“I think the making money part is a great incentive for youth entrepreneurs," says Dr. Kandace Lavender, Read and Write Kalamazoo Executive Director. "However, I also believe that the greater piece is giving them a real-life experience of what it means to put effort behind your vision, and the positive outcomes it can have on their life."
Pastors on Patrol, a partnership between Kalamazoo police and pastors, has been helping increase trust between residents and police, diffuse tense situations, and 'cushion the blows of calamity.' Since the pandemic, both police and pastors involved say they have seen the need for the program grow.
AllyKat Studios, LLC, is a new lash, brow, micro-blading, and tattoo studio that caters to the Queer community. For clients who are currently transitioning genders, a new set of eyelashes, the right brow shape, or even gender-affirming tattoos, AllyKat owners say, can help lessen the dysphoria that oftentimes accompanies a transition.
Elemental Press, a new printmaking/photography studio in the Park Trades Center, is committed to making the creation of art accessible by offering free and affordable opportunities. "It's about bringing the community together, making art for everybody," says owner Jenna Riehl.
It's Pride Month, and in downtown Kalamazoo, flags are flying and crosswalks are rainbowed. Southwest Michigan Second Wave Writer Casey Grooten speaks to two LGBTQ+ allied business owners — one new and one that's been around for a decade — about their Kalamazoo Pride and concerns they share about a changing climate for LGBTQ+ folks.
While faith-based groups may disagree about the science of climate change, they typically agree on the importance of caring for creation. Using the approach of shared morality, Hope for Creation, an interfaith group, aims to "galvanize the faith community" to promote earth-friendly actions within a climate action framework, says organizer Joan Hawxhurst.
For 40 years and now with 40 faith institutions involved, the Northside Ministerial Alliance has connected churches with the community through programming and projects with the mission to eliminate poverty, racism, and injustice in Kalamazoo. In this Faith in Action story, Second Wave speaks with NMA pastors about how faith influences this vital work that Bishop T.D. Lockett describes as "building bridges, breaking barriers, and promoting unity in our community,"
In a personal essay and through their artwork, Second Wave's Casey Grooten explores what it means to them to be a nonbinary person as they prepare to attend a Trans Pool Party. The pool party, hosted by OutFront Kalamazoo, invited transgender and gender nonconforming people who are 18 or over to come and swim in whatever attire felt most comfortable in a space free of judgment. OutFront's Faith Alliance is hosting a Trans Day of Visibility on March 18, 2023.
Kalamazoo Youth Literacy Program SLD Read Seeks Tutors to help new young readers feel like school belongs to them, too. “Working with kids, you get more back than you give them,” says one tutor, calling it “a feel-good hour.”
The Kalamazoo Roller Derby all-gender team started in 2021 when approved by a vote of the entire league. One of the main points of creating all-gender teams is there are just more people to play the game with, team members say. "More people, more fun."
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