25 Years Ago — March 11, 1992
Dorr Township Planner Tim Johnson offered four plans intended to better protect agriculture, but about 50 local farmers gave his ideas a lukewarm response.
Troy Parfait-Sevigny, a freshman at Wayland High School, was expelled for bringing a sawed-off shotgun and ammunition to school in connection with an incident Feb. 20 in which he intended to seek revenge on upperclassmen he said were bullying his friends.
Christine Schwartz, in a letter to the editor, was very critical of the Hopkins school district’s bond request in May. She maintained voters earlier already had sent a strong “no” message and asserted there is below zero population growth on earth and in Allegan County and “we, as taxpayers, have had enough of the waste of our money.”
Carolyn Nash, a parent, wrote a different letter expressing her support for the bond proposal and urging others to do so as well. “We cannot get by with Band-Aids any longer,” she argued.
The Globe also received several letters protesting its coverage the week before of the shotgun at school incident, maintaining the two upperclassmen were not suspended from school.
Hopkins Village voters re-elected incumbents and approved an amendment to enable officials to receive an annual raise of $250 per year.
Martin Village had a record low turnout of just 27 voters in its election.
Jeff McElwee, former editor of the Allegan County News & Gazette and owner of a paint store in the City of Allegan, has been selected as executive director of the Allegan County United W. He succeeds David Ferber, who has taken a position with Allegan General Hospital.
A Wayland schools’ committee has recommended that the developmental kindergarten program be terminated in 1993..
Dwight Bixler has agreed to set aside 15 acres of his property in Wayland Township to restore wetlands.
A Dahlia Festival Committee, headed by Jeff Salisbury and Dr. Bruce Sexton, plans an event May 2 in hopes of reviving the tradition and attract people to Wayland.
Barbara Kaarlie has been named director of the Allegan County Alliance, succeeding the resigned Robert VanDuren.
Martin finished its regular season in basketball with a 5-15 overall record and Hopkins ended at 10-11. Wayland was 0-21 after losing in the district tournament opener against Hastings.
The Wayland varsity volleyball team did not win its third straight district tournament, falling in the final round to Lakewood.
50 Years Ago — March 8, 1967
The Hopkins Village election was expected to be a quiet affair March 13, as James Hazen and Daniel Roxbury were the only candidates seeking one trustee’s seat help by the appointed Lester Wilson to fill in after the resignation of Earl Miller.
Tuberculin skin tests are scheduled for fifth- and 10th-graders in the Wayland, Hopkins and Martin school districts.
Henry Baweja was elected student council president at St. Therese School. Jim Graham was elected vice president, Dave Kamyczek secretary and Tom Bala and Fred Chiaramonte treasurers.
Wayland High School graduate Joan Freund earned her bachelor’s degree in business administration and accounting from Davenport and has been hired already at the Fidelity Corp. of Michigan.
Mrs. Merle Shoemaker has been named chairwoman of the Red Cross blood drive for the Wayland area with captains Mr. John White, Mrs. Lester Herb and Mrs. Wayne Goodwin.
The Allegan County chapter of the Young Democrats will meet at 2 p.m. March 12 at St. Therese Church.
Wayland High School seniors Sharon Dobson, Rick Blok, Sheri DeWeerd, Sue Worfel, Janine Hampel, Kay Schafer, Peg Carpenter, Jim Chesebro, Dan Berends and Ed Ballard were featured in a report on Government Day in Grand Rapids. They were accompanied by teachers Jon Carroll and Bobby Kerley, City Councilman Hugh DeWeerd and City Manager Blaine Bacon.
Now showing at the Wayland Theatre was “Gabit,” starring Shirley MacLaine.
Mrs. Martin VanDerMeer was pictured with a huge cabbage grown in her Hopkins Township garden. The vegetable was 31 1/2 inches in length and weighed 3¼ pounds.
Peggy Rose, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Kenneth Rose, was on all week on WOOD-TV’s “Romper Room.”
Former pastor the Rev. Ralph Dean will be guest speaker at the Wayland United Methodist Church for a special Lenten service.
Mr. and Mrs. Charles Stone, longtime residents of Dorr, have decided to pull up roots and move to Alma to spend their retirement years.
Topping the music charters this week was the Supremes’ “Love Is Here and Now You’re Gone.”
75 Years Ago — March 13, 1942
“An old-fashioned March blizzard” raged through the Village of Wayland and environs from Sunday night through Tuesday. Schools were closed and milk trucks were stuck in snow drifts. Pet Milk, which received an average of 300,000 pounds of milk daily, had only 30,000 on Monday so employees were scrambling to handle the huge influx of late-coming product the rest of the week. There were reports that as many as 200 people were stranded in Martin.
Within the village, blacktop paved streets will need a lot of repairs to smooth out holes, but workers cannot begin the task until the weather warms up quite a bit.
The first annual Community Institute was planned for a Thursday, March 19, from 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. It was to be “one big day crammed with information about our community and school and what it can do for everyone, especially during this period of war.” Parents were picked up and brought to the school by buses and they were encouraged to get acquainted with teachers and school and village officials. A hot lunch also was provided.
Only 31 people voted in the Village of Wayland election, and Globe Editor-Publisher Rollo Mosher was re-elected village president.
The local United Dairy Workers union at Pet Milk bought a $50 defense bond and donated $25 to the local Red Cross drive and to Ladies Literary Club. Wayne Laux is president of the local union.
Dorothy McAllister of the Kent County Defense Council was guest speaker at the latest meeting of the Ladies Literary Club. Her topic was “Women’s place in the defense program.”
The Wayland High School basketball team, led by Loren Mauchmar’s 16 points, defeated Augusta Kellogg 41-29 in the first round of the district tournament in Kalamazoo. The local team, coached by Rex Allen, lost to Comstock 33-28 in the second round and finished the season with a record of 13-4.
Contributing to the Red Cross War Fund were Leighton Township $240, Dorr Township $140, Wayland Township $536 and Hopkins Township $368.
Now showing at the Wayland Theatre:
- Gracie Allen and William Post Jr. in “Mr. and Mrs. North.”
- Gene Autry, Smiley Burnette and Faye McKenzie in “Cowboy Serenade.”
- Lew Ayres and Lionel Barrymore in “Dr. Kildare’s Victory.”
- Jeanette McDonald, Gene Raymond and Brian Aherne in “Smilin’ Through.”
100 Years Ago — March 9, 1917
O.S. Flanagan of Allegan was chapel speaker at Wayland school on “Better Standards of High School Scholarships.” He had been superintendent at Middleville Schools for 11 years before resigning two years previous.
The Grand Rapids District of the Epworth League is planning for its district convention here later this month with speakers from as far away as Detroit. The local district is supporting missionary work Delhi, India, where it was reported there 1,900 conversions in the last year.
Roller skating is replacing ice sports as the top recreational activity at the school.
The 4-year-old son of Mr. and Mrs. John Timmers died of diabetes at his home southeast of Dorr.
Farrell Anderson of Green Lake was killed in a tragic and bizarre accident at his home. He was putting down his dog but only wounded the animal, which crawled back to him. He turned the gun around to finish the job with the butt end, but the firearm discharged. He died of the gunshot five hours later, leaving behind his wife of only a short time.
“George Hazen has a feeling he should keep abreast of the times. He has been contemplating the advisability of an auto truck for his milk route.”
Total attendance at the Hopkins District No. 5 school is an average of 18.6 per day for 20 students.
The annual Wayland Township caucus day is tomorrow. “There is a fight on for several of the offices, and, of course, there will be a big attendance.”
Frank’s Opera House in downtown Wayland, in the wake of the huge successes of the series films “The Girl in the Game” and “Liberty,” now plans to offer “The Beckoning Trail” with J. Warren Kerrigan.
PHOTO: The historic and majestic National Hotel in Dorr.
