Local News

K-9 Heiko and Officer Justin Reeves of the Marysville Police Department were the talk of the town during the month of October as they toured the community raising awareness about a national competition the pair were participating in for a new Chevy Tahoe. Well the results are in…and we have a winner!  

According to the results from Vested Interest in K9s, Reeves and Heiko were the second-place winners, but thanks to an anonymous donation, the pair will still be getting a brand-new ride. The number of votes were totalled at almost 279,000 with 30 contestants competing. Reeves and Heiko received just over 26,000 votes. Michael Kasdorf and K9 Lando of the Hazel Park Police Department, also Michiganders,  were the first place contestants.

Officer Reeves said they “likely won’t have the Tahoe for several months yet considering turn around time after ordering and customization.” He and Heiko found out they were winners when “the President of Vested Interest In K9s personally called [him] after the contest ended. As far as comments to the public, Reeves and Heiko “would simply like to thank and extend [their] gratitude for all of the support and assistance during the month long contest as it’s a victory earned by the entire community. 

Vested Interest in K9s is a non-profit organization whose mission is to provide bullet and stab protective vests to dogs of law enforcement, and related agencies throughout the United States. In addition to the 3,500 vests they have provided since 2009, they also have helped fund K9 medical insurance premiums, K9 medical first-aid kits, and K9 opioid reversal NARCAN kits.

Reporting for WGRT, Karly Hurley.

The future of the United States Coast Guard Cutter, Bramble, is still a question mark after its scheduled auction in Alabama has been postponed. The ship has a colorful history including roles as a museum ship in the Blue Water Area for many years. Many school children and families got to see the living conditions of a real Coast Guard crew when touring the boat. Before that, it was involved in atomic bomb testing and traveling barely charted waters.  The Bramble was one of the first three ships to successfully circumnavigate the North American continent, and is an important part of global maritime history. 

 The Bramble was purchased in 2018 by a private individual who planned to recreate the trip through the Northwest Passage that the Bramble took in 1957. A film crew was documenting the steps to refurbish the Bramble which can be seen on the facebook page “Bramble Reborn”. Costs for the refurbishment added up and bills went unpaid, causing the ship to be seized and held in dockage in Mobile, Alabama earlier this fall.  

According to The Maritime Executive publication, the plaintiff in the federal case, Inchcape Shipping Services, Inc. says they “hope that a passionate person or institution will be able to save her.” The Bramble was scheduled for auction this week, but the auction has been reported to be postponed.

Reporting for WGRT, Karly Hurley.

According to Port Huron City Manager, James Freed, the University of Wisconsin, in conjunction with Ball State University, is conducting a research project designed to identify Midwest communities with the most economically vital downtowns. One metric the research group is using to gauge economic vitality is the number of downtown businesses per capita. 

In the preliminary results, the City of Port Huron was ranked number seven out of 260 small to midsize communities that were sampled. Due to this finding, students and faculty are eager to learn about strategies that have been used to improve downtown vitality. According to Freed, the city will bee will be participating in research interviews. 

City officials were initially unaware that the study was taking place, lending to an impartial assessment. Freed believes this is, “another affirmation that the gains [the city is]  seeing and feeling are tangible and measurable.” He also said this confirms what “other studies have shown-that Port Huron is making measurable gains.”

The city anticipates taking part in phone and on-site research with faculty and students in the coming weeks as the study is finalized. Freed said he believes a preliminary report has been completed, but a final report should be made available to the public in the near future.

Reporting for WGRT, Karly Hurley.

Tuesday was voting day for a few local municipalities around St. Clair County and the results are in. Citizens in Marysville were asked to vote on three open city council seats as well as the mayoral position. Four candidates vied for the three open council seats. Incumbents Kathleen Hayman and Paul Wessel secured another term while Shawn Winston won his first term as a councilmember. Mike Deising fell just short in the race and Jean Cramer who withdrew from the race, but was still on the ballot due to a late withdrawal, received 180 votes. The new mayor of Marysville will be Wayne Pyden who ran uncontested. 

In Fort Gratiot, residents approved  the police protection millage proposal and residents in the City of St. Clair also approved the city employee pension renewal proposal.

Reporting for WGRT, Karly Hurley.

Students from Port Huron Northern High School attended the Young Women’s Leadership Conference at Lawrence Technological University in Southfield last week. The sold-out event brought together over 350 teachers and students to explore career possibilities and network with leaders in the technology industries with the goal of igniting “the passion and expanding the interest of women and girls for education and careers in business, IT, and STEM fields.”

Port Huron Northern High School teachers Amy Roach and Trina Northrop took the young women to the conference.  The students were selected because of their involvement in National Honor Society or STEAM programs at Northern. Mrs. Northrop conveyed that the conference was a “great opportunity to inspire young women to stand up and be heard in the competitive workforce.”  She said the strongest message that the students took away from the conference was to “know silence is not an option” and that their young voices are worth being heard. 

This year’s keynote speaker was Laura Jones, who is the Global Talent Director for General Motors. There was also a guest panel of notable leaders in the Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math fields. These bright young ladies may very well be future leaders in the growing STEM industries right here in the Blue Water Area.

Reporting for WGRT, Karly Hurley.

The Sanilac County Sheriff’s Office is warning area residents about an increase in phone scams targeting citizens.  According to Sheriff Gary Biniecki, the Detective Bureau has taken numerous calls within the last week in regards to Social Security Scams and the “police call” or “lawyer call” scam as well. Police are warning residents to use caution in taking these calls and reporting the number if given a call back number message. The Sheriff says his office is recommending that residents remain “mindful and skeptical of unknown callers.” 

As a reminder, if an unknown caller asks for cash, gift cards, credit card numbers or other personal information, the safest move is to refuse the request and check with the police to find if it is a legitimate business, rather than responding right away. It’s also very important to remember not to give out computer or phone log-ins along with personal or financial information to someone who calls. Remember, law enforcement agencies will not ask for this type of information for any reason. Always beware of high pressure techniques like callers demanding that a decision be made on-the-spot. Sheriff Biniecki says that if “it sounds quirky, weird or too good to be true, it probably is.”

Reporting for WGRT, Karly Hurley.