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SSOCIATED
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EWSPAPERS OF
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ICHIGAN
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August 9, 2012
C
ANTON
- N
ORTHVILLE
- P
LYMOUTH
Plymouth motorist faces charges in cyclist’s death
Founders Fellowship
Canton teacher travels to
D.C. for history workshop
A 79-year-old Plymouth man is
facing two felony counts in the
death of a Garden City motorcyclist
and the injuries sustained by his
wife in a collision July 24 in
Westland.
Robert John Montgomery was
arraigned July 26 in 18th District
Court in Westland on charges of
operating while impaired causing
death and operating while
impaired causing serious injury.
Police reported that Montgomery
had a .10 blood alcohol level at the
hospital following the crash, .02
higher than the legal limit in
Michigan.
The charges stemmed from a
collision at Ann Arbor Trail and
Hines Park Drive just before 9:30
p.m. July 24. Gary West, 56, and his
wife were riding south on Hines
Drive when the car driven by
Montgomery attempted to make a
left-hand turn onto Ann Arbor Trail
in their path. Police reports said
the motorcycle dropped to the
pavement and slid into the turning
vehicle. Both the rider and the pas-
senger were thrown from the
motorcycle, police accident reports
said.
West was killed and his wife,
Susan, 54, remains hospitalized in
critical condition after being trans-
ported by helicopter to the
University of Michigan Hospital.
West was not wearing a helmet, but
hiswifewas, police said.
A not guilty plea was entered for
Montgomery at his arraignment. He
was held on a $200,000 cashbond.
Montgomery has no prior alco-
hol-related offenses, according to
police
Christopher Belch from Canton
High School was among the Social
Studies teachers selected to partici-
pate in an exclusive professional
development program aimed at
deepening understanding and appre-
ciation of theAmerican founding.
Belch joined 25 other teachers in
Washington, D.C. July 16-20 for the
program hosted by the Foundation
for Economic Education and the Bill
of Rights Institute. During the pro-
gram, Belch participated in lectures
with constitutional scholars, discus-
sions with fellow teachers, and schol-
ar-led visits to historic sites including
Mount Vernon, theNational Archives
and amonument tour.
To prepare for the program, par-
ticipants completed readings about
the founding of America, exploring
the question “How did the Founders
define liberty?” Belch received a cer-
tificate for 25 contact hours of profes-
sional development.
Belch was selected based upon
his leadership displayed in the class-
roomand dedication to educating his
students about the connections
between politics and economics in
America, an institute spokesperson
said.
Belch's favorite aspect of the
Founders Fellowship was, “learning
about the wise economic skills of
George Washington while visiting his
home.”
Carl Oberg, executive director of
the Foundation for Economic
Education, said that, “FEE is proud
to partner with the Bill of Rights
Institute to provide this educational
opportunity to wonderful and dedi-
cated teachers. We hope all of the
educators that participated walk
away from the Founders Fellowship
with a deeper understanding of liber-
ty and its importance toAmerica”.
“We are grateful for the support of
the Foundation for Economic
Education, which enables us to chal-
lenge and enrich teachers' lives as
they study works written by and
about the leading minds of the
American Founding era,” said Tony
Woodlief, president at the Bill of
Rights Institute. “This work is invalu-
able to the continuation of the
American experiment in self-govern-
ment.”
The Northville Art House
August exhibit, Thoughts With
Thread, opened with a bombing
last week as a group of volunteers
"yarnbombed" the facility.
Volunteer 'artists' created eclec-
tic craziness on the trees, posts and
porch of the Art House in celebra-
tion of the juried fiber art show
which opened last Friday. The
work is still on display along with
the exhibit inside the building.
Artists have used both age-old
and contemporary techniques in
the exhibit which includes art
quilts, woven tapestries, embroi-
dery, paper, baskets and felted
wool.
The exhibit, which is open to the
public, will continue through Aug.
25 at the Art House located at 215
W. Cady St. in Northville. For more
information, call (248) 344-0497 or
visit www.nrothvillearts.org.
Art House hosts ‘Thoughts With Thread’
Canton High School Social Studies teacher Christopher Belch visited Mt. Vernon as part of a recent profession-
al development workshop.