1. Binder Park Zoo is being recognized for helping guests with sensory needs. The zoo is now a certified sensory inclusive venue.
It offers sensory bags, complete with fidget tools, noise-canceling headphones, and verbal cue cards right at the gate at no charge. There are also designated quiet zones.
Find more details by heading to binderparkzoo.org.
2. The Humane Society of West Michigan has collected more than $20,000 in cans, all with the help of the community.
The organization actually ended its Recyclables for Rescues program earlier than expected thanks to all of these donations.
100 percent of the funds will support animals in need.
3. The Autonomous Shuttles unveiled in Grand Rapids this past spring will be re-launched at the end of the month.
The free service was put on hold because of the pandemic, but like most things right now there are some changes to keep people healthy.
The cabin is now split into two sections: one for the shuttle attendant, and the other for riders. There's space for four people, but only one person will be allowed at a time unless they're a group from the same household.
Face masks are required and they've introduced a new cleaning routine in-between each ride.
The attendant will wait outside during the cleaning, which only takes about 5 minutes.
All eight of the shuttles will be back in service starting August 31.
4. Michigan officially unveiled a sign on a portion of the lodge freeway, better known as M-10, in Detroit to honor the late Aretha Franklin.
Governor Gretchen Whitmer and Lieutenant Governor Garlin Gilchrist II. were joined by local leaders and representatives from across the state at the unveiling of the sign.
A dedication ceremony was held Monday afternoon.
Aretha Franklin, known as "The Queen of Soul," died in 2018 at the age of 76,
5. It's not often that a 19th-century old technology makes a comeback, but vinyl is thanks to the pandemic.
At the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, it wasn't so clear the record industry would continue to thrive. As a physical good with a complicated manufacturing process, the demand for vinyl records was too strong to keep the industry down.
Manufacturing has quickly gotten back to normal, and in the U.S. 2020 unit sales are up over 17 percent from 2019.
