Special Section/ProgG

2011ALSOINSIDE

Best BuyNew store opens in Marquette Township

PAGE 2G

Kid Rock comesto townRocker films music videoin Alger County

PAGE 3G

Gwinn - Sawyercalendar ofevents 2011What’s going on this yearin the Gwinn-Sawyer area

PAGE 4-5G

UPAWS wins acclaimFacility the recipient ofseveral honors

PAGE 8G

Alger road projects fundedStimulus funding helpsboost projects

PAGE 9G

Hycreek outletexpands

Business needs more roomPAGE 9G

Butler TheatreBecoming a coffee andspecialty shop

PAGE 10G

Country InnReceives top award

PAGE 11G

Frontier MedicalAlways moving forward

PAGE 11G

AREA DEVELOPMENT — SECTION GMONDAY, MARCH 28

PROGRESSA SPECIAL SECTION OF THE MINING JOURNAL

By RENEE PRUSIJournal Staff Writer

NEGAUNEE — Progress has been thename of the game lately at the MichiganIron Industry Museum.

In 2009, with the completion of a newaccess road, the museum began to beopen year round instead of just from Maythrough October as it had for its first twodecades-plus. Its expanded parking lotmade it much more convenient for visitorsas well.

And this past year, even more attrac-tions for the public became part of themuseum’s offerings.

“Last fall, a four-season outdoor inter-pretive trail system opened,” said TomFriggens, museum director. That includes

scenic overlooks and elevated walkwaysalong exhibits which will be installed thiscoming spring.

“I think we are better serving visitors tothe Upper Peninsula by being open allyear,” said Barry James, the museum’scurator of education. “We can welcomepeople during all seasons of the year.”

The museum is now open for winterhours, which are 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.Monday through Friday and on the firstSaturday of each month.

More progress is planned for 2011.“We are looking at the museum trail sys-

tem connecting with the Iron Ore HeritageTrail system this year,” James said. Dis-cussions about that are ongoing.

At present, snowshoers are welcome on

the museum’s trail.“With the interpretive signs we will in-

stall in the spring, we are trying to provideyear-round access to not just the muse-um but the outdoor exhibits. We are us-ing this as a chance to expand ourgrounds.”

The Michigan Iron Industry Museum,which opened in 1986, is located onForge Road in Negaunee Township. It’sadministered by the Michigan Departmentof Natural Resources and Environment.

For more information, visit www.michi-gan.gov/ironindustrymuseum.

Renee Prusi can be contacted at 906-228-2500, ext. 253. Her e-mail address [email protected].

Iron Industry MuseumContinuing improvements for visitors

At right, a sign welcomes visitors to theMichigan Iron Industry Museum. Below, a floordisplay depicts the history of iron at the mu-seum in Negaunee Township. (Journal photosby Andy Nelson-Zaleski)

A plane at the Sawyer airport. (Journal photo by Andy Nelson-Zaleski)

By JOHN PEPINJournal Staff Writer

K.I. SAWYER — Thissummer, Delta Airlines willagain offer twice daily jetservice flights to Min-neapolis-St. Paul and De-troit from Sawyer Interna-tional Airport.

On April 6, 2010, thecommercial airline trafficat Sawyer Internationalmoved to all jet service, anoticable improvement formany in the community.Delta had also restoredservice to Minneapolis,which had been previous-ly discontinued by North-west Airlines at Sawyer.

“The return of service toMinneapolis-St. Paul is byitself significant,” said Kei-th Kaspari, airport manag-er at Sawyer. “The an-nouncement to serve bothDetroit and Minneapoliswith multiple flights with allregional jet aircraft signi-fies a new era in air ser-vice for passengers flyingto and from Sawyer.”

Kaspari said the en-hanced service to Detroitand Minneapolis “allowsSawyer to continue thegrowth and developmentof Sawyer’s air serviceprogram, and providesour passengers the fre-quency of flights, comfortand speed of jet servicefor both business andleisure passengers to twoof the best airports in theUnited States.”

On that day first day ofall jet service, a Min-neapolis bound turbopropplane with 31 passengersflew out of Sawyer Inter-national Airport at 7:40a.m., crossing a thresholdbetween the old and the

new.The Delta Airlines flight

was the last from Sawyerwith the turboprop planesfamiliar to local travelers.

“The feedback we’vebeen getting from the pub-lic has been very positiveabout what’s happeningtoday,” said Sawyer Oper-ations Manager Scott Er-bisch.

With larger planes andjet service, flights out ofSawyer are expected toonly very rarely beweight-restricted, whichwas a common complaintof the 34-seat turbopropplane service. The final

turboprop flight out ofSawyer International wasfull and weight restricted.

Flights are also not ex-pected to be oversoldwith the larger jets. Thescheduled service withthe 50-seat jets immedi-ately increased dailyavailable seat capacityby almost half, said Kas-pari.

Kaspari said the en-hanced service to Detroitand Minneapolis “allowsSawyer to continue thegrowth and developmentof Sawyer’s air serviceprogram, and providesour passengers the fre-quency of flights, comfortand speed of jet servicefor both business andleisure passengers totwo of the best airports inthe United States.”

With jet flights connect-ing to the two major hubsof Detroit and Minneapo-lis-St. Paul, there isgreater capacity for larg-er groups — includingsports teams — to com-fortably use the Sawyerairport, Kaspari said.

For a schedule of jet ser-vice arrivals and depa-tures, visit: www.sawyerair-port.com/departure_and_arrivals.html

John Pepin can bereached at 906 228-2500, ext. 206. His e-mailaddress is [email protected]


MARQUETTE — Metwith an enthusiastic re-sponse from local resi-dents, the new Best Buyelectronics store in Mar-quette Township has en-joyed a strong begin-ning.

“I think the communityhas welcomed us well,”said Jennifer Yew, storegeneral manager. “Wehave had good, positivefeedback since weopened.

“I know that when peo-ple ask me where I workand I tell them Best Buy,I always get a positiveresponse,” Yew said.“The way we came inhas gone really well.”

The store opened thispast Nov. 12 with a rib-bon cutting to more than100 people standing inline, waiting to get in.

Yew said she hopesthat more communitygroups allow Best Buyand its employees to be-come involved in com-munity service.

“Actually, we arelaunching our new View-point team and we arelooking for communityactivities to do,” Yewsaid. “So anyone withupcoming events who

needs volunteers shouldgive us some informa-tion to let us know howwe can help out.

“We’d like to get to vol-unteer time and we’relooking to get involvedin the community.”

For example, Yewsaid, organizers of Ju-ly’s Pioneer Days cele-bration in Negauneehave already ap-proached Best Buyabout providing volun-teers to help with its an-nual fun run.

“That’s the sort of thingwe’d really like to do,”Yew said.

Best Buy Co., head-quartered in Richfield,Minn., has more than1,000 stores locatedthroughout the country.

There are also BestBuy stores in Canada,China and Mexico. Thenext nearest locationsthe company maintainsare stores in downstateTraverse City and GreenBay, Wis.

It carries brands in-cluding Best Buy, Audio-visions, The CarphoneWarehouse, FutureShop, Geek Squad,Jiangsu Five Star, Mag-nolia Audio Video, Nap-ster, Pacific Sales, ThePhone House and

Speakeasy.The company employs

more than 150,000workers worldwide.

Renee Prusi can becontacted at 906-228-2500, ext. 253. Her e-mailaddress is [email protected].

2G -— The Mining Journal Monday, March 28 PROGRESS2011

Best Buy

Electronics store seeks volunteeropportunities in community

Sawyer AirportOffering twice daily serviceflights to Minneapolis & Detroit

Best Buy employees and local officials take part in the ribbon-cutting ceremonyfor Best Buy in Marquette. United Way 2010-11 Campaign co-chairs Jen Ray and RobJamros cut the ribbon. (Journal photo by Christopher Diem)

An excited shopper raises his arms on Black Friday after the doors open. (Journalfile photo)

The feedbackwe’ve been get-ting from thepublic has beenvery positive.

“

- SCOTT ERBISCHSawyer Operations

Manager

”


MARQUETTE — Hecame, he rocked, he con-quered.

Michigan’s own Kid Rockwas in Alger County in Oc-tober to film scenes for amusic video that proved tobe one of his most popularofferings... so far... during avisit to the Pictured RocksNational Lakeshore.

Bill Smith, a PicturedRocks ranger who alsohandles permits for thepark, granted the filmingpermit and was assignedto monitor the filming. Hebecame involved in theshooting in a way he didnot anticipate.

“When Kid Rock and hisassistant got out of thelimo, the assistant askedfor a screwdriver,” Smithsaid. “I carry a Leathermanon my duty belt, so I gavethat to him. He said it wasperfect and he tightenedthe guitar strap. About 20minutes later, he cameback and borrowed it againwhen Kid Rock wanted tochange straps on the gui-tar.”

Smith said Kid Rock andhis film crew used severalsettings at the park, includ-ing Miners Beach, somecliffs and the shorelinealong Lake Superior.

“It was a perfect day forfilming. It was a little windy,

but I think they liked that,”Smith said.

Hardrock Films from Cal-ifornia secured the permitto the park for the filmingand contracted withColony Films from lowerMichigan to do the work,Smith said. Colony hired ahelicopter company out ofGrand Rapids and the he-licopter was used for mostof the filming.

“The helicopter had acamera mounted on theside of it,” Smith said.“They were at MinersBeach for about 2 hours,then moved up the NorthCountry Trail west of Min-ers Castle. They incorpo-rated the lake and Miners

River.“They also had a smaller

handheld camera theyused,” Smith said.

The filming was complet-ed in the one afternoon.

The music star did makesome purchases, Smithsaid.

“Kid Rock and his per-sonal assistant went intothe information center atMiners Castle and pur-chased some books onMichigan,” he said. “So hedid spend some moneyhere.”

Smith was told the videowill include the locations inMunising and another lo-cation in Detroit. It was re-leased in early November,

just before the “Born Free”compact disc becameavailable Nov. 16.

Smith said that while Pic-tured Rocks might not beidentified directly in the fi-nal product, the videoshould highlight the beautyof the national lakeshore.

“It should definitely get ussome attention,” Smithsaid. “I hope so.”

The director of the AlgerCounty Chamber of Com-merce agreed.

“Doing this video will getsome real prestige to ourarea,” Char Carberry said.“The natural beauty of thearea will shine through andpeople will be interested.”

The 40-year-old musi-

cian has been nominatedfor five Grammy Awardsand has sold more than 20million albums. He wasmarried to actress PamelaAnderson at one time andis known for being an avidMichigan sports fan, at-tending Detroit Lions,Tigers, Pistons and RedWings games frequently.

Rock also goes onmany tours to perform forU.S. military personnelstationed around theworld.

Renee Prusi can becontacted at 906-228-2500, ext. 253. Her e-mailaddress is [email protected].

Artist filmed video at Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore

The Mining Journal, Monday, March 28 — 3GPROGRESS2011

Kid Rock conquers area

Musician Kid Rock, left, poses with Munising resident Chris Case after filming some scenes for his music video “Born Free” at the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore inOctober. Case said his daughter heard Kid Rock was at the park and she asked him to get a photo with the music star. However, Rock saw Case had a camera and offeredto be in a photo with him before Case even asked. (Photo courtesy of Chris Case)

APRIL 16 – Murder Myestery Din-ner Theatre – Host: Superior ArtsCouncil Location: American LegionPost #349 M-35 Little Lake, MI. Doorswill open at 5:30 p.m.

APRIL 30 – Craft & Bake Show –American Legion Post #349 on M-35in Little Lake… Call 346-6000 for de-tails

MAY 8 – Mother’s Day Dinner –American Legion Post #349, M-35,Little Lake, MI. Call 346-6000 for de-tails.

MAY 30 – Gwinn High School Grad-uation Day

TBA – Forsyth Singers Big Sing atVFW Post #5670 in New Swanzy

MAY 29 – Gwinn High School Grad-uation – 2 PM

JUNE 2 – CHICKEN BBQ – HostGwinn Lions Club – Peter Nordeen

Park 12 Noon. Tickets can be ob-tained from any Lions Club Member

JUNE 3 – STREET DANCE 8:00 p.m.to 1:00 a.m. in Peter Nordeen Park Host: Forsyth Township Fire Depart-

ment

JULY 4 – 4th of JULY CELEBRATION –Host: Forsyth Township Fire

JULY 16 – H.O.G. Bike Show – Amer-ican Legion Post #349 M-35, LittleLake Call 346-6000 for details.

JULY 16 – SKANDIA DAYS – Call942-7404 for details Wednesdays orFridays.

JULY 24-28 – VACATION BIBLESCHOOL – First Baptist Church, 195

4G — The Mining Journal, Monday, March 28 PROGRESS2011

GWINN-SAWYERAREA CHAMBER

CALENDAR OF EVENTS 2011Gwinn – K.I. Sawyer – Little Lake – New Swanzy - Austin - Princeton

Continued on 5G

Billings Street, NewSwanzy.. 9:30 a.m. –12:30 p.m.

AUGUST 11-14 – Mar-quette County Fair –Highway M-553 Fair-grounds

AUGUST 15-21 – UPSTATE FAIR – EscanabaMI Fairgrounds

The Gwinn Area Com-munity Schools Calendar

can be reached at theirWebsite:www.gwinn.k12.mi.usfor details on theirevents.

Note: The VFW Post#5670 in New Swanzysponsors a Pasty Sale onthe 2nd Tuesday ofeach month. Call 346-5670 to order.

NOTE: The AmericanLegion Post #349 in Lit-tle Lake will have a Pasty

Sale on: April 6th and20th and May 4th and18th.

The American LegionPost #349 in Little Lakewill have PotatoSausage on: April 17thand May 15th. Call346-6000 to put in yourorders…

The Mining Journal, Monday, March 28 — 5GPROGRESS2011

Events from 4G

PROGRESS2011 The Mining Journal, Monday, March 28 — 7G


MARQUETTE — TheUpper Peninsula AnimalWelfare Shelter hasearned acclaim in sever-al ways recently.

Last week, UPAWS,formerly the MarquetteCounty Humane Society,was to receive the Out-standing Shelter Awardfrom the Michigan PetFund Alliance at the or-ganization’s meeting inAnn Arbor. UPAWSearned the accolade forhaving the best saverate in the state of Michi-gan for any open-admis-sions shelter. UPAWSsave rate is more than93 percent.

In January, DaynaKennedy, UPAWS shel-ter manager, was invitedto speak at that sameconference to share in-formation on reducingsurrenders and increas-ing redemptions, whenshelters help people tokeep their pets.

The speech in Marchfor the Michigan organi-zation will be followed byattendance in July at theNo-Kill Advocacy Cen-ter’s convention inWashington, D.C.Kennedy will attendalong with Reva Laituri,UPAWS board presi-dent.

That invitation camethrough Nathan Wino-grad, the award-winningauthor of “Redemptionand Irreconcilable Differ-ences,” who also is ex-ecutive director of theNo-Kill Advocacy Cen-ter,

At the July conference,Laituri will participate intwo panel discussions,speaking to how anopen admissions sheltercan achieve a save rateof more than 90 percent.

UPAWS also is brain-storming about the pos-sibility of a new shelterbuilding.

“We’re just in the think-ing stages,” Kennedysaid in early March. “Weare trying to gatherideas about a new build-ing for us. We haven’teven met to discuss thisand we are keeping ouroptions open.”

Kennedy said UPAWSorganizers are hoping tohear ideas from the pub-lic.

“We’ve grown out of thisspace,” she said. “Wewant to serve our animalclients and our peopleclients better.”

The present UPAWSshelter, which is on Snow-field Road in NegauneeTownship, has been in usefor more than 35 years.

People are adjusting tothe organization’s newname, Kennedy said.

“I think we’re done an-swering the phone with‘UPAWS formerly the Mar-quette County Humane

Society’,” Kennedy saidwith a chuckle. "I reallythink the new name iscatching on. The new

name describes much bet-ter what we’re all about.”

For more information,visit the UPAWS website

at upaws.org or call theshelter at 475-6661.

Renee Prusi can be con-

tacted at 906-228-2500,ext. 253. Her e-mail ad-dress is [email protected].


UPAWS wins acclaim

Dayna Kennedy, manager of the Upper Peninsula Animal Welfare Shelter, holds Max, a male gray with white cat, in one of the rooms at the shelter in Negaunee Township.(Journal photo by Andy Nelson-Zaleski)

Facility awarded several honors

By JOHANNA BOYLEJournal Ishpeming Bureau

ISHPEMING — Whatstarted in the back quarterof the Merrick building onMain Street of Ishpemingexpanded to the entirebuilding in 2010.

The Hycreek outlet ex-panded this year, creatinga larger shopping spacefor local customers in ad-dition to the larger cata-logue component of thebusiness.

“The majority of ourbusiness is through ourcatalogue,” said owner Tr-isha Riutta. “We were out-growing our other side (ofthe building) because ourinventory has grown.”

Hycreek sells mainlyoutdoor and hunting ap-parel, with inventory beingshipped out of the Ish-

peming location. The out-let location allows cus-tomers to purchase itemsat often lower prices.

“The community gets topurchase real high quali-ty gear at lower prices,”Riutta said. “The word isout now. Now we can’tshut the doors.”

Taking over the spacethat was formerly occu-pied by the IshpemingSalvation Army ThriftStore, Hycreek now hasa larger space to ac-commodate both endsof its business.

The outlet store isusually open 9 a.m.-5p.m., but may be closedif employees are need-ed for larger inventorywork.

“We’ve had to employseveral more peoplethis year,” Riutta said,

adding that the storehas had up to 10 peopleon staff, depending onthe time of year.

After coming to Ish-peming five years ago,the business has grownto include hunting andfishing apparel and thisyear will feature springand summer gear aswell, with a newspring/summer cata-logue.

“It’s a good thing be-cause we’re always get-ting new things in,” Riut-ta said.

Hycreek can be foundonline at www.hycreek.com.

Johanna Boyle can bereached at 906-486-4401. Her e-mail addressis [email protected].

By JOHN PEPINJournal Staff Writer

MUNISING — The Al-ger County Road Com-mission recently complet-ed cooperative road pro-jects with the U.S. ForestService, the Sault Ste.Marie Tribe of ChippewaIndians and local units ofgovernment totaling morethan $1.4 million.

The Forest Service andthe road commissionhave worked together onincreasingly complex pro-jects over the past fewyears. A $900,000 roadreconstruction projectover the past two yearshas improved just underthree miles of the BuckBay Road in AuTrainTownship. The road runsfrom Forest Lake Road tothe Forest Service camp-ground on AuTrain Lake.

“This project is a show-piece for our communityand is an excellent exam-ple of the good things thatcome from inter-agencycooperation,” said AlgerCounty Road Commis-sion Engineer-ManagerRobert Lindbeck.

The project added newguardrail to a bridge overthe AuTrain River and flat-tened unsafe slopesalong the sides of theroad. The campgroundroads, boat launch andpicnic areas were com-pletely reconstructed andresurfaced with threeinches of new asphaltpavement.

The Forest Service con-structed new bathroomsat the campground.

“The Alger County RoadCommission and its em-ployees are proud of whatwe have accomplishedhere,” Lindbeck said.

The project was fundedsolely by federal Ameri-can Reinvestment andRecovery Act funding al-located through the For-est Service. The roadcommission implementedthe project with its workcrews and subcontrac-tors. Work began in 2009and was completed inJune.

"The Forest Service isvery excited about thefact that these projectsbenefit not only the natu-ral resources of the (Hi-awatha National) Forest,but also provide better fa-cilities for the public whilecontributing funding andjobs to our local commu-nities," said Janel Crooks,

public affairs officer withthe Hiawatha NationalForest in Escanaba.

In Munising Township,the road commissionpartnered with the SaultTribe and Munising Town-ship to complete severalprojects, including a pro-ject to refurbish Lehnenand Cemetery roads.

Lindbeck said the tribedeveloped a five yearplan nearly three yearsago which identifiedCemetery and Lehnenroads, Knox and Balkostreets, tribal housingstreets, all in MunisingTownship and CandyCane Lane near theChristmas Casino in Au-Train Township as signifi-cant routes to the tribeand its members in needof repairs. A portion ofCemetery Road also lieswithin the city of Munisingand city officials wereworking to repair that sec-tion.

In early 2009, whenAmerican Reinvestmentand Recovery funding be-came available, the roadcommission was notifiedthat the entire five yearplan of projects would befunded in 2010 and thateach agency must com-plete the work in thatsame year, Lindbecksaid.

The Sault Tribe provid-ed 80 percent of con-struction costs for Lehnenand Cemetery Roads.“With successive years ofdeclining road revenues,the road commissioncould not afford to pro-duce the necessarymatching funds in 2010and was at risk of losingthe ARRA monies,” Lind-beck said. “MunisingTownship stepped for-ward with the commit-ment to provide 10 per-cent of the 20 percentmatch required of theroad commission to cap-ture the federal funding.”

The remaining roadcommission match camefrom in-kind services. Thetotal cost of improve-ments on Lehnen andCemetery Roads was$543,000.

“AuTrain Township,through their local roadmillage funds, helped in asimilar manner to securethe funding for CandyCane Lane in the commu-nity of Christmas,” Lind-beck said.

The Sault Tribe con-

tributed a total of$539,777 to local roads inAlger County in 2010.

“These projects wouldnot have been possiblewithout the multi-agencycooperation and dedica-tion of each person in-volved,” Lindbeck said.“Without the assistance ofMunising and AuTraintownships, the road com-mission portion of thisfunding ($450,000) wouldlikely have been forfeited.”

The road commission iscurrently involved in otherproject with the Forest Ser-vice including streamcrossing improvementsalong the Rock River Roadin AuTrain Township.

John Pepin can bereached at 906-228-2500,ext. 206. His e-mail ad-dress is [email protected].

Hycreek outletexpands

Alger road projectsStimulus fundinghelps boost projects

The forest service and the road commission have worked together on increasing-ly complex projects over the past few years. (Journal file photo)

PROGRESS2011 The Mining Journal, Monday, March 28 — 9G

The Hycreek outlet on Main Street in Ishpeming has grown to fill the space former-ly occupied by the Ishpeming Salvation Army Thrift Store. The outlet offers Hycreekhunting, fishing and outdoor apparel in full packages or in pieces. (Journal photoby Johanna Boyle)

By JOHANNA BOYLEJournal Ishpeming Bureau

ISHPEMING — TheButler Theatre in Ishpem-ing has been manythings, from a theater to aroller skating rink to anantique mall.

Now, one Ishpemingresident is working totransform it yet again intoa coffee shop and spe-cialty store.

Richard Devlin beganrenting the Butler buildingthe summer of 2010,working to set up differentareas of the building to

offer breads, soaps, usedbooks, bulk food items,coffee and tea, evenNordic import items.

“The theme of this isanything made or grownlocally or things you can’tget up here at a decentprice,” Devlin said.

Open from noon to 7p.m. Thursdays and Fri-days and noon to 5 p.m.Saturdays, Devlin said hehopes to expand thehours soon, as well as of-fering soup and sandwichoptions for lunch.

But the specialty itemsare only the beginning.

Devlin has also set up aweekly market on Thurs-days, allowing growers,artisans, bakers andartists free table space tosell their wares.

“It’s to help generatefunds for local people,”Devlin said.

The tables are first-come-first-serve, andprovide a place for localgardeners and craftsmento sell where they mightnot otherwise have achance.

Once up and running,the shop will offer placesfor customers to sit and

enjoy a sandwich or cof-fee, as well as a perfor-mance space for plays,poetry readings, artshows or music — “thingsyou can’t get in bars” asDevlin put it.

For those taking advan-tage of the free tablespace at the market, thenew shop is a big deal.

“It encourages the peo-ple who are low incometo try it out and raisesome extra money,” saidAnnie Trudell, who setsup a table at the marketto sell home-grown veg-etables.

PROGRESS2011

Butler Theatre 10G — The Mining Journal, Monday, March 28

The Butler Theatre. (Journal photo by Johanna Boyle)

Becoming coffee and specialty shop

Frontier Medicalmoving forward

By Journal StaffMARQUETTE — Fron-

tier Medical Devices ismaking progress sincesettling into 10,000square feet of renovatedspace at K.I. Sawyer.

The company is work-ing on manufacturingparts for Federal DrugAdministration approvaland plans to launch itsfirst products in 2011,according to chief finan-cial officer John Son-deregger.

“We are presently indevelopment of a line ofmedical devices special-izing in orthopedics orspinal procedures,” Son-deregger said. “Our test-ing and progress to datehas been very encour-aging. And we feel veryconfident our first prod-ucts will play an impor-tant role in improving pa-tient care.”

Partnering with localmunicipalities has

helped the companywith its goals.

“Forsyth Township,Marquette County, theLake Superior Commu-nity Partnership and thestate of Michigan haveall been very helpful inaiding our developmentto date,” Sondereggersaid.

The company, whichhas nine full-time andtwo part-time employ-ees, plans to hire 48 full-time workers over thenext two years, Son-deregger said.

CEO Eric Seaborgsaid he is very positiveabout the amount ofprogress the companyhas already made.

”We’re at least sixmonths ahead of whereI’d thought we’d be atthis point,” he said.

Dr. Matthew Songer,president and chairmanof the board, said as amedical device product

development companynot in the retail busi-ness, Frontier can main-tain a different focus.

“The reason we be-lieve this can be suc-cessful is that we can doit faster, cheaper andbetter than companieswith a big infrastructureand a big bureaucracy,”he said.

Frontier’s product de-velopment will lead tosignificantly shorter op-erating room time, lessinvasive surgery withless potential for compli-cation, shorter recoverytimes and shorter hospi-tal stays and a quickerreturn to work and othernormal activities, Songersaid. This will also leadto a decrease in theoverall cost of associat-ed patient care, he said.

For more informationabout Frontier MedicalDevices, visit: www.fron-tiermd.com.

Country InnPROGRESS2011 The Mining Journal, Monday, March 28 — 11G

By Journal StaffMARQUETTE — The

Country Inn and Suites ofMarquette had a greatyear, earning a number ofcorporate awards.

The Country Inn re-ceived four awards at aCarlson Hotels GlobalBusiness Conference inOrlando, Fla., in 2010.Among the honors werethe Carlson's 2009 Hotelof the Year for the Coun-try Inn & Suites brand anda Global HospitalityAward. The Hotel of theYear award was the high-est individual honor givento the chain's more than500 hotels worldwide.The Global HospitalityAward was one of onlyfour given out to Carlson'smore than 1,060 fran-chise hotels — Radisson,Park Inn, Park Plaza, Re-gent and Country Inn andSuites hotels — world-wide.

The hotel also won the

President's Gold andFriends Hosting Friendsbrand service awards.This award, according toa press release, wasbased on the hotel's out-standing performance inguest satisfaction, em-ployee engagement, eco-nomic performance, andexceptional scores duringquality assurance inspec-tions.

In the press release,Steve Mogck, executivevice president and chiefoperating officer forCountry Inn & Suites,said the Marquette hotelwas "an ideal ambas-sador" for the brand.

Robert Mahaney, co-owner of the Country Innand Suites, and Gail An-thony, general manager,were proud of the ac-complishments.

"The fact that we couldbe recognized withthese prominent awardsis a reflection of our

staff's uncompromisingpassion for guest satis-faction and their truecommitment to excel-lence day in and dayout, 365 days of theyear," Mahaney said at apress conference.

"Our success togethercan only be attributed tocountless hours of effortand hard work by ourstaff," Anthony said inthe release. "All are en-couraged to practiceoutrageous kindness to-ward each guest. Weare blessed with thiswonderful ministry ofhospitality.

"We were deeply hon-ored to receive theseawards and to be able toput Marquette, Michi-gan, in the limelight. It'sa great place to live, towork and to visit."

Contact The MiningJournal newsroom at906-228-2500, ext. 240.

Dr. Matthew Songer president and chairman of the board, left, and Eric Seaborg,CEO of Frontier Medical Devices, stand in the 10,000 square foot facility at the for-mer K.I. Sawyer Air Force Base. (Journal file photo)

Robert Mahaney, co-owner of the Country Inn and Suites, and Gail Anthony, gen-eral manager, speak about the four prestigious awards the hotel won at a recentCarlson Hotels Global Business Conference in Orlando, Fla. during a press confer-ence in Marquette. (Journal photo by Andy Nelson-Zaleski)

Receives award

PROGRESS201112G — The Mining Journal, Monday, March 28

Special Section/ProgG

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