Community Matters Calhoun County

EncourageBC! - a charitable support arm of the Battle Creek Community Foundation - has helped fund more than 60 local projects in a wide range of areas. That's the word from Director Angela Myers, who tells Community Matters that number is high compared to similar efforts in other counties. In this episode, Angela tells us how they do it - and how it's made a difference in the Battle Cre...

The Battle Creek Public Schools Education Foundation is readying for another Bearcat Tailgate event, which has raised more than $86,000 for educational support. BCPSEF President Carrie Briggs - who also serves as the district's Bearcat Advantage Program coordinator - discusses how the event helps, as well as the free fun, food and resources for attendees. Episode Resources BCPS Education Foun...

In a process not uncommon after a longtime leader departs and organization and a new one takes over, the Battle Creek Community Foundation has announced a "bold new chapter" initiative of strategic planning and visionary messaging. CEO Mary Muliett - who succeeded longtime predecessor Brenda Hunt in 2024 - returns to Community Matters to talk about how the effort seeks to plug into commu...

Have an idea for a local TV program? AccessVision - Battle Creek's local community access media center is ready to help. Community Matters stopped by the AccessVision tent during the Battle Creek Community Foundation Annual Meeting and Block Party and chatted with Executive Director Jason Augenstein, discussing how residents can take advantage of the resources they offer. Episode Resources Ac...

The Downtown Battle Creek Zine - founded by former Battle Creek Enquirer reporters Nick Buckley and Annie Kelley - marks a year in existence by announcing new backing from EncourageBC!. Encourage BC! is a unit of the Battle Creek Community Foundation which energizes and facilitates "positive charitable ideas" in the community. Buckley and Kelley return to Community Matters to talk about...

The Marshal Historical Society's annual Historic Home Tour has been happening for 60 years.  The chair of the 2025 event, Debbi Benedict, talks about what makes a Marshall home historic, some of the events planned for the 60th year and her own Marshall love story - which goes back for decades. Episode Resources Marshall Historic Home Tour Marshall Historical Society ABOUT COMMUNITY MATTERS Fo...

If you go by the new cooperative Uproot Market and Eatery on Michigan Avenue in downtown Battle Creek, you are likely to hear the sounds of progress. The bustling of the final touches on a long-vacant downtown building, that is. The Cereal City's next downtown grocery was nearly ready to open when Community Matters caught up with Uproot's Prepared Foods Manager Jeremiah Shelton during th...

This week, Republican-led Michigan House of Representatives passed a state budget. Just ahead of that, Rep. Steve Frisbie, (R-Pennfield) joined Community Matters, expressing optimism that budget negotiations would begin in earnest soon. Frisbie called the law mandating a state budget by July 1 ineffective, since "there's no teeth to it, no consequences," allowing the deadline to com...

Many school districts - unlike decades of the past - have returned teachers and students to the classroom before Labor Day. Among them, Battle Creek's Pennfield Schools. Superintendent Stephanie Lemmer joins Community Matters grateful for school building improvements voters got behind by approving a bond request. She also echoes her counterparts in other districts by voicing concerns about th...

July 1 has come and gone and MIchigan lawmakers still have not passed a state budget. By law, the budget should be passed by that date, but the law holds no teeth should that not happen. Meanwhile, Michigan public schools are welcoming students back without knowing what their state-funded budget numbers are. Lakeview Schools Superintendent Dr. William Patterson and Board of Education Chair Eric Gr...

Community Matters welcomes back Jessica Gilbert from the Humane Society of South Central Michigan for a Wiggly Tail update. This time, we highlight Scout, a terrier mix ready to find his family. If you're looking for a low-key, loving dog, he may be the one! We also discuss the Canine Training Institute, an affordable training for dogs - as well as how some folks leave a final gift to the Hum...

Know someone who has consistently shown community service toward older adults in Calhoun County? Perhaps they are a professional - or a volunteer. Calhoun County Senior Services encourages you to nominate them for the Joanne Konkle Leadership Award. Accepting nominations until August 21, 2025, Senior Services will reivew nominations and determine a professional and volunteer to receive the honor,...

Jim Haadsma was defeated in the November, 2024 election by a narrow margin. Now, after some reflection, the Battle Creek Democrat has decided he wants another shot at representing the Cereal City in the Michigan House of Representatives 44th District. Republican Rep. Steve Frisbie defeated Haadsma by just 79 votes. Haadsma returns to Community Matters to talk about his decision and what motivated...

They are calling it "Friday Night De'Lights" - a spin on Friday night high school football season - with drinkable treats. Matt Lemmer, a Battle Creek-area Biggby Coffee franchisee, joins Community Matters to talk about the enticements he and fellow franchisee Charles Solano are planning in order to share proceeds from Friday sales with local high school marching bands. Follow Battl...

Calhoun County still remains in the top-five Michigan counties with significant rates of domestic violence - sometimes called intimate partner violence.  That's the word from Ellen Lassiter Collier, executive director of Battle Creek's SAFE Place, a 54-bed emergency shelter. The shelter exists for victims and survivors of domestic violence and sex trafficking. Now, SAFE Place has opened...

Back in 2023, Starr Commonwealth President and CEO Elizabeth Carey told Community Matters about a groundbreaking idea for a new program: Target young "opportunity youth" who have had a "failure to launch" - a lack of momentum toward their life goals. In 2025, Carey returns to Community Matters to report back on the progress FOCUS Forward has made in just a couple of years. Epis...

Battle Creek's Cereal City Concert Band, fresh back from performances in Prague, Czech Republic and Schladming, Austria in summer 2025, announced a new conductor: Dr. Doris Doyan. Doyan joins Community Matters for this community introduction, along with longtime CCCB musician Barb Hibiske. The pair also discuss a call for new musicians to join the band. Episode Resources CCCB Website Communit...

Kalamazoo Democrat Sean McCann - term limited in the Michigan House of Representatives - wants to unseat Republican U.S. Representative Bill Huizenga of Holland. Huizenga represents Michigan's 4th Congressional House District in Washington, a district redrawn in 2022 to include a portion of Calhoun County including the city of Battle Creek. McCann will need to win a primary challenge first, f...

The search for Battle Creek's next city manager reached a point previously where finalists for the job were set to meet with the public. Then, after one of the candidates withdrew, the city stopped the process temporarily. That was back in April 2025; now, a new set of finalists is ready to meet the public on August 6, 2025. The event will bring four finalists to the public where folks can in...

Someone calling you claiming to be a federal law enforcement agent demanding to be paid in gift cards or cryptocurrency is a fraudster. That's the word from Battle Creek Police Community Services Sgt. Cory Champlin, who joins Community Matters to remind listeners how to recognize such calls as scams. Episode Resources BCPD Scam Alert ABOUT COMMUNITY MATTERS Former WBCK Morning Show host Richa...

A U.S. Housing and Urban Development grant totaling $90,000 for Battle Creek's Haven of Rest Ministries Life Recovery Program is being cut.  In an open letter to the community, Haven Executive Director Daniel Jones says the cut is "..a threat to the viability of the entire program." The 12-month, in-residence programs are "designed for individuals battling substance use disorde...

Lakeview Ford's Vince Pavone returns to Community Matters to celebrate the dealership's 15th anniversary in downtown Battle Creek. He also shares some information about how some Calhoun County residents spoke up in Washington D.C. against changes to the Production Tax Credit in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act . Their efforts were successful in helping to maintain the PTC's affect on...

Calhoun County Sheriff's Office Marine Patrol Coordinator, Deputy Matthew Schimmel, joins Community Matters to offer input after multiple drownings and incidents on state waterways. A Detroit Free Press report quoted a Great Lakes Surf Rescue Project tally at 31 great lakes drownings shortly after Independence Day 2025. Deputy Schimmel discusses water safety as it relates to both swimming and...

Earlier this year, Brittney Dowdy and her son - 9-year-old Bentley - challenged each other to raise money to send young people to the Detroit Lions Football Camp in Battle Creek in July 2025. After raising enough to send more than 30 kids to camp, the two planned a free community football game for July 13 at Battle Creek Central High School. The game pits young players against first responders fro...

Every year, the City of Battle Creek looks for photo submissions from residents who have taken snaps of wildlife and other scenes in the Calhoun County watershed. Their submissions could end up featured in the following year's calendar. And, potentially win them some money. Rough weather and other challenges have postponed the Battle Creek Public Works Open House. This time, coordinators are...