Business

So, how are your people skills these days? Are you really good at helping customers in search of solutions? Do your friends like to engage with you, and respect your ability to listen? If so…and you are in the market for a new job experience, the folks at Aerotek would love to have a conversation with you this weekend — a conversation that could lead directly to a job offer and potentially a new career with you at Whirlpool Corporation.... ...Read Full Story

Indiana Michigan Power Company has been forced into emergency mode today thanks to high, sustained winds that were being reported across much of the utility’s service territory this morning and afternoon, blowing trees and limbs into wires and poles. As of 1 pm, about 13,000 customers were without service.... ...Read Full Story

As their industry innovates for the future, and their company continues to think outside the box, the management team at Indiana Michigan Power, has decided it was time to freshen their corporate identity and add an updated tag line to their brand today. The regional utility, which is a subsidiary of American Electric Power, has unveiled a new logo and tagline as part of its focus on providing innovative energy solutions for customers and communities. It’s the first new logo for the company in 30 years.... ...Read Full Story

A 14-year veteran of the real estate industry in Michigan’s Great Southwest has earned the ultimate recognition of her colleagues in the business by being named 2017 Realtor of the Year for the Southwestern Michigan Association of Realtors. Linda Johnson, a licensed salesperson with Integrity Real Estate Professionals in Niles, was presented with the coveted trophy during the organization’s Annual Awards Luncheon held recently at the Hilton Garden Inn in Benton Harbor.... ...Read Full Story

With the New Orders Index now at its highest level in nearly three years, the 2017 rally continues for the West Michigan Industrial Economy. That’s the current snapshot provided by Professor Brian Long, Director of Supply Chain Management Research at Grand Valley State University as he tabulates results of his February manufacturing sector survey.... ...Read Full Story

We’ve all had a turn in the proverbial photo booth at a wedding, birthday party, anniversary, class reunion or some other auspicious gathering. It’s usually a great deal of fun and the pictures are typically either poignant, memorable, or simply downright goofy. Well, Kristy & John Sandmann of St. Joseph love the concept too, but they have discovered an entirely new way share the fun of the moment in a more dramatic way and without the booth.... ...Read Full Story

As more and more of us are facing the task of filing our state income tax returns, the Michigan Department of Treasury is cautioning of ramped up, very aggressive, and threatening phone calls being made by criminals impersonating state tax officials. Treasury says those calls are on the rise in Michigan, and we should all be overly cautious when confronted by them.... ...Read Full Story

The busy mega sports complex along Cleveland Road in Stevensville will become even more robust with further expansions announced today by both the Lakeshore Youth Soccer League and the Southwest Michigan Kickers Soccer Club.... ...Read Full Story

If you are challenged when it comes to health care access, or simply haven’t had a chance to get some of the basic screenings you know you are overdue for, your friends at Andrews University’s chapter of Enactus invites you to their SuperHealth Fair this Sunday.... ...Read Full Story

Service clubs across America love it when a solid plan comes together and an inaugural event turns into an annual celebration. That’s the case for sure locally now that The Rotary Club of St. Joseph-Benton Harbor is inviting the community to join them in an encore celebration of something they tried last year that proved to be a winner for sure. They hope you will join them for their Second Annual Celebrate Rotary! event, themed Presidents’ Night to End Polio.... ...Read Full Story

If you’ve been paying close attention, you’ve seen heavy earth moving equipment being strategically placed on LECO Corporation property along Hilltop Road in St. Joseph Charter Township over the last several days and now we know why.... ...Read Full Story

The party has been underway for more than two months now, but isn’t that what life should be all about at a place known for great parties over the past eleven years? The Official Grand Opening and Ribbon Cutting for the Front Street Pizza Pub was conducted Friday evening, and everybody’s loving it.... ...Read Full Story

It’s March…and that’s exactly what the crew is doing at the Women’s Service League of Southwestern Michigan. They are marching headlong toward two of their most significant events of the year and they are hopeful you can join in one or both along the way.... ...Read Full Story

Thanks to multiple measures including the average cost of living, and the average quality of life, the community of Benton Harbor has been rated first in the Midwest and tied for second in the United States on the lists of the Best Places to Retire Early in America.... ...Read Full Story

For more than 42 years, Ed Siemans and his crew have worked their plan of continuous improvement. Never letting up, the Bridgman auto dealer has once again garnered national recognition for the work they do on behalf of their customers every day. They have been named one of only 387  Chrysler, Jeep, Dodge, Ram & Fiat dealerships in the world to earn certification as 2017 Customer First Award for Excellence winners.... ...Read Full Story

If you own a small business in Michigan, there’s good news on the horizon from Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan. Your rates will actually go down. The Blues know that those Michigan businesses who employ 50 or fewer people already provide a significant amount of health insurance coverage for people living in the Great Lakes State, and say that with all of the pressures on a small employer’s budget, it’s always good news when their insurance company can hold premiums steady year-over-year.  It’s even better news when they can lower them.... ...Read Full Story

An early morning burglar either suffered a nicotine fit or more likely plans to bootleg a substantial load of stolen cigarettes following a breaking and entering incident at a Pri-Mart gas station and convenience store on Red Arrow Highway in Mattawan.... ...Read Full Story

For more than five years running, a first-class publication in the realm of local, sustainable food across the region, has become a trusted community resource. Now, that magazine, Edible Michiana, has a new ownership team. Katie Carpenter joins co-owner Paula Bartholome as owner and co-publisher to guide the quality publication born in the area in 2011.... ...Read Full Story

If you really want to aggravate your Michigan Department of Treasury, or slow down the process of getting your income tax refund in a timely manner, go ahead and staple your state tax documents together before dropping them into the mail.  Just. Don’t. Do. It.... ...Read Full Story

A small bonus for hard work turned into a nice jackpot for a Colson Group USA manufacturing associate this morning when the team at Express Employment Professionals in St. Joseph delivered a super-sized check in the amount of $1,000 to her plant.... ...Read Full Story

Get ready to do the Orange Barrel Polka in Michigan’s Great Southwest once again. With warmer weather on the way, the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) tells us that work will begin on Monday to repave 7.4 miles of eastbound I-94 between Bridgman and Stevensville in Berrien County, as they pick up where they left off at the end of last fall.... ...Read Full Story

Theatre lovers who recognize the name Mason Street Warehouse know that there isn’t a bad seat in the house, and with an intimate setting like the Mason Street venue offers, everybody feels like their virtually in the front row. Most notably, however, is the chance to see professional equity actors on stage in top notch shows for remarkable more affordable pricing and less traffic hassles than heading to larger cities for your shows. Whether you’re a regular, or want to be a first timer, the Mason Street Warehouse has a dazzling line-up for their upcoming 15th Anniversary season at the Saugatuck Center for the Arts this summer.... ...Read Full Story

There is excellent news today for business owners, citizens, and visitors alike from the Michigan State Police regarding crime in the community of Benton Harbor. Preliminary findings for 2016 show violent crime continues to decline in the city of Benton Harbor, and by double digits in most categories. Better yet, the report comes on the heels of a more than 10-percent decrease in violent crime in 2015 when looking at the FBI’s most recent annual crime report released last September.... ...Read Full Story

Sometimes it takes a little mid-life reset to clear your head, challenge your priorities and find a new adventure. That’s exactly what Mark and Karla Lemoine did last summer and they are about to gear up for the time of their lives as the new owners of the KOA Campgrounds of Coloma/St. Joseph.... ...Read Full Story

Other than accidentally stepping on one in the middle of a darkened room after midnight, most among us still marvel over the colorful tiny plastic bricks we have come to know and love as LEGO bricks. In fact, in Michigan’s Great Southwest, LEGO bricks will pop up all around the town in the coming days to the delight of fans everywhere.... ...Read Full Story

Perrigo Company of Allegan wasted little time in naming a new acting Chief Financial Officer this week in the wake of the sudden departure of Judy Brown who is leaving to take a position with another company in the pharmaceutical industry.... ...Read Full Story

Neighbors of Lakeland Medical Center in St. Joseph are clearly used to the occasional rhythmic beat of helicopter blades as care flights arriving or departing with precious human cargo utilize the facility’s helipad to save lives. For the past several weeks, however, a considerably smaller and decidedly quieter device has routinely hit the airspace over the regional hospital thanks to a new service provided by Jeff Yeager’s PlaneVue Aerial Imaging.... ...Read Full Story

They have worked side by side for many years as allies rather than competitors, and now the owners of two Harbor Country vacation rental agencies have set the paperwork in motion to become a single entity over the next 14-month period.... ...Read Full Story

Just months after announcing they would acquire the assets of the Battle Creek Area Community Federal Credit Union, Honor Credit Union, headquartered in Berrien Springs, revealed today yet another Battle Creek area partnership with the Post Community Credit Union.... ...Read Full Story

Hundreds of fans of Parable Christian Store — Banner Books of Southtown St. Joseph have been ringing the phone off of the hook for Lorraine Reedyk Valk and her crew, fearful that the store will be closed due to the national bankruptcy of Family Christian Stores in recent days.... ...Read Full Story