Clinton County Fill-A-Cop Car
by Maralyn Fink
On Saturday I wandered to Kroger’s to find the Fill-A-Cop car to see how things were going.
I met Officer Brendon and Officer Nick, and they reported that things were going well this year.
Officer Nick and helper were also collecting non perishable items for the drive.
It was a cold day, but residents had no problem with the donating. Thanks to all who came out to donate and tothe Officers and helpers who were there to accept the items.
Mailing letters to Santa at St. Johns Depot
In the middle of getting ready for the holidays, don’t forget there is a great place for children to mail their letters to Santa down by the St. Johns Depot.
One of the three historic train cars sitting on the tracks is a Railroad Post Office (RPO) and baggage car made in 1903. Just think how old it is now!
It always had a mail slot in its side when it worked as a moving post office for 50 years or more, and the slot is still there. The car doesn’t travel any more, but letters mailed there to Santa mysteriously get to him without even needing a stamp.
You can easily tell where this is because there is a very large painting of Santa standing by the steps that lead to the mail slot, and the steps have colored lights on their railing. In case you aren’t sure where the St. Johns Depot is, the address is 107 E. Railroad St. in St. Johns, right across from the library.
The historic railcars belong to the Railroad Museum branch of Clinton County Arts Council, which receives some operating funds from competitive grants from the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs and the National Endowment for the Arts.
Holiday Music Spectacular coming up Friday, December 9
The St. Johns Community Band presents the 2016 Holiday Music Spectacular on Friday, December 9, 2016 at the Wilson Center Auditorium.
Scheduled to appear are the Vivo Contando Children’s Choir, the Mint City Singers and the St. Johns Community Band.
The program begins at 7:00pm. Admission is free. Donations accepted for the Wilson Center Auditorium Renovation Project.
Christmas toys at Paine-Gillam-Scott House Museum
The Paine-Gillam-Scott House Museum invites you to Christmas at the Museum.
The toy top is just one of the many antique toys under the live Hemlock tree.
Don’t miss the 2016 Christmas season display and the Clinton County Farming Exhibit. The Museum will close for the winter after Sunday, December 18 and reopen in May of 2017.
The Museum is located at 106 Maple Street, west of the Courthouse and is open Wednesdays 2:00 to 6:30 pm and Sundays 1:00 to 4:00 pm through Sunday, December 18.
For further information, please contact the Museum at PGSMuseum@hotmail.com, call 989-224-2894 or 989-292-9096. The website is PGSmuseum.com.
Kiwanis takes kids shopping
Kiwanis believes that it’s always a great start of the Christmas season, to do what we do best – give back to our community, especially our young people.
The Kiwanis club took 21 kids Christmas shopping the other day. What a joy it was to see the happiness in their faces!
Sue Lounds, Tom Leonard, Jenell Leonard, Kimberly Jaworski Brzozowski, Katie Eccleton and Steve Heath were among the helpers.
Fred Meijer Rails to Trails celebrates bridge opening
How cool is this?
Ribbon Cutting Ceremony of the Twin Rivers Bridge on Monday, November 28
When it became clear that the current bridge over the Maple River was unsafe for vehicular traffic, a new bridge was built in its place. But instead of tearing down the old bridge it was re-purposed into a trail spur, providing a pedestrian link from the Clinton Ionia Shiawassee Trail in Muir to Lyons.