11/17/2025

UPPER MICHIGAN - Fuelwood permits to collect firewood from select dead or downed trees in state forests in the Upper and northern Lower Peninsula of Michigan.

Permits, valid through Dec. 31, allow up to five standard cords (10 cords in the 12-county ice storm area) of personal-use wood from dead and downed trees within 200 feet of the road. Obtain a permit online at mdnr-elicense.com, in person at DNR customer service centers/some forestry field offices (call first), or by mailing an application to the managing DNR office.For more information and FAQs, visit Michigan.gov/Fuelwood

11/17/2025

N. WISCONSIN - The Arbor Vitae-Woodruff school board has decided to launch a search for a new principal to replace Rich Fortier, who will retire at the end of the school year.

Board member Judi Nelson announced nine applicants were received. The personnel committee selected four for interviews to be held on Tuesday, including the district’s school psychologist Katie Bachman, but Bachman declined. The committee (including board members, a parent, two teachers, Hardy, and Fortier) will select the principal or re-post the position. Nelson urged parents to run for Randy Quade’s seat in the April 7, 2026 election, as she, the Woodruff town chair, will not seek re-election.

11/14/2025

IRONWOOD - Aspirus’s decision to close the OB department in Ironwood has sparked concerns regarding the quality of healthcare in the western U.P. Michigan Regional President Natalie Seaber attributed the closure to a declining birth rate, noting only 83 deliveries last year, and difficulty in recruiting and retaining necessary staff. However, Ironwood nurse Sarah Trudgeon called the cutting of essential services “unacceptable,” arguing it endangers U.P. residents and demonstrates a lack of investment. She added that nurses are consistently asked “to do more with less.” Seaber countered that Aspirus is still committed to investing, pointing to a new CT scanner in Ironwood and significant renovations at the Keweenaw and Houghton Clinics. Both Seaber and Trudgeon agree on the ultimate goal: the best possible healthcare for U.P. residents. Trudgeon stressed that nurses remain dedicated, vowing to “continue to put patients first.”