January 13, 2022

“Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” Martin Luther King, Jr., letter from Birmingham Jail, April 16, 1963. On Monday, Jan. 17, we will honor Martin Luther King Jr.’s trailblazing activism and soaring vision for a just America, and remember his assassination in 1968 at age 39. 

I had the recent opportunity to get a glimpse (while jogging, of course) of Dr. King’s birth home, the Ebenezer Baptist Church where he was co-pastor, Historic Fire Station No. 6, and the National Historic Park in Atlanta, GA, even though the buildings were all closed to the public due to COVID-19. 

Seeing the places where MLK Jr walked reminded me that we can all change the world with compassionate insistence on peace and justice.

Calhoun County and Court Offices will be closed to the public for the Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday on Monday, Jan. 17. This time will provide opportunities for many county employees to reflect and perhaps volunteer. Numerous organizations have designated this as a day of service, included in a recent message from AmeriCorps about ways to engage:

• Volunteer on Jan. 17. Sign up to serve at a local MLK Day event or find ways to give back to your community. Click here to find volunteer events and activities.

• Spread the word. AmeriCorps has a toolbox of resources for posting, sharing, and explaining why giving back to our communities is vital to our success. Click here for the toolbox.

We have a vested interest in the strength and vitality of our community, and every bit we can give—big or small—goes a long way in strengthening and understanding the bond we have with each other.

Join us for the annual Calhoun County State of the Community presentation by countywide municipalities next Friday, Jan. 21. Hear about 2021 successes and what's to come in 2022. This virtual event will be streamed live on the City of Battle Creek's YouTube channel.

A new year means new meeting dates for the numerous boards and committees of Calhoun County.

Visit the New County Events and Meetings Calendar to see when and where these will take place.

Transmission rates of COVID-19 in Calhoun County are higher than ever before. Please follow public health protocols to minimize spread of the virus in our community. Click the link for last week's Joint Information Center briefing with details about omicron and the importance of masking. There are currently [X] cases of omicron identified in Calhoun at this time. 

Recently we sent an informational update about the County's broadband initiative. This provides dates for when Merit Network will share with the Board of Commissioners their findings from the recent survey we conducted countywide.

Read the update and sign up for future informational updates.

You might know Durk from our countywide COVID-19 response or from the response to the oil spill of 2010 in Marshall. At the end of 2021, Durk Dunham retired from the Emergency Manager role for Calhoun County. Check out this article in Southwest Michigan Second Wave about Durk's impressive career here at Calhoun.

We'll miss him!

With ARPA funding, Water Resources Commissioner Ron Smith invested in new technology, including a lake level monitoring solution, which has been installed at Goguac Lake. This information is available for the public to learn lake elevation levels, temperature of the water, and more.

Learn how to explore the data on our website. 

Board of Commissioners Meeting

The next meeting of the Board of Commissioners is Thursday, January 20 at 7 pm, and will be the organizational session for 2022. Review the agenda for this and upcoming meetings here.