Quality of Life

TRAVERSE CITY – Ben Shomo didn’t vote for president last fall, at a time when he followed politics closely. Today, he doesn’t own a TV and seldom checks news websites on his phone. “I’ve gone through bouts of general unenthusiastic tendencies,” admitted the 21-year-old. He said he thinks people have moved on from the divisive […]

DETROIT – Asandi Conner cares about her daughter, Briana, a student at the University of Michigan. She cares about her job, leading the Detroit Revitalization Fellows at Wayne State University. She cares about her neighborhood, Grixdale Park, in northeast Detroit. She cares about her dog, Nala, who has come along for a stroll on a […]

SUNFIELD – The grass is wet from an early morning rain as John Hulett takes his cocker spaniel Goldie for a walk along a wheat field on his Ionia County farm. At the edge of the field is a patch of woods that drops off toward Sebewa Creek. In the woods is a large rock […]

WYOMING – A few months ago, Wilfredo Diaz heard a siren, looked in the rearview mirror and saw the strobes of a police car on his tail. Could this be the moment he and his family had dreaded? Could this be when the authorities arrest him and send him and his family back to Guatemala? […]

SAUGATUCK – The sun is about to set over Lake Michigan. Ron Price sits at a picnic table on a beach near Saugatuck, where he often comes to relax. Below the sleeve of his T-shirt is a tattoo of a Bible verse, Philippians 4:13: “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” Price, […]

ANN ARBOR –  Aric Knuth and Jim Leija took their dogs Olive and Maisie on a walk through their Ann Arbor neighborhood, past well-kept homes and blooming gardens. The couple lead upper-middle class lives in a vibrant city, with five college degrees between them and good jobs at the University of Michigan. The doom and […]

LUCE COUNTY – Dave and Sherri Frohriep voted for change. Just not this kind. The power company turned off their electricity recently and the couple doesn’t have the $500 to get it turned back on. Neither have jobs beyond a few dollars they get for working for the volunteer fire department. Dave filled out paperwork […]

DEARBORN – Other Detroit suburbs have rolled up the sidewalks by 10 p.m., but Dearborn is popping with fireworks and foot traffic. It’s the last night of Ramadan, the holy month that observant Muslims pass with all-day fasting. Eid al-Fitr, which marks the end of fasting, is tomorrow, and life goes back to normal. For […]

HARBOR SPRINGS – “You caught me with my dinner!” says Cynthia Shafer, holding a bag of movie theater popcorn and a soda. She asks the concessions attendant if she can leave her food behind the counter, and steps outside The Lyric theater in downtown Harbor Springs. She’s looking forward to seeing a movie with friends, […]

EAST LANSING – Lisa King has a job, a husband, two kids, a suburban home with a camper parked beside the garage, a living room full of toys and a cat named Whiskers. One thing she doesn’t have: friends or family who she knows are Trump supporters. “I have a couple cousins who are conservative, […]