Encore August 2019

Visiting the Death Cafe

August 2019

Kazoo Books’ Gloria Tiller

Racetrack safety drives KTS

Meet Nancie Oxley

Southwest Michigan’s Magazine

Indigenous Inspiration Seven Generations builds for the future

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Visiting the Death Café

August 2019

Kazoo Books’ Gloria Tiller

Racetrack safety drives KTS

Meet Nancie Oxley

Southwest Michigan’s Magazine

Indigenous Inspiration Seven Generations builds for the future

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www.encorekalamazoo.com 117 W. Cedar St. Suite A, Kalamazoo, MI 49007 Telephone: (269) 383-4433 Fax: (269) 383-9767 Email: Publisher@encorekalamazoo.com The staff at Encore welcomes written comment from readers, and articles and poems for submission with no obligation to print or return them. To learn more about us or to comment, visit encorekalamazoo.com. Encore subscription rates: one year $36, two years $70. Current single issue and newsstand $4, $10 by mail. Back issues $6, $12 by mail. Advertising rates on request. Closing date for space is 28 days prior to publication date. Final date for print-ready copy is 21 days prior to publication date.

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The opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed by those interviewed and published here do not reflect the opinions, beliefs and viewpoints of Encore Magazine or the official policies, owners or employees of Encore Publications.

ENCORE EDITOR'S NOTE

From the Editor What’s in a name? A lot, as our writers often find out.

This month’s issue features two stories that arose from our writers’ insatiable curiosity about unusual or intriguing names they come across.

When Kara Norman started to hear about the architecture and engineering firm Seven Generations, she just had to know more. What Kara found out was that this company, which is owned by an arm of the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians, operates under the Native American concept that the current generation of humans should live and work for the benefit of the seventh generation into the future. To that end, Seven Generations designs and engineers buildings that promote sustainability and responsible use of the land.

There’s also a story about Death Cafe Kalamazoo in this issue. When this interesting-sounding group popped up on our radar, there was no doubt it needed further exploration. What we discovered was that a trio of women who were committed to “death positivity” were working to help people reframe the negative ways people think about dying. Through their monthly meetings, or “death cafes,” they facilitate conversations on various aspects of dying, from green funerals to the stress and fear associated with death.

Speaking of women, we also bring you stories of several dynamic female members of our community who don’t have unusual names but do have intriguing stories. We meet Gloria Tiller, owner of Kazoo Books, the area’s oldest independent bookstore; talk with Nancie Oxley, an award-winning winemaker and vice president at St. Julian Winery; and learn why classical lyrical singer Sara Emerson is teaching her students that imperfection is a good thing.

We also introduce you to Kalamazoo Track Services, a group that works to ensure the safety of the Kalamazoo Speedway for racers and fans alike. Three of its crew members are so committed to what they are doing that they have also begun providing training for safety crew members from other racetracks.

As summer wraps up, we encourage you, like our writers, to explore things that pique your curiosity. You are likely to find great discoveries in the details.

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August

CONTENTS 2019

FEATURE

Seven Generations

Tribal-owned architecture firm sees projects as an ‘opportunity to heal the land’

24

DEPARTMENTS 5 From the Editor 8 Contributors

10 First Things Happenings and events in SW Michigan

14

Five Faves

16

Good Works

20

History curator's favorite photos of Kalamazoo’s past

Lively World of Dying — Death Cafe Kalamazoo cozies up to taboo topic

Enterprise

‘Here We Go Again’ — Kazoo Books’ Gloria Tiller has weathered ‘a million changes’

30

On a New Track — Raceway safety crew expands role to train others

46

Back Story

Meet Nancie Oxley — This award-winning winemaker keeps blazing trails

ARTS 36 Intent on Improvising — Singer Sara Emerson reaches beyond classical boundaries On the cover: Standing in the “hive” of their office, Seven Generations’ leadership includes, from left, Steve VandenBussche, vice president of practice; interior designer Stephanie Sokolowski; and Jeremy Berg, president. Photo by Brian K. Powers.

40 Events of Note 43 Poetry

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CONTRIBUTORS ENCORE INTRODUCING

Jordan Bradley

When Jordan was offered the chance to write about Death Cafe Kalamazoo, she jumped on it, with having no idea what a typical meeting would entail. She was pleasantly surprised by the group of 13 people attending that February meeting.

"There was such an air of inquisitiveness and acceptance," she says. "I really appreciated that the group was willing to have such candid conversations about death with a journalist present." And the group's three facilitators were very warm and welcoming, she says. She thinks everyone should attend at least one Death Cafe meeting because none of us are getting out of this crazy life alive. Jordan is an editorial assistant at Encore.

Kara Norman

optimism

never

gets old.

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Kara is a writer and designer living in Kalamazoo with her husband, two kids and approximately one thousand toys. Kara wrote our cover story about Kalamazoo’s only tribally owned architecture and engineering firm, Seven Generations, learning more about how design can align with nature. She also interviewed community builder and business maestro Gloria Tiller, who owns Kazoo Books and is a force of nature herself. Finally, Kara sat down with lyric soprano Sara Emerson to talk about Sara’s prolific performance career. For more of Kara’s writing, including profiles of other Kalamazoo movers and shakers, visit karanorman.com.

Greyson Steele

As a child, Greyson attended many races at Kalamazoo Speedway and was often amazed by the quick response time of the track safety crew. In pursuing this month’s story on Kalamazoo Track Services, Greyson asked some crew members what separates KTS from other track safety teams. "The guys I interviewed made it very clear that there is no off-season for them," Greyson says. "They are constantly working year-round, outlining different scenarios, researching the latest techniques and equipment, all to keep the drivers and fans safe and secure. They are committed to learning and adapting, above all else." Greyson, a native of Plainwell, works as a reporter for the Argus-Press, in Owosso.

Corrections: We regret these errors in the July 2019 issue of Encore: • Gun River Wooden Watercraft in Plainwell was mistakenly called Gun Lake Wooden Watercraft in the story Floating His Boats on page 14.

• In Take a Wall Crawl on page 38, the murals listed for 3 and 14 should have been credited to artist Tim Kinsey.

SPONSORED CONTENT

The Gender Investing Gap. There’s no denying it: Women tend to work less, earn less and live longer than men. That means they need to invest more if they hope to retire. In addition to the gender pay gap, a survey conducted by Wealthsimple,1 reported by Jean Chatzky for NBC.com, shows that women, on average, invest 40 percent less money than men. These tendencies may tie back to a woman’s aversion to risk, but also the fact that women don’t have as much money to invest. And historically, women haven’t had as much financial education or exposure to investing as men.

Financial institutions interested in serving the needs of women realize this doesn’t have to be the norm. “The first step is for women to arm themselves with knowledge,” says KALSEE Retirement and Investment Services* Advisor, Saundra Ivy. “This includes learning how

changing. “At KALSEE, we’re looking for new ways to help women reach their unique goals. One way is through financial education, including our upcoming seminar on Women and Investing, planned for Tuesday, August 27th, at 6 pm at our Millcork Street office.”

Women & Investing Complimentary Seminar Tuesday, August 27th, 6-7 pm KALSEE Credit Union, 2501 Millcork Street, Kalamazoo Learn more or RSVP: www.kalsee.com/women-and-investing Available to the community at no cost, participants will learn how to become competent investors, while examining key to become a successful, lifelong investor investment principles, such as asset alto reach retirement goals.” location, investor behavior, and products She acknowledges that while women like mutual funds and annuities. may lag in their investing habits, that’s

*KALSEE Retirment and Investment Services Advisors are registered representatives of CUNA Brokerage Services, Inc. Securities sold, advisory services offered through CUNA Brokerage Services, Inc. (CBSI), member FINRA SIPC, a registered broker/ dealer and investment advisor. CBSI is under contract with the financial institution to make securities available to members. Not NCUA/NCUSIF/FDIC insured, May Lose Value, No Financial Institution Guarantee. Not a deposit of any financial institution. CUNA Brokerage Services, Inc., is a registered broker/dealer in all fifty states of the United States of America.

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FIRST THINGS ENCORE

First Things Something New

a combined beer release and music festival that will be hosted by Arclight Brewing Co. Aug. 17 in Watervliet.

The festival, to be held at the brewery’s facility at 544 N. Main St., will mark the first release of the brewery’s Soursmith Red Raspberry in almost five years. The brewing company’s founder, Dave Coyle, was inspired to host the music festival when he met a member of Chicago-based band Dream Version, who had always wanted to start a music festival in Southwest Michigan.

Festival acts include Cowboy Jesus and the Sugar Bums, The Baby Magic, Dream Version, Wild Pink, Dehd and headliner Ryley Walker, among others. Kalamazoo’s own DJ Dan Steely will play between sets and after Walker.

The event runs from 3:30–9:30 p.m. Children are welcome to attend. Tickets are $12, and free for kids under 12. For tickets or more information, check out arclightbrewing.com/arcfest.

Evan Jenkins

Celebrate beer, music at Arcfest You can catch a slate of indie bands at the first-ever Arcfest,

Ryley Walker

Something Sinister Barn brings Evil Dead to life

A musical twist on the 1981 cult classic movie Evil Dead and its sequels will be performed at the Barn Theatre Aug. 27-Sept. 1.

Evil Dead, a low-budget horror film, follows Ash and a group of college students vacationing at a cabin in the woods. What was meant to be a fun and relaxing getaway turns into demonic possession and absolute gore. The film spawned several sequels as well as video games, comic books and a TV series.

Evil Dead: The Musical was created at a comedy club in Toronto in 2003 and opened off-Broadway in 2006. It has since lived on with such songs as “All the Men in My Life Keep Getting Killed by Candarian Demons” and "Boomstick."

Show times are 8 p.m. Aug. 27-31 and 5 p.m. Sept. 1, and ticket prices are $39–$48. To purchase tickets or for more information, visit barntheatreschool.org or call 731-4121.

10 | ENCORE AUGUST 2019

ENCORE FIRST THINGS

Something Delicious

Men don aprons for a good cause Sometimes too many cooks in the kitchen are a good thing.

On Aug. 10, you can enjoy the labors of 100 of Kalamazoo’s male bankers, attorneys, doctors, teachers and leaders as they don aprons and get busy in the kitchen for a good cause.

100 Men Who Cook will be held from 6-9 p.m. at Western Michigan University’s Bernhard Center to raise money for the Boys and Girls Club of Kalamazoo. The event will feature 100 men who will create a dish to pass and decorate their serving stations. At the end of the night, the team with the most cash in their tip jar and sponsorship donations wins bragging rights for having raised the most for the cause.

Tickets are $50, and there will be 100 different food options as well as a silent auction. For tickets or to sponsor a chef, visit kalamazoo.100menwhocook.com/event.

Something Good

Fill up on shrimp and stories Hear some uplifting stories and dig into a low country boil with Bethany Christian Services 6–9 p.m. Aug. 29 at Pretty Lake Adventure Camp.

Bethany Christian Services works locally and internationally to help foster kids and refugees find families. Attendees will hear from families and an emcee about how Bethany has impacted their lives.

Tickets are $25 and include access to the storytelling event, a buffet of shrimp, Andouille sausage, potatoes and corn on the cob, barbecue chicken sliders, granny apple slaw, baked beans and homemade pie for dessert. There will also be a silent auction that will include an opportunity to bid on Disney World Park Hopper passes.

For tickets, visit bit.ly/2JsPI9q. For more information, visit bethany.org.

Something Different

Try yoga, soap making at goat show You can see the area’s best dairy goats and try

trendy goat yoga Aug. 3 at the South West Michigan Dairy Goat Show, at the Van Buren County Youth Fairgrounds.

This annual event, which starts at 8 a.m. and continues throughout the day, judges dairy goats in three categories: senior does, junior does and bucks. It also offers a demonstration of goat yoga, which is yoga practiced along with baby goats that often climb on participants’ backs.

The event also includes a milking competition, silent auction, raffles, and food and craft vendors of all things goat-related, such as goat cheese and soap, as well as crafts and custom metal works. There will also be demonstrations of how to use a milking machine and how to make soap.

The fairgrounds are located at 55670 County Road 681, in Lawrence, and the event is free. For more information, visit swmidairygoatshow. weebly.com. w w w.encorekalamazoo.com | 11

FIRST THINGS ENCORE

Something Sunny

Festival celebrates the sunflower Have a desire to feel like an Italian widow coming out of

her grief in the Italian countryside? Well, put on your big black sun hat and mourning sunglasses and get over to Gull Meadow Farms’ Sunflower Festival Aug. 9–11 and 16–18.

You can frolic among the flowers between 9 a.m. and 6 p.m. each day. From Aug. 16-18, the festival coincides with Gull Meadow’s Vintage Market, put on by troVe. Tickets for the Sunflower Festival are $15 per person and include a wagon ride to the flower fields, admission to family activity areas, and one sunflower to cut and take home. Tickets bought during the second weekend also cover entry into the Vintage Market. For tickets or more information, visit facebook.com/events/582379885503744 or call 629-4214.

Something Tasty

Onlyyouqj / Freepik

Fest offers blueberries, basketball, more South Haven is turning 150 this year, and one way to celebrate the city is to visit its 56th annual Blueberry Festival, set for Aug. 8–11.

The South Haven area is one of the most prolific producers of blueberries in the nation, and the festival highlights this fact by offering a Blueberry Pie and Ice Cream Social, blueberry pancake breakfasts, a blueberry-pie-eating competition, and a market selling fresh blueberries, blueberry pies, blueberry preserves and blueberry plants.

The festival also features a basketball tournament, a 5K run/walk, a youth pageant, nightly entertainment and a craft fair.

The annual Blueberry Festival began in 1963 and is one of the country’s longest continuously held festivals. For a full schedule of each day’s events, visit blueberryfestival. com/schedule.html.

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ENCORE FIRST THINGS

Something Musical Catch an outdoor concert

This month the Arts Council of Greater Kalamazoo’s Summertime Live series gives you several more opportunities to get your outdoor concert fix. It offers a full slate of music, running the gamut from reggae to bluegrass, zydeco to jazz.

The scheduled concert dates, performers, music genres, locations and times are: • Aug. 1: Alan Turner and the Steel Horse Band, country, Overlander Bandshell, Portage, 7 p.m.

• Aug. 4: Ben Daniels Band, folk-rock, The Stage at Kindleberger Park, Parchment, 6:30 p.m.

• Aug. 7: Out of Favor Boys, blues, Bates Alley, 5–8 p.m.

• Aug. 11: Feel Good, a tribute band doing favorite party jams, Bronson Park, 4 p.m.

• Aug. 11: Thunderwüde, bluegrass/newgrass, The Stage at Kindleberger Park, Parchment, 6:30 p.m.

• Aug. 14: Schlitz Creek, bluegrass band, Bates Alley, 5–8 p.m.

• Aug. 18: Tom Knific Quartet, jazz, Bronson Park, 4 p.m.

• Aug. 18: Kanola Band, New Orleans-style jazz and zydeco, Flesher Field, Oshtemo, 6 p.m.

• Aug. 18: May Erlewine and the Motivations, boogie jams, The Stage at Kindleberger Park, Parchment, 6:30 p.m.

• Aug. 21: Zion Lion, reggae, Bates Alley, 5–8 p.m.

• Aug. 25: Bronk Bros., country, The Stage at Kindleberger Park, Parchment, 6:30 p.m.

• Aug. 28: The Gilmore, classical/jazz, Bates Alley, 5–8 p.m.

Each park has different food and drink policies, so be sure to check in advance before packing your picnic basket. For more information, visit kalamazooarts.org/concerts-in-the-park.

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FIVE FAVES ENCORE

Five Faves

History curator picks favorite photos of Kalamazoo’s past by

LYNN HOUGHTON

Choosing my favorite historic photographs of the Kalamazoo area is a hard task for me. I have looked at a lot of these photos during my career, and many have amazed and interested me. A photograph can give so much information about the who, what, when, where, why and how but still sometimes leave you with more questions than answers. I especially enjoy photographs with people of all ages who help make these buildings, streets, businesses and sites living, breathing places.

Fortunately, in the case of some historic photographs, we also know who took them.

Here are a few of my favorites:

South Burdick Street, looking north from West South Street, 1913 This is one of my favorite photographs because it documents so well this part of South Burdick, now the Kalamazoo Mall, and captures many details. Look to the right and see the sign for the Majestic Theater, which points to its location on East South Street. In the distance you can see the Kalamazoo Building and, if you look closely, the Hanselman Building, then newly completed (but taken down 60 years later for the Kalamazoo Center). There are both automobiles and horse-drawn wagons and, crossing the street, a solitary woman on her way somewhere, never knowing she would be captured for posterity wearing the typical outfit of the day — a white linen dress, gloves and a wide-brimmed hat.

Kalamazoo Airport May 1955

National Driving Park Circa 1880

So, what brought this crowd, some in their best clothes, to the city-owned airport on the first day of May? More than 300 people of all ages came to see the arrival from Detroit of the first North Central Airlines flight into Kalamazoo, midway to its Chicago destination. The City of Kalamazoo and the Chamber of Commerce had spent 18 years working to get air service from Kalamazoo to these two cities. Local dignitaries greeted the crew, and a large number of newspapers and radio stations covered the event.

I’m not sure what is more interesting, the number of people who showed up or the terminal building behind them. Then-Mayor Glenn S. Allen took the opportunity to announce that the building soon would be replaced.

The appeal of this image taken by an unknown photographer is its rarity.

It is a stereograph of the National Driving Park, Kalamazoo’s fairgrounds from 1856 to 1893. Located in the Edison neighborhood, it encompassed 64 acres south of the intersection of Portage and Washington streets. It became the site for both county and state fairs, circuses like those of P.T. Barnum and the Ringling Brothers, and horse racing on a one-mile track that attracted nationally known trotters. During the Civil War, several regiments drilled here before heading to the front.

After 1893, the fairgrounds moved to its current location on Lake Street and was called Recreation Park. The National Driving site became a neighborhood filled with a variety of houses and businesses.

14 | ENCORE AUGUST 2019

ENCORE FIVE FAVES

Muggs Celebrating His Birthday, H.J. Cooper Auto Dealership, 1941 Sometimes

photographs become favorites because they are beyond belief. This is one of them. Meet Muggs, owned by auto dealer Howard J. Cooper, who purchased the lion cub in 1939 from a circus that came to Kalamazoo. Muggs lived at the dealership, located on the southwest corner of West Michigan and North Park streets. When Muggs was young, Cooper would walk him around downtown on a leash, and at times the lion cub slept on the desks at the dealership. Because Muggs lived in Kalamazoo during World War II, when there was a ban on auto sales to the general public, it never was known if his presence discouraged customers. Wanting Muggs to have more room, Cooper gave him to a zoo in South Bend, Indiana, in 1946.

Kalamazoo Stove Co. Circa 1935 In the late 1930s, photographer Mamie Austin took this image of the Kalamazoo Stove Co. for a series she did for the Kalamazoo Public Library’s art collection documenting the city. The images were available for circulation, particularly for classroom teachers. Austin worked at and later owned her father’s photographic studio in Kalamazoo and came to the library through the Works Progress Administration, a New Deal program. Her photographs, taken between 1936 and 1943, cover a wide variety of businesses, industries, schools, parks, buildings and other sites in the community. I have many favorites among hers, including this one showing molten metal being poured into a frame at the stove company.

You can see Austin’s photographs on the Kalamazoo Public Library’s website.

About the Author Lynn Houghton is the regional history curator at the Western Michigan University Archives and Regional History Collections. She leads the Gazelle Sports Historic Walks, a series of free architectural and historic walks in Kalamazoo and other parts of the county during the summer and fall, and is the co-author of the book Kalamazoo Lost and Found.

She also participated in the PBS series 10 that Shaped America. She has bachelor’s and master’s degrees in history from WMU and a master’s in library and information science from Wayne State University.

Photos courtesy of WMU Archives and Regional History Collections, the Kalamazoo Valley Museum and the Kalamazoo Public Library’s Local History Collection. w w w.encorekalamazoo.com | 15

GOOD WORKS ENCORE

The Lively World of Dying

Death Cafe Kalamazoo cozies up to taboo topic JORDAN BRADLEY

Melissa Zeithammel

by

H

ow often do you think about your own death? Unless you’ve been recently diagnosed with a fatal or potentially fatal disease, it’s safe to assume not often. Death Cafe Kalamazoo would like to change that. By offering discussions on the taboo topic of death without judgment of people’s beliefs, the monthly Death Cafe offers a space for people to come to terms with our collective and inevitable fate.

But if the name Death Cafe brings to mind a group of terrifyingly gaunt people clad in funeral blacks huddled in the dark, or shades of the movie Harold and Maude, you’d be surprised by what you’ll find the fourth Wednesday night of every month in The Annex at Kazoo Books.

Each Death Cafe meeting is unique. Over the course of two hours, the group might discuss everything from statistics about burial (in one year, the amount of embalming fluid used in the U.S. alone could fill an Olympic-sized swimming pool) to the rise of end-oflife doulas (people who advocate for the needs and wishes of the dying and help loved ones through the process as well) to how, 16 | ENCORE AUGUST 2019

Above: Death Cafe participants find humor in life — and death. Right: Co-facilitators Sarah Field, left, and Alycia Lee, right, listen more than they speak at the Death Cafe meetings.

with the industrialization of death and burials, our culture has become disconnected from the circle of life. Attendees laugh and contemplate. Many partings end with a hug.

“That’s an aspect of the Death Cafes that I didn’t expect — people are excited to be there and it is often a really fun, lively, humorous atmosphere. People are just really stoked to be there and get this out,” says one of Death Cafe Kalamazoo’s three facilitators, Alycia Lee.

The birth of Death Cafes Death Cafes are held in 65 countries around the world with one purpose: to increase death awareness. The meetings are not meant to persuade people to believe or disbelieve in an afterlife or religion or to choose one form of burial over another. They are certainly not grief counseling, though many attendees leave feeling lighter, says Lee.

ENCORE GOOD WORKS

Death Cafes — or cafés mortels in French — were created by Swiss witnessed a couple of impactful animal deaths and recently lost a sociologist Bernard Crettaz following a Swiss tradition of science and friend to cancer as well. When Field was a teenager, her infant niece philosophy cafés, where people gather at a local bar or cafe to eat, died suddenly. Later in life, Field experienced the peaceful death of her drink and talk about science or philosophy and expand their minds. father from cancer.

“Death, I think it carved me out pretty deep at a young age,” Field After reading about Crettaz’s Death Cafes, Jon Underwood, a British says, “which, you know, it’s so funny and cliché web designer, created a website and held Death Cafe Kalamazoo about the things in life that are the most London’s first Death Cafe in 2011. The website When: 6–8 p.m. the fourth Wednesday traumatic or the most difficult, how they are (deathcafe.com) includes history, a map of of the month the most formative.” past and upcoming Death Cafes around the Where: T

he Annex of Kazoo Books, Besides co-facilitating Death Cafe world, guidelines and reading material.

2413 Parkview Ave. Kalamazoo, Field studies death psychology at Underwood, who died in 2017, wanted a university in Santa Barbara, California, and is the cafes to facilitate open conversation, For more info on the local discussion group: C

all (269) 553-6506 or visit currently in the process of forming a nonprofit encouraging people to live with intention facebook.com/deathincompany. called Death in Company, which will serve as because our time here is finite. a database for end-of-life, burial and funeral “If you can live knowing that you’re going to For more info on the Death Cafe services. In her study of death psychology, Field die and be okay with it, you will live in a more movement: Visit deathcafe.com. has found that people’s unconscious fear of actualized way,” says co-facilitator Sarah Field.

Death Cafe Kalamazoo began meeting in early 2018, organized by death fuels other fears and anxieties.

“Death is like a huge, huge part of what motivates us or shuts us Field, Lee and Janice Marsh-Prelesnik. Each of the facilitators has had her own encounters with death that set her on a course to dig a down unconsciously,” she says, “especially in this culture, because little deeper into the lively world of death. Marsh-Prelesnik grew up nobody wants to deal with it. We’ve lost all connection with the on a farm, she says, which surrounded her with death early on. Lee natural ways that we acknowledge death.”

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GOOD WORKS ENCORE While Field was living in Santa Barbara, a friend took her to her first Death Cafe, and after she moved back to Kalamazoo, Field attended a Death Cafe in Ann Arbor with Lee, with whom she has been friends for years.

“It’s some of the most candid conversations I’ve had,” Lee says. “There just aren’t too many times in life I feel a comfort level talking with a group like that. We try to say that it’s not therapy, but we all come away from it feeling like it is, just because we feel a sense of relief about some of the ideas and questions that we’ve had. It’s very spiritually satisfying.”

Field says the Death Cafes remind us of who we are as humans. “The human body is not disgusting,” she says. “Death is not — I mean, it is morbid, but being interested in death is not dark or dirty. It’s trying to renaturalize it so we can remember what we really are. We’re just like animals.”

Lee, who is a part-time yoga instructor and certified in green burial and home funeral practices, says our culture currently relegates end-of-life care to the funeral and hospice industries, but she sees potential for

families to return to having home funerals, which were the norm in the United States until around the time of the Civil War and continued in some families until the middle of the 20th century. Home funerals would give families more say in the process of burying a loved one, Lee says.

“There’s so much room for improvement on how we do end of life in this culture,” she says.

Above: Many Death Cafe attendees bring to the monthly meetings notepads and books to share with others. Right: Co-facilitator Janice Marsh-Prelesnik is an end-of-life doula and conducts expressive arts therapy for those in hospice and nursing homes.

“I think there’s a lot of other aspects that could be brought into supporting families,” Marsh-Prelesnik says.

Marsh-Prelesnik, who was Lee’s midwife for the birth of her two daughters, was also intrigued when she heard about Death Cafes

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ENCORE GOOD WORKS those in hospice and nursing homes, which she still conducts. “(Death is) a huge time of growth for the family and the people and the caretakers and you learn a lot,” says Marsh-Prelesnik. “I feel like if you don’t understand birth and death that you don’t really understand life. You’re missing a huge part of it.”

Melissa Zeithammel

from Lee. Marsh-Prelesnik saw the gatherings as an opportunity to educate people on their options for end-of-life care. Having spent 36 years practicing midwifery, she switched gears 13 years ago to focus on the end of life. She started volunteering with hospice care through Ascension Borgess Hospital and eventually started expressive arts therapy for

About four years ago, she branched out into providing end-of-life-doula services.

An end-of-life doula helps support a dying person in that person’s last few months of life as well as their family. You do not need to be certified to be a practicing end-of-life doula, but Marsh-Prelesnik says that in her expressive arts therapy and her end-of-life doula work, she applies the same concepts she learned throughout her 30 years as a midwife.

“It’s really about the skill of just sitting quietly,” she says, “being with a person and letting their process unfold, offering support as needed.

“I think a lot of the depression that people are having — people have always been depressed, but what I’ve noticed is that people don’t even want to think about that deep emotional stuff. If they understood more about the struggle of getting born, the struggle of dying, maybe they wouldn’t be so afraid of the struggle in the middle. Life is struggle sometimes. It just is. And so what?”

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ENTERPRISE ENCORE

‘Here We Go Again’

Kazoo Books’ Gloria Tiller has weathered ‘a million changes’ stories by

by

BEN LANDO

KARA NORMAN

W

hen Gloria Tiller, the owner of Kazoo Books, was growing up in Sparta, Michigan, her family owned an apple orchard. As a child, she punched a timecard and, at 16, was put in charge of payroll.

Maybe that’s why, at 21, while doing payroll at a different company, where the boss told her to get him a cup of coffee and sit on his lap, she quit and became self-employed. And she hasn’t looked back.

It wasn’t exactly an auspicious start to employment, but Tiller was undaunted.

She sold real estate for 18 years and in 1988 opened her first bookstore, the Book Exchange at 407 N. Clarendon St. in Kalamazoo. Starting out with a selection of gently used romance titles, the store grew into a fully stocked, new and used bookstore called Kazoo Books. In 2004, Tiller opened a second location at 2413 Parkview Ave.— while most independent bookstores were closing shop for good.

In her 30-plus years as a bookseller, Tiller says, she’s always had to think outside the box. “That’s kind of a cliché now,” she says, “But I had to be open for improvement. I’ve had a million changes in my life.”

Weathering a sudden loss One of the most recent upheavals in her life was the sudden heart attack and death in 2016 of her husband of 17 years, Jim Tiller, who was not only her business partner, but also the store’s resident computer guru.

“I didn’t even know how to update a (computer) file,” Tiller says. “I had no idea how to process mail order (the business of selling books online).”

Months before losing her husband, Tiller had decided to close the Clarendon Street Gloria Tiller, right, is the owner of Kazoo Books, which, in 2016, consolidated its two locations into the store located on Parkview Avenue, pictured at far right.

20 | ENCORE AUGUST 2019

Brian Powers

ENCORE ENTERPRISE

location, even though business was booming.

“We were going crazy driving between the two locations. Every time we ordered a new book, we had to order two. It was an organizational nightmare.”

With just one location, she was better able to serve customers. Previously, her employees made about 30 phone calls a day between stores, tracking down books. Tiller was also able to double the number of staff at the Parkview Avenue location by closing the other store and keeping every employee and all their hours.

Talking about her husband’s death, Tiller references Sheryl Sandberg’s book, Option B, which is about being on a certain course when your end goal completely disappears. “You’re going down this road, from Point A to Point B,” she says, then pauses. “Well, when your husband dies, Point B doesn’t exist anymore.”

Unfortunately, Tiller already knew that from experience. She was previously married to Bud Walters, who ran Doug and Bud Auto Sales, and lost him to lung cancer.

“If you ask me, the hardest thing is to lose someone suddenly, when their coffee cup is in the kitchen sink and their clothes are in the closet, and they’re not coming home,” she says.

Tiller has now been through so many lifealtering changes, she says, it’s almost normal for her.

“There’s stress, but I have a very deep faith.

I think to myself, ‘Here we go again.’”

Currently, Kazoo Books involves multiple business lines: internet sales, a distribution business, the brick-and-mortar store on Parkview Avenue, and special orders like the one for a local school library currently being stocked with 800 books. Kazoo Books also acts as a distributor for local authors who self-publish their own books.

Tiller has four employees and in-house information technology and website support, which she wrangled after a long, expensive w w w.encorekalamazoo.com | 21

ENTERPRISE ENCORE process in which she hired and fired four professionals. She finally just taught herself the IT side of the business and tells her people what to do now.

“There’s so much change in this business,” Tiller says. “If you’re somebody that needs to concentrate on one thing, forget that. You’ve got at least two or three things going on at once.”

Doing it all

Clockwise from top left: Gamers participate in a tournament at Glitch Gaming in Portage; competitors play at the WMU Esports Arena; gaming stations at the arena await players; video games of all types are played at LFG Gaming Bar in Kalamazoo.

Brian Powers

Tiller also hosts a public access television show called The Local Scene, making her a store owner, a television host, a saleswoman, and an event coordinator — not to mention a Corvette enthusiast, begging the question: Is there anything this woman doesn’t do?

If you’re wondering if she can fly planes, the answer is: Yes, she does that, too.

Tiller has a degree in creative writing from Western Michigan University, as well as minors in psychology and sociology, but, while at WMU, she also studied aviation.

She’s owned and renovated 25 houses in her life. In 2010, she was awarded the Kalamazoo Network’s Glass Ceiling Award for being a grass-roots motivator and community volunteer, as well as an outstanding businesswoman.

And while courage and self-confidence seem second nature to Tiller, she credits her success to three classes she took in her youth: a typing class, a business class where she gave

Above, Tiller and staff member Alyssa Lopez look over some of the more than 47,000 new and used books in Kazoo Books’ inventory. Top right: Gloria’s late husband, Jim, with her outside her first store on Clarendon Street, was her business partner and fellow Corvette enthusiast.

Sun’s out, (hotdog) buns out! gets it.

22 | ENCORE AUGUST 2019

Courtesy

ENCORE ENTERPRISE

a sales presentation (selling apples), and an English class at WMU where she presented on Emily Dickinson and learned how to speak in front of people.

She speaks in public frequently now — at book clubs, store events, and even national conferences for the American Booksellers Association. Her message evolves, she says, even as she stands up to talk. She has trained herself to read rooms full of people, something she learned on her first day as a bookseller.

Before the Book Exchange opened during Labor Day weekend in 1988, she had spent the summer stocking her shelves with 5,000

romance titles, because she assumed women were the main book buyers and that they would want mostly romance novels. But the first customer who entered was a man who requested a mystery title.

She didn’t have anything to offer him.

“It was the first change I made to the business,” she says. Instead of assuming she knows what will sell, she now responds to what her customers want every day. She likes helping customers, like the ones who call while driving down the road holding their phones up so she can hear NPR and saying, “Gloria, can you order this for me?”

“We got it,” she tells them, and she has the book available within a day or two.

Maybe that kind of service is why Tiller says her sales haven’t been affected by online giants like Amazon. And, with more than 47,000 books in her inventory, she owns more books than some chain stores. Referencing a bookstore opening in Rochester Hills that will reportedly carry 32,000 books, she says, “I can safely say I have more books than Barnes & Noble,” and laughs.

The 47,000-plus figure doesn’t even include books ordered directly for customers, since they never enter her inventory, or the 3,000 books she recently acquired at an estate sale that still need to go into the system.

“I’ve never had it so good,” Tiller says. “But I am excessively busy.

You have to learn how to say no to some things, and I haven’t quite accomplished that yet.”

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Brian Powers 24 | ENCORE AUGUST 2019

SEVEN GENERATIONS J

eremy Berg is musing about American history. He’s musing about architecture and sustainable materials, and design that reflects the people who use his buildings. He’s a licensed architect who traffics in numbers, but right now he’s wondering how to best listen to his clients — some of whom are Native American — and how to translate their stories into buildings that serve not only people, but also the land around them.

“How do you create a space that aligns with a tribal culture,” Berg asks, “and not just stamp the tribe’s color on a wall?”

“It’s hard to do,” he admits.

Tribal work and more Berg is the president of Seven Generations, a Kalamazoo architecture and engineering firm that is owned by Mno-Bmadsen, the nongaming investment arm of the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi. MnoBmadsen was formed in 2012 to diversify the band’s business interests and provide wealth for future generations. Seven Generations, established the same year, supports the band’s own needs for design and construction services but operates independently from MnoBmadsen and serves a host of other clients.

The only Potawatomi band allowed to remain in its homeland after the U.S. government’s Indian removals in the 1830s, the Pokagon Band is descended from a small group of people, led by Leopold Pokagon, who arranged the purchase of land near present-day Dowagiac using money from previous treaty negotiations. Even though the band has been a government-recognized tribe only since 1994 (the Indian Reorganization Act of 1834 recognized one tribe in Michigan’s Lower Peninsula, the Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe), it may be fair to say that shrewd business planning is part of the Pokagon Band’s DNA. The only tribally owned architecture firm in Kalamazoo, Seven Generations has a mission of delivering sustainable architectural, engineering and construction services that are inspired by indigenous values, which include environmental stewardship. Among the firm’s projects is a cutting-edge native justice center for the Pokagon Band, currently being constructed with a design that features a circular Left: The “hive” area of Seven Generations' office proudly displays the company’s ownership by the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi, which influences the architecture and engineering firm’s philosophy.

Design firm sees projects as ‘opportunity to heal the land’ by

KARA NORMAN

court and an informal peacemaking round room. In 2014, the firm built a health and wellness center for the tribe, and a new expansion of the building is underway.

Steve VandenBussche, the firm’s vice president of practice, says most of Seven Generations’ work with tribes involves building new health clinics or adding to existing ones.

At the same time, Seven Generations also has a national footprint, with current projects in Minnesota, the Dakotas, Nebraska, New Mexico, Texas, and Washington, D.C. With a general focus on health care, Seven Generations often works with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. The company recently designed a renovation and addition for the VA hospital in Ann Arbor.

And while Seven Generations frequently works on non-Native buildings, its work on structures like a pow wow arbor completed in 2018 for the Rosebud Sioux Tribe in South Dakota demonstrates what everyone at the firm agrees on: Tribal projects are where its creativity shines.

“There are 530-and-some-odd federally recognized tribes in the country,” says Berg, noting that every one of them has a different culture and history. Knowing this, Seven Generations studies the tribes they work with to design meaningful buildings that embody the history and needs of the people who will be using them.

“Almost every building that we work on for a tribe has been a long journey,” Berg says. When Seven Generations built a language and culture center for the Pokagon Band in Dowagiac in 2016, it was a project for which the band had been building political support for 12 years.

“Every new building is a symbol of the struggle that a tribe has faced and how they are moving past it,” Berg says. “It’s meaningful work, and people gravitate towards that.”

‘A cool little place’ Berg joined the company in 2014, moving his wife and their five kids, who range in age from 13 to 23, from the eastern shore of Maryland to Kalamazoo. Berg had been commuting daily to Washington, D.C., 55 miles away, into gridlock.

When the recruiter for Seven Generations first reached out to Berg, the company was located in Benton Harbor. Berg declined the inquiry but five months later got a call from the same recruiter saying the

w w w.encorekalamazoo.com | 25

Brian Powers

company was moving to Kalamazoo. That same day, he and his wife, Dee, had each heard a story on NPR about the Kalamazoo Promise.

Mno-Bmadsen flew them out to visit Kalamazoo, and Berg, a native of Rochester, N.Y., says he was instantly comfortable.

He’s proud to say that in the last couple of years, five more people have moved to Kalamazoo to work at Seven Generations.

“It’s a cool little place,” Berg says of the city. “Once word gets out, people get interested.”

Berg was hired to run the firm’s architecture department but in six short months took over the whole company. Under his leadership the company has grown from a four-person operation with a milliondollar yearly budget to a 25-person outfit averaging revenue of $12 million a year.

Fully sustainable, Seven Generations returns all of its profits to Mno-Bmadsen.

“If we have a good year, money goes back into the tribe. I don’t get a new pool,” Berg says, laughing.

The name Seven Generations alludes to a tribal belief that today’s generation is responsible for the health and well-being of future generations.

Berg is quick to point out how much he and his team work together.

He praises the firm’s tribal liaison, Scott Winchester, a Pokagon tribal citizen and licensed architect who helps Seven Generations employees respectfully phrase the cultural questions they want to ask Native American clients.

Stephanie Sokolowski, an interior designer for the company, says the word “department” doesn’t really apply to the firm. “We design buildings as a whole,” she says. “Architecture and interior design go together, so I work closely with everyone in the office.”

A sustainable space Sokolowski guided the design of the company’s new office space in Kalamazoo’s River’s Edge district, in the building known as The Foundry.

26 | ENCORE AUGUST 2019

This page, top: A wall above the open workspace of the Seven Generations office leaves no doubt about what the company does. Bottom: The Noonday Convenience Store at the Gun Lake Casino is one tribal project Seven Generations has done.

Opposite page: The interior of the Pokagon Band Health & Wellness Center in Dowagiac, which received an award from the American Institute of Architects (AIA) Southwest Michigan Chapter.

As the last tenant to move into The Foundry, Seven Generations took on a quadrant of the building that was just a big, open box and used an earthy palette of blues, greens and grays. Sokolowski and others allowed the space to morph over time, incorporating furniture from their old office in the WMU Business Technology and Research Park.

With an exposed, soaring ceiling, the office features something the team calls “the hive,” an airy wooden structure that arches over the front of the space. Both a work of art and a meeting space, the hive was constructed using a concept called the Superdesk, which Berg and VandenBussche found online. An architectural millwork company in Portage called Board Foot cut the structure’s pieces, and the team put it together with adhesive and tongue-and-groove construction — in other words, without mechanical fasteners.

Though the office space is open, it is sleek and calm, with clusters of modern cubicles and a row of translucent rooms off to one side. It

has small “focus rooms” for employees to take calls or escape noise; multiple conference rooms; and a large workroom with tack boards, a whiteboard wall, and a plotter that prints large-scale drawings.

“Our last office was small, and we were packed in like sardines,” Sokolowski says. “It’s much quieter now. We’re spread out and can essentially work where we want.” There’s even a long, white patio where employees can work outdoors.

The back of the office holds a collaborative area with a 3D printer.

A small-scale model of a city block covers half of a long table.

There’s no drywall on the exterior walls because there were insulated panels already. There are daylight-sensor lights in the main room that automatically measure the amount of light and adjust accordingly.

And while many people think about sustainability in terms of reusable energy, Berg likes to think about it in terms of durability.

“So much of what gets built right now doesn’t last,” he says. On his own street in the Hillcrest neighborhood of Kalamazoo, where houses were built in the 1920s, 100-year-old structures are still standing, much the same as when they were built. By contrast, new houses have about a 20-year lifespan on them, according to Berg. If they last longer, they need major work.

He tries to build things that will stand the test of time, by pushing clients away from cheap, throwaway materials, into more sustainable — and durable — ones. Sometimes, there’s a cost associated with sustainable choices, but many times durability ends up saving money, he says.

There’s also a health component to sustainable materials. “People don’t realize that all of the things around us can be harmful,” Sokolowski says. “We want to create buildings that are healthier, not only for the environment but for the people working there too.”

Taking care of the land There’s a design library with shelves crafted from industrial piping, and high tables where mid-project selections perch. In the old office, Sokolowski says, she laid things out on the floor.

Above her, carved into the ceiling, is the feather used in the company’s logo, a quiet but significant choice in a space packed with meaningful choices. The shelves were moved from the old office, as were sliding doors that hang outside the workroom.

“We really tried to use as much as we possibly could,” says Sokolowski.

Emphasizing durability Sustainability is a core value of Seven Generations, and reusing furniture is one of many ways the company maintains its ethos.

A Parchment native who has lived in Kalamazoo for the past 18 years, VandenBussche thinks other regions, like the Pacific Northwest, have done a better job of adapting their cities into nature than the more vehicle-driven culture he grew up in.

“I’m always looking at what the other cutting-edge folks are doing,” he says. “Working with tribes allows us to explore at another level. I get to ask, ‘How do we take care of the land?’ because a lot of the tribes want to build structures that keep that connection to the land.”

Berg puts it this way: “The tribes have this notion that the Earth is precious to them, and we need to protect it. Every tribal project is an opportunity to heal the land. That’s how we talk about it.”

When working on a new building, the team asks what plants are native to the land where they’re building. When they’re restoring,

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they ask: How can we put this building back to what it used to be, before things changed?

Engaging clients Consensus building is a big part of the firm’s process, and it’s something that VandenBussche learned by watching architects he admired. He once had a boss who could draw upside-down while talking to a client, so the client could follow new ideas as they talked.

VandenBussche doesn’t draw upside-down, but he does use a 3D drawing application called SketchUp that empowers clients to contribute ideas. “They see how easy it is to move a door over here, change this or rotate that, and you end up, at the end of the meeting, with the solution.”

In the past, VandenBussche says, architects made a presentation at a meeting and listened, and then they would pack everything up in their shiny metal boxes and say, “We’ll be back in two more weeks.”

“That’s not really how we work,” he says. “We want to engage folks and get them to give us that information right there at that meeting, and then we react to it right there too.”

Top: Seven Generations collaborated on the Pow Wow Arbor and Announcers Platform built for the Rosebud Sioux Tribe in South Dakota. Bottom: A rendering of the Pokagon Tribal Courts/Peacemaking facility under construction in Dowagiac, which has a circular footprint and includes a “healing fire” room.

Working together Berg jokes that his mother put the idea of being an architect into his head because he can’t remember ever wanting to be anything

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else. VandenBussche was also drawn to architecture but, as a highly visual person, struggled with some academic subjects, excelling instead at shop class, art and music.

He was a natural at math, however, and worked in an architectural office when he was 18. Instead of starting in the proverbial mailroom, VandenBussche trimmed the bushes and mowed the lawn. After he finished the yardwork, the architects let him come in and arrange books. Finally, they told him, “If you can carve out a space, there’s a drafting board in the basement,” and gave him drafting exercises.

He did this for summer jobs during college — first at the University of Kentucky, then at the University of Michigan, where he transferred as a junior and later went to graduate school, studying architecture with Berg. In 2001, VandenBussche moved to Kalamazoo with his now ex-wife and their two daughters, but Berg had no idea his old

classmate was in the area when he took the job at Seven Generations. He only discovered that fact when, needing help for the growing company four years ago, he did a search on LinkedIn and was shocked to discover VandenBussche living in Kalamazoo. Their kids knew each other at school.

What was VandenBussche doing when Berg reached out?

VandenBussche pauses, then laughs.

“Looking for a job,” he says. At the time, he was employed at a small firm where he had worked for almost nine years, but he wasn’t happy there.

Of the work they do together, Berg says, “Steve is an amazing designer, and I’m more of a number cruncher. We make a good pair.”

VandenBussche agrees. “This is happiness for me, and this is what I wanted out of an architectural career, exactly what I’m doing right now.”

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ENTERPRISE ENCORE

On a new track

Raceway safety crew expands role to train others by

GREYSON STEELE

photos by

BRIAN K. POWERS

Funny where a photo can lead you.

decided to expand the role of KTS by offering track safety training to crews of other tracks.

In the spring of 2016, they held their first training session, a four-hour program that drew a dozen participants from two tracks in the state of Michigan — Kalamazoo and Spartan speedways.

A few months later, in July 2016, Steele, 29, came across a photo on social media of a racing accident at Bakersfield Speedway in California that showed a race car burned completely to the ground, with only its steel frame and drivetrain left on the dirt racing surface. Steele learned the Bakersfield track had only one fire extinguisher and no designated track safety crew. The driver was lucky to escape with his life.

In the comments section of the photo post, Steele struck up a dialogue with motorsports

personality Mitch Walker. Steele wrote that he wanted to improve his own crew’s skills and the training KTS was providing, and Walker suggested he contact Paul Lapaire, the architect of a unique safety training prop: a rollover simulator. Steele reached out to Lapaire, who lives in New Mexico, to ask how to build a similar prop for his crew, but after a two-hour phone conversation Lapaire’s simulator was his.

“He basically said he had had the simulator for over 12 years and was getting ready for retirement so we could come pick it up. … He wanted to donate it to us. We just had to pick it up from New Mexico,” Steele says.

By the next March, the three men had the rollover simulator from Lapaire and a cutaway simulator for extraction training they built themselves to use in teaching track safety.

Brian Powers

Just ask Jake Steele, the chief director of track services at Kalamazoo Speedway, whose 10-man crew is responsible for clearing the racetrack and facilitating the care of injured drivers after a crash.

Kalamazoo Track Services has been in operation for nearly 30 years, ensuring the safety of the drivers who compete and the fans who attend races at the speedway. The crew is employed by Kalamazoo Speedway owner Gary Howe and is entrusted with maintaining a clean, safe racing surface for every event at the track.

Steele (full disclosure: he’s the halfbrother of this story’s author) and fellow crew members Terry Kizer, who is also Alamo Township Fire Chief, and Sam Corradini, track services coordinator at the Speedway,

30 | ENCORE AUGUST 2019

ENCORE ENTERPRISE

Opposite page: Sam Corradini, second from left, and Joe Shafer, right, coach participants through rollover simulation. This page, top: KTS crew members, from left, Jeff Welcher, Terry Kizer, Corradini, Shafer and Jake Steele. Bottom: Mike Myers, representing FireAde, demonstrates the various types of fuel burns and proper extinguishing techniques to training participants.

“That’s where we (KTS) really took off.

We really went from (training) our crew to (training) 50 people in a two-, three-year span,” Steele says.

In April, KTS hosted its fourth annual spring training: a two-day, 16-hour program that drew nearly 50 people, including track owners, track safety crew members and racing promoters from Michigan, Indiana, Pennsylvania and New York to the Kalamazoo Speedway. The training featured four w w w.encorekalamazoo.com | 31

ENTERPRISE ENCORE

Clockwise from above: Professional stuntman Calvin Sherk, aka "Scarecrow," walks away from the flames after performing a stunt during spring training; Terry Kizer, with his back to camera, discusses proper wrecker operation in the event of a rollover at the track; the simulation of a mass casualty scenario of a car crashing into the grandstands and injuring numerous spectators.

interactive stations: mass casualty incidents/ triage, fuel burn, rollover extrication and wrecker rollover. Classroom topics ranged from EMS response to track safety regulations.

Steele says the goal of the training KTS provides is to make all track safety teams better, including those in Kalamazoo.

“We’re not … the only way to do it. We’re just a way that works for us,” Steele says.

“There’s a lot of good ideas, and I think every training weekend we’ve taken ideas from other crews and implemented them into our own.”

Overall, the KTS crew is in awe of how successful the training program has been.

“I don’t think we ever thought we’d be trailblazers in anything,” Steele says. “We’re amazed every day at how this program has developed and how this crew has developed.

32 | ENCORE AUGUST 2019

I don’t think there was ever an expectation of getting big — we honestly thought we would just do an open training at our speedway once a year and that would be our training program. I’m amazed that we’re still doing it and people are still listening to us.”

No off-season Kalamazoo’s track safety crew covers all Kalamazoo Speedway events, from April to September, ensuring the safety of roughly 110 drivers and 6,500 fans. Six crew members work the track at any given race, and races are typically held once a week, on Friday nights.

When the racing season ends in late September, the majority of the crew begins enjoying their off-season, but not Steele, Kizer

and Corradini — they get right to work on improving track safety for the next spring.

“We’re good at what we do because what we do doesn’t stop in September and start in April,” Kizer says. “What we do started in April when we all met each other years ago, and it’s just continued.”

In 2016, these core KTS members began making an annual December trip to Indianapolis for the Performance Racing Industry Trade Show. The multi-day event showcases the latest advancements in racing products and race engineering. In 2017, KTS was asked to bring its rollover simulator and cutaway simulator to the show as teaching tools. It was there that the core KTS members met with members of the SFI Foundation, a nonprofit that tests and certifies racing equipment such as fire suits and safety belts.

Working with SFI representatives, KTS helped to develop the very first circle-track safety course, outlining what tracks need

w w w.encorekalamazoo.com | 33

ENTERPRISE ENCORE in terms of certified equipment, emergency plans and medical accommodations. Previously, SFI had a safety course and standards in place only for drag racing at tracks like Martin’s US 131 Motorsports Park. Steele, Kizer and Corradini taught the first SFI-certified circletrack course at their annual spring training in 2018, which Steele says was a significant step forward for the racing community in terms of unifying under one set of safety guidelines.

Always learning As KTS’ spring training program has grown, a greater emphasis has been placed on developing and discussing scenarios that are “outside the box,” according to Steele. During last year’s training, the crew led trainees in an open discussion on how to address and respond to an active shooter. This year they discussed an action plan for a mass casualty event such as a race car crashing into the crowd in the grandstands.

“Anything could happen,” Kizer says. “The day we as track safety personnel or we as human beings say that we’ve seen it all and quit trying to learn something new and quit trying to expand our horizons on what could happen … that’s when we’re going to get surprised … .

We will look back and wish we took that next step, and we didn’t, you know. That’s why we do it.”

To that end, the core KTS members are building a new training prop to simulate engine fires, while continuing to teach the SFI circle-track course and redefine weekly roles at the speedway with fellow track safety crew members.

“It’s not in our blood to not try to expand,” Corradini says. “I mean you can’t just sit idle. You can always be learning something.”

Trainers talk with participants about what to do in the event that a car gets tangled up in the catch fence.

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ARTS ENCORE

Intent on Improvising

Singer Sara Emerson reaches beyond classical boundaries KARA NORMAN

Courtesy

by

S

ara Emerson is a classical singer living in Kalamazoo who grew up idolizing Dolly Parton and singing in front of anyone who would listen.

She went to Interlochen Arts Academy for high school, earned a bachelor’s degree in voice performance from the University of Michigan, and holds a master’s degree in music from Bowling Green State University, in Ohio. She made her international recital debut in Paris, regularly performs solo recitals throughout the Midwest, placed first in the Opera Idol Competition in 2015, and has sung at Carnegie Hall.

36 | ENCORE AUGUST 2019

So why does 36-year-old Emerson relate to the nervousness of one of her young students, a private voice client whom she’s currently teaching to improvise?

“Part of being a classically trained singer and going to conservatory is to be perfect at what you do,” Emerson says.

But who wants to be perfect all the time? Not Emerson, a lyric soprano with a head full of curls and a big laugh she lets loose with regularity. A baby grand piano takes up most of her dining room

ENCORE ARTS

in Kalamazoo’s Hillcrest neighborhood, and her 1-year-old son, Jameson, attends the lessons she teaches in her home. He imitates her high notes, leads students in stretches, does vocal warm-ups, and claps at the end of each song.

Emerson says that, as opposed to other musical genres like jazz and rock, where mistakes can be incorporated into a performance and improvising is accepted, classical music requires singers to sing exactly what’s on the page. The demand for that kind of perfection

Proving herself In high school in Traverse City, where she grew up as the oldest of four kids, Emerson had a choir director who refused her admittance to the school’s top choir, a group she revered. Labeling her an “opera singer,” he told Emerson her voice wasn’t the kind he was looking for.

Brian Powers

Opposite page: Classical singer Sara Emerson. Below: Emerson with vocal student Hana Gonzales during a lesson in Emerson’s home studio.

can feel constricting sometimes. Other musicians, she says, can “be freer and just go for it.”

She’s trying to instill that kind of intrepid spirit now in her student, who finds improvising scary, but as Emerson discusses different approaches to musical genres, she may also be healing an old wound.

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ARTS ENCORE

“He didn’t say it in a nice way,” Emerson notes.

Stung, she applied to the prestigious Interlochen Arts Academy and was admitted, earning enough scholarship money to match the amount her parents said they could pay, with $50 left over.

Getting almost exactly the amount of scholarship money she needed was “goose-bumpy,” Emerson says, and going to the school changed her life, paving the way for her career as a successful performer.

Still, she thinks about that teacher sometimes. “The stupid things people say stick,” she says, a sentiment that seems to fuel her own desire to be a good teacher now.

Emerson, who settled in Kalamazoo with her husband, Mike McGarvey, a social worker, runs a busy private voice studio in Kalamazoo where she teaches a wide range of students, from schoolchildren to budding musicians to retired adults. She tailors each lesson to the student’s needs, sticking with technical approaches or drifting to imagistic language, depending on what resonates.

She credits her ability to relax and trust herself to her development as a piano player at Trinity Lutheran Church, where she directs the children’s choir. She thinks of herself as a singer, not a pianist, but

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THE FEEL GOOD TOM KNIFIC QUARTET

KANOLA BAND

Courtesy

Coming into her own

when the pastor there asked her to play piano for Wednesday services in 2013, she decided to take what she knew and just dive in.

“Piano made me come into my own as an artist,” she says. Instead of being “just” a classical musician, learning to improvise on the piano expanded Emerson’s comfort zone.

Now she passes on those skills —how to try new things, how to get comfortable with mistakes — to her students.

Emerson also excels at bringing the music she loves to the whole community. She put on a children’s program called “Lullabies Around the World” last summer at the Kalamazoo Public Library, singing songs from her recently released first album, Lullabies. She donned a hot-pink gown and dangly diamond earrings for her winter “Opera Babies” recital at the Kalamazoo Public Library’s Oshtemo branch, where kids and their families stared agog at the power coming out of one person’s mouth.

“When I was a kid, my parents couldn’t shut me up,” Emerson jokes, noting that, in fact, her parents have always been deeply supportive of her career as the only

Courtesy

ENCORE ARTS

See and hear Sara Emerson

When: 7 p.m. Aug. 22 Where: Trinity Lutheran Church, 504 S. Westnedge Ave. More info: Find out more about Emerson at saralemerson.com. professional musician in her family. Her father loved opera music, and her family had an eclectic group of records when she was growing up.

She sang onstage for the first time as a 3-year-old, volunteering to sing “This Land

Courtesy

What: An Evening of Art Songs and Arias, a recital with pianist Gunta Laukmane

From left: Emerson performs her “Opera Babies” recital for children at the Kalamazoo Public Library’s Oshtemo branch; Emerson performing at Carnegie Hall; and with son Jameson.

Is Your Land” — both verses — at a church picnic in downtown Detroit.

She went into classical music because she thought it would make her unique, she admits with a laugh, but found there are many more singers than opportunities,

especially in the U.S., where audiences for opera productions are shrinking as their audiences become older.

Auditioning in that environment is a lot of pressure, but she doesn’t let it stop her. “You go in and you sing your best,” she says.

As a result, Emerson has landed roles in operas at the Metropolitan International Music Festival in New York City, the Connecticut Lyric Opera and the Asheville (North Carolina) Lyric Opera. She has also given concerts in Austria and at Carnegie Hall.

Heady stuff, for sure, but she admits she was somewhat unfazed by singing at Carnegie Hall in 2010. She realized it was “just a place.”

“It was wonderful, but it wasn’t my end-all, be-all,” she says.

It’s all about the music Not many of us get the chance to find out that Carnegie Hall doesn’t bowl us over, but Emerson — who loves solo recitals — says each performance she gives is her happiest.

She may have heady credentials as a performer but singing itself brings her the most freedom. “Some people — at opera programs specifically — are die-hard about the dramatics and costuming of a role,” she says. Then she waves her hand. “Just give me the music. That’s really what I like.”

w w w.encorekalamazoo.com | 39

The Feel Good — Summertime Live Series presents this Chicago-based tribute band, 4 p.m. Aug. 11, Bronson Park, 342-5059.

PERFORMING ARTS THEATER Plays

Steel Magnolias — A story of female friendship and bonds during life's hardest times, 8 p.m. Tuesday– Saturday, 5 p.m. Sunday, through Aug. 11, Barn Theatre, 13351 West M-96, Augusta, 731-4121.

Musicals

Avenue Q — Tony Award-winning story about a college graduate's struggle with his career, love life and ever-elusive purpose, 7:30 p.m. Thursday, 8 p.m.

Friday & Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday, through Aug. 11, Farmers Alley Theatre, 221 Farmers Alley, 343-2727.

A Year with Frog and Toad — A family musical about two friends whose friendship endures through the seasons, 11 a.m. Aug. 1 & 2; 10 a.m., 1 p.m. & 3 p.m.

Aug. 3; Farmers Alley Theatre, 343-2727.

Thunderwüde — Kindleberger Summer Concert Series presents this bluegrass trio, 6:30 p.m. Aug. 11, The Stage at Kindleberger Park, 342-5059.

Todd Snider — Americana folk singer/songwriter, 8 p.m. Aug. 11, Bell's Eccentric Café, 382-2332.

Stephen Marley — Reggae artist, 8:30 p.m. Aug. 13, Bell's Eccentric Café, 382-2332.

Schlitz Creek — Beats on Bates presents this bluegrass band, 5–8 p.m. Aug. 14, Bates Alley, 342-5059.

Over the Rhine — Folk, indie, alternative-country duo, 8 p.m. Aug. 15, Bell's Eccentric Café, 382-2332.

Here Come the Mummies — Funk-rock band, 8 p.m.

Aug. 16, Bell's Beer Garden, 382-2332.

Domestic Problems — Grand Rapids-based rock/pop band, 9 p.m. Aug. 17, Bell's Eccentric Café, 382-2332.

Kanola Band — Authentic New Orleans music from traditional Dixieland to zydeco, 6 p.m. Aug. 18, Flesher Field, 3664 S. Ninth St., Oshtemo Township, 342-5059.

Mamma Mia! — A tale of love, laughter and friendship, accompanied by ABBA's hit songs, 8 p.m.

Tuesday–Saturday, 5 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 13–25, Barn Theatre, 13351 West M-96, Augusta, 731-4121.

May Erlewine and the Motivations — Kindleberger Summer Concert Series presents this retro-groove band, 6:30 p.m. Aug. 18, The Stage at Kindleberger Park, 342-5059.

Evil Dead: The Musical — A bloody comedy combining elements of a cult classic film and its sequels, 8 p.m. Tuesday–Saturday, 5 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 27–Sept. 1, Barn Theatre, 731-4121.

Zion Lion — Beats on Bates presents this reggae band, 5–8 p.m. Aug. 21, Bates Alley, 342-5059.

Other

Campfire — New Vic Theatre presents songs, stories, poems and memories, opening Aug. 16, New Vic Theatre, 134 E. Vine St., 381-3328.

MUSIC Bands & Solo Artists Alan Turner and the Steel Horse Band — Summertime Live Series presents this country band, 7 p.m. Aug. 1, Overlander Bandshell, 7800 Shaver Road, Portage, 342-5059.

Red Wanting Blue — Rock ‘n’ roll band, 8:30 p.m.

Aug. 1, Bell's Eccentric Café, 355 E. Kalamazoo Ave., 382-2332.

Ben Daniels Band — Kindleberger Summer Concert Series presents this Americana, blues and jazz band, 6:30 p.m. Aug. 4, The Stage at Kindleberger Park, Parchment, 342-5059.

Yonder Mountain String Band — Bluegrass, jam and folk band, 7:30 p.m. Aug. 4, Bell's Eccentric Café, 382-2332.

Out of Favor Boys — Beats on Bates presents this blues band, 5–8 p.m. Aug. 7, Bates Alley, downtown Kalamazoo, 342-5059.

Little Stranger — Alternative, hip-hop duo, 8:30 p.m.

Aug. 7, Bell's Eccentric Café, 382-2332.

Grasshoppah — Bluegrass, jazz and rock trio, 8:30 p.m. Aug. 9, Bell's Eccentric Café, 382-2332.

The Corn Fed Girls and the Red Sea Pedestrians Present: Abbey Road — These folk/rock and pop groups perform the Beatles' album, 8:30 p.m. Aug. 10, Bell's Beer Garden, 355 E. Kalamazoo Ave., 382-2332.

40 | ENCORE AUGUST 2019

Echoes of Pink Floyd — Pink Floyd tribute band, 9 p.m. Aug. 23, Bell's Eccentric Café, 382-2332.

Clap Your Hands Say Yeah — East Coast indie rock band, 9 p.m. Aug. 24, Bell's Eccentric Café, 382-2332.

Bronk Bros. — Kindleberger Summer Concert Series presents this country duo, 6:30 p.m. Aug. 25, The Stage at Kindleberger Park, 342-5059.

Blushing, Blue Unit, The City Gates, Cult of Lip, Deserta, New Canyons, Overly Polite Tornadoes, Tambourina — Kalamashoegazer Festival presents these eight bands, 4:30 p.m. Aug. 31, Bell's Eccentric Café, 382-2332.

Orchestra, Chamber, Jazz, Vocal & More Tom Knific Quartet — Summertime Live Series presents this jazz ensemble, 4 p.m. Aug. 18, Bronson Park, 342-5059.

The Gilmore — Beats on Bates concert, 5–8 p.m. Aug. 28, Bates Alley, 342-5059.

VISUAL ARTS Kalamazoo Institute of Arts 314 S. Park St., 349-7775 Exhibits

Orna Ben-Ami: Entire Life in a Package — An exhibition blending welded iron works with photography that brings attention to the global refugee crisis, through Aug. 18.

L'esprit: Exploring Wit and Beauty in French Prints — An exhibition of the KIA's French prints and photographs that celebrate the joys and foibles of French society and culture, through Aug. 25.

West Michigan Area Show — A juried exhibition showcasing work in all media from artists in 14 Michigan counties, through Aug. 25.

Moments of Peace: Watercolors by Sunghyun Moon — Large-scale watercolor works painted in the style of mid-20th-century American Action painters, through Sept. 22.

Events Gallery Conversation — Members of the Kalamazoo refugee community share their stories, moderated

by Afifa Thaj, Samaritas’ sponsorship coordinator for refugee resettlement, 6:30 p.m. Aug. 1.

ARTbreak — Weekly program about art, artists and exhibitions: The B-Side: Elsa Dorfman's Portrait Photography, video, Part 1, Aug. 6; Part 2, Aug. 20; West Michigan Area Show Artists, talk, Aug. 13; sessions begin at noon, KIA Auditorium.

Film at the KIA — Filmmaker Andrew Francisco will screen and discuss his film Old Henry's Bones, about a legend of an ancestor who lived 134 years, and premiere his second installment of Fallow Land Bears Sweet Fruit, about China's first intentional community, 6:30 p.m.

Aug. 29.

Other Venues Empty Vessel Pottery — Earthenware by Susan McHenry, through Aug. 27, Richland Library, 8951 Park St., Richland, 629-9085.

Southwest Michigan Artists Association Exhibition — Rotating exhibitions focusing on local arts and history, 8 a.m.–5 p.m. Monday–Friday, through Aug. 30, Portage City Hall, 7900 S. Westnedge Ave., 329-4522.

The Honeycomb Scriptures — Etchings by Ladislav Handa, enhanced with bee-created honeycomb formations, through Oct. 6, Kalamazoo Valley Museum, 230 N. Rose St., 373-7990.

Art Hop — Art at various locations in Kalamazoo, 5–8 p.m. Aug. 2, 342-5059.

LIBRARY & LITERARY EVENTS Kalamazoo Public Library Drum and Dance with Rootead — Interactive drum and dance performance, 6:30 p.m. Aug. 5, Oshtemo Township Park, 7275 W. Main St., 553-7980.

Page Turners Book Club — Discussion of Where'd You Go, Bernadette? by Maria Semple, 6:30 p.m. Aug. 5, Oshtemo Branch, 7265 W. Main St., 553-7980.

Opera Hour: Storytelling Through Song — Learn about the stories behind famous operas and hear Carmen Bell sing classical opera, 2 p.m. Aug. 6, Van Deusen Room, Central Library, 315 S. Rose St., 553-7800.

Meet the Author: Elizabeth Berg — Best-selling author of more than 30 books, noon Aug. 8, Van Deusen Room, Central Library, 553-7800; registration required.

Movement for the Movement — Accessible somatic (body-based) practices to help rebalance the nervous system, 5:30 p.m. Aug. 13, Oshtemo Township Park, 553-7980; registration required.

Bookbinding with the Kalamazoo Book Arts Center — Learn how to bind a book, 6:30 p.m. Aug. 20, Oshtemo Branch, 553-7980; registration required.

Urban Fiction Book Club — Discussion of Take Me As I Am, by Bianca, 6 p.m. Aug. 26, Eastwood Branch, 1112 Gayle St., 553-7810.

Parchment Community Library 401 S. Riverview Drive, 343-7747 Parchment Book Group — Discussion of The Nightingale, by Kristin Hannah, 6:30 p.m. Aug. 5.

Mystery Book Club — Discussion of The Limpopo Academy of Private Detection, by Alexander McCall Smith, 6:30 p.m. Aug. 19.

Yum's the Word: Easy Garden Meals for High Summer — Michael Hoag and Kim Willis, of Lillie House Permaculture, show dishes featuring local seasonal fruits, vegetables and herbs, 6:30 p.m. Aug. 21; registration required.

Portage District Library 300 Library Lane, 329-4544 Friends of the Library Book Sale — 9 a.m.–3 p.m.

Aug. 3.

Tech Café: Go VR — Explore Virtual Reality, featuring One Oculus Go, 2–4 p.m. Aug. 14.

Classic Movie: On the Avenue — A wealthy socialite finds herself the subject of ridicule and works to sets things right, 2 p.m. Aug. 17.

Paint Along with Bob Ross Again — An episode of The Joy of Painting on painting little trees, 6–8 p.m.

Aug. 21; registration required.

Reading the Fine Print: Decoding Food Sustainability Marketing Claims — Mariel Borgman, of MSU Extension at the KVCC Food Innovation Center, discusses certification programs and food production label terms, 2–4 p.m. Aug. 24.

MUSEUMS Air Zoo 6151 Portage Road, Portage, 382-6555

Memories and Milestones: Forty Years of the Air Zoo — A celebration of four decades of flight, spacecraft, science and education, through December.

Gilmore Car Museum 6865 Hickory Road, Hickory Corners, 671-5089

Duesenberg: Celebrating an American Classic — This exhibition showcases up to 20 rare Duesenbergs in rotation, through September.

Red Barns Spectacular Car Show & Swap Meet — Antique, classic and other cars, 9 a.m.–5 p.m. Aug. 3.

Lincoln Homecoming Weekend: Lincoln, Mercury, Ford & Edsel — Classic car show, 9 a.m.–3 p.m. Aug. 10 & 11.

Relix Riot Traditional Hot Rods & Customs Show — Traditional hot rods, custom cars and motorcycles, 9 a.m.–6 p.m. Aug. 17.

All-Oldsmobile Show — 9 a.m.–4 p.m. Aug. 24.

Pierce-Arrow Gathering — Pierce-Arrow Society car club meet and display, 9 a.m.–4 p.m. Aug. 25.

Kalamazoo Valley Museum 230 N. Rose St., 373-7990

Amusement Park Science with Team Up! — Explore how favorite amusement park rides work and test your skills in sports while learning math and physics, through Sept. 8.

The Secrets of Bees — An interactive exhibit about the threatened bee population, through Sept. 30.

NATURE Kellogg Bird Sanctuary 12685 East C Ave., Augusta, 671-2510 Birds and Coffee Walk — A morning bird walk and discussion over coffee, 9–10:30 a.m. Aug. 14.

Hummingbird Banding Demonstration — Brenda and Rich Keith, from the Kalamazoo Valley Bird Observatory, demonstrate hummingbird banding, 6:30–8:30 p.m.

Aug. 20.

SUMMER IN PAW PAW

Other Venues Free Summer Sunday — Free admission to the Kalamazoo Nature Center, Aug. 4, Kalamazoo Nature Center, 7000 N. Westnedge Ave., 381-1574.

Full Moon Hike — Hike with a park ranger under the full moon, 9 p.m. Aug. 10, Eliason Nature Reserve, 1614 W. Osterhout Ave., 329-4522.

MISCELLANEOUS Sunday Brunch Food Trucks — Food trucks, artisans, booths, music and networking, 11 a.m.–2 p.m.

Sundays, through Aug. 25, Bronson Park, 388-2830.

JOIN US FOR

CONCERTS

BY THE LAKE

At Amphitheatre Park • Sundays • 6:30 p.m.

Past Times in Paw Paw: A History of Baseball in Our Hometown — Through the stories of hometown athletes, this exhibit tells how and why baseball became known as the national pastime 10 a.m.–4 p.m. through Sept. 8, Carnegie Community Center, 129 S. Kalamazoo St., Paw Paw, 657-5674.

Paw Paw’s series of free summer concerts offer great entertainment and Sunday sunsets on the south shore of Maple Lake.

There’s not a bad seat in the house on our tiered hillside, or bring a lawn chair or blanket - relax and enjoy a varied lineup of local and regional artists.

Kalamazoo Farmers Market — 8 a.m.–1 p.m.

Tuesdays, 2–6 p.m. Thursdays, 7 a.m.–2 p.m.

Saturdays, through October; night market 5–10 p.m.

Aug. 15, 1204 Bank St., 359-6727.

AUG. 4 - Lucas Holliday

Portage Farmers Market — 10 a.m.–2 p.m. Sundays, through Oct. 13, City Hall, 7900 S. Westnedge Ave., 329-4522.

Ribfest — Food, entertainment and music, 11 a.m.– 11:30 p.m. Aug. 1, 11 a.m. Aug. 2–12:30 a.m. Aug. 3, 11 a.m. Aug. 3–12:30 a.m. Aug. 4, Arcadia Creek Festival Place, 145 E. Water St., kalamazooribfest.com.

2019 USTA Boys' 18 & 16 National Tennis Championships — More than 500 juniors compete for the national tennis championship title; gates open 8 a.m. daily, Aug. 2–11, Stowe Stadium, Kalamazoo College, 337-7343, ustaboys.com.

Lunchtime Live! — Live music, food trucks and vendors, 11:30 a.m.–1:30 p.m. Aug. 2, 9, 16, 23 & 30, Bronson Park, 337-8191.

Vintage in the Zoo Hop-Up Block Party — Local vendors, artists, music and community art project, 4–8 p.m. Aug. 2, Bates Alley, 344-0795.

Movie in the Park — Enjoy a movie under the stars: Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, Aug. 2; How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World, Aug. 23; 9 p.m., Celery Flats Historical Area, 7328 Garden Lane, Portage, 329-4522.

(From ‘THE VOICE’)

AUG. 11 - Harper

(WORLD • BLUES & ROOTS)

AUG. 18 - Billy Mack and the Juke Joint Johnnies

(VINTAGE R&R, ROCKABILLY)

AUG. 25 - Chip & Dolly

(’80s, PAT BENETAR TRIBUTE) In case of questionable weather, call (269) 415-0060.

MORE TO UNCORK THIS SUMMER! Paw Paw Farmers Mkt. EVERY SUNDAY • 9 a.m.-2 p.m.

Corner of S. Gremps & Paw Paw streets

“Past Times in Paw Paw: A History of Baseball in our Hometown” Exhibit WEEKDAYS • 10 a.m.-4 p.m. • Carnegie Center COME BACK &

Wine & Harvest Festival

South West Michigan Dairy Goat Show — Judging of senior does, junior does and bucks, silent auction, raffle, vendors, concessions, goat yoga, 8 a.m. Aug. 3, Van Buren County Youth Fairgrounds, 55670 County Road 681, Hartford, 269-330-0481.

Kalamazoo County Fair — Farm animals, educational displays, 4-H exhibits, carnival rides, games and food, 9 a.m.–9 p.m., Aug. 6–10, Kalamazoo County Expo Center, 2900 Lake St., 383-8778, kalamazoocountyfair.com.

FRIDAY - SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 6-8 Downtown and around!

UNCORK

Paw Paw

F R I E N D LY S F A M I L I A R S N E A R B Y

Visit: www.uncorkpawpaw.com w w w.encorekalamazoo.com | 41

National Blueberry Festival — Various activities for all ages, Aug. 8–11, downtown South Haven, blueberryfestival.com.

Tour de Zoo — A bike ride through Binder Park Zoo, plus beer, games and music, 5–9 p.m. Aug. 8, 7400 Division Drive, Battle Creek, 269-979-1351.

Sunflower Festival at Gull Meadow Farms — Walk through five acres of a dozen different colors of sunflowers, take a wagon ride and cut one sunflower to take home, 9 a.m.–6 p.m. Aug. 9, 11 & 18; 9 a.m.– 8:30 p.m. Aug. 10, 16 & 17, Gull Meadow Farms, 8544 Gull Road, Richland, 629-4214.

Kzoo Parks Summer Cinema — Enjoy a movie under the stars: How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World, Aug. 9, Dutton Park, 219 W. Dutton St.; Teen Titans Go! To the Movies, Northside Association for Community Development, 612 N. Park St.; U-Pick the Flick, Crane Park, 2099 S. Park St.; activities at 6 p.m., movie at 7:30 p.m., 337-8191.

100 Men Who Cook — A fundraiser to benefit the Boys and Girls Club of Kalamazoo, 6 p.m. Aug. 10, Bernhard Center, WMU, kalamazoo.100menwhocook.com.

Kalamazoo Reptile & Exotic Pet Expo — Buy, sell or trade reptiles, small mammals and exotic pets, 10 a.m.– 3 p.m. Aug. 17, Kalamazoo County Expo Center North, 779-9851.

Hop Harvest Beer Tour — Tour a farm and visit a brewery, noon–6:30 p.m. Aug. 17, starting at Old Burdick's Bar & Grill, 101 W. Michigan Ave., 350-4598.

Arcfest — A celebration of beer and music, with Ryley Walker, Wild Pink, Dream Version and The Baby Magic, 3:30–9:30 p.m. Aug. 17, Arclight Brewing Co., 544 N. Main St., Watervliet, arcfest.net.

Check out our team!

“Slice Slice Baby”

Saturday,

Ramona Park Luau — Carnival games, inflatables, music, watermelon-eating contest and Island Dancers and Fire Show, 4–9 p.m. Aug. 17, Ramona Park, 3600 S. Sprinkle Road, 329-4522.

Zoo Moto Show: Vintage Bikes on Bates — Vintage and custom European, Japanese and American bikes, vendors and food, 10 a.m.–2 p.m. Aug. 18, Bates Alley, 388-2830.

6:00 to 9:00 PM

Manor House Tour & Lakeside Concert — Tour the W.K. Kellogg Manor House and enjoy the Cereal City Concert Band, tour noon–3 p.m.; concert 3–5 p.m.

Aug. 18, W.K. Kellogg Manor House, 3700 E. Gull Lake Drive, Hickory Corners, 671-2160.

WMU’s Bernhard Center

Bikes and Beers Kalamazoo 2019 — A 15-mile and a 30-mile ride through Kalamazoo, Aug. 24, starting at Bell's Eccentric Café, 355 E. Kalamazoo Ave., bikesandbeers.com.

August 10th

Left to Right: Eric Dougal, Dr. Stephen Morrow, John King, Rick DeKam & Jeff Swenarton

Host: Old National Bank 100% benefit Boys & Girls Club of Greater Kalamazoo Visit kalamazoo.100menwhocook.com 42 | ENCORE AUGUST 2019

Kalamazoo Black Business Expo — Community, collaboration, family entertainment, food and shopping, 1–5 p.m. Aug. 24, Kalamazoo County Expo Center, 578-3241.

Community Arts Awards — Arts Council of Greater Kalamazoo honors local arts supporters, 4 p.m. Aug. 25, Balch Playhouse, 129 Thompson St., 342-5059.

Signature Storytelling Event and Low-Country Boil — Hear stories about Bethany Christian Services' work with families and children in Southwest Michigan, 6–9 p.m. Aug. 29, Pretty Lake Adventure Camp, 9123 West Q Ave., Mattawan, bethany.org/ kzoocountryboil.

ENCORE POETRY

River Gift

Every summer morning I stop to watch the tattered mist lift, sun-stained the color of first blood. Herons pluck their legs from the mud and mergansers slip the surface, rivulets running from the crown, down. Rose mallow emerge, veined like lips, and open. On your birthday, I wedge a bottle under the dock. I imagine you, legs dangling in the slantshaded river, thinking of me, while I bite the shoulder of your memory.

Summer Sisters

No taller than Queen Anne’s lace, we walk to the beach holding hands. Your long hair is the color of a hawk’s tail in the wind. I keep picking strands of it out of my mouth. You collect tiny shells to fill fancy bottles that Gram buys at the dime store; I look for fossils.

For the love of Pete, we rinse our feet at the back door. We pick raspberries at the Broken Bridge. Once, the babysitter fell asleep with a candle on the mantel. Gram covered the burnt part with a towel. No one ever fixed it. — Prose poems by Melanie Dunbar Dunbar lives on a farm in Southwest Michigan and tends flowers for a living. She is also the contest coordinator for the Poetry Society of Michigan and the editor of Peninsula Poets, where “Summer Sisters� first appeared. “River Gift� appeared previously in KYSO Flash and its print anthology Accidents of Light and was nominated for The Best of the Net 2018.

WMUK

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INDEX TO ADVERTISERS Arborist Services of Kalamazoo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Barn Theatre . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 Bethany Christian Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 Betzler Funeral Homes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Binder Park Zoo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Blackberry Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 Bronson Healthcare Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 Dave’s Glass Service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

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DeMent and Marquardt, PLC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Fence & Garden . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42 Foundation for Behavioral Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 Greenleaf Trust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Halls Closets & More . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Heritage Community of Kalamazoo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Hospice Care of Southwest Michigan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 Kalamazoo/Battle Creek International Airport . . . . . . . . 48 Kalamazoo Humane Society . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47 Kalamazoo Institute of Arts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33 Kalamazoo Public Schools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Kalsee Credit Union . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 LVM Capital Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 Mercantile Bank . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 Midwest Realty—100 Men Who Cook . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42 North Woods Village . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Park Village Pines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44 Parkway Plastic Surgery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 Pine Rest Christian Mental Health Services . . . . . . . . . . .45 Portage Printing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44 Jeff K. Ross Financial Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 SummerTime Live . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 Trust Shield Insurance Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

How sweet it is.

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Varnum Law . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 Village of Paw Paw . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41 Wells Fargo Advisors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 Willis Law . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 WMUK . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

44 | ENCORE AUGUST 2019

BACK STORY (continued from page 46)

Paw Paw-based St. Julian, how the weather will affect this year’s vintage is first and foremost in her mind.

“We do stress out about it, but the crazy thing is we can't do anything about it, so we just adapt to it,” she says. “It's a love-hate industry. You will either love making wine or, you know, you just want to drink it.”

What drew you to wine?

I was always really involved in food. My sister's a dietitian and our family always talked about food and loved cooking. I knew I wanted to do something in that realm, and my sister brought home information for me on food science, which is about the science behind the development of food products.

I went into food science at Purdue University and started working with Dr. Richard Vine, who taught the wine appreciation class and was the wine buyer for American Airlines. He started the Indy International Wine Competition at Purdue, and through that I got to taste wines from all around the world while I was learning.

I then did an internship in Sonoma, California, at Geyser Peak Winery under Daryl Groom, who is a very well-known winemaker. We worked crazy 16-hour days seven days a week, but I knew the business was meant for me.

What does a head winemaker do?

I work with all of our growers — we have 15 different growers. When I started, we

almost had 50, but have narrowed it down to 15 who have the same philosophy that we do here at St. Julian. During spring I start going out in the vineyards. At least once a week I'm on all of our vineyards and help decide the parameters of when we harvest the grapes.

I taste them and grab samples and analyze them in our laboratory.

From there, we decide on winemaking styles such as what yeast to use, when to harvest and if the merlot is going to end up being a red wine or if we're going make it out of a rosé this year. We do that for all the different products we make — wine and cider and spirits.

some challenges. Back in 2002, I was the first female winemaker in Michigan; there were none before me, which is insane to even say.

And now there's a handful of us that are here.

We have over 130 wineries in the state, and there are less than 10 women winemakers.

St. Julian has always been very receptive of me, and I have a great crew in back. When first I took over as head winemaker, I think there was a little hesitation of this young girl being the boss, but I think I’ve proven myself.

Do you taste every product?

What’s your biggest challenge?

Yep, all of it. Right now in our barrel cellar, there are 85 different individual lots of wine — close to 500 barrels. Right after harvest we could have another 150, 200 different lots of wine. I taste each one to make sure they are going through their fermentation process in an orderly fashion, and that none are a little problem child. When they are through fermentation, I taste each individual lot and decide whether or not to do blending.

Sometimes when you blend two different lots of wine together, it creates a much better wine than one on its own.

Mother Nature would be the biggest challenge by all means. Each harvest has been different. What we did last year we will probably never, ever do again, because Michigan doesn't ever repeat itself. So that's a fun thing about making wine here — that it's always, always different.

Then, of course, you know, I'm a woman working in a man's world, so that causes

My mom used to laugh when I was a kid because she could never put any part of my lunch in a Ziploc bag because I can taste that Ziploc characteristic. So she would have to use Saran Wrap; Saran Wrap was fine. Even to this day I can’t have anything in a Ziploc bag because I can always taste it.

What is St. Julian’s philosophy?

We are a Michigan winery, and we work with Michigan fruit. For us to hold true to developing our region, we want to work with Michigan fruit grown right in our backyard.

Whether it's grapes, cherries, peaches, pears, apples, raspberries, blueberries — you name it — we're committed to the fruit grown in our own backyard.

You must have an amazing sense of taste.

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w w w.encorekalamazoo.com | 45

BACK STORY ENCORE

Nancie Oxley

Vice President and Winemaker, St. Julian Winery I

t’s not only farmers in Southwest Michigan who have had their eyes on the sky this summer. Nancie Oxley, vice president and winemaker at St. Julian Winery, has too.

“Some days I think the farmers and winemakers are better meteorologists than the meteorologists themselves, because you're constantly watching the weather,” says the 40-year-old Oxley.

The first professional commercial female winemaker in Michigan, Oxley has been with St. Julian for 19 years.

Starting as a lab manager and enologist, she quickly moved up the ranks, being promoted to head winemaker in 2010. In 2017, she was named vice president at St. Julian.

As the award-winning winemaker approaches her 19th harvest with the growers that supply the

Brian Powers

(continued on page 45)

46 | ENCORE AUGUST 2019

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