Dearborn has and will always be the heart of America, with its diverse community and more importantly, the birthplace of the automobile that brought many immigrants to this country to find their pot of gold. Each day I walk around our community with my dog and each day my route takes me to the Henry Ford Centennial Library where I pass Henry Ford's statue. I wonder to myself, as I pass the long stretches of green land, if he knew exactly what he was doing when he pretty much bought up this city and then years later his descendent developed it to be one of the most progressive cities in the …

I am a resident of Dearborn and am writing to ask my neighbors in Wayne County to join me in supporting the Detroit Institute of Arts by voting YES for our county’s art institute authority on Aug. 7. The DIA has a world-class collection that could never be replaced and it’s one that we need to protect and keep available for our county. It’s because of this collection and the museum’s international stature that the DIA can attract exhibitions such as Rembrandt and the Face of Jesus and the current Five Spanish Masterpieces. It’s also a testament to the DIA’s commitment to our county and region…

The deafening lack of public communication about the impending losses at the Dearborn Historical Museum is causing a great deal of rumor and upset. In the immediate wake of severe job cuts, I understand that some of the Historical Commissioners have been checking out the museum for de-accessioning (selling or otherwise donating or eliminating) some archival or artifact items. It has been written that an all-volunteer staff is being contemplated. These may be necessary steps for the long-term health of the museum and its mission, but surely there is a more open and more cooperative way of …

As I write this I am still furious. Furious at the parents that are in their own realm and do not follow simple traffic laws around the schools, compromising the safety of the other students. This morning as I left Haigh Elementary, I witnessed a second grade girl almost get hit by a car in the crosswalk. The car was not a random passerby, but another parent of a Haigh student. The parent, as many do, pulled over between the stop sign and the cross walk to drop her own child off. The other girl was crossing the street, and the parent neglected to look, and was pulling from the curb. The …

During the 13 years my business has been located in the city of Dearborn, I've heard quite a bit about how the city has a problem with rats. However, after moving into the city to live, I discovered an equally disturbing, four lettered word the city has a problem with: CATS. Stray cats are in all major U.S. cities these days, a problem made increasingly bigger by the difficulties faced in tough economic times. People everywhere have been forced to give up their pets due to a lack of money and this, coupled with how quickly they breed, has dramatically raised the number of homeless and feral …

It’s gratifying to read in recent months that anti-bullying campaigns have been launched nationwide–including Dearborn Public Schools. Years ago, I was in disbelief when I learned one of my daughters was being bullied by other girls at Lindbergh Elementary. It prompted family discussions about how to stand up to bullies and a phone call to one of the moms. Finally, upon my daughter’s graduation from Dearborn High, she received an overdue apology from one of the girls. Better late than never! Fast forward a few years with no kids at home–my husband and I suspect we are being “bullied.”  It’s …

After all turbulence and screw up with Goodwill and the Dearborn City Planning Commission, I need to empty my brain of thoughts and impressions after living in Dearborn for a long time. Let me first say that I love Dearborn, its people, organizations, and businesses. When Biggby opened, I switched from Starbucks. Why should I send my money to Seattle, when I could support a local business? I believe that’s the best way to go. Mike Guido was a real asset to the city, being the face in Dearborn, and also outside the community, and having Mark Guido, chief of staff, basically run the day to day …

The Dearborn Patch recently reported that four male Dearborn Public School students were suspended for writing and sending "skank lists" that identified the daughters of Dearborn families.This disturbing and persistent negative behavior in schools across the country targets girls most often, but boys can also be the focus. However, the incident should more appropriately be called sexual harassment. The more comfortable term of "bullying," while it can have negative psychological effects that interfere with education and work, it has some distinguishing differences from sexual harassment. …

Last week I walked out of City Hall after the meeting of the City Plan Commission after the dead lock vote on Goodwill opening a new “upscale” resale store in the old Inca building downtown west Dearborn, with anger, surprise and a lot of questions regarding the survival and future of my beloved city. I read a statement from Councilman Robert A. Abraham in discussions about west Dearborn, paid parking, and future plans. “If you run your business today, like you did five years ago, you will most likely go out of business.” And this reflects all of west Dearborn. A successful business has to re…

I became aware of the American Cancer Society’s Relay for Life of Dearborn in the early spring of 2008, after almost dying from colon cancer surgery complications in June 2007. My wife also had a bout with a cancerous facial melanoma last fall. What was of great help to both of us in dealing with the specter and reality of cancer was spending time with those very involved with Dearborn’s Relay for Life. The whole concept of cancer can be debilitating mentally. Cancer fears, when shared with others who care about you and who understand what you are going through, can be just another challenge …

If we want our children to learn, we have to keep them healthy. Thanks to the Affordable Care Act, parents and kids will have more resources at their disposal this year to help them succeed in the classroom. One component of the Affordable Care Act includes funding for school-based/school linked health clinics. These clinics in our community provide students and their families with health screenings, healthy lifestyle education, and disease prevention activities. The Affordable Care Act recently provided $95 million to 278 school based health centers across the country, which will provide …

No one likes to ask for help. In these tough times, we all try to soldier on, cutting where we can. So it’s been with the Dearborn Public Library System. Unfortunately, the library cannot continue to operate in an adequate fashion without support from the good and generous citizens of Dearborn. Thus, the call to vote “YES” on Proposal 2 on Nov. 8.  We’ve always taken pride in our community resources. That’s what keeps generations in this town. Our libraries are crown jewels in the collection of city services which have been a mainstay for decades. The flagship Centennial is a place where we’…

Andrew Carnegie funded the majority of the nation’s public libraries in the early 1900s with the slogan “Let There Be Light.” While the scope of the concept Carnegie envisioned for community libraries has changed greatly from lending books to a constantly growing number of services today, the focus of libraries has remained the same–letting in the light–with regard to helping people with information, education and entertainment. The Dearborn libraries’ 500,000 visitors each year check out an average of 890,000 items. Forever stretching Carnegie’s vision to meet modern needs, these loaned …

“You have $100 to spend on public improvements in the city. How would you split your money?” That’s one of the key questions in a master plan survey posted July 13 on the Dearborn city website (www.cityofdearborn.org) as part of an effort to get residents involved in guiding “the future development of the city.” If you’re a good citizen and fill out the survey by the Aug. 1 deadline, either online or on paper, chances are you’ll put most of your $100 on everybody’s usual priorities: police and fire, roads and parks. But if you don’t allot at least a few dollars for the category of civic …

Name the best thing about summer vacation. Ask 10 different people that question and you will most likely get 10 different responses. For some, it’s a favorite vacation spot up north; for others it may be traveling to visit family; and for many more it’s simply being able to break the daily routine. School districts across the state are breaking the routine for about a 13 week period. As we do so, there is at least one routine we hope all students continue to make part of their day. READ, READ, READ! This year, at the elementary level, the district focused on a concept called Daily 5/CAFÉ. …

Dear residents and friends of Dearborn, This weekend we will again be visited by persons who want to use our community for their own ends. This time their target will be the Arab International Festival, which has been part of our community for almost two decades. These visitors are not interested in the festival or learning about and celebrating Arab culture. They are coming here to promote the concept that Islam is a false faith and that Muslims by teaching and nature are violent. We know that there is no substance to their message–their goal is to promote fear and hatred in others. More …

On behalf of the Dearborn Allied War Veterans Council, thank you to all the generous sponsors, supporters, participants, volunteers, and spectators for their part in creating the 87th Annual Dearborn Memorial Day Parade. Everyone who saw it was moved. It was especially meaningful for veterans and their families. The day brought back a lot of memories. Seeing the commemorative remembrance posters with faces of guys I went to school with and guys I knew who went to other schools–69 of them who lost their lives in the Vietnam War–all coming down Michigan Avenue, seeing the Huey helicopter flying…

Have you ever had an argument with someone over the color of the sky? It’s green, they claim. With no tornado in sight on a beautiful summer day, you know the sky is actually blue. Of course, in Michigan our sky is usually more gray than blue, but that’s not the point! You provide scientific evidence, pictures and affidavits of 5,000 people who swear the sky is blue, yet your friend is convinced it’s green. The entire conversation sounds completely insane, doesn’t it? Yes, but it is eerily similar to the yearlong struggle between Save Our Pools and the city of Dearborn. Last year, the city …

Now that Gov. Rick Snyder has presented his budget proposal, the debate in Lansing will continue for several weeks as legislators work out the details. In order to better understand how this plan will impact our classrooms, I would like to take a moment to provide the following summary of the key components of the governor’s budget proposal. Impact on Dearborn Public Schools District Per-student funding reduced by $470/student: $8,695,000 31a At-Risk funds eliminated: $4,900,000 Section 41 Bilingual funds eliminated: $435,000 Total: $14,030,000 In addition to these cuts in revenue, the …

Do you remember learning to ride a bike or teaching a child how to ride a bike? It usually starts with riding a tricycle, then a bike with training wheels. The next step is to take one of the training wheels off the bike, and finally, someone will steady the bike, only letting go once the rider is balancing on their own. The key to success, in not only learning how to ride a bike but in all types of activities in our work and social lives, is following a step-by-step process. Our district has an enrollment process, an employment process and a grading process–just to name a few–that ensure the…