Nicholas and Michele Andres of Cedar Springs are pleased to announce the engagement of their daughter, Meghan Kathleen, to Andrew Bartoszek, son of Mark Bartoszek of Grand Rapids and Nancy and Ken Deyman of Cedar Springs. Both the bride and groom are graduates of Cedar Springs High School. Meghan is a Senior at Aquinas College and Andrew is employed at Gem Plastics in Grand Rapids. They are planning an October 25, 2014 wedding.

The 72nd Red Flannel Festival presents new events

The Red Flannel Festival Board of Directors has been working diligently to provide fresh new events for the 72nd “Knight & Day Red Flannels Are Here To Stay!” Festival celebration. “The board has added over 20 new events in the last few years and boasts over 2,700 fans on our Facebook page,” said President Michele Tracy-Andres. “This board is extremely dedicated to ensuring the Red Flannel Festival the biggest and best ever! We’re already working on plans for new events for the 73rd celebration in 2012!”

There is definitely a historical connection with the theme and the Original 1939 Order of Knights of the Red Flannel Drawers. According to the authors of the Cedar Springs Story, Sue Harrison and Donna DeJonge, the history of the Order of the Knights of the Red Flannel Drawers is as follows:

The first Red Flannel Day was held Nov. 11, 1939 and Carleton Cady wrote in that issue of the Grand Rapids Press: “Lurid lingerie adorned the limbs of nearly every citizen. Scarlet certificates of knighthood were issued to members of the Order of Knights of the Red Flannel Drawers, who proudly wore the badge, which, in miniature, reproduced the article that on winter Mondays flies from Cedar Springs’ clotheslines.”

Their password was “itch.” Dr. C. W. Brayman, James H. Cook and Jack Pollock were some of the first members in good standing, crowing the first Red Flannel Queen, Maxine Smith. We believe the miniature badges referred to are the small, red flannel cut-outs you see on lapels today.

The Festival continues to expand its advertising portfolio with the addition of several billboards to advertise this year’s events! Again this year, the Festival has partnered with WLAV, 96.9 FM in Grand Rapids, for radio commercials and the 730 television commercials will begin on various Charter cable channels in September. The beautiful, 36-page full color “Official Red Flannel Press” is also out, thanks to Festival Patron Sponsors. New this year is “Friends of the Festival,” a donor program designed exclusively for individuals.

New this year, the Festival will debut the first ever Celtic Highlander Games hosted in Kent County on Saturday, October 1, 2011. Six different ancient Celtic events will be performed all day!

Another new event is the Cornhole (bean bag toss) Tournament to be held Saturday, October 1 in the Grand Lodge.

The new Firefighter Parade debuts on Friday, September 23 at 9:30 p.m. to kick off the festivities! There are two weekends full of fun!

The Red Flannel Grand Lodge has expanded and will feature entertainment from a local favorite, the Main Street Band. New this year, international renowned Irish folk singer, Mossy Moran will perform, as well as other entertainment. Be sure to visit www.mossymoran.com for CDs and samples of his music.

In keeping with the theme, the Festival is proud to host the Knights of Columbus Fourth Degree patriotic marching unit from Belmont, Michigan in the Grand Parade this year.

The Festival is pleased to announce the Queen Scholarship Pageant and Lion’s Lumberjack Supper is moving back to Cedar Springs High School this year.  “We’re proud of the strong, collaborative relationship with the School Board and Superintendent Ron McDermod,” said Curt Tackmann, Festival Secretary.

“Of course, all of the traditional events are still in place,” said Andres. “The Car & Tractor Shows, Museum Open House, Chili Cook Off, Bed Races and Grand Parade are wonderful traditions!” For a full schedule of events, or to download event applications, visit www.redflannelfestival.org.

The Festival was granted 501c3 non-profit status and all donations are tax deductible. The Festival is an independent, all volunteer organization with volunteer openings for individuals, families and groups to be involved. Sponsorship opportunities are also available. For more information on how to donate, volunteer or get involved with the Red Flannel Festival, call 616-696-2662 or visit www.redflannelfestival.org.

Chaya Coxon had 11 points against the Huskies.

The Lady Red Hawks Varsity Basketball team made some tough shots when it counted last Friday to earn a 44-41 win over Forest Hills Northern.
The Red Hawks rolled out the welcome mat for the Huskies then jerked it away by taking an 8-3 lead at the end of the first quarter. The Huskies fought back toward the end of the second quarter, making their final five shots to tie it up 17-17 at the half.
In the third quarter, Rachael Ludtke scored Cedar’s first six points to give them lead. Chaya Coxon and Molly Holtrop added 3-pointers to extend the lead to 29-24 at the end of the quarter. The Huskies continued to battle it out in the fourth, and were within a single point with only 20 seconds left on the clock when the Red Hawks won the game at the free throw line, 44-41.
Top scorers for the Red Hawks were Rachael Ludtke with 12, and Chaya Coxon with 11. Molly Holtrop added 5, Hannah Wight had 5, Tiffany Karger and Meghan Andres tipped in 4 each, and Brittany Todd scored 2.
Coxon went 6 for 6 in free throws, and and Wight went 3 for 4. Karger was 2 for 3, and Ludtke 2 for 2.
“We out-rebounded the Huskies, and were very strong at the free-throw line (76 percent), particularly late in the game (Wight, Karger),” remarked Assistant Coach Chad Wight. “We recognize that those are key ingredients to being successful and winning games.”
Wight noted that the girls seemed to gel better as a team and got the job done. “We began to realize more of our potential tonight. We had a double-double from Rachel Ludtke underneath the basket, as well as a supporting cast of starters and bench-play that filled in the rest.

Rachael Ludtke charges the basket.

“We had some big shots down the stretch, particularly some treys from both Chaya Coxon and Molly Holtrop. Hannah Wight and Rachel Ludtke grabbed some huge rebounds for us in the closing minutes that kept us on top. The Huskies hit some threes to close the gap, but we never lost our intensity,” Wight added.
The Red Hawks are now 3-1 in conference play, and 6-2 overall.