.” The new Port Huron PD app enables the public to share an anonymous tip with police and lets officers respond back to create an anonymous two-way conversation. 

“We’ve listened to feedback from partners like Port Huron Police and have built a more advanced and innovative product to help departments better engage their communities,” said tip411 President Terry Halsch. “The Port Huron PD app powered by tip411 will greatly improve the public’s access to help fight crime.” The Port Huron PD app and tip411 anonymous text a tip system are 100% anonymous, as the technology removes all identifying information before police see the tips and there is no way to identify the sender. 

Residents in Port Huron without a smartphone will still be able to share information with police by sending an anonymous text tip via their cell phone to police by texting keyword CAPTURE and their message/tip to 847411 (tip411). Anonymous web tips can also be submitted through the department’s website at www.porthuronpolice.org and clicking on the CAPTURE symbol.