United Way of Monroe/Lenawee Counties: Fall is special in Lenawee County
I’m not sure that fall is my favorite season, but I like it a lot! I like the change of colors, the crispness in the air and the feel of change afoot. I like decorating for the fall, inside and outside. I love to pick out the mums, pumpkins and gourds for the outside décor and arrange the indoor décor to reflect the season. I love seeing the treat-seeking little kids in their Halloween costumes. I even still carve a Halloween pumpkin every year, too, lighting a candle each night for the full effect.
There are a couple of favorite spots in the Lenawee and Monroe counties area that provide a canopy cover of fall foliage that are mesmerizing when driving through the tunnels of color. One is Sutton Road just east of Rogers Highway in Britton and Tunnicliffe Road in Petersburg, just east of the KOA Campground. I encourage you to check them out toward the peak color time. In the fall, I also plant new flower bulbs for the coming spring. Last fall, I planted 100 spring flower bulbs, and this year, we’ll be planting 100 more soon. I love the spring flower explosion — fall provides anticipation of things to come.
Each fall also ushers in other favorite moments and memories. Our church’s (Zion Lutheran Church of Summerfield), annual fall bazaar/craft show welcomes friends and neighbors from the surrounding community. Each year I find a seasonal craft treasure to add to my fall decorations, I purchase bake sale goodies, and I usually win one of the gift basket raffles. Fall also reminds me of my mother whose birthday was Oct. 13. My Dad, my two brothers and me were all summer babies, but my mother was a fall baby. And her favorite colors were the fall colors. So fall is also a great reminder of my wonderful mother.
Fall is also United Way campaign season time. Besides our regular Fall Campaign with area businesses (a payroll deduction model), we also have opportunities for groups, organizations and workplaces to “Go Orange and Black” the week of Halloween. It’s a fun opportunity to support the United Way by donating to wear orange and black — kind of like a jeans day. Or you can conduct a coin drive or host a Halloween costume contest at work, too. This year we have three sponsors: La-Z-Boy, First Merchants Bank and AFL-CIO Central Labor Council of Monroe/Lenawee Counties. Each dollar donated is matched by these businesses up to $2,500 each. That’s $3 for every $1 donated! Any group that participates, we invite you to post a photo of your group celebrating “Go Orange and Black” onto our Facebook page (www.facebook.com/UnitedWayMLC). Your group will be entered into a contest to win a $100 Tim Hortons gift card. We will kickoff “Go Orange and Black” at 8 a.m. Friday, Oct. 27, at the Tim Hortons at 404 S. Monroe St., Monroe. Thank you to Tim Horton’s owners Brian and Dana Reicher for their generous support of “Go Orange and Black” each year.
Please “join us in a new way to live united”! We appreciate your support to help fight poverty, homelessness, food insecurity, mental health and substance use disorders, domestic violence, and other important community needs. The United Way funds 11 local Lenawee County agency programs and serves as a donor designation vehicle for 30-plus additional agencies. We also sponsor countywide 211 services and coordinate Project Ramp, 2 annual Health Check events, the Emergency Food and Shelter Program (EFSP), and Day of Action programs and services. All funds raised in Lenawee County stay in Lenawee County. Don’t forget that you can send me your thoughts on why you love the United Way. Send me a photo or short video sharing “I love United Way because….” Send it to me at lpipis@unitedwaymlc.org.
For more information about joining us in new ways to live united, please contact us. Call us at 517-264-6821, email lpipis@unitedwaymlc.org, visit us at 136 E. Maumee St., Suite 15, Adrian, MI 49221 or visit our website at www.unitedwaymlc.org. Visit our Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and TikTok social media platforms, too.
Laura Schultz Pipis is the executive director of the United Way of Monroe/Lenawee Counties.
This article originally appeared on The Daily Telegram: United Way of Monroe/Lenawee Counties: Fall is special
