When Tabitha Schaub put on her backpack for the very first time, she did so like everyone else, full of wonder, excitement, fear and every other emotion that goes through a young child’s mind as they take their first steps into the world of education. The 16-year-old junior from Lakeview High School made friends, learned from teachers, played on the playground and eventually made her way to where she is now as she prepares to enter the world of adulthood.

More than 2,500 people crowded the halls of Belding High School for the 17th annual Belding Community Showcase on Tuesday night, where area community groups and businesses came together to show off what the area has to offer. According to event organizer Tiffany Jackson, 53 community groups and 37 businesses were at the event, handing out goodie bags and endless amounts of information about services they provide.

The city of Belding will no longer be working with LSL Planning Inc. after city council members voted 5-0 to cut ties with the community planning consultant agency after a discrepancy was discovered with recent billing. City Manager Meg Mullendore will now take over the duties previously performed by the Grand Rapids agency, which include development review, governing document creation, public and private sector interaction, zoning and land development regulations, project management and historic preservation.

As Christina Funk strolled around the center room of the Belrockton Museum Saturday afternoon, 6-year-old Xander Rickert sat patiently in excitement as Funk carried an often misunderstood creature within her hands. Rickert, among 65 other visitors to the museum, knew what he was in store for him and was hoping for a very close look at the mysterious animal Funk was presenting to children and parents around the room.

When Tina Possehn and Greg Wolbers tied the knot in 1994, it was as much a business merger as it was a wedding. All these years later, they both still consider it a match made in heaven.

Shortly after Meg Mullendore began the position of Belding city manager earlier this month, she tackled one of the first items on her agenda — purchasing some “Belding gear.”

Last week, I had the pleasure of interviewing James Young of country group The Eli Young Band, who returned to Grand Rapids on Thursday night as part of Kenny Chesney’s “No Shoes Nation” tour.

A week after massive flooding throughout Montcalm County, things are starting to get back to normal and roads are being reopened. “We are in pretty good shape,” said Mark Christensen, managing director of the Road Commission for Montcalm County. “It was a challenging week.”

Construction work and how a majority of projects are funded were popular topics during the Greater Greenville Transportation meeting Wednesday evening. The committee met at Courtland Township Hall during its quarterly meeting just in time to talk about the upcoming construction season.

On the edge of the city near a heavily wooded border of trees sits a garden where students, teachers and residents of Belding come together to share and enjoy in the experiences that come with growing fruits and vegetables and beautiful flowers and plants. That little garden, known as the Belding Community Garden, is now receiving statewide attention after taking top honors at the Michigan Municipal League (MML) 2013 Capital Conference in Lansing, winning the MML Region 3 Community Excellence Award (CEA).