On Saturday, Oct. 1, I will take over as president of the Fenton Area Optimist Club. It is an honor that I do not take lightly and plan to do everything in my power to make it a great year. This club was formed more than 10 years ago, and I am pleased to say that I am a charter member. I had to leave the club for a few years due to family and work obligations, but I have been back for two years and am pleased to have the chance to lead our fine membership for the next year. The Fenton Area Optimist Club is an advocate for children, specifically those in the sixth, seventh and eighth grades. …

Fall arrives this week and very soon Fenton, along with the entire state, will become a riot of color as the cooler weather arrives, turning the leaves to beautiful hues of gold, orange and red. When my youngest son was 4 years old, we were driving through Fenton in the car and he asked, “Mom, why does God make all the leaves bootiful and then blow ‘em all away?” September has always been my favorite month of the year. Although I do love spring and the summer months, by the time September arrives, I’m ready for a break in the heat and humidity, and look forward to everything the month has to …

Fenton has so many wonderful events throughout the year that it’s difficult to say which is better than the other. My personal favorite, however, is the St. John Applefest, which begins this Thursday and ends early Sunday evening. The Applefest to me marks the beginning of fall, my favorite season. This year marks the 39th annual event. The Applefest is an incredible event, made possible by the work of hundreds of volunteers, most of whom are members of St. John the Evangelist Catholic Church on Adelaide Street in Fenton. In addition to the Midway, where carnival rides of all description …

Sunday, Sept. 11 marks the 10th anniversary ofone of the worst days of our lives – when terrorists attacked us in our own country – leaving a scar on the hearts of every American. Whether we personally knew anyone who lost their life duringthat attack doesn’t matter – we were all brothers and sisters that day, sharing equally the pain of knowing from that day forward that we were not safe in our own homes, in our own country. And that life as we knew it was going to change forever. I was at work in a local newspaper office that bright, sunnyTuesday morning. We had the TV on in the publisher’s…

Although I would never admit it, the start of a new school year was always pretty exciting to me when I was growing up. During my elementary school years, our family lived outside of a small town called Bonfield, Ill., about two hours south of Chicago. I attended Bonfield Elementary School from first through eighth grade, after which my family moved to the Chicago area. My school was very small, reflecting the population of Bonfield and the surrounding rural areas. In fact, my eighth-grade graduating class consisted of 21 students. Because a lot of us lived out in the country, and my mom didn…

When I woke up yesterday, there was news on TV about the big Kim Kardashian and Kris Humphries wedding. I asked my husband, “Who is Kim Kardashian?” He said, “I have no idea.” The more we learned about this wedding, the more I was happy that we don’t watch all that much television. Today, while we continue to be in the throes of an economy that just doesn’t seem to be getting any better, is a couple whose reported $10 million-$15 million wedding is shown on televisions, computers and more, all over the world. Kardashian, a reality TV star, and Humphries, an NBA player, were married Saturday, …

One of my most prized possessions is a copy of Ruth Anne Silbar’s book, "A Time to Remember, Fenton 1834 to Now". It’s a wonderful book detailing Fenton history. The “now” is 1976, when the book ends. A former coworker had a copy that was so worn, the pages were continuously falling out. Another was purchased for me online, but I had to leave it when I left the company. That’s why I was thrilled to find the book, which was even signed by the author, at a yard sale last summer. The $75 price tag gave me pause for a moment, but after giving it a little thought, I knew I had to have this …

In a couple of days, Fenton Patch Editor Jason Alexander will marry his long-time sweetheart in the Bahamas. It’s about time, too! I think they’ve been together since like kindergarten or something. Just kidding, Jason. There are many of us who wish for this couple a wonderful wedding, and a long, happy marriage. Some of us even have a little advice to share. My husband, Mike, and I will celebrate our 23rd anniversary in October. For the most part, it has been a wonderful experience, sharing my life with this good man. I say for the most part because all marriages have their ups and downs. …

When I moved from Chicago to Michigan in 1985 and started making some new friends, I would occasionally get teased about certain things I said, and I could not understand why. If someone said, “We’re going to bar for a couple of beers after work,” I would say something like, “Can I come with?” Their response would be, “With what?” I didn’t understand what I said wrong. They said I didn’t finish the sentence. Must I state the obvious, “May I come with you, tag along, join you, accompany you to the watering hole.” What was so difficult to understand? It’s pretty obvious that people from Boston …

Earlier this year, I had the pleasure of interviewing a Fenton businesswoman about the success of her retail store. During that conversation she shared with me what I thought was a common sense approach to advertising and marketing, and vowed that once I had the money to promote my real estate business in this fashion, I would definitely look into it. This store owner said she spends a lot of money on newspaper advertising, something most of us know is not cheap. A one-time ad costs a pretty penny and after one edition, the ad along with the newspaper edition is at the bottom of the bird cage…

Like many Fenton residents, I am very excited about the Cornerstone project, a 30,000-square-foot building to be constructed on the southeast corner of North Leroy Street and Silver Lake Road. Developers say the first floor of the three-store building will be dedicated to retail and restaurant space, offices on the second floor and loft apartments on the third. There has been a lot of buzz about what should go in that building, but whatever goes in there I hope it makes sense and that building owners are able to regulate the types of businesses that actually lease spaces. There is a mix of …

My sons, who are now young adults and in college, have had many friends during their growing up years. Because interests and other things change as time goes on, it is normal for some friends to move on to other social circles. But there are other friends who continue to be a big part of their lives even today, and it is amazing watching these guys become successful young adults. Most of these friends are in college and some have good jobs. A few are in serious relationships and the first of the lot, Tyler Hancock, a 2008 Fenton High School graduate, is already a homeowner and getting married…

One week from today, the streets of Fenton will be lined with thousands of people to watch the annual Fenton Freedom Festival Fourth of July Parade. This event represents small-town America more than any other and each year, whether I’m watching the parade or driving in it, I can’t help but wish my family and friends in larger cities around the country could see this wonderful, local celebration of Independence Day. The parade doesn’t change much from year to year, but if even one unit was missing – even the politicians hoping to be elected or re-elected in the fall - I would be highly …

Okay, I admit it … I get my hair cut at Fantastic Sams, and have been doing it for years. Not that there’s anything wrong with Fantastic Sams, but some of my friends, who think you can’t get a good look for under 60 bucks, might think otherwise. I started going to Fantastic Sams, when there was a shop in North Leroy Street, in the same plaza as Rite-Aid and Hungry Howies. I took my sons there when they were 5 and 3 years old. There was a lady there named Juanita, who had some pretty long finger nails. My sons, who hated when I washed their hair at home, loved it when ‘Nita washed their hair. …

“Hi, here’s your mother.” Then he handed the phone off. That was the extent of telephone conversations with my father after I moved to Michigan in 1985, and my parents subsequently moved from Chicago to Arizona, where my younger sister, Monika, and her daughters still reside. My dad was a man of few words, and when he did have something to say he was usually very gruff about it, and it usually involved something I was doing wrong or about to do wrong, at least in his opinion. Don’t get me wrong, I loved my father, but he had a way of making my sisters and I feel that how we lived our lives …

My mother was terrified of Osama bin Laden. She and my dad lived in Arizona at the time of 9/11. We talked on the phone, and she was sure it was the end of the world – Armageddon, lights out, this was it – checkmate! I reminded my mother, who was a German immigrant, that she survived much worse during World War II. Adolph Hitler was likely the worst terrorist in the world. It’s a good thing he didn’t have access to the technology of today because he was insane and who knows what could have happened. Osama bin Laden just got lucky, if you want to call it that. He said himself in one of his …

Tomorrow is an event that I look forward to all year – the Fenton Area Optimist Club’s annual Turn Around Achievement Awards luncheon. This is where we celebrate the successes of 12 students, whose hard work and determination have resulted in a positive turn around in their lives this past school year. The students are sixth-, seventh- and eighth-graders from Fenton, Lake Fenton and Linden middle schools. They are nominated by their teachers and other school personnel. The students honored for their achievements began the school year with problems that range from academic failures to negative…

Some things just make me want to giggle. For example, I recently saw a classified advertisement seeking an individual, who wants to learn about the newspaper business, to work as an unpaid intern. Transportation is required for this unpaid job, as is a willingness to learn. Although the ad didn’t say it, my experience in the newspaper business tells me that the willingness to work evening, weekend and holiday hours also will be required. Oops, probably forgot to mention that. While some may see this as a creative way for a company to save money by offering free training in lieu of a paycheck …

It’s the most wonderful time of the year! No, I know it’s not Christmas … okay, maybe it’s the second most wonderful time of the year. I am referring, of course, to garage sale season and as a seasoned driveway shopper, I can’t wait to get my list together of homes I need to visit so I can search for those bargains I don’t know yet that I must have. I went to my first garage sale of the year last week in Fenton. Although I would have liked to look around a bit longer than I did, I noticed something that could have gotten uglier by the minute if I didn’t get back to my car … that is cars …

Mother’s Day is coming! It’s one of my favorite days of the year because my sons and stepsons have always made it very special. More so than my birthday or Christmas, they have always placed great importance on Mother’s Day and have showered me with some very thoughtful gifts and gestures. When the boys were young, I received the most wonderful handmade cards, with pictures and sentiments from their big little hearts. As they grew older, I would receive flowers and things for the garden, like a new rosebush, for example. Dad would make a big deal out of taking them on a special trip to Kmart …