Dear Readers,
I’m finishing this month’s letter while enjoying an Alaskan cruise – working on that Bucket List! Today, I bundled up for the cold to marvel at massive, majestic glaciers – forgetting that back home in Michigan, late summer weather awaits my return. Spending just one day on the cruise ship brought a significant concept to mind: I immediately noticed a level of diversity to which Greater Flint residents are not accustomed. While I could hear many different languages being spoken on the ship, we shared a common wonder at the incredible sights of nature in Alaska. For me, the diversity enhanced the experience.
Diversity exists to some degree in Flint, and hopefully, the continued expansion of educational opportunities will attract people who will further enrich the fabric of our community. One such opportunity is The Rep – our new Flint Repertory Theatre. This will be an exciting addition to the Cultural Center’s outreach and will bring more diversity to the group of people who can participate in the programs.
September is National Hispanic Heritage Month, and we highlight the efforts of the Hispanic Technology & Community Center of Greater Flint to assist members of Greater Flint’s Hispanic community And, the diversity of the great cuisine we can enjoy in our area was recently enriched by the opening of Goki Goki Korean BBQ in Fenton – fantastic! Put the eatery at the top of your list of new menus to experience.
We love to highlight local businesses and as the weather turns cooler, we decided to feature some of the artisanal beverages that gain popularity this time of year: coffee and beer! As you’ll see from our special “My Drinks” section, there’s no shortage of top-notch brewers to enjoy in both categories. All these entrepreneurs have followed a passion, which is key to success in any business. So, which brew’s for you?
“Passion” is a common theme among the stories we offer each month. Our two “My Sport” features highlight the talent and drive of both the Flint Firebirds hockey team and the Flint Monarchs women’s basketball team (who knew?), just wrapping up a great season. Read more about these dedicated, passionate athletes calling Flint home and providing fans with exciting sports action.
I’m proud to have the story of a man, and my childhood friend, Bishop Gregory John Mansour, who pursued his passion and has dedicated his life to Jesus. Read about the inspiring achievements of this Kearsley grad in “A Spiritual Journey”.
So, I mentioned another Bucket List story; you can read about my recent adventure that you may have seen on MCM’s facebook page … last month, I jumped out of an airplane at 10,000 feet! Skydiving has been on my list for years and when we decided to do a story about it, I invited our new assistant editor, Pete Hinterman, to go with me and write about his experience. It was quite a wild ride for both of us!
If plummeting to the earth is not your thing, you can join the thousands of people who travel to Hollygrove each year to enjoy the unique (and slightly less dangerous) offerings of the annual Michigan Renaissance Festival. Read about the newest Ren Fest attraction.56.
As the summer happenings were winding down, MCM was there to cover the action, including Back to the Bricks. There are many more to look forward to this month – including the new Ally Challenge at Warwick Hills. This will be a great thing for Greater Flint, and as a Warwick member, it’s exciting to see a pro golf event returning to the area. Hope to see you there!
Thanks to the dedicated MCM team who stepped up to get this issue to press while I was whale-watching!
And, as always, thanks for reading.
