Area communities have plans in place for parades and ceremonies to honor veterans for Memorial Day on Monday, May 28. Memorial Day became an official federal holiday in 1971. The holiday occurs on the last Monday in May. It began in different communities across the country to remember those who died while serving in the United States Military.

Gary Naugle coordinates Tecumseh’s Memorial Day activities. The Tecumseh Memorial Day parade begins at 10 a.m. at City Hall. There are 80 units participating in the parade. Naugle encourages residents to walk in the parade in honor of an active or fallen service family member or friend. Children can participate in the parade by decorating and riding their bikes.

Following the parade there will be a ceremony at Brookside Cemetery on Union Street, featuring a special dedication in honor of two local residents. Retired Army Colonel Richard Schroeder will give the featured speech. The Plymouth Fife and Drum Corps and the Tecumseh High School Band will provide music at the cemetery.

World War II planes will land at Meyers-Diver’s Airport on Macon Highway between 6:30 and 7 a.m. The planes will be on display until they take off at 9:30 a.m. for their flyover during the parade. Jets from Selfridge Air National Guard base in Mount Clemens will do a flyover between 10 and 10:15 a.m.
Gary Naugle can answer any questions about the parade or the ceremonies at Brookside Cemetery. He can be reached at 423.5827.

The Memorial Day Parade in the Village of Clinton will begin at 10 a.m. A special service at the cemetery will follow the parade.

Britton’s Memorial Day parade begins at 9 a.m., and participants may begin lining up at 8:45 a.m. next to Britton Deerfield School. Due to construction in the village, the route for the parade is different this year. The parade will travel down Church Street to M-50 to South Main Street then up College Avenue to Village Park where a short Memorial Day service will be held.

On Saturday, May 19, the Tecumseh Schools Orchestra Program (TSO) will host a concert at the Tecumseh High School Cafetorium with fiddler, Patrick Clark. Patrick was the fiddler for country star Darius Rucker (Darius was also “Hootie” from the band, “Hootie and the Blowfish). In addition to touring with Darius, Patrick has performed with Josh Gracin, Big and Rich, Sarah Evans, and more. He has appeared on The Tonight Show, Oprah, David Letterman, The Jimmy Kimmel Show, Dancing with the Stars, and countless other programs.

The concert will feature those TSO members who will be attending workshops with Patrick during the day and will include a performance by the Tecumseh Fiddlers as well.

The concert is at 7:30 p.m. in the Cafetorium at 760 Brown St., Tecumseh. Tickets are $5, general admission, and available at the door that evening. Patrick will also have copies of his book, “Fiddle 4 Every Level,” and his CDs available for purchase as well. Fifty-percent of book and CD sales go back to supporting the TSO program, and 100 percent of ticket sales support the TSO students’ endeavors as well.

By DEANE ERTS

Tecumseh students and their teachers are used to making adjustments to follow changes in state curriculum and assessment testing. Only a few months ago, all state public schools were told that the bar would be raised on two of the tests that all students must take-the Michigan Educational Assessment Program, for elementary and middle schools, and the Michigan Merit Exam, for high schools.
Now students, teachers, and curriculum directors, like Tecumseh Public Schools’ Todd Thieken, are bracing for another sea-change in the way students are assessed.

Beginning with the 2014-2015 school year, the new testing system will be the Smarter Balanced test. “The new test has been developed by a consortium of states, educators, and administrators,” said Thieken. “We will be ready for it because we have already been aligning our curriculum with the Common Core State Standards, which is what the Smarter Balanced exam will be testing. The new test will not really require much of an adjustment for us, but it will give us valuable tools for student and teacher evaluation.”

The Smarter Balanced test will be administered entirely online, unlike the MEAP and the MME, which are taken on paper then sent off to be processed. One big advantage of doing the new test online will be quicker grading and assessment. Thieken said that the results will be ready in a matter of days rather than months under the current testing system. Districts who are technologically unprepared will be allowed a three-year grace period during which they will be able to take the exam on paper.

Also unlike the current MEAP and MME, the Smarter Balanced exam will be administered in the spring. The two older tests came under fire from teachers and parents for being administered in the early fall when students had not yet “geared-up” in their mental processes following a long summer vacation.

Crime Stoppers of Lenawee is asking for the public’s help with information as it relates to at least six Breaking and Entering of buildings located within a five mile radius of Adrian. Investigators believe that all six break-ins may be related.

In each of the cases the buildings had been forcibly entered and power tools and lawn equipment were stolen during the break-in. The first break-in occurred on Sunday, April 15, in the 3000 block of Sharp Rd., the second break-in occurred on Wednesday, April 18, in the 6200 block of Treat Hwy., the third break-in occurred on Friday, April 27, in the 4800 block of Ogden Hwy., and the fourth break-in occurred on Saturday, April 28 in the 1000 block of Packard Rd. The next two break-ins occurred on Sunday, April 29 in the 1900 and 2600 block of Townline Hwy.

Investigators are looking into other break-ins that may also be related to the six break-ins listed.

At this point investigators know that at least two people are involved. Most of the break-ins have happened after midnight and are discovered in the morning by the homeowners.

Anyone with information is encouraged to contact Crime Stoppers at (517) 266.6161 or (877) 276.8477 or on-line at Lenawee’s Most Wanted [www.lenawee.mi.us.com and go to Sheriff Department link]. Tips may be left anonymously.

Crime Stoppers is an organization made up of police, media and community members. Any tips that lead to the arrest of the responsible person or persons will earn the caller a cash reward. The caller’s identity will be kept confidential.

By MARY KAY McCORMICK

Clinton Village Council voted unanimously at its May 7 meeting to adopt a Medical Marijuana ordinance making it illegal to possess medical marijuana in the village limits. The ordinance was written to comply with state, local and federal law. Although possession of medical marijuana is considered legal in the state of Michigan, federal law states medical marijuana is illegal. The Clinton ordinance was based on an existing Michigan municipal ordinance that was upheld in court.

“We needed to adopt some regulations because the current moratorium can’t go on forever,” said Village Manager Kevin Cornish.

From the time the Medical Marijuana law was passed by Michigan voters, issues came up within the village, and council, along with Clinton officials, as they struggled to balance the law of the state with federal law. Shortly after the law passed, an attorney approached the village about opening a dispensary in the community. Council decided to enact a moratorium shortly afterwards to give the village time to make a decision after thorough study, avoiding any possible negative situations. The council said its goal was to understand all the aspects of the Medical Marijuana law and create a safe, informed policy.

“To allow it, there were a lot of negative aspects,” Cornish said. “The law, as it was written, did not give us the ability to control the negative aspects.”

The village felt the best way to control the negative aspects was through zoning, and believed the safest route for all residents was to have a designated growing area in an industrial zone, making marijuana growing operations easier to monitor and in safe environments. Although this seemed the wisest method of enforcement to village officials, the council recognized current state zoning laws are not set up to address concerns associated with Medical Marijuana, nor protect Clinton from legal challenges by the federal government.

By MARY KAY McCORMICK

Ask Grant Neblo and Jesse Adrian about their longboarding adventure to Chicago and they will tell a tale filled with battles and new experiences. The two Onsted seniors came up with a longboarding trip as a fundraiser for Hospice of Lenawee. Both boys had experience with the organization through their families and wanted to educate people about the mission of Hospice of Lenawee as well as raise money for the organization.

“We are so impressed and inspired by them,” said Susan Turner, Director of Community Education and Development for Hospice of Lenawee. “We couldn’t be more grateful.”

The board and staff of Hospice of Lenawee were amazed at Neblo and Adrian’s commitment to the project, even when faced with physical and weather-related obstacles on the journey. Turner received regular updates and pictures via text from the travelers and marvels at the physical strength of the boys to endure the long trip and battle the elements to reach their goal.

“I had the privilege of being the link,” Turner said. “The community really got behind them.”

Adrian and Neblo left from Hospice of Lenawee after a send-off breakfast on Tuesday, April 24, and reached Chicago four days later. Hospice had special shirts made for the boys to wear on their journey and supplied Neblo and Adrian, as well as the drivers of their pacing car, Aeryk Foster and Justin Kamm, with gift cards for Wendy’s, McDonald’s and Subway.

Traveling along at around seven miles an hour, Adrian and Neblo encountered rain and wind through most of the journey. The wind was stronger than they expected, and the weather issues combined with rough roads made their adventure more challenging than they expected. Luckily, both boys brought along their snowboarding jackets, which helped keep them warm when the winds turned cold.