Profile: “What if he had opened his eyes?” Kelsey Ronan on grief, healing, breaking a curse in “Chevy in the Hole”
By Jan Worth-Nelson Twelve years ago, Kelsey Ronan found her longtime partner Bryan dead of a heroin overdose in their Flint apartment. Out of what she describes as an onslaught of grief, anger, loss, and finally, a hard-won, unsentimental hope, the novel Chevy in the Hole was born. For Ronan, the book emerged from one poignant question: “What would have happened if Bryan had opened his eyes” instead of dying. She has...
Incumbents Galloway, Fields, and Griggs defeated; Flint City Council to have six new members
By Paul Rozycki Flint voters turned out in low numbers but made some big changes as they elected their new city council, defeating three incumbents, and electing three new members in wards where incumbents were not running again. The turnout for Genesee County was just under 13 percent of the registered voters, but the turnout in Flint was even lower, with most wards showing a turnout below 10 percent. The new council will have six...
Village Life: Memories burned into Washington School’s demise: “This one hurts the most”
By Gary Fisher She was nearly half a century old by the time I showed up. Creaky wooden windows, stifling forced heat, so thick you could taste it, zero air conditioning, lead paint everywhere, and asbestos-covered pipes. The ancient bathrooms with the old radiators (an especially egregious artifice when some miscreant relieved himself on it), with wooden stall doors, long ago removed, meant zero privacy. Really tough kids, and...
Memories of Jack Minore, Michigan, Flint, and East Village
By Paul Rozycki There have been many official obituaries, tributes, and memorials written about Jack Minore, the offices he held, the causes he championed, and the commitment he had to the state of Michigan and the Flint community. Most political leaders in the area have spoken about his commitment to Michigan, Flint and a long list of causes—civil rights, women’s rights, labor and the environment. But beyond those, I’d like to share...
The East Village Magazine – August 2021
The latest edition of The East Village Magazine is available for download here: View...
From San Francisco to Chevy-in-the-hole – the Chevy Coupe helped to move America
By Teddy Robertson “Je-zus Christ!” Stress on the first syllable and heavy elongation of the “z” sound. I blurted out one of my father’s favored expletives. My mother had slammed on the brakes and I tumbled off the bench seat of our old Chevy coupe and hit the floor mat beneath. The brown and red threads of the tan plaid upholstery prickled as I clambered back onto the bench seat. It was 1951 and I was six years old. The car was a...
The Latest Edition of East Village Magazine Is Available For Download Here (pdf)
