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36 Thursday, October 3, 2024 BATTLE CREEK SHOPPER NEWS http://www.thebattlecreekshopper.com

FADING
Continued from Page 35

WE CARE FOR ADULTS

AND CHILDREN

Full Service Dentistry

• Root Canals


• Gum Treatment


• Cosmetic Dentistry


• Implants • Crowns


• Extractions • White Fillings


• Invisalign® on Teens & Adults
  RIGHT CHOICE DENTAL
  All Services Provided in a PAINLESS Manner
  475 E. Columbia Ave., Suite #5,
  Battle Creek, MI 49014 (Lower level)
  (269)968-9923
  rightchoicedentalbattlecreek.com

Implants

$

675

DR. WEST

WE CARE FOR ADULTS

AND CHILDREN

Full Service Dentistry

• Root Canals


• Gum Treatment


• Cosmetic Dentistry


• Implants • Crowns


• Extractions • White Fillings


• Invisalign® on Teens & Adults
  RIGHT CHOICE DENTAL
  All Services Provided in a PAINLESS Manner
  475 E. Columbia Ave., Suite #5,
  Battle Creek, MI 49014 (Lower level)
  (269)968-9923
  rightchoicedentalbattlecreek.com

Implants

$

675

DR. WEST

WE CARE FOR ADULTS

AND CHILDREN

Full Service Dentistry

• Root Canals


• Gum Treatment


• Cosmetic Dentistry


• Implants • Crowns


• Extractions • White Fillings


• Invisalign® on Teens & Adults
  RIGHT CHOICE DENTAL
  All Services Provided in a PAINLESS Manner
  475 E. Columbia Ave., Suite #5,
  Battle Creek, MI 49014 (Lower level)
  (269)968-9923
  rightchoicedentalbattlecreek.com

Implants

$

675

DR. WEST

Battle Creek

Eagles 299 Ladies Aux.

19757 Capital Ave. NE,

Battle Creek, MI 49017

TACO BAR

Friday, Oct. 4, 2024

5-7pm or until SOLD OUT!

$15 AYCE In House / $12 To Go Orders

No dessert with to go orders

No Credit

Cards

Open to

the Public

HUNTER’S HUNTER’S

TREE TREE

SERVICESERVICE

• Fully Insured


• Tree Felling • Trimming


• Land Clearing


• Other Bucket Truck Work

Call Hunter

269.924.8049269.924.8049

Quality Furniture

Plus Antiques

Quality Furniture

Plus Antiques

1391 W. Michigan Ave.

Battle Creek, MI 49037

Monday-Thursday 12-5pm, Saturday 12-4:30pm

SPECIAL ONLINE AUCTION

Featuring a coin collection

spanning 4 generations.

“ALL WILL BE OFFERED

WITHOUT RESERVE”

Offering: MORGAN SILVER DOLLARS,

PEACE SILVER DOLLARS,

BARBER HEAD 1/2 SILVER DOLLARS,

BARBER, DIMES AND QUARTERS,

MERCURY DIMES, WALKING LIBERTY

1/2 SILVER DOLLARS,

HUNDREDS OF COLLECTIBLE COINS.

PLUS TOOLS, HANDCRAFTED KNIVES,

GENERAL MERCHANDISE.

THIS AUCTION CLOSES @ 6 PM,

MONDAY, OCTOBER 7

SOFT CLOSE - 1 ITEM EVERY

20 SECONDS.

PAYMENT AND PICKUP WILL BE

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 8

******NOTE SPECIALS HOURS******

******3 PM - 6PM******

TERMS: CASH OR CHECK,

NO CREDIT CARDS.

Claud McMillen Auction Co.

Phone 269-209-4022

http://www.mcmillenauctions.com

that would indicate that it was once

a house of worship.

Some of the timbers from the roof

had fallen in, and there was black

grime and mold everywhere.

I guess the church will be left to

decay like the farmhouses and other

decrepit structures I’ve visited along

my travels.

It wasn’t long ago that I was on

a road trip along the Lake Superior

shoreline and stopped to take a few

photos of an old cottage that was

situated between the highway and

the advancing lakeshore.

The building was probably built in

the 1940s or 1950s, but to me it was

clear it had been abandoned before its

useful life was over.

What a beautiful place to have a

cottage, positioned where its inhabit-

ants could sit and watch the sun go

down.

Whoever stayed there could fall

asleep listening to the waves softly

lapping up against the shore.

Cars passing by, especially at night,

would certainly have been infrequent

and would not likely have disturbed

anyone who might have been asleep

inside.

When I pulled my vehicle off onto

the shoulder of the road to stop, it

was a cold and cloudy day.

The lake’s waves had kicked up and

they were loud.

What looked like brand-new “No

Trespassing” signs were nailed into

the trunks of trees.

I imagine the owners as a couple

who stayed here during the summer-

time and perhaps autumn but lived

elsewhere during the winter.

Like the birds that migrate back

and forth from this place, maybe one

springtime they never came back.

Relatives who inherited the prop-

erty, who may have never visited,

maybe now hold the deed to the still-

valuable lakefront property.

It’s so strange to think that these

dwellings and businesses that sat

along the backroads and highways

used to one time be vibrant and

actively used by people every day.

There’s a set of old cabins I know

that sits at an intersection of two state

highways.

Like all these other places, the

buildings are abandoned now except

for the specters who occupy the

rooms for free.

The old windows aren’t broken, and

the doors are still hung where they

always were, but there’s an uncom-

fortable silence that’s palpable here –

American 1 Credit Union pledged

$5,000 to its annual Teacher Grant

Program, awarding 10 educators with

$500 each for classroom needs and

improvements.

Among the recipients is Lexus

Baxendale of Battle Creek Central

High School.

“At American 1, our mission is to

foster financial wellness within our

communities, including support-

ing educators and local schools,”

said Haley Hemmig, Community

Partnership manager for American

1. “Teachers often spend their own
   hard-earned money to equip their
   students with the tools they need to
   succeed. This grant was created to
   ease that financial burden and pro-

like a crime has occurred, as though

this present condition was never sup-

posed to happen.

I can picture carpenters building

the cabins and pouring the founda-

tions for what likely was a fine

business once upon America in the

1950s.

In those days, travel became very

popular, with a new interstate high-

way system and folks increasingly

traveling around seeing and enjoying

things after the big war.

Somehow, I became drawn to these

forgotten places, intrigued by the

memories and stories floating around

these crumbling foundations.

There is a peacefulness here, as

well as a sadness, resignation and

reflection on what was.

I think these places like to see visi-

tors – someone who will remember

them.

So, when I drive or walk past, I

give an acknowledging nod of my

head or a wave of my hand.

If I stop to maybe take a picture or

two, I remain respectful of the place.

I listen to the birds singing and

close my eyes to take deep breaths of

the atmosphere.

I try to hear what my heart and

soul are saying to me before I move

on along my way.

So long my friends, I’ll see you

again one day.

American 1 C.U. names teacher grant recipients

vide teachers with opportunities to

explore new and creative ways to

engage students while teaching them

valuable skills.”

Since its inception in 2004,

the American

1 Educational

Grant program

has awarded

$266,000 in grants

and scholarships

to 277 teach-

ers and students

from Jackson,

Washtenaw,

Hillsdale,

Lenawee, Wayne,

Monroe and

Calhoun counties.