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Library Has Creative Options for January

The St. Clair County Library System has plenty on the calendar for January to get the New Year off to a good start.

Kids can stop by the Children’s Library at the Main Branch in Port Huron to pick up a kit to build their very own stuffed bear. Once the bear is built, at the library or at home, kids can bring the bears back for Teddy Bear Sleepover Camp, where the bears will make scrapbooks of their adventures at camp. Registration is required.

Ever wanted to learn the ancient art form of Origami? This might be the year to build that lifelong skill. The G. Lynn Campbell/Kimball Township Branch, located in Kimball, will be hosting both Teen and Adult Origami classes in January. Materials are provided and the classes are free.

Feeling creative? A Fairy House Workshop will be held on Thursdays for six sessions, with all materials provided to create a fairy house of your own design. The sessions will be held at the G. Lynn Campbell/Kimball Library.

There is also a presentation on Understanding Grief and a group that meets for card games. For the full schedule of events, https://stclaircountylibrary.org/events

Reporting for WGRT – Jennie McClelland

Maggie’s Wigs 4 Kids Gets Help from Police Departments

Police Departments from all over the area have worked to raise money for Maggie’s Wigs 4 Kids. The non-profit provides wigs and support services for kids who are experiencing hair loss due to cancer, alopecia, blood & skin disorders, dog bites, and other medical issues.

The fundraiser is called “Pigs 4 Wigs” and took place over the month of November. Law enforcement officers put down their razors during No-Shave November and collected donations totaling over $24,000 to go to Maggie’s Wigs 4 Kids.

Founder and CEO Maggie Varney said, “We love our men in blue and we want the kids to know that their donation shows they care about the people in the communities they serve.” 

Varney said Pigs 4 Wigs has been gaining momentum and the police help her organization get the word out.

Departments from Chesterfield, Clinton Township, Romeo, and several other communities participated. Organizers are encouraging more departments to get involved next year.

Founded in 2003, Maggie’s Wigs 4 Kids of Michigan has served over 5,000 children & families. If you know of a child in need of their services, please refer them – the organization helps everyone, charges nothing and turns no one away. You can call the Wellness Center at: 586-772-6656, visit their website: www.wigs4kids.org or follow them on social media.

Sergeant Michael Collier from the Portage Department of Public Safety would like to get more police precincts involved. He can be reached at: collierm@portagemi.gov or (269) 329-4567  

Reporting for WGRT – Jennie McClelland

Can You Bake Cookies for a Cause? SOS Marysville Needs Christmas Cookies for Christmas Dinners

What is your favorite Christmas Cookie? Peanut Butter Blossom? Iced Sugar Cookie? Gingerbread? 

The SOS Marysville Food Pantry needs homemade cookies. They are delivering over 2,000 Christmas Dinners on Christmas Day and they need cookies to go along with the meals.

Heidi Richards from the Food Pantry said that they are getting help from a lot of local organizations and businesses who are hosting “Baking Cookies for a Cause” events, but they still need more.

Each dinner will include three cookies. Donors are asked to package the cookies in groups of three in small zip-lock bags. The cookies can be dropped off at the Marysville Methodist Church at 712 Huron Avenue in Marysville by 9:00 a.m. on Christmas morning.

Richards said, “We live in an amazing community. So many have volunteered to provide cookies for the shut-ins, homeless, and elderly. Over sixty individuals have committed to making from two dozen up to 15 dozen totaling 218 dozen.”

Richards said 282 dozen more cookies are needed. If you have questions, or can help, call Heidi at 810-650-6174.

Reporting for WGRT – Jennie McClelland

Plenty of Winter Fun Planned by Port Huron Recreation

Port Huron’s Recreation Department has a winter full of fun on tap for all ages. The 2022 Winter Events and Programs publication has been released and there is a lot going on.

Lunches for senior citizens are back at Palmer Park. The site is a congregate meal site for the St. Clair County Council on Aging. Lunches are served at 11:30 a.m. Monday through Friday.

There is also the “Oldies Get Goodies” program that delivers “Goodie Bags” to local seniors.

The Recreation Department is hoping for snow and cold with Sledfest on the calendar for January 22nd and the ice rinks at Lincoln and Palmer Parks are open for skaters once the ice freezes.

There are also the usual sports offerings like dance, fencing, drums alive, and karate. Tennis is also offered this year.

Registration begins December 16th for Port Huron residents and December 17th for non-residents. There are scholarship opportunities available.

Looking ahead to summer, registration for Camp Palmer, the summer day camp, begins February 28th for returning families.

A link to the full brochure can be found below.

https://www.porthuronrec.com/_files/ugd/fc6623_35d656b5e3d34091a236a61cec431e18.pdf

Fort Gratiot Light Station to Undergo Restoration

The Fort Gratiot Light Station in Port Huron is getting spruced up over the winter. The property, which is part of St. Clair County Parks, is seeing improvements to the Light Tower’s Watch and Lantern Rooms and the Fog Signal Building.

The Lantern Room restorations are made possible by a Michigan Lighthouse Assistance Program Grant. The grant is for $16,667 and will be matched with an $8,333 grant from the Friends of the Fort Gratiot Light.

The repairs will restore the lantern room to how it looked in the 1930s, which includes new glass windows, metal and masonry repair, paint, and a glass floor.

A new pedestal will be installed to hold the modern LED light that is still used as a navigational aid.

The fog signal building will be getting some repairs to the lower two feet of bricks on the structure.

A candlelight tour of the Light Station is offered on some weekends in December, with more information at phmuseum.org.

The Friends of the Fort Gratiot Light host Sandfest to raise funds for Light Station restoration projects. Sandfest is scheduled for August 5th through 7th of 2022.

Reporting for WGRT – Jennie McClelland

Tunnel Tragedy 50th Anniversary Memorial Planned for Dec. 11

It has been fifty years since the Lake Huron Water Tunnel Explosion in which 22 men died in a tunnel beneath Lake Huron. A memorial will be held on Saturday, December 11th at 2:30 p.m. at Fort Gratiot County Park off of Metcalf Road in Fort Gratiot.

There is a permanent memorial at the park commemorating the lives lost in the tragedy in 1971. The memorial will be a solemn event intended for those who were affected by the tragedy as well as the general public. An effort was made to contact the surviving family members.

The tunnel tragedy occurred while the men were working on the water line that was built to distribute water to Detroit and Flint. An enormous explosion occurred on one end of the tunnel, sending shockwaves to workers four miles from the initial spark, killing 21 workers immediately and one worker dying from injuries later.

The memorial is sponsored by LiUNA, the construction trades union. Most of the victims of the tragedy were union tradesmen.

Reporting for WGRT – Jennie McClelland