ON TRACK: Students learn machinist skills in a Focus: HOPE classroom. The program is designed to put them on a career path to a middle-class income. (Courtesy photo) Craig Vanderburg will be the first to tell you that he’s worked hard for what he has, but caught a few breaks along the way. He came […]
middle class
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Capsized by economy, Houghton Lake clings to hopeful signs on vacationers
UP, DOWN: Randy Krause invested in Houghton Lake’s vacation economy by buying a small hotel. He eventually lost his investment. “Weekends were busy, but that was all,” he said. (Bridge photo/Nancy Derringer) PRUDENVILLE – Whether Randy Krause’s business was the victim of hard times, changing tastes or just plain bad luck hardly matters now. The […]
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Once a gem, African-American resort community seeks new identity
TOP ATTRACTIONS: The resort community of Idlewild once attracted some of the nation’s top entertainment acts when it served as a mecca for African-American families in a segregated America. (Bridge photo/Nancy Derringer) IDLEWILD – Emma Jean Clark’s view from the front room of her family’s summer cottage is similar to that enjoyed by thousands […]
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As Michigan families redefine vacations, tourism industry turns to out-of-staters
FILLING UP: Michigan’s swimming pool industry says business is picking up in the wake of the Great Recession, as families choose more backyard vacations over journeys Up North and elsewhere. (Bridge illustration/A.J. Jones) Earlier this year, John and Katy Wustman talked about buying a little place Up North to spend their vacations. “It was a […]
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Moving from ‘we had money’ to ‘they want money I don’t have’
GREENVILLE – The line began forming an hour before the food truck arrived, starting in the parking lot next to the barren acreage where once stood the nation’s largest refrigerator factory and winding around the front of the former UAW hall. Men and women, some with children, held empty boxes and laundry baskets they soon […]
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So you think you are a member of the middle class?
Charles Ballard, a Michigan State University economist, says everyone likes to think they are middle class in America to avoid the negative connotations of the extremes of wealth (greed) and poverty (sloth). (courtesy photo/used under Creative Commons license) Marketers aim for its money, politicians insist they are looking out for its best interests, and the […]