More Than Fun in the Sun

Summer means beaches and barbecues, right? Think again. There’s a lot more to do in the Keweenaw than play in the sun.

It would be impossible to include every cultural, historical, musical, artistic, outdoor, educational, and festive event or activity that happens in our portion of the U.P. in just one article. Summer in the Copper Country is relatively brief and can be intense—not just with the swings in temperature, but with the frenzy of activities. On any given weekend from June through September, there might be a dozen or more things to do, see and experience. I think of it as summer’s version of a blizzard: exciting, but definitely calls for some planning.

And then there’s the weather. Maritime? Fickle? Pick your adjective, but thankfully there’s so much to do that doesn’t require cooperative sunshine. We thought it would be fun to focus on some of the not-necessarily-weather-dependent things happening on the Keweenaw. But even narrowing the scope of this article that much I was still overwhelmed with possibilities. So, I decided to focus on just two museums, each dedicated to lifesaving history: Copper Country Fire Fighters Museum and Eagle Harbor Life Saving Station Museum. Both are good bets for visitors of any age. They’re economical and get you up close to history. And in this summer of civic and political division, it is inspiring to spend some time steeped in what humanity at its best values: common welfare.

A team of volunteers keep the Life-Saving Museum open to the public. Photos courtesy Laura Smyth.

You don’t need to be a mariner to imagine how much stamina, strength and courage it requires to head out onto Lake Superior in a winter storm and attempt a rescue operation. At Eagle Harbor Life Saving Station Museum you can see up close just how small and fragile some of those rescue boats were. There are exhibits about major shipwrecks on the Big Lake and commemorations of heroic acts. On July 13, the museum will be hosting an open house, so it’s the perfect chance to visit. There will be a day of speakers and activities, and the setting alone is worth your time.

For land-based lifesaving history buffs, Calumet’s Copper Country Fire Fighters Museum offers a charming, self-guided tour of the village’s past. On the main floor are the old engines, and on the 2nd floor visitors get to step into what life as a firefighter in the early 20th century was like. On the day I visited, a family from Chicago was touring, and their two enthusiastic boys got to sit in the driver’s seats of the old engines, wear firemen’s hats, crank the 1920’s fire alarm and clang the bell. A volunteer, Steve, was there to make us all welcome and clearly enjoyed this inter-generational moment.

Volunteer Steve and boys on a firetruck at the Copper Country Fire Fighters Museum. Photo courtesy Laura Smyth.

Small, community museums like these—staffed by volunteers—are an important part of many towns across the area. They preserve our history, but they also present us with an opportunity to join in imagining our future, together. I can’t think of a better way to spend a summer day on the Keweenaw.

Coming Soon: Expanded Keweenaw Co-op in Hancock

Despite delays, the wait is nearly over for the Keweenaw Co-op's much-anticipated move to downtown Hancock. The new location, slated to open later this year, will offer customers a significantly enhanced shopping experience with nearly double the retail space and a wider selection at the deli.

Curt Webb, Keweenaw Co-op’s General Manager, checks the status of the Co-op build on May 18. Photo by Denise Hansen.

The Co-op has received overwhelming community support, with more than $1 million raised, but that hasn’t stopped the project from facing significant delays. The construction has faced challenges due to unforeseen circumstances, including supply shortages in the wake of the pandemic and changes in state elevator regulations. Those regulation changes required a mid-project reconfiguration of the elevator design that set the project back months. Now, the problems have been ironed out, and the construction is back on track.

HVAC work is underway in the Co-op’s new retail space. Photo by Denise Hansen.

“We understand the responsibility ahead of us to make sure it works to provide food access to everyone in the Keweenaw,” said Denise Hansen, sales and operations manager at the Co-op. “That’s what we do.”

Produce enthusiasts will be greeted by a prominent section showcasing fresh fruits, vegetables, and even flowers as soon as they enter the store. 

“We’re doing what we do best, and we’re doing more of it,” Hansen said

An open kitchen will allow customers to witness the preparation of pizzas, sandwiches and more firsthand, emphasizing the focus on fresh and healthy offerings. The expanded deli section caters to those seeking quick and convenient meal options. 

“We are the place people come for sandwiches,” Hansen said. 

The deli will feature a wider selection, including custom orders, hot and cold pizza, pre-made salads, and bowls. Kombucha will be on tap alongside coffee and cold beverages.

Seating will also be significantly increased, with 30 seats inside at tables and window counter stools. During warmer months, additional outdoor seating will be available. Parking will improve as well, with the new location offering 50 dedicated spots, including three handicapped spaces, compared to the current store's roughly eight off-street parking spaces.

The new facility will also significantly improve working conditions for employees. A dedicated loading dock for receiving shipments is one thing the co-op has never had before.

Other improvements include a more efficient, unified kitchen location, walk-in sales coolers and a more private break space. The new coolers for drinks, dairy, and other products allow employees to stock from the rear rather than being in the aisle. Not having the store spread across three floors will also make a big difference for the workers, according to Hansen.

The Co-op's move downtown signifies a major step, not only for the business itself but also for the surrounding area. Co-op officials believe the new location will be transformative. 

“We are very fortunate to have found a location that works for the business as well as the community,” Hansen said, noting the proximity to businesses for walking lunches and the revitalization of a previously unused space. 

The increased visibility from nearby highway traffic is expected to benefit the business, and the easy access and convenient location compared to the current store situated outside the city center are seen as advantages. 

“We’ll be the first grocery store off the bridge,” Hansen pointed out.

The new store will be at 610 Quincy Street in Hancock.

Editor’s note: This article was modified after posting to include the Co-op’s new address.

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Young grad fulfills dream of owning own bakery, gets brick thrown through window

Erin Turner stands in front of her new signage for her store on Hecla Street.

Meet Erin Turner, the 23-year-old baker behind Copper Country Sweets. From humble beginnings vending at From the Ground Farmer’s Markets to the procurement of her own Laurium bakery, Erin's success is a testament to the rewards of hard work and determination. Copper Country Sweets is more than just a bakery—it's a dream come true.

ERIN’S STORY

Turner has always had a passion for baking and service. She graduated with her Bachelors in Hospitality Management from Northern Michigan University, a well-rounded course that covered not only cooking, but business management, HR, and leadership. She spent summers baking for Skinny Pete’s.

After graduation, Turner signed up for all three From the Ground Farmer’s Markets (Houghton, Hancock, and Calumet) with one goal in mind: save up enough funds to buy equipment and open her very own Laurium bakery. Turner reliably vended three times a week from June to October, setting up her table and tent by herself, offering seasonal flavors that shifted each week, as well as her signature $5 jumbo cupcakes and 3 for $5 sea-salted chocolate chip cookies.

Erin Turner at the Calumet Farmer’s Market.

“I love when people buy something at the market, bring back the empty bag with a smile on their face telling me how good it was. I get to be creative and make people happy,” said Turner.

This year, it’s finally happening! Turner secured a brick-and-mortar bakery in Laurium and was able to acquire the equipment she needed with the earnings from the Market. Skinny Pete’s also gifted her with much of the equipment she needed, leftover from their own bakery after Skinny Pete’s closure in late 2022.

Turner said that her positive relationship with the former bread company’s owners Tim and Arthur Lyons was essential in laying the groundwork for her business. Another key to Turner’s success was assistance from local small business consultant Daniel Yoder.

“I worked with him most of the summer during the season. We met and developed a business plan. [Michigan SBDC] is a small business development center, and they’re a nonprofit so they just help businesses. They also worked with Living Proof Brewery, who is just down the block.”

It’s a big summer for Laurium as community connections continue to bloom. Copper Country Sweets maintains a partnership with Vertin Gallery, who is also reopening this summer, along with a new bike shop in the same building.

A BUSINESS WITH SISU

But, Erin’s dream was thwarted when vandalism struck a small UP business once again. This past Tuesday, Turner entered the bakery to find a brick that had been thrown through the front-facing glass window, shattering it. Turner said that while nothing was stolen, she is taking the incident as a sign to purchase security equipment.

“I’m stressed and upset, but I’m just thankful nothing inside was damaged,” she said.

The shattered store window. Photo courtesy Erin Turner.

Mike LaMotte, owner of the Fitzgerald Restaurant, has started a donation drive for Copper Country Sweets through their website. The business is covering the taxes and kickstarted the donation pool with their own donation of $500.

“Starting a new business is hard. Starting a business that’s a creative expression of yourself, as a young woman in the Keweenaw, is that much harder,” reads a statement from the Fitz on Facebook. “Erin Turner had more guts than 99 percent of people when she decided to learn a craft and make something for people, something that she believes in and that she thinks that the world will enjoy.”

You can help Copper Country Sweets recoup their losses by donating here: https://www.exploretock.com/fitzgeraldsrestaurant/event/482784/support-for-copper-country-sweets

GRAND OPENING PENDING

The grand opening has been postponed because of the window damage. Turner comments that waiting on the business inspector is also taking longer than she had originally anticipated. But she looks forward to the grand opening, where the community can come in to sample some of her tastiest treats by donation.

She will have her signature chocolate chip cookies and vanilla cupcakes, as well as a range of other baked goods of seasonal flavors, with something new each week. 

Turner says she also loves to make custom cakes and desserts.

“I’ll do custom anything! If someone wants something I don’t make, I’ll make it if they give me enough time,” she said.

Copper Country Sweets is located on 323 Hecla Street in Laurium. Follow Copper Country Sweets on Facebook and Instagram for updates! You can contact baker Erin via her email, coppercountrysweets@gmail.com.

You can catch also Copper Country Sweets at Calumet Market every Saturday from 10 am - 2 pm. Turner plans to attend the Saturday market for exposure, so the bakery will be closed on that day.

Turner is currently fulfilling orders. Find the order form on her website.

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Rich in resources, but challenges remain

Editor’s note: Jennifer Donovan is a member of the Mental Health Support Group-Keweenaw Area.

The room was filled, and emotions ran high.

“My son committed suicide four years ago,” one woman said. “Since then, I have made a wish list.”

She was holding back tears. You could hear it in her voice.

“We need our own psych ward here, not hours away or downstate. We need a separate, safer wing in psych wards for people who are suicidal. We need safe housing and support for people after a suicide attempt, a halfway house with trained staff on hand.”

Dr. Michelle Morgan replied, “These needs have been here for a long time. People have been working on them for a long time. We don’t have time to wait. We need to reach out and help each other.”

Photo by Natasha Connell on Unsplash

Dr. Morgan is a psychiatrist and retired director of Copper Country Community Mental Health. She now heads a new organization, Keweenaw Support 4 Healthy Minds, that is working to increase awareness of mental health issues, empower people who have a mental illness, and build a resilient, knowledgeable community trained to help each other and support those at risk.

She was one of the speakers at a Mental Health Awareness Month program sponsored by the Mental Health Support Group-Keweenaw Area on Wednesday, May 11 at the Portage Lake District Library. 

Speakers from five community organizations talked about their work and answered questions. Virginia Lambert and Paige Setter-Hallwachs outlined the many services that Dial Help provides. Beth Shannon and Angela Price described the efforts of Unite Mental Health and Wellness. Mike Bach, incoming director of Copper Country Mental Health, discussed the work of his state and federally-funded agency. Cindy Harrison and Catherine Paavola explained the history of Mental Health Awareness Month and their Mental Health Support Group-Keweenaw Area. And Dr. Morgan described the vision and goals of Keweenaw Support 4 Healthy Minds.

Unite Mental Health and Wellness

Recently established and based in the former College Avenue Vision Clinic near downtown Houghton, Unite Mental Health and Wellness helps people connect with mental health services. They hope to help people who are feeling overwhelmed navigate the mental health system. The organization is a nonprofit offering both telehealth services and in-person therapy. Medicare, Medicaid, and most private insurance cover their services.

Dial Help 

Dial Help is best known for its crisis hotline, but they actually run four different programs for Houghton, Keweenaw, Baraga, and Ontonagon Counties: 

• Crisis services, including the 24/7 crisis line; Safety Net, which is a follow-up program for people at risk of suicide, suicide survivors, families of suicide victims, and those seeking help for substance abuse; suicide assessment at UP Health System-Portage’s emergency room; and Youth One-Stop, a counseling program for youth in crisis.

• Victim services, which include 24/7 emergency advocates, ongoing advocate support, child advocacy, counseling for crime victims, accompaniment to court proceedings, and sexual assault nurse examiners.

• Mental/behavioral health, including alcohol or drug assessments, peer recovery groups, substance abuse counseling, suicide prevention training, and Crisis Support 101, based on Dial Help’s crisis line.

• Prevention programs, which include Communities that Care—a federal substance abuse and violence prevention program, family support services, in-school prevention programs, and violence prevention education.

Dial Help also answers the national Suicide Prevention Hotline for callers from our area.

The Dial Help crisis line is 906-482-HELP (4357).

Copper Country Community Mental Health

This agency is primarily federally and state-funded, with philanthropic support from the Rice Foundation and grants. It provides a variety of mental health services to people receiving Medicare and Medicaid, including emergency services, outpatient therapy, peer support, intensive crisis stabilization, home-based services, nursing home services, and residential services in group homes. It also sponsors the Northern Lights Clubhouse in Hancock where adults with mental illness work together to build on their strengths, talents, and abilities to increase their independence in the community. 

CCCMH’s emergency number is 800-526-5059. The new request for services number is 888-906-9060.

Keweenaw Support 4 Healthy Minds

The group was formed after Keweenaw County Sheriff Curt Pennala organized a public meeting to discuss increasing teen suicide. Its vision statement is: “We support healthy minds through connection and community.”

Goals include raising awareness and getting people to talk more openly about mental health issues, teaching healthy ways to cope with stress, supporting those at risk, and decreasing access to means of doing harm to oneself or others.

“You lock up your toxic chemicals to keep them out of children’s hands,” said Dr. Morgan. “You also need to lock up your guns.”

This summer, the group is focusing on helping people learn to talk comfortably with someone in crisis. They are offering free training in QPR, which stands for question, persuade, refer. The Keweenaw County Sheriff is planning to become a QPR trainer, Dr. Morgan said. 

She hopes to build Circles of Support, volunteers who can help a person just released from a psychiatric hospital. The highest risk for suicide occurs during the first 30 days after hospitalization, she said.

Keweenaw Support 4 Healthy Minds meets at 6:30 p.m. on the last Tuesday of the month at the Portage Lake District Library.

Mental Health Support Group-Keweenaw Area

A peer support group for people with mental illness and their families, the Mental Health Support Group-Keweenaw Area was founded in 1989 by Larry and Carol Evers, with the help of Copper Country Community Mental Health.  It then became a chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI). The group decided to drop its affiliation with NAMI in 2018, due to national NAMI’s financial and organizational requirements becoming increasingly difficult, if not impossible, for small, rural groups like this one to meet. 

But the need for support remained, so the group reorganized as a purely local nonprofit called Mental Health Support Group-Keweenaw Area, partnering with Dial Help. They meet at The Institute, 900 W. Sharon Avenue in Houghton, at 6 p.m. on the second Wednesday of the month. They also sponsor public programs like the one recognizing Mental Health Awareness Month. This year’s Mental Health Awareness Month theme is Back to Basic, a renewed focus on mental health awareness and combating stigma. 

The Mental Health Support Group-Keweenaw Area has no website or phone number but can be reached by email at mhsgka@aol.com.

During the question and answer session at the Mental Health Awareness Month program, Catherine Paavola, a Mental Health Support Group-Keweenaw Area member, said that it would help eliminate stigma if people called mental illness “brain illness.” 

She explained: “The brain is the organ of the body that is affected. Brain illness is organic, centered in the brain. It is not a moral failing or a choice.”

Cindy Harrison, also active in the Mental Health Support Group-Keweenaw Area, gave a shout-out to law enforcement.

“The police and sheriff’s departments in our area have been outstanding in their concern about mental health issues,” she said. “They are getting Crisis Intervention Training, learning how to defuse a person in crisis and get them to the proper services.” 

Mary Peed, a Keweenaw Support 4 Healthy Minds member, pointed out that there are other mental health resources here too, the VA for example.

“You just have to keep looking and knocking on doors,” she said.

Fill It Up

What started as a New Year’s resolution to make their own household more sustainable has mushroomed into one local couple’s commitment to help the Keweenaw area improve household sustainability, with a retail store in Hancock to support the effort.

Briana Tucker and Travis Wakeham standing in their store near their stock of refillable bottles. Photo by Jennifer Donovan.

Briana Tucker and Travis Wakeham run Refill UP, a shop where customers can buy non-plastic containers and sustainable products to keep in them, such as hand soap, shower gel, laundry detergent, dishwasher soap, household cleaners, lotions, bubble bath and sunscreen. They also sell a variety of unique, natural goods such as bamboo brushes, collapsible cups, reusable metal straws, toothpaste in recyclable aluminum tubes, deodorant in glass jars, band-aids and muscle wraps made of bamboo, fiber bags, dryer balls and candles. 

They described their sustainability journey and the shop it birthed at a public forum sponsored by the Keweenaw Unitarian Universalist Fellowship on Nov. 13. 

What is the problem with single-use plastic, such as shampoo, lotion, or hand soap bottles?  

“Eleven million tons of plastic enter our oceans every year,” Tucker said. “And once plastic starts to break down, it becomes too small to capture. Microplastics have been found in drinking water, rain water, even the dust in the high desert. People are consuming plastic.” 

Tucker recalled getting a roll of beeswax wrap—an eco-friendly substitute for plastic wrap—for Christmas in 2020. It got her thinking: “What else could we do to improve our sustainability? How can we avoid keeping the things we use every day in plastic?”

Searching for inspiration online, she started following an African-American woman in Ohio who runs a refillery where people can bring non-plastic containers and refill them with sustainable and eco-friendly products. In February 2021, during Black History Month, the woman was highlighting black women entrepreneurs. 

“That got the wheels turning,” said Tucker. “I wondered if I could do that?” 

Neither Tucker nor her partner, Travis Wakeham, have business experience. Tucker is the Enterprise Coordinator for the Pavlis Honors College at Michigan Tech. Wakeham is an assistant teaching professor in the Department of Biological Sciences there. 

But they decided to jump into the unfamiliar waters of small business.  

How did jumping into a new business with so little experience feel?

“Terrifying,” said Wakeham. Tucker nodded vigorously.

The Refill UP storefront in Hancock, next to Nutini’s on Quincy Street. Photo by Jennifer Donovan.

They did their homework and learned about Michigan’s Small Business Development Center (SBDC) and the MTEC (Michigan Tech Enterprise Corporation) SmartZone’s Smart Start program, which provides free training, mentorship, and coaching for people who want to start a small business. They enrolled and invested their COVID-19 relief money in renting, refurbishing and stocking a small storefront on Quincy Street in downtown Hancock.

“It’s so nice to have resources like the SBDC the SmartZone in our community,” said Tucker, who still relies on SmartZone vice president Jason Mack for advice and occasional hand-holding. “Not just resources, but free resources.” 

In the summer of 2021, they tested community interest by selling at farmer’s markets. In the fall, they opened their shop. 

Refill UP celebrated its one-year anniversary in October, already logging 700 purchases by 500 unique customers. Their Facebook page has nearly 1,000 followers. Tucker said they have diverted 840 plastic containers from landfills this year.  

They look for sustainable partnerships, buying from local and Michigan-based small businesses that produce sustainable products responsibly.

“We want to offer products that are vegan, cruelty-free, paraben and sulfate-free and responsibly made,” Tucker said.

They try to buy closed-loop products, meaning that they can return the packaging to the manufacturer for reuse or recycling. Among their suppliers are Mama Suds, a Michigan small business that produces sustainable laundry detergent; Tiani, another Michigan brand of body care such as hand soaps and lotions; and Zefiro, which uses bamboo and wood to create items often made of plastic, such as nail brushes and pot scrubbers.

The refill station at Refill UP. Photo by Jennifer Donovan.

 The couple wants to expand their business, “but thoughtfully,” Tucker said. “We have to ask, are we ready?” 

The answer depends both on data and on how the couple feel about it emotionally, she explained.

Refill UP has started to expand already, sponsoring Trick or Trash at Halloween—collecting and recycling candy wrappers. They also offered a costume exchange: bring in an old costume and exchange it for a different one instead of dumping it. They’re starting to put on workshops where people can learn to make sustainable holiday gifts. 

“We’re encouraging small steps, options that are easy to do and won’t break the bank,” Tucker said. “It’s about making small changes today that will lead us to a better tomorrow.”

Both Tucker and Wakeham still work full-time at Michigan Tech during the week, opening the store on weekends.

“It’s definitely tricky balancing our Michigan Tech jobs, the store and our personal life,” Tucker said. 

It’s been quite a learning curve for Wakeham.

“Business is very different from teaching science,” he observed. But Wakeham has always loved a challenge.

“I want to get more engaged in the business,” he said. 

Refill-UP is open Saturdays and Sundays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at 323 Quincy Street in Hancock.  They are on Facebook and Instagram and online at https://refilltheUP.com.

'Tis the Season

Volunteers pre-packing snacks on Saturday for easier packing of the bigger bags on Wednesdays.

Last week, seven volunteers gathered inside of Glad Tidings Assembly of God in Hancock for several hours to pre-pack food that would be given directly to local school kids later that week to make sure that they have enough to eat over the weekend, whether their guardians feed them or not.

That’s the weekly mission of 31 Backpacks, which started by helping just 31 kids and now helps more than 250. They aim to feed kids directly, with simple food that requires little or no preparation. This way, the kids can eat if there’s an adult involved to help or if they’re absent.

They pack extra food for long weekends like Thanksgiving break. For winter break each year, they do the “Big Pack”, which will have to cover 16 days this year.

“Each student receives about five kitchen-size bags full of food,” Melissa Maki said. “It’s more family-oriented. That might be boxes of pasta and that sort of thing.”

31 Backpacks Director Melissa Maki in the food storage rooms at Glad Tidings Assembly of God.

Maki said that since the beginning of the pandemic, they’ve started stockpiling some of the foods they get. As a registered 5019(c)3 nonprofit, they qualify to purchase from the food bank.

“When we see something at the food bank that we know we’re going to need, whether it’s this week or two months from now or four months from now, we’ll go ahead and buy it,” she said.

When the pandemic broke, 31 Backpacks had just prepared their spring break Big Pack and nearly emptied their shelves. Because of school closings and other circumstances, the number of students enrolled in their program jumped nearly tenfold.

“We had enough food for the then and now, but we didn’t have enough food for the future,” Maki said. “Now, if you take a look, we have two rooms here at the church and we keep them fairly well-stocked at this point in the event of some other emergency like that.”

The group constantly adjusts what they pack based on what they can get, as the supply chain issues continue to make availability uncertain.

“For example, we haven’t seen Pop-Tarts in months,” Maki said. “We still have some on hand because we had the forethought to get some, but we’re looking at alternatives for items like that.”

She said Lunchables and milk have also had some recent local supply issues.

Volunteer food packer Austin Jordan hauling boxes of food, soon to be broken down into bags for at-risk school kids.

“That’s been our biggest challenge as far as running the program this year,” Maki said.

Finding volunteers amid COVID-19 and other sicknesses is also an ongoing issue.

“It affects us every single week,” Maki said. “It’s kind of become routine, to not have a routine.”

31 Backpacks is always looking for more volunteers and donors. You can contact them by reaching out through their Facebook page.

The retaining wall that contains the 5th Street fire rubble is reflected in the windows of the Copper Country Angel Mission in Calumet.

Immediately across the street from the Calumet block that burned down earlier this year—destroying 15 apartments and leaving around 30 people homeless—the Copper Country Angel Mission conducted their annual coat giveaway and Angel Tree signup, despite some of their volunteers being out with illness.

“We thrive on helping the needy,” Lynn Lanyon said. “But you don’t have to be needy. Anyone can come in, grab a jacket, and just leave a little donation.”

Lanyon sat at the storefront of 117 5th Street on Wednesday afternoon, conducting people into the racks of coats and taking down their names, ages, and numbers of children for the Angel Tree.

Lanyon said that volunteers have been extra difficult to find lately, and illnesses have kept some of those who do volunteer at home sometimes. Copper Country Angel Mission requires masks inside their buildings, and Lanyon said some people have still been pushing back about wearing them to come in.

Donations continue to be steady according to Lanyon, and they’ve even started seeing some nicer items than they’re used to. However, some people are also dropping off garbage.

“We can’t afford to take your trash,” Lanyon said.

She tries to give people the benefit of the doubt, assuming it just got mixed in and forgotten in a truckload of donated items. However, paying to properly dispose of other people’s garbage is an expense the charity can hardly afford.

You can contact Copper Country Angel Mission to volunteer, donate, or register for the Angel Tree by calling Lanyon at (906)934-3602, or visiting their website or Facebook page. Lanyon said waterproof gloves and boots are in particularly high demand.

The Copper Country Angel Mission also operates a food pantry.

Salvation Army Site Director Pete Mackin takes a call in his Hancock office. A veteran is in danger of losing his housing and needs help finding a new place to live.

Pete Mackin, site director for the Hancock Salvation Army, has been working to tie local resources for the needy together for easier access. He said this year has been particularly bad for local homelessness.

Compounding widespread national issues, the fire in Calumet destroyed 15 apartments, student enrollment at the local universities is at 30-year highs, and some local landlords took the seller’s housing market as an opportunity to sell their properties—often with the result of pushing their tenants out into a difficult housing market.

“We’ve had a number of factors that have made it into a full-blown crisis,” Mackin said.

As Mackin and I talked, a family looking for a new apartment moved plastic bags full of their belongings into the Salvation Army building for temporary safe storage. Mackin said his work finding housing for people at-risk of going homeless has jumped from the occasional drug addict or refugee from domestic dispute to a regular activity he undertakes.

“And these are people who have lost housing for no reason of their own,” Mackin said. “Most of the time, they’re seniors on fixed income.”

With no shelter in the area, Mackin scrambles together a variety of resources. Sometimes he can bus people to shelters in other cities, but if people have family or a job in the area they want to stay near, leaving isn’t a good option.

“These are people that are, you know, working poor,” Mackin said. “They’re families. I’ve had little kids living in warehouses with their parents… in tents, in cars with heaters we’ve been providing…”

In addition, this year Mackin is anticipating record-high bills for propane and natural gas, alongside the always-high electricity rates.

“I’m a bit concerned about that for the area,” Mackin said.

He hopes the milder winter that’s been forecasted helps mitigate the issue but is also ready to help connect people with state assistance to meet their energy needs.

Pete Mackin picks up food donations from Econofoods in Houghton.

As the holidays draw near, Mackin is also preparing for the Salvation Army’s signature fundraiser, ringing the red kettle.

“Last year, it definitely took a miracle of God for us to get through the bell ringing season,” Mackin said. “I did not have students, I did not have seniors, I didn’t have community groups…”

Many of the places where bellringers usually volunteer were also closed, too. Mackin said despite the challenges, the community came out and supported the organization.

“It was amazing how people came to support us last year,” he said.

This year, Mackin is planning to have bellringers in Ontonagon and Baraga counties as well. That’s important because the money all stays local.

“What I raise in those kettles in that town is what’s for that community,” Mackin said.

He said what’s raised in Houghton is used in Houghton, and the same for Calumet, Lake Linden, or any of the other bellringing locations—with some narrow exceptions for nearby communities that don’t have a possible location for volunteers to ring.

“It’s all coming from your support,” Mackin said.

You can contact the Salvation Army by emailing Pete Mackin at Pete.Mackin@usc.salvationarmy.org, by calling (906)482-3420, or by visiting their Facebook page.

Claw and Order

The increasing stray cat population in Houghton County is an invisible issue tackled by the Copper Country Humane Society (CCHS) and Keweenaw Spay and Neuter Assistance Group (KSNAG). Domesticated cats living outdoors are often considered an invasive species, as they can cause significant damage to the ecosystem.

Stray cats have been an issue in the area since CCHS first formed in 1974. These cats kill billions of birds and small mammals in the US annually, according to this study from Nature Communications. A stray cat was defined by Rebecca Brink (Assistant Manager of CCHS) as a “any cat that’s out roaming, especially outside of [the owner’s] property… Technically, even if they have a home, if they’re just out roaming, I would still consider them a stray.”

A roaming cat still has significant impact on the ecosystem, even if they aren’t hunting to eat.

This is ‘Sprinkles’ who recently passed through the Copper Country Humane Society. Photo by Sydney Wilmot.

Dawn VerBerkmoes, the woman running KSNAG, has a set of questions that must be answered to define a cat as a stray: How long has the cat been there? Does it look thin and bedraggled? Check with your neighbors first, has anyone moved in the neighborhood? If the cat looks healthy and well-fed, it most likely has a home. 

If a person who calls about a stray cannot take in the cat, then a volunteer from KSNAG will retrieve it. KSNAG advertises they have the cat and call the CCHS to see if anyone has called looking for the same one. They also check if the cat is microchipped. Only after four days of being unclaimed is it considered a stray, and can be put up for adoption. Though there are a few who may feed strays or build them a warm place for the winter, the responsibility of finding these cats a good home remains solely on the CCHS and KSNAG.

Brink said that outdoor cats often have shorter life spans: “Disease, wildlife attacking, domestic cats attacking, a lot of dogs don’t like cats, and cruel people… you would be surprised at some of the things people say they will do to cats and actually follow through with if they are on their property.”

VerBerkmoes said that when she first started in 1975,  “People were taking newborn kittens and… putting them in plastic bags and throwing them at the dump… there would be a man that kinda managed the dump, and if he heard kittens crying or heard something, he’d bring them to us. But usually they were too far gone to save.”

She continues to say that it has gotten better, especially with the decrease in euthanasia at shelters. Both VerBerkmoes and Brink mentioned an increase in abandoned kittens this year, and they both stated it was likely due to the COVID-19 pandemic that caused vets to restrict their visitors and appointments. They said it was likely the cats people got during quarantine couldn’t get spayed, or they wanted the cat to have a litter of kittens. If or when the cat got pregnant, the kittens were abandoned when homes couldn’t be found for them, and they ended up dead or at the shelter. 

Both Brink and VerBerkmoes said that strays often use children’s sandboxes as litter boxes, which puts children at risk for illness. There is also disease that is shared between stray cats. 

“There’s two diseases with cats that roam,” VerBerkmoes said. “One is feline leukemia. The other is… Feline Immunodeficiency Virus, which is FIV, and that’s cat AIDS… It’s usually unneutered males living outside that fight, and when they fight, that’s how the disease is transmitted through bodily fluids.”

She said if there is an unneutered male roaming on people’s porches that spray, it can make the house cats upset and start wetting and spraying inside. House cats who are allowed to roam also cause an unbalance in the ecosystem. They do not have the need to hunt for food, but still drag home their prey. In some places, they have even caused species to go extinct. 

It is a tragic story that is common among stray cats in the Upper Peninsula, as there is no animal control to pick them up. Police and sheriffs will pick up wandering or stray dogs, but not cats. It’s a misconception that cats can fend for themselves easily in the wild, or that elderly animals wander off to die alone. Often, they end up at the shelter with nobody looking for them. Some places with mild climates have cat colonies, but the long, harsh winters up here frequently result in the death of cats and kittens without a home.

The author’s own cat, Luna Lovegood, adopted from the Copper Country Humane Society. Photo by Sydney Wilmot.

If a stray cat is found, contact CCHS. The quickest reply is on Facebook, but you can call (906) 487-9560 and leave a message, or email contactus@cchumanesociety.com. Include the location you found it, and a description/photo of the cat. CCHS will post the information on Facebook and Instagram. If you cannot take in the cat until the owner is found or comes forward, make arrangements to bring the cat into the shelter. If you bring the cat in, you will fill out a form to inform them where the cat was found.

Off to the Moon, Then to Mars

Photo courtesy of NASA

Will your grandchildren or great-grandchildren colonize Mars? An aerospace engineer who grew up in Trimountain and her cousin have been working on a NASA mission to help make that possible.

Artemis I is due to launch Tuesday from Cape Kennedy, headed for the moon. It’s the third scheduled launch; one in August and another in September had to be scrubbed due to technical issues. 

Tess Falor, a Jeffers High School graduate, worked on the Orion space capsule that will ride on the SLS rocket that her cousin, Jesse McEnulty, helped design. The unmanned space capsule will test some technology required to send a future manned mission to Mars. Orion will travel within 60 miles of the moon, then go into lunar orbit 40,000 miles beyond the moon, the farthest that a human-rated spacecraft has ever traveled.

Falor, who graduated valedictorian of her high school class at Jeffers, works for Red Canyon Engineering and Software, a subcontractor for Lockheed Martin on the Orion space capsule. A member of Red Canyon’s electrical integration and test team, she worked on Orion’s propulsion system—the rockets that control how the spacecraft moves.

NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) rocket with the Orion spacecraft aboard is seen atop the mobile launcher at Launch 39B at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Aug. 26, 2022. Artemis I mission is the first integrated test of the agency’s deep space exploration systems: the Space Launch System rocket, Orion spacecraft, and supporting ground systems. Photo credit: NASA/Eric Bordelon

Space Hooked Her Early

“I’ve been interested in space as long as I can remember,” she says.

In 10th grade, Falor took a career aptitude test, and aerospace engineering came up on top of the list. She did a Summer Youth Program at Michigan Tech on women in engineering and went on to study aerospace engineering at the University of Michigan. She earned a PhD at the University of California at Berkeley. 

Falor and McEnulty’s fathers are brothers. Both were pilots, which McEnulty says probably influenced his career choice and his cousin’s. But she grew up in the Keweenaw, and he grew up in Colorado. They both decided to go into aerospace engineering. When Falor was part of a team developing an uncrewed Atlas-V rocket that launched from the Kennedy Space Center, McEnulty was working at the space center, and they got to share their experiences during the launch.

“She was viewing the launch from one location, and I from another, sending pictures back and forth,” McEnulty recalls. “I was so excited for her.”

Now McEnulty works at the Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, where he tested the SLS rocket’s thrust vector control system, which moves the rocket engine nozzles around to steer the vehicle. He also supports launches from the control room in Huntsville, analyzing data from the thrust vector control system prior to launch and during flight. 

So he won’t be at the launch in person on Tuesday. He’ll be doing a 12-hour shift in the control room in Huntsville, monitoring every technical detail of the launch. But he doesn’t regret not being at Cape Kennedy.

“Our control room has nice big screens,” he says. “And frankly, I prefer actually working the launch and being directly involved as opposed to just watching, even in-person.”

Falor and McEnulty were delighted to find themselves working on different ends of the Artemis project.

“I've always found it interesting that our work is at opposite ends of the rocket, hers being up on the clean, pointy spacecraft end, and mine being down at the blunt, oily fire producing end,” McEnulty says.

A test version of NASA’s Orion spacecraft is loaded into the well deck of a U.S. Navy ship in preparation for the ninth in a series of tests to verify and validate procedures and hardware that will be used to recover the spacecraft after it splashes down in the Pacific Ocean following the agency’s Artemis I mission. The first in an increasingly complex series of missions, Artemis I will test the Space Launch System rocket and Orion as an integrated system prior to crewed flights to the Moon. Photo credit: NASA/Pete Reutt

Life Off Earth

Why is it important for missions like Artemis to take astronauts to the far reaches of space?

“I think a lot about the far future,” Falor explains. “There are threats to earth – asteroids, natural disasters, man-made problems like climate change. I would like humanity to be able to live in different locations, off earth. It’s important for us to explore and learn to live elsewhere, to keep humanity going.”

NASA aims to follow Artemis I with more trips to the moon. Artemis II, currently scheduled for 2024, will be crewed and fly around the moon. Artemis III, planned for 2025, will land a woman and a person of color on the moon for the first time. 

At the same time, at Michigan Tech, Professor Greg Odegard is leading a multi-university research project to develop lighter, stronger materials for the future Mars mission. Odegard, who holds the John D. Halquist Endowed Chair in Computational Mechanics at Tech, heads the Institute for Ultra-Strong Composites by Computational Design (US-COMP), funded by NASA’s Space Technology Mission Directorate. 

Affordable deep space exploration will require lighter and stronger building materials for the manufacture of next-generation transit vehicles, habitats, power systems and other space exploration systems.  US-COMP is working to develop and deploy a carbon nanotube-based, ultra-high strength, lightweight aerospace structural material that will enable future spacecraft to take crews far beyond the moon.

Maybe to Mars. 

Millages, Critical Thinking, and Rainbow Flags

Parents and other community members gathering for the Aug. 22 meeting. Photo by Juxta Sprague.

With more than ten minutes until the meeting’s start, chairs are scarce as parents, teachers, librarians, and other community members make their way into a small room within the Hancock Middle School. One person hands out buttons that read "Support the Hancock Library". The Hancock Public Schools Board of Education calls their Aug. 22 meeting to order with nearly a dozen still standing, overflowing into the adjacent kitchenette and hallway.

Katrina Linde-Moriarty, director of the Portage Lake District Library, presenting to the board and public. Photo by Juxta Sprague.

Katrina Linde-Moriarty, the new director of the Portage Lake District Library (PLDL), gave a presentation to the board to help illustrate the history, achievements, and possible future of collaboration between PLDL and the Hancock Public Schools.

In 2018, a contract was established to have PLDL manage the Hancock School Public Library (HSPL) which had until then been run at limited hours and staffed by volunteers. Although still new to their role, Linde-Moriarty was excited by the progress that had been made during the initial four years of the contract.

548 new library cards were created, checkouts increased by 166% (average of 10.5 checkouts per user for 21/22 year), 5513 new items were added, and library visits increased by an impressive 392%.

HSPL also succeeded in applying for grants and soliciting donations to help fund the services, materials, and improvements of the library. A grant of $212,000 was recently awarded jointly to HSPL and the school district through the Michigan Department of Education literacy program, substantially much more than the ~$29,000 initially requested. Linde-Moriarty has indicated that the grant will fund the program and cover much-needed improvements for the library including new programming, shelves, furnishings, books, maker-space equipment, and a complete overhaul of three outdated non-fiction sections of the library.

Linde-Moriarty offered three possible next steps for the relationship between Hancock School Public Library and the PLDL.

• Extend the current contract. Linde-Moriarty noted that without increasing the financial commitment the level of service would decrease over time.

• Continue the contract but require the municipalities to levy a millage to support the library.

• Pursue a PLDL millage for all the municipalities of Hancock Public Schools to match the 1.96 mils of Houghton and Portage Township making HSPL a "branch" of PLDL allowing library cardholders to check out materials at both locations.

Linde-Moriarty concluded by requesting the current contract be extended one fiscal year with a millage increase from 0.3 (~$73,000) to 0.4 (~$84,000) in order to offset staffing costs and to reinstate the Hancock School Public Library Advisory Committee to improve transparency and ease of communication between the Board of Education and PLDL.

Handouts and slides for the HSPL contract renewal are available on the PLDL website.

Contract Renewal Handouts

Nearly a dozen individuals made visitor comments to the board.

Amanda Lutey, a resident of Hancock, thanked the Board for supporting the library and making it "accessible to all".

Amanda Lutey (left) and Faith Morrison (center) both delivered comments to the Hancock Board of Education. Photo by Juxta Sprague.

Faith Morrison, a recently retired Professor from Michigan Tech, delivered a statement on the importance of libraries in teaching critical thinking and problem-solving.

"A good library should have something to offend everyone," Morrison read.

A parent said that the "Library had stuff that was not appropriate for my son," and that “parents don't like material being shoved in the face of their kids".

The individual declined to provide further comment or be identified for this story.

Allyson Jabusch speaks to the Board of Education. Photo by Juxta Sprague.

Allyson Jabusch, a retiree from Michigan Tech, said that "The library contract saved the day" and encouraged the Board of Education to extend the contract. Jabusch also encouraged community members to volunteer at schools and libraries.

Another individual responded to Jabusch saying "We all have different views on the law".

The individual did not clearly identify themself to the board.

Chris Heikkinen, a former member of the Hancock Board of Education, applauded the work of the current school board. In reference to a pride month library display at HPSL, he stated “This material doesn’t have a place in a display in a public library”.

"Parents are the ultimate authority [and they are] trying to stop the kidnapping of their kids' innocence,” Heikkinen said.

He concluded his comment by asking the Board how they will build and maintain institutional trust.

“Libraries are one of the last places somebody can go without having to pay money,” William Keith, an associate professor at Michigan Tech, said. “A place where everyone is welcome.” 

Keith also voiced support for the library Advisory Committee proposed by Linde-Moriarty to ensure transparency.

Stephanie Flint, a resident of Hancock, shared her experience of "rediscovering the [Hancock] library". 

She stated that "InterLibrary loan has been great" and that the library has offered "good materials for people on a budget". 

Flint expressed hope that the contract would be renewed.

Dillon Geshel, former director of the PLDL, noted that most public school libraries have disappeared in Michigan due to state legislation and that HSPL is one of the few remaining. Geshel encouraged the Board to "think about why [HSPL] has been as successful as it has [during the four-year contract]." 

Editor’s Note: Geshel is a member of Copper Beacon’s Board of Directors.

Steve Raasio, a parent of seven former Hancock students, said that "political stuff [shouldn't be] involved anywhere" in reference to rainbow flags being displayed at the library. He stated that he'd prefer to see the library "fall on its face" than promote "political ideologies".

Raasio noted that he does not personally use the library though some of his adult children do.

Susan Autio, the Circulation Manager at PLDL, said that she oversees the committees that curate library content, and values diversity in the selection there.

"I buy books I find personally offensive," Autio said.

Autio, in reference to the HSPL, stated that "kids are endlessly checking out books" and that she "would be so sad to see this end".

The PLDL and HSPL contract has already been extended twice and is again entering the final months. The board did not vote on its future at this meeting. Their next regular meeting is scheduled for Sept. 19 at 5 p.m.

Second-grade teachers Genevieve Nordmark and Becky Garnell present on computer science and STEM education. Photo by Juxta Sprague.

Second-grade teachers Genevieve Nordmark and Becky Garnell also delivered a presentation to the Board of Education on the importance of computer science and STEM education for student careers, future wages and college attendance. They emphasized that many valuable skills such as problem-solving, critical thinking, and communication are taught through computers, robots, 3D printers, and other technologies in a way that is exciting, fun, and accessible to students.

Ben Larson also gave a brief oral presentation to the board to encourage fundraising through alumni outreach. Larson made several suggestions such as finding naming opportunities and an "Alumni Distinction Honor Group" to get alumni of the Hancock Public Schools excited about making donations or gifts to help fund improvements to the school district.

Ticket to Read

In the digital age, information resources outside of the internet are often forgotten about and disregarded as anachronistic, but libraries still provide essential services to their communities, and act as points of contact for individuals and groups to connect, network, and grow. 

A well-used keychain library card issued by the Portage Lake District Library.

Many libraries, especially rural ones like those found in the Upper Peninsula, often face challenges of insufficient funding and resources. To ensure the survival of libraries, it is important to understand what they have to offer and how community members can give back.

“I have always been a library user since I was a little girl, my family, my parents brought us to the library,” Susan Autio, interim director of the Portage Lake District Library (PLDL), said during an interview in her office.  

Autio’s father was an educator and her mother went to school for a while as an English major.

“And so I come from a family of readers. And so, just going to the library was always a part of my life,” Autio said.

Back when it was at the Carnegie building, Autio introduced her children to the library. Eventually, there was a job opening for a library page, a position that involves shelving books and checking people in and out. Autio applied for the position and was instead hired as a library assistant.

Jennifer Strand, a librarian at Osceola DB-TC School Library, which also acts as a public library for Osceola Township, had a similar experience. 

“My love of libraries started when I was in elementary school,” Strand said in an email interview. “I have always loved to read and was a library aide when I was in middle school.”

Portage Lake District Library worker Rae Hix shelves books on a Saturday morning.

Strand has been working at the library for 23 years.

 “Although my job duties can be fluid working in a public school, I love my job for the time that I am able to be in the library. I thoroughly enjoy being able to help people find a book that they will love reading and/or help them with a task they need to complete,” She said.

Leo Siren, director at Ontonagon Township Library, describes his favorite part of working in a library as “helping people solve problems and access quality information.” 

“My background is mostly in writing/editing and software, but the opportunity to apply for this role came to me when I moved back to my hometown after the financial crisis of 2008.”

“People who don't visit libraries because they ‘have books at home’ or ‘only read on the Kindle’ don't always realize that public libraries today offer ebooks, digital audiobooks, streaming movies, book clubs, classes, affordable printing and copying, and various other services,” said Siren. 

Autio similarly expressed that people who think that libraries can’t compete with the internet are missing the facts.

“Yeah, you can do a lot of research on the internet and maybe not ever need a book to accomplish writing a paper anymore,” she said. “But that's just one thing.”

Autio emphasized that libraries’ resources do not stop at the physical. With a PLDL library card, one can access the Great Lakes Digital Library, a service that offers books to read or listen to, as well as some movies and music. Hoopla, another digital library, offers a variety of movies and music.

A couple of the available computers at Portage Lake District Library, with a view of the canal and lift bridge.

The PLDL also acts as a physical space that community members can utilize. Girl Scouts and veterans are just some of the groups who have used the library’s Community Room as a meeting space.

“People know that they can come to the library and they can either reserve the room or just meet wherever and they can get on the schedule,” Autio said.

The library also offers a Makerspace in collaboration with Superior Fab Lab, a community Makerspace in the Keweenaw. At the PLDL Makerspace, community members can work on a variety of creative endeavors. It offers tools for handiwork and sewing machines; as well as the library’s Cricut Maker, a computer-controlled cutting machine for fine detailing such as lettering. 

Basic, a program in partnership with Michigan Tech has made its return to PLDL. Those who have questions about their computer, cell phone, or another electronic device may come in and seek the advice of the student volunteers. Basic is currently set to run on Saturdays from March 26 to April 30, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m..

Preschool storytime is being offered Wednesdays at 10:30 a.m., and the summer reading program is coming up.

Ontonagon will also host a summer reading program, free for all participants under 18 years old. Participants do not need to be a member of the library or a resident of Ontonagon.

The Makerspace at Portage Lake District Library.

Despite the resources these libraries have to offer, they also have limitations. 

COVID-19 brought additional challenges for these libraries as they tried to provide their services to a locked-down public. 

“COVID limited us greatly in some ways. When the school closed completely, so did the library. However, with the food program continuing to run during school closures, I was able to distribute books with meals and with classroom work packets,” Strand said.

The Ontonagon Township Library was closed temporarily, then moved to curbside service and enforced a masking policy for some time as well.

“We also waived late fees throughout the pandemic, which has now become a permanent change to our policy,” Siren said.

Even before the COVID-19 pandemic struck, rural libraries struggled to meet the needs of their public and balance their budget, too.

“We want to be a hub for the community for all kinds of different reasons.” Said Autio. “To inspire learning and curiosity and early literacy.”

Strand also said rural libraries face the challenge of small budgets and limited space.

“I have to purge my collection more frequently than I prefer,” she said.

Being a library that is jointly a school and public library comes with its own unique challenges. 

“In a school setting, you are at the mercy of their budget, which means that the library does not come first,” said Strand. 

Community members who want to offer support can contribute back to their libraries in several ways. 

“We always welcome donations of course. And volunteer. We do have volunteer opportunities,” Autio said.

Community members can join the Friends of the Library Group, an organization that hosts fundraisers to buy things for the library. Experts in a hobby such as woodworking or sewing are welcome to volunteer to lead a class.

Addressing the ways that community members can help libraries, Siren commented that “financial donations are always wonderful, but just showing up to programs or helping to promote our services by word-of-mouth is also great.” 

Similarly, Strand stated that “one of the best ways for community members to contribute to their local library is to support it with their voice.

“Make sure that the administration knows that they want the library to be open and available. Use it when it is open and available and of course, we are always willing to accept book and monetary donations so that we can offer current material.”

National Library Week for 2022 was recognized from April 3-9, the theme being “Connect with Your Library.” According to the American Library Association, “...the theme is an explicit call to action—an invitation for communities to join, visit, or advocate for their local libraries.”

The week has passed, but Autio encourages people to “Just read. Get to your library, check some books out.”