Your hometown newspaper serving Plymouth and Plymouth Township for 119 years THURSDAY December 23 2004 75 cents Volume 119 Number 3 4 w ivw .hom etow riiife.com © 2 004 Hometown Communications Network S p r in k le r 'U d r i e n Christmas' Actors iampoon the typical celebrity holiday variety special with song dance and s e n d s lots otlgughs N INSERTED SECTION s e n io r s s c ra m b lin g Angels light up residence all year long BY HEATHER NEEDHAM STAFF WRITER SECTION B Twelve units were damaged Monday morning at Tonquish Creek M anor, tem porarily displacing their senior-citizen residents into nearby motels and fam ily members’ homes, though no injuries were reported TOM HAWLEY | STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER A broken fire sprinkler pipe unleashed a flood Community Financial's new president/CEO Bill Lawton who replaced Roger Ballard earlier this month now holds the same post his father of water and mayhem into the senior housing once held facility at about 10 a m M onday, causing the Holiday hours evacuation o f all 104 "tsidents All displaced resi­ Offices in the city of dents are expected to be back hom e w ithin a cou­ Plymouth will be ple of weeks, with some possibly coming home by closed or offering lim­ Christmas, accord ng Sharon Thomas, director ited hours during the of Tonquish Cieek upcoming Christmas- Back to the future The lowered water pressure caused by the burst New Year holiday peri­ pipe made the fire alarms to go off od Dec 24-Jan 3. ‘ (The water) came m like a waterfall through a Residents wishing 2nd-generation leader takes credit union's helm fixture m the Kitchen, Thom as said, describing to pay taxes will be the incident s point o f origin m a third-floor unit able to do so by using BY BRAD KADRICH credit union m California figured on having the first was looking at m ay have in the B buildm/ either of the 24-hour STAFF WRITER It’s not the first tim e a time he left He was work been teaching But a funny M onday’s frigid temperatures complicated m at drop boxes or by com- Law ton has been elevated m g part tim e while finish thing happened on the ters, Thom as said It seems unlikely that to that lofty position Bills ing up at Salem High way to a new career The I had to find out im m ediately what was w ror;§ Wednesday or Bill Law ton was filing father was the C EO back School from which he m foim ation technology because I couldn t keep (residents) outside sht^ Thursday Dec 29-30 ledger cards as a m iddle- m the 70s when Bill graduated m 1978 He position at the credit sa id at the Church Street school student working for worked there as a middle moved on to the union opened up again The Plymouth Com m unity Fire Department, entrance lobby or the Com m unity Federal Credit schooler Now , after University of Michigan- Faced with commuting to Huron Valley Am bulance and several clean-up drop box by the out­ Union that he imagined spending a few years run­ Dearborn, where he got work, Lawton - who hates and plum bing contractors were on the scene side book return at himself running the whole ning the credit unions IT his bachelors degree from that much driving - made M o n d a y the Plymouth District operation some day departm ent, Bill has the School o f Management the easy choice Thom as said a South Lyon contracting firm Library The city's But that’s just what a s c e n d e d m 1 9 8 2 It was open, and I ve went above and beyond the call of duty when its Department of Law ton is doing at the ‘Dad kind o f dragged his He left Com m unity never liked commuting, workers painstakingly helped rescue numerous Municipal Services will now-renamed Community son off to w ork at a ripe Financial - the first tim e - said Law ton, who grew up antique items from a resident’s room They pur­ be open 8am to Financial, after being pro­ young age,’ Bill Law ton i n 1 9 8 0 m the Plymouth Canton chased sealed plastic containers and packed the 4:30 p.m Wednesday, moted to president and said with a laugh ‘This “M y focus was on my area I had enjoyed work­ items inside a vacant unit D ec 2 9 . chief executive officer job is very different In IT last tw o years o f college ’ ing here, and die tim e Capt Jim Haar of the Plymouth Community There will be no Lawton, who had been I had m y hands m all the he said “I was looking at away made me appreciate Fire Departm ent said fire alarm calls are fairly delay in city or vice president and C O O , different areas This job is doing something else working here I was happy com m on, but those involving residences are treat­ township solid-waste replaces Roger Ballard, m uch less tactical than when I got done with to come back ed with m ore immediacy than others pickup during the holi­ who left to assume a lead­ s tr a te g ic ’ s c h o o l ’ O n something like this, we send everybody out d a y ership position w ith a And its a job he never One o f those things he PLEASE SEE L E A D E R , A4 there,’ Haar said For more informa­ tion, call the city, (734) 453-1234 Plymouth Township offices will be open for Local singer's holiday performance is at center court normal hours except when they close for BY KURT KUBAN tility some expect the Indiana guitarist Charlie Coen, and cial singing such a meaningful the holidays on Dec STAFF WRITER fans to show the Pistons Last drummer Jay Mingis song on Christmas 24 and Dec 27, and m onth, die two teams were Blazer had so much fun dur­ I’m always excited about again Dec 31 and Jan Anyone who plans to watch involved m one o f the worst ing the show, and has such a singing the anthem, but now 3 die heavily anticipated rematch sports brawls ever Several belief in the cause, that she that we are in wartime it really The Plymouth between die Detroit Pistons and Pacers have been charged w ith hopes to make it an annual means something, Blazer said Township treasurer s Indiana Pacers on Christmas crimes stemming from the inci­ event It was an awesome show W hen I m singing, I look office will be open 8 Day m ay w ant to tune in a little dent ‘I’m really looking forward W e perform ed all the holiday around at all the people and a.m to 4 p m Dec 31 e a rly to this, but I’ve asked them not classics, ’ she said ‘Id id n tg e ta wonder how m any of them have for tax purposes Local singer and performer to introduce m e as an artist count on how much we raised, a friend or a loved one m the Justine Blazer, a 2001 graduate from Detroit,’ Blazer said but I know the Marines had a war Its very sentimental for me S a fe r id e s of Canton High and former Blazer, who has been busy huge wad of money at the end of n o w ” Plymouth police are Chiefette, w ill take center court w ith her singing career, made t h e m g h t Blazer also just released a teaming with Central and sing die national anthem her most recent performance on The national audience that Christmas C D , called J u s t a Distributors of Beer, ABC before the game, which starts at Dec. 14 at Fifth Avenue in she will be playing for on Justine Christmas Containing Cab and many Plymouth- 12 30 p m , and is being tele­ Detroit, where she helped the Christmas D ay is not exactly a 12 holiday classics, the C D can area bars and restau­ vised by ES P N for a national U S Marine Corps collect toy first for Blazer, who has sang die be purchased at either Dearborn rants to offer1 Project audience Blazer, 21, is looking donations and raise m oney for anthem at numerous major Music store, including the one - * DONALD St^LEY Safe Ride Plym o u th ' forward to die experience, the Toys for Tots program She sporting events, and has been on m Canton, or on BlazdiisWeb through Saturday, though she is a little worried played the gig w ith her band, m ajor television networks site at wwwjustm eblazer edm Performer Ju s tin p E ta r of Canton sings Ja n 1 about being associated w ith the the Justine Blazer Band, which including ABC, ESPN and FO X . “It s very warm , very rom an­ at 5th Avenue iif Detroit last % e k in a Patrons of participating Detroit area, because o f the hos­ consists o f bassist M att Coen, B ut still, she said it w ill be spe­ tic, Blazer says o f the work charity concert benefiting Toys for Tots bars and restaurants will be able to obtain a cab ride home in the event they've had too much to drink The program is meant Goodfellows make family's holiday merry to encourage responsible Apartments F7 drinking, not the overuse BY HEATHER NEEDHAM effort Letters went out to tucked inside The girl Victory Packaging, the weekend of Dec 4 At Home B1 of alcohol STAFF WRITER 22,000 addresses within wrote she was sending all Com m unity Financial, Though the move meant Automotive G1 "Participating Plymouth the 48170 ZIP code the money she had, but Cequent Towing Products less money came m , Classified Index F5 establishments include This year, the Plym outh Obviously, the letters would send more when Sealant Equipm ent and Volante said volunteers Crossword Puzzle F6 Doyle's Tavern, Goodfellows, w ith the help were not treated as junk she got more Engineering, the were safer because they For The Record A3 Jobs F8 Hermann's Old Towne o f several corporations m a il W e have received Plymouth Noon Rotary were not in the streets Movie Guide E6 Grill, Plymouth Crossing, helping to play the role of W e have received everything from $1 to a Club and the Plymouth W hen you re not m the Obituaries C7 336 Mam, Plaza Lanes, Santa, are helping 208 city tremendous community thousand dollars, Volante Elks Lodge No 1780 street, you don’t make as Real Estate F5 Boulders, E G Nick’s and township residents to support this year, Volante said o