Celebrate the UP! March 13-15 in Marquette

Poster courtesy Upper Peninsula Environmental Coalition (UPEC).

MARQUETTE -- The seventh annual Celebrate the UP! will be held Friday through Sunday, March 13-15, in Marquette. The public is invited to a wide range of presentations about the UP's environment, culture, and history on Friday evening and all day Saturday at the Landmark Inn, Peter White Public Library, the Federated Women’s Clubhouse, and the First United Methodist Church (the corners of Front and Ridge Streets). Sunday will be devoted to snowshoeing, socializing, and savoring this beautiful region. The events are free, although donations are appreciated.

John Davis, co-founder and Wildways advocate for Wildlands Network, will kick off the celebration at 7 p.m. on Friday at the Federated Women's Clubhouse with his vision for "Continental Wildways:  Reconnecting Natural Habitats for Wide-Ranging Species, Hikers, and Paddlers." Davis will challenge us to view the UP as an essential part of a larger east-west northern forest wildway characterized by a bio-diverse and healthy ecosystem.

Between 10 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. Saturday, 16 speakers will give a series of presentations on topics such as art, poetry, UP dialects, northern lights, loons, wilderness survival, and a birch basket weaving workshop. From 3 p.m. to 4:45 p.m., a panel discussion on "Predators and Ecosystems: The Connections" will take place in the sanctuary of the First United Methodist Church in Marquette. The panel will feature wildlife biologists, a forest ecologist, and predator advocates. A public reception will immediately follow at the Federated Women’s Clubhouse.

The Upper Peninsula Environmental Coalition (UPEC) sponsors Celebrate the UP!. This year the Upper Peninsula Land Conservancy (UPLC) has partnered with UPEC to include the "Over the River and Through the Woods" 5k Snowshoe Race/Trek. This event is Sunday afternoon at 2 p.m., followed by a supper at the Ore Dock for participants. For more information, visit upenvironment.org and uplandconservancy.org. For Sunday's events, please register at uplandconservancy.org.

Portage Library, Reading Council to host kids' Pollinators and Poetry workshops March 14, 21, 28

 

This worker bee is carrying pollen on her legs. Kids, do you know why? (Photo © and courtesy Gustavo Bourdieu)

HOUGHTON -- Calling all junketeers! Kids in grades 1- 6 are invited to use recyclable materials and just plain ol’ junk to build all kinds of pollinators including bees, birds, bats, beetles, ants, butterflies, flies, moths and more and have fun writing poems about them at the Portage Lake District Library.

Pollinator-making workshops will be held from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturdays, March 14 and March 21, and from noon to 3 p.m. on March 28. Plenty of recyclable supplies and all manner of tape, glue, staplers, string, and dowels will be on hand for the construction. Kids are also encouraged to bring their own clean junk with them to the workshops.

On Saturday, March 14, Upward Bound students from Finlandia University will read stories about pollinators and show youtube videos about these important creatures. Upward Bound students will also read sample poems about pollinators to inspire kids as they begin to interact with and think about their own pollinator creations. Kids will have time during each session to write poems that describe the creatures they are creating.

Throughout this event, kids will learn why pollinators are important and what can be done to protect them. They may attend as many workshops as they choose in order to complete their creations and poems. On Saturday, April 4, from noon to 3 p.m., kids who participated in this workshop will give a performance at the library to introduce and describe their pollinators and read their poems. There will be a party afterwards to celebrate their accomplishments.

The pollinators and poems will be on display in the library during April in celebration of National Poetry Month.

This event is sponsored by the Copper Country Reading Council in partnership with Michigan River of Words and the Portage Lake District Library.

Library programs are free and everyone is invited. For more information, please call the library at 482-4570 and ask for Chris.

Flatlanders Art Galleries to host exhibit of new work by Margo McCafferty, Tom Rudd and Ken Thompson, opening March 14

Poster and photos courtesy Tom Rudd.

CALUMET -- Flatlanders Art Galleries will host "Tables, Chickens and Fish," an exhibit of new work by Calumet artists Margo McCafferty and Tom Rudd and Blissfield sculptor Ken Thompson with an opening reception from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, March 14, in Blissfield, Mich. Flatlanders is at 11993 East US 223. The exhibit will continue through May 2, 2015.

Lake trout sculpture by Tom Rudd.

Visitors will see some superbly unique Tables by Ken Thompson, startling Chickens from Margo McCafferty, woodcuts and petite wooden dolls through the combined efforts of Tom and Margo and a few superior fish from Tom Rudd. Join Margo and Tom on a reasonably warm Saturday afternoon, check out the art and see and talk to friends that you haven't seen for a while.

Flatlands Galeries regular hours are Tuesday through Friday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturday 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. For more information call 517-486-4591.

Calumet's Galerie Bohème March exhibit

"Blue Car," by Cynthia Coté, is one of the recent works on exhibit at Galerie Bohème in Calumet through March.

If you can't make it to Blissfield and you missed last week's First Friday openings in Calumet, Galerie Bohème is exhibiting new art by Margo McCafferty, Tom Rudd, Cynthia Coté and Kerri Corser through March.

"Traprock Pearls," by Kerri Corser, is also part of the March Galerie Bohème exhibit in Calumet.

Galerie Bohème is located at 423 Fifth St. in Calumet. For more information or a viewing appointment please call Tom Rudd at (906) 369-4087 or email galerieboheme@gmail.com.