Have a Glorious Fourth

Because the Fourth of July is a holiday that celebrates our American heritage, we look for old-fashioned, time-honored ways to mark it. Family fun, parades, flag waving, and fireworks are what we expect.

Corn on the cob, meat on the grill, rhubarb and apple pie topped off by a game of horseshoes, or sack races, or even a nap - what a way to celebrate our freedom.

For more people, fireworks is a part the celebration: "The rockets' red glare, the bombs bursting in air."

This year, the city of Marinette will hold a Heritage Logging Festival on July 14-15 instead of on July 4. There will be fireworks, but they will be 10 days after the Fourth of July.

Because the chamber has received so many calls from people looking for fireworks, we've assembled a list of other community festivals and events, and we've published that list on our Web site.

Please join us Tuesday evening, July 3, on beautiful Stephenson Island as we kick off the mid-week holiday with a 7 p.m. concert, sponsored by the Marinette Menominee Area Chamber of Commerce Foundation.

Don't Think of it as Retirement

It’s not easy to make the decision to retire, and I have struggled with it for more than a year.  However, since I believe the chamber would benefit from fresh leadership, I have made the decision to retire, with a final work date of Sept. 28.

In the past five years, we transformed this organization from an events management organization into one that focuses on workforce development and building strong relationships between business and education. We have taken two very different chambers that merged in 2005, and made them one. We closed an office, jettisoned several  events that were draining our finances and energy, improved office technology and the chamber’s Internet presence, increased the chamber’s profile in the community and streamlined office operations. We developed policies and procedures, building a stronger organizational framework. We have added programs and benefits, and built new relationships. I feel good about what we have accomplished together!

I am especially pleased with the highly professional and exceptionally savvy people we have recruited for the board of directors in the past several years. I have confidence in their ability to choose a new chamber CEO.

Under President Paula Langteau’s leadership, the search and screen committee will need time to begin a national search (as was done in 2007),  identifying the educational, professional and personal characteristics of the next director.

I’ve enjoyed having the opportunity to serve the chamber and the community. It has been a fascinating experience and I have learned a great deal from it.

But I'm ready to spend more time with my family, especially my husband, who is also retiring on Sept. 28. I have a family commitment to honor, and I want to do more reading, cooking, writing, traveling, maybe some teaching and yes, maybe more working, but in a different area.

I look forward to continuing to work toward the chamber’s success in the next 90 days and beyond.

A Dozen Great Things to Do in Downtown Marinette

It's gratifying to see a group of downtown Marinette merchants joining force to promote the city's former commercial heart. While malls, big-box and stand-alone stores are an important part of our economy, nothing beats the charm of an old-fashioned downtown.

We're lucky that both our cities offer that. Menominee's Historic Waterfront Downtown has garnered lots of attention in the past 10 years. The determined group behind the proposed Menominee Opera House restoration, plus the Menominee Downtown Merchants and the city's Menominee Downtown Development Authority have done much to keep downtown on a front burner.

But in recent years, Downtown Marinette has slipped into the background. Now, with the infusion of new businesses, including several retail outlets and a fair share of firms that work with Marinette Marine, Marinette's once-commercial core is coming alive again.

Those of us who grew up here recall the days when Downtown Marinette bustled. On Friday nights, sidewalks were thick with shoppers and a policeman with a night stick directed traffic at the intersection Main Street and Pierce Avenue. The sound of his whistle is indelibly etched in our collective memories.

We Baby Boomers recall that a trip downtown unescorted by parents was a coming-of-age ritual for us. Buying lipstick at McClellan's, coke at Woolworths and a malt at Lauerman Brothers Department Store are part and parcel of our memories.

While Downtown Marinette may not return to the hustle and bustle of 1960, it continues to offer plenty of opportunities for fun and shopping. I sat down recently with Lori Wolf of DewHill Eatery & Coffee Roasters, who heads the new Downtown Community Action Group, and we came up with this list:

Buy an ice cream cone and eat it while you window shop.

Buy fresh produce at the Main Street Farm Market on Tuesday and Friday mornings.

Borrow a good book from Stephenson Public Library.

Get a great cut and style.

Browse through an antique shop.

Buy a handful of magazines or a few paperbacks.

Have a cup of coffee with a strawberry-rhubarb muffin.

Enjoy a sandwich on fresh-baked bread.

Meet a friend for a drink after work.

Buy vintage or gently-used clothing at an affordable price.

Open a checking account.

Buy gifts you won't find anywhere else in town.

And that's just for starters!

PS, Don't forget the 4th of July festivities at Merchant's Park!