No. 28
NEWS YOU CAN USE, NEWS YOU CAN TRUST
75¢
July 14 – 20, 2016
w w w . a s s o c i a t e d n e w s p a p e r s . n e t
The Commission on Aging
and Wayne Senior Services
Office are once again looking
for help in finding the
Diamond of theCommunity.
See page 4.
When the Northville High
School Class of 2016 walked
across the stage last month,
19 of them comprised the
first-ever
class
of
International Baccalaureate
DiplomaProgramgraduates.
See page 2.
Vol. 131, No. 28
Vol. 69, No. 28
Vol. 69, No. 28
Vol. 16, No. 28
Roamin' Chrome, a veter-
ans' charity poker run, will
begin at 10 a.m. Aug. 6 in
Romulus and welcomes all
motorcycles, classic cars and
hot rods.
See page 3.
Vol. 131, No. 28
Vol. 69, No. 28
Vol. 69, No. 28
For home delivery of The Eagle call 734-467-1900.
A new sports complex in
the Norwayne area of
Westland is $100,000 closer
to reality, thanks to a grant
fromtheState ofMichigan.
See page 4.
The Third Annual
Cardboard Boat Race is
scheduled to take place
beginning at 9:30 a.m.
Saturday, Aug. 6 at the
Summit on the Park Aquatic
Center.
See page 5.
Vol. 16, No. 28
State police detectives are
continuing to investigate the
death of an Inkster man last
weekwhichhas been ruled a
homicide.
See page 2.
The Plymouth District
Library will celebrate bikes,
books and a new entrance
during a special event at 11
a.m. Saturday, July 16.
See page 3.
Belleville Area Art
Council Music Lakeside
series will continue with a
concert at 7 tonight at
Horizon Park on High Street
inBelleville.
See page 2.
The office of the Secretary of
State is continuing to review a
request from two Plymouth
Township candidates seeking
state oversight of the upcoming
Aug. 2 primary election.
The candidates, State Rep.
Kurt Heise who is seeking the
office of township supervisor,
and clerk candidate Jerry Vorva,
wrote to Secretary of State Ruth
Johnson last week, requesting
state oversight of the election in
light of comments made by cur-
rent Township Clerk Nancy
Conzelman during a League of
WomenVoters candidate forum.
Conzelman admitted during
the question and answer portion
of the forumthat she hadhelped
some township candidates com-
plete their filings for office
while not reviewing the paper-
work of others. Heise and
trustee
candidate
Don
Schnettler were removed from
the Aug. 2 ballot by a court of
appeals decision which support-
ed a claim that their failure to
include the precinct in which
they vote in the township on
their respective affidavits of
identify invalidated their candi-
dacy. Both have subsequently
mounted write-in campaigns,
Heise, term limited in the state
House of Representatives, in an
effort to replace appointed
Supervisor Shannon Price and
Schnettler to seek a term as a
trustee.
Conzelman said at the forum
that she did not help either of
them with their filings. Her
admission brought strong criti-
cism from Vorva, a former state
Conzelman said at the forum
that she did not help either
of them with their filings.
”
State oversight of election sought
See
Election,
page 3
Champions
Students awarded cash
for grade improvements
Jewell Jones, the youngest
member of the Inkster City
Council, has been chosen as the
Democratic candidate to
replace the late Julie Plawecki
on the primary ballot as the
state House Representative in
the 11thDistrict.
Eleven candidates, several
from Inkster, filed for election to
the term of Mrs. Plawecki who
died suddenly last month while
hiking with her daughters on a
family vacation in Oregon. The
11th District includes Dearborn
Heights, Garden City, Inkster,
part of Livonia and part of
Westland.
Jones, still a student at the
University of Michigan
Dearborn, has been on the
Inkster City Council since last
year when he was elected at the
age of 20. He was chosen by a
three-member panel elected by
precinct delegates at a meeting
last Thursday at Westland City
Hall. There were 89 precinct
delegates eligible to cast a vote
on a panel of three who then
selected the replacement candi-
date and of those, 46 were from
Inkster. Two of the three-mem-
ber panel, former Inkster school
board member Mable Stroman
and Inkster Mayor Pro Tem
Timothy Williams, were from
Inkster.
Jones will now be unopposed
in the Aug. 2 primary election.
There will be a separate pri-
mary election Aug. 30 to deter-
minewhowill fill the remainder
ofMrs. Plawecki's term.
Among those who filed to be
on the primary ballot was
Lauren Plawecki, 22, the daugh-
ter of the deceased representa-
tive. Her candidacy for the seat
was endorsed by State Sen.
State Senator David Knezek (D-
Dearborn Heights), prior to the
selection of Jones.
Lauren Plawecki said in a
prepared statement, “I am not
my mother, but the lessons she
taught me about integrity, com-
passion and service to others
have left me uniquely posi-
tioned to carry on the work that
she started.”
Municipal clerks will be issu-
ing corrected absentee ballots in
some communities where those
ballots already went into the
mail for the Aug. 2 primary.
Voters are advised to check with
their individual clerk's office to
determine when the corrected
absentee ballot will arrive.
In addition to Plawecki and
Jones, several other candidates
submitted a letter of interest
and a resume before the dead-
line last week for consideration
by the three-member panel
including: former Dearborn
Heights Councilman Ned
Apigian; Dearborn City Planner
Mohamed Ayoub; Rashid
Baydoun; Dearborn Heights
Councilwoman Lisa Hicks-
Clayton; former Inkster Mayor
Hilliard Hampton; Robert
Johnson; ACCESS Supervisor
Rafeael Narbaez; Inkster
Councilwoman
DeArtriss
Richardson and Aaron Sims, of
Inkster.
Once again, the Champions
received their deserved
rewards.
During the second celebra-
tory banquet last week at the
Hellenic Center in Westland, a
crowd of about 600 students,
parents, educators and men-
tors gathered as the John
GlennHigh School Champions
who achieved their scholastic
goals each received a check
for $200. In addition to the
checks, the students were
rewarded with accolades and
congratulations from their
teachers, district officials, their
peers and program founders,
Glenn andPatty Shaw.
“We had, I think, about 565
students sign up this time,”
Shaw said. “The participation
among the students is just
tremendous. Of those, I believe
159 achieved their goal of
improving their grade point
average by at least a half
point.”
Shaw said that the celebra-
tionwas genuinelymoving and
demonstrated what the sin-
cere involvement of parents
and/or other adults can do to
help students find the right
path for their futures.
“We (the Champions Board
of Directors members) stay
involved. We really do. We
communicate with the stu-
dents and the parents during
the school year. We remind
them of their commitment to
the program and encourage
themto findways to succeed.
“I think that is the real key
to our success, these kids know
that someone really cares. We
include the parents in this con-
tract, and their chosen mentor,
and they know that this is real.
They knowwe really do care if
they succeed and that we will
help them.
“Sure, they love the money,
but honestly, I think the satis-
faction of being able towalk up
on the stage and feel that
sense of accomplishment
means just as much to many of
these kids,” Shawsaid.
“There is just no way to
explain the satisfaction Patty
and I feel, doing this. These
kids justmove us to tears.”
Shaw and his family, along
with the Westland Community
Foundation, fund the program
which presents the checks to
the students who agree with
their parents and a mentor
they choose, to bring their
grades up. One student this
year went from a failing .8
grade point all the way to a 2.8
grade average.
“She brought the entire
room to tears with her story,”
Shaw said. “We were all wip-
ing our eyes.”
Four other students also
spoke emotionally of their
accomplishments and what
the program meant to them
during the presentation ban-
quet.
In addition, the Westland
Community Foundation was
able to grantmore than $24,000
in scholarships to local stu-
dents. “These awards went to
students who would, other-
wise, never be able to think
about attending college,” Shaw
said. “They couldn't continue
their education without schol-
arships.”
Shaw noted that Sharon
Scott, Sandy Godbout and
Steve Kay of the Westland
Community Foundation put in
some very long and heart-
wrenching hours sorting
through the applicants for the
scholarship funding.
“They had to review so
many applications from so
many really deserving young
people,” Shaw said. “They had
See
Champions,
page 4
Glenn Shaw, Jr., above. founder of the Champions Program at
John Glenn High School, listens as students tell their success
stories while Patty Shaw, and school district officials, teachers,
and mentors celebrate students who made their goal.
Inkster councilman chosen for Democratic ballot
Jewell Jones
