BY BOB BURNS For more than 10 years the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Michigan Department of Environment Great Lakes and Energy (EGLE) have been studying a number of contaminated sediment areas along the Detroit River. The contaminated sediments reflect a century of municipal and industrial activities and discharges along the Detroit River shoreline. Such activities have impacted some of the river’s beneficial uses such as swimming and fishing. Because of these “Beneficial Use Impairments” (BUIs), the Detroit River and 42 other sites around the Great Lakes were designated as Great ..read more

Jazmyn Bernard BY JAZMYN BERNARD Snow is falling, the nights are getting longer, and stores are playing holiday music; these are all signs that winter has begun. For many, the fresh snow, sweets, and holiday cheer can bring a lot of joy and happiness during this time, but for some, the winter season can cause their mood to drop. How could a specific season put someone in a poor mood? After many years of research, scientists have found that some people suffer from Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). According to the Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research (MFMER), this disorder is ..read more

Lily Paschke BY LILY PASCHKE       Gabriel Richard The Gabriel Richard community has been very busy recently. Winter sports have started in earnest, and Gabriel Richard is doing quite well. Final exams will begin shortly on Dec. 20 and although most students are not looking forward to the tests, they do signal that the semester is coming to an end. Final exams will be tough, but students at Gabriel Richard are looking forward to the long and much-needed break. Gabriel Richard will have half days on Dec. 20 through Dec. 22, and will have Dec. 23 through Jan. 10 off. The studen ..read more

Front row: Maranda Ferguson (left), Lily Bargamian, Briana Syrocki, Anna Malonson, Anthony Joly-Naso and Joey Gall. Back row: Jonathan Duke, Tyler Swick, Jimmy Souilliere, Harrison Lee and Erika Pietras. Not pictured is Cecilia Lind. Grosse Ile High School’s Athletic Department recently announced the Most Valuable Players for the 2021 fall sports season.  School officials said the Most Valuable Player (MVP) is awarded to a player on a team who has had the largest impact in a positive way on the team on and off the playing field.   This award is chosen by the team coaches. Winn ..read more

Todd Weston BY TODD WESTON   This past October saw the beginning of two new annual events at the Detroit River International Wildlife Refuge. To celebrate National Wildlife Refuge Week, usually the second week in October, The National Wildlife Refuge System and the Public Lands Alliance partnered with Virtual Running Club to create the Walk for the Wild 5k Challenge.   This challenge was created to raise awareness to the increasing amount of time people spend indoors — for many it is up to 95 percent of their day!  With the understanding of how spending time in natur ..read more

John Hartig BY JOHN HARTIG   Editor’s Note: Trenton resident and Detroit River authority John Hartig is a regular contributor to the Great Lakes-oriented publication Great Lakes Now, which is an online initiative of Detroit Public TV. This article originally was published as Hartig’s monthly “Great Lakes Moment” column. For more of Hartig’s writing on river-related topics, visit greatlakesnow.org  Sugar Island sits like a gemstone on a jeweled necklace of islands surrounding the southern end of Grosse Ile — the largest island in the Detroit River. For nearl ..read more

Sherri Gramlich BY SHERRI GRAMLICH   Selling your house isn’t the simplest process and there can be some bumps along the way that call for an adjustment. Before you dive into the entire experience, first you need to determine what you want from your real estate agent.   There are thousands of agents to choose from, but how do you know which one will be best for you? While some agents put the For Sale sign in the ground and call it a day, others will go above and beyond to professionally market your home so you receive the best offers from serious buyer ..read more

“Ethan improved so much throughout the course of the year for a variety of different reasons,” Coach Adam Sayre said. BY BRIAN RZEPPA    Though he first took up  the sport just over a year ago, Trenton High School senior Ethan Rooney was able to turn heads in just his second season as a member of the cross country team.  In his first year as the head coach of the team, it didn’t take long for Adam Sayre to realize the talent that Rooney possessed. Though he went in with a blank slate for every member of his team, Rooney stood out to Sayre very early on ..read more

Grosse Ile Nature and Land Conservancy President Peter Kantz presents the group’s Conservationist of the Year Award to Lori Riopelle and lays out some of the organization’s plans for 2022 during last month’s annual meeting at Centennial Farm.                 The Grosse Ile Nature and Land Conservancy held its Annual Members Meeting at Centennial Farm on Saturday, Oct. 30. Following the lead of last year’s COVID-19 impacted annual meeting, the agenda was kept brief and the meeting held outdoors under the pavilion.   Around 25 member ..read more

Island House owner Krishelle Kohler Island House is located on Macomb Street. BY BRIAN RZEPPA    Known for her work in elder care in the Downriver area over the past three decades, which includes owning Trenton’s Coach Stop Manor for over two decades of that time, Krishelle Kohler’s career is about to come full circle with her latest venture.  Set to open at the start of the year on Macomb Street, the Island House for Senior Living brings Kohler back to Grosse Ile, the town she grew up in and currently calls home.  By opening Island House, Kohler looks to build upon a n ..read more