MY PROJECTS
News, Arts and Culture Reporting | Copywriting | Marketing
GRAND RAPIDS POLICE SERGEANT’S CALL FOR HELP TO MARK VETERANS’ GRAVES FOR MEMORIAL DAY A HUGE SUCCESS | MLIVE
May 2021
As the sun rose on Holy Cross Cemetery in Walker on a muggy Saturday morning, few, if any, flags were posted next to the thousands of veteran graves.
But between a grassroots effort and some social media fervor, rows of flags commemorating armed forces service began to rapidly dot the cemetery.
LOCAL EATS: MAGGIE’S KITCHEN IS A FAMILY-RUN GRAND RAPIDS INSTITUTION, OFFERING AUTHENTIC MEXICAN CUISINE | MLIVE
April 2021
From their famous barbacoa tacos to their staff, everything at Maggie’s Kitchen is expertly seasoned with decades of culinary experience.
Located at 636 Bridge Street NW, the restaurant has been serving up authentic Mexican cuisine for nearly 40 years on Grand Rapid’s West Side. People are willing to travel for the popular Styrofoam-plate meals.
WORLD WAR II VETERAN AWARDED BRONZE STAR AFTER NEARLY 80-YEAR WAIT | MLIVE
March 2021
A small audience could hear a pin drop as World War II veteran Bob Shields slowly walked up to the podium.
Adorned in his old Army uniform, the Grand Rapids man gripped his cane with two hands as he looked around the room and recounted the events of Dec. 16-17, 1944.
MATTAWAN’S PROPOSED WASTEWATER TREATMENT FACILITY DRAWS BACKLASH FROM COMMUNITY MEMBERS | MLIVE
March 2021
The Mattawan Village Council has faced backlash from community members over a proposal to create a wastewater treatment facility.
Residents have expressed environmental concerns over the impact on Hayden Creek and the watershed, the overall cost of the project as well as the facility negatively affecting property values.
WEBSITE REDESIGN | WWPASS
November 2020
Led copyediting and writing efforts for WWPass as they worked on a massive website redesign at the tail end of 2020. Initiatives included editing pre-written content, writing new copy, reviving blog efforts and spearheading a IT/cybersecurity newsletter.
SPOKEN WORD STAR KYD KANE TAPS ‘INTERNAL PEACE’ AS GRAND RAPIDS’ NEW POET LAUREATE | LOCAL SPINS
December 2020
Ericka “Kyd Kane” Thompson has dedicated her life to creative expression — finding a way to approach and share her feelings — but she’s a poet first and foremost.
Recently named Grand Rapids’ new poet laureate by the Grand Rapids Public Library, she will act as the city’s prophet of prose for a three-year term starting Jan. 1, 2021. She’s also the first black woman and first openly queer person to be given the honor.
QUARANTINE U. | THE NEW YORK TIMES
October 2020
Life has been very different on the two campuses of Grand Valley State University this fall.
Those of us who live in Allendale, Mich., home to about 14,500 students this semester, spent two weeks under a “stay in place” order issued on Sept. 16. It came after the school reported one of the largest-known campus outbreaks in Michigan, with more than 400 confirmed cases.
QUADIO, COVID-19 AND BUDDING MUSICIANS | LOCAL SPINS
October 2020
With COVID-19 upending the world of music and education, college musicians have been relegated to their homes, apartments or dorms to ply their craft as the pandemic rolls on.
But many of these budding artists have taken these quarantine conditions in stride, adapting to the limitations and focusing their energy. It’s given them more time for networking, improving social media presence and releasing more music.
RELEASE: RIPKURRENT NAMED ENERGY EFFICIENCY PROGRAM SERVICE PROVIDER | RIPKURRENT
September 2020
To continue to provide businesses with cost-saving, energy-efficient solutions, ripKurrent has become a Service Provider for the ComEd Energy Efficiency Program.
ComEd® Energy Efficiency Service Providers are contractors, distributors and engineering or design firms who have been trained on the processes and procedures of the ComEd Energy Efficiency Program. They help ComEd customers implement energy efficiency improvements and offer program incentives, discounts and rebates.
A NATIONAL GUARD MEMORIAL | GRAND HAVEN TRIBUNE
August 2020
While most of Grand Haven’s Coast Guard Festival has been canceled amid the pandemic, what was mostly preserved was the annual U.S. Coast Guard National Memorial Service.
The service took place Friday morning at the waterfront Escanaba Park. It was not made public to adhere to state guidelines during the public health emergency.
Nonetheless, Friday’s service still featured a plethora of service members and officials united to honor the Coast Guard and the cutter Escanaba.
50 YEARS OF DANCING ON THE GRAND | GRAND HAVEN TRIBUNE
August 2020
Dancing on the Grand celebrated a masked birthday this summer, but that didn’t stop the event from being a successfully social-distant slew of dancing and live music.
Wednesday’s anniversary concert with music from Hark Up was the most popular of the summer, which organizers said was an exceptional sight to help ring in the event’s 50th year.
ROADIE RELIEF | LOCAL SPINS
June 2020
Life on the road with a touring band is intense.
The hours are long, with nights spent traveling to compound the exhaustion. For a band’s road crew, it’s unload the trucks and buses, set up, play the show, tear down, travel and repeat.
What appears as a flawless act of stardom to audiences involves tireless work from roadies pushing to always showcase their A-game.
But when that lifestyle gets hard, The Clinic can help.
BREAKING THE MORRIS BERGER STORY | GRAND VALLEY LANTHORN
January 2020
It’s been a wild week for the Lanthorn, and it’s only Wednesday. Today also happens to be Student Press Freedom Day, and as such we want to reflect and provide insight into what has been going on inside and outside of our newsroom over the past few days.
What was originally a straightforward article getting to know Grand Valley State University football’s new offensive coordinator has become an international story, attracting attention from viewers far beyond our west Michigan community.
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