10 stories of 2023 and their impact on the writers and photographers who covered them

Editor's Note: Longform local journalism is rare in today's media landscape and the Southwest Michigan Second Wave team is proud to keep it alive in Kalamazoo and Battle Creek. Our writers and photographers are 'On the Ground,' out in the community, engaging with the people and places that they cover. As we enter 2024, they took some time to reflect on their projects of the past year and how those stories impacted them.


Bikes are a must have for many unsheltered. There currently are about 30 people on the waiting list for bikes. Mark Wedel, Bikes give Dignity in Motion for Kalamazoo unhoused 

Sometimes I write about subjects I'm into and love. Sometimes I write about people living lives vastly different from mine, lives I'm totally ignorant about. The story about Dignity in Motion, an organization that donates used bikes to unhoused people, was both. I ride bikes for fun, adventure, daily travel, and as an alternative to burning gas. The people in the story need bikes because bikes are the best and likely only option if you can't afford a car, have to get to a job not on a bus route, live in a tent that you might need to pack up and move quickly. I don't know what that life is like. The head of Dignity in Motion, Judy Lowry, reminded me that I ride because I have a choice, but the people she serves have very few transportation options.

It was great talking with Skinner, who was a BMXer as a kid and still loved to ride his old 1990s BMX bike. We bragged about how far we can ride, how it feels like when you're riding you're in your own little world. "I love the bike. I'll ride a bike till the day I perish," he said. 

It was like talking with any fellow biker, but then he said he's lucky that he's living in someone's basement in exchange for work.   

Tomczyk Chiezan and Kelley Climie sit in front of Karma House at Sokukoji Buddhist Temple MonasteryJane Parikh, On the Ground Battle Creek Project Editor, Good Karma in Battle Creek

For months I had driven by Karma House Wellness Center which is located in a building that used to house Meyer's Toy World. Finally, my curiosity got the better of me and I decided to see what put the "karma" in Karma House. I was pleasantly surprised and a bit blown away to learn that the organization is part of a much larger movement that is finding a home in Battle Creek.  Operated by monks who are members of a Buddhist Temple Monastery, Karma House offers Yoga and meditation classes, in addition to a separate counseling center.

In addition, members of the Monastery also live in one of several houses adjacent to Karma House. Those members all have day jobs in the community. The Monastery is currently adding to its footprint with the renovation of another home down the street from Karma House. I always enjoy informing our readers about something they may not know about and I was very grateful to the Monastery's members for allowing me to share their story.

Kelsey Harness, social services coordinator for Kalamazoo Public Safety's new Community Service Team, looks around a wooded area where unhoused people camped until recently on the city's East Side.Al Jones, On the Ground Kalamazoo Project Editor, Kalamazoo Public safety’s Community Service Team looks to build relationships with the unhoused

There are cops who care about the unhoused. That was not always evident as the City of Kalamazoo took steps to break up encampments of unhoused people that included areas with more than 100 people. Public safety officers were the ones who have had to execute those orders, which have been popular among people and businesses who have tired of seeing unkempt and sometimes unruly people living in pitched tents and in carboard boxes in public spaces. But it’s not an easy thing to be the person who has to tell someone to go away, when people have no place to go. So Sgt. Amil Alwan was wary of the conversation he might have with a reporter asking about that. When he responded to a request/assignment from the designated spokesman for the Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety, he had to wonder why that media-savvy person wasn’t the one to be interviewed.  The simple answers, as Alwan would explain, is that the department’s Community Service Team is all about outreach. And as team leader, Alwan, along with partner Officer Mary Miller, turned out to be empathic and camera-ready spokespeople for the city, the department, the challenges faced by the unhoused.

This artwork was created by Taylor Scamehorn.Zinta Aistars, writer, Faith in Action: Befriending the Great Mystery with death doulas

I loved working on all my stories for 2023, each one so unique and each one enlightening, but it was "Befriending the Great Mystery with Death Doulas" that gave me the most pause. I lost both of my parents not so long ago, and since they had been so connected at the hip, passing within a few months of each other in their 70th year of marriage, that loss hit especially hard. I wish I had known about this wonderful service the end-of-life doulas provide when my parents were in their final weeks. We strive to live our best lives — we need to strive to understand the end of our lives, too, without fear, with love. 

Co-owner Kat PerkinsCasey Grooten, writer, Kalamazoo Ally Kat, a body art, lash, and brow salon helps LGBTQIA+ feel at home in Vine

Ally Kat started less than a year ago and already has made a huge footprint in Kalamazoo. Ally Kat has not only grown their clientele from the ground up to have consistent bookings and great ratings but have worked tirelessly to help shape the culture of small businesses in Kalamazoo. Ally Kat openly supports and caters to LGBTQIA+ folks, and also pushes the element of "third space" in their downtown location, which is a place where patrons can come to hang out and feel safe regardless if they are paying clients. As a nonbinary person, I felt ultra-safe and possibly more importantly — wanted — when I was interviewing and photographing the owners. 


Taylor Scamehorn, photographer, Something stinks in ‘Paper City’: Kalamazoo residents push back on legacy of industrial pollution

"Something Stinks in Paper City" got me involved in some local activism and connected me with people who are fighting to enact change. I learned a lot about the history of environmental racism in the Northside neighborhood where my grandma lived and father grew up, and got to reconnect with an old (now out-of-state) pal to get this story out. Seeing the story get picked up by a Spanish publication, and knowing that people were made aware of these issues because of us felt great. 

Many a high school senior photo has been taken along the Magnificent Pines Trail at The Arb.Sam Kapp, Trail Tales: Kalamazoo's Lillian Anderson Arboretum flourishes

My story on the Lillian Anderson Arboretum was my first for Second Wave. Having never written for a media outlet, I was a bit intimidated. However, conducting interviews and doing further research into the history of the property allowed me to engage in an activity that I had previously done only for my own enjoyment. Being able to to share that history with others, and give people a broader understanding of a place they interact with, was immensely gratifying. 

Sharon Skutt, who was a student at Holy Childhood School of Jesus in Harbor Springs, stands next to a memory board she made.John Grap, On the Ground Battle Creek Photographer, says he couldn't pick just one:

Sharon Skutt’s story about surviving the Holy Childhood of Jesus 

As a practicing Catholic and Christian, I am shocked and saddened about how First Nation’s children were treated. 

Mary Bourgeois, a U.S. Army veteran, stands in front of the entrance to the chapel at St. Thomas Episcopol Church.The increase of ALICE households 
Listening to these interviews and reading these stories makes me grateful and more empathetic to other people in our community.

Suipi is enthusiastic about cooking.Mike Wenninger, writer, Suipi's East End Eatery serving up award-winning fare in Battle Creek

I enjoyed writing a series of four articles about the assistance available for aspiring entrepreneurs, especially ones who can't get conventional start-up financing. I'm inspired by their dedication, perseverance, generosity, humor, and willingness to work very hard. I met very interesting folks, such as Burmese Americans in Battle Creek who are some of the most gracious people I've ever met.