KINGSFORD — Kingsford High School officials have announced the top 10% of the Class of 2025, with grade-point averages of 4.021 to 4.125. — Jaxon Buckley is the son of Jason and Sarah Buckley. School activities include three years of varsity hockey; four years of varsity soccer, two as captain; National Honor Society; and Student Leadership Alliance. Honors are: all A’s honor roll seven semesters, Academic Bar, Top 10% junior and senior years, All State 1st Team Soccer, U.P. Player of the Year in soccer two years and All State Third Team Soccer his junior year. He plans to attend University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point for his undergraduate degree and to play soccer, then continue on to obtain his doctorate of veterinary medicine. — Reagan Cram is the daughter of Dan and Kelly Cram. School activities included tennis, softball, Key Club, Big Brothers Big Sisters, National Honor Society as service chair and HOSA as reporter. Honors are: Academic Letter and Academic Bar. She is undecided on a college but plans to study biology on the pre-physician assistant track. — Benjamin Fornetti is the son of Paul and Angela Fornetti. School activities include varsity soccer, varsity ski racing, varsity track, National Honor Society, Key Club International, Flivver Family. Honors are: All A’s for three consecutive semesters, B or better and Academic Letter. He plans to study dentistry at the University of Michigan. — Auna Ivacko is the daughter of Joseph Ivacko. School activities included Key Club, yearbook, Book Club, Art Club, Quiz Bowl and National Honor Society, where she was historian. Honors are: Academic Letter, Academic Bar, Top 10% junior and senior years and All A’s all of high school. She plans to study bio-medical sciences and parasitology at Grand Valley State University. — Taylor Koski is the daughter of Jaclyn and Bradley Koski. School activities include Key Club for four years, student council, Quiz Bowl as team captain, Flivver Way Ambassador and National Honor Society president. Honors are: All A’s honor roll for four years, Academic Letter, Academic Bar, Top 10% junior and senior years and 2021-2022 National Community Service Award. She plans to to major in English at the University of Michigan. — Madelynn Kreider is the daughter of Jaclynn and Jason Kreider. School activities include volleyball for four years, track for three years, basketball for one year, softball for one year, Key Club, National Honor Society, student council vice president and Fellowship of Christian Athletes. Honors are: All A’s seven consecutive semesters, Top 10% junior and senior years, Academic Bar, Academic Letter, Academic All-State volleyball, Academic All-American travel volleyball and MHSAA Scholar-Athlete. She plans to attend Michigan Technological University to play volleyball and study kinesiology/exercise science toward specializing as a physician assistant in orthopedic surgery. — Zoey Mellon is the daughter of Tiffany and Nickolas Mellon. School activities include Peer to Peer Mentor, former marching band, pep band and concert band member. Honors are: Honor roll ninth through12th grades, Academic Bar, earned a first rating in both regional and state Solo and Ensemble during freshman and sophomore year, earned a regional second place at HOSA during junior year. She plans to study emergency medical technology at Milwaukee Area Technical College toward becoming a paramedic. — Maren Menza is the daughter of Kathryn and Chad Menza. School activities include National Honor Society, Key Club, Flivver Family, Youth Advisory Committee and volleyball manager. Honors are: Academic Letter, with all A’s for three semesters; Academic Bar, with all A’s for five semesters; Honor Roll All A’s; Top 10% junior and senior years; Michigan Governor Youth Service Award-Youth Spirit of Hope Award; 2024-2025 National Community Service Awards-Ambassador Award; Michigan Community Impact Award 2024-2025. She is undecided on where she will attend college but plans to major in secondary mathematics education. — Ellery Nash is the daughter of Matt and Tamara Nash. School activities include Flivver Way Student Ambassador, student council officer and historian, National Honor Society secretary, senior class secretary and member of the volleyball team. Honors are: Academic Letter, Academic Bar honor roll for All A’s and Academic All-State for volleyball. She plans to study nurse anesthesiology at Michigan State University. — Paolo Occhietti is the son of Tony and Cindy Occhietti. School activities include Key Club member four years, Key Club treasurer two years, Key Club president his senior year, National Honor Society two years and Flivver Way student ambassador. Honors are: Honor Roll All A’s, Academic excellence award for being in the Top 10% of class, Academic Letter, Academic Bar and Student of the Week junior year. He plans to earn a bachelor’s degree at Grand Valley State University and then attend the University of Michigan Dental School to become a dentist. — Abigail Przeslakowski is the daughter of Blanka and Pawel Przeslakowski. School activities include varsity tennis, basketball and soccer teams; National Honor Society; Key Club; Flivver Family Club; and Youth Advisory Council. Honors are: Honor roll all semesters of high school, academic letter, four-sport varsity letters, 2024 All U.P. tennis award, five National Community Service awards, four Michigan Community Impact awards and a Michigan Governor Youth Service Award. She plans to major in biology with a minor in kinesiology on a pre-medicine track at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. — Sierra Scott is the daughter of Kevin and Cindi Scott. School activities include swim team, National Honor Society, Key Club, Academic Booster Club, Youth Advisory Council, cross-country team, and track and field team. Honors are: Academic Letter, Top 10% junior and senior years, Swim Team: U.P. champion, All U.P. Swim and Dive Team, relay team member of team record, varsity letter for swim, cross-country and track and field and completion of Rotary Youth Exchange. She plans to attend a university to study international relations. — Iona Shilton is the daughter of Brett and Kim Shilton. School activities include cross-country, swimming, track and field, Flivver Way student ambassador, National Honor Society and Fellowship of Christian Athletes. Honors are: All A’s, honor roll, Academic Letter — All A’s for three semesters, Academic Bar — All A’s for five semesters, Top 10% junior and senior years. She is undecided on a college but plans to pursue a career in sports medicine/kinesiology. — Levi Stauber is the son of Adam and Autumn Stauber. School activities include basketball, track, Key Club and French Club. Honors are: MTU Leading Scholar finalist, MTU Presidential Scholar Award, KHS honor roll all four years, Top 10% junior and senior years, Academic Letter and Academic Bar. He plans to study engineering and engineering management at Michigan Technological University. — Gavin Trevillian is the son of Kevin and Sara Trevillian. School activities include student council, football, basketball, baseball, Flivver Way and National Honor Society. Honors are: All A’s all semesters, finalist for MHSAA Scholar Athlete Scholarship, Top 10% junior and senior year. He plans to attend the University of Wisconsin-Platteville for civil engineering. — Michael Jack Wilinski is the son of Mike and Tracey Wilinski. School activities include student council four years; Key Club four years; Business Professionals of America in 10th, 11th and 12th grades; robotics in ninth and 10th grades; Flivver Way student ambassador and Quiz Bowl. Honors are: member of National Honor Society, BPA-top seven at national finals, Computer Student of the Year in 2024, Student of the Month in 2023, All A’s for seven semesters, Academic Letter, Academic Bar. He plans to major in computer science and math at either Michigan Technological University or Northern Michigan University. MARQUETTE — The Michigan Department of Transportation is investing about $116,000 to pave an existing gravel lot ... IRON RIVER — There will be a U.P. Health System Regional Blood Center community blood drive, hosted by the ... AURORA, Wis. — The Aurora Park and Recreation Committee is a nonprofit group formed to improve and beautify the ... Copyright © 2025 Ogden News Publishing of Michigan, Inc. | https://www.ironmountaindailynews.com | 215 E. Ludington, Iron Mountain, MI 49801 | marking their biggest single-day gain since April 23.($1 = 1.5470 Australian dollars)Reporting by Sneha Kumar in Bengaluru; Editing by Nivedita Bhattacharjee and Mrigank Dhaniwala Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab , opens new tab Browse an unrivalled portfolio of real-time and historical market data and insights from worldwide sources and experts. , opens new tabScreen for heightened risk individual and entities globally to help uncover hidden risks in business relationships and human networks. © 2025 Reuters. All rights reserved Gladstone sophomore Emma Trombley secures a flyout during a game against Kingsford on April 30 GLADSTONE — Players emerge at times you least expect it Unless your Gladstone sophomore Emma Trombley who played her best pair of games to date as the Braves improved to 13-0 with a doubleheader sweep over Kingsford on Wednesday The sophomore southpaw finished 2-for-3 with two runs scored in the No 9 spot in the lineup and recorded four putouts in a 9-2 game one win She was then thrusted into the lead-off spot in game two and finished 2-for-4 with two RBIs two stolen bases and two runs scored at a 12-2 win in five innings “She had a breakout day today,” Braves coach Scott Herioux said of Trombley “We’ve been working on a couple of things in practice in terms of encouraging her aggressiveness in center field After (Wednesday) maybe she starts to believe.” Of course Wednesday’s doubleheader wasn’t solely off the back of Trombley Game one saw freshman Lauren Pare obliterate the first pitch she saw in the third frame over the fence in left field for a two-run home run as part of a six-run stanza for the purple and white after seniors Lauren Sundquist and Tia Schone whaled back-to-back RBI singles walking one and striking out nine across 4 2/3 innings of work Pare allowed two unearned runs off seven hits with a walk in 2 1/3 innings Sundquist finished 3-for-4 with four stolen bases The Braves jumped on the Flivvers in game two behind a five-run second inning thanks to RBI knocks from Trombley and Schone a two-run double from Pare and an RBI groundout from Maddy Sundquist Schone finished 3-for-3 with four RBIs from the plate and struck out five across two perfect innings from the circle Pare finished 1-for-4 with two RBIs and a run scored and allowed two earned runs off four hits with a walk and three strikeouts in the circle Lauren Sundquist scored three runs and stole three bases Senior Brooklyn Pendergraft finished 1-for-2 with an RBI “We have to stay gritty,” Herioux said of the undefeated Braves “We just have to keep focused and keep going We’re hitting on certain spots and missing on others We have to keep putting the pieces together NEGAUNEE — A baseball doubleheader on Wednesday between Escanaba and Negaunee ended in a split as the Eskymos won .. MARQUETTE — It was a tough day on the courts for Escanaba boys tennis as it fell 7-1 to Marquette on .. FELCH — The Bark River-Harris track and field teams were in the title hunt Copyright © 2025 Ogden News Publishing of Michigan | https://www.dailypress.net | 600 Ludington St. Exclusive sweepstakes offers college football fans the chance to be featured in original content series – “King of the Tailgate” and “Kingsford Tailgate Cam” America’s #1 charcoal* and a leader in barbecue for more than 100 years announced today that they are working with Learfield the media and technology company powering college athletics to celebrate tailgate season with college football’s biggest fans The partnership features 12 of the hottest tailgating schools in the nation in Alabama Football and grilling fans alike will have the opportunity for a chance to win exclusive prizes and show off their tailgating – and grilling – skills before six key matchups throughout the college football season “No one brings the flavor and smoke to your tailgate like Kingsford and we can’t wait to see the different ways that fans celebrate their teams and light up the grill before kickoff,” said Mitchell O’Furey marketing director and studio lead at Kingsford “Essential to this partnership with Learfield is not just great food but championing tailgating traditions – whether at home or at the big game – and celebrating with fans all season long.” Kingsford and Learfield will host a pregame tailgate at each stop where they’ll prepare mouth-watering recipes grilled over America’s #1 charcoal and served hot off the grill grillers at each school will be featured in “King of the Tailgate,” a 12-part series produced by Learfield Studios that unpacks the tradition while diving into the regional cooking styles and gameday delicacies that define each school’s tailgates “Kingsford Tailgate Cam” is a season-long celebration and journey through each school’s liveliest and tastiest tailgates Fans will have the chance to participate in an exclusive sweepstakes by sharing their best game day tailgating (or “home-gating”) photos showcasing their impressive setups and delicious grill creations using Kingsford Charcoal to be featured on the “King of the Tailgate” virtual fan wall Every submission to the virtual fan wall on Kingsford’s website will also register on an interactive fan heat map illuminating the hotspots of passionate tailgaters across the nation Kingsford will announce a winner at each of the 12 partner schools and a grand prize trip to one of the biggest rivalry games of the season “This partnership highlights the unique platform college athletics represents for blue chip brands like Kingsford to establish authentic connections with fans at a real passion point,” said Shawn Hegan Learfield’s Executive Vice President of Global Partnerships “We are excited to work with Kingsford to bring their products to life across college campuses this fall and to connect with fans in a meaningful way.” Join Our Mailing List © Learfield.  All Rights Reserved.  | 5400 Lyndon B. Johnson Freeway, Suite 100, Dallas, TX  75240 | Phone: 469-241-9191 Privacy Policy | Advertising Policy | Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information STEPHENSON — Four Norway pitchers held host Stephenson hitless over the course of nine innings in the Knights’ .. MENOMINEE — The Kingsford boys track team won eight events and went on to take first place at the co-ed Menominee .. | https://www.ironmountaindailynews.com | 215 E KINGSFORD — Some basketball players are late bloomers a strength increase or an increased work ethic leads to the emergence of latent potential Kingsford’s Gavin Grondin was not one of those late bloomers He was identified as a future star before he entered high school and eventually lived up to that projection and beyond The 6-foot guard was one of the top scorers in the U.P finishing with 22.1 points per game as a junior in 2022-23 and 24.3 ppg this season he was also a lock-down defender and was selected as the Great Northern Conference defensive player of the year the last two seasons Grondin was named to the Upper Peninsula Sportswriters and Sportscasters all-U.P He was also named to the Associated Press Division 2 all-state second team this season Grondin leaves KHS as its boys all-time leading scorer with 1,624 points Grondin led the Flivvers to back-to-back D2 regional championships a state quarterfinal victory this season followed by Kingsford’s first appearance at the Breslin Center the venue for the MHSAA boys state basketball championships As he moved into the spring baseball season Grondin talked with The Daily News about his recently completed basketball career Q: What does it mean to you to have been selected to the all-U.P A: Lot of hard work put into it and it’s good to see it pay off and get recognized for that Q: You had a strong case for being named all-U.P Were you disappointed that you weren’t (Note: Marquette’s Jacob MacPhee was given the honor.) But my self-goal coming into this year ultimately was to get that but we made a good run as a team this year Q: When does a goal like that enter your mind A: I really didn’t know there was a U.P Basketball until I started high school basketball I knew that was something I was going to be in the running for if I kept putting in the work Q: When did you start to think about yourself that way A: Honestly at a pretty early age when I was competing at some of the highest levels through Michigan and Wisconsin Probably seventh or eighth grade was when I really realized I had the potential to do that Q: How did you get to that point so quickly What would you advise a youngster to do to follow your path That’s what I’ve done since I was 4-foot tall with my dad (Ryan) and having all the people there to push me and being around guys playing basketball ever since I was little but you’ve been an outstanding defender A: That’s really ultimately what got me a look to play at the next level (Grondin will play for Lake Superior State University beginning next season) you’ve got to take pride in the little things I think what a lot of people overlook is the defensive end To lock in and defend the best players is tough and not a lot of people realize how hard it is to play good defense Q: How did you view your team’s defense overall We knew that was probably the most important thing in order to get where we wanted to Q: You were counted on to be the top scorer and often guard the best player especially playing hard defense and running the floor like we do You’ve got to fight through it and condition as much as you can at practice and (play with) game-like speed at all times you played on a team that had others to score like Nic Nora who broke the school’s scoring record before you did Did you feel like you had to hold back your offensive game some at that point I feel like I could have contributed a lot more offensively But they were the guys for the last few years Nic taught me a lot when I was playing and they were some of the best teammates I’ve ever played with Q: How did you learn to score off the drive so well A: I knew you had to be a three-level scorer in order to play at the next level I had a few games during my freshman and sophomore years where I really couldn’t finish at the basket and I kind of reverted back to shooting a lot of 3-pointers I got in the gym and worked at that pull-up game that mid-range game and that helped me a lot this year That was a big step that I realized I had to take over the last few years Q: What were the most exciting games you played in the Marquette and Iron Mountain games were always the games everyone wanted to be at And you had to bring your “A” game Those games were battles even before we got to high school Q: What was the 52-40 state semifinal loss against Romulus Summit Academy North like A: One thing that kind of sucks about playing in the U.P is that there is nothing that you can do to prepare for the type of (defensive) pressure they put on us A: Full-court press right up in your grill the whole time They had quick guards that were super well-conditioned They were a really good disciplined defensive team they were super good at stalling and getting buckets Q: What did the team think about its chances going into the game A: We knew going into it that we could stick in there with them And we ended up getting off to a slow start then finally midway through the third quarter and fourth quarter we got it figured out and ended up winning the second half Q: What went through your mind at the end as you knew your last season together with your buddies was over making it together there as a team from the U.P and we fought as hard as we could and we did it with the guys that we’ve been with forever and it was really a cool experience HOUGHTON — Aubrie Moore cashed in two goals while Ingrid Holt and Onika Smeester added one each to lift .. Kingsford Public Safety was called about 5:17 p.m KINGSFORD — No injuries were reported after a fire broke out Sunday evening at a Sterling Street home in Kingsford were able to evacuate and contact Kingsford Public Safety about 5:17 p.m KPSD Director Brandon Rutter said in a news release While crews were able to clear the site by 7:07 p.m. Monday after officers patrolling the area noticed a small fire had rekindled in the attic area It was brought under control and KPSD left at 2:37 a.m. including how many people or pets were in the home when the blaze broke out No official was available Monday who could comment further on the fire No information was given on the damage done to the house The structure later in the day had a badly charred porch but the interior could not be seen Kingsford Public Safety douses the roof of a house at 536 Sterling St The cause of the fire remains under investigation KPSD was assisted by the Dickinson County Sheriff’s Department A FIRE SUNDAY damaged a home at 536 Sterling St IRON MOUNTAIN — Temperatures this summer could be a degree or two above the historical average in the Upper .. (AP) — A Michigan school did not violate the free-speech rights of a third-grade student who was .. Share on FacebookShare on X (formerly Twitter)Share on PinterestShare on LinkedInKINGSFORD (WLUC) - All occupants of a Kingsford home were able to escape unharmed early Sunday night Kingsford Public Safety said the department was dispatched to 536 Sterling Street at 5:17 p.m Before firefighters arrived on scene all occupants evacuated the residence Monday morning officers patrolling the area noticed a small fire had rekindled in the attack area of the home Officers were able to control the fire and cleared the scene at 2:37 a.m The cause of the fire is still under investigation and the extent of the damage is unknown at this time KPSD was assisted by the Dickinson County Sheriff’s Department MATERIALS ARE IN place for construction of a pavilion at Kingsford’s Ford Park KINGSFORD — Kingsford will host a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new pavilion at Ford Addition Park on the same day as the annual Ford Addition Fourth of July parade The pavilion was made possible by donations from Rick and Marty Lagina stars of the History Channel series “The Curse of Oak Island,” grew up near the park and each contributed $50,000 to build a pavilion in memory of their parents longtime Kingsford residents who both died in 2010 The 20-by-28-foot pavilion will have lights and outlets and features a paved path from the parking area MBM Construction of Iron Mountain was awarded the bid to construct the pavilion for $23,750 was ordered from Amish Country at a cost of $25,181.25 It will be completed as soon as weather permits The Lagina brothers made the donation in August 2023 while back for the Kingsford Centennial celebration during which they served as grand marshals for the centennial parade “The Curse of Oak Island” is a multi-season reality television series that chronicles a team run by the Laginas as they search for legendary treasure on Oak Island off the shore of Nova Scotia Originally the money was donated to build a gazebo but they decided they wanted a pavilion instead Any leftover money will go toward pirate-themed playground equipment The city council also agreed to spend $700 for food and refreshments to be served at the pavilion — Set two public hearings for April 7 will revise the ordinance regarding commercial vehicles in residential areas It will increase fines and allow officers to affix a locking device or have the vehicle towed is on revising the ordinance regarding livestock and other farm animals in residential areas It will increase fines and allow officers to impound animals — Will allow the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources to place a kiosk at the Menominee River boat landing to allow the public to voluntarily take part in a fishing study A trail camera will also be installed starting April 1 — Learned a diagram for an easement that will travel underground through Kingsford High School property has been completed and sent to the school for approval the Bay College Escanaba greenhouse on Friday will be selling native plant seedlings .. Kingsford Public Safety was called to the Pine Bluff Apartments after smoke was reported in one of the complex’s buildings Kingsford Publis Safety was called to Building A around 9:20 a.m the department says its officers saw smoke pouring out of a second-level apartment After evacuating the occupants from the building and the adjoining buildings firefighters were able to contain the fire to one single apartment The buildings have since been ventilated and there was only minor smoke and water damage to the other apartment buildings The cause of the incident remains under investigation Kingsford Public Safety was assisted by Iron Mountain Fire Department The Red Cross was also contacted and advised of what happened rises above the Boyne City defense to convert a corner kick play for a goal in their game during the Superior Dome Invitational held Saturday in Marquette Leuzzo has headed in four Marquette corner kicks for goals so far this season (Photo courtesy MSHS Committee for High School Soccer) “It was a really great showing from our team over the weekend especially after our loss to Kingsford last week,” MSHS head coach Colleen McKay said in an email detailing the results “Our goal over the weekend was to implement what we have been working tirelessly on in practice — finishing I am very proud of every player on our team for stepping up and not giving up throughout the day and it is exciting to see our progress thus far.” who the Sentinels defeated 4-0 about a week earlier the Flivvers scored early and shored up their defense to hold off every Marquette comeback effort Marquette’s Ellarie Thierry rushes for the ball to move it out of the Sentinels’ defensive zone during a high school girls soccer game played against Houghton and held at the Marquette Senior High School football field on April 10 Set plays were noted as being the key to Marquette’s success with senior Joslyn Leuzzo heading in three corner kicks for goals that day Sophomore Olivia Stade joined Leuzzo in scoring three goals on Saturday sophomore Cora Wernholm and freshman Elsie Talvensaari each scored once and Ollila and freshmen Kirra Longton and Allie Kreis had one apiece the Sentinels before Marquette roared back for its second-biggest offensive production of the season so far Story contents based on email received from MSHS soccer representative Meredith Ollila Journal Sports Editor Steve Brownlee’s email address is sbrownlee@miningjournal.net MARQUETTE — Prospective girls tennis players who will be in or ready to start high school during the 2025-26 .. Postal Service facility in Kingsford will retain some of its local mail processing operations rather than see them completely shifted to a regional site in Green Bay USPS stated its previous plan for the Kingsford center were no longer needed because increased efficiency through its “proposed operational strategy” would already save USPS “an additional $3 billion per year nationwide.” “The significant savings generated by this proposed operational strategy would enable the Postal Service to absorb the cost of continuing to provide local cancellation service in Iron Mountain,” the news release states the Postal Service will not need to relocate certain local originating mail processing operations outside of the Iron Mountain facility This means that mail being delivered from one address in Iron Mountain to another will not leave the region for processing This update follows a previous USPS decision to shift all originating mail processing operations to the Green Bay P&DC single piece mail that is sent from Iron Mountain to be delivered in Iron Mountain will continue to be processed at its current location.” The extent of this latest decision on Kingsford’s future role USPS on May 7 indicated it had green-lighted plans to switch Kingsford and several other facilities to local processing centers that would send outgoing mail to a regional processing and distribution center All outgoing mail that came to the Kingsford site would be transported to Green Bay That decision came despite a contentious public meeting in April in which a large crowd detailed the negative effects the changes would have — in some cases already had — on mail service considered crucial in the rural region Postmaster Louis DeJoy in mid-May put those plans on hold through the remainder of 2024 then chair of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee and a bipartisan group of 25 senators had raised about the potential effects of what was then referred to as the Delivering for America plan Friday’s news release still refers to Kingsford becoming a local processing center with USPS spending $3.75 million on “expanded and streamlined package and mail processing and distribution capabilities for the facility These funds will also be used for modernization efforts and deferred maintenance along with new workplace amenities for Postal Service employees such as new lighting and renovated bathrooms and breakrooms.” “These changes will not impact business mail entry Once the Iron Mountain facility becomes a Local Processing Center it is expected to handle package mailing and shipping The LPC is also expected to offer express services and accept bulk and permit mail further improving its delivery services.” But Friday’s news release made no mention of whether this change would restore overnight delivery in the Upper Peninsula which was lost in January 2024 when USPS cut Kingsford’s number of daily truck trips and collections causing mail to sit overnight in local offices That affected delivery of such vital services as prescription medicines and water testing that require a one-day turnaround Peters in a news release Friday called the USPS decision “great news for rural Michiganders who depend on USPS for delivery of essential items including financial documents that are critical to the health and safety of residents.” A call to Peters’ staff member in the Upper Peninsula for clarification on the USPS decision could not be answered by press time Friday This latest decision also means no “employee impacts” at the Kingsford center as had originally been anticipated president of American Postal Workers Union Local 1189 declined to comment on the latest USPS announcement Betsy Bloom can be reached at 906-774-2772 CAGE-FREE CHICKENS walk in a fenced pasture at an organic farm near Waukon KINGSFORD — Changes specific to chickens will be considered before a livestock ordinance comes before the Kingsford City Council for a vote City Attorney Henry McRoberts was directed to revise the ordinance to allow for a small number of chickens in residential areas consisting of large parcels — 1 acre or more The revision will be brought back to the planning commission it will be introduced again to the council to request a new public hearing resident Susan Smith asked if they could be grandfathered in because before changes made in 2023 they were in compliance with the ordinance that allowed chickens chickens had to be 500 feet from the property line the council made it illegal to have chickens and other livestock in the city after a problem developed with people having hobby farms Other proposed changes considered Monday included increasing fines and allowing public safety officers to impound the animals Council member Michael Flaminio was not in favor of having chickens in the city “Residential neighborhoods are residential neighborhoods They don’t want to have to deal with the noise and smell,” he said Council member Dennis Baldinelli said he would be in favor of some allowance for a small amount of birds Mayor pro tem Daniel Freeman said he’d like to have something in the ordinance about roosters approved changes to an ordinance regulating commercial vehicles in a residential area The ordinance generally applies to the extended parking of a commercial truck trailer or semitrailer or other commercial vehicle with a load capacity in excess of one-half ton It increases fines to $100 plus court costs for first offense; $200 and court costs for second offense within the same year; $500 and court costs for third offense within the same year; and $1,000 and court costs for fourth offense within the same year The officers would also have the right to place a wheel lock or tow the vehicle at the owner’s expense — Approved a new contract through Jan The new contract increases costs by 20% but is still cheaper than previous companies contracted to clean City Hall Stelmaszek said they were very satisfied with the services provided by the company The contract is for three visits per week from Nov 16 through April 14 for two hours each at $168; and one daily visit per week April 15 through Nov — Set a hearing for a Clean Water State Revolving Fund application for project No April 21 and set a hearing for the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund application for project No Stelmaszek indicated the city intends to proceed with this project if awarded a grant component consistent with Project No The tentative plan would include separation of the existing combined system; manhole repair and replacement and sanitary sewer main rehabilitation — Learned from Stelmaszek a pre-construction meeting will take place next week for a Heights/Ford Addition water and sewer replacement project They hope to schedule a start date at that meeting — Agreed to send Stelmaszek to the spring U.P managers conference in Escanaba on May 29-30 KINGSFORD — Little Sprouts Childcare & Early Education Center has opened in Kingsford to add to the much-needed daycare services available in the area After working in and managing daycare centers for others owner Brenda Henes decided to make the leap and start one of her own “I want to be here to make a difference for families,” Henes said hard thing for families now — not only the cost but finding quality care.” Little Sprouts was a project nearly a year in the making that began when Henes said she stumbled across the building at 1075 Pyle Drive and decided it was the place she was looking for LITTLE SPROUTS IS at 1075 Pyle Drive in Kingsford Henes’ next challenge was getting licensed and approved to open county and city regulations all having to be met Little Sprouts Childcare & Early Education Center finally was able to open mid-February Little Sprouts has 11 employees trained through MiRegistry a state-run organization that tracks required health and safety training such as CPR treating a choking baby and recognizing child abuse or neglect which is within the state-required staff-to-child ratio Henes said they are able to take on more children full-time or part-time Little Sprouts Childcare & Early Education Center is all-inclusive; children with special needs are absolutely welcome to attend Henes said she hopes to set Little Sprouts Childcare & Early Education Center apart from other daycare centers The center also has a preschool program from 8 a.m Henes added she serves the children a less processed Education and getting children ready for school is stressed at Little Sprouts Childcare & Early Education Center starting with the infant space,” Henes said they start the toddler curriculum and that follows through to preschool which we offer here and from there they are kindergarten ready.” The children are taught skills that should help them even beyond kindergarten “We make sure that we are doing our portfolios and observations so we can set goals and help them be prepared,” Henes said Discipline is not a thing at Little Sprouts; rather “A lot of times they do not understand how to use their emotions correctly so we help them redirect,” Henes said Parents are included in the learning process through newsletters sent home that can help parents perhaps turn what was done into fun activities at home to emphasize the lessons For more information on Little Sprouts Childcare & Early Education Center call 906-828-1067 or go online to https://littlesproutsccandeeccomegrowwithus.us/ The Daily News plans to highlight some of the new business owners in the region Know of a business that recently opened or changed hands LANSING — The Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs has announced changes to the examination .. MARQUETTE — The Upper Peninsula Construction Council will have a hiring event from 3 to 6 p.m MARSHFIELD — Marshfield Clinic region of Sanford Health and Security Health Plan are now accepting applications .. KINGSFORD ACTRESS KAYLA MYERS — professionally known as Kayla Kelly — played Kitty Gatlin in the short film “The Last Rung on the Ladder,” adapted from a 1978 Stephen King short story KINGSFORD — A local actress received special honors at the 2024 Milwaukee Independent Film Awards Kayla Myers — professionally known as Kayla Kelly — took home Best Actress in a Short Film for her portrayal of Kitty Gatlin in “The Last Rung on the Ladder,” an adaptation from the 1978 Stephen King short story The awards ceremony followed a special screening at The Bend Theatre Kelly’s lead role in the production is that of an estranged sister separated from her brother mental health advocate and psychologist Larry Gatlin “It opens with two siblings that are best friends but as they get older things change,” the Kingsford native said adding that filming took place in 2023 throughout several locations in Wisconsin Kitty’s life begins to spin out of control after a series of abusive relationships She tries to reach out to Larry many times but has no success KINGSFORD ACTRESS KAYLA MYERS — professionally known as Kayla Kelly — played Kitty Gatlin in the short film “The Last Rung on the Ladder.” The role earned her Best Actress in a Short Film at the 2024 Milwaukee Independent Film Awards She becomes a cam girl — a woman who poses for a webcam especially as a form of paid adult entertainment — to make ends meet as well as receive some type of validation Larry is haunted by his guilt and insecurities that transforms into a physical manifestation named “The Carnival Barker of Despair.” Kelly noted that in King’s original story Kitty is just a memory of Larry’s that he writes about in his journal “This short film is a real-time situation You get to see the backstory of his success and her downward spiral,” she said “The way we told it is so cool.” Kelly said because it was such an inclusive cast and crew she was able to do more improv than she would normally do on scene “You don’t get a lot of opportunities to really develop a character — that is usually already done by the writers for you,” Kelly said “I feel it was an essential part of how I could have got this award.” The King adaptation was co-written by Karla S directed by Jeff Blankenship and produced by Kurt Krauss Blaska received rights and extension to the story through Stephen King’s “Dollar Baby” initiative “This program allows filmmakers to obtain the right to the short stories that haven’t already been turned into a production and buy them for $1,” she explained adding that all concepts for the film have to be approved by King’s administration “It was my birthday in 2022 when I got the call asking if I would be interested in the project by a filmmaker in southern Wisconsin,” Kelly said because of all the hoops you have to jump through.” “The Last Rung on the Ladder” is one of the last “Dollar Baby” films that will be made due to the program being discontinued in 2024 the King organization honored all previous arrangements with the filmmakers The film screened at the ETHOS Film Awards in Santa Monica and was among 23 films selected for the Stephen King Convention “KingCon” in Las Vegas received Honorable Mention for Best Actor at the MIFA The film also won Best Wisconsin Film at the 2024 Madison Film Festival Kelly hopes that “The Last Rung on the Ladder” gains the notice it deserves and gets out to the public audience “It’s a great story — it shows you how important it is to uplift those people around you that are struggling,” she said “It would be awesome if he (Blaska) would be able to obtain the rights to make it into a full-length feature film.” who plays Mayor McSwifty in “The Rise of Deermageddon,” also received recognition for her vocal work in the musical comedy along with co-star CJ Guzan winning Best Music in a Short Film at the MIFA This was her first real experience in a recording studio “The project was a proof of concept to create a feature-length film,” she said Kelly took home a Best Actress award for her role as Corrine Arnold in the horror anthology “F’d: Tales from the End Times,” which received dozens of awards in the festival circuit “2024 was a good year and this year is looking even better — bigger things are happening,” she noted she is involved in a larger project that could lead to working out of the country “Fingers crossed — it would be cool if it works out,” she adds “I’m going into my ninth year in the business he believes in my talents and really knows my goals — I’m pretty excited to have him on my side,” she adds Kelly first got the taste for acting after she landed a small part in “Nowhere MI,” followed by “Northbound,” and has since snowballed Her credits include 37 feature and short films streaming series and dozens of commercials A goal she has set for 2025 is to land a role on a TV show or series Being a part of the last two projects has also fueled her to get more involved and be a part of the creative process which includes developing her romantic comedy screenplay she wrote in the future “I would love to make that thing happen Kelly is thankful for the people she has on her side “They understand that I have this crazy side career and are cool with it,” she said “My husband and family have been so supportive of me chasing my dreams.” Although “The Last Rung on the Ladder” and “The Rise of Deermageddon” are currently unavailable for streaming viewers can check out Kelly’s other roles on SeekaTV in Northbound or Prime video and Tubi in feature films “An Intrusion,” “He Knows,” “For Hannah,” “Trial by Faith,” “A Christmas Hero,” “A Fireman for Christmas,” “Blood Immortal,” “Agramon’s Gate” and more If you would have told me this was my future when I was younger ‘You’re crazy,'” Kelly said people can do this profession from anywhere.” The Kingsford boys varsity basketball team poses with its MHSAA Division 3 Regional 9 trophy on Thursday in Gaylord it was clear the Kingsford boys varsity basketball team was a step ahead of Ludington on Thursday in Gaylord for the MHSAA Division 2 Region 9 final The Flivvers didn’t let that get to their heads and overwhelmed the Orioles en route to a 75-35 win to advance to the D2 quarterfinals They have won back-to-back regional crowns “It was a complete team win,” Kingsford head coach Ben Olsen said we put together a game plan and the kids executed it to near perfection I mean a 40-point win in a regional final game almost doesn’t seem real “That was a really good Ludington team and we played extremely well I felt like we let up in the first quarter against Boyne City a little bit We took ‘our foot off the gas pedal’ and we talked about not doing that tonight and the boys definitely took that to heart.” Entering the contest the Flivvers knew they had to stop Ludington’s Taj Williams and Johnathon Keith Williams managed 10 points but Keith was held scoreless “We knew they wanted to get downhill to the rim,” Olsen said “We talk all the time about ‘who hurts us and knowing where they are,’ even if you aren’t guarding them and our kids did an absolute masterful job.” Kingsford opened the game with an alley-oop layup from senior Gavin Grondin It kept its pushing and took a 14-7 advantage into the second quarter The Flivvers pushed the lead to 33-18 at halftime but the third quarter is where they made their mark They outscored Ludington 25-11 over eight minutes Entering the fourth quarter with a 19-point lead It tacked on 27 points while holding the Orioles to six in the frame Although the Flivvers played four hours away from Flivver Gym you’d have been hard-pressed to tell on Thursday Which is something they’re not taking for granted “Let’s see how far we can push this thing,” Olsen said “It has been an incredible journey and I’m grateful I’m part of the ride The community support has also been incredible We are four hours from home and it felt like a home game The energy our student section and fan section give us is truly amazing.” The Flivvers are off until Tuesday when they head back to Gaylord to face Freeland in the MHSAA Division 4 quarterfinals at 6 p.m “It’s always just one more game!” Grondin led all scorers in the contest with 23 points Kingsford also received contributions from Owen Olkkonen (5 points Anders Finley (1 rebound) and Alexander Erickson (2 points will again have her Kit-Cat Creations booth at The Daily News Spring Craft Show from 9 a.m Saturday at Kingsford Middle School in Kingsford She sells a variety of Druzy and beaded jewelry and will be in Booth 5 IRON MOUNTAIN — The Daily News Spring Craft Show will again help usher in the change in seasons in the region The show will feature 80 booths with vendors from throughout the Upper Peninsula and northern Wisconsin Daily News regional circulation manager/Newspapers in Education coordinator A complete listing of vendors is on page 8-A “This is a great opportunity for crafters vendors and home business owners to show off their products and get into the ‘spring is coming,’ mode,” Flynn said More than 70 vendors will be on hand with items ranging from handmade jewelry to blankets Girl Scout cookies once again will be available for purchase Informational booths will be set up as well for Kingsford Krush Roller Derby OSF Hospice and Catholic Social Services-Foster Care “Our spring show has now grown to the size of our Big Holiday Craft Show,” Flynn said adding this year’s holiday show will be Saturday Admission to the Spring Craft Show is free the Kingsford Music Booster Club will have a concession stand with its hot turkey sandwiches and beefy nachos on the menu The Daily News Spring Craft Show raises money for Newspapers in Education a non-profit program supported solely through fundraising events local business sponsors and generous subscribers NIE provides teachers and educators at area schools with the newspapers and other resources For more information on the craft shows or NIE program fans have an exclusive shot at ultimate tailgate experience 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- After Jason Kelce declared himself the King of the Grill this summer alongside Kingsford move on to their next conquest – becoming King of the Tailgate Kingsford has been celebrating tailgating all season long with tailgate tour stops at college football games across the country the brand is launching the King of The Tailgate contest where fans can share their game day grilling vibes for a chance to win the ultimate tailgate experience in Santa Clara I've been able to experience game day in a whole new way and that includes tailgating from Philadelphia "Tailgating is such a big part of being a fan and there's nothing better than getting ready to root for your team with family fans can enter to win their very own tailgating experience alongside THE King of the Grill Two lucky fans will have the opportunity to win a trip for two to attend the San Francisco 49ers game on December 30 Included in the two grand prize packages are a meet and greet with Kelce and two tickets to the game Five runners up will receive a tailgate-at-home set up complete with a grill a custom premium cooler and a pair of customized overalls "Kingsford is key for any tailgate as nothing goes together better than tailgating and grilling," said Mitchell O'Furey "We want to celebrate the fans that show up every week and grill for their family and friends on game days and we're looking forward to doing just that with Jason in the Bay Area." About Kingsford | An American-made company founded over 100 years ago to make better use of Henry Ford's wood waste Kingsford remains America's favorite charcoal it's still made in the USA with 100% natural ingredients retired professional football player or the neighborhood's king of the grill – there's no contest on flavor or experience From the Kingsford Original briquets you grew up with to premium varieties trusted by chefs and grilling professionals Kingsford is synonymous with the unique experience and authentic Contact:Kelly Thackery [email protected] Kingsford announced the newest addition to its grilling family – Jason Kelce Recognizing Kelce's legendary impact on the field Entertainment General Sports Retail Household Products Do not sell or share my personal information: Flivvers’ senior Anna Bortolini (23) drives in for a layup while West Iron’s Kaitlyn Smith (21) reaches to defend the shot on Tuesday in Kingsford KINGSFORD — One strength of the 2024-25 Kingsford girls basketball team is its potential to have a strong four-guard rotation – potential being the operative word Coaches Ginger Moore and Chris Moore have not yet seen seniors Anna Bortolini and Abby Przeslakowski and their freshman daughter Aubrie available to play as a group much because of injuries suffered by each of the four along the way Tuesday night against visiting West Iron County And while the Flivvers clearly missed Kowalski’s perimeter shooting ability they did manage to hold off the Wykons 41-39 in a non-conference clash at Flivver Gym “It would really help when we can return to a full roster of guards,” assistant coach Chris Moore said “We seem to be a bit shorthanded every night and you could tell that they knew what we were going to try to do “I felt we gutted out a tough win tonight.” While Kingsford has capable interior players in Kailey Sundquist and Cassie Olson and experienced wings in Addisyn Kriegl and Taylor Olsen the Flivvers are built around their speed and their guard play So when one or more of the four guards are sitting out (Kowalski scored 22 points in the Flivvers’ 49-36 victory over WIC in the first meeting of the teams on Jan West Iron took advantage of Kowalski’s absence in the first quarter as coach Eric Shamion positioned his team in a 2-3 zone to force Kingsford to come up with some perimeter offense while doubling down on Olson in the low block The Flivvers scuffled some with the defensive look and scored only one bucket over the final 3:36 of the first quarter and trailed 9-8 heading into the second “I think tonight we were missing a post game and I think some of that was my fault,” Chris Moore said “We didn’t get the ball inside enough “(But) Aubrie is a 15-year-old point guard learning the craft And you could tell (Coach Shamion) was very well prepared for us tonight and he forced us to struggle on offense.” Shamion did so using mainly a 2-3 zone defense which he has implemented more and more as the season has progressed to compensate for a lack of lateral quickness among his guards after freshman point guard Bristol Shamion was lost to an injury three weeks ago “I thought the kids did a pretty good job in the 2-3 covering the court,” Coach Shamion said “We explained to them where the shooters were going to be “I still think we lack good rebounding out of the zone but I think we’re playing the zone better we’re understanding where we need to be and we’re kind of working as a unit.” What harmed the Wykons (2-13) in this game was their tendency to go without scoring for long periods of play the Wykons scored just three points over a 13-minute stretch bridging the second and third quarters to fall behind 27-12 “We struggled against the 1-3-1,” Coach Shamion said alluding to the Kingsford defensive set-up “I think at times our decision-making was poor We just have too many turnovers and we need to make better decisions in our half-court offense our kids were trying to be aggressive.” West Iron’s Lacey Shamion (23) lowers her shoulder and drives to the basket as Kingsford’s Anna Bortolini (23) and Cassie Olson (34) defend in Flivver Gym on Tuesday That aggressiveness eventually paid dividends as the Wykons went on an 11-3 run over the final three minutes of the third quarter to pull within 30-23 heading into the fourth Senior Hailey Murillo started the rally with a put-back Sophomore Cami Alexa followed with a 3-pointer before Lacey Shamion sank three free throws West Iron scored 11 points in the span of three minutes after scoring only 12 over the first 16 minutes of the contest “Both of those kids have quickness and some toughness and that’s exactly what this team needs,” Coach Shamion said of Murillo and Alexa “And we seemed to thrive on it tonight (as they) brought some energy to the whole team.” Senior Julia Swenski helped West Iron chop Kingsford’s advantage to 33-28 with a pair of buckets as the Flivvers struggled to hold their lead to begin the fourth Chris Moore spoke of the Flivver staff’s efforts to help its young players gain some consistency within a game “We always joke that when two of your three starting guards (freshman Moore and sophomore Kowalski) need a ride home after the game there’s going to be a learning curve,” he said “And some of the people stepping into major minutes (after graduation losses) are not only young on the perimeter they’re somewhat young in minutes.” After slicing their deficit to 37-31 with 5:45 left the Wykons seemed to tire and began committing ball-handling miscues Coach Moore decided to put his team into a delay game which worked wonderfully as West Iron couldn’t keep up with the speed of Aubrie Moore and Bortolini Aubrie Moore sealed the victory with four consecutive free throws in the final 70 seconds as the Flivvers pulled back to .500 at 7-7 and sent the Wykons to their 10th straight defeat this was a morale victory for West Iron basketball,” Coach Shamion said “There were things that we can build on The Wykons aim to get back in the win column on Friday night when they travel to Crystal Falls to face Forest Park (7-9) West Iron’s last victory came over the Lady Trojans The Wykons also hope to see the return of Bristol Shamion to the lineup The first-year guard has missed the previous six games with an ankle sprain Tuesday’s win was another learning experience “We’re trying to talk about understanding our roles on the court who can be strong defensively and where should our shots be coming from And I thought tonight was a small step forward.” Kingsford will host Marquette (6-10) in a Great Northern Conference contest on Friday The Sentinels defeated the Flivvers 46-39 in the first match-up on Jan Both teams are .500 in the league and stand two games behind conference-leader Gladstone heading Friday night The 2024 Kingsford varsity wrestling team poses in Marquette after winning the U.P MENOMINEE — After posting a 14-1 record in dual meets the Kingsford varsity wrestling team looked poised to add another district title to its trophy case on Wednesday in Menominee the Flivvers run ended in the MHSAA Division 3 District 165 semifinals against Gladstone the kids are gutted,” Kingsford head coach Darren Groleau said “It’s tough when you give up 24 points in forfeits I made some lineup changes to chase some matches and I probably should’ve just ran our lineup straight up I believe that we could’ve pulled it out at the end We’ve been in that boat for most of the year it was just too big of a hole to crawl out of But this loss doesn’t take away from what this team has accomplished this season as a team.” Not only did they dominate the dual schedule but the Flivvers also won four tournaments outright this season — St They were also co-champions at the Marinette Border Battle “It was the best season we had in recent memory,” Groleau added They really became a close-knit group and they were a fun group to watch as a team.” Senior Reed Degroot kicked off the match for Kingsford at 126 pounds He picked up a decision win over Gladstone’s Connor Britton Senior Nolan Hendrickson followed that up with a pin at 144 pounds Tegan Ray picked up a forfeit at 144 pounds Tyler Bray grabbed a technical fall win at 157 and Max Sundquist won at 175-pounds by pin Kingsford couldn’t overtake the Braves Mason Tappy and Connor White also picked up forfeit wins Now the Flivvers turn their attention to individual districts in Grayling on Saturday “We had a great season but we are not done,” Groleau said “Now we can focus on individuals and try to get as many of those kids down to Ford Field.” The loss does mean the end of the road for Kingsford’s four seniors — Degroot Brettin Rouse and Tappy — in terms of team competitions “I do want to say thank you to our seniors Reed Degroot Brettin Rouse and Mason Tappy,” Groleau said “I am proud and honored to have coached these four young men.” Saturday’s action is available to stream at https://www.nfhsnetwork.com/events/grayling-high-school-grayling-mi/gam4fe7b732c1 Kingsford senior Gavin Grondin (20) drives in for a layup and over the top of Negaunee’s Kyle Waterman (20) on Friday in Flivver Gym (Terry Raiche photo) the Kingsford Flivvers boys basketball program has produced many successful teams and several district champions But none ever did what the 2024-25 team did Friday night Behind a pestering and hounding defense and a 29-point effort from star senior Gavin Grondin the Flivvers captured their third consecutive MHSAA Division 2 District 33 trophy with a 58-31 triumph over Negaunee at Flivver Gym it is the first time a Flivvers boys basketball team has won three straight district championships Current Flivver head coach Ben Olsen credited former varsity head coach Dan Olkkonen winner of the first two district titles in the current streak as well as youth level coach Ryan Grondin for allowing him to get “a great group of kids who have been well coached throughout the years.” “It’s a pretty incredible accomplishment,” Olsen began “Winning districts is not easy and we have been able to do it in back-to-back-to-back years and we can continue to be competitive and win a few more along the way.” The three stalwarts of the KHS boys basketball class of 2025 — Grondin Morgan Sleik and Gavin Trevillian — now hold an honor no other Flivvers have “We’ve had a good couple of teams the last few years and managed to get it done three times,” said the Lake Superior State-bound Grondin to do it on our home court in front of my family and all the fans with the guys I’ve played with since day one While the Flivver offense didn’t get on track until the third quarter their defense thwarted the Miners’ attack for long stretches at a time Kingsford (19-3) held Negaunee to just one point in the opening five minutes of the contest and took a 14-6 lead into the second quarter The Flivvers (19-3) then stymied the Miners for the final 3½ minutes of the second period to head into the halftime break with a 22-11 edge Then after the teams got on track offensively in the third quarter Kingsford put the finishing touches on top of their win by pitching a shutout in the final quarter “We worked a lot on jumping to the ball on defense and trying to make sure we didn’t get picked off and making sure we were in the right spot at the right time to make plays,” Sleik said “We knew they were a bunch of shooters and we knew we were going to have trouble if they got hot so we knew we had to run them off the 3-point line,” Grondin added kept their scorers quiet and got out with the ‘W.'” While their defense was on point all night the Flivvers did not find success on the offensive end until the second half Kingsford did not record its first field goal until the 3:59 mark when Trevillian hit a layup off an out-of-bounds play who got the Flivvers on the scoreboard with a free throw at the 6:36 mark of the opening period registered a putback with 3:33 left to give Kingsford a 5-1 lead Grondin then ran off his team’s next nine points on four free throws a 3-pointer and driving bucket to stake the Flivvers to a 14-6 advantage after one quarter Kingsford managed just eight points in the second period highlighted by a follow-up dunk from Sleik After recording just 22 points in the first half the Flivvers equaled that total in the third quarter alone we had to lock in defensively because that’s why we still maintained our lead going into half,” Grondin said of the halftime session that we were going to get our shots and they’re going to start falling and it turned out they started falling.” “We just came out in the second half and we wanted to put it on them,” he said Grondin scored in transition to begin the third quarter and sandwiched a triple around two layups by Kriegl to put Kingsford up 31-17 with 4:55 left in the quarter The Miners then cut their deficit to eight on a 3-pointer each from Holden Meyer and Easton Guenette but sophomore Jeff Buckley drained a deep triple from the top to restore Kingsford’s double-digit lead Negaunee sophomore guard/forward Kyle Waterman kept his team afloat in the third with nine of his team-high 13 points But Grondin ran off Kingsford’s last seven points of the third to keep his team up 44-31 heading into the fourth The Flivvers put the game away with a 9-0 run to start the final period Grondin began the run with a triple before Buckley followed with two free throws Olkkonen hit a put-back and Grondin sank two more free throws the Miners seemed spent both physically and mentally and were unable to dent the scoreboard from there the Flivvers looked forward to their next step and even beyond “We’ve been saying since the beginning of the year it’s ‘Breslin Center or bust,'” Sleik said referring to the site of the Division 2 state semifinals and final “I don’t have any problem with them setting high goals like that,” Olsen said “Shoot for the moon and end up among the stars.” “That’s the plan,” Grondin added prepare for the next game and live and go on.” Next up along that possible path for Kingsford is a regional semifinal against Boyne City (13-10) on Tuesday at Manistique High School Boyne City advanced by defeating Cheboygan (15-9) 50-48 in the District 34 final on Friday The Flivvers and the Ramblers last met two years ago when Kingsford knocked off Boyne City 69-56 in a regional semifinal matchup We champion people to be well and thrive every single day We’ve been earning people’s trust since 1913 Our commitment to corporate responsibility guides the business decisions we make Our commitments to social and environmental sustainability Find out why Clorox is the place you’ll love There’s starting to be a slight nip in the air It’s the first taste of fall and the kickoff of college football season in the U.S Kingsford is tapping into our consumers’ affinity for this annual sports ritual through a new media partnership that will encourage more occasions to extend our own favorite season: grilling season focusing on states in the south central and southeastern U.S where ideal grilling conditions can push well into the fall will highlight passionate tailgate enthusiasts who live and breathe the art of community and togetherness through sports We’ll have a presence at six tailgates at key games throughout the season starting with a powerhouse matchup between Georgia and Alabama on Sept 28 and ending with the first Lonestar Showdown since 2011 between Texas and Texas A&M on Nov We’ll show off a custom 1976 Ford F-250 pickup truck branded with the classic Kingsford color scheme in what’s sure to be a fan-favorite photo op And we’ll produce over 1,000 custom tailgate bags across eight university partners creating the ultimate keepsake for college football and Kingsford fans alike It’s all about meeting consumers where they are and delivering an innovative experience for them — a key part of our company’s IGNITE strategy We’ll reach an engaged audience with least 30 million impressions through this campaign featuring video So, follow @Kingsford on Facebook, Instagram and TikTok as we travel from stadium to stadium scoring big wins for our consumers on and off the field Kingsford played North Central in High School Bowl and won by a score of 190-120 Thirty-six schools from the Upper Peninsula and Northern Wisconsin compete in WNMU-TV’s High School Bowl tournament Kingsford will advance to the second round when they play Menominee team captain Taylor Koski and Anja Bradley Standing are alternates Kaija Hill and Kaylee Caldwell with coach Colleen Driscoll Standing are alternates Chloe Britton and Brady Lundin with coach Matt Stein High School Bowl host Jim Koski is standing at lower left Running from November through the championship game in April the High School Bowl series airs on WNMU TV Saturdays at 8 p.m It is also available statewide on the Michigan Learning Channel Find more information on the 2024-2025 tournament at wnmutv.nmu.edu All Dickinson County voters can vote early starting Saturday at Kingsford City Hall Voters can expect a similar voting experience as Election Day because ballots can be cast in the tabulator machine It is a convenient location for many Dickinson County voters and they are likely to have shorter wait times for voting than on Election Day It also gives voters the opportunity to vote with family and friends who may live in different districts KINGSFORD — Eight sophomores from Kingsford High School ­– Laelonii Miner Sophia Fornetti and Mara Tripp — have been nominated to attend the Michigan Youth Leadership conference at Michigan State University Students attending this conference must be a sophomore and have positive character traits with demonstrated leadership potential MYLead participants experience enhanced self-confidence take time to understand different leadership styles A key ingredient to these outcomes is the opportunity to interact with peer leaders from across the state Bottesi is the son of Rick and Amber Bottesi of Kingsford Brunswick is the daughter of Michael and Amy Brunswick of Breitung Township Burrell is the daughter of Josh and Kristen Burrell of Breitung Township Fornetti is the daughter of Paul and Angela Fornetti of Breitung Township Flivver Family and Student Leadership Alliance Lockhart is the son of Matt and Jamie Lockhart of Breitung Township He has been a member of Key Club and French Club Miner is the daughter of Thomas and Christyne Miner of Iron Mountain She has been a member of KHS Academic Booster Club and the children’s ministry at her church Noasconi is the daughter of Steve and Sarah Noasconi of Breitung Township She has been a member of Key Club and French Club She also participates in volleyball and track Tripp is the daughter of Eric and Kay Tripp of Iron Mountain She has been a member of Key Club and Senior Craft Connections A crowd moves through the booths at the annual Daily News Spring Craft Show in 2024 The show offers 80 booths with more than 70 vendors crafters and businesses from throughout the Upper Peninsula and northern Wisconsin Items for sale range from handmade jewelry to blankets A complete listing of vendors is in Wednesday’s Daily News The Kingsford Music Booster Club will have a concession stand The show raises money for Newspapers in Education a non-profit program that provides teachers and educators at area schools with newspapers and other resources KINGSFORD — The hallways at Kingsford High and Middle School will soon be transformed into an art gallery in preparation of the Association of Student Artists Exhibition on Monday Public viewing April 14 will take place from 4 to 6 p.m. with light refreshments available from 5:30 to 6 p.m Organizers will also have a hashtag sculpture activity using blocks with written hashtag messages for guests to create while they wait for the awards ceremony to begin at 6 p.m. art teacher for the Goodman-Armstrong Creek School District The 31st-annual show will feature more than 600 pieces from area high school art students in a wide variety of mediums charcoal and graphite drawings; 3-D sculptures; macrame; and digital “We are completely open to what they want to submit but it must be from the 2024-25 school year,” Johnson said THE ANNUAL ASSOCIATION of Student Artists Exhibition is set for Monday A variety of mediums — including paintings paintings and pottery — can be viewed from 4 to 6 p.m. with the awards ceremony beginning at 6 p.m Kingsford High School student Alex Ryan shows her clay coil basket ASA school participants that will have work on display are Kingsford West Iron County in Iron River and Forest Park in Crystal Falls; plus Florence Beecher-Dunbar-Pembine and Goodman-Armstrong Creek in Wisconsin This year’s theme is “Building Community Through the Arts.” “I think it’s perfect — ASA is building an art community outside just the Iron Mountain-Kingsford area,” Johnson said who was involved in ASA under KHS Art Teacher Sarah Western her four years of high school said her biggest goal when she was hired at G-AC in 2022 was to get her students involved She was not only successful but had one of her art students win the People’s Choice Award that first year “Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design — MIAD — granted her a scholarship West Iron County School District also came on board that same year with Forest Park becoming the newest member this year “I’m so happy it’s expanding — this allows the opportunity for more young students to be able to showcase their talent in the area of visual arts,” she said “It also provides a chance for them to receive recognition for their hard work.” along with the naming of Best in Show and People’s Choice The public is encouraged to vote for their favorite piece during the two-hour viewing time Ballots will be counted and announced live at the event Merit Awards are done differently each year This year’s recipients will receive a trophy and Best in Show and People’s Choice will be presented with a surprise gift Several students can also earn scholarships based on their portfolio review presented to the multiple college judges “It’s a great opportunity for them to realize that art is more than just creating that one piece — it could be a future career,” Johnson said from designing clothes or buildings to content creators for social media.” Johnson explained she was able to attend and graduate from Milwaukee Institute Art and Design because she received a scholarship through ASA Participating colleges will also have representatives and information tables set up during the exhibition “It’s incredible to see how talented these students are,” she said sweat and tears into their projects and care deeply about what they are doing.” The ASA was founded during the 1993-1994 school year as a way to integrate high school art students into the local communities and to promote art education saw the quality works of students coming into the shop to get framed and wanted to help honor their hard work and creativity Stevens met with the Iron Mountain and Kingsford art teachers to create a plan Original ASA members included art teachers Wayne Wilson Residents Elsa Brule and Sashi Mahadev stepped forward to provide the funding for the Artist of the Month luncheons at the Chippewa Club for the art students and teachers Brule also supported the organization by creating the easel program working with Don Khory of Khory Manufacturing the Association of Student Artists hosts five “Artist of the Month” luncheons each school year critique session and a featured guest artist Johnson said each school does voting differently; however no names are attached to the artwork — everything remains anonymous “Art is a great way to express emotion I love to see these students thrive in the classroom,” she said “We are continuously building community.” ASA expressed their appreciation for the support they received over the years including Tamara Juul of the Dickinson County Community Foundation Jon Pryor of First Bank and members of the Chippewa Club “We are very thankful to all the businesses and individuals that cherish the arts as much as we do because we do want to keep this alive,” she said Johnson encourages everyone to attend the event and witness the students’ talents firsthand but donations will be accepted at the door Gladstone freshman Alex Prins (white jersey) drives to the basket during a Great Northern Conference basketball game on Jan GLADSTONE — Kingsford boys’ basketball proved why it’s the No with a 62-34 Great Northern Conference win over Gladstone on Thursday “We knew coming in that (Kingsford) was going to bring energy and play fast Our kids needed to see that,” Braves coach Jake Kiesby said “Kingsford sets a standard on how to be successful because they’ve been successful for the past few years but the only way to experience it is to see it 2-1 GNC) claimed the game’s first nine points and claimed a 21-3 lead after eight minutes of play Senior Gavin Grondin and junior Jett Buckley were responsible for all 21 of Kingsford’s points closing the first half with a 39-11 lead entering the locker room Grondin knocked down 15 of his game-best 25 points in the first half “We’ve been working on defending people in the half court with a lot of pressure and denying passes away,” Olsen said “That gave Gladstone a lot of problems It’s been giving pretty much everyone problems other than marquette and that’s what got us a little bit of a lead and extend it.” Olsen was quick to point out the importance of Thursday’s win If the Flivvers want a chance to claim at least a share of the GNC title they have to run the table “We have to go on the road and take care of business and I thought we did that tonight,” Olsen said “Every road game in the GNC is tough You have to come out with the mindset of wanting to win.” 2 Flivvers are eying a GNC title and another deep postseason run The young Braves squad continues their quest for growth and development throughout the 2024-25 campaign Kiesby had one particular goal before the game It was written out on the whiteboard before tip-off: match the energy “We knew there were X’s and O’s we knew we had to do things to (contain) Grondin and their other guards and they’re great shooters,” Kiesby explained “But we can’t get to that point until these guys learn how to compete 2 Flivvers play host to the all too familiar Iron Mountain Mountaineers on Tuesday night “It’s a great atmosphere,” said Olsen “I wish every kid could play in a game where the communities come out like they do for this game It’s a packed environment and the gym is loud I’m fortunate to have played in it and now fortunate to coach in it.” Erickson 2; FT: 4-6; Fouls: 5; 3-point baskets: Grondin 3 Reynolds 9; FT: 1-5; Fouls: 5; 3-point baskets: Davey 1 — Bay College baseball tripped south over the weekend for a Saturday and Sunday doubleheader .. and Max Sundquist pose for a photo ahead of the MHSAA Division 3 state wrestling finals in Detroit at Ford Field DETROIT — With six wrestlers making the trip to Ford Field for the MHSAA Division 3 state finals the Kingsford varsity wrestling team had a good chance of bringing hardware back to the Upper Peninsula The Flivvers ended the weekend in Detroit with two wrestlers on the podium — Max Sundquist and Ginger Majurin Sundquist took third place in the 175-pound bracket The sophomore also placed fourth at the state final last season coming back after losing his semifinal match,” Kingsford head coach Darren Groleau said “Max has put together a really impressive first two years in high school now as a two-time state placer He is well on his way to being our first four-time state qualifier and state placer if he keeps up this rate.” “Ginger had an incredible freshman season,” Groleau said “Not only was she our first-ever female state qualifier she is now our first-ever female state placer “Out of 224 wrestlers in the girls division only 26 of them were freshmen and only 13 of them placed We are so proud of her and all of her accomplishments.” Reed Degroot and Brettin Rouse also qualified for the state tournament Rouse lost his first two matches at 190 pounds and was eliminated Bray went 1-2 at 150 pounds while Ray went 1-2 at 132 pounds “I know they were a little disappointed in coming up short and not making the podium but it doesn’t take away that they both had amazing seasons,” Groleau said “Our seniors Reed Degroot and Brettin Rouse left it all out there on the mat and did amazing work for us this season Reed became a two-time state qualifier for us and also made the All-State academic team to make it down to Ford Field was a huge accomplishment We are so incredibly proud to have him these past two seasons.” the daughter of Edward and Winifred (Straub) Kingsford of Iron Mountain and Minnie (Flaherty) Kingsford of whom Henry Ford insisted the town be named after She was married to William (Bill) Newton in 1951 and had five children: Jody Newton (Gray Holmes) William (Pat) Newton (Wendy Gibson) and Jennifer Newton She was preceded in death by an infant brother Jordan; her husband in 1977; and recently her son She was also preceded in death by special friend Nita Englund and Lucas Holmes (Matt Connor) Katie leaves many other dear friends including Katie was strong-willed and rebellious as a young adult and earned her undergraduate degrees at Bennington College Katie had a love of horses and when she and Bill purchased the former Eagle Lake Dairy in Spread Eagle they quickly stocked it with many equines and started a tradition that continues to this day boat and ski trips featuring all her children The sunshine came in when Katie and Bill made a trip with good friends Martha and Don Vreeland to see a production of the musical “Hair.” Her children wore that vinyl out Katie’s middle life consisted of pursuing a graduate degree at NMU and then traveling in a Ford Pinto with her daughter Jenny to Mexico to teach Journalism and College Prep Escaping Monterrey and an attempted kidnapping she eventually arrived in Steamboat Springs in 1974 where she would live the rest of her life In Steamboat she was able to pursue her passion of downhill skiing until she was 89 As a ski instructor and a member of The Over the Hill Gang at Mount Werner she met many life-long friends and introduced many to the sport Katie was also a Master Gardener and established the gardens at Selbe Apartments where she lived until recently She also had a great vegetable and strawberry garden at The Barn with Gerry and helped establish and maintain the gardens at her children’s homes Katie was a lifelong voracious reader and kept current on the latest in medical information with her progeny receiving frequent clippings A summer 2025 service is planned at The Farm for her and son Hugh She insists you read some of Gavin Menzies’ books including “The Lost Empire of Atlantis.” You can also pull a weed in her memory NEW KINGSFORD PUBLIC SAFETY K-9 Scout attended the city council meeting Monday to receive his certification and was “sworn in” by Mayor Joseph Groeneveld From left are council members Cynthia Dixon-Miller and Daniel Freeman; Officer Rodney Woodward with K-9 partner Scout; Groeneveld; council member Michael Flaminio; City Attorney Henry McRoberts; council member Dennis Baldinelli; and City Manager Mike Stelmaszek KINGSFORD — Kingsford Public Safety’s first K-9 officer was sworn in and received his certification at Monday’s council meeting a 17-month-old Dutch shepherd from the Netherlands but it’s been great,” Woodward said “He knows how to turn it on and turn it off.” Woodward and Scout attended a five-week intensive team-building course at D&D K9 Dynamics in Gladstone They received certification from Sammi Grzybowski a master trainer with the National Association of Professional Canine Handlers Munger told the council that Scout is an outstanding dog suspect apprehension and handler protection “It’s been a good addition,” Public Safety Director Brandon Rutter said Woodward is married to Lana and they have three children and a pug Scout is the second K-9 added in local law enforcement this year joined the Dickinson County Sheriff’s Office in June Both were added after Iron Mountain Police Department retired Falcon in February after more than eight years of service IMPD decided against another K-9 due to personnel limitations Senior Gavin Grondin fires a pitch during the second inning against Crivitz Friday afternoon Grondin worked the first two innings for Kingsford — A last-inning letdown spoiled opening day for the Kingsford varsity baseball team Friday afternoon as Crivitz plated three unearned runs in their final at-bat and defeated the Flivvers 3-2 in a non-conference matchup “We played six innings of great baseball and unfortunately we walked three guys in the bottom of the seventh and made some ill-timed errors,” said Flivvers head coach Joe Kriegl last season’s Great Northern Conference Coach of the Year “In close games and against good teams like Crivitz had held Crivitz to just one hit through the first six innings but the three walks in the bottom of the seventh set the table for Crivitz to steal the win The first run came in when some miscommunication between the Kingsford infield and outfield resulted in a minor collision in shallow right and a dropped pop up Crivitz rolled into what should have been a game-ending double play The ball was scooped at shortstop and flipped to second for one but the throw to first went wide and past the bag allowing both the tying and winning runs to score It took a while for the Kingsford bats to get going in the game which was Kingsford’s first action outdoors this spring with all practices to date being held inside The Flivvers were retired in order in three of the first four innings with their only baserunner coming via a lead off walk in the second But that all changed for Kingsford in the fifth inning Senior Gavin Trevillian led off the inning with a single through the left side A walk to senior Nolan Hendrickson followed by a stolen base gave the Flivvers runners on second and third with two out and senior Gavin Grondin came through by drilling a two-run double to the gap in left center Andres Finley and Nic Novara all worked the mound for Kingsford with the lefty Novara shouldering the loss in the final frame the Flivvers figure to dominate the conference this spring Kingsford returns just about its entire roster from a season ago with a strong and talented group of seven seniors leading the way Trevillian shared Pitcher of the Year honors last season and Finley was Co-Offensive Player of the Year The GNC All Defensive team included Trevillian Brown and Grondin were also GNC First Team picks Hendrickson and sophomore Jonah Doenier were GNC Second Team selections Kingsford’s upperclassman group also includes juniors Jake Deuter and Cole Baciak Good numbers among the underclassmen will allow for more roster flexibility and a full dedicated junior varsity squad The JV team posted a 13-0 victory against Crivitz after the varsity contest Friday “I like the team chemistry,” Kriegl said “These guys have played a lot of sports together The truth is that on paper we’re as good as we’ve ever been “So hopefully we’ll be able to do that moving forward “Overall I’m happy with the pitching today,” Kriegl said I appreciate being able to put Crivitz on the schedule and come down here and play them “We didn’t hit the ball particularly well but it’s the first game and hopefully we’ll get better.” Kingsford heads to Oconto Falls on Thursday The Flivvers’ home opener is slated for Monday EAST LANSING — When head coach Ben Olsen took over the Kingsford boys varsity basketball program at the beginning of the season he had one goal in mind — making it to the Breslin Center but ran into a loaded Romulus Summit Academy North (24-3 The Dragons pounced on Kingsford early and held on to secure a 52-40 win in the MHSAA Division 2 state semifinals in the Breslin Center “We got down early and the pressure got to us a little bit,” Olsen said “We just weren’t able to climb out of that hole We talked about how important it was to start quick and get a lead we had to go get them and that’s not our style They’re a disciplined team and they did what they needed to do Kingsford senior Morgan Sleik (12) waits for the opening tip-off on Friday in the Breslin Center Although the Flivvers fell short of the ultimate goal making the Breslin accomplished a childhood dream for senior Gavin Grondin coach gave us a piece of paper and told us to write our goals down,” Grondin said “Every single one of us had make it to the Breslin We fell short of our ultimate goal — a state championship with the guys that I love the most.” All season long the Flivvers have made a name for themselves playing stingy defense Romulus Summit Academy North took a page out of Kingsford’s book “They did to us what we do to other teams,” Olsen said We keep games in the 40s and then score just enough to win The script was flipped on us tonight.” Grondin entered the game averaging 24.9 points per game something Dragons head coach Derek “D.J.” Clark was well aware of Kingsford senior Gavin Grondin (20) drives to the basket for a layup attempt during Friday’s MHSAA Division 2 state semifinal “We tried to keep the ball out of his hands,” Clark said “You can’t score without the ball.” “Their pressure was uptempo the whole game,” Grondin said “They were denying me at the beginning but I was able to show I could get downhill on them in the second half They’re a great defensive team that’s firing on all cylinders.” The teams battled through the opening minutes and Romulus Summit Academy North held a 4-3 advantage They went on a 12-3 run over the final five minutes of the frame and took a 16-6 advantage into the second The Flivvers found their footing in the second quarter A Grondin 3-pointer cut the deficit to five points with three minutes left in the frame Romulus kept the pressure on and went on another run It ended the quarter on a 9-0 run and took a 30-16 advantage into halftime ‘We’ve just got to keep fighting there’s no 14-point shot,'” Grondin said “You’ve got to take it one shot ‘one heartbeat,’ and that’s what this team has,” senior Morgan Sleik said The Flivvers came out of the locker room in attack mode and managed to cut the lead to 12 off a Jack Kriegl mid-range jumper “That’s these kids,” Olsen said “This group of guys has been playing together since the third grade And we’re not just talking basketball It’s a group of kids that are resilient for each other “We said we weren’t going to stop until that horn blew but they kept chipping at us,” Grondin said Romulus closed the quarter on a 7-2 run and took a 42-25 lead into the final frame cutting the deficit back down to 12 points late The loss means the end of the road for Kingsford’s five seniors –Grondin “It means everything,” Olsen said “That’s what’s tough about the end of a season This core group of guys won’t ever be together really good basketball players that are going to be hard to replace We’re going to miss these seniors for sure.” Although the Flivvers didn’t get the result they wanted and it felt like a darn home game today,” Olsen said “The love that the community has given us “We’re so far away from home and it really truly felt like a home game tonight “The stands are all blue,” he said “It was an awesome experience and atmosphere Thank you to all the people who came out.” Grondin’s 12 points led the Flivvers Kingsford also received contributions from Owen Olkkonen (2 points