1. For those looking to give up their time and treasures this holiday season, finding that perfect fit can be simple.
The Heart Of Michigan United Way has a Stuff The Sled program to bring joy to young children in need - providing gift bags to every student enrolled in Head Start in Kent County.
You can also be a classroom sponsor with co-workers, family, or friends.
If donating time is more for you, there are lots of ways to do that not just now, but all year long. The United Way has a Holiday Giving and Volunteering Guide - you can find it at hwmuw.org.
2. Shoppers really stepped up this season to help food pantries across the Midwest. SpartanNash says it's in-store fundraisers at stores like D&W and Family Fare raised nearly $350,000.
The SpartanNash Foundation gave $90,000 more, which means $440,000 went to food pantries near the company's distribution centers this year. Local charity, Kids Food Basket got $22,000 of that, to help families facing food insecurity in West Michigan.
This is the largest amount customers have ever raised during this seasonal push for donations.
3. As the winter season approaches in Battle Creek, the city is inviting you to help name 10 of their snowplows.
The naming contest kicks off the city's annual Snotifications, the annual series of tips and reminders about Battle Creek snow removal and operations during the winter.
They'll be accepting snowplow name submissions through December 15.
The week of December 18 they'll release the list of submitted names, and you can vote for your top 10 through January 12. New plow names will be rolled out in late January.
To submit your name, head to battlecreekmi.gov/snow.
4. Back in October, John Ball Zoo asked for your help in naming two red panda cubs born at the zoo in July. Those names have been announced!
The female cub's name is Nima, meaning sun, and the male cub's name is Dawa, meaning moon.
These cubs are from the second litter of resident red pandas, Wyatt and Wasabi.
To vote for the cubs' names, you had to make a donation of at least $1, and thanks to everyone over $1600 was raised from the naming campaign.
5. Music lovers get ready, the 2024 Gilmore International Piano Festival is returning April 24 through May 12.
During those 19 days of music, there will be more than 100 events and 200 musicians. Highlights include the return of several Gilmore artists, plus new works commissioned by the Gilmore.
Guest artists include Patti LuPone, Hiromi, Yuja Wang, Pink Martini, Kenny Barron, Eliane Elias, and Gabriela Montero, who will also serve as an artist-teacher in residence for the festival fellowships program, which hosts 27 pianists for five days of learning and festival experiences.
To see the complete lineup and to get your tickets head to thegilmore.org
6. We all know that Traverse City is an amazing place to visit but now the secret is out. Good Housekeeping is calling "TC" a top family travel destination in the U.S.
The announcement was made during the unveiling of the publication's 2024 Best Family Travel Awards.
Trevor Tkach is president of Traverse City Tourism, and he says some of the top draws for families include hundreds of miles of hiking and biking trails, water activities on Lake Michigan and Grand Traverse Bay, and unrivaled events like The National Cherry Festival.
Good Housekeeping visited all the candidates and looked at criteria such as family friendliness, amenities, food, value, quality, and inclusivity. The publication praised the family-friendly activities like "The Secret Garden" at Brys Estate and hitting the multiple pools at Grand Traverse Resort And Spa.
