The Blue Water Area Fallen Heroes Community Banner Program is making its official debut in St. Clair County.  The banner program was brought forward by members of the St. Clair County Allied Veterans Council (comprised of delegates representing 16 veteran posts throughout the county), the St. Clair County Department of Veteran Affairs, and an elite student leadership class project from Croswell – Lexington High School as a way to honor our community’s military service members that were killed in action.  These county veteran posts and their members have a long-standing high regard for those who serve, have served, or were killed while serving, in the military.  Their rich history is interwoven within the community.  There were over 550 service members killed in action from World War One (WWI) to the current gulf war conflict who resided in cities/townships across St. Clair County.  This banner program will help the community to continue to honor and remember those residents who were killed in action in the United States Armed Forces.  They will be recognized one week prior to and a week after Memorial Day each year.  Banners will be displayed on streetlight poles, near parks or other areas deemed as a memorials.   These beautiful, patriotic banners will display a photograph of a service member, as well as his or her name, rank, branch of service, war conflict, and city in which they resided in St. Clair County.  They will help to promote civic pride in our community. There are many cities across the country such as Waynesboro, Pennsylvania that this banner program is modeled after.  “It’s a powerful message to enter Waynesboro, Pennsylvania, a small farming community, and see these banners when you least expect it,” said Ed Weichsler, U.S. Air Force, Veteran.   We all have a role to play in the community banner program. There isn’t one role more important than the other, but the final result will speak volumes about us as a community. “This is a signature project for our department.  We are a trusted resource in the veteran community.  Working on this project gives us an opportunity to meet with community members who may not be aware of the services and resources we provide,” said Nancy Deising, Outreach Coordinator, St. Clair County Department of Veterans Affairs.   Let’s face it, as a society, we all have at least a couple of shoe boxes of photographs on some obscure shelf, in some forgotten closet, or in the attic we ‘inherited’ from a deceased family member. It’s in these forgotten treasure troves of family history that many of the physical images of these fallen heroes may be found.  To date, we have obtained  over 85 photographs of local service members who were killed in action.  If you have a family member and/or know of a friend or neighbor who was killed in action from WWI to this current date and they resided in St. Clair County, please contact Nancy Deising at ndeising@stclaircounty.org or call the banner program Hotline at (810) 985-2007 to arrange an appointment to get a photograph scanned.  To learn more about the Blue Water Area Fallen Heroes Community Banner Program or make a donation, visit: http://www.stclairfoundation.org/funds/more/blue_water_fallen_heroes_community_banner_program_fund.

Tom Buckley began working at the St. Clair County Sheriff Department some 28 years ago, and will be retiring as under sheriff  as of Friday, November 30.  But, he won’t be resting in retirement, as he will be starting a new job as an investigator with the State Gaming Control Board.   Buckley grew up in Detroit and came from a family of firefighters.   Over the years in the career he has worked years on the Drug Task Force and one of the more notable investigations in which he participated, was the 2005 murder of Ryan Rich where six men were convicted.  Following the election of Sheriff Tim Donnellon, Buckley was named under sheriff in 2008,replacing retiring under sheriff Bruce Lindke.   He will be replaced by Matt Paulus, who retired as a captain with the sheriff department in January 2017.

State Rep. Shane Hernandez of Port Huron last week was named House Appropriations Committee chair for the 2019-2020 legislative session by Speaker-elect Lee Chatfield, a vital leadership position tasked with continuing Michigan’s economic momentum while representing hard-working taxpayers in state budget decisions.  “I am proud and honored to serve Michigan in this important capacity and I’d like to thank Speaker-elect Chatfield for his support and confidence,” said Hernandez, who is believed to be the Michigan House’s first Hispanic appropriations chair. “I grew up in a family that worked hard for every dollar earned, so I am committed to spending taxpayer dollars wisely while maintaining the essential services our state needs to grow and thrive. Residents across our state, including Sanilac and St. Clair counties, are demanding better roads and schools without breaking the bank to deliver them. That will be my mission as my colleagues and I look to move Michigan forward.” Hernandez was first elected to the Michigan House in 2016 and was re-elected this month for a second two-year term. He already has valuable experience on the committee that helps shape Michigan’s state government budget, serving on the appropriations panel for the current 2017-18 legislative session.  Hernandez helped reduce overall state spending while ramping up efforts to improve Michigan’s roads and schools. As chair of a subcommittee focused on transportation issues, he fought for ways to fix Michigan’s roads through smarter spending and more efficient planning.  Hernandez has championed a plan that would encourage the Michigan Department of Transportation to test new ideas to build better and more cost-effective roads. Hernandez also is a decorated defender of Michigan’s job providers, having received the “Guardian of Small Business” award from the National Federation of Independent Business. He is noted for his commitment to limited government and fiscal responsibility.  “I will fight to protect taxpayers across our state, helping deliver the best return and value possible on their hard-earned money,” Hernandez said. “I look forward to working with my colleagues to keep Michigan’s comeback going strong and make our state an even better place to live.”

The St. Clair County Library System will present Barbara Oakley – Learning How to Learn: Powerful Mental Tools to Help You Master Tough Subjects on Monday, November 26^th, at 6 pm at the St. Clair Community College Fine Arts Theater.  According to St. Clair County Administrator Karry Hepting, this is a free but ticketed event. Tickets can be obtained by clicking here or at any St. Clair County library branch.   Professor of Engineering and linguist Barbara Oakley, is the instructor of Learning How to Learn(University of California-San Diego – Coursera), one of the world’s largest student massive open online course, with over two million students. In this presentation, she delves deep into the brain to present practically useful information about how you can more easily master new and difficult material.

• Learn from a neuroscientific perspective why it’s perfectly normal to not understand something difficult the first time you encounter it.  You’ll see how to leverage your knowledge of how your brain works to do better on tests and to inoculate yourself (and the children in your life) against feelings of frustration and failure when something seems difficult to learn.
• See what the patterns of expertise look like in the brain, and learn how to build those patterns more quickly and with less frustration.
• Discover simple tools to tackle procrastination. (You might be surprised to learn that even just thinking about something you don’t like causes your brain to experience pain.)
• Learn the surprising advantages of having a bad memory and sometimes being a slower learner.

Dr. Oakley’s previous book, A Mind for Numbers, is a New York Times and international best-seller translated into over a dozen languages. Her most recent book is the popular Learning How to Learn: How to Succeed in School Without Spending All Your Time Studying; A Guide for Kids and Teens.

Lake Huron Medical Center (LHMC) is pleased to announce its November 2018 Employee of the Month, Rosemary Hunger, and its November 2018 Volunteer of the Month, Cindy Balmer. LHMC is honored to have a strong team of staff and volunteers working hard to deliver high-quality care to the Blue Water Area.  Rosemary serves as the hospitals volunteer and senior service coordinator and has been with LHMC since 2010. She was nominated by a peer who attended a 3-session seminar specifically designed to offer hints and suggestions and support to care givers of family members and friends with dementia presented by Rosemary at the Washington Life Center in Marine City for her ability to make everyone feel welcome and supported and for her gift of being able to present information to cover all of the aspects of dementia while being mindful of emotions, future expectations, possibilities, and predictable outcomes without scaring the life out of those in attendance.  Cindy is a special projects volunteer at various departments throughout the hospital. She has been volunteering since 2012 and was nominated by an employee, her leadership to honoring Veterans who are employed and/or patients of Lake Huron Medical Center and throughout the community through sending personalized cards and leading prayer.  Lake Huron Medical Center is proud of each of its employees and volunteers; and extends a special thank you and congratulations to all our team members, especially Shannon and Kay as we celebrate their accomplishments.  To learn more about the programs and services offered at Lake Huron Medical Center, visit www.mylakehuron.com.