Scott Rutherford continues fast to stop Eagle Mine

MARQUETTE -- In conjunction with U.P. Grassroots Campaign to Defend our Water and Stop the Eagle Mine, organized by WAVE (Water Action Vital Earth) and SWUP (Save the Wild UP), WAVE member Scott Rutherford of Hancock began an open-ended water-only fast on July 9, 2011.

During the July 9, 2011, Rally kicking off the UP Grassroots Campaign to Defend Our Water and Stop the Eagle Mine, WAVE member Scott Rutherford of Hancock announces his open-ended water-only fast. Rutherford addresses the crowd gathered in front of the Marquette County Courthouse for the rally, which included several speakers, chants and songs for the water. (Photo by Keweenaw Now)

The purpose of the fast is to say "NO" to the unknown and possibly devastating consequences of the mine and "YES" to protecting our water and assuring a sustainable future for our children.

Rutherford’s hope is that his fast will further the objectives of the Campaign to arouse and inspire the people of Michigan and others to make a renewed effort to block further development of this deeply flawed project that threatens our environment, especially our water resources, with irreparable damage. SWUP and WAVE want concerned citizens to contact Governor Snyder and tell him to halt work on the mine until a third-party Environmental Impact Statement (EIS), encompassing all aspects of the mining project, can be conducted.

Rutherford explains his fast as follows:

"In March Governor Snyder, in response to a well documented appeal from WAVE, refused to call a halt to the development of the Eagle Mine and order a much needed comprehensive Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). He was clearly placing the short term economic gain from the development of the mine above the risk of irreparable damage to our water resources and our health and well being for generations to come.

"I was morally anguished by his decision. My response is this fast. I perceive the fast as a way to nonviolently place myself between the Eagle Mine and our precious water resources and the people whose health and well being depend on them. If the Governor will not take responsibility for these matters, then we-the-people must do so.

"Through the fast I am bearing witness to a truth that places people over profits. The fast is also a prayer and a surrender to a higher power whose merciful, compassionate and wise intervention is so critically needed at this time.

"Perhaps the Governor will listen. Perhaps he will give some thought to his decision. Perhaps his conscience will tell him that he should do the right thing and suspend work on the mine."

Scott Rutherford is a 77-year-old resident of Hancock. A graduate of Dartmouth College, he served three years in the U.S. Navy. He worked for A.I.D for six years and for the Economic Development Administration for 19 years before retiring from government service in 1986. He is one of the founders of Omega House, the home for the terminally ill in Houghton, and was instrumental in the formation of the Western Upper Peninsula Health Care Access Coalition. He is married to the artist Joyce Koskenmaki. He has three children from a previous marriage and five grandchildren. He is a member of Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Houghton.

July 14th update on the fast:

By Scott Rutherford

I’m now in the seventh day of a water-only, open-ended fast in Marquette, Michigan, a hundred miles from home. So far so good. I’m watching myself very carefully, and am taking a product that will balance my electrolytes. I can tell that I’m not in the shape I was when I undertook fasts in 1989 and 1992, so I’m proceeding cautiously.

I’m not optimistic that we will succeed. But I am hopeful. Action brings hope. Moreover, I think that witness cannot be results-oriented. It is undertaken because it is the right thing to do.

I want the Campaign and my fast not only to halt the Eagle Mine but to serve as a catalyst for concerted action across the western UP to anticipate and resist future mines that are planned for our region. There has been and continues to be extensive exploration for new mines. Recently Kennecott Minerals began exploratory drilling in the Ottawa National Forest.

Monday through Thursday at 4:30 p.m. I will sit in front of the Post Office in Marquette with a sign to get my message out more widely to the people of Marquette. I’m also planning to do a blog and do something with Facebook and Twitter. We’ll see.

I am receiving a great deal of support, most especially from my wife, Joyce, for which I am very, very grateful.

I welcome your prayers for me and for the success of the Campaign. And WAVE will appreciate any support you might provide. For more information about the campaign, visit savethewildup.org.

Still time to enter annual NISGUA drawing for great prizes

HANCOCK -- It's not too late to enter the NISGUA (Network in Solidarity with the people of Guatemala) contest for a free trip to Guatemala or one of many other exciting prizes.

"First and foremost, when you donate $25 for a ticket (or multiples of $25 for multiple tickets), you become a partner in the work of NISGUA," says Sue Ellen Kinglsey, executive director of CCGAP (Copper Country Guatemala Accompaniment Project), the local human rights support organization working with NISGUA. "This is solidarity work; NISGUA doesn't give material 'development' to Guatemala. Our solidarity mission provides the security for Guatemalans to take chances in their struggle for basic human rights. And they do. Our Guatemalan partners have told our accompaniers again and again that our international presence and support gives them the will to continue the good fight for justice and economic and environmental rights. NISGUA needs your support to continue also."

Sue Ellen Kingsley, CCGAP (Copper Country Guatamala Accompaniment Project) executive director, with friends in Fronterizo, Guatemala. (Photo © Karen Endres and courtesy CCGAP)

A second benefit, Kingsley adds, is that you might win one of these prizes:

• Grand Prize is one round-trip ticket to Guatemala and one week of Spanish school (including materials and room and board with a family) at the Minerva Spanish School in Xela. If the winner prefers not to travel to Guatemala, he or she can choose a destination in the continental United States. Winner must contact NISGUA at least six weeks before desired dates of travel. Travel restrictions will apply.
  

• First Prize is $250 in cash.

• Second Prize is a piece of artwork from artist Marilyn Anderson. Examples of artist’s work can be viewed at ProArteMaya.
  

• Third Prize is a framed black and white photograph donated by longtime NISGUA friend Paula Worby.

• Fourth Prize is 10 hours of online Spanish classes with Celas Maya Spanish school, which now offers quality one-on-one instruction through Skype.
  

• Fifth Prize is a copy of Rescatando Nuestra Memoria, the latest book from award-winning photographer and longtime NISGUA supporter Jonathan Moller.

Runner Up Prizes include a variety of Guatemalan gifts -- crafts; fair-trade organic coffee and chocolate; a copy of The Business of Gold: Chronicle of a Conflict Foretold -- the powerful NISGUA-supported documentary about mining in Guatemala by filmmakers Gregory Lassalle and Marcos Perez; a copy of What War? Testimonies of Maya Survivors, the latest book by longtime Guatemala activist Laurie Levinger; a $100 gift certificate for Heart of the Sky Fair Trade and more ...

It's easy to enter: you could go to nisgua.org and do it online. That's easy. OR you could send Sue Ellen Kingsley a check made out to NISGUA, let her know how many times you want to enter ($25 per entry) and give her your contact information or the name of someone you wish to put on a winning ticket -- even your mother-in-law, Kingsley notes.

Send checks to NISGUA Chance for Peace, Sue Ellen Kingsley, 53044 State Hwy M203, Hancock MI 49930.

Don't wait! Do it now!

Music, dance events July 14, 15, 16

Several music events are happening this weekend in the Keweenaw and beyond ...

Cheap Therapy to play in Laurium TONIGHT, July 14

LAURIUM -- Cheap Therapy will be playing from 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. tonight, Thursday, July 14, at the beautiful Daniell Park in Laurium. Bring a lawn chair or blankey, your beverage of choice, or avail yourselves of the snack hut. Dancing encouraged! Celebrate Bastille Day!

Portage Library to host musical storytime July 16

HOUGHTON -- A mother and son duo will play old time, foot tapping, mountain tunes for kids at 10:15 a.m. Saturday, July 16, during Storytime at the Portage Lake District Library in Houghton.

Wendy Sharp on the banjo and Sal Sharp on the mandolin will play Ozark Mountain music and read stories that illustrate the joy of listening to and learning to play music. They will also talk about their instruments and explain how the unique sounds are produced. After their performance, kids will make their own musical instruments to take home.

Library programs are free and everyone is welcome. For more information, please call the library at 482-4570 or visit www.pldl.org.

A Little Bit of Outlaw to perform July 16 at Dance Zone in Marquette

MARQUETTE -- A Little Bit of Outlaw will perform from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m. on Saturday, July 16, at the Dance Zone in Marquette. This eclectic duo plays almost all kinds of music including ballroom, country, swing, oldies, jazz, etc., for your listening and dancing pleasure. The Dance Zone is at 1113 Lincoln Avenue (at College) in Marquette.

Admission charge is $6; $2 for full-time students. Please bring clean shoes to protect the dance floor. Call 906-225-5702 for more information.

Aura Jamboree is July 15-16

AURA, Mich. -- The Aura Jamboree Old Time Music Festival will celebrate 35 years this weekend, Friday and Saturday, July 15-16.

Visit their Web site for information: http://aurajamboree.com/

Updated: Long Walk of the Drum to be held July 17 on Yellow Dog Plains

From Save the Wild UP and WAVE:

MARQUETTE -- A Long Walk of the Drum will take place on the Yellow Dog Plains beginning at Noon on Sunday, July 17.

This berm and fence now surround the Rio Tinto / Kennecott mine site at Eagle Rock on the Yellow Dog Plains near Big Bay, Mich. Note crane in the background. Kennecott Eagle Minerals Company (KEMC), in the view of opponents, has illegally leased and obtained state permits for land at the mine site. KEMC says they plan to drill through Eagle Rock to access the nickel / copper ore body. (Click on photos for larger versions.)

"This was a dream . . . lots of people -- all kinds, walking to the beat of the drum . . . from one drum to the next . . . walking, head down, a solemn walk of the drum . . . three times around the site counter-clockwise."

This dream or vision was shared and expressed, separately, by two men. Both men dreamed of Eagle Rock surrounded by a fence with security men looking on as the "people" walked by to the sound of the drum.

On Sunday, July 17th, there will be a walk on the Yellow Dog Plains. Drummers will gather to offer their drum to this walk. It is not important that each person make the total four-mile trek. It is just important that many people gather to participate in the walk.

"Passing from one drum site to the next, the people will pass from one to the next until it is done."

This is not a protest with flags and banners. This is a continuing peaceful protest and effort to stop this mine on public lands and protect our environment. For the last nine years, we have attempted to bring reason, science and the will of the people to this long campaign. It is time to gather the people again, in a united consciousness, for this Long Walk of the Drum around Eagle Rock.

" . . . and the people will pass from one drum to the next until it is done."

Kennecott Eagle Minerals sign and security vehicle at Eagle Rock. The walkers intend to walk where the public is allowed. Walking along a road that is not gated, across private property to access public and/or CFA land is permissible.

Volunteers are needed to assist with the drum sites, which will also be rest stations for the walkers. If you and a friend are available to assist from 10 a.m. on Sunday the 17th until sunset you are needed. Two people per site is what the organizers are looking for. If you have a large tent or tarp that can be set up to give shade and rest -- that would be wonderful.

Please visit Stand for the Land for the logistics of camping on State public lands, fire danger, what to bring (food, water, etc.) and more information.

Click here for a map of the area. Footprints mark the approximate route of the walk.

Volunteers needed TODAY for final day of hanging "Story Line" exhibit

HOUGHTON -- Community Artist Mary Wright is in the final stages of installing her piece, "Story Line," at Michigan Tech’s Rosza Center. This community art and history project, inspired by the Pine Mountain Music Festival opera Rockland, is taking shape around the Rosza building and the neighboring Walker Building on the Michigan Tech campus. Volunteers are needed today, Wednesday, July 13, to complete the hanging of the exhibit. The project must be completed by 7 p.m. TODAY!

The stringing is done, and now the pre-strung lines of the remaining panels need to be hung in the installation. Volunteers are needed to get up on ladders to hang the remaining panels. Can you help? Can your son/daughter/friend/neighbor/classmate/fraternity brother/sorority sister?

Volunteers should meet at the Rozsa lobby or look for the crew out among the flapping panels to the west of the Walker building.

Story Line panels have been made by thousands of Upper Peninsula residents and visitors and their family members. These panels tell the story of ancestors who have
faced adversity. The panels have been strung onto wire for installation as clothesline-like Story lines. To honor the efforts of the thousands of folks who have made a total of more than 7,000 panels, just one more day’s worth of work is needed to get them all on display.

If you are available Wednesday at any time before 7 p.m., for 15 minutes or more, please do come. Someone will be there to put you to work.

Community art is about the community. Grab two friends and come on over to the Storyline to be a part of it.

Tickets to Rockland are available for Friday’s 7:30 p.m. premier and Sunday’s 3 p.m. matinee. You may purchase tickets at the SDC box office at Michigan Tech or over the web (fee applies for online purchase) See pmmf.org/tickets/.

Click here to read more about the Story Line project.

Click here to read about the opera Rockland.

Cultural events related to opera "Rockland" being held July 13, 14, 16

HANCOCK -- Several events related to the Pine Mountain Music Festival (PMMF) production of the opera Rockland are happening this week.

At 5 p.m. on Wednesday, July 13, PMMF will present a free symposium on commissioning new music -- with a panel composed of John and Pauline Kiltinen, Jukka Linkola, Esa Ruuttunen and Peter Van Pelt. This event will be held at Portage Lake United Church in Houghton. The Kiltinens, of Marquette, have been ardent supporters of Rockland from the beginning. Linkola is the Finnish composer of Rockland and numerous other musical works. Ruuttunen is a well-known baritone who will sing in Rockland. He is artistic director of the Jokilaakso Music Foundation in Finland which produced the Old World Premiere of the opera. Van Pelt is executive director of Pine Mountain Music Festival.

At 5 p.m. on Thursday, July 14, at the Jutila Center in Hancock, Larry Lankton, professor of history at Michigan Technological University and author of several books and articles on the area, will speak on "History and Conditions of the Mining Industry in the Copper Country in the Early 1900s." Lankton is well-known as a popular lecturer on historical topics. The event is free and open to the public.

At 7 p.m. on Saturday, July 16, Arnold Alanen, the 2009-2010 Finlandia Foundation National Lecturer of the Year and professor emeritus of landscape architecture at University of Wisconsin-Madison, will speak on "Finnish Impact on the Cultural Landscape in North America." His talk will be illustrated with numerous slides and will give special attention to Rockland. This free event will also be at the Jutila Center in Hancock.

Besides these free events, the Ameriikan Poijat (Boys of America), a brass septet from Minnesota, will present a 7 p.m. concert on July 14 at the Calumet Theatre, followed by dancing in the ballroom. Tickets for this event are $15 (or $10 for students and children). Andy Hill, resident of Wakefield and grandson of Alfred Laakso on whose first-hand account the opera Rockland is based, will be narrator for this concert.

Pine Mountain Music Festival will present the New World Premiere of the opera Rockland at 7:30 p.m. Friday, July 15, and at 3 p.m. Sunday, July 17, at the Rozsa Center in Houghton. Tickets are still available.

Click here to read details on the Rockland performance.

Opera "Rockland" is for everyone

Pictured here, from left, are Leslie Hill, Esa Ruuttunen and Fia Hill Murray, in Nivala, Finland, for the Old World Premiere of Rockland last month. The Hill sisters are granddaughters of Alfred Laakso, who wrote the first-hand account of the 1906 events on which the opera is based. Esa Ruuttunen sings the role of Alfred Laakso in the opera. (Photo courtesy Pine Mountain Music Festival)

HOUGHTON -- The new opera Rockland, a Pine Mountain Music Festival (PMMF) production, with a cast of nearly 50 and an orchestra of over 40, will have its New World premiere at 7:30 p.m. Friday, July 15, and at 3 p.m. Sunday, July 17, at the Rozsa Center for the Performing Arts in Houghton.

Last month, the "Old World Premiere" of Rockland took place in Nivala, Finland. The audiences there felt connected to the opera because many had ancestors who had emigrated to Michigan around a century ago. The idea of the opera came from a first-hand account of the 1906 events written by a Finn in Rockland named Alfred Laakso, and his descendants will be on hand for a reception after the July 17 performance.

The opera is based on actual events in the town of Rockland, Ontonagon County, in 1906, when about 100 Finnish miners went on strike and two of them were shot and killed by sheriff’s deputies.

"There is so much in this opera that is both real and symbolic," said Peter Van Pelt, PMMF executive director. "The heart of the story is literally true, but in a broader sense the opera speaks of the entire history of the U.P. and its mining heritage and different ethnic stories. It’s powerful."

Tickets for the opera are selling well, Van Pelt reported, but there are still seats available.

"This opera is for everyone," Van Pelt noted. "Opera is another way of telling a story, like a book or a movie or a stage play, but with opera you get the thrill of hearing great music and well-trained opera voices -- and that is something that everyone can appreciate."

After one recent rehearsal, a PMMF staff person said, "I knew the principal singers would be well prepared, but I was unexpectedly blown away by the quality of the chorus -- what glorious sound!"

The chorus is composed of local singers plus a number of undergraduates from Concordia College and the University of Michigan.

Tickets for Rockland are available from the Rozsa Center box office, 877-746-3999, or at the door if space permits. The box office is currently operating out of the Student Development Complex at the top of MacInnes Drive in Houghton.

Click here to purchase tickets on line.

Pine Mountain Music Festival presents a season of opera and classical music each June-July in the Dickinson County area, the Marquette area, the Keweenaw Peninsula, and other towns in the Upper Peninsula. Visit www.pmmf.org or call 888-309-7861 for more information.

Editor's Note: Click here to read about artist Mary Wright's "Story Line" project -- more than 7,000 cloth panels telling stories of ancestors -- now displayed in and around the Rozsa Center in conjunction with the opera Rockland.

Portage Library to host webinar, wellness, entertainment July 13-15

HOUGHTON -- The Portage Lake District Library is offering several programs for the public from Wednesday through Friday, July 13-15, this week: a webinar that will explain how to use its two remarkable databases, Mango and Universal Class; "Cirque Da UP" unicycling jugglers; a Wellness series program on Meridian Stress Tapping; and "Music on the Menu" with Jan Arnold.

July 13: Webinar on Mango and Universal Class

Shawn Leche, the library Director, will present the webinar on the library's Mango and Universal Class databases from 4 p.m. to 4:45 p.m. on Wednesday, July 13.

Mango is an online language learning system that teaches practical conversation skills for real communication. Each lesson combines real life situations and audio from native speakers with simple, clear instructions. The courses are presented with an appreciation for cultural nuance and real-world application that integrates components of vocabulary, pronunciation, grammar and culture. It includes over 30 languages and 10 courses which teach English as a second language. Patrons can choose a level of instruction from basic to complete courses that are more in-depth. The database features a fluency button to click on to hear a word pronounced at normal speaking speed.

Universal Class offers over 500 online continuing education courses taught by real instructors with remote, 24/7 access so people can study at their convenience on their own schedule. Patrons can enroll in up to five courses at a time and have six months to finish each course. A complete list of classes is posted on the library’s website.

Mango and Universal Class are available free of charge to all Portage Lake District Library patrons.

This webinar is free and open to all. For more information, please call the library at 482-4570 or visit www.pldl.org.

Unicycling Jugglers to perform July 13

The Portage Lake District Library will host the area’s increasingly more famous and dearly loved unicycling jugglers for a performance at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, July 13. The performance will be held outside the library.

"Cirque Da UP" features athlete-artists who give people a unique style of entertainment featuring a combination of world-class juggling, unicycling, and acrobatics.

MTU alumni Bob and Trish Evans will debut an interactive street show they have created for an international busking (street performance) competition. They will demonstrate joggling, which is running while juggling, and talk about their Guinness World Record attempts at the world joggling championships in Rochester, Minn.

Jason Cattelino, Houghton High School graduate and incoming freshman at Michigan Tech, will add his incredible juggling and unicycling skills to the show. Calumet High School student Maxx Fredrickson will demonstrate his juggling and unicycling prowess.

Everyone is invited to watch as they perform their amazing and gravity-defying feats. After the show, they will help people learn how to juggle and perform other circus skills.

This event is free and open to all. For more information, please call the library at 482-4570 or visit www.pldl.org.

July 14: Natural Health and Wellness series continues

The Portage Lake District Library will host its monthly program in the Natural Health and Wellness series from 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, July 14.

Patty Markham Peterson will present "A Medical Intuitive Perspective on Health and an Introduction to EFT/Emotional Freedom Technique." EFT, or Meridian Stress Tapping, is a proven method of tapping on acupuncture meridians to work with the mind-body connection for stress release, anxiety issues, pain, cravings, and addictions.

Peterson is currently a counseling medical intuitive and life coach. Over the last 30 years, she has trained in a variety of traditional medical settings as an RN and in many holistic modalities. During deep grief, she discovered increased intuitive abilities and hands on healing that she now uses along with her other skills to assist others. You may find more information about her practice at www.yourexpandingheart.com.

July 15: "Music on the Menu" with Jan Arnold

The Portage Lake District Library invites everyone to bring a lunch and enjoy "Music on the Menu," an outdoor series of events held on the dock outside the library.

Jan Arnold will perform from noon - 1 p.m. on Friday, July 15. Her easy listening style includes country, folk, rock, and music going back as early as the 30s.

Everyone is invited to eat, relax, and enjoy the lunch hour while listening to some great music. In the event of bad weather, the program will be held in the community room. This free event is part of the library’s Summer Reading Program.

Library programs are free and open to all. For more information, please call the library at 482-4570 or visit www.pldl.org.

Folk Music Camp to host free Finnish music concerts July 12, 13, 14

HANCOCK -- In conjunction with the Copper Country’s first-ever Finnish Folk Music Camp, three free traditional Finnish music concerts will take place Tuesday, July 12; Wednesday, July 13, and Thursday, July 14.

The Music Camp and the concerts will take place at Camp Lahti on Lake Superior’s Rabbit Bay, near Lake Linden. They are sponsored by Finlandia University and the university’s Finnish Council in America.

Tuesday, July 12, at 6:30 p.m., a collage of traditional musicians will perform, all of them especially well-known to those in the Copper Country and the northern Midwest. The musicians, all teaching classes at the Music Camp, are Oren Tikkanen, Tanya Stanaway, Randy Seppälä, Arne Salli, Kay Seppälä, White Water (Bette and Dean Premo and family), Carl Rahkonen, Red Tail Ring (Michael Beauchamp and Laurel Premo), and Kaivama (Sara Pajunen and Jonathan Rundman).

On Wednesday, July 13, at 6:30 p.m., the Finnish-American brass septet Ameriikan Poijat will share old-time and contemporary Finnish brass band music. Their repertoire includes waltzes, schottisches, polkas, mazurkas, polonaises, and other social dances, as well as the distinctly Finnish dances the jenkka, humppa, and the Finnish version of "tango."

On Thursday, July 14, at 7:30 p.m., under the leadership of master Finnish folk musician Arto Järvelä, the Music Camp faculty and their student ensembles will play a stunning array of instruments and traditional Finnish music.

Each of the three concerts is free and open to the public. Call 906-487-7505 or click here for additional information and directions to Camp Lahti.

Joan Chadde wins 2011 Heart and Hands of the Keweenaw Award

HANCOCK -- If you or your kids have recently attended a family science night, pulled an old tire out of a river as part of an "Adopt-a-Stream" program, watched a "green film," or otherwise gotten involved in some hands-on environmental project, chances are the activity was part of the hard work of this year’s recipient of the Heart and Hands of the Keweenaw Award, Joan Chadde.

During the July 4th celebration at Churning Rapids, Terry Kinzel, right, prepares to present the 2011 Heart and Hands Award to Joan Chadde, left foreground, education program coordinator for the Center for Science and Environmental Outreach and for the Western UP Center for Science, Math and Environmental Education at Michigan Tech. Just behind Chadde is Suzanne Van Dam, Heart and Hands Board member, who announced the award. (Photos by Keweenaw Now)

Chadde has been the education program coordinator for the Center for Science and Environmental Outreach at Michigan Tech since 1995 and for the Western UP Center for Science, Math and Environmental Education since 2000. She received the award for "going above and beyond her work expectations, tirelessly working to promote environmental education and stewardship in the Keweenaw community." The award selection committee was particularly struck by Chadde’s capacity to affect the future both by working with young people directly and by training the teachers who interact with them.

As one teacher put it, "There would not be any consistent environmental education for students or professional training for teachers to help integrate environmental education into the curriculum if it weren’t for the programs that Joan creates, seeks funding for, and implements."

Chadde was quick to attribute her success to others, saying, "There are very few things that one does alone. All of these activities require collaborators, partners, many assistants behind the scenes, and those who help to pave the way. I feel very humble and appreciative of all of these people over the years. The award means a lot to me, but it also makes me feel undeserving, as there are so many people who do so much for our community in so many ways, some that are not fully visible for us all to see."

In addition to Chadde's designing and implementing numerous K-12 science programs and over sixty teacher professional development workshops and summer institutes, these are a few of her many accomplishments:

• Compiling the Walking Paths and Protected Areas of the Keweenaw publication (2009) which took three and a half years to develop and describes 22 sanctuaries and preserves.

• Co-leading (with Shawn Oppliger and Lloyd Wescoat) the Lake Superior Stewardship Initiative (LSSI) which connects schools and communities in the stewardship of Lake Superior.

Joan Chadde, Lake Superior Stewardship Initiative (LSSI) co-stewardship project advisor and community organization coordinator, is pictured here with the LSSI photo display at the Upper Peninsula Environmental Coalition's "Celebrate the UP" event in Hancock March 19, 2011. Chadde has selected LSSI to be the recipient of her $1000 award.

• Engaging the community in exploring environmental sustainability in a very successful Green Film Festival.
  

• Annually conducting family science and forest nights in 20 schools in a 5-county area of the U.P.

Founded in 1998, The Heart and Hands Society gives the award annually to acknowledge Copper Country residents who have "given of their heart and hands in the service of peace, justice, or the environment." The winner of the award is honored at the 4th of July celebration at Churning Rapids (Hancock), and receives a monetary award of $1,000 which is to be donated to the local charity of his/her choice. Chadde selected the Lake Superior Stewardship Initiative, as it involves both of her passions -- stewardship of an important ecosystem and environmental education for youth.

Also nominated this year were Dave Harmon and Lynnette Borree. Harmon has contributed significantly to many organizations, such as FOLK (Friends of the Land of Keweenaw), UPEC (Upper Peninsula Environmental Coalition), and Suzuki. Described as a quiet "family man," Harmon has done everything from writing a grant for the waste-oil collection site located at Houghton’s transfer station in the 80s, to building a passive solar home, to forming a recreation committee to work with the Stanton Township Board.

Joan Chadde accepts the 2011 Heart and Hands of the Keweenaw Award from Terry Kinzel. Dave Harmon, right, was also nominated for the award. Not pictured is Lynnette Borree, the third nominee for this year's award.

Lynnette Borree was nominated for her important work in starting a non-profit organization called Simple Kindness for Youth (SKY). She continues to lead the group, whose mission is "to help young people build and maintain their self-esteem by providing means to access basic needs, enable them to feel accepted with their peers, and enable access to educational activities and community participation." Borree’s work was acknowledged as "behind the scenes but crucial, helping teachers and human service staff meet the very real needs of kids in our community."

To obtain more information or to nominate a deserving person for next year’s Heart and Hands Award, contact Terry Kinzel at tkinzel@pasty.net.

Editor's Note: Learn more about the Heart and Hands Award by checking out the Heart and Hands Society Web site.