WEDNESDAY, JULY 3, 2013 WWW.LSJ.COM

Heavy on comedy, this ‘Lone Ranger’ is definitely not your grandfather’s, 1C

BUSINESS TODAY ATS LIFTS 100 YEARS GM SALES June auto sales rise AND COUNTING 6 percent, Page 6B

First Spiritualist Church of Lansing celebrates HOLIDAY FIREWORKS 100 years ... maybe more Lansing, Spiritual healers move the energy to the flames of the candles during a Reiki energy healing session Sunday. ROBERT KILLIPS/LSJ Grand Ledge go to plan B Noise ordinances to be used to set limits By Scott Davis [email protected]

Some mid-Michigan cities claim to have found a way to quell the holiday noise de- spite initial concerns communi- ties lacked enough time to reg- ulate fireworks use under a new state law. Lansing and Grand Ledge say they will use their existing noise ordinances to ban fire- works use in the early morning hours today, Thursday and Fri- day. That means anyone who sets off a bottle rocket or fire- cracker in either city in the early morning hours could be ticketed and face up to a $500 fine and/or 90 days in jail. “Using (fireworks) at inap- propriate times of the day thor- oughly annoys everybody else,” he Rev. Jerry Spitzley began lish a church in the name of the First Society of Spir- said Randy Hannan, executive on a prudent note of uncertainty. itualists of Lansing on February 13, 1913.” assistant to Lansing Mayor Virg “No one knows for sure how long the Or perhaps it was longer. The small congregation Bernero. early Spiritualists gathered that occupies a small building on Saman- Using noise ordinances to enforce a fireworks ban is a in the capital city before By Matthew Miller tha Street calls itself the First Spiritualist legally hazy area — even ac- they ventured out to form a [email protected] Church of Lansing now, but a group that Tchurch,” he said. shared its original name pops up in Lan- cording to the Michigan Munici- It was a brisk Sunday morning in Feb- View more photos sing’s historical record a few times prior pal League, an advocacy group ruary. The banner behind him said “Cele- at www.lsj.com to 1913. representing cities. That’s be- brating 100 Years of Spirit Communica- The Journal of the Senate of the State of cause a year-old state law, re- tion.” The congregation in front of him, on the other Michigan, for instance, says a “Mr. Pearl” of the vised last month, established side of the podium and the candles and the cherub First Society of Spiritualists petitioned the Senate that Michigan residents had the statues, had come to do exactly that. for land in the city upon which to build a church. The right to enjoy their fireworks “Perhaps,” Spitzley continued, “it was weeks or year was 1869. See FIREWORKS, Page 2A even months before they made their move to estab- See CHURCH, Page 2A SAFETY TIPS » Stay sober. Under state law, no one can set off or discharge or use RECORD PRECIPITATION consumer fireworks while under the influence. Violations can result in a $1,000 fine. » Only use legal fireworks, available Lansing has its wettest Jan.-June ever at licensed outlets. » Never allow young children to handle fireworks. A year ago, drought 8.4 26.4 11.29 25.64 Hoving said. » Have an adult light fireworks Inches of rain Inches of pre- Inches above Previous record “We would have to hold in a outdoors in a safe distance away was major concern recorded at cipitation for normal for for January fairly wet pattern for the rest from onlookers, houses and flam- Capital Region first six months January through June, of the year,” he said. “You could mable materials. By Ken Palmer International of 2013 — an through June set in 1883 have local storms that dump a » Light one device at a time and [email protected] Airport in June all-time high 2013 lot of rain, so it’s conceivable keep a safe distance after lighting. that we could be up toward Sources: City of Lansing, Last year, it was record heat 1863, according to the National was more than 11 inches above record territory by the end of state of Michigan and drought. Weather Service. normal, he said. the year.” This year, it’s record-level About 8.4 inches of rain fell The second-highest total for Last year at this time, local precipitation. at Capital Region International that period was 25.64 inches, authorities were opening cool- The Lansing area had its Airport in June, about 4.8 inch- set in 1883. That year was the ing centers and urging vulner- TODAY’S DEAL fourth-wettest June on record es above normal, said Brandon wettest on record in the Lan- able people to get out of the last month. And the 26.4 inches Hoving, a meteorologist with sing area at 48.41 inches. heat as temperatures soared % of precipitation recorded here the weather service in Grand With the typically drier into the 90s for days at a time. OFF over the first six months of 2013 Rapids. months ahead, there’s no guar- This year, flood advisories 51at 1 is the highest for that period The nearly 26 ⁄2 inches of antee the area will match Spaa Heaven in Lansing See details on A-2 since record-keeping began in precipitation through June 30 the 1883 record this year, See RAINS, Page 2A LJ-0100230764

NATION & WORLD Morsi rejects ultimatum; Lottery...... 2A TODAY’S A daily feed of top headlines Local & State ...... 3A SPEEDREADS NSA whistle-blower drops Egypt on collision course Opinion...... 4A FORECAST Deaths...... 5A High in the NATION & WORLD Russia asylum request CAIRO — Egypt appeared headed Nation & World...... 7A for a collision between the Islamist upper 70s. President Obama delays NSA leaker Edward Snowden’s Sports...... 1B prospects for asylum narrowed government and its opponents Business Today...... 6B Full forecast • 6C Tuesday as the military threatened to Life ...... 1C key health care provision rapidly Tuesday after he withdrew Horoscopes...... 2C The Obama administration has his request to Russia and almost half toss out a controversial constitution Comics ...... 3C delayed for one year the require- of the 21 countries on his list have and the legislature unless President Television...... 4C Mohammed Morsi addresses the Puzzles ...... 3C, 5C ment that many companies provide turned him down. President Vladimir 0 40901 05132 9 health insurance coverage for their Putin had said Snowden must stop demands of a massive protest move- © 2013 Lansing State ment. — Page 7A $1.00 Retail workers or face fines. — Page 8A anti-American activity. — Page 7A Journal, Lansing, Michigan. For home delivery pricing, A Gannett Newspaper. see Page 2A. 2A • Wednesday, July 3, 2013 • Lansing State Journal www.lsj.com

midnight and 8 a.m. For smaller communi- WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ties, between 1 a.m. and 8 a.m. Worker finds remains of Fireworks The Fourth of July is fast approaching. Local noise enforcement You’ve got a couple sacks full of fireworks in Continued from Page 1A Some mid-Michigan cities, such as Lansing woman missing 28 years the garage waiting to be lit. You want to be and Grand Ledge, intend to enforce their safe. You don’t want to wind up on the around the holidays un- longtime noise ordinances to prohibit fire- wrong side of the law. Here are a few things By Sarah Bradshaw three years earlier, but less a municipality took works in the early morning hours today, to keep in mind: and Nina Schutzman eventually the case went action to restrict those Thursday and Friday. Violating the noise State law The Poughkeepsie (N.Y.) Journal cold. Until Friday. hours. ordinances in these cities can result in up to If the city or township where you live has Dr. Kari Reiber, the Because the new law a $500 fine and/or 90 days in jail. not enacted a fireworks ordinance and has POUGHKEEPSIE, N.Y. — county’s medical examin- wasn’t finalized until Security at Adado Riverfront Park no existing noise rules, the state allows you A woman whose skeletal er, said Monday’s autopsy June 19, most communi- Lansing police will be doing special security to set off fireworks on the three days remains were found near- revealed JoAnn Nichols’ ties said they didn’t have checks during the city’s fireworks show around any national holiday. There is no ly 28 years after she dis- body was placed “intact” enough time to enact the Thursday at Adado Riverfront Park to ensure restriction on hours. For the Fourth of July, appeared apparently died in a container before it ban in time for the Fourth no consumer fireworks are brought into the that means today, Thursday and Friday. from blunt trauma to her was sealed in a false base- of July. Mason is the only park. Consumer fireworks include, but are Local laws head, according to police. ment wall. city in Ingham County not limited to, sparklers, firecrackers, spin- If your city or township has adopted early On Monday, the Dutch- The 55-year-old first- that has announced it for- ners, fountains, bottle rockets and any type morning bans on fireworks use under a new ess County medical exam- grade teacher had had mally adopted the early of fireworks device that emits smoke, sparks state law finalized June 19, you are limited iner’s office identified the “extensive dental work,” morning ban authorized or explodes. The city is taking the measures in the hours you can set off fireworks the bones uncovered in a including a partial den- in state law. Violations after Michelle Packard, 34, of Lansing, was three days around a national holiday. For Poughkeepsie home as ture, leading to a there are punishable by killed by what police believe was a stray cities or townships with a population of JoAnn Nichols, who was “straightforward” posi- up to a $500 fine. bullet while attending last year’s fireworks 50,000 or greater, the ban extends between reported missing Dec. 21, tive identification, Reiber The Michigan State show at the park. 1985, by her husband said. The cause of death Fire Marshal’s Office, James L. Nichols Jr. was “apparent” and which enforces state fire- sue. We don’t get into any sing will have a beefed-up went the legally safer After Nichols went “physical,” she said. works laws, said munici- specific local control on enforcement approach, route of adopting anew or- missing, police had looked The discovery of a palities are free to en- those issues,” said Tony using both its police offi- dinance earlier this week into the possibility she sealed container holding force an early morning Sanfilippo, assistant state cers and firefighters to re- that conforms to the new had run away or commit- human remains was made fireworks ban any way fire marshal. “How they spond to early morning state law. Under its new ted suicide because her Friday by a private con- they wish. The new state (cities) enforce it is up to noise complaints. ordinance, anyone who only son had drowned tractor. law allows local units of them.” Grand Ledge City Ad- uses fireworks within the government with at least Lansing and Grand ministrator Jon Bayless city limits between the 50,000 residents to pro- Ledge officials say they said the city’s interpreta- hours of 1 a.m. and 8 a.m. hibit firework blasts believe they are on firm tion of the state law may today, Thursday or Friday crops educator with MSU between midnight and legal ground in using the be a matter for a judge to is subject to a $500 fine. Extension. Rains 8 a.m. on the day of a na- old ordinance because it resolve if anyone decides Lansing soon will fol- “All things considered, tional holiday, the day be- empowered the cities to to challenge a noise ticket low Mason’s lead. On Continued from Page 1A I’m not terribly disap- fore and the day after. regulate noise during in court. “The whole thing Monday night, a similar pointed with anything this Smaller communities can these early morning hours is still evolving,” Bayless ordinance was intro- have replaced heat warn- year,” he said. “By and prohibit use between and the state lifted its re- said of the new state law. duced to Lansing City ings. Many local residents large, because of last 1 a.m. and 8 a.m. striction June 19. Today, “It’s a work in progress.” Council, which will con- have navigated flooded year’s experience, we’ve “That’s a local legal is- Thursday and Friday,Lan- Meanwhile, Mason sider it in coming weeks. streets and pumped out benefited from the rain.” their basements after Even so, some fields torrential rains. never got planted because SPIRITUALISM Temperatures in the of too much rain earlier in Church Lansing area were about the season, and crops IN LANSING on par for June, Hoving in some low-lying fields Continued from Page 1A » 1866: First Society of Spiri- said. Temperatures and have been killed by stand- tualists founded in Lansing, precipitation are expect- ing water, Silva said. How Beginnings growing quickly to about 100 ed to be typical through that might impact yields members. The society ceases the end of the summer in is unclear, he said. The late 1860s would activity in 1870. the Great Lakes region, His one concern: The have been the thick of » 1880: First Society of Spiri- he said. wheat crop looks to be a Spiritualism’s heyday. tualists and Liberalists found- “The computer models little behind where it Modern adherents often ed and holds its first public aren’t favoring one ex- should be at this time of place its moment of origin meeting in Mead’s Hall on treme or the other,” Hov- year. on the evening of March North Washington Avenue in ing said. “But long-range Silva noted that farm- 31, 1848, when Kate and August. forecasts don’t capture ers in other areas of mid- Margaretta Fox, the » 1882: A spiritualist retreat those thunderstorms that Michigan, including Gra- young daughters of a called Haslett Park started on affect certain areas.” tiot and Isabella counties, farmer in Hydesville, the shores of what is now After last year’s as well as the Thumb N.Y., demonstrated to Chris Moyer (from left), Heidi Porter and Jeff Mitchell Lake Lansing. It operates drought, the rains of 2013 and southwest Michigan, their mother and a neigh- perform Reiki energy healing before services Sunday at until the early 1900s. have been generally good have been seriously hurt bor that a strange rapping the First Spiritual Church of Lansing. ROBERT KILLIPS/LSJ » 1894: The Grand Ledge for Lansing-area farmers, by too much water or on the walls and furniture Spiritualist Camp Association said George Silva, a field strong winds. of their house would re- “From 1870 to the that many back then, established a camp in what is spond to questions, as if it spring of 1880 the cause members, people going to now Fitzgerald Park, which were driven by an un- languished or remained the church,” said Wagner, was used for about 15 years. worldly intelligence. entirely dormant,” he who has been the » 1913: The First Society of Tuuesdaesdayy’’s llotterottery By 1850, Kate, Marga- wrote. church’s pastor since Spiritualists organized on retta and their older sis- But then it wasn’t. A 2002 and its primary pur- Feb. 13, according to the ter, Leah, were holding new society formed that veyor of communications tradition of the church, » Midday Daily-3: 488 » Mega Millions: Call 800-822-8888 for public seances in New spring and held its first from the spirit world. which later changed its » Evening Daily-3: Tuesday night’s results York City, the communi- public meeting in Mead’s “You could count them on name to First Spiritualist cations they relayed held Hall on North Washing- your hands.” Church and then to Light of 250 Tuesday’s jackpot: $70 million up as evidence of an exis- ton Avenue in August. Wagner seems young- Divine Truth Church and » Midday Daily-4: 0201 tence beyond death. A By 1882, a Spiritualist er than his 38 years. He is then to First Spiritualist » Evening Daily-4: Saturday’s results mass movement was camp was operating on a former factory worker Church of Lansing. The 5477 » Classic Lotto 47: 5, 8, 11, 13, 17, 37 born, centered on com- the south side of what is who grew up in Bannis- church celebrated its 100th anniversary this year. » Fantasy 5: Six-Number winners: None munication with spirits, now Lake Lansing. By the ter, a tiny town on the Ma- 13, 17, 21, 28, 38 wrapping in practices of end of the decade, the ple River in Gratiot Coun- Wednesday’s jackpot: $8.85 million Tuesday’s jackpot: spiritual healing and grounds included an audi- ty. He said he’s talked to Stanislaus and the author $110,000 » Powerball: 8, 28, 30, 53, 56 trance orations and a hab- torium that could seat spirits since he was 5 of “Spiritualism in Ante- it of social reform. It only 2,000. The Grand Ledge years old, that it’s “more bellum America.” They » Keno: 4, 11, 15, 19, Power Ball: 16 gathered strength amid Spiritualist Camp Associ- natural to me than human began institutionalizing 25, 27, 29, 34, 36, 37, Wednesday’s jackpot: $60 million the slaughter of the Civil ation established a similar communications.” in earnest only in the 39, 43, 44, 50, 53, 54, For lottery results 24 hours a day, call War. operation in 1894 in what During services, he 1890s, he said, “largely to 55, 57, 59, 61, 65, 69 335-5640. In 1866, the year after is now Fitzgerald Park. will often speak to each protect their religion the war ended, a small or- Nor did the Lansing or- person in the pews indi- from both skeptics’ at- ganization of Spiritual- ganization go away. The vidually, focusing his at- tacks and competing be- Corrections and clarifications ists formed in Lansing are records of the First tention — and, as believ- lief systems.” “which in a little time in- Society of Spiritualists ers would have it, that of If the history of the The Lansing State Journal strives to provide accu- creased to about one hun- meeting in the old City guides, teachers and First Spiritualist Church rate and fair reporting. It is our policy to correct sub- dred active workers,” Hall building in 1897. loved ones on the other of Lansing could be stantive errors of fact. If you think we may have pub- Samuel Durant wrote in side — entirely on that traced back to the 1880s, lished incorrect information, please call 377-1174 or his 1880 “History of In- Growing again one person for a minute it would be not just an old email [email protected]. gham and Eaton counties, “In early 2001, a very or two or three. Spiritualist church, but Michigan, with illustra- gifted and spiritual indi- Debby Harden, who perhaps among the tions and biographical vidual was sent to the joined 1 ½ years ago after oldest. Mission statement: We will be the valued voice of our community and sketches of their promi- church,” Spitzley said. a period of searching, The evidence isn’t trusted local information leader, committed to excellence every day. nent men and pioneers.” At the February anni- said it’s “almost like we quite there, of course. As The organization was versary service, he had have a bubble of love.” for the spirits, they’re not Circulation Customer Service called the Society of Spir- made much of the Rev. talking. The church held (800) 234-1719 itualists of Lansing. Merlin Wagner and his Among the oldest? a seance on Feb. 13 of this Hours: Mon.-Fri. 8 a.m.- 7 p.m. role in the church’s recent Through the first dec- year. Wagner said he Sat. 7 a.m.-11 a.m.; Records lacking history. The narrative, in a ades of the movement, could feel the presence of www.lsj.com Sunday 7 a.m.-11 a.m. “Some secretary got nutshell, is that the church Spiritualists weren’t par- members from years Lobby hours: Mon.- Fri. 9 a.m. - Vol. 159 No. 60 5 p.m. upset and just threw out had been on unstable fi- ticularly keen on found- past, but couldn’t tell stuff because she didn’t nancial footing and single- ing churches. from how far back. General 377-1000 Full Access subscription rates: think it was necessary to digit membership but that “Many early Spiritual- “There were several Toll free 1-877-599-6685 Digital access only $12.00 per month keep, so we really don’t the past few years have ists believed that institu- people who were really Brian Priester 377-1001 with EZ Pay. have much in the way of brought some stability. It tionalization stifled spiri- happy that we were still President and Publisher Digital access including Mon. [email protected] -Sun.print edition delivery: $25.00 history,” Spitzley said now has more than three tuality,” said Bret Car- around,” he said, “They Eric Ahrens 377-1278 per month or $23.00 with EZ pay. some weeks after that dozen members. roll, a professor at Cali- didn’t expect the church Information Systems Director Digital access including Mon. -Sat. February morning. “There really weren’t fornia State University to still be going.” [email protected] print edition delivery: $18.00 per He was talking about Cheryl Richardson 377-1037 month or $16.00 with EZ pay. documents, but Sptizley Human Resources Director Digital access including Thur. -Sun. could have said the print edition delivery $19.00 per 51% off manicure, pedicure [email protected] month or $17.00 with EZ Pay. same about institutional Jack Conaboy 377-1016 Digital access including Sunday print memory. ProductionOperations Director edition delivery: $14.00 per month The last person who or eyelash extensions [email protected] or $12.00 with EZ pay. might have remembered at Spaa Heaven in Lansing Michael K. Hirten 377-1076 any significant swath of Executive Editor Rates that include print edition [email protected] delivery apply to areas where carrier the church’s history died delivery service is available. The Stacia King 377-1120 in 2007. That was Ruth Thanksgiving Day print edition is Advertising Director Hudson, whose obituary delivered with every subscription that [email protected] said she had been attend- includes print edition delivery and will be charged at the then regular ing since the mid-1920s. Sunday newsstand price, which will Spitzley, the associate pas- Questions on news? be reflected in the November pay- tor, is now the longest Newsroom News fax ment. Alternate Subscriptions that standing member, having 377-1112 377-1298 include print edition delivery are also joined in the summer of Photography delivered the following premium 2000. But he’s pieced to- 377-1067 print editions. 2012 dates: 1/2, 5/28, 7/4, 9/3, 11/22, 12/25 gether some of the history. Place an ad? “Based on the 65th an- Classified 1-800-433-6946 EZ Pay is a convenient method for niversary service for the or 377-1111 automatically paying your sub- scription. To start or switch a sub- church that occurred Feb- Employment 1-888-263-5002 ruary 12, 1978, it was stat- Retail 377-1141 scription payment to EZ Pay, call (800) 234 -1719 or go to www.my- ed that ‘a small group of newspaperservice.com. Terms and people formed the First Visit DealChicken.com by August 3 The Lansing State Journal conditions apply. Society of Spiritualist of (ISSN 0274-9742) is published daily to view the Deal details and to by Federated Publications Inc., a EACH Digital Access SUBSCRIPTION Lansing on February 13, wholly owned subsidiary of Gannett includes access to lsj.com, tablet, 1913, and had their first purchase this featured Deal. Co. Inc., 120 E. Lenawee St., mobile and the e-Newspaper. For meeting in the (Knights of Lansing, MI, 48919. Periodical more information, contact (800) Pythias) Hall on Grand postage paid at Lansing. 234-1719. Avenue.’ ” Spitzley wrote NEW! Download the app. Newsstand in an email last week. Daily $1.00 Sunday $3.00 brought to you by Postmaster: Send address changes to Lansing State Journal, 120 E. Lenawee Dormant period St., Lansing, MI, 48919. The publisher reserves the right to change Durant noted that the subscription rates during the term of a subscription. Subscription rate changes society founded in 1866 may be implemented by changing the duration of the subscription. didn’t last. LJ-0100230874 THURSDAY NOVEMBER 28, 3A 2013 LOCAL STATE EDITOR: AL WILSON | [email protected] | 377-1154 | WWW.LSJ.COM THANKSGIVUKKAH & This holiday’s an extremely rare one

first clay coating cracked off. signature commercial tie-in of Bob Metzger Next Thanksgiving, It took modeling clay, dyed Thanksgivukkah, the tremen- displays the Hanukkah merger feathers and googly eyes to dously rare overlap between "menurkey" make a turkey-shaped menorah Thanksgiving and the first day (menorah/turkey) set for year 79,811 worthy of a once-in-a-lifetime of Hanukkah. centerpiece that holiday. That convergence happened he created with By Matthew Miller “There’s a pre-made menur- once before in 1888. The luniso- his nephew [email protected] key you can buy, but we decid- lar character of the Jewish cal- Michael Schoen ed, to celebrate the tradition the endar causes holidays to shift for use at this It took Bob Metzger and his right way, we needed to make their dates in the Gregorian cal- week’s holiday nephew, Michael Schoen, three it,” said Metzger, a Michigan endar from year to year. It will gathering in East tries to get the menurkey right. Economic Development Corp- happen again in the year 79,811, Lansing of family The one made from papier ma- program manager who lives in according to calculations by and friends. che “failed spectacularly.” Us- East Lansing. physicist Jonathan Mizrahi. ROD SANFORD/ ing a colander and other kitchen That “tradition” is of recent LANSING STATE utensils worked better, but the vintage. The menurkey is the See HOLIDAY, Page 8A JOURNAL

IN BRIEF Lansing man sentenced to 25 years in drug case GRAND RAPIDS — A Lansing man sentenced to 25 years in prison earlier this month for distributing crack cocaine was one of several men connected to drug activity at a Lansing public housing community. Merza Mizori, 24, whose street name is “Money Merz,” pleaded guilty in May in feder- al court to distributing more than 28 grams of crack co- caine, according to court rec- ords. He was sentenced Nov. 8. The drug activity was con- centrated in the Mount Vernon public housing area in north- west Lansing. In 2010, officials said Lansing police and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives be- gan an investigation in the area because of a large volume of calls related to drug traffick- ing and gun violence. In January of this year, several other Lansing men were indicted on drug charges, including: Mizori’s brother, Serwan Mizori, 23; Christapher Jones, 22; Gregory Dalton, 24; and DeShun Dalton, 22. All pleaded guilty to various charges. Serwan Mizori was sentenced to 20 years in pris- on, and Jones is serving 10 Michigan State mascot Sparty tries his hand at drumming with the pep band at the NCAA basketball tournament last week in years. Gregory Dalton was Auburn Hills. DETROIT FREE PRESS sentenced to more than eight years in prison; Deshun Dalton was sentenced to 51 months. Officials said the convic- THE WORDS tions led to an 80 percent de- On the banks of the Red crease in calls to police from ‘MSU Fight Song’ Cedar, that area. There's a school that's The sentences were an- known to all; nounced Wednesday by U.S. Its specialty is winning, Attorney Patrick Miles Jr. And those Spartans play voted best sports good ball; MSU student recovering Spartan teams are never after being struck by car beaten, EAST LANSING — A Michigan All through the game they State University student is fight; recovering at a local hospital tune in state Fight for the only colors: with serious but not life-threat- Green and White. ening injuries after being Go right through for MSU, struck by a car while riding a By James Jahnke gers” theme to the 1968 Karen Newman’s rendition Watch the points keep bike on Monday, according to Gannett Michigan World Series championship of the “Star-Spangled Ban- growing, Michigan State University with nearly 84 percent of ner” and its cousins in the Spartan teams are bound to police. Victory for MSU! the almost 1,900 votes cast Spartan drumline. win, The female student, whose Michigan State Univer- in the final round. Congratulations to Spar- They're fighting with a vim! age was not released, was rid- sity’s fight song has been The total was the second- tans everywhere and to Rah! Rah! Rah! ing her bike southbound on voted the winner of the biggest margin of victory Francis Irving Lankey and See their team is weak- Chestnut Road when she Detroit Free Press’ Best of any matchup in the Arthur L. Sayles, the Michi- ening, crossed the intersection at Sports-Related Song in the tournament. gan Agricultural College We're going to win this Shaw Lane on the campus, State bracket-style competi- Earlier in the bracket, students who composed the game, according Maj. Tony Kleibeck- tion that has captivated the the “MSU Fight Song” took song in 1915. Fight! Fight! Rah! Team, er of the MSU Police Depart- region for the past week. down classics such as “I James Jahnke is a sports Fight! ment. The Spartan anthem Wanna Drive the Zamboni,” reporter for the Detroit Free Victory for MSU! A car, which had a green routed the “Go Get’um Ti- “The Fighting Chippewa,” Press. light, heading east on Shaw Lane struck the student in the intersection. The driver of the car was not cited. CANINE BRUCELLOSIS Mich. officials confirm salmonella outbreak MUSKEGON — Health offi- cials in Muskegon County have State warns dog disease can infect humans confirmed 29 cases of salmo- nella among Muskegon and birthing fluid, saliva, feces, for Disease Control and Pre- TIPS Ottawa county residents. Antibiotics unable urine or eye or nasal fluid. vention. In humans, brucello- Public Health—Muskegon to cure the illness Officials encourage people sis also is known as undulant State officials offered these tips for County director Ken Kraus who suspect their dog is infect- fever or Mediterranean fever, dog owners: said Tuesday the agency con- By Ann Zaniewski ed, or who has a dog that may state officials said. » Dog owners should make sure ducted more than 100 inter- Gannett Michigan have come from a breeder with Other animals that are most that any dogs they are planning to views with food-service work- infected dogs, to get the animal commonly infected with bru- use in a breeding program do not ers, restaurant patrons and State agriculture officials tested. Antibiotics will not cure cellosis include sheep, cattle, have brucellosis. others. said Tuesday that they’ve re- the disease in dogs. goats and pigs, according to the » Breeding kennels should be on a The investigation found the cently investigated three cases “Pets do not have to be euth- CDC. Consuming undercooked brucellosis surveillance program. more than two dozen people of a bacterial disease that af- anized, but it’s important to fol- meat or raw dairy products can » People purchasing a puppy from were exposed to salmonella fects dogs and can be transmit- low the guidelines to prevent lead to human infection. a breeder should ask to see nega- bacteria after consuming let- ted to humans. spreading the infection, includ- Officials said the Montcalm tive test results from the dogs that tuce or chicken at Pints & Canine brucellosis has been ing spaying or neutering, and County case involved an occa- produced the litter. Anyone getting Quarts and C.F. Prime Chop- found in dogs in Montcalm, isolation from other dogs,” sional dog breeder with six a dog from a pet shop or animal house. Calhoun and Mackinac coun- State Veterinarian James Ave- dogs, including Boston terri- shelter should talk to their veteri- They were exposed between ties, according to the Michigan rill said in message posted ers, pugs and French bulldogs. narian about screening tests. Oct. 30 and Nov. 2. Department of Agriculture Tuesday on the Department of Five of the six dogs tested posi- » Newly acquired breeding dogs According to Kraus, the and Rural Development. Three Agriculture’s website. tive for brucellosis and were and dogs with a history of repro- agency hasn’t been able to investigations were launched In a 2009 report, the depart- euthanized. No humans were ductive problems or certain eye or identify a procedure or prac- in the past four months, offi- ment said canine brucellosis known to have fallen ill. spine disorders should be tested. tice that would have led to the cials said. was “an emerging concern in The Mackinac County case contamination that occurred. Canine brucellosis is often Michigan’s dog breeding facil- involved two Golden Retriev- He says it “appears to be an sexually transmitted and can ities and ‘puppy mills.” That er/Labrador mixes who were isolated incident.” cause dogs to experience abor- year, officials investigated 14 brought to Michigan from Ken- er with 14 breeding dogs took Harris Hospitality restau- tions, stillbirths, inflammation suspected cases. Five were tucky in 2011. The dogs were lit- four to a vet for testing. One of rants owner Andy Harris says in the male reproductive sys- confirmed positive. termates and had a history of the males tested positive and management has cooperated tem, semen abnormalities, eye People with brucellosis may back pain, state officials said. was euthanized. The other dogs fully with the public health problems and back pain. Peo- experience fever, body aches, Both dogs tested positive and were put under quarantine. department. ple can become infected if headaches, sweating and fa- were euthanized. Ann Zaniewski is a reporter for — From staff and wire reports they’re exposed to a dog’s tigue, according to the Centers In Calhoun County, a breed- the Detroit Free Press. 8A • Thursday, November 28, 2013 • Lansing State Journal www.lsj.com

The award was pre- Lansing saxophonist and local gallery sented Nov. 9 after owner/artist host Black Friday Bravura PEOPLE NEWS months of planning by members of the MSU International saxophonist and recording artist Phil Zonta foundation taking grant applications fraternity, who helped Denny and creative artist Tiffany Klein of La Fille craft its qualifications Gallery have teamed up to offer Lansing-area resi- The Zonta Club of East Lansing Area Foundation is and ushered it through dents an alternative to the usual Black Friday shop- accepting grant applications for programs that im- the fraternity’s national ping frenzy and do so with a philanthropic tie. prove the legal, political, economic, educational, council. The two artists have come together in a creative health and professional status of women. “Bernadette Fried- and artistic fashion to contribute to the The application and instructions are rich’s dedication to our mission of New World Flood led by for- available at www.zonta15.org/eastlan- organization has been mer MSU football player Todd “T.J.” sing.html. unyielding in my 3½ Duckett. Grants of $5,000 will be awarded in years with Triangle Fra- The Black Friday Bravura will take June 2014 and may be renewed for two ternity,” said Kevin Wald- place from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. Friday at the years. Application deadline is Feb. 25, mann, a senior from Far- La Fille Gallery, located at 336 E. Michi- 2014. mington Hills, majoring gan Ave. in media and information. Klein will be doing a live art depic- Phil Denny Lansing woman receives VICKKI “She has made herself tion throughout the afternoon that will national advising award DOZIER available for personal, Bernadette Friedrich later be auctioned, while Denny will The brothers of Triangle Fraternity at [email protected] professional and academ- offer attendees an early listen of his Michigan State University thought 377-1112 ic advancement for our entire organization’s member- debut Christmas CD “The Messenger” 17 years of advising by Bernadette ship. Combined with her personal assistance, she is a and he will play live throughout the Friedrich, the College of Engineering’s director of necessity for the continued operation of our chapter.” afternoon as well. student engagement, deserved much more than just a Founded in 1907 at the University of Illinois, Trian- A portion of CD sales also will bene- thank-you. gle Fraternity has had a chapter at MSU since 1955. fit New World Flood. So, they helped create a new national award to The chapter has 45 active members studying For more information, contact Denny Tiffany Klein honor her. the technical fields of engineering, science and at 204-3188 or email letschat@philden- Friedrich, of Lansing, is the first recipient of the architecture. ny.com national Triangle Fraternity Outstanding Advisor The award presentation came at a surprise cere- Award. She received a hand-blown glass sculpture mony during a regional leadership conference shared People News appears Sunday through Friday. Have an item depicting a person lifting up and coming together at by Triangle Fraternity and Phi Sigma Rho, a social about people in and around Lansing to contribute? Please mail the apex, which is the Triangle Delta T. The glass is sorority for women studying engineering and engi- items to Vickki Dozier, People News, Lansing State Journal, infused with shades of blue to represent a calming neering technologies. 120 E. Lenawee St., Lansing, MI 48919, fax them to her at force. 377-1298 or email them to [email protected]

Holiday HOLIDAY CLOSINGS AND HOURS In observance of Thanksgiving, all state offices, Continued from Page 3A most city governments and financial institutions will be closed today. Most government offices also will be If you bought Thanskgivukkah closed Friday. decorations — and you can buy » Libraries: The Delta Township District Library Festivus poles in full and tabletop will be closed today. sizes, so why shouldn’t you be able St. Johns Briggs Public Library will be closed to- to buy Thanksgivukkah decora- day, Friday and Saturday. tions — hang them up now or cross The East Lansing Public Library, the DeWitt Dis- your fingers for a breakthrough in trict Library, all branches of the Capital Area District cryogenics. Library and the Charlotte Public Library will be The rarity was part of the ap- closed today and Friday. peal for Metzger. He’s not Jewish, The Fowlerville District Library will be closed but a family friend who is Jewish today. celebrates Thanksgiving with his The Grand Ledge Area District Library will be family most every year. Her pres- closed today. ence was excuse enough. » Postal service: No mail delivery today and post “It is a little inconvenient.” Rab- offices will be closed. bi Michael Zimmerman did not » Transportation: Capital Area Transportation share Metzger’s unqualified en- Authority buses will not run today. thusiasm. He is the rabbi at Kehil- The Spec-Tran scheduling office will be open 8 a.m. lat Israel, a Reconstructionist Jew- to 5 p.m. today to schedule rides for Friday. ish synagogue in southeast Lan- EATRAN services will be closed today. sing. Families traveling for » Trash and recycling: Granger collections will be Thanksgiving means fewer at the one day off schedule for the week, starting with today. Hanukkah celebrations. Normal collections will resume Monday. But Zimmerman gamely held a City of Lansing Thursday collections will be de- Thanksgivukkah service on Satur- layed until Friday. day. He tracked down what he be- Thursday refuse and recycling in East Lansing lieves is the only Thanksgivukkah will be picked up Friday along with Friday’s sched- song out there, which makes refer- uled pickups. ence to both Judah Maccabee and Squanto. He dug up what he be- Shopping hours lieves is the only Jewish Thanks- » Meridian Mall: Open from 8 p.m. today to 11 p.m. giving song, at least insofar as it Friday. makes reference to kosher turkey. » Lansing Mall: Some stores will open at 8 p.m. “When I played these for my 14- today. The mall will be open Friday from midnight to year-old daughter, she said, ‘I hope 10 p.m. you’re not going to use those songs Bob Metzger shows the "menurkey" centerpiece Wednesday that will be » Eastwood Towne Center: Recommended hours for a service.’ I said, ‘I am.’ She used for the upcomong Metzger family and friends' holiday gathering in East are 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday, but individual stores can said, ‘I hope it’s not an adult Lansing. Metzger made the "menurkey" (menorah/turkey) centerpiece with set their own hours, which will be posted on East- service.’” nephew Michael Schoen in honor of close family friend Roz Huntley. wood’s website at www.shopeastwoodtownecenter- But the service provided occa- ROD SANFORD/LANSING STATE JOURNAL .com. sion for drawing links between the » Best Buy: Will be open from 6 p.m. today to celebration of the unlikely Jewish “We need to awaken to that radical celebrated holidays by American 10 p.m. Friday. military victory over the Syrian- amazement and to appreciate just Jews, in large part because it falls » J.C. Penney: Opens at 8 p.m. today and closes at Greek Seleucid Empire in the sec- how wonderful our lives are.” at a time of year when all the Chris- 9 p.m. Friday. ond century BC, the miracle of a One also could focus on the reli- tians around them are celebrating. » Kohl’s: Open from 8 p.m. today to midnight Sat- single night’s oil lasting for eight gious freedom angle, of course. “Certainly Hanukkah in the U.S. urday. days and the celebration of the sur- The Seleucids would have forced has taken on a life of its own,” said » Macy’s: Open from 8 p.m. today to about 10 p.m. vival on a new continent of a small the Jews to convert had they won. Dianne Ashton, a professor of reli- Friday at most stores. group of ill-prepared religious sep- Or, as Ken Waltzer, who heads gious studies at Rowan University » Sears: Open from 8 p.m. today to 10 p.m. Friday. aratists, usually called Pilgrims. the Jewish Studies Program at in New Jersey and the author of the » Kmart: Open from 6 a.m. today to 11 p.m. Friday. For Zimmerman, the link is Michigan State University noted, book “Hanukkah in America: A » Staples: Open today from 8 p.m. to midnight and about recognizing the miraculous. that both are “good excuses to History.” 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. Friday. “We have a prayer of thanksgiv- stuff yourself.” But if the connections intrigue » Target: Open from 8 p.m. today to 11 p.m. Friday. ing that we say usually silently, but Or on the fact that they are both, you, today is the day for pondering » Toys R Us: Open from 5 p.m. today to 10 p.m. Fri- it’s part of all of our services, and it in some sense, American holidays, them. day. says, ‘To the wonders and the mir- Thanksgiving in its origins, Ha- As Waltzer put it, “We’re not » Wal-Mart: Open 24 hours at most stores. acles that are near me every day nukkah in its development from a holding our breath for the next » Meijer: Open 24 hours. morning, noon and night,’” he said. minor festival into one of the most- one.” — From staff and wire reports

6-8 p.m. Dec. 2. Bethany Chris- LITERARY MUSIC THEATER tian Services, 612 W. Lake Lan- Ann Pancake at the Center Three Men and a Tenor holi- ”White Christmas” the mu- EVENTS CALENDAR sing Road, Suite 600, East Lan- for Poetry Fall Writing Series, day concert, 7:30 p.m. Dec. 4. sical, 7 p.m. Wednesdays and sing. Info: 336-0191. 7 p.m. Residential College in the St Johns High School, Pocuis Thursdays, 8 p.m. Fridays and THURSDAY, WHARTON, www.whartoncen- Arts and Humanities Theater, Auditorium, 501 W. Sickles St., Saturdays and 2 p.m. Sundays, ter.com. TUESDAY, DEC. 3 C20 Snyder Hall (RCAH Theater), St. Johns. Tickets are available at Dec. 4-15. Riverwalk Theatre, NOV. 28 Snyder-Phillips Hall, MSU cam- the Clinton County Arts Council 228 Museum Drive, Lansing. CLUBS AND MEETINGS pus. Info: 884-1932, Gallery or can be purchased at Info: 482-5700, www.Riverwalk- HOLIDAY SATURDAY, Greater Lansing Housing events.msu.edu/main.php? view the box office after 6 p.m. Dec. Theatre.com. Cost: $20, $18 for 13th Annual Free Thanks- NOV. 30 Coalition community meet- =event&eventid= 13777968535 4. Info: (989) 292-2934. Cost: $12 seniors and students, $12 for giving Feast, 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m. ing, 2-4 p.m. Dec. 3. Allen 11&timebegin=2013-12- general admission. children 12 and younger. Nov. 28. Eaton Area Senior LIBRARIES Neighborhood Center, 1619 E. 04%2019:00:00. Cost: Free. Center, 804 S Cochran Ave, Family Movie Matinee, 1- Kalamazoo St., Lansing. Info: Charlotte. Turkey with dressing, 2:30 p.m. Nov. 30. Delta Town- 372-5980. mashed potatoes and gravy, ship District Library, 5130 Daven- corn, green beans, squash, port Drive, Delta Township. All CONCERTS cranberry sauce, pumpkin pie ages. Stop by for a new-to-DVD Vienna Boys Choir: Christmas and apple dessert. Info: 541- family-friendly movie shown on in Vienna, 7:30-9:30 p.m. 2934. our big screen. Info: 321-4014 Dec. 3. Wharton Center, 750 East 20th annual Free Community ext. 3, www.dtdl.org. Cost: free. Shaw Lane, East Lansing. Info: Thanksgiving Dinner, 11:30 432-2000, www.whartoncenter- a.m.-2 p.m. Nov. 28. Heritage MUSIC .com. Cost: $15-$47. Elementary School, 222 Western Chemical Edge CD release, 8 p.m. Nov. 30. The Loft, 414 E. CONCERTS - HOLIDAY St., Stockbridge. Traditional Mid-Michigan Youth Sym- family Thanksgiving dinner with Michigan Ave., Lansing. With stikyfut and the erers. Info: phony Holiday Concert, 7 p.m. all the trimmings, served in a Dec. 3. East Lansing High School, community setting. Home 913-0103. Cost: $10 in advance, $12 at the door. Center for the Performing Arts , delivery and carry-out also 509 Burcham Drive, East Lansing. available. Call or email stock- SHOWS AND SALES Featuring talented young mu- [email protected] 18th Annual Craft Show, sicians from the Lansing area. for more information. Info: 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Nov. 30. Fraternal Conducted by Jack Mike and 565-3318. Order of the Eagles Hall, 4700 N. David Rosin. Info: 333-7500, SHOWS AND SALES Grand River Ave., Lansing. Info: www.midmichiganyouthsym- 36th Annual Holiday Exhibi- 490-8752. phony.org. Cost: free, donations Good till December 15, 2013 tion, through Dec. 21. Lansing Craft, Antique & Bake Sale, welcome. Art Gallery, 119 N. Washington 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Nov. 30. Colonial Square, Lansing. Michigan-made Village Baptist Church, Lower WEDNESDAY, jewelry, sculptures, paintings, Level, 2010 Boston Blvd., Lan- pottery and more from more sing. Lunch of soups and sloppy DEC. 4 than 100 artists. Info: 374-6400, joes served 11 a.m.-1 p.m. Craf- www.lansingartgallery.org. ters may call or email CLUBS AND MEETINGS [email protected] to reserve a Westside Commercial Associ- table. Info: 281-6265. Cost: $15 ation holiday party and FRIDAY, NOV. 29 for table. annual meeting, 5:30-8:30 p.m. Dec. 4. Harry’s Place, 404 N. PERFORMANCES Verlinden Ave., Lansing. Eat, ”Nutcracker” Ballet, 7:30 p.m. MONDAY, DEC. 2 drink and celebrate a great year Nov. 29-30, 2 p.m. Dec. 1. Whar- of work for the WCA. Email ton Center, Cobb Great Hall, East SEMINARS AND [email protected]. Info: Lansing. 33rd annual presenta- WORKSHOPS 484-9661. Cost: $10 in advance, tion by The Children’s Ballet Foster Care and Foster Care $12 at the door. Theatre of Michigan. Info: (800) Adoption Orientation, SUBSCRIBERS SAVE UP TO $79 IN TODAY’S PAPER

SUNDAY, DECEMBER 22, 2013 WWW.LSJ.COM CITY OF ROSES Pasadena is a virtual paradise for visitors, 1C MSU HOOPS SPARTANS SHUT DOWN LONGHORNS IN 92-78 WIN, PAGE 1D

GUBERNATORIAL RACE YOUTHFUL Snyder, Schauer contest FAITH taking shape By Paul Egan Gannett Michigan

It has been a tumultuous three years in Michigan govern- ment marked by new taxes on pension income, removal of business taxes for most corpo- rations, and angry protests when an incubator of the orga- nized labor movement was made a right-to-work state. Now, the lines are drawn for what national analysts say will be one of the most closely watched elections of 2014, pitting Republican incumbent Gov. Rick Snyder against Democratic challenger Mark Schauer. Snyder has the clear edge in name recognition, money and the support of the business com- munity. Schauer has the support of labor and some unpopular Sny- der decisions on his side. But it’s not clear he can leverage those into a November victory. The Washington Post’s “The Fix” blog ranks Michigan sixth among its top 15 gubernatorial races to watch, while question- ing Schauer’s ability to raise the needed cash. No incumbent governor has been defeated in Michigan since John Engler upset Jim Blanchard in 1990. Also unhelp- ful to Democrats in 2014 is the Riverview Church overcoming tough sell fact Michigan voters have fa- vored the candidate whose par- ty does not occupy the White of organized religion to 20-somethings House in 15 out of 18 elections for governor since 1954, said By Matthew Miller | [email protected] Eric Ostermeier, a research associate at the University of he members of The Stone’s Relief were churning their way through “All My Tears.” It’s a worship song about salvation GROWTH OF See ELECTION, Page 2A and succor in the life hereafter, originally a country tune. They were playing it as a rocker. A CHURCH POWER OF It was a Sunday morning. The curtains were drawn over the high windows of Erickson Kiva at Michigan State Uni- » Riverview Church started in 1977 INCUMBENCY versity, the band lit up by red and green stage lights. A as a campus church plant at MSU. It’s rare for an incumbent gover- crowd of young people swayed, some in their Sunday best » At the time the church moved into a nor to be defeated in Michigan. or hipster grubbiest, but mostly wearing the casual look of permanent building in 2001, it had about The last Michigan governor college students who had managed to get up before noon 250 members. defeated at the polls was Democrat and put on something other than pajamas. And get to » Over the next nine months, it would Jim Blanchard, upset by Republican church, because on Sunday mornings during the school year, more than triple in size. John Engler in 1990. T Erickson Kiva becomes the MSU venue of Riverview Church. » Riverview since has expanded its build- The last Republican governor “All my tears …” Mike Swanson, the 22-year-old singer, was holding the ing twice, spun off a second venue on who failed to win re-election was word, pushing his voice into the song’s last line, “be washed away.” There MSU’s campus and plans to open a third Kim Sigler, defeated by Democrat G. was a burst of feedback from an electric guitar. There was applause. There in Lansing’s REO Town neighborhood Mennen (Soapy) Williams in 1948. was a sermon about the story of Sodom and Gomorrah. this spring. » Riverview draws more than 3,000 peo- ple on an average weekend. Riverview is an evangelical con- you is to stop,” Joe Testa, the 37- TODAY’S FORECAST gregation, a campus church plant year-old pastor who leads the MSU High in the low 30s, that became a suburban mega- venue, said near the end of his ser- low in the mid-teens. church and then spun off a second mon. Swanson, the singer, would doesn’t mesh well with the genera- Full forecast • 6B venue back on campus. It has grown pray later from the stage “that we tional mores of the Millennials. But Lottery ...... 2A Books...... 6C at a blistering pace for a dozen wouldn’t be turned off by the in- no church locally, and few any- Nation & World .12A Sports...... 1D years, adding thousands of mem- tensity” of the message. where else, has had more success in Local & State...... 1B Business Weekly ...1E bers, most under the age of 30. Riverview’s doctrine is conserva- bringing young adults in and get- Deaths...... 4B Outlook...... 1F Life...... 1C Opinion ...... 5F “If you have any kind of sexual tive. Some of what it teaches, about ting them to stay. It’s about the rock Travel ...... 5C Classified ....SOURCE relationship that you’re in right now sexual morality, for instance, or bands, and it isn’t. © 2013 Lansing State Journal, Lansing, Michigan. that isn’t your husband or your distinct roles for men and women or A Gannett Newspaper. wife, my strong encouragement to the sinfulness of homosexual acts, See RIVERVIEW, Page 9A $3.00 Retail For home delivery pricing, see Page 2A. 0 40901 05172 5 For all of your Holiday Treats

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“The great thing about Riverview is people feel OK with not having arrived at being perfect.” SUZE WHITENIGHT, MSU senior

James Granger, one of eight pastors at Riverview Church, speaks to the congregation in Holt. ROBERT KILLIPS/LANSING STATE JOURNAL Riverview Continued from Page 1A FOCUSED ON YOUTH “Our intentional focus is on teens, col- lege students and singles and young fam- ilies, and if we’re going to err, we’re going to err toward the college students,” said Noel Heikkinen, one of Riverview’s eight pastors. “We’ve said that so many times that it’s part of what people understand about who we are.” When older members feel ignored or ill served, “We’ll say, ‘If you are interested in helping us continue to reach the next gen- eration, then there is a place for you here. If not, there are plenty of churches in town that, either intentionally or unintentionally, target your age bracket.” He is surprised by how often they come around. A decade ago, Heikkinen was the young face of the church’s leadership, sporting an eyebrow ring, fluent in the hip, caffeinat- A band plays at a Riverview Church Sunday service in April at Erickson Kiva on the MSU campus. ed, subculture-friendly style cropping up in youth-oriented evangelical churches. Riverview was smaller then. Its radio ads talked about “reinventing church.” Now 42, he has taken center stage as the pastors who founded Riverview have stepped back. Heikkinen preaches most Sundays in a kinetic and garrulous style. He has grown a beard that, according to fellow pastor Dan Price, “Moses would be proud of.” He still wears the eyebrow ring. Riverview Church “We say that we are doctrinally conser- soon will open in the vative and culturally fluid.” The idea is former Cadillac Club. that biblical doctrine doesn’t change but the trappings do. It’s like coffee poured MOVE TO into different-shaped coffee cups, Heik- REO TOWN kinen said. “It’s the same coffee, no matter which cup you pour it into.” By Easter, Riverview But finding the proper shape of cup is Church plans to start work. Heikkinen takes cues from his teen- holding services in the age children. He asks questions of younger REO Town building church members: This social media site or that once was the that one? Sleeves rolled up or down? And Cadillac Club. the church has built evaluation into its It will be the natural rhythms, he said, “asking the ques- church’s third venue tion, ‘Is there anywhere where we are Rong Han talks with pastor Joe Testa before services last spring at the Riverview Church venue at Erickson for services, after its getting too old?’ ” Kiva on the Michigan State University campus. main church building When Heikkinen arrived at Riverview in Holt and Erickson in the early ’90s, one of the most culturally listen to Pearl Jam and seemed functional- “and the predictable life is rapid growth Kiva at Michigan State jarring things, the most fantastic things, ly normal to me.” followed by an extremely long period of University. was seeing jeans and T-shirts in church. plateau followed by an extremely long There’s a practical- He preached in jeans and a T-shirt. Now period of decline until there’s a handful of ity to the plan. River- younger people are dressing up more. NOT CONDEMNING old gray-haired ladies left holding millions view found last year When he preaches wearing a tie on Easter, “Most people my age, I don’t think, are of dollars in assets trying to figure out that worshippers were it’s the older members who give him grief. looking for religion,” said Jared Schulman. what to do.” coming to Holt from “Unless you have an eye to that,” he He was standing outside a classroom in It happens, he said, because churches more than 1,500 ad- said, “you’re going to miss those cultural Akers Hall, an MSU dormitory. Young men find a style, a moment, that feels right and dresses in the city of leaps.” and women had started to arrive for hold onto it as the rest of the world goes Lansing. Wednesday night Bible study. Riverview rushing past. It happens because they no The notion also is holds 19 of them on campus each week. longer connect. that bringing the ‘NONES’ RISING Schulman, a recent graduate, would be “It’s a significant organizational and church to the city will Young people in America are increas- leading one. “They don’t want another structural challenge to not age with the make it more acces- ingly disconnected from organized reli- thing to do. They don’t want something rest of your congregation, to kind of keep sible for those who gion, more likely to be unaffiliated than they have to check a box for on Sunday.” revitalizing yourself and to do it in an au- wouldn’t make the any generation on record. They do want a community, he said. They thentic way that actually is attractive to trip to the suburbs. Nearly a third of those in the 18-to-29 age do want a closer connection with God and to young people,” said Scott Thumma, a pro- Among other things, bracket say they don’t identify with any know how Jesus matters in their lives and fessor at Hartford Seminary in Connecti- the Holt church isn’t religion at all, according to a study called Riverview, he said, does that very well. cut and an expert on the dynamics of on a bus line. “Nones on the Rise” released last fall by the Schulman estimates that it took his megachurches. “There’s this ethos Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life. The college roommate 10 weeks to convince It’s hard to know whether Riverview is of the past 30 years of “nones” include atheists and agnostics, but him to go to Riverview. It was the third really defying gravity. churches moving out the majority say they simply have no partic- time in his life he’d set foot in a church, he The church had about 250 members to the suburbs,” pas- ular religious affiliation. Overwhelmingly, said, and it “just didn’t feel off-putting like when it opened the doors of its building in tor Dan Price said. they aren’t looking for one. I expected a church to feel.” Holt in 2001. It now draws in more than “We find a lot of But those who are looking tend to be The tone at Riverview is one of con- 3,000 on most weekends. The building has young people that looking for communities that can help versation, explanation, exhortation. Con- been expanded twice. It’s not impossible want to live in the city them live out their faith in a complicated demnation is harder to find, which is by that Riverview is simply riding a youthful again, that want to world, said David Kinnaman. He’s the design and which seems to matter. demographic wave. help neighborhoods president of the Barna Group, a research “The great thing about Riverview is like REO Town and organization that works with churches on people feel OK with not having arrived at Old Town become issues of faith and culture, and the author being perfect,” said Suze Whitenight, an THINKING YOUNG rejuvenated and come of two books on young Christians. MSU senior who began attending River- Steve Sommerlot moved to East Lansing back.” The churches doing some of the best view in her freshman year. from Ames, Iowa, in the fall of 1977 to The fact that the work, he said, “are the ones that are giving She has her doubts about the church’s plant a church. There were three married plan is going forward some certainty to these young people about teaching that women can’t be pastors. She’s couples and six single men and women. A at all is due to River- the core, and also giving them a sense of sure that there are many couples there who few of them moved into a house on Center view’s success in con- dexterity in how to engage culture.” are having sex before marriage (according Street, held prayer meetings in the living vincing the Lansing A hip beat and a well-designed space is to one recent survey, 80 percent of young room, played guitars, sometimes wrote City Council that it both important and insufficient, he said, unmarried evangelicals have). There’s space new songs straight out of the Bible. would be a force for “because there’s going to be something more for that, she said, a potent sense that every- “We didn’t have any funding. We had positive change in a ‘relevant’ or more hip or more contemporary one falls short, that there aren’t a few hot nothing. We were just like whoooo,” Som- neighborhood where outside the church community. The more button sins and then all the others. merlot said. “It was total Jesus freak progress has been you try to compete and make the church a “Probably part of the reason why so stuff.” slow, piecemeal and bastion of contemporary expression, the many young people come is because we He’s 62 now. A clean-shaven head has often short-lived. more it actually looks anachronistic.” can be broken,” she said. replaced the receding hairline evident in “We have a bunch What made a difference for Justin Indeed, the issues that loom large in the photos from the church’s early years. of young people that Detmers, who came to Riverview at 18, culture wars are “are not the ones that we He and Paul DenHerder, another pastor, are excited about was finding a place to worship that didn’t talk about most of the time,” Heikkinen are the only members of the original group that,” Price said, “and feel like “the evangelical ghetto.” said. “They are not the badges of honor who still are part of Riverview’s leader- want to love those “I probably identified as a Christian in that we wear. The badge of honor that we ship. They shepherded the church through areas of the city.” my late teens, but as much as I had excite- wear is that every one of us is a sinner in years when it met in classrooms and then ment for Jesus, I didn’t want some of my need of salvation and that Jesus is the only in the Kellogg Center, through the cam- RIVERVIEW friends to go to church with me,” he said. one that can save us.” paign to build a permanent building. At Riverview, “it was like, ‘Hey, cool, Even where the church’s teaching runs Knowing what’s going to resonate with CHURCH come. I think you won’t feel weird.’ ” against strong cultural currents, “people the college students is “very difficult for » On the Web: He is 30 now, the director of River- don’t expect us to change what we be- me because of my age. I have to trust the www.rivchurch.com view’s third venue, which is set to open lieve,” he added. “They just don’t want us youngers,” he said. » On the ground: next spring in Lansing’s REO Town to be condemning to them about what they It’s what happens when you pursue a 3585 Willoughby neighborhood. believe.” mission to the young across decades. Road, Holt In retrospect, he said, what made him There is continuity, too, he said, the » On Twitter: twitter stay was less about the style of worship desire for “real authentic Christianity .com/RivChurch than it was the sort of people it brought in, BUCKING THE TREND lived in such as way that you could un- » On Facebook: “a lot of people around my age who were The typical American church “has a derstand it, grasp it and live it out. That www.facebook.com/ easy to relate to ... 20-somethings who very predictable life,” Heikkinen said, hasn’t changed.” rivchurch