Health status impacts every aspect of a community. In Flint and Genesee County, heart disease, obesity and diabetes are three of the top health issues. But the community – patients, physicians, and other city and medical professionals – has a mission to begin creating a healthier, strategic vision for improving the well-being of those who reside here. We have profiled “The Big 3” health issues with information about each, and also the local initiatives that are in place in the community to motivate those affected to make a change.
By Abigail Bearman, PR Coordinator at the Flint Institute of Music
“Since I was a little kid, I’ve always taken everything apart,” says Ryan Gregory, a local found-object artist, junkyard engineer, and musician who is also known as, “Mr. Creepy.” “The best way to figure out how things work is to take them apart,” he continues, explaining how his interest in reverse engineering somehow turned into an artistic outlet.
The City of Flint Police Department is proud of two newly-inducted officers who share the same April 29 police academy graduation date and insignia on their uniforms – but, even more coincidental, they share the same last name: Reed. Officers Maria and Dion Reed are making Flint history as the first mother-son duo to join the department.
The historic Holly Hotel, well known for its August 29, 1908 visit from prohibitionist Carrie Nation, has also been referred to as “the most haunted building in Michigan.” There have been many reports of unexplainable incidents and ghost sightings there. Some of the Holly Hotel staff shared a few of their chilling tales with My City Magazine.
To conclude My City Magazine’s three-part series on entrepreneurial opportunities in the Flint area, we think it’s important to address what an effective leader should be like. Luckily, there is a place that will help anyone with an entrepreneurial spirit develop effective leadership habits.
Flint native Marcus Eubanks, Head Carver and Owner of Forbiddenfruit had never done any fruit carving in his life until the day his mother-in-law, a local caterer, was in desperate need of help with a wedding she was catering. She asked Marcus – a pipe-fitter/welder by day – to help carve some fruit for the fruit table display. “I didn’t even know what a fruit table was,” he laughs. But in his mind, he began to see a pattern, so he started carving a watermelon and a cantaloupe. Before long, he had made a beautiful table full of intricately designed fruits. “My mother-in-law was floored by it,” he says. “The wedding guests went crazy.”
For many years, racing soap box derby cars was a popular pastime for kids in Flint and all over the country. In Flint, kids raced soap box derby cars from 1936 until 2006 and competed at various tracks around the city, including the Cronin Downs Race Track (named after former Mayor Donald R. Cronin) behind Southwestern High School, and the Cadillac Hill track, which was located near Durant-Tuuri-Mott Elementary School. There was no racing from 1942-45 during World War II. Back in the day, gravity-powered soap box derby cars were considered exciting technology. Girls became eligible to race in 1971.
