A Glimpse Through The Thousand-Yard Stare
Darren Bettinger, Midwest Energy & Communications
Growing up on the lake, I always looked forward to visits from my grandfather. He lived out of the...
Old Friends
By J. Joseph Mapes, a Midwest Energy & Communications member
It has been said that “old friends are the bestfriends.” I surely agree. Growing up...
Sweet Surprises
By Paige Hutter, Great Lakes Energy Cooperative member.
It’s 7 a.m. and I sit up in bed, dreading the bitter cold waiting outside. I rub...
The Turtle Race Tradition
By Jean Alexander, Great Lakes Energy member. Jean enjoys sports, nature and going “up north” to Michigan as often as possible.
Every summer since 1986 our family travels...
Picking Out My Own Game Jersey
There’s nothing more fitting in this world than picking out your own game jersey. Ask any sports player. The sweat and sacrifice are monumental...
Little Teacher, Big Lesson
Isn’t it amazing when kids teach you something you already know but haven’t bothered to practice? My 3-year-old grandson Lincoln schooled me recently. You...
A North Woods Matriarch
By Janet Horricks, a HomeWorks Tri-County Cooperative member
My great-grandmother and great-grandfather, Leatha and Charles Malinowski, lived in Sigma, Michigan, a small abandoned logging town...
There’s Magic In A Frog Pond
By Steve Begnoche, Great Lakes Energy member
Two ponds near our Upper Peninsula cottage along the shore of Lake Superior’s Whitefish Bay are mere puddles compared...
Grandma Grace
By Rik Cryderman, Presque Isle Electric & Gas Co-op member. Rik is a retired hospital chaplain who worked for Beaumont Health for more than 30...
Farmyard Memories: The Chickens That Followed My Father
By Stanley Hagemeyer, a Great Lakes Energy cooperative member
When I was growing up, our family lived on a farm with four cows, about 20...
















