In The News:

January 3, 2015 • Vol. 136 No. 1

Economic development poised for good 2015

With a favorable economic forecast for Michigan,2015 figures to also be a good year for CalhounCounty and the Marshall area, according to JimRobey, associate vice president for SouthwestMichigan First, who is in charge of Marshall economicdevelopment. Robey, who has been on the job sinceNov. 3, says he’s talked with eight to 10 companies,manufacturing and retail, during the past two monthsthat are considering doing business here. “I thinkthere’s a lot of interest in Marshall,” said Robey. “Ithink there are a lot of assets (here) and if thiscontinues going forward, the forecast is fairly good.”See story on page 3

2015 will bring change forsouthwest Michigan

Southwest Michigan First CEO Ron Kitchensshares how the region saw tremendous change in2014 and is on the right track for 2015. “We areexperiencing the lowest unemployment rates in adecade with several communities at or below 5percent,” he said. “The workforce in our region isexpanding by the thousands as a direct result of themore than 21,000 new jobs that have been createdby private employers here over the past three yearsas confirmed by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.According to the University of Michigan, ourconsumer confidence is as high as it has been innearly a decade. It feels like momentum is our side.But this is today. What about tomorrow?”See column on page 9

Calhoun County looks forward to 2015

Calhoun County Administrator/Controller Kelli Scottshares her thoughts on 2014 as well as the county’sgoals for 2015. “Your county commissioners, judgesand elected officials have made impressive stridesduring this last year, implementing many newinitiatives and working well together with countyadministration toward our commitment, as ourletterhead states, to ‘building a better county throughresponsive leadership,’” she said.See column on page 32

Healthcare challenges demandinnovation and problem-solving

Oaklawn Hospital President and CEO GingerWilliams explains how healthcare is going through apivotal period in history. “We look forward to 2015with a mixture of excitement and uncertainty,” shesaid. “We face 2015 with the firm belief that Oaklawnwill continue to grow stronger and will be here toprovide care for our communities long in to the future.Our motto is our commitment to you. Oaklawn: RealPeople. Real Care.”See column on page 16

Community Services and PublicServices departments look back at2014 and forward to 2015

The Community Services and Public Servicesdepartments reflect on their accomplishments in 2014and talk about their plans to move Marshall forward in2015 including road repairs, upgrades to city build-ings and achieving Redevelopment ReadyCommunities certification.See columns on pages 13 and 24

Magic Museum looks toward 2015The American Museum of Magic is making MAGIC

of its own. Included in its upcoming plans is hostingMidwest Magic History Weekend, May 28-30.Throughout the issue, find stories written by otherorganizations as members look forward to 2015.See stories throughout issue

514 S. Kalamazoo Ave. in Marshall, MI • Phone 269-781-5444 and FAX 269-781-7766 • www.advisor-chronicle.com

New Marshall Mayor Jack Reed talks about last year’s accomplishmentsand the city’s goals for 2015. “I am honored to be a part of thiscommunity and I look forward to our work together in continuing to

make Marshall the premier place to live, work and raise our families,” he said.“May we all be blessed in 2015 with a prosperous year.” See column on page 2

TeamRehabilitationPHYSICAL THERAPY

Wh

ea

tfield

Rd

E Mich Ave

94

4194

311

Ma

in St

96

Linda Waito517-795-6519

Check out our Web Site to VIEW HOMES

www.MarshallRealEstate.comor www.4HomeSeekers.com

MARSHALL OFFICE210 W. Michigan Ave.

269-781-98471-800-491-3005Hours: Mon. thru Fri. 9:00-5:00;

Sat. 10:00-1:00

REALTORSRosemary Davis 269-967-1095

Ray Davis269-967-1816

Matt Davis269-967-3321

Juli Kolbe269-841-6615

David Moran269-967-7586

Leslie Hurd269-209-0902

Nancy Stulberg269-274-2574

Lori Sturdevant269-579-3626

ALBION OFFICE805 N. Superior St.

517-629-3230Hours by Appointment

Editor’s CornerI stopped making New Year’s reso-

lutions few years back because theonly things that making resolutionsdid was make me feel like a completefailure.

Some of my past failed resolutionsincluded: losing 30 pounds; reading one book per month;not annoying people; not drinking pop; keeping a journal;not annoying people; making my bed every day; not watch-ing TV; and not annoying people.

Usually, the resolutions were broken well before Januarywas through, in some instances they were broken beforeNew Year’s Day was through.

C’mon man, show some perseverance!It looks like that I’m not alone in failing at resolutions as

a study a few years back showed that 88 percent of thosewho set resolutions fail despite the fact that 52 percent ofthe study’s participants were confident of success at the be-ginning.

I had read that most resolutions center around ways tolook good and be more productive, but very few peoplewrite out resolutions that might bring them pure happiness.Pure happiness instead of seeking out personal flaws to(not) improve? Sounds exotic, but why not? After all, a newyear should be focused on a new beginning.

The author of an article I read a couple of years agourged people to go out and have fun and complete theirown list of weird pursuits and unusual changes to find hap-piness, such as:

Finish a chap-stick. I have never, ever, finished a chap-stick. In fact, I don’t think I’ve ever held onto one longenough to use even 10 times. What can I say? I like a freshchap-stick.

Don’t send a text to someone sitting in another room,or in the same room. I admit it. I do this regularly, but I’mnot so lazy as to actually text someone in the same room.Even anti-social slackers need to draw the line somewhere.My spin: Texting someone in another room avoids shoutingthroughout the house, thus ensuring a peaceful household.

Walk, wherever you’re walking, without staring at,using or listening to your phone. Again, guilty as charged.I’ve come close to walking into poles and other people asI’ve gazed intently on my technological master. The firstpart of fixing a problem is admitting there is a problem.Hello, my name is John and I am a slave to my phone.

Be part of the human journey. If I could follow thisone and live in the moment with whomever I’m with, thennot only would I be connecting on a human, meaningfullevel, I would also be less of a slave to technology.

And how about these resolutions, ones that could make adifference in your life and possibly someone else’s anddon’t involve technology and are very doable:

• Make one new friend a month.• Learn something you never learned as a child.• Try a new food each week.• Do something nice for others every day.• Develop a good relationship with your body.Resolutions and lists aside, I believe it all boils down to

this: I strive on to live each day to the fullest, and enjoy thislife I have been given. That is my New Year’s resolution for2015.

Until next week, may the good news be yours.

Letters

by John Hendler

Columns

Being open-minded, compliant is who we should beTo the Editor:In response to Matt

Samra’s letter to the editor inthe Dec. 20 edition, I offerthe following:

In 2008, when JohnHendler took over at the ad-visor&chronicle, he was abreath of fresh air. Prior toMr. Hendler, over the yearsthe editorials were, when po-litical, generally liberal lean-ing. But, the ad-vi-sor&chronicle continued tobe a vast source of local in-formation, and I simply ac-cepted the fact that I wouldnever see eye to eye with themajority of editorials. Theeditorials written were thebeliefs at the time of the edi-tor, and I respected the factthat the editor stood behindwhat was written.

One cannot pick up a NewYork Times, a Washington

Post, a Chicago Tribune, orany Gannett-owned newspa-per and read a positive edito-rial about a conservative ormoderate; 95 percent of theeditorials are supportive ofthe liberal viewpoint. Buy aWall Street Journal or NewYork Post, and you’ll read aconservative viewpoint fromthe editorial staff with nary apositive note about the cur-rent administration. Thesepapers are owned privately,just like the ad-vi-sor&chronicle, and are notfunded by taxpayer dollars;therefore, whatever the own-ers deem appropriate,whichever viewpoint theychoose to adopt, it’s their de-cision to accept or changeit. Nobody is forced to buyany of these papers. Tuneinto NPR and the majority ofpolitical discussions are one

sided, by and large, left lean-ing. Do I have an issue withthis? Yes. I take this posebecause I am forced by ourgovernment, through payingtaxes, to support radio pro-grams which are biased. I’msure if most liberal taxpayerswere mandated to supportFOX News, they’d take issueas well.

But, the ad-vi-sor&chronicle is a free localpaper; nobody is forced bythe government to pay forsomething they don’t believein, nor is anyone compellinganother to read the editorial.Whatever viewpoint Mr.Hendler takes, that’s his pre-rogative, just like it was theprivilege of the former edi-tors to express their view-points. If the owners of thead-visor&chronicle have anissue with editorial content,

I’m sure they’ll change thematerial.

So again, after readingmany editorials from a lib-eral viewpoint, I’ve wel-comed the shade and tone ofthe current editorials. Per-haps this lends itself to toler-ance, in particular the exis-tence of opinions or behaviorwith which one does not nec-essarily agree. Mr. Hendler’seditorials each week aretimely, frequently packedwith local information, mostoften humorous, and I be-lieve well written. To me it’sa political compromise. Soperhaps accepting bothpoints of view and beingopen-minded and compliantIS who we are, or who weshould be, as Americans.

Alison Yarger,Marshall

Legislature should address the problem realisticallyTo the Editor:I have been wondering what the

word compromise means to our Michi-gan legislature. Generally, we expectcompromise to be somewhere near themiddle of two positions. Consider thatour governor set a benchmark of $1.2billion for roads that everyone seemedto think a reasonable number. TheHouse sez - we have an idea that willnot require any new taxes. The Senate

sez - we agree to the number but weneed new taxes to reach that number.Some would say there were good argu-ments for both positions. Most of usprobably thought they will come upwith something between those posi-tions, something between no new taxesand $1.2 billion. Some new taxes,maybe some cost cutting, maybe someprogram eliminations. How does $1.9billion in new taxes strike you as a

compromise? Sounds like $1.3 billionmore than a reasonable compromise.Then the legislature was so unsure oftheir program, instead of passing it,they punted it to a referendum. I haveto vote no on this issue in the Mayelection. Maybe then the legislaturecan address the problem realistically.

Bruce Smith,Lapeer Township

Problem-solving no longer on the leadership resumeBy FRED JACOBSPublisher and CEO,

J-Ad Graphics

What is it about our electedofficials that they can't makethe tough decisions, but theyare willing to pass the buck tosomeone else and still takecredit for acting on the issues?

What happened last weekin Lansing during the lame-duck session showed the ab-solute incompetency of peo-ple we elected to be our lead-ers. After having months tocome up with a solution forfunding repair of our state'sdeteriorating roads, the Legis-lature passed the responsibil-ity back to taxpayers becausethey couldn't reach consensuson a funding bill.

And how about the do-nothing Congress? Accordingto a recent Gallup poll, the112th Congress set a recordfor unpopularity when, inFebruary, only 10 percent ofAmericans said they approvedof the job Congress was do-ing. I think most of us wouldagree that hating Congresshas been an American tradi-tion, but, in recent years, sup-port for Congressional leadershas hit an all-time low. It re-minds me of a Mark Twainquote, “Reader, suppose youwere an idiot. And supposeyou were a member of Con-gress. But I repeat myself.”

Both bodies proved unsuc-cessful in dealing with someof the bigger issues facingthem in 2014, yet they had noproblem taking credit forsome of their lesser achieve-ments. In recent weeks, Con-gressional leaders and even

the president have been takingcredit for the increase in thenumber of jobs produced anda recent uptick in the stockmarket. According to Con-gressional Records, though,this has been the most polar-ized Congress since the 80thCongress which PresidentHarry Truman branded the“do-nothing Congress.”Somehow, in spite of the con-stant bickering among electedofficials, the economy contin-ues to move along, whilemany important issues to tax-payers are not being ad-dressed by Congress.

I came across a quote byMartin Luther King Jr. whileresearching a past columnwhich goes, “There comes atime when one must take aposition that is neither safe,nor politic, nor popular, butone must take it because con-science tells him it is right.”

That time came for theMichigan Legislature lastweek in the last hours of its fi-nal session. Conscience didn'tseem to bother our do-nothingleaders, though. Both sideswalked away from a bill afterhours of horse-trading toforge a deal for road-funding.It's an issue that Gov. RickSnyder had been promotingsince coming to office fouryears ago. In the past twoyears, he's put pressure onlegislators to come up with aplan to fix our state's infra-structure. Listening to con-science and taking a position,however, isn't in the backboneof this group, obviously.

Snyder was looking for$1.2 billion over 10 years

dedicated to roads and bridgesacross the state. The legisla-ture had been discussing anumber of proposals, but, inthe end, didn't have thecourage to support a reason-able bill it could send to thegovernor.

Rather than following thegovernor's suggestion of rais-ing the gas tax and licensefees so that construction couldbegin in the spring, legislatorsdecided to pass the decisionon to taxpayers with a pro-posed 1 cent increase in thestate's sales tax to be voted onin May. The increase willraise funds for roads and a va-riety of other politically popu-lar issues, as well.

If voters reject the request,then legislators are back toSquare 1, the state will missanother construction season,and roads will be in evenworse condition. The state'stotal budget is around $50 bil-lion. With a small hike in thegas tax and license fees,shouldn't legislators have beenable to find the rest buriedsomewhere in the budget?

Already, business groupslike the Michigan Chamber ofCommerce have weighed inon the issue. In a DetroitNews article, Tricia Kinley,senior director of tax and reg-ulatory reform for the Michi-gan Chamber of Commerce,said, “the legislature has notdone their job by puttingsomething that is tangible instatute,” and “this really puntsthe issue off.” They couldn'tget it done because neither theHouse nor the Senate waswilling to pass a transporta-

tion bill that was proposed bythe opposite chamber.

A report released by theNational League of Cities en-titled, “Beyond Civility -From Public Engagement toProblem Solving” asks, “Howcan we bring more civility,more trust, and a greater senseof common cause to publicdiscussions of the urgentproblems we face?”

That's a question we obvi-ously need to address quicklyon a number of fronts.

At every level of govern-ment, elected officials musthave the ability to bring to-gether all of the informationnecessary to make decisionson issues before them. Wecontinue to struggle as a na-tion, state and county regard-ing issues important to mosttaxpayers due to political is-sues or the lack of consensus.It's like the old slogan, “youcan lead a horse to water butyou can't make him drink.”

Putting off the big issuesdoesn't solve them. It merelyadds to the frustration leveltaxpayers feel when their gov-ernment can't solve problems.Governing isn't rocket sci-ence, but it does take reason-able minds that are willing tocome together to find com-mon ground on which to basea decision that will work forthe majority of the taxpayers.

I hope in the new year thatgovernment at all levels willfind a way to work together --by identifying the issues, dis-cussing them and coming to aconclusion that makes senseto the citizenry.

Is that too much to ask?

NEW YEAR:Personal Weight Loss Assistance with Dr. Neysa Barlett

NEW YOU:Customized Weight Loss Plans

NEW FOOD:More varieties & options

NEW MEDICINE:Managed prescription appetite suppressants as needed

NEW LOOK:Emphasis on behavior changes for long term results

NOWAVAILABLEat Mansion Street

Women’s Health, PLLC

• Painlessly reduces inches and removes stubborn fat• Reduces the appearance of cellulite• World’s 1st & ONLY Green Laser to receive FDA Market Clearance• NO Heat, NO Pain, NO Incisions, NO Recovery Time

Call Today for your consultation:

269-781-1183

More information at: www.verju.com and www.clinicaltrials.gov (Search for Erchonia)

Mansion Street Women’s Health, PLLCNeysa Bartlett, DO

215 E Mansion St. Suite 3D,Marshall, MI 49068

*offer valid with 12 month agreements only. Only valid at Marshall, MI location (15873 W. Michigan Avenue) 419-234-4990

Dollar tans expire after 45 days.

Our Wedding Guide is the local bride’s go-to guide for

wedding planning ideas, advice and

adver� sing. Reach over 18,000

area households when you adver� se in the

Wedding Guide

Jan. 17

514 S. Kalamazoo, Marshall

269-781-5444Email: theresach@j-adgraphics.com

2015 Wedding Guide

Ba� le Creek Shopper, Has� ngs Reminder and the Lowell Buyers

Guide are also running Wedding Guides call for special

mul� -paper rates.

Deadline is 5 pm, Wed., Jan. 14

The Year in Sports Photos: Summer & Fall

Dante Jones Hockett makes the catch during the “I’veGot Your Backs” Football Camp at Marshall HighSchool in July.

Left: The Mar-shall HighSchool varsityvolleyball teamtook the IceBucket Chal-lenge for ALSin August.

Right: KurtSwaton, on hisway to winning

the CalhounCounty Cham-

pionship inOctober. Swa-

ton also fin-ished second

at the Div. 2regional to

qualify for thestate meet.

Marshall High School tennis player Keegan Elliottmakes the play at the net in September.

Anna Lunger at a volleyball camp held at Marshall Mid-dle School in July.

The SAE Supermileage Competition returned to Eaton Proving Grounds in June, celebrating 35 years in Mar-shall.

Twelve-year-old Gaitlin Combs soars to victory in oneof the motocross races at the Calhoun County Fair inAugust.

The Marshall High School girls swimming and diving team won the school’s first ever league title when they won the the Southwestern and Central Michigan Conferencechampionship in November.

Marshall High School golfer Sammi Price at the Div. 3state championship in October.

The Marshall High School defensive line tries to get to the Coldwater quarterback in September.Marshall High School varsity soccer player GarrettSurls after scoring a goal in September.

Above: Marshall High School varsity volleyball playerBrooke Mason makes the diving play in September.

Left: Marshall High School cross-country runner BenElyea, following a race at Cornwell’s Turkeyville in Oc-tober.

ad-visor&chronicle – January 3, 2015 –

Shop www.heritagechevy.com • Shop www.heritagechevy.com • Shop www.heritagechevy.com•

ww

w.h

erita

gech

evy.

com

• w

ww

.her

itage

chev

y.co

m •

ww

w.h

erita

gech

evy.

com

• w

ww

.her

itage

chev

y.co

m •

ww

w.h

erita

gech

evy.

com

• w

ww

.her

itage

chev

y.co

m •

• ww

w.heritagechevy.com

• ww

w.heritagechevy.com

• ww

w.heritagechevy.com

• ww

w.heritagechevy.com

• ww

w.heritagechevy.com

• ww

w.heritagechevy.com

•

Shop www.heritagechevy.com • Shop www.heritagechevy.com • Shop www.heritagechevy.com* 0 down payments plus tax, title, fees. 75 months @ 4% W.A.C.

#18346. Auto., loaded, awesome fuel economy!Now $11,999

OR$22900

MO.

2014 CHEVY SPARK#18265. Convertible, 300 h.p., loaded.

Now $21,990

OR$35900

MO.

2013 CHEVY CAMARO

#18426. LT, loaded.Now $12,299

OR$18600

MO.

2013 CHEVY CRUZE#18303. Auto., loaded, great car.

Now $9,999

OR$14900

MO.

2012 CHRYS 200

#18391. AWD, loaded, fuel efficient.Now $16,900

OR$30900

MO.

2013 HYUNDAI TUCSON

4KMILES

#18305. Eco Tech motor, loadedNow $10,900

OR$16500

MO.

2012 FORD FOCUS

52KMILES

#5292A. Loaded, leather.Now $18,999

OR$28900

MO.

2009 CHEV SUBURBAN

101KMILES

#18381. Loaded, rear camera.Only $22,900

OR$34600

MO

2014 EQUINOX LT AWD

#5437A. CD, nice crew truck.

NOW $8,999

2006 DODGE DAKOTA

98KMILES

#033A. Loaded, turbo.Now $10,999

OR$16000

MO.

2013 CHEVY SONIC

25KMILES

13KMILES

#18415. Loaded, rear camera.Now $17,999

OR$27200

MO.

2014 CHEV MALIBU

4KMILES

#5331A. Loaded, towing, new tires.Now $17,999

OR$27200

MO.

2010 CHEV SILVERADO

71KMILES

#18369. Loaded Now $15,799

OR$23900

MO.

2013 DODGE CARAVAN

47KMILES

#5442A. Loaded, leather.$18,599

2005 HUMMER H2

125KMILES

18388. Loaded, auto., P/windows, locksNow $9,999

OR$14900

MO.

2013 FIAT 500

38KMILES

20KMILES

62KMILES

53KMILES

41KMILES

350 W. Dickman Road (269) 964-9431

HERITAGECHEVROLET

See our entire inventory on line at www.heritagechevy.com

NEW YEAR DEMO2015 CHEVY MALIBU

#18434. LS, 3,113 MILESWAS $23,440

NOW $17,999*

2014 CHEVY IMPALA#18329. 1LT, REAR CAMERA, 4,282 MILES

WAS $30,920

NOW $25,999*

2014 CHEV SILVERADO#18334. 4X4 CREW CAB, 3,588 MILES.

WAS $42,875

NOW $33,999*

2014 CHEV TRAVERSE#18431. 1LT, ALL STAR, HEATED SEATS, TRAILER PKG, 3,210 MILES.

WAS $36,580

NOW $29,999*

2014 CHEV SILVERADO#18464. ALL STAR ED., STEP TUBES, 3,008 MILES.

WAS $42,325

NOW $32,999*

2014 CHEVY EQUINOX#18462. 1LS, LOADED, AWESOME MPG.

WAS $25,295

NOW $20,799*

2014 CHEVY TRAVERSE#18432. 2,803 MILES, P/SEAT

WAS $32,220

NOW $25,999*

20115 CHEVY EQUINOX#18435. LS, 3,302 MILES

WAS $25,450

NOW $20,999*

20114 CHEVY EQUINOX#18436. LS, AWD, 3,639 MILES

WAS $27,500

NOW $22,999*

2014 CHEV SILVERADO#18397. 4WD, DBL DOOR, 4,012 MILES

WAS $41,725

NOW $32,999*

NEW YEAR DEMO

*Plus tax, title & license, includes rebate.

Page 36