ED & JANICE HOPKINS

Ed and Janice Hopkins were married on February 20, 1965 at Holy Name of Jesus Catholic Church in Wyoming, Michigan. The late Rev. Fr. Felix La Pres, officiated the ceremony. Their journey together began four months earlier when two of their friends thought that they should meet on a blind date. They were right! They raised seven children in the Sand Lake area, living there for thirty-one years after moving from Grand Rapids. Their children are Jeff (Alene) Hopkins (Spencer, Jasen, Maddie and Abbey) of Cedar Springs, Melody (T.J.) Long (Jordan, Elaina, Tom and Anthony) of Wyoming, Michigan, Matt (Holly) Hopkins (Shelby, Chase, Heidi, and Ryan) of Cedar Springs, Rebecca (Jack) McHugh (Joshua and Logan) of Walker, Barry Hopkins of Grand Rapids and Mary Beth Hopkins, of Kentwood. Ed and Janice also have two great-grandchildren, Brayden and Ella. Their youngest daughter, Tammy passed away in the Fall of 1998. In 2002, the couple moved to Cedar Springs, while continuing to spend six months each year in Florida working for Walt Disney World. After leaving Florida and WDW, Ed began working at Spartan Distributing in Sparta, where he still works today. Janice is retired and has dinner ready and trips planned when he comes home. A two week Caribbean cruise was recently enjoyed to celebrate their 50th.

The secret to our success is to be willing to step outside of our comfort zones from time to time to find adventures together. But most of all, always being there for each other, not only as spouses, but as each other’s soft place to fall…..and laughing a lot and finding the silly in things, no matter how old we get….trying always to embrace that inner child.

The National Weather office in Grand Rapids needs your help. April 11, 2015 will mark the 50th anniversary of the 1965 Palm Sunday Tornado Outbreak and they  are looking for photos, home movies and eyewitness accounts of the tornadoes to be documented as part of their commemoration event. They are especially interested in details on the tornado that struck from near Marne to Comstock Park on that day. If you have firsthand accounts of the tornadoes or film of the event, please contact them at w-grr.webmaster@noaa.gov. You can also leave a phone message with your contact info at 616-949-0643 extension 356.

50th Anniversary

JIM & VERNA SMIGIEL

Open House on September 7th at Village of Pierson Hall 2-6PM

Jim and Verna Smigiel will be celebrating their 50^th Anniversary on September 7^th at the Village of Pierson’s  hall at 90 Grand St. Jim and Verna were married in Sand Lake by the Justice of the Peace on August 28, 1964 with Betty Hilbrands, Wanda (White) Wagner and Jerald Magoon attending. Celebrating with them will be their children, Gayle Smigiel, Emily Woolf, Aaron and Jenifer Smigiel and Darrin and Melba Smigiel; and grandchildren, Destiny, Liberty, and Kaylee Smigiel and Brandon and Tifany Empie.

ALLEN AND LOUISE KING

Allen and Louise King of Cedar Springs are blessed to celebrate their 50th anniversary on June 27, 2014. They were married June 27, 1964 in the First Baptist Church of Sparta, Michigan by Allen’s uncle the Rev. John McKay. Louise is retired from Steelcase Inc. after working for 20 years in Corporate Communications. Allen retired from Cedar Springs Public Schools after 25 years in custodial/ maintenance. Their children are Scott and his wife Wendy of Jonesboro, Georgia, and Christopher and his wife Pamela of Clarkston, Michigan. Their three grandsons are Jacob, Eli and Tyler King. Allen and Louise will celebrate their anniversary with a family vacation hosted by their children, in Northport, Michigan later this summer.

The secret to their success is putting the other person first.

50^th Anniversary

Vern & Linda Baker

Married on April 3, 1964, Vern and Linda (MacEachron) Baker, of Cedar Springs, celebrated their 50^th anniversary. Their children are; Heidi and Doug Tackmann, Rich and Jennifer Baker, Eric and Kim Baker. Their grandchildren are; Austin and Katie Tackmann, Ethan and Nicole Baker, Avery Baker, Zachary and Zoey Paletta, Marc and Rachael Destine and great-granddaughter Ava Destine.

50th Anniversary

DUANE & CONNIE PETERSEN

Duane and Connie Petersen were married for 50 years on February 8, 2014. Their children are: Troy Petersen of Cedar Springs, Kimberly Rockinger of Cedar Springs, Jeremy and Kelly Petersen of Caledonia and Aric & Amber Petersen of Cedar Springs. They have eight grandchildren. Friends and family are invited to join them in celebration on Saturday, February 15^th at the Solon Township Hall, 15185 Algoma, Cedar Springs. No gifts please.

Their secret to a long and successful marriage is: “We believe in our love for each other and our family with lots of communication.”

RON & SUE MAGOON

Ron and Sue Magoon of Cedar Springs, will be celebrating their 50^th wedding anniversary on Saturday, February 1, 2014. In their years together, they have seen their children, Rhonda and Chad, both get married and have been blessed with a wonderful grandson, Zach and a beautiful granddaughter, Leah. Ron is now retired and they have enjoyed having more time to spend together. Through it all, their love for one another continues to deepen and grow stronger. A family dinner is planned to celebrate their special day.

The secret of their success is commitment, love and devotion.

50th Wedding Anniversary 

Roger and Bette Towsley 

Roger and Bette Towsley of Sand Lake, MI will be celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary on November 16, 2013. An open house will be hosted by their children on November 9 from 1-4pm at Crossfire Church, 4780 Cornfield Drive, Cedar Springs, MI.

All friends and family welcome. No gifts please.

DORA & FREDERICK POLEGA

Please join us on August 17, 2013 at Algoma Township Hall (corner of Algoma and 13 Mile Rd.) for an Open House to celebrate fifty years of marriage with family and friends of Dora and Frederick Polega.

Jennings & Suzanne Johnson

Jennings & Suzanne Johnson of Cedar Springs celebrated their 50^th Anniversary. They were married on Saturday, May 11, 1963. Their children are Scott & Michele (Dubridge) Johnson of Hanover, Pennsylvania; Brian & Julie (Tank) Johnson of Grand Rapids, Michigan; and Julie Anne Johnson of Rochester, New York. They have 13 grandchildren, Donald & Debbie Johnson, Chad, Charles, Kathleen and Jo Ellen Johnson of Hanover, Pennsylvania; Tamara & Jon Wesoloski of Menominee, Michigan; Celine, Gavin and Emma Johnson of Grand Rapids, Michigan; Mitchell and Lindsay Johnson of Rochester, New York. Jennings & Suzanne are also the proud great-grandparents of Jeremiah and Aliana Johnson and Chayce Wesoloski and are eagerly awaiting the birth of another great-grandson.