Events of the City: 4th Annual Corn Roast
Written by: Phillip J. Fattore
It was a day of celebration, a thank you to
all those on the Board of Preservation Bloomfield and the supporters who make
up the Friend of Preservation Bloomfield for the tireless support and
generosity towards the restoration of the historic Barton Farmhouse. The
atmosphere was fun and musical, the weather was what picture-perfect Michigan
summer days are all about and the smell of fresh roasted corn, barbeque and
finger-food pierogi called to the appetites of all who came to the Bowers
School Farm for the Fourth Annual event.
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Early in the evening the A-Capella
quarter Limited Edition sang out
smooth and familiar songs as the background noise built itself on the friendly
conversation of all the families who had come to enjoy the food and friends.
The Bowers Farm animals were welcoming as some of the children played
look-a-like asking for animal designs at the face painting stand and any
curiosities about the ‘way things were’ were
answered by the Corn Roast’s Native American Legend Keeper. As more people
walked up and down the silent auction table, the stage switched hands and gave
way to the acoustic and electric guitar sounds of RG Dempster &Friends. For first time, the Barton Farmhouse was
open to the many who’d made it’s ongoing restoration possible and with an open
door, many of today’s Bloomfield Hills families walked the floors and steps of
the families that had come more than one-hundred years before them. The feeling
of community past-and-present took a moving turn as Pat Hardy accepted her
Award of Appreciation from Preservation Bloomfield for all her tireless with a
tearful thank you to all those in the crowd who have supported her over all the
years.
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The sun began to set, the ice-cream
cart emptied and as the evening began to close a sense of accomplishment and
appreciation moved through crowd as the collective heritage and history of the
city acquired an even stronger foundation. Business Beat: Juice PLUS, the Business of Living Healthy
Written by: Phillip J. Fattore
A month after Breast Cancer awareness month
and in the spirit of healthy living, it is important to remember that the
lifestyles we act out everyday are determined solely by the choices we make. Whether
or not you consider to be a healthy individual, Bloomfield Hills resident
Gretchen Haughton has turned her business as a Juice PLUS educator into her
life’s passion and sees everyday as an opportunity to teach those around her
about the power of healthy food and healthy living.
Twenty
years ago after being diagnosed with Breast Cancer, an illness that had taken
away both a mother and grandmother years before, Gretchen Haughton was looking
for answers. Scared and looking for supplemental help to the normal medical
treatments, Gretchen was told to cut out the unhealthy aspects of her diet and
take a ‘nutritional attack’ on her body. It was then that a friend sent a box
of the then-new Juice PLUS nutritional product to Gretchen’s Bloomfield Hills
home, a gift that has stayed with Gretchen all these years and one that
Gretchen passes along everyday.
So, what is
Juice PLUS exactly? Besides being the subject of over 20 nationally recognized
studies which link the Juice PLUS nutritional capsules to increased immune
health, DNA protection, cardiovascular wellness as well as helping with the
reduction of oxidative stress and improved gum and skin health, Gretchen points
out that it is a catalyst for continued and stronger healthy living. “You have
the power to choose the life you’re going to live,” Gretchen believes, “The
power to choose what we put into our bodies—the power of choice.” Juice PLUS is
not a replacement for eating vegetables and fruits, but when taken on a regular
basis the body begins to re-adjust its tastes and cravings. Juice PLUS begins a
body-wide makeover, physically showing our bodies the benefits of fruits and
vegetables. By causing the body to feel better physically, Juice PLUS
indirectly can change a taste for chemical processed goods such as white bread
or potato chips into a preference for more single ingredient foods that better
keep the nutritional balance our bodies are meant to have.
Walking
down the vitamin aisle of the local pharmacy or supermarket is not the space to
find Juice PLUS. It is about educating the consumer on the benefits of Juice
PLUS and pill-bottle descriptions or nutritional facts tables cannot do Juice
PLUS justice. Gretchen holds Juice PLUS presentations at her Bloomfield Hills
home to educate the benefits of the product. It is her home that allows clients
and Juice PLUS users to truly understand the benefits of the a lifestyle
defined by what Gretchen calls, “living life to the PLUS.” Outside on her
home’s brick-path patio is Gretchen and husband Jack’s Juice PLUS Tower Garden.
The Tower Garden allows for quick and easy growth of vegetables, herbs, flowers
and most fruits and provides these healthy building blocks in the unprocessed
way nature intends. The Tower Garden is an example of what Gretchen’s Juice
PLUS local distribution and education is all about. Using the Juice PLUS
capsules is not enough and is not a replacement for fruits and veggies but when
coupled with an innovation such as the Tower Garden, where real physical fruits
and veggies are available, the power of the Juice PLUS lifestyle can be
realized.
Admittedly
Gretchen refers to her pre-Juice PLUS lifestyle as an unhealthy one, comparing
herself to fashionable but intensely skinny Twiggy and remembering the poor gum
health she’d had as child due to the food choices she’d made. Now, after twenty
years of Juice PLUS, Gretchen is a walking example of the benefits a healthy
lifestyle can yield; benefits that were started and continued all these years
since with Juice PLUS. The mother of two and grandmother of many, Gretchen has
beaten cancer and is happily living her life to the PLUS.
Athlete of the Month: Mackenzie Gammons, Andover Girls
Cross-Country
Written by: Phillip J. Fattore
Having lost both their number one and number
three runners from last year to the call of college life, Coach Beth Sinclair
has turned to the well-seasoned, mature and accomplished Mackenzie Gammons to
take control of the number one spot, a place just ahead of the number two spot
she held in her Sophomore season and guide the Andover team to continued
success.
Returning
to the trails in the later summer before the full autumn swing of the cross-country
season, Mackenzie Gammons begins her Junior season running the paths of Echo
Road for a third year, but this time she’s the one leading the pack. Having won
the Regional Championship in 2010 and taking third in 2011, Beth Sinclair’s
Andover girls are not unfamiliar with end of the season success and although
the team is young Mackenzie’s experiences and a mature ‘been-there-before’
attitude aims to make her a great Junior leader.
Earning All-League honors,
All-Regional honors, and State Finalist qualifications in each of her first two
seasons while sitting 3rd all-time on the cross-country record board
Mackenzie knows what it success feels like at the high school level but her
involvement in the sport goes back long before Freshman year. With both her mom
and dad running recreationally as well as in marathons, Mackenzie caught the
running bug in third grade with the “Girls on the Run” program but as she
pointed out she never really got serious until her seventh grade season. “It teaches you how to work with a team,”
Mackenzie credits for her nearly ten year involvement with the sport, “teaches
you to stick with it, see things through to the end.”
This season’s journey just began
for Mackenzie, the team just recently participated in the 5K “Run for the
Hills” road race in Farmington Hills with Mackenzie coming across the line in
an impressive early-season time of 19:21 and she even participated in another
road race with visiting family in New Jersey this summer. With the team goal to
once again team-qualify for the State Finals and the personal goal to earn
All-State honors and break 18:30 for the Andover record board’s top-spot, Mackenzie
Gammons is poised to once again, see it all through to the end.
In
the spring Mackenzie participates on Andover’s Varsity Track & Field teams,
running in the 1600 meter run, 3200 meter run as well as the 3200-meter relay.
For updates and to follow Mackenzie’s quest for All-State and 18:30, go to www.ahscrosscountry.com or www.athletic.net.
The Bowers School Farm Autumn Line-up
Starting October 12th this year’s
Carnival-Themed main maze will be filled with a scattering of trained volunteer
‘scarers’ for the enjoyment of the patrons. The three other corn mazes
surrounding the larger main maze will be smaller, a little easier and will
contain activities and games throughout their twists and turn in-place of
ghosts and ghouls. 
With the
activities running for only one month the season will be here and gone as
quickly as a falling leaf. Bring your family, friends or anyone close for a
warm-hearted staple at the Bowers School Farm.
The Bowers School Farm Autumn Line-up
Written by: Phillip J. Fattore
As the air grows cooler and leaves turn and
say goodbye for the year, the Bowers School Farm will once again provide local
family fun that has become as annual as the changing seasons.
Families
picking pumpkins, children petting barnyard animals, friends meeting for
nostalgic wagon rides, old-fashioned wood-cutouts providing first date teens
with hilarious photo ops and when it all starts on September 29th
they’ll also all be getting lost together in an all new set of carnival-themed corn
mazes. The Bowers School Farm Fall season activities run every weekend from
September 29th through October 27th, with every weekend
except the first two taking on a Halloween theme.
Starting October 12th this year’s
Carnival-Themed main maze will be filled with a scattering of trained volunteer
‘scarers’ for the enjoyment of the patrons. The three other corn mazes
surrounding the larger main maze will be smaller, a little easier and will
contain activities and games throughout their twists and turn in-place of
ghosts and ghouls.
Wagon rides serve as tours of
the Bowers School Farm. With the grounds being home to everything from a
full-service growing farm to holding the city’s history with the Barton Farmhouse
and Craig cabin, there’s never been a better season to take a wagon ride tour
of the Bowers land. It’s a fun and educational weekend alternative for all
ages.
Some of the
farm’s biggest stars will be out as well; petting farm animals welcoming the
jean and flannel dressed children with their warm coats of wool and fur to pet. Kids will love goats “Cora” and the
fun-loving “Roo,” laugh at the tricks that herding dog “Spike” can perform and
marvel at the calm strength of “Mack” the draft horse. Each animal friend has the potential to
become a favorite, all the while helping kids learn about these animals that
are many times alive only in classroom storybooks and lesson plans.
After
taking in the entire farm, the pumpkin patch provides the opportunity for every
visitor to take home a memory for the road. Walking up and down the rows of
on-the-vine pumpkins you’ll find yourself racking your brain, judging size and
surface for that perfect pumpkin to carve-up with the family.
With the
activities running for only one month the season will be here and gone as
quickly as a falling leaf. Bring your family, friends or anyone close for a
warm-hearted staple at the Bowers School Farm. 
