Winning Words 5/10/13
“I deeply appreciate the people of Michigan. I love their grit. I love the way they face life. I love the family values they have.”  (Ernie Harwell)  Each year, in May, we celebrate Michigan Week in our state…highlighting our natural resources, our businesses and our people.  Our state slogan is, "If you seek a pleasant peninsula, look about you." What is it in the place where you live that you consider to be beautiful?    ;-)  Jack

 FROM MS IN MICHIGAN:  This glorious spring we're having!====JACK:  You know what they say about the Michigan weather..

.FROM RI IN BOSTON:  Well, we have a "pleasant peninsula" here in Massachusetts too.====JACK:  Beauty is everywhere...just look about you..  It's in the eye of the beholder..

 FROM LE IN ARIZONA:  What I view as beautiful here in the desert of Arizona is the way God can cause so many beautiful flowering and other types of plants to grow where you wouldn't think it was possible...and the mountains!!! I do miss the "grit" of the people of Michigan, though. It's always fun to bump into people here that are from back home!====JACK:  There's a famous newspaper, called Grit, which has been published in Pennsylvania for over 125 years.  It usually contains stuff that could be used as "Winning Words."

 FROM FROM DS IN MICHIGAN:  The people first, then the amazing natural resources we are so lucky so enjoy. All green and flowers everywhere.  Doesn't Spring make you feel re-born?====JACK:  Even today's rain couldn't dampen the spirit of us who live in the Great Lake State.

 FROM WALMART REV:  ...when I get a daily e-mail from Jack Freed from the state of Michigan! Just passing through..====JACK:  You'd better check the eyeglass section at Walmart.

 FROM SHARIN' SHARON:  What I like about the place I live in here in Michigan is that somehow it seems to embody the grit, the down-to-earth practicality of facing life together, the family values of the place in the heartland of the U.S.A. that my husband and I came from. It's been beautiful to be able to come here and get to know the neighborhood here and to have the comfortableness of still feeling at home despite "following the job". Probably has been God's work in our lives and not just the money.====JACK:  We followed the job to Michigan, expecting to stay 3 years.  That was in 1969.

 FROM OUTHOUSE JUDY:  We have been in all 50 states; most of them several times, and I will tell you, Michigan is beautiful!!  Each state is unique onto it's self but there is no place quite like Michigan.  We have the #1 tourist designation...Sleeping Bear Dunes and 5 in the top 10...Mackinaw Island, and Greenfield Village to name a few.  Plus we have wonderful people.  We are blessed!====JACK:  Have you visited the Mystery Spot, just outside of St. Ignace?

 FROM HAWKEYE GEORGE:  The people, the Mississippi River vista. Hard to beat midwestern friendliness.====JACK:  You also have "A Little Bit O' Heaven" in Davenport.

 FROM TAMPA SHIRL:  The sun shines almost every day.====JACK:  ...and your baseball team plays indoors.====SHIRL:  Well, it does rain sometimes, and it does get very, very hot. It just seems a lot hotter than when we came here 50 years ago, especially in the summertime.  Florida didn't really boom until air conditioning was invented in1960.  By the way, the Rays are losing right  now 3-2 to the Padres.  The Tigers are doing great.

 FROM WATERFORD JAN:  I love this state of Michigan!!!  I've traveled through almost every county in Michigan and vacationed in many of them.  I was born in East Grand Rapids, across the street from the Ramona Park roller coaster, and grew up in Grand Rapids.  I've lived much more than half of my life in SE Michigan and I love every part of Michigan.  Up North is one of my favorite parts of Michigan.  I will not purchase any image of our state that does not include the Upper Peninsula.  My favorite part of my home in SE Michigan is the opportunity my family has had to earn a living in various ways and, within minutes, we have access to first-rate museums, orchestras, many parks and nature areas.  Our highways allow us access to all of our state and our airports allow us access to the world, but the best travel is when we return to our beloved State of Michigan. ====JACK:  I was once asked to consider serving a church in the U.P.  You could only get one station on the radio, and there was no TV.

 FROM PH IN MINNESOTA:  i well recall those Michigan Week breakfasts out at the country club.  good memories...====JACK:  Today's 41st event was held at the same Country Club.  The Keego Jacket Club got an award for community service.  A Ledge Tomlinson Scholarship was given to a hign school student.

 FROM PLAIN FOLKS CHESTER:  The thing I appreciate most about Iowa is that it's 200 miles from Michigan.====JACK:  I was born in Iowa, but have lived most of my life in Michigan.

 FROM JACK & DONNA IN WISCONSIN:  Being born in the Upper Peninsula and called a "Youper" and called "Upper Peculiar" by some folks in the Lower Peninsula (just in fun), I found it to be a pleasant peninsula bordering Lake Superior.. Milwaukee, bordering Lake Michigan, is beautiful, too, with a  lot less snow and ice. As the bumper sticker suggest, "Escape to Wisconsin!"====JACK:  There are many similarities between the Great Lakes states...and people.

 FROM JT IN MINNESOTA:  Some years ago, Dave & I went to Tennessee where we had vacationed and loved it.  We went with the plan to look for a retirement small farm.  My goodness.  The places we looked at needed so much work and were very expensive.  We came home to our lovely Minnesota Farm and wondered what in the world we had been thinking.  How happy we were to stay put.====JACK:  There's a Swedish proverb..."Away is good, but home is best."