By Craig Mauger, The Detroit News

Money from some of Michigan’s largest companies and wealthiest business executives secretly flowed to a fundraising account for state Senate Republicans during the early days of the pandemic, according to a trove of court records.

Dick DeVos, husband of then-U.S. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos, gave $50,000 to the organization Michigan Citizens for Fiscal Responsibility, while the Las Vegas-based data center company Switch, which won tax breaks from the Legislature four months earlier, provided $50,000, a prosecutor and an investigator for Attorney General Dana Nessel’s office said in open court.

Likewise, J.C. Huizenga, the founder of a charter school management company, gave $25,000, and Edward Levy, the leader of a Dearborn-based road construction company that wanted lawmakers to ease regulations on gravel mining in 2020, chipped in $30,000 for the nonprofit that falls under Section 501(c)(4) of the Internal Revenue Code, according to the Attorney General’s office.

“The account is a non-disclosed and unlimited (c)(4) account so no one will know that you contributed to the account,” wrote Heather Lombardini, a Republican political consultant who worked with Michigan Citizens for Fiscal Responsibility, in a fundraising pitch to one donor, according to an email read in court on Aug. 8, 2024.

For years, Michigan lawmakers have allowed themselves to collect millions of dollars in contributions through nonprofit organizations that aren’t required to release their donors’ names or the details of how they spend the cash. Residents of the state have rarely gotten information about who’s behind the money and how key officeholders are involved in soliciting it.

But an ongoing criminal case against Lombardini has unlocked bank records and internal emails involving Michigan Citizens for Fiscal Responsibility. The group, which worked on behalf of Senate Republicans, raised $8.6 million over a seven-year period from 2014 through 2020, as Republicans set the agenda in the Senate.

The new documents — detailed in court hearings, including one on Wednesday — showed that consultants, along with then-Senate Majority Leader Mike Shirkey, R-Clarklake, privately promoted the nonprofit to potential donors as a vehicle to move political money without the public’s knowledge. Those who gave secretly were often individuals with direct connections to bills before the state Legislature, according to the records.

In one email exchange with Lombardini in June 2020 — three months into the COVID-19 pandemic in Michigan — Rory Lafferty, director of government affairs for the Health Alliance Plan, said the insurer wanted to give $20,000 in corporate money to Senate Republicans. Health Alliance Plan or HAP is a Troy-based health insurance company owned by the Detroit-based Henry Ford Health hospital system.

Lafferty specifically identified the nonprofit Michigan Citizens for Fiscal Responsibility as the entity to receive the money after Lombardini floated the idea of tying the cash to a Sept. 8, 2020, fundraising dinner for the Senate Republican Campaign Committee, which is required to disclose its donors.

“We are trying to be sensitive of the optics of our corporate support because both HAP and Henry Ford Health Systems (sic) furloughed some employees due to the COVID crisis,” wrote Lafferty, according to an email previously read in court. “The plan is to bring these folks back when demand for health care picks back up but that’s happening slower than we expected.

“Maybe, we can hold off until we get closer to the dinner before we decide if we can publicly support the event? Maybe, we’ll be bringing back some of the furloughed employees at that time.”

Lafferty then asked Lombardini to forward an invoice for Michigan Citizens for Fiscal Responsibility. Lombardini sent Lafferty a $20,000 invoice to record the transaction, according to court records.

Two months earlier, in April 2020, Henry Ford Health had announced that it would furlough 2,800 employees or 9% of its 31,600 workers across its five hospitals. In 2023, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer appointed Lafferty to the state’s Public Health Advisory Council, a position he still holds.

In a statement provided Thursday by a public relations firm on behalf of HAP, the health insurer said there was “absolutely nothing improper about this corporate contribution.”

“Further, any contribution to Sen. Shirkey in 2020 was made with strict adherence to campaign finance and nonprofit corporation laws, as were all our other contributions,” the HAP statement said. “Contributions to the senator had no relation to any statements he made or positions he held relative to the COVID-19 pandemic.”

Henry Ford Health had no involvement in the $20,000 contribution, said Lauren Zakalik, a spokeswoman for the hospital system.

‘Other account options’

Shirkey, who left the Senate because of term limits at the end of 2022, didn’t respond to a Thursday request for comment from The News.

Lombardini and Shirkey privately promoted Michigan Citizens for Fiscal Responsibility as a way for donors to support a 2020 petition campaign to limit Whitmer’s emergency powers without their names being made public, according to emails read in open court and recorded in a court transcript.

The Unlock Michigan campaign, which launched on June 1, 2020, aimed to repeal a 1945 law that allowed Whitmer to declare an emergency and issue executive orders without the Legislature’s approval. Whitmer’s orders were used to close schools, curtail dining at restaurants and restrict social gatherings, among other measures aimed at limiting the spread of the COVID-19 virus.

In one message to potential donors on June 5, Shirkey touted the need to repeal the 1945 Emergency Powers of Governor Act and said the effort would require “significant financial resources.”

The Senate leader also shared with the group of donors a W-9 tax document to help businesses make their contributions to the Michigan Citizens for Fiscal Responsibility.

“Attached is the W-9 for the preferred non-disclosed (c)(4) account that we will be using,” wrote Shirkey, adding that checks should be made payable to Michigan Citizens for Fiscal Responsibility.

In an Aug. 3, 2020, email, Lombardini sought a contribution from Bobby Schostak, former chairman of the Michigan Republican Party and whose family has a Livonia-based real estate development company. She attached information about Unlock Michigan.

“Attached but please know this is all disclosed since it is a ballot committee,” Lombardini wrote to Schostak, according to court records. “Let me know if that will be an issue. If yes, I have other account options that are non-disclosed.”

In a similar June 26, 2020, email, Lombardini wrote about the Unlock Michigan campaign, but asked Dan Hibma, owner of Land & Co., which manages rental properties in west Michigan, to give $25,000 to Michigan Citizens for Fiscal Responsibility.

Lombardini promised Hibma that “no one will know” about his contribution.

“Dan, we appreciate the conversation and consideration,” added Lombardini, referencing that Hibma had also spoken directly with Shirkey on June 26, 2020.

Hibma’s Land & Co. ended up donating $25,000 to Michigan Citizens for Fiscal Responsibility, according to court records. It wasn’t clear in the records whether Schostak contributed.

Hibma is the husband of former Secretary of State Terri Lynn Land, a Republican whose job included overseeing Michigan’s campaign finance system. He didn’t respond Thursday to a request for comment.

In a July 15, 2020, email to Hibma, Lombardini described his $25,000 contribution to Michigan Citizens for Fiscal Responsibility as a $25,000 check “for Unlock Michigan,” according to court records.

Mark Brewer, a lawyer and a former chairman of the Michigan Democratic Party, argued funneling money through a nonprofit to a petition campaign to hide donors’ identities would be illegal.

The records made available in court likely represented the “tip of the iceberg” when it comes to lawmakers raising money from donors interested in matters before the state Legislature, he added.

“This practice has got to end,” Brewer said.

‘Mystery money’

Michigan Citizens for Fiscal Responsibility shifted about $1.8 million it raised from previously undisclosed donors to Unlock Michigan in 2020. The court records disclose the identities of contributors of $1.2 million that went to the nonprofit in 2020.

At the time, Shirkey was the top Senate Republican and the caucus’s primary fundraiser. He was also one of the most vocal critics of Whitmer’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic and her use of unilateral orders to limit public gatherings and shutter businesses.

Lafferty reached out about contributing on behalf of HAP on June 26, 2020, according to court records. Less than two weeks earlier, Shirkey publicly acknowledged on June 15, 2020, that he had defied Whitmer’s stay-at-home emergency orders by getting professional haircuts. On May 6, 2020, Shirkey and then Michigan House Speaker Lee Chatfield, R-Levering, announced the Legislature was suing Whitmer over her emergency orders.

Currently, Chatfield is facing separate criminal charges over allegations he misused money raised by his nonprofit, the Peninsula Fund. He pleaded not guilty.

On Oct. 2, 2020, the Michigan Supreme Court ruled that Whitmer’s use of the 1945 Emergency Powers of the Governor Act to respond to the pandemic was unconstitutional.

Throughout 2020, Michigan Citizens for Fiscal Responsibility was moving money from undisclosed donors to the Unlock Michigan campaign, providing a pathway for people to secretly support the effort to limit Whitmer’s powers and help Shirkey while ensuring the public and the governor wouldn’t know about their involvement.

The Detroit News reported on July 27, 2020, that the campaign to limit Whitmer’s emergency powers was being funded by “mystery money.” Spurred by the reporting, Bob LaBrant, a longtime campaign finance lawyer who previously worked for the Michigan Chamber of Commerce, and Brewer filed a complaint alleging contributions were being improperly moved through Michigan Citizens for Fiscal Responsibility to conceal the identity of donors to Unlock Michigan.

That complaint eventually led to Nessel announcing charges against Lombardini and fellow consultant Sandy Baxter on Feb. 21, 2024. Nessel, a Democrat, said they had been involved in an effort to “evade” the disclosure requirements of the Michigan Campaign Finance Act and then lied about it as state officials investigated.

Transparency in court

Lombardini, a longtime fundraiser for Republican candidates and causes, is now facing felony charges of forgery and uttering and publishing after she signed an affidavit on Sept. 9, 2020, denying that funds had been solicited through Michigan Citizens for Fiscal Responsibility to give the dollars to Unlock Michigan, the regulated ballot campaign committee.

She has pleaded not guilty, and the charges remain pending in Ingham County Circuit Court, where Judge Wanda Stokes is considering whether the accusations should proceed to trial. Forgery as well as uttering and publishing are punishable by up to 14 years in prison.

Lombardini was originally charged with additional campaign finance violations, but those allegations were knocked down in district court because Judge Kristen Simmons ruled they were not filed quickly enough by prosecutors.

During a Wednesday court hearing in Lansing, Lombardini’s lawyer, Thomas Cranmer, argued that “the truth or falsity” of a single sentence in an affidavit shouldn’t render the entire document false.

“An affidavit with a single false statement is still an affidavit,” Cranmer said. “It’s simply an affidavit with a factual inaccuracy.

“Now, it may not be an ideal state of affairs, but it doesn’t constitute the crime of either uttering and publishing or forgery.”

During that same hearing, Stine Grand, an assistant attorney general, listed the names of donors behind $700,000 in giving to Michigan Citizens for Fiscal Responsibility, including the DeVos family and the Cotton family.

Grand said the donors’ names and contributions had been included on a spreadsheet that Lombardini sent to Shirkey in a 2020 email. The subject line of the message was “Unlock—$$$,” even though the money went to Michigan Citizens for Fiscal Responsibility, according to testimony recorded in court transcripts.

“She directed individuals to contribute to MCFR to fund Unlock,” Grand said Wednesday of Lombardini in court. “She planned and organized with Mike Shirkey and others to fundraise and solicit for Unlock by using MCFR.”

‘Friends asked me’

Five members of west Michigan’s DeVos family combined to give $200,000, and two members of Metro Detroit’s Cotton family donated $300,000 to the Shirkey-led fund. The Cotton family previously ran Meridian Health Plan before selling the Medicaid provider in 2018. Jon Cotton gave $150,000 to Michigan Citizens for Fiscal Responsibility in 2020, and his brother Sean Cotton gave $150,000, according to the Attorney General’s presentation.

It wasn’t clear in the court records whether all of the donors knew their money would end up going to Unlock Michigan.

In 2020, members of the Cotton family were “vehemently” opposing a bill in the Senate that would have limited the ability of local governments to block gravel mining operations, said former Sen. Adam Hollier, D-Detroit, who sponsored the measure meant to ensure there’s aggregate material available to improve the state’s roads.

Hollier introduced his measure in August 2019. It advanced out of the Senate Transportation and Infrastructure Committee in September 2020, but it never received a vote on the Senate floor, where Shirkey controlled the agenda.

“The Cottons are big Republicans. They’re billionaires. I am not surprised,” Hollier said of the $300,000 in previously undisclosed contributions to Michigan Citizens for Fiscal Responsibility.

Attempts to reach the Cottons by The News on Thursday were unsuccessful.

Matthew Resch, a public relations consultant who worked on behalf of the Metamora Land Preservation Alliance in opposition to the gravel mining bill, said Thursday that he had no interaction with the Cottons and couldn’t speak to the contributions.

Another donor was Michigan Energy First, a nonprofit group connected to Detroit-based DTE Energy, Michigan’s largest electric utility. Michigan Energy First, which features multiple DTE officials on its board, spent $17.5 million from 2020 through 2023, according to its tax filings.

Michigan Energy First previously reported giving $100,000 to Michigan Citizens for Fiscal Responsibility in 2020. But the new court records showed how closely tied the group was to DTE.

On July 9, 2020, Pamela Headley, DTE’s chief of staff for corporate and government affairs, sent Shirkey an email notifying Shirkey of the $100,000 contribution from the seemingly separate nonprofit.

“Friends asked me to let you know that the Michigan Energy First board approved a $100,000 contribution to Michigan Citizen’s (sic) for Fiscal Responsibility,” Headley wrote to the Senate majority leader.

By Anne Snabes, The Detroit News

Oakland County is working on methods to try to prevent overflows of raw sewage into the Red Run Drain including creating more storage in its drainage system and increasing “permitted discharges” from a Madison Heights retention basin, according to a corrective action plan sent to state regulators.

The plan, submitted by the Oakland County Water Resources commissioner to the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy on May 29, comes after the agency issued a violation to Oakland County for discharging nearly 1.2 million gallons of raw sewage from the Dequindre Sanitary Sewer Interceptor to the Red Run Drain during a heavy rainfall on April 3.

EGLE told the county “to take immediate action to achieve and maintain compliance.” The notice required Oakland County to submit a corrective action plan to EGLE by May 30.

But Candice Miller, Macomb County’s Public Works commissioner, said last week she believes Oakland County’s letter to the state shows “a total lack of concern” about what it is discharging into the Red Run Drain and how the releases affect the environment.

Miller has been voicing concerns for months about discharges of combined wastewater and stormwater from the George W. Kuhn Retention Treatment Basin and about sanitary sewer overflows from Oakland County’s pipes. In April, three Macomb County state legislators introduced a bill package that targets what they believe are damaging releases of raw and treated sewage by Oakland County into the Red Run Drain, which leads to the Clinton River and then Lake St. Clair.

Oakland officials have maintained that they are following state guidelines and have only discharged treated sewage from the Kuhn basin, which is located in Madison Heights.

According to Oakland County’s six-page plan, it is working on methods to reduce its “flow rate” to the Great Lakes Water Authority, which treats wastewater for many southeast Michigan communities. Oakland County sends wastewater from its sewer pipes to GLWA’s pipes so the water can be treated at GLWA’s wastewater plant.

But in the letter to EGLE, Oakland County Water Resources Commisioner Jim Nash’s office attributed the sanitary sewer overflows to the fact that wastewater isn’t able to flow from one of its drainage districts to GLWA’s system during certain rain events because the water level is too high in the GLWA system.

To reduce its flow rate, Oakland officials said they are working on methods that include operating the drainage district “in a manner to create storage” in the system and increasing permitted discharges from the George W. Kuhn Retention Treatment Basin. The Kuhn basin is used to store a mix stormwater and wastewater during heavy rains, later releasing it into the Red Run Drain after it has been treated.

Nash’s office referred questions about the corrective action plan to EGLE.

Miller objected to the proposal to discharge more water from the Kuhn basin saying that the quantity of water discharged from the basin “really exceeds the capacity of the Red Run Drain,” which flows through Macomb County. The discharged water, she said, contributes to flooding in Macomb.

Miller said that Nash’s office doesn’t have “any particular plan.” She and others were outraged when they discovered sanitary wipes, condoms and tampons in the area where the Dequindre Interceptor discharges into the Red Run Drain after the April 3 overflow.

“I think EGLE should hold (Oakland’s) feet to the fire to get a definitive plan, not: ‘OK, we’re looking at it,’” she said. “What is your plan, specifically? What is your specific plan? What do you think the costs are?”

What the letter says

In its letter to EGLE, Nash’s office has determined that there is a “direct relationship” between the Dequindre Interceptor sanitary sewer overflow level and the corresponding level in the GLWA system. The Dequindre Interceptor is part of the George W. Kuhn Drainage District.

The author of the letter, Oakland County Water Resources Commissioner Chief Engineer Evagelos Bantios, said the flow from the George W. Kuhn Drainage District is unable to discharge into the downstream GLWA system when the GLWA system has an elevated water level. The water won’t be discharged until the Kuhn drainage district’s water level increases to overcome the downstream water level.

Bantios noted that, in some situations, it appears that the GLWA system flows in reverse into the Kuhn drainage district system.

He said Nash’s office plans to store as much flow as possible in the Kuhn system during wet weather events and continue to discharge water from the George W. Kuhn Retention Treatment Basin.

“Historically, we maximize our discharge into the GLWA system,” Bantios said in the letter. “The new modification will allow us to have more storage in the Dequindre Interceptor to allow for backwater and reverse flow from GLWA to minimize and potentially eliminate SSOs.”

Bantios said implementation of this change is “in process.” He also said that his office continues to work with the Great Lakes Water Authority to determine how the GLWA system interacts with Kuhn drainage district system and see what improvements can be made to either or both systems.

“We hope to be completed with the initial investigation by late summer,” Bantios said. “Then, we plan on evaluating other improvements to both systems. We expect this process to take six months to one year.”

GLWA officials weren’t available for comment Thursday evening.

EGLE spokesman Jeff Johnston said his agency believes that untreated or improperly treated sewage discharges are “unhealthy and unacceptable.”

“This is why EGLE is taking action to address these discharges in accordance with Michigan law,” he said.

EGLE is currently reviewing Oakland County’s response letter. Johnston said compliance staff generally review and decide on the acceptability of a corrective plan within 30 days of receipt but are expediting this matter and expect to have a decision within two weeks.

Macomb Daily reporter Jameson Cook contributed to this story.

By Max Reinhart, The Detroit News

An Oak Park man was recently struck and killed while crossing a street in Ohio, police said.

Jamil Osman, 32, was walking in the 200 block of North Coy Road, near Ice Castle Drive in the city of Oregon, a suburb located just east of Toledo, at about 11:23 p.m. on May 31, Oregon police said in a press release.

He attempted to cross the street and was struck by a Toyota traveling south on Coy.

Osman was transported to a nearby hospital, where he died the next day, authorities said.

The driver of the vehicle, Caleb Sims, 31, of Toledo, was not impaired and was wearing his seatbelt when he struck Osman, police said. As of Tuesday, he had not been charged in the crash.

Police have not released any further information and said the incident remains under investigation.

By Craig Mauger, The Detroit News

A state lawmaker argued Tuesday against ongoing efforts to cap class sizes in Michigan elementary schools, saying classes of 30, 40 or even 50 students had worked successfully in the 1920s to produce the Greatest Generation.

The term Greatest Generation generally refers to Americans who were born from 1901 to 1927 and who lived through the Great Depression. Many of them also fought in World War II.

State Rep. Josh Schriver, R-Oxford, cited the generation — individuals who were in elementary school a century ago and 50 years before personal computers became broadly accessible — during an occasionally heated House Oversight Committee hearing about the future of education in Michigan and the state’s declining reading scores.

In a presentation at the meeting, Michael Rice, Michigan’s superintendent of public instruction, asked lawmakers to fund a plan to lower class sizes in high-poverty elementary schools.

An April investigation by The Detroit News found that, unlike most other states, Michigan has no policy aimed at capping class sizes or tying funding to smaller class sizes in elementary schools. The newspaper documented 206 elementary classes, ranging from kindergarten through fifth grade, across 49 schools over the 2023-24 and 2024-25 years that had at least 30 students in them.

Among them was a kindergarten class at Bennett Elementary, where the Detroit Public Schools Community District said 30 students were enrolled.

“(In) 1920, you know, the classroom sizes were 30, 40, 50 kids. That produced the Greatest Generation,” Schriver said.

As the Michigan Legislature continues to craft a funding plan for schools for next year, Schriver said his solution to large class sizes in traditional public schools was to establish a voucher program so parents could spend state tax dollars on homeschool programs.

“That will reduce the amount of individuals in public education,” Schriver said.

There’s no clear evidence that strategy would lead to smaller class sizes. It would likely lead to less funding flowing to Michigan school districts because the state ties funding to every student enrolled and that could impair districts’ ability to keep the staffing levels necessary to offer small classes.

Asked five times after the meeting if he supported having class sizes of 50 students in Michigan elementary schools or if he would be OK with class sizes of 50 students, Schriver didn’t answer with a yes or no but said he was opposed to a mandate capping class sizes.

“I’m drawing a correlation between 1920, when we had zero of these requests,” Schriver said. “We were spending money on zero of these things that they’re coming in here and they’re requesting. And that produced the Greatest Generation.”

‘Whatever is best for the kids’

As a reporter was interviewing Schriver on Tuesday in a hallway of the state Capitol, state Rep. Sharon MacDonell, D-Troy, walked up to him and said in 1930, only about 30% of people graduated from high school. Federal data showed that in 1920, about 16% of people over the age of 25 had completed high school.

“Forty to 50 kids in a classroom, it didn’t work,” MacDonell told Schriver. “It was a disaster.”

“Most people didn’t go to college,” Schriver replied of the 1920s.

“They didn’t go to high school either,” MacDonell fired back.

“Yeah, and it produced the Greatest Generation,” Schriver said.

Asked if he was attributing the Greatest Generation to the large class sizes, Schriver said he was connecting the generation to “many factors.” When asked whether he was OK with class sizes of 50 students in elementary schools in his Oakland County district, Schriver said there should be no mandate on the topic.

“It should be whatever is best for the kids,” Schriver said.

The lawmaker didn’t explain what that meant.

At least 31 of the 50 states have laws about class sizes, tie funding to small classes, or set goals for their schools to attempt to meet and against which to be accountable; Michigan currently doesn’t. As an example, Tennessee state law includes both average class size benchmarks for school buildings and maximum class size limits for individual classes.

In May, Michigan’s State Board of Education approved a resolution calling for limits on class sizes to be put in place by the 2030-31 school year, including a cap of 20 students per class for kindergarten through third grade.

Mitchell Robinson, a Democratic member of the State Board of Education, authored the resolution and said action on class sizes was overdue.

“Smaller class sizes are going to be a better learning situation for kids and a better teaching situation for teachers,” said Robinson of Okemos, a former music teacher.

‘Get back to the fundamentals’

After Tuesday’s hearing in the state House, Schriver told a reporter that state Rep. Brad Paquette, a Republican and former teacher from Niles, had led a class of 50 students and the reporter should ask Paquette “how awesome” it was.

Paquette said the 50-student class he was involved with was a high school class and included a team teaching strategy.

In the traditional model of teaching — one teacher in front of a single class of students — Paquette said having 50 students in an elementary school class would not be ideal.

Tuesday’s hearing was supposed to focus on the “current state of Michigan’s public education,” according to the agenda. However, it also showcased the partisan divisions that have dominated the debate around the topic.

Michigan ranked 44th among the 50 states in the average reading score of fourth graders, according to the most recent National Assessment of Educational Progress results. And during her State of the State address in February, Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said just 24% of Michigan fourth graders were able to read proficiently.

House Oversight Chairman Jay DeBoyer, R-Clay Township, said the state’s education system was “failing” students.

Pamela Pugh, a Democrat and the president of the State Board of Education, responded that policymakers were failing children and that funding increases for K-12 schools had not kept pace with inflation.

After the hearing, state Rep. Dylan Wegela, D-Garden City, and a former teacher, said the meeting amounted to “an attack on public education.” Having 50 students in an elementary school class would be unmanageable, he said.

“That sounds like chaos,” said Wegela.

State Rep. Jason Woolford, R-Howell, contended that Michigan schools needed to get back to teaching the “fundamentals” of English, math, history and what he described as “morality.”

“I’ve traveled and taught in 13 different countries, places like Africa, where there’s no educational budget, there’s no diversity program, no anti-(President Donald) Trump resolutions,” Woolford said. “Yet, they’re increasing in their reading.”

The State Board of Education approved a resolution in March against executive orders by Trump that the Democratic-controlled board said “pose direct threats to children, public education and fundamental civil rights.”

While literacy rates appear to be increasing in some countries in Africa, which is a continent, the countries’ rates appear to be lower than the current rate in the United States, according to data from international organizations.

Woolford also said, “I think we’ve got to just let our kids be kids and get back to the fundamentals that made this country great, invented the car and electricity and other things.”

Asked what Woolford was talking about when he referenced the discovery of electricity, Paquette said one of the problems is that everyone discusses education, but no one defines what the word means to them.

“I think there are a lot of people that are grasping at straws because what they want to do is they want to better a system,” Paquette said. “And that’s a noble cause.”

By Breana Noble and Owen McCarthy, The Detroit News

Consumers’ hunger for new vehicles persisted in May, but affordability concerns could cool sales in June as dealerships start running short on cars and SUVs delivered ahead of President Donald Trump’s 25% tariffs.

In May, Ford’s U.S. sales increased 16% year-over-year while Hyundai’s grew 8% and Kia’s rose 5%. Subaru and Mazda Motor Corp., however, reported declines of 10% and 19%, respectively. General Motors and Stellantis will report second-quarter sales next month.

Spring typically marks a surge in vehicle sales, as tax returns hit bank accounts and the weather warms up. But consumer sentiment has plunged to some of its lowest levels in decades amid frequently changing rules on tariffs, and concerns that new vehicle prices could climb later this year. It has led some consumers to purchase vehicles sooner than they had planned.

S&P Global Mobility forecasted May sales up 2% compared to a year ago, but predicted sales were slowing to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 15.7 million vehicles, down from 17.6 million from March to April.

“Consumer confidence is down, but the sales are not,” said Stephanie Brinley, associate director of research and analysis at S&P’s AutoIntelligence. “It doesn’t usually work that way.”

With inventories down and non-tariffed models moving off lots, the “affordability bullet has not come through yet. There’s a little bit of wait-and-see for what automakers really do,” Brinley added, noting June could start revealing the direction companies choose to take.

Some have given consumers confidence that they can wait a bit. Ford, through the July 4 weekend, is offering its customers thousands of dollars per vehicle in discounts typically reserved for its employees. In early May, however, it did increase prices by up to $2,000 forf its Mexico-built vehicles because of tariffs.

Stellantis — the parent of Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, Ram and other brands — is offering a similar employee discount program, which it has been extended through June. Volkswagen has said it will hold to its current manufacturer’s suggested retail prices through June. GM CEO Mary Barra has said the automaker doesn’t expect major price increases.

But vehicle imports are expected to slow, which will mean less availability and price increases, said Charlie Chesbrough, a senior economist at Cox Automotive Inc.

“As more tariffed products replace existing inventory over the summer,” he said, in a May forecast, “prices are expected to be pushed higher, leading to slower sales in the coming months.”

Some dealers are already noticing wariness. “I haven’t seen people this cautious since before, or during, the early stages of COVID,” said Jim Walen, the owner of Stellantis and Hyundai showrooms in Seattle.

The ports in Seattle look “empty,” he said. Layoffs by Microsoft in the state of Washington haven’t helped business either. Stellantis’ employee discount program, however, is a boon: “Anytime you can affect the transaction price, it’s a good thing.”

Meanwhile, some dealers are planning to pull back over revenue concerns, Walen said, but he’s taking a different approach: “We’re very aggressive. We stock a lot, we’re part of the community, we advertise a lot.”

While some May sales are occurring over tariff concerns, other shoppers are dropping out of the market altogether, said Ivan Drury, director of insights at auto information website Edmunds.com. It may still be too early to determine if the circumstances will affect vehicle segments as some customers hold off rather than get a vehicle without certain features.

There are also differing views on tariffs, how they work and the impact they will have, Drury added: “Not everybody’s on the same page.”

But there are trends. More consumers bought out their leases in May than in April, rather than leasing again. That could be a sign customers are seeking to limit increases to their monthly payments, but it also means they’re stepping out of the market, Drury said.

He added that while inventory is declining there’s still too much stock — more than 2.5 million vehicles are on dealer lots — to see substantial price increases.

“The last time when we had people really get hit with price increases, where it took them back, was when we were down to 1 million units,” Drury said. “And that’s where you start to see that crossover between consumers getting a deal versus consumers just dealing and saying, ‘OK, fine, I’ll pay MSRP. I’ll pay above.’”

The share of electric vehicles in the market was forecasted to continue slipping. EV’s accounted for about 7% of sales in March and April, and S&P Global Mobility predicts it would be 6.8% in May. Ford EV sales in May were down by a quarter, driven by decreases in the F-150 Lightning pickup and Transit commercial van.

Trump has pulled federal funding for EV charging infrastructure and directed his administration to reevaluate greenhouse gas tailpipe emission regulations and incentives that could be construed as an “EV mandate.” The U.S. Senate last month also removed a waiver that enabled California and a contingent of states to enforce stricter zero-emission requirements on passenger vehicle sales. The result is an uncertain policy environment around EVs.

“They’ve been trending a little bit down the whole year,” Brinley said. “It may be some people looking for an EV in January bought, expecting the incentives to go away, but they’re not afraid of that anymore.”

Rhett Ricart, who has eight new-vehicle stores for Ford and Chevrolet to Nissan and Mitsubishi in and near Columbus, Ohio, said tariffs and policy changes are on the minds of EV buyers, but he otherwise describes sales as normal.

“A possible tariff scare … doesn’t seem to exist,” Ricart said, adding about expectations that Trump or the judicial system will offer some clarity on import taxes. “For any jitteriness, we will hopefully find out if the tariffs stick soon.”

The Michigan Panthers had a chance to get some revenge, clinch the top record in their conference and gain more momentum as the UFL playoffs near.

The Panthers couldn’t get the job done against a familiar roadblock, as they came up empty in the red zone in the closing seconds and fell to the Birmingham Stallions, 26-22, Saturday at Protective Stadium in Alabama.

Backup quarterback Danny Etling guided the Panthers (6-3) to the Birmingham 9-yard line on their final drive. After spiking the ball to stop the clock, the Panthers had three cracks at the end zone with 19 seconds left.

The Stallions (6-3) stood tall, breaking up two of Etling’s passes over the middle and forcing three incompletions. On third down, Etling found receiver Jaylon Moore in the back of the end zone, but Moore couldn’t get his feet down inbounds to complete the catch.

Etling, who was making his second straight start in placed of injured Bryce Perkins, finished 23 of 39 passing for 236 yards and two touchdowns. He led the Panthers to points on three of their four second-half possessions.

Receiver Siasoi Mariner had a 33-yard touchdown reception and finished with five catches for 115 yards. Running back Toa Taua had 62 total yards and scored on a 2-yard run that gave Michigan a 22-20 lead with just under eight minutes to go.

Stallions quarterback J’Mar Smith completed 22 of 31 passes for 307 yards and threw two touchdown passes to Deon Cain, including a 19-yarder that gave Birmingham the lead for good with 2:30 remaining.

Since the USFL and XFL merged to form the UFL in 2024, the Panthers are 0-5 against the Stallions, including a loss in last season’s USFL Conference Championship game.

The Panthers and Stallions, who both secured playoff berths last week, will meet in the conference title game for the second straight season on June 8. The winner will advance to the UFL Championship game on June 14.

Before that, the Panthers will host the Houston Roughnecks in their regular-season home finale on May 31 at Ford Field. Kickoff is set for 3 p.m.

©2025 The Detroit News. Visit detroitnews.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

The Michigan Panthers stayed hot and secured a spot in the UFL playoffs.

Behind a three-touchdown performance from backup quarterback Danny Etling, the Panthers rolled past the Houston Roughnecks, 30-18, on Saturday at TDECU Stadium in Houston.

With the win, Michigan’s third in a row, the Panthers (6-2) became the first team to clinch a berth in the UFL Conference Championship on June 8.

The Panthers led 14-12 at halftime before they pulled away in the third quarter. On a third-and-16, Etling found receiver Devin Ross down the right sideline for a 35-yard touchdown to make it a nine-point game.

On Houston’s ensuing possession, cornerback Keni-H Lovely (Western Michigan) jumped the route on a quick screen pass and returned it 45 yards for a touchdown to extend the lead to 27-12 with 4:15 left in the third.

The Panthers thwarted any thought of a comeback by forcing a pair of turnovers in the fourth quarter — one on a fourth-down stop in the red zone and another on a fumble recovery.

Kicker B.T. Potter tacked on a 52-yard field goal to make it 30-12 with 5:21 remaining before the Roughnecks (3-5) scored in the closing seconds.

Etling finished 14-for-22 passing with 167 yards. He threw a 5-yard touchdown pass to receiver Malik Turner in the first quarter and a 1-yarder to receiver Samson Nacua in the second quarter. Nacua’s score was set up by an 88-yard punt return by Xavier Malone.

Roughnecks quarterback Jalan McClendon completed 30 of 50 passes for 316 yards, two touchdowns and the pick-six. Houston outgained Michigan by a considerable margin, 441-254, but went 1-for-3 in the red zone and lost the turnover battle (2-0).

The Panthers will travel to Alabama to face the Birmingham Stallions on May 24 before hosting the Roughnecks in the regular-season finale at Ford Field on May 31. Kickoff for both games is slated for 3 p.m.

After that, it’s on to the playoffs, where the winners of the two conference championship games will advance to the UFL Championship on June 14.

By Candice Williams, The Detroit News

As Michigan prepares for another warm-weather travel season, one thing is increasingly clear: President Donald Trump’s tariffs are sparking backlash that could reduce international visits to the United States — and deepening concerns that the levies may cause domestic travelers to adjust their plans.

The impact of tariffs amid a trade war is already showing up in travel from Canada to Michigan. The number of people crossing into the Great Lakes State from Canada fell 11% in both February and March, with vehicle crossings down 15% in February and 18% in March. Last fiscal year, 14.4 million travelers crossed the Canadian border into Michigan, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

Tim Hygh, CEO of Mackinac Island Tourism, said he has heard of several cancellations from one day-trip tour operator based in Canada. Even though tariff-related cancellations may not impact the island’s overnight-stay business, there is concern that it could affect daytime traffic.

“You never want to see an interruption in business or any kind of a loss, especially when you’re only open six months out of the year,” he said. “So there are concerns. It won’t make or break us, but any loss is a concern.”

Dana Orlando, vice president of sales and marketing for Grand Hotel, said overall guest bookings are continuing as usual but the landmark property’s Canadian business has slowed. The hotel continues to focus on catering to a wide demographic, including multi-generational families.

“They love those traditions, and we stay true to those traditions,” she said. “So we’re trying to reach everyone.”

Tourism officials across the state are hoping for a busy summer, despite reduced air travel between the two North American neighbors and economic uncertainty threatening to cloud the outlook for hotels, restaurants and retailers up north. So far, operators say they are cautiously optimistic.

Trevor Tkach, president of Traverse City Tourism, expects more last-minute and budget-conscious travelers this summer, as many people scale back from long-distance or international trips. He described it as “a tale of two travelers” — those who are more conservative but still traveling and more affluent travelers who opt for closer destinations instead of going as far as they have in the past.

“It’s kind of reminding me of COVID, honestly,” he said. “It’s weird to say that. When we couldn’t travel as far, people still wanted to go somewhere. So we saw growth in affluent travelers then, too. Traverse City tends to find a customer one way, whether times are up or down. We end up being a pretty good landing spot because we’re a sought-after destination. We’re lucky in that way.”

Business owners like Bob Sutherland, owner of retailer Cherry Republic, are counting on people continuing their traditional summer trips to northern Michigan. The retailer has several stores in Michigan, including Traverse City, Charlevoix and Glen Arbor, with a new one opening this month in Mackinaw City.

“I think for Cherry Republic, in this time of uncertainty, we are going to be as rock solid, true to our brand, and certain and consistent,” he said. “For our customers coming north … they want that piece of peaceful, beautiful northern Michigan.”

On Mackinac Island, bookings are on par with last year so far, Hygh said. Early May is when many of the businesses at the popular tourist destination reopen to welcome tourists after a winter break.

“When I do a survey of our hotels almost weekly now, especially with the market turbulence at this point, their phone calls are steady,” Hygh said. “So at this point, it looks like it could be a good season, and we’re just grateful that all indications are good so far.”

Brian Bailey, general manager at Chippewa Hotel Waterfront, said Mackinac Island is fairly insulated from upheaval as people seek regional travel.

“People will travel shorter distances and go to a place that they know they can count on and they love,” he said.

Todd Callewaert, president of Island House Hotel, said bookings are up about 4% from the same time last year: “I’m sort of surprised at that. They’re coming in pretty strong. So I’m looking for a pretty good year.”

Canadian tourists are a small part of the hotel’s business, Callewaert said, booking about 60 nights total last year. As of early May, the hotel had booked 35 nights for Canadian residents.

“We’re going to do just fine with Canadians,” he said. “We’ll probably do the same, if not more.”

Staffing up

While some hotels say they are on pace with their summer bookings, most also report being fully or nearly fully staffed to accommodate guests.

Detroit-based immigration attorney Bob Birach estimates that about 20% of workers who staff businesses on Mackinac Island are foreign workers in the country through work visas, such as J1 and H2B.

Hygh on Mackinac Island said he doesn’t anticipate any changes to the J1 or H2B programs.

“Everything was laid in place with the last administration and the current administration has not changed anything, nor have they made any plans into the future,” Hygh said. “So no effect at this point.”

At the Grand Hotel, Orlando said the hotel is fully staffed with more than 700 employees during the peak of the season. About 80% are temporary employees, including foreign workers employed through the H2B program.

“It’s a big workforce for us,” she said. “We have to work with the government every year in order to get those. And you just never know what the number will be. And we’ve been thankful that this year we have everyone that we need.”

Mission Point expects to have all of its workers in place soon, said Leah Anderson, senior marketing and content manager. She said the hotel requests around 150 H2B work visas each year, but due to the nature of the program, there are delays. As of early May, the hotel had 68 H2B workers, she said.

“We expect the remainder to arrive by the end of May, but this does create significant challenges for us in the beginning of the season,” she said.

Promoting a ‘coolcation’

The Upper Peninsula saw $1.6 billion in total visitor spending — 5.5% of Michigan’s total visitor economy — in 2023, according to an economic impact analysis released last week by the Upper Peninsula Travel and Recreation Association. Mackinac County, which includes Mackinac Island, led with $309.4 million in visitor spending.

Visitors returning to Mackinac Island will notice some improvements this year. The Grand Hotel has completed renovations, including a new Mackinac Market and the Dorothy Draper Home shop. The Inn at Stonecliffe has updated its kitchen facilities, while Mackinac State Historic Parks is preparing a series of events to celebrate the 150th anniversary of Mackinac National Park.

New transportation options could also help boost visitation. Starting in May, United Express will begin daily direct flights from Chicago O’Hare to both Chippewa County International Airport and Pellston Airport.

Officials say ferry service to the island has improved as well. Hygh, CEO of Mackinac Island Tourism, said service is back on track following fleet issues last year, and the schedule has increased by 10%. The Arnold Transit brand has returned after a 12-year absence.

Hygh said cooler summer temperatures — 10 to 15 degrees lower than many Southern locations — are being used to promote the island as a “coolcation” destination.

“Mackinac Island is cool,” Hygh said. “Take that any way you want. The St Louises of the world, the Memphises of the world, the high heat, high humidity. We’re really trying to reach out and tell them, don’t go south, come north and get a break. Get out of the heat.”

Mission Point Resort completed a redesign of its fine dining restaurant, Chianti, and added a new Lilac Lounge. “Brighter colors, along the water,” said Mark Ware, CEO of Mission Point. “Really exquisite food.”

Liz Ware, co-owner of Mission Point, said the hotel is seeing a mix of travel behaviors, with some guests making weather-dependent, last-minute plans and others booking early. October and May travel is on the rise, she said, as guests seek more affordable shoulder-season trips.

“Summer is peak season and everyone wants to come to the island,” she said. “It’s going to be a strong season for us. And I think the other thing that people want is the experience. And Mackinac, you get this really great feeling of being able to disconnect and then reconnect with your family and your friends.”

Jeri-Lynn Bailey, spokesperson for Arnold Transit Company, said the company, previously known as Mackinac Island Ferry Company, rebranded back to Arnold Transit after a difficult 2024 that saw major fleet issues. The company invested $6 million in repairs and is now focused on dependable, no-frills service.

“We stripped it down,” Bailey said. “We’re a ferry boat company again — no gimmicks.”

A new ticketless boarding system is launching June 1, and a slower, scenic “classic service” from St. Ignace will offer rides as low as $22.50, $11.50 below a regular adult round-trip.

“It’s like you step back to the pace of Mackinac before you even step on the island,” she said.

The new season starts as Mackinac Island and the ferry companies are in a dispute over ferry operations. Shepler’s Inc. filed a complaint earlier this year alleging the city has overstepped its authority in regulating the company’s fares and schedules for ferries, prices for parking and its business operations.

Mackinac Island has filed a countersuit, saying that it has the right to regulate fees for parking and fares for Shepler’s Inc. and Arnold Transit Company, claiming that the companies’ common ownership, Hoffmann Marine, created a monopoly and eliminated competition.

Jenny Gezella, president of Hoffmann Marine, said she couldn’t discuss the ongoing litigation between the ferry companies and the city. However, she noted the $6 million investment in what is now known as the Arnold Transit ferry fleet. Shepler’s picked up the slack while Arnold Transit’s fleet was out of service.

“Shepler’s … it was hard on their equipment last year,” she said.

Regarding the rebranding of Arnold Transit, Gezella said, “You’re gonna see a whole different look and feel … the yellow star is gone. It’s back to that traditional brand of that green and red, and so lots of enhancements you’re gonna see.”

‘Maximizing our potential’

Tkach of Traverse City Tourism said the city has had ongoing development, a sign of investor confidence. Several new hotels are opening this year, including a Residence Inn on the East Bay side, plus Home2 Suites and Fairfield Inn on U.S. 31 south of the city. The old Fairfield Inn on U.S. 31 just south of the city is being converted into a Spark hotel that is scheduled to open in June. Short-term rental inventory continues to expand, and new downtown condos offer visitors a more urban option.

Traverse City is leaning heavily on its food and wine scene, he added: “As a destination, there’s some strategizing going on, so I think you’ll see more opportunities, maybe just more strategic alignment between growers, the farmers and the vendors. Being a little more deliberate to make sure we’re maximizing our potential with the consumer.”

In several northern Michigan communities, including Traverse City and Glen Arbor, Cherry Republic is fully staffed for the season, Sutherland said. The company — which does about half of its annual business between June and September — will carry 20 new products this summer. Cherry Republic has developed a balanced staffing model that includes J1 visa holders, H2B workers, college students and retirees.

“We provide spaces in an RV park so that we can have camp workers — people that own RVs and drive up here for the summer,” he said. “Usually semi-retired, and they’re terrific workers.”

Sutherland believes the workforce improvements are paying off in customer service. “We’re excited to have enough employees and fresh employees and really rock-solid people to serve our customers,” he said. “It makes a huge difference … to not have an exhausted employee whose lips are too tired to smile.”

In Grand Rapids, a year-round destination, 2025 is pacing ahead of last year in terms of visitors, said Janet Korn, senior vice president with Experience Grand Rapids.

“Through the end of March, (we’re) about 3.4% ahead of last year,” she said. “So currently we’re ahead of what we hope to be for the end of the year. So that’s a ray of optimism.”

Korn said June and July are shaping up to be “really strong” with group business. “That might hold true, because people that are planning to go to their meeting and convention at this point are likely coming,” she said. “Of course, there is all this uncertainty, but we have many reasons to believe that people who are traveling to visit their friends and relatives and coming to the Grand Rapids-Kent County area for tourism are going to come here.”

Korn noted the city’s proximity to major Midwest markets as another advantage: “We’re in this wonderful three-hour drive from Chicago, which is a large market. We’re only a four-and-a-half-hour drive from Indianapolis. And we’re only two, two-and-a-half hours from Metro Detroit,” she said. “We do get a lot of visitors coming from there.”

By Julia Cardi, The Detroit News

The first of three men charged in connection with the killing of an Oakland County sheriff’s deputy in 2024 will spend between five and 20 years in prison after his sentencing in a Detroit courtroom Friday.

Wayne County Circuit Court Judge Charise Anderson ordered Karim Moore, 19, to spend at least five years in prison after he pleaded guilty in March to conducting a criminal enterprise, receiving and concealing a stolen motor vehicle, and felony firearm in connection with Deputy Brad Reckling’s death.

Recking, 30, was killed June 22, 2024 while he and other members of a cross-jurisdictional task force investigated a Chevrolet Equinox stolen from an Oakland County waterpark. Reckling allegedly was shot three times while tailing the car in Detroit, working undercover.

The Wayne County prosecutor’s office charged three people, including Moore, in connection with Reckling’s death. Anderson sentenced Moore to two years for the felony firearm count and between three and 20 years for the criminal enterprise count. Those two sentences will run consecutively, which brings the minimum time Moore will spend in prison to five years. Anderson sentenced Moore to one to five years for the stolen motor vehicle charge.

Prosecutor Matthew Penney said in court he hoped Friday’s sentencing would be the first step in allowing Reckling’s family to “turn the page” in their lives after his killing. He acknowledged they still have a long road ahead of them, with the cases of two other people charged in connection with Reckling’s death still yet to reach resolutions.

“This is just the first step in a much longer process that this poor family has been enduring for the last 11 months,” Penney said.

More than a dozen supporters of Reckling sat on one side of the courtroom, including his widow, Jacqueline. The couple had three small children and a fourth on the way when Reckling died.

Wearing a white dress shirt, bow tie, sneakers and ankle monitor, Moore did not make a statement to the court. He appeared with his defense attorney, Adam Clements, who characterized Moore as someone who has accepted accountability for what he did and has been cooperative in showing up to court. He has not posed an ongoing danger to his community and even found a job, Clements told the court.

“This young man will have an opportunity, when he gets out, to try to turn his life around.”

Clements had requested Moore be sentenced under a law targeted at young defendants that would have made him eligible for release after three years.

“He’s accepted accountability for his actions. He was wrong, and he embraced that,” Clements told The News in an interview after the sentencing.

Reckling’s family did not speak at the sentencing or to reporters afterward.

A separate case against Moore accusing him of resisting arrest has been dismissed.

Deputies escorted him out of the courtroom to begin his sentence. He was not handcuffed.

Ramon DeBose, 18, of Clinton Township is accused of killing Reckling. Marquis Goins, 18, of Detroit, also faces charges as an accessory. Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy said DeBose drove the SUV, and Goins and Moore rode as passengers at the time of the shooting.

Judge Shawn Jacque in Detroit’s 36th District Court ordered DeBose in March to stand trial. DeBose faces life in prison if convicted.

jcardi@detroitnews.com

©2025 The Detroit News. Visit detroitnews.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

By Anne Snabes, The Detroit News

The Rev. Lorn Snow, a Jesuit priest in Detroit, felt a sense of loss for himself and the Catholic Church after hearing the news that Pope Francis had died.

But that sadness later turned to two other feelings, he said.

One was joy, since Francis’ death was amid the Easter season, which is the “highest moment in the life of the church,” said Snow, the pastor of Gesu Catholic Church in Detroit. On Easter, Catholics celebrate the rising of Jesus from the dead after his crucifixion.

“And I just thought it was so beautiful that the Risen Jesus came for Pope Francis in the midst of our Easter season — our resurrection,” he said. “And, you know, he shares in that resurrection now.”

The other feeling was gratitude. Snow said he is thankful for the pope’s years of “shepherding us” and caring for “not only the church, but really in a deep sense, for the world.”

Faith leaders in Metro Detroit are reflecting on Pope Francis’ life and legacy following his death Monday morning from a stroke and heart failure, as well as his Saturday funeral mass. Some Catholic priests remember Francis’ authenticity, his concern for the Earth and the example he set for older adults who are aging.

Some Protestant pastors remarked on his care for the poor and the marginalized, and a local rabbi called him “such a devoted, sincere, humble man.” An imam in Detroit praised Francis’ attention to the Palestinian people in Gaza.

The Rev. Elbert Dulworth, pastor of St. Paul’s United Methodist Church in Rochester, said he was excited to see a pope who “seemed to kind of bring people together.”

“As someone coming from a Protestant denomination, I felt like he really was a pastoral leader for not just the Catholic Church, but for all of us in the Christian church, kind of calling us together ― a more unifying presence for us,” Dulworth said.

Tens of thousands of people came to St. Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican to pay their respects to Francis, who lay in state for three days. His funeral Mass was Saturday morning in St. Peter’s Square.

‘In touch with his people to the very end’

The Rev. Terry Kerner, pastor of St. Kateri Catholic Church in Dearborn, noted that on Easter Sunday, Francis ministered to the people in St. Peter’s Square, including blessing babies.

“He was in touch with his people to the very end,” he said.

Francis was “a beautiful example of aging” and how to grow old in “a gracious and faithful way,” Kerner said. His parish has a lot of elderly parishioners, he said.

“I just think his life spoke to them by his example and his writings,” Kerner said.

He said Francis’ message was that the elderly have gifts for the young, and the young have gifts to give to the elderly.

“Nobody is disposable,” Kerner said, adding that seniors are “certainly a gift” to the church and humankind.

He noted that he doesn’t know anyone who disliked Francis.

“They may not have agreed with some of his policies,” Kerner said, “but it was hard to dislike him, because he’s just so authentic and genuine and loving.”

His concern for the environment

In 2015, Pope Francis released an encyclical — which is a letter — on the environment called Laudato Si’. In the letter, Francis called for a global dialogue about how people are influencing the future of the planet through their actions.

Gesu Catholic Church’s Snow said his church is considered a Laudato Si’ parish. Gesu promotes environmental justice and is trying to reduce waste coming from the parish and its grade school.

“It will be his great legacy, I think, as pope — is his care for creation,” Snow said.

At Gesu, students compost in the lunchroom, and the school gives leftover food to local farmers. When the parish provides coffee and donuts to parishioners on Sunday, they don’t use Styrofoam or other plastics.

The parish also has solar panels on its school buildings and electric vehicle charging stations in its parking lots.

“We’re doing everything possible we can,” Snow said. “We don’t use pesticides on our property. … All our landscaping are natural plants that would be here in Michigan, and we don’t utilize any things that would harm the Earth.”

The Rev. Faith Fowler, the lead pastor of Cass Community United Methodist Church and executive director of the nonprofit Cass Community Social Services, said Francis’ stance on the environment resonated with her. She said there should be “a planet for future generations.” Her organization has installed solar panels on its campus, and it harvests rainwater and is replacing grass with native plants.

“I’m a firm believer that although the planet belongs to God, we have the responsibility of being good stewards of what we’ve received, what we’ve been blessed with, and that we should pass it on to future generations as best we can,” Fowler said. “And I think I mirror the pope in that love for the environment and the understanding that we should be good stewards.”

His care for the poor

Fowler said many members of her church are poor, and “they too are feeling diminished” by Francis’ death.

“He was somebody who stood up and stood with and ministered to and was ministered by poor people,” she said. “And that’s not always true in the church ― any church. The higher you climb, the more distant you are from people who are discounted by the larger society. He was a man who stayed connected and stayed caring and reminded the church to be less worried about the things we worry about most of the time.”

She said Cass Community United Methodist Church works with people who need food, shelter and clothing. She said the gestures of Pope Francis’ ministry, including visiting a prison on Holy Thursday last week, were “very inspiring.”

“I really looked up to him,” Fowler said.

Kerner said Francis reminded the Catholic Church of “an incredibly important mission” that it has to the poor and the marginalized.

“We are at our best when we’re serving the poorest and the most vulnerable,” he said.

LGBTQ+ issues

Dulworth, pastor of St. Paul’s United Methodist Church, said he was thankful to see Pope Francis take a step in reaching out to the LGBTQ+ community.

Catholic teaching on LGBTQ+ issues didn’t change during Francis’ tenure, including the prohibition on same-sex marriage, but Francis conveyed through his actions and remarks that he wanted the church to be a more welcoming place for LGBTQ+ people.

Fowler said she “sensed the position” that Francis was in, because many churches in Africa are more conservative than churches in the U.S., Germany and other places.

“And yet they were all a part of his church, so how you maintain unity is a tough call,” she said, adding that progressives “probably didn’t get everything they wanted.”

Fowler said she would have loved to have seen Pope Francis allow women to be ordained as priests or deacons. He did, however, appoint women to top Vatican positions, including Sister Simona Brambilla, the prefect of the department responsible for all the Catholic Church’s religious orders.

Muslim and Jewish leaders share their perspectives

Imam Imran Salha of the Islamic Center of Detroit said he offers his condolences to “my Christian brothers and sisters.”

“And I pray that God replaces him with many others to follow in his example of compassion and wisdom and clarity of choice,” he said.

In Pope Francis’ last speech, which Archbishop Diego Ravelli read aloud on Easter Sunday, he called for a ceasefire between Israel and the Hamas militant group in Gaza. He also urged Hamas to release the dozens of Israeli hostages it is holding and condemned growing global antisemitism.

Salha said Francis “always recognized the people of Palestine and their suffering on their occupation.” He said the pope regularly called people in Gaza to check in on them.

Rabbi Asher Lopatin, director of community relations for the Jewish Federation of Greater Ann Arbor, called Francis “such an incredible man.” He said Francis showed care for immigrants, the weak and the environment, and showed “respect for every human being.”

“These resonated very much with the Jewish community,” he said.

Lopatin, who is the rabbi at Kehillat Etz Chayim in Oak Park, added that the Jewish community appreciated Francis’ denunciation of antisemitism and the love he showed for the hostage families.

“However, I think in the life of the pope, of Pope Francis, all the values that he had could have been reflected in a stronger, more robust support for the Jewish state” and for the struggle that the Jewish state has with “all its enemies,” he said.

He said calls for a ceasefire have to be coupled with a demand for Hamas to release the hostages. Hamas-led militants abducted 251 people in the Oct. 7 attack on Israel and killed around 1,200, mostly civilians. Some hostages have been released, some of whom were dead, in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners. Some hostages were rescued by Israeli military forces. The bodies of more than 40 hostages were retrieved by Israeli forces.

Lopatin said he thinks Jews expected Francis to “be more of a voice” for getting the hostages released.

“But … there’s always more to do, and I hope the Catholic Church takes from his teachings and becomes that voice of support for the one Jewish state,” he said.

asnabes@detroitnews.com

 

By Hannah Mackay, The Detroit News

A search warrant affidavit for the West Bloomfield home where three siblings died in a fire in February revealed that the first 911 call came from the family’s 16-year-old daughter, who told authorities, “there’s no way for us to get out.”

The affidavit sheds new light on the Feb. 2 fire that killed Hannah, Jeremiah, and Jacob Oliora, ages 16, 14, and 12, and why the siblings, one of whom had nonverbal autism, weren’t able to escape.

The investigation into the fire, meanwhile, is ongoing, according to West Bloomfield police. The West Bloomfield police and fire departments have denied Freedom of Information acts requests related to the fire and its investigation.

Police executed a search warrant at the Oliora home on Feb. 4. No findings have been submitted to the Oakland County Prosecutor’s Office, according to Police Chief Dale Young.

According to the affidavit, Hannah told 911 dispatchers that the fire started in the living room. Authorities haven’t revealed what caused the blaze.

After the fire, police interviewed the parents, Don and Liz Oliora, the next day and learned that Jeremiah had been diagnosed with nonverbal autism. He’d previously attempted to climb out of a second-story window of the home on Pembury Lane and left the home unsupervised through the front door. He was found in their neighborhood by a passerby, according to the documents.

To prevent similar incidents from happening again, the parents told police they installed window locks and an interior front door lock. The key to unlock the front door was kept in a lockbox inside, near the home’s garage. Only the parents and their oldest daughter had access to the lockbox, according to court documents.

Hannah’s initial 911 call came in around 8:05 p.m. on Feb. 2. Her father had left the home around 2:40 p.m. to work for DoorDash, and her mother left at the same time for work as a nurse, according to the documents.

At 7:10 p.m., Hannah called her father to ask about the family’s dinner plans. She told her father that she would start cooking hamburgers for her and her brothers, and her dad said he would come home after completing a few more DoorDash stops.

Liz was working when she was told about the fire by a neighbor and the police. She told police that her three children were inside and that she was on her way home, and called her husband to alert him at 8:27 p.m.

When police arrived on the scene of the fire and learned about the children trapped inside the home, they attempted to extinguish the flames in the back of the house but couldn’t.

Firefighters then arrived and were able to enter the home and extract the kids. One was found right behind the front door, while another was in an upstairs bathroom, according to the documents.

Hannah and Jeremiah were taken to Detroit Receiving Hospital, while Jacob was taken to Henry Ford Hospital in West Bloomfield, but all three succumbed to their injuries.

An autopsy by the Oakland County Medical Examiner’s Office revealed that Jacob’s preliminary cause of death was accidental and due to smoke and soot inhalation, according to the court documents. Autopsies for his brother and sister had not been conducted when the search warrant affidavit was filed.

When firefighters entered the home, they could hear the ignitor of the gas stove clicking, according to the documents.

hmackay@detroitnews.com