Calling all Michigan Artists…

August 23, 2013

I support many local groups and all of them are worthy causes run by passionate people. The Village Fine Arts Association is one of those groups. They have an annual art competition that is worth knowing about, especially if you are a Michigan-based artist. Below is their press release about this upcoming event. You’ll see more about it here as it draws closer, but the deadline to enter is coming up, so read about it now.

The Village Fine Arts Association (VFAA) is looking for artists to participate in their 18th annual

VFAA Poster“Views and Visions” all-media art competition and exhibit.  In collaboration with the Huron Valley Council for the Arts (HVCA), this popular show will hang in the HVCA Gallery beginning with the opening night celebration at 6:30 pm on Friday, November 1 through Wednesday, November 27st.   This show is open to all Michigan artists and includes the “Fresh Visions” category for artists under 18 years of age.  Each artist may enter a maximum of 3 pieces and have the opportunity to earn cash awards with a top prize of $400.  Entry deadline is September 21st.

We are pleased to have as this year’s judge Robert Perrish, an award-winning designer, sculptor and painter.  He is a co-founder and active member of the Michigan Plein Air Painters.  He has been highly awarded for his outstanding work which has appeared in national magazines, calendars, books, limited-edition prints as well as in various art galleries.  See his work at www.robertperrish.com.

The prospectus with all entry information is available online at the VFAA website www.milfordvfaa.org or pick up a copy at the HVCA Gallery located at 205 W. Livingston Road in Highland, Main Street Art in Milford, or at Miller’s Artist Supplies on 12 Mile Road in Farmington Hills.

If you have any questions or would like a copy of the prospectus mailed directly to you, please contact the VFAA at their website or call Sue Gollon, VFAA Executive Director at 248-797-3060.

Leave a Comment » | Local Events | Tagged: | Permalink
Posted by Norm Werner

Upcoming events for history lovers…

August 22, 2013

Oak Grove Cemetery Tour

Enjoy a guided tour of Oak Grove Cemetery on Thursday, Aug 22nd and Saturday, Aug 24th Learn about the exceptional women of Milford, their stories and accomplishments spanning 175 years.  Thursday tour begins at 6:30 p.m. and Saturday’s tour will begin at 1 p.m.   Tours are Free.

Haven Hill Festival 2013

The Friends of Haven Hill will be hosting their festival on Saturday, Aug 24th.  the hours are 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Food, Music and Fun for all ages

Novi Brass Band Live

1860’s Era Base Ball Exhibition Game – games begins at 1 p.m.

Model A Ford Automobiles

Haven Hill History & Artifact Display

Kids Activities, Run the bases at the Ball Game

 

Milford Historical Society 2013 Schedule of Events

September 12th – General Membership Meting at Milford United Methodist Church on Atlantic St. Pot luck dinner at 6:30 with the meeting starting at 7 PM. Our guest speaker, Don Wilson,  will discuss the Evolution of Bicycles.

September 21st & 22nd – Home Tour – visit five historic Milford homes, as well as the Museum, the Pettibone Creek Powerhouse, the Log Cabin next to the Firehouse and Oak Grove Cemetery. The homes are open from 11 am until 5 pm both days. Click here to see the poster for this event for more information.

September 22 – Tractor Show at the Huron Valley State Bank parking lot

September 22 – Milford Car Show – the largest car show in the area with cars of all types and varieties. Click here to visit the Car Show Web site

October 17th – General Membership Meeting Ghost Hunters

November 16th – Fall Tea at the Mary Jackson House

November 21st – Marshall Postal Museum by Michael Schragg

December 18th – Museum Closes

Leave a Comment » | Local Events | Permalink
Posted by Norm Werner

The next big thing in Milford Michigan…

August 19, 2013

Wow, the summer is going fast. Milford Memories is history and school is about to start. We’ll have one last summer fling over the Labor Day weekend and then it’s back to a more normal pace.

There are lots of smaller events coming up in the area, but the next big thing is the Milford Home Tour weekend. Home Tour is on September 21 & 22 this year. I’ve included the home tour poster below. You can click on the graphic to see the full size view. Home Tour weekend is big because there is so much going on in the Village that weekend.  The Home Tour itself is on both days from 11 Am until 5 pm. As always, there will be 5 of Milford’s wonderful old home to go through. In addition the Museum will be open both days, as will be the Log Cabin next to the firehouse and the Pettibone Creek Powerhouse. There will also be walking tours of Oak Grove Cemetery.  See the Milford Historical Society web site for more details on the houses and the event. I’ve included the event poster below. Click on it to see it full size.

2013 Home Tour Poster

Then, on Sunday the Milford Car Show will take up all of Main Street between Commerce and Huron, with an expected 300 cars of all sorts expected. There are car categories covering everything from old, original antique cars through modern street rods. It’s the largest car show in the area every year.

2013_Car_Show_Graphic

Also on Sunday, there is a Tractor Show out at the Huron Valley State Bank parking lot near the corner of Milford Road and GM Road. Tractors of all sorts show up at that show every year.

Finally, the Rotary Club of Milford will have its annual Duck Race on a tributary of the Huron River in Central Park. Thousands of little, yellow rubber ducky’s will be bobbing furiously towards the finish line. The activities kick off at 11 AM and the race is at 2 PM. The winning duck will pay out $2,000 to the lucky owner.  Get a duck race ticket from any Rotary Club Member and get in the race. Tickets are $5 or a package of six for $25 or a bag of 30 for $100. For more, see their Facebook page.

So mark that weekend in your calendars as another weekend to spend in Milford. There’s lots to do and you can enjoy all of our great restaurants on Saturday and most of them on Sunday. Plan on stopping in for lunch between visits to the Home Tour houses or while you are seeing all of the cars on Sunday.

Leave a Comment » | Local Events | Tagged: | Permalink
Posted by Norm Werner

Big Weekend in Milford

July 12, 2013

It’s a big weekend in Milford, Michigan this weekend with three big sales events going on at once. Of Summer Paloozacourse the biggest is the Summer Palooza, which closes all of Main Street downtown to allow for sidewalk sales, kiddie rides and a beer tent with entertainment. That’s all going on from 11 until  midnight on  Friday and Saturday and from 11 am until 4 pm on Sunday. Come in downtown for great sidewalk sale deals and just to have fun.

Then right off Main Street on Commerce Rd. there’s the big Granny’s Attic Sale being put on by the Milford Historical Society. There’re lots of unique items from various estates, along with vintage furniture and antique items.

Finally the Village Fine Arts Association is having a big rummage Sale out on GM Rd across from the grade school. Amongst the rummage there are works of art from various artists who are members of VFAA.

The events this weekend are sort of a warm-up event for the biggest weekend event of the year very year – Milford Memories – which happens in August 9 – 11 this year. You can try out your summer shopping outfits this weekend and use it for training for the all-day event that is Milford Memories. You can also scout out good parking spots for the August event.

So, come on out to Milford this weekend. Shop and enjoy some of our great restaurants. Bring the kids and let them have fun, too; but please leave the pets at home. Crowded shopping streets are really not the place to be dragging your puppy around.

Leave a Comment » | Local Events | Permalink
Posted by Norm Werner

Granny’s Attic Sale

July 6, 2013

garage saleThe much anticipated annual Granny’s Attic Sale is coming up July 12 & 13, which just happens to coincide with the Summer Palooza Sale in Downtown Milford. The Milford Historical Society’s annual sale on the lawn and front porch of the Milord Historical Museum is open both days from 9 am until 4 pm. There will be furniture from estate sales and lots of unique items, some antiques, for sale both days.

The annual sale is supplied with items from various estate sales during the year that Duane Frietag conducts, as well as items donated my Historical Society members and others. If you have items that you’ve been meaning to donate somewhere, bring them to the Museum and leave them on the porch before the sale dates.

If you’ve been looking for that rare piece of glassware or china; that funky piece of vintage furniture or that unique items to set off a room or nook in your home, come out and check out this sale.

Leave a Comment » | Local Events | Tagged: | Permalink
Posted by Norm Werner

Get in the Parade!!!

June 25, 2013

The Independence Day Parade is next week – this year it’s actually on the 4th of July. Get your group signed up by downloading the parade application at –

 

http://www.milfordhistory.org/2013_Parade_Application.pdf parade

 

 

There’s nothing more American than marching in the 4th of July parade, so get your group or organizaiton signed up and get into the parade! Come celebrate the birth of this great nation in small town America. If you can’t or don’t want to march, come watch. The parade steps off at 11:00 am at the corner of Commerce Rd and Union St.

 

I’ll see you there!

Leave a Comment » | Local Events | Tagged: | Permalink
Posted by Norm Werner

Upcoming charity events in the Huron Valley…

June 5, 2013

AMP logoThe warmer months in Michigan gets people outdoors and many of them are out soliciting funds for their favorite causes. Some literally stand in the street with buckets collecting for this cause or that. Many host fund raising events, with golf outings being a big favorite at this time of the year. I’m signed up to play golf in the Huron Valley Chamber of Commerce Golf Outing this month. At the end of last month my wife and I attended the prelude event for the AMP project, which is being sponsored by the Milford Rotary Club, the Huron Valley Chamber of Commerce and the Milford DDA, to build an amphitheater in Milford’s Central Park.

 

My wife and I also regularly give food and clothing items to the Community Sharing group in the Huron Valley, as well as to Purple Heart and the Salvation Army. Community Sharing runs a wonderful service for people in need of temporary help with food for themselves and for their pets, as well as offering other services to those same people. Community Sharing has a golf outing coming up, too, on June 28. Click here to read the Community Sharing Golf Outing flyer.  You can get the details about many of the upcoming charity events at my web site www.movetomilford.com.

 

One event that I wanted to highlight is the upcoming kick-off fund-raiser for the Village FineVFAA_logo Arts Association (VFAA), which will be held from 6 – 8 pm on June 15 at 210 Main St. The VFAA is raising money to fund the creation of a center for artists to use which they call the SHAC. That acronym stands for the Susan Haskew Art Center. You can read about what this art center is envisioned to be by clicking here. If you want to know more about the event itself, click here. Appreciation of, and support for, the arts is a hallmark of a vibrant community. Certainly the AMP and SHAC projects show that the commitment to the arts is strong in the Huron Valley.

 

Much of what used to be funded by grants or direct funding by governmental organizations now depends upon volunteer organizations. Milford and the surrounding Huron Valley area are blessed to have so many volunteer groups doing so much good work to make this area a better place to live. So, check out the various upcoming fund-raising events on my web site and decide upon which you can support this year. I’ll probably see you at a few of them.

Leave a Comment » | Local Events | Tagged: | Permalink
Posted by Norm Werner

Memorial Day Parade – MIlford 2013

May 29, 2013

There is always news coverage of one of more Memorial Day parades in any town or city across America. This is a video that I shot from within the parade as I marched on Memorial Day in Milford Michigan.

As it states in the opening, this was not how it was when I came home from the war in Viet Nam. It is hard to describe the great feelings that one has while marching in this parade, especially since the war that we were in was so hated at the time. The man who you will see waving a flag ahead of me in this video had it made for this parade. In part it read – “Our cause was just”; so Viet Nam Vets are still defending ourselves and the war that we fought those many years ago; however, the heartfelt shouts of  “Thanks You” along the way goa long way to healing those old wounds.

Enjoy a moment that was special to those who marched…

http://youtu.be/hyH8EMgrX0I

 

 

Leave a Comment » | Local Events | Tagged: | Permalink
Posted by Norm Werner

Today I march in Milford…

May 27, 2013

marching troopsThe annual Memorial Day parade in Milford Michigan happens today, starting at around 11 AM. The first ½ hour of the parade is devoted to things like bands and military vehicles and boy scout troops and other crowd pleasing stuff, and then we get to walk by – the active duty troops and veterans of various wars. We are usually lined up 2-abreast and with 700-800 marchers, it takes a while for everyone to pass by. The crowds lining the streets stand and applaud the whole time, many shouting out “Thank You”. Along the route there are children handing out flowers that are supplied by the local florist.

 

Whether you are a marcher in the parade or a spectator it can be quite an emotional moment and is certainly a lot different than when I returned from my tour in Viet Nam. We had to sneak back into the towns and villages that we can from back then, hoping no one would recognize us as soldiers in that very unpopular war

When they line us up for the parade they put the ranks in order of the eras of the wars that one might have been in at the time. So, the WW II and Korean War vets go before the Viet Nam vets. Both their ranks and our group are fast thinning, as we age. I suspect that out group will be at the head of the parade before too long. At the head of each marching group a banner proclaims the era and the number of Americas who died in that war or conflict. Some marchers are not vets themselves but march carrying pictures of family members or loved ones lost in the various wars.

So, today I march. Today, unlike those many years ago, I get to hold my head high and accept the applause that was missing back then for a service that I accepted and rendered for my country. I’m thankful for all of the people who come out to line the streets and I’m thankful for all of those who gave so much more than I to defend our country and our liberties so that we can have days like today. I’ll see you there.

Leave a Comment » | About Milford Michigan, Local Events | Tagged: | Permalink
Posted by Norm Werner

Museum Open House this Saturday – May 18

May 13, 2013

museum

If you haven’t been to the Historical Museum lately (or maybe ever), you’re in luck.  Our museum opened for the season on May 1st and will be open on Wednesdays and Saturdays from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.

In honor of our opening, the Historical Society will be hosting an Open House on Saturday, May 18th from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.   This family friendly event will allow guests to visit our museum and see displays depicting Milford over the years.  Demonstrations will be on going thru out the day.  On our front lawn, you will be able to see candle dipping, woodworking, yarn spinner, and basket weaving demonstrations throughout the day.  Kids of all ages will be able to participate in games from long ago.

We will also have a special guest in the Parlor.  Wife of the 16th President, Mary Todd Lincoln will greet guest and give a glimpse of live in the White House.   Also on hand will be the Huron Valley Numismatic Club that will be able to answer questions from coin collector eMilford Museum interiornthusiastic. Hands on demonstration will take place in our log cabin display where kids will be able to make a cornhusk doll and in the kitchen see how butter was made.

It will be a day full of fun activities for the whole family! Admission to the museum is free and open to all; you do not need to be a member to attend. Bring the whole family out and see what life in Milford used to be like. The Milford Historical Museum – our very own time machine into the past.

Leave a Comment » | About Milford Michigan, Local Events | Tagged: | Permalink
Posted by Norm Werner

« Previous Entries
Next Entries »