1. If you want to work alongside young ladies, here's a great opportunity. Coaches are desperately needed for girls on the run of greater Kalamazoo.
This program serves nearly 1200 girls from approximately 50 area schools including Gull Lake, Hamilton, Mattawan, and Milwood.
Coaches meet with teams twice a week after school for 90 minutes from early March through late May.
Coaching applications can be found online at girlsontherunkazoo.org.
2. Do you have a neighborhood bookstore that brings you joy? Here is the opportunity to honor them.
The Great Lakes Independent Booksellers Association is introducing a new award, "Great Lakes Bookstore of the Year." It aims to spotlight and applaud independent bookstores that have demonstrated exceptional influence, support, representation, and impact within their communities.
Anyone is invited to nominate the bookstores that embody that - going above and beyond to support the bookselling community and connecting people with books. Head to fox17 morning mix dot com for a link to nominate.
3. There are more than 40 upcoming opportunities to renew your creative spirit, improve your skills, and discover new techniques with the Franciscan Life Process Center.
These workshops allow artists to learn from renowned instructors - everything from painting and drawing to collage and printmaking. There are so many different classes - you can certainly find one to get your creative juices flowing.
The first classes run February 29- March 1, painting winter landscapes with Eric Michaels. They run all spring, summer, and fall until the end of October.
To learn more and register, head to lifeprocesscenter.org.
4. Prepare for a night of laughter, music, and unfiltered humor as Rodney Carrington, the renowned comedian, actor, singer, and writer, performs at the Firekeepers Event Center.
He'll be in town on April 5. A platinum-recording artist, Rodney recorded eight major record-label comedy albums, followed by three albums on his record label. Over the years, he's also starred in his TV sitcom, "Rodney".
Tickets go on sale this Saturday at 10 a.m. Just head to firekeeperscasino.com.
5. Blandford Nature Center is celebrating the sweet arrival of spring by bringing back its popular Sugarbush Festival for its 54th year.
The event is on March 23 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Guests will be able to visit stations along the trail where they will learn to identify and tap sugar maple trees, explore historic sugaring techniques of native Americans and pioneers, and get an inside look at Blandford's sugar house and syrup-making process.
It's just one of many Sugarbush-themed programs happening during March - learn more at blandfordnaturecenter.org.
