Wednesday, May 1, 2013
Joan Freedman, Hillel Day School’s Director of Library Services, was named one of the top five teachers of Metro Detroit.
After hundreds of submissions from readers of Metro Parent Magazine, Joan Freedman, Hillel Day School’s Director of Library Services, was named one of the top five teachers of Metro Detroit. Freedman, a resident of West Bloomfield, has been at her position with Hillel Day School for 8 years, according to an announcement on Farmington-Farmington Hills Patch. “There were hundreds of nominations every year so being chosen as one of the top five is a wonderful acknowledgement of the work these teachers do,” the announcement read. According to metroparent.com Freedman's influence has moved beyond the K-4 classrooms as she also help with developing literacy appreciation, computer technology and other programs to augment class learning. Who are …
Tuesday, April 2, 2013
The Crane Centre, borne out of missionary efforts, gives young adults in Mbarara, Uganda a chance for vocational training in the hospitality industry.
Editor's Note: This article originally published July 24, 2012. It is one example of the many people making a difference in West Bloomfield. Tell us about others in the comments. The Huffington Post has chosen Sandra Crane of West Bloomfield as its "Greatest Person of the Day" — an honor recognizing people who confront issues in their community with creativity and passion. Constructing walls from handmade bricks underneath an equatorial sun, thousands of miles away from home, is where Sandra Crane feels that God has asked her to work this summer. A longtime member of Orchard Lake Community Church, Presbyterian who still volunteers to teach Sunday school there, Crane, 75, used her life savings to purchase property in 2005 for the purpose of…
42.594606
-83.386815
Orchard Lake Community Church, Presbyterian
5171 Commerce Rd, Orchard Lake, MI
/articles/west-bloomfield-woman-using-life-savings-to-build-a-school-in-africa
717029
/locations/9158309
Friday, July 27, 2012
Bloomfield Hills' Jillian Fellows gets to live out a dream covering the Olympics in London as part of a unique program for college journalists.
Millions of athletes, coaches and their families and fans from around the globe will see lifelong dreams come to fruition tonight as the world celebrates the opening ceremonies of the 2012 Olympics in London. Count Bloomfield Hills' Jillian Fellows among them. Though the Andover High School graduate won't be donning the stars and stripes for Team USA in any Olympic competition over the next two weeks, she is indeed living out a dream that has consumed her for 12 years. Fellows, 20, is among 16 students from Ohio University participating in a unique program to actually cover the games and report to audiences both at home and around the world via social media. The inaugural experience, organized entirely by students and faculty from the …
Thursday, July 26, 2012
Pamela Eldred says she traveled 200,000 miles during the year she held the title.
West Bloomfield resident Pamela Eldred has fond memories of her days as Miss America. Eldred, who won the title in 1970, was in the audience at the Costick Center in Farmington Hills July 14 as Shelby Gardiner of St. Clair Shores was crowned Miss Oakland County. She said the pageant program also offered scholarships when she competed. At the time, she attended Mercy College (now University of Detroit Mercy). "I think more and more, women are getting involved (with pageants) because of the scholarships," she said. "Especially in these economic times, it's so important that young women can compete for them." Eldred said she traveled more than 200,000 miles during her reign. She compared her year as Miss America to "getting a Ph.D. in …
Tuesday, July 17, 2012
Eleven Michiganders will be joining Team USA for the 2012 Summer Games in London.
The 2012 Olympics begin in London on July 27. Michigan will be sending 11 participants to join the 519 other members of Team USA to compete for gold and glory, according to the team roster provided by the U.S. Olympic Committee. Michigan's youngest athlete is gymnast Jordyn Wieber, who just turned 17. The state's eldest athlete is Daryl Szarenski at age 44. Seven of the Michiganders are female and four are male. Just five states will not be sending any athletes: New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Dakota, South Carolina and West Virginia. California is sending the most athletes with 127, followed by New York with 35 and Texas with 32. Here's a list of the Michigan Olympic athletes so you can cheer them on! Check your local TV listings to see…
Saturday, July 14, 2012
Since spending the summer of 1970 as an exchange student in Germany, West Bloomfield's Barb Kilkka and her family have dedicated themselves to Youth for Understanding.
You won't find bigger local supporters of study abroad opportunities than Barb and Ken Kilkka. For the past 40 years, the West Bloomfield couple — who met during a study abroad function — have participated in Youth for Understanding USA, a nonprofit international educational organization with exchange programs in 64 countries. Barb Kilkka currently works as field director, where she connects applicants with potential host families in Metro Detroit school districts as far and wide as Oxford, Royal Oak, South Lyon and Huron Valley. She and her family of five have hosted 20 children over the past 20 years. 1. You will be hosting your 21st student beginning this August. Frankly speaking, how have you, your husband, and your four children been …
Saturday, June 16, 2012
Scott Grodman, 50, of West Bloomfield, rode home from Chicago over a three-day span to benefit diabetes research.
Scott Grodman finished a three-day, 300-mile bicycle trek from Chicago Saturday evening at Leo's Coney Island, as a fundraiser for diabetes research. Grodman was greeted by dozens of family and friends after the ride filled with hot weather and country roads, accompanied by his children Jared and Adam, and wife Karyn Grodman, helping out along the way. "I feel great. Yesterday was tough because it was very long and hot. But today was great, people were texting me all day as we got closer here and it was a lot of fun to be a part of," calmly said Grodman, 50, of West Bloomfield, who celebrated his birthday on the path. Family and friends kept in touch with Patch during the ride, snapping action photos throughout the trek and updating …
42.563684
-83.438683
Leo's Coney Island
4763 Haggerty Rd, West Bloomfield, MI
/articles/west-bloomfield-man-finishes-bike-ride-for-charity-tired-and-happy
717376
/locations/8048967
Thursday, June 14, 2012
Patch speaks with Stephanie Michaels — mother of two, soprano, and new musical theatre director of Hillel Day School.
For Stephanie Michaels, teaching just runs in the family. The second generation teacher (her mother retired from teaching in Detroit and Fraser public school districts) was recently hired as the new director of musical theatre at Hillel Day School after one year as a vocal music instructor at Frankel Jewish Academy. To stay patched to local Jewish community was an important part of Michaels' decision. Michaels, a 1998 graduate of The Juilliard School in New York, seemed just as devoted to her craft as she is the arts, her family, and the Jewish tradition. Michaels spoke with Patch this week: What role does education play in vocal music performance? What inspires you to teach? "My mother was a teacher for 35 years and growing up with that …
42.55646
-83.396559
Temple Israel
5725 Walnut Lake Rd, West Bloomfield, MI
/articles/hillel-music-oliver-judaism
717381
/locations/7206947
42.542942
-83.404178
Frankel Jewish Academy
6600 W Maple Rd, West Bloomfield, MI
/articles/hillel-music-oliver-judaism
718054
/locations/7206948
42.5232
-83.340289
32200 Middlebelt Rd, Farmington Hills, MI
Hillel Day School
/articles/hillel-music-oliver-judaism
/locations/7206949
Scott Grodman, riding this week to help find a cure for diabetes, will update Patch on his progress over the three-day-long trek.
A West Bloomfield man with a heart geared for philanthropy plans to ride a bicycle home from Chicago today to raise funds for diabetes research. Scott Grodman, a podiatrist who turns 50 this week, intends to finish Saturday at Leo's Coney Island. Along the way, he'll check-in to the above map with his location as well as an update to his progress. Grodman and wife Karyn began began raising money for diabetes research in February 1994 shortly after discovering that their 15-month-old son, Jared, had diabetes. Then, when their youngest son Adam was born diagnosed with diabetes in July 1995, it only strengthened their resolve. "We were so motivated by our sons' diagnoses and inspired by their shared determination to fight back against …
Wednesday, May 30, 2012
Kathy Chiaravalli, a 23-year West Bloomfield resident, worked with township government officials to inform them of the possibility of drilling in her back yard.
Kathy Chiaravalli has owned her home on Cass Lake in West Bloomfield Township for 23 years, but it wasn't until recently that she found out she doesn't own the rights to the minerals that can be found near her property. Neighbors of Chiaravalli's lakefront property, along with many others in West Bloomfield and across Michigan, were up for auction in Lansing earlier this month and purchased for lease by private developers in pursuit of oil and natural gas deposits. Now, thanks to Chiaravalli and her work to shed light on the issue, township officials are working to get better-acquainted with state law in the interest of keeping the minerals in town. "(Kathy) pushed this and she brought it to our attention and she made me read all this …
42.60067
-83.397526
2491 Island View Dr, West Bloomfield, MI
/articles/oil-and-gas-drilling-rights-in-michigan
/locations/7275466
42.558062
-83.373003
West Bloomfield Town Hall
4550 Walnut Lake Rd, West Bloomfield, MI
/articles/oil-and-gas-drilling-rights-in-michigan
1855449
/locations/7275467
BullySixChicago
8:47 pm on Saturday, August 4, 2012
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