Since 1919, Kettering University has been training engineers, managers, designers and technicians. With Flint’s automotive history, it seems fitting to include a lab dedicated to car crash safety. However, the first crash safety course was not offered at Kettering until 2001. The Crash Safety Center opened in August 2005 in the Mott Science and Engineering building, bringing together university life, industry, and community members, such as doctors and K-12 students. The only lab in the world that extends its services to undergraduate courses, it celebrated its tenth anniversary in August. Much has been accomplished in the past decade.
They are not only cute little kittens; they are kittens that nobody wanted. Some of them have behavioral issues or medical problems, a missing eye or limb. Some are in their senior years and others have suffered injuries. These are the animals that are taken in by Lucky Day Animal Rescue in Grand Blanc.
The St. Cecilia Society of Flint was founded in October, 1890, when 12 ladies met at the home of Nellie Bates, also known as Mrs. J. Dallas Dort. The ladies paid weekly dues of five cents and their original objective was “the study and improvement of music.” That objective continued to be upheld through the Society’s coordination with the Flint Institute of Music in the early 1970s. Since then, they have held meetings in a special room at the FIM dedicated to the Society.
In the Flint area, Ghassan Saab is well known for his success as co-owner and CEO of Sorensen Gross Construction Services. Born and raised in Lebanon, he graduated from the National College of Choueifat and from the American University of Beirut with a degree in civil engineering. “I grew up in a very close family,” he says, “with loving parents, aunts and uncles, who all had a commitment to higher education and serving the community. I would wish my childhood on everybody.” At that time, Ghassan says Lebanon was referred to as the “Switzerland of the Middle East,” long before its civil war and the ongoing strife. After he completed his studies, Ghassan came to Flint to work for Sorensen Gross. “I had worked here during the previous summer, so I already had the job,” he says. “And I have never had another.”
Whether you believe ghosts are real or not, Flint’s history certainly is real…but would it be so hard to believe that some of that “history” stuck around? Perhaps, a Civil War colonel never wanted to leave the house that he lived in, or a vaudeville dancer never wanted to leave the theatre where she performed? Of course, old, historic buildings tend to bring up tales of spooky sightings and frightening feelings from staff members and guests.
After hanging up his helmet, packing away his cleats, and putting his pads to rest as a middle-schooler, Tyler Deering was unsure whether he would ever play football again. Instead, his primary focus at Bentley High School became basketball, and he developed into a key component of the Bulldogs’ starting lineup, earning honorable mention all-conference honors last season. Meanwhile, he watched the football team struggle season after season, never winning more than three games in a single year after last qualifying for the playoffs in 2008.
Whether you’re rooting for the Spartans or the Wolverines, football fans love to tailgate on game day. Some folks keep it simple with burgers and dogs; others take hours preparing dishes that make the occasion extra special. Here’s a sampling of some local fan faves!
Exciting things are happening at St. Luke’s N.E.W. Life Center as it continues to live up to its mission statement of providing life skills, education and workplace training, empowering women and men to become self-sufficient. The Center, which opened in 2002, was co-founded by Sister Judy Blake and Sister Carol Weber with the initial mission of helping at-risk women become self-sustainable. “But there were a lot of men out there and they wanted a program too,” says Sister Judy. So, two years ago, N.E.W. Life began offering a program of employment preparation for men.
When Linnell Jones-McKenney was eight years-old, she had a clear picture of who she would become and what she would do with her life. “I had a dream I’d play professional basketball, work with young people and I would establish a youth activity center,” said Linnell, 56, a Flint native, basketball legend, 2002 Greater Flint Afro-American Hall of Fame inductee and 2005 Greater Flint Area Hall of Fame inductee, who has miraculously accomplished two of the three visions she had as a child.
City of Flint residents looking for answers about their stolen purse or wallet, home break-in, lawn or vehicle damage might get a telephone call from Tracy Austin, a Flint Blue Badge volunteer, who works on the second floor of the Flint Police Department several days per week. There, she assists Sergeant Tanya Meeks, Blue Badge Volunteer Corps Coordinator. “Today, I have to call 40 residents who filed a complaint or reported a crime,” says Tracy, who wears a polo-style shirt with the Blue Badge shield embroidered on it.
Yes, the late, great IMA Auditorium as it is referred to by Flint Expatriates holds a lot of memories for many people – from Jimi Hendrix concerts to the Shrine Circus, and everything in between. According to author Gary Flinn’s book Remembering Flint, the auditorium had seating for 6,000 people and was the premier venue for concerts, stage shows, dances, lectures, sporting events, exhibitions, and the Shrine Circus for many decades. The six-story structure was built by the Industrial Mutual Association in 1929 for $1.2 million on the former site of the Randall Lumber and Coal Company, and the previous site of the Crapo Sawmill.
