1. Improvements to a Grand Rapids park and school yard are getting closer. City officials and Grand Rapids Public Schools plan to unveil their design.
Back in January, Mayor Rosalynn Bliss and GRPS superintendent Teresa Weatherall Neal announced that they received a grant worth $25,000. It's part of an initiative called Cities Connecting Children to Nature.
The improvements will focus on Plaster Creek Park and the Burton Elementary and Middle School yards; they'll include better bathrooms, lighting upgrades, natural playscapes, and a vegetable garden.
The partnership is also funded through $200,000 of voter-approved millage funds, as well as other grants and private funds.
2. There's a unique class of seniors at Forest Hills Northern this year. A set of quadruplets are graduating with three of their adopted siblings.
It's the most children from one family to graduate from the school in the same class. Out of the seven children, four of the boys and one girl will actually be joining different branches of the military to begin their careers after graduation.
They say their grandfather and brother-in-law's service inspired them to join the military, just as much as each other.
Monday was the last day of school for the seniors at Forest Hills.
3. The possibility of $12 minimum wage for all Michigan workers could be on the ballot this fall.
The Michigan One Fair Wage group submitted more than 370,000 signatures on Monday to the State Bureau of Elections.
The Board of State Canvassers must certify roughly 250,000 of those names before the proposal can go to legislatures.
If they reject the proposal, the initiative will go on the November Ballot. Under the proposal, Michigan's current $9.25 an hour wage would be raised to $10 next year, and gradually increase to $12 by 2022.
Also under the measure, tipped employees would be paid full minimum wage on top of their tips by 2024.
4. First there were scratch and sniff stickers, but soon there will be scratch and sniff stamps.
The U.S. Postal Service plans to release 10 stamps featuring illustrations of ice pops, done in water color by California artist Margaret Berg. Each of the stamp designs includes two different treats.
The words "forever" and "U.S.A." appear along the bottom of each stamp.
The stamps will make their debut June 20 at a children's museum in Austin, Texas.
5. Electronic giant Best Buy is unveiling a new service for its customers. The company is launching a subscription nationwide that will cover all devices.
Partnering with Geek Squad, "Total Tech Support" will cost $200 annually and will enable customers to receive technical support for computers, cell phones, and other devices.
The plan includes virus protection, troubleshooting, and even assistance in setting up a home network.
