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Wednesday, July 1, 2009
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Oldest son Stephen Wilder graduated in 2002, and was a class valedictorian.
Stephen went on to study Civil Engineering at Michigan Technological University. Fittingly, his speech dealt with transportation: trains, planes and boats.
Stephen Wilder is also notable as the artist who created the pair of murals under the train viaduct on South Main Street and Frankenmuth Road. Last summer, his sister Elisabeth touched up the mural during her summer vacation. Elisabeth Wilder was a salutatorian for the Class of 2008 with a 3.986 GPA.
Wilder said that she was one chemistry exam away from a perfect 4.0. “I would have gotten an ‘A’ if the teacher had graded on a curve,” she said. Elisabeth, who is currently studying art education at Alma College, gave a salutatorian speech at last year’s commencement that used art analogies to discuss the changes students go through during their school career.
“It was a thing I wrote in creative writing,” Elisabeth said. “It just seemed to fit for a speech, so I decided to use that. (It was a speech) basically relating our lives in school to different kinds of art, building up on lessons from previous years, and switching from crayons to colored pencils to paint.”
A year after graduating, Elisabeth was able to watch her brother Nathan go through the graduation process.
“I was home for about two weeks before he was done, so I basically got to relive the whole end of the senior year,” she said. “It was interesting because we’re so totally different. Nathan’s more outgoing than either me or Stephen. He was involved in a lot more stuff.
“I made a lot of trips over to the school taking things that he kept forgetting.”
Understandable, since Nathan had a lot to remember. During his high school career, he participated in football and baseball, the Rocket Team, Social Studies Academic Team, and Drama Club.
Both Elisabeth and Nathan were involved in Youth In Government, and all three of the Wilders were members of National Honor Society.
The Vassar Theatre Department will surely miss the siblings. Whether behind the scenes or on stage, the Wilder clan has had a big part in school productions most years in the past decade.
Nathan Wilder said that he didn’t really feel any pressure to live up to his older siblings.
“I’ve always just been kind of focused,” Nathan Wilder said. “(Being valedictorian) wasn’t something I set out for the first day of kindergarten.” Nathan collaborated with fellow valedictorians Jessica Hecht, Jenna Peter and Brandi Rupprecht on this year’s valedictory address.
“We didn’t really have a theme,” he said. “All the valedictorians got together and put some stuff on paper. Pretty much just congratulations and good luck. Nothing too fancy or drawn out. It was pretty short, we kind of kept it simple.”
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P.A.L.M. always begins along the shore of Lake Michigan and travels east along a different route from the previous year. The route is on paved, lesser used roads and generally avoids major urban areas. The total distance of the ride is between 250 and 300 miles and the daily distances range from approximately 30 to 60 miles.
In previous years, the cyclists have made stops in Millington, Plainwell, Chelsea, Rockford and Sturgis among others.
During each stop, the riders typically camp on school grounds. While in Vassar, the school will serve as the cyclists’ camping grounds, said Fran Peplinski of Vassar Public Schools.
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“The community is welcome to come up to the school to meet with them,” Peplinski said.
The Governor’s Council on Physical Fitness endorses the annual event.
“The P.A.L.M. ride, taking its name from the shape of Michigan’s Lower Peninsula, is an exciting week-long bicycle and camping tour,” Sanford said in the release.
“Each year, the P.A.L.M. ride introduces the joys and healthful benefits of bicycling to many new participants. At the same time, the ride increases the awareness of thousands of Michigan citizens encountered along the route to the adventure of bicycling.”
This year’s group will feature 19 individuals who have participated in 19 or more rides and 263 first time riders. The largest group of cyclists range in age from 50 to 59 years old. This year’s tour will also include cyclists from nearly 30 states and Canada.
“What better way to learn about the great state of Michigan than to ride its lesser traveled paved roads through many interesting cities and small towns,” Sanford said. “The P.A.L.M. ride becomes an annual history and geography tour as the tour prides itself in traveling a different path across the state each year. “P.A.L.M. also prides itself on being ‘Michigan’s Premier Family Oriented Bicycle Tour since 1982.’ Several families participate each year, some with children as young as 2 years old. Each year, you will see ‘grannies on tricycles’ and ‘babies in buggies’ cycling across the state. More experienced riders also enjoy P.A.L.M. because of the optional routes added to increase daily mileage.”
For further information on P.A.L.M., visit www.lmb.org.
Look for pictures of the cyclists’ stop in Vassar in next week’s edition of the Vassar Pioneer Times.
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“Elsie had been the longtime (and last) cook at Fallingwater, the famous house Frank Lloyd Wright had designed for the Kaufmann family,” Martinson said in the preface of her book. “As we cooks might say, everything jelled between us. Elsie and I became fast friends, although we couldn’t have come from more different backgrounds. Our common bond was our love of good food and of Fallingwater.”
The Kaufmann family hired Henderson in 1947 and she served as cook for over 15 years, Martinson said. She began her tenure at Fallingwater working for Edgar and Liliane Kaufmann and later for their son Edgar J. Kaufmann Jr.
In her book, Martinson shares stories of the family from Henderson’s view and memory along with the many recipes from Fallingwater.
Fallingwater was designed by Wright partially over a waterfall in Bear Run, about 50 miles southeast of Pittsburgh, Pa., in 1934. The home was designated as a National Historic Landmark in 1966. In 1991, members of the American Institute of Architects named the house the “best all-time work of American architecture.” The Kaufmann family home is now open to the public as a museum.
“Fallingwater is a magical place and my story revolves around Henderson. She cooked for some of the finest in Pittsburgh,” Martinson said.
Martinson became involved in the cookbook when Henderson was asked by the director of Fallingwater to write down her recipes. Martinson then agreed to pen Henderson’s recipes and memories.
“Elsie puts her special spin on many of the recipes,” Martinson said. “I tested each of the recipes. Everything is just good, ole home cooking.
“Her own recipes began with a list of ingredients and the most minimal instructions. However, as a longtime food editor, I knew most people needed more than that, so, together, she and I worked out the more complete instructions with mixing directions, pan sizes, baking times and tests for doneness. She and I double-checked the recipes many times, especially when I had questions as I tested them,” Martinson said in her preface.
Martinson’s passion for cooking began as a student in 4-H while growing up in Vassar, she said.
After graduating from Vassar High School, Martinson earned a bachelor’s degree in home economics and journalism from Michigan State University. She later lived in Pittsburgh, Pa. and worked as a food editor and writer for both the Pittsburgh Press and Pittsburgh Post Gazette, she said.
Martinson’s book also features recipes from chef Robert Sendall, who began producing special events at Fallingwater in the early 1990s, and the late Jane Citron with who Sendall taught cooking classes, Martinson said.
“The Fallingwater Cookbook: Elsie Henderson’s Recipes & Memories” was published by the University of Pittsburgh Press in Oct. 2008 and sells for $29.95.
Martinson will have copies of her book available during her presentation which will begin at 7 p.m. June 23 at the Bullard Sanford Memorial Library. A portion of the proceeds collected during the evening will be donated to the library, Martinson said.
During her presentation, Martinson will provide samples from Henderson’s recipes.
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