January 07, 2026

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Articles for author: Cynthia Furlong Reynolds

Washtenaw’s Warm the Children Faces Record Need as Winter Sets In

Washtenaw’s Warm the Children Faces Record Need as Winter Sets In

“The fact that many of our neighbors are hurting financially is no surprise, but this year too many children in Washtenaw County are facing a particularly cold winter without boots, warm coats, gloves, and mittens,” says Mary Stewart, who heads the non-profit organization Warm the Children. The heart-warming, children-warming program is working hard to help ...

Kiwanis and Dementia-Friendly Services Halloween with a Mission

Kiwanis and Dementia-Friendly Services Halloween with a Mission

“Fall Frolic” the sign proclaimed, welcoming Halloween partygoers to the Kiwanis headquarters on Jackson Road one day before the official trick-or-treat night.Guests who didn’t arrive in costume were offered crazy hats or robes before the fun began for a very special gathering. Adults suffering with dementia and their caregivers were treated to noon-time fun, including ...

Michigan’s Report Cards Have Been Sent Home

Michigan’s Report Cards Have Been Sent Home

Photo by diane39 Michigan’s schools have received their report cards, and many are full of failing grades. According to the Michigan Student Test of Educational Programs (known as M-STEP), on average across the state, only three of five third-grade students can read proficiently. That means two out of five third-graders cannot read to their grade ...

The Sun Times News has News of Its Own

The Sun Times News has News of Its Own

Photo: (L-R) Creative Designer Nina Letterly, Editor Doug Marrin, TRUiC CEO Nagabhushanam “Bobbi” Peddi, STN Publisher/TRUiC COO Ashley Hiser, and Director of Business Development Ashley Damm. Photo by Priscilla Creswell. Once upon a time, not so long ago, newspapers were the primary source of news for the average American—in fact, in the nineteenth century, Chelsea ...

Kiwanis Voucher Days Help Families Start Fresh

Kiwanis Voucher Days Help Families Start Fresh

Every Thursday, Kiwanis volunteers help families in need furnish their homes for free, offering dignity, hope, and a fresh start in Washtenaw County. On a blustery winter Thursday, clusters of excited shoppers, accompanied by Kiwanis volunteers and flatbeds, tour the Kiwanis Thrift Sale showrooms, searching for everything a home needs: microwaves and mixers, tables and ...

March 31 Deadline Looms as Washtenaw Fights to Prevent Foreclosures

March 31 Deadline Looms as Washtenaw Fights to Prevent Foreclosures

With the foreclosure redemption deadline fast approaching, Washtenaw County’s Treasurer’s Office is working to keep struggling homeowners in their homes. Property foreclosures. Tax liens. Evictions. Those words can send shivers down anyone’s spine. They remind us of portly bankers wearing three-piece suits and gold watch chains forcing poor families out of their homes. Historically, Washtenaw ...

Cynthia Furlong Reynolds

Sweet Tradition: The Sly Family’s Maple Syrup Legacy

Sweet Tradition: The Sly Family’s Maple Syrup Legacy

Bob and Elsi Sly keep a cherished family tradition alive, crafting pure maple syrup the old-fashioned way on their Hickory Lea homestead in Dexter. By Cynthia Furlong Reynolds “Follow your nose, and you’ll find us,” Elsi Sly assures winter guests. She’s right. Shortly after dusk on a cold, starry night, visitors easily follow the enticing ...

Holocaust Survivor, Friend of Anne Frank, and U-M Professor Emeritus Irene Butter’s Lifelong Mission to Share Her Story

Holocaust Survivor, Friend of Anne Frank, and U-M Professor Emeritus Irene Butter’s Lifelong Mission to Share Her Story

Washtenaw Resident Irene Butter Continues to Share Her Holocaust Story and Advocate for Human Rights By Cynthia Furlong Reynolds “I didn’t ask to go through the Holocaust, but I was saved through the miracles of luck and the love and determination of my Pappi,” says retired U-M professor Irene Hasenberg Butter, 94. “I learned that ...

Warm the Children: A Community Effort to Keep Washtenaw Kids Cozy This Winter

Warm the Children: A Community Effort to Keep Washtenaw Kids Cozy This Winter

As temperatures drop, over 1,500 Washtenaw County children are staying warm thanks to the Kiwanis-sponsored “Warm the Children” program, led by Mary Stewart and a dedicated team of volunteers. Photo by Jon Tyson on Unsplash By the time the first snowflakes fell in mid-November, 1,537 local children were wearing new warm clothes provided by the Kiwanis-sponsored Warm the ...

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