Our health care, it's the topic more and more and the cost of health care, especially for those with no insurance or very high deductibles leaves some with the inability to be treated for things that will only worsen with the progression of time or, will add to the long term issues of overall health it's here where Muskegon Surgical Associates has devised a plan that can be better.  It's called Cash Bundled Surgery and what it comes down to is this.  There are a list of surgical procedures, anything from a hemorrhoid to carpal tunnel release and you know going in how much it's going to cost for the entire procedure from consultation to follow up care and that's that.

Public Health - Muskegon County Director Kathy Moore speaks on COVID in Muskegon for January 20th. Our current numbers of infected, recovered and lost. Muskegon is experiencing a higher death rate still than surrounding counties. How do counties share data? Kathy directly addresses the missed order in Muskegon County. Will the vaccine distribution speed up, there's hope for sure. How Muskegon works together on so much to make sure needs are met.

The Muskegon Voyagers are really getting things ramped up for the 2021 season at the Lakeshore Sports Center.  It's the return of professional hockey to Muskegon and continuing on the legacy of the game on the mic for the team will be none other than Terry Ficorelli.

It's time to get up and at 'em!!  Fit and Healthy With Becky is brought to you by Mercy Health.  It's a wonderful relief that gyms and exercise facilities like our flagship location The Gym in North Muskegon are once again beginning to see some group activity and restrictions lifted.  The "normal" we all miss so much is still a ways off, but for some it's a great opportunity to once again be among friends and motivators to keep fitness at the forefront and your overall health good.  Fit and Healthy With Becky is also a great way for you to keep on keepin' on if you're not quite ready for a return!  But when you are, we highly recommend The Gym on the 4 Corners in North Muskegon!

It's a new episode of Tranquil Waves Yoga with Caitlin Anderson.  It's a great way to focus on you, your peace of mind and overall wellbeing.  We hope is a great addition to our programming line up and a way for you to maybe try something new, or a way to continue the discipline in the safety of your home as things begin to ease up on restrictions.

If only all of life had a referee!  Can you imagine how amazing it would be to have someone throw a flag if a spouse was acting in a way unbecoming of a spouse at a family gathering or formal occasion?  How about someone to make a call if/when your kid tells you that you are the "worst parent ever" and then sends them to a penalty box to think about it with a "5 minute major"?  Life in general doesn't come with referees unless you've got that friend or family member that's willing to cuff you up side the head when needed and say "snap out of it...you're better than this", but the courts....they have referees and in Muskegon, according to Attorney Shon Cook, they are the best in the business. 

We carry on.  We all work to continue to find ways to make what we know and love happen, even when what we're used to isn't going to be the case.  For those in need of the help of our area food pantries, it's been an all hands on deck effort for quite a while now, amplified by the incredible times we've all been living through with the pandemic going on.  Food insecurity is way more prevalent than you might stop and think about and we've seen it playing out more and more because of not only the need, but the fact that some of us have had nothing more to do than sit there and come to the harsh realization that while we are all so busy working when there isn't a pandemic....there's a whole lot of things we might be missing.  Our focus has been shifted a little.

Back about a week ago, Michelle Tyson introduced us all to Sara Wolovlek who lives on 7th Street in Muskegon.  She's a young mom and wife who's decided that doing her part in some small way is what she can do and that if not on the grandest of scales, the mere idea that helping some is better than none, so she got herself a little plastic cabinet.  She took the plastic cabinet and put it out on the corner, with a sign that simply says "Take What you Need, Leave What You Don't" and she gives out food to anyone on the honor system.  There are some more who come by on a regular basis too to help, maybe a pancake breakfast for neighbors with a Blackstone Grill, maybe a donation or two from friends and family...it's an unconditional give and it's what builds community as well as good will.  But there's a little more to it.

Mercy Health Muskegon and Public Health – Muskegon County hosted a discussion to update media and business leaders on the community’s COVID-19 response.

It's a voice synonymous with broadcasting in Muskegon and in all of professional hockey, it's one of the most consistent, and enduring names to have ever worked behind the mic.  Terry Ficorelli will be returning to what he loves most as the Muskegon Voyagers Professional Hockey Team debut their COVID shortened season in February. 

Kathy Moore from Public Health - Muskegon County updates us on COVID in Muskegon for Jan 14th. Where the numbers are of who's sick, hospital count and treated. How things have evolved in nearly a year of this now for everyone. Immunizations have begun and are continuing. We talk about the registration process and how that's working. How much of the vaccine has come to Muskegon and where it's gone. Mercy Health and Public Health will be hosting a meeting tomorrow that The Muskegon Channel will carry live online and on Channel 96 Muskegon television tomorrow at 11am.

Social media in a lot of ways is still kind of the "Wild West" as we have come to the stark realization of over the last year or so.  The amount of information, good and bad, right or wrong, slanted or not and above all nefarious in intent or paid agenda content has been like standing on a corner while someone comes by with a fire truck and sprays the hose at you.  It's a LOT to try and ingest and what's real and what's fake is almost indistinguishable to even the most scholarly of media observers.  It's also delivered at a pace that people who are on social media almost all day can barely keep up with let alone those who check in once in a while.  This is leading to a big problem.

Given the present state that our country is now in we could use some positive youthful inspiration. Nine-year-old Aaliyah Hughes who attends Timberland Academy provides us with just that.  Her innocent smile will bring joy to anyone’s heart. It's not often I have the opportunity to interview a young free spirited entrepreneur who is ready to take the world on by storms.

She created her own company, Lee Lee Kisses, while stuck at home during the pandemic last summer.  Despite the COVID-19 issues in which we are currently facing and the recent governmental issues, this little lady is doing one of the things that she loves the most, which happens to be making lots of money.

It was back in November.  Rick Shaffer walked out to his mailbox and felt a little out of breath.  Didn't think much of it at the time, maybe a little rest and things will be fine.  Pretty safe assumption for the average 61 year old.  He rested, and unfortunately things didn't really improve and he was off for the dreaded COVID test like so many others.  The test led to a hospitalization, which led to a ventilator, which led to a couple of months of the story playing out for Rick like we've all seen time and time again on our nightly news, on our social media, among our friends as we talk and in the back of all of our minds.

We're back in the new hot spot for warm comfort food in Muskegon Heights, Soul Filled Eatery with Chef LaKisha Harris and today, it's going to be an amazing combo with a little assistance from her assistant and incredible chef in her own right LaToya Blackshire.

As Muskegon works it's way into the second round of vaccinations, there's understandably some confusion about the procedure and who's eligible.  Dr. Justin Grill is the Chief Medical Officer at Mercy Health and he's joining us today to help explain what's needed, who's eligible at this point and you'll find a convenient link below which is directly connected to the registration to Public Health Muskegon to get the process started.  Please take not of what Dr. Grill has to say.

Yup.  It's another bunch of big scary bikers doing what they do best.  Yup, they are going above and beyond again to help where they can for the benefit of those in need, and they are doing it in a fun way that doesn't cost much, gives people a chance to rally behind their friends who are willing to participate and in the end, help fund direct assistance to people who need the help in their battle against cancer.

You know, the only dumbbell around Becky isn't the guy behind the camera!  Not even for a second.  Becky has more ways you can use a dumbbell than you can shake a stick at and the way's she's going to show you today are all about working those arms, legs and midsection.  Of course, yours are probably perfect right... (can you tell this is being written by the dumbbell behind the camera?)

Everyone needs that one person in life who can help them develop a different attitude on managing finances.  Well, Chauncey Williams is just that person. It was a pleasure listening and talking with this young man.

We all start somewhere.  All of what you see here and now on the Muskegon Channel, it began with a GoPro, free blog program and one sponsor who believed in what we were up to.  We were lucky enough to have a little more social media savvy than most, but they were truly the humblest of beginnings and ever since, we've done all we can to make sure that others looking to get started, launch a brand or show the rest of the community, or world what they got there was an affordable way to make it happen.  Yes, we gave away the farm for a little too long and as we grew had to think better financially for all of us, so the freebies had to kinda come to a stop, but we still work pretty hard to find an angle to help get the word out.  This is the case today.

It's a new week with Caitlin Anderson and Tranquil Waves Yoga on the Muskegon Channel!  We'd like to welcome back the hundreds of viewers from week one as well as anyone who might be trying it out for the first time!  Hey, we promise ya.  This isn't the kind of yoga that's going to get you into any kind of weird cult or far off world.  This is practical stuff that's designed to help you out on a few different levels. 

Weekly, Shon Cook joins us for a segment from her family law office in Whitehall to make some of the "tough stuff" in the legal world more easy to understand and cut through the "legal speak" that is quite often intimidating to those who are not involved with the legal system on a regular basis.  It's really one of the most intimidating parts of it all really trying to understand what and why while you are in the middle of a life crisis like a divorce, child custody dispute or something along those lines.  Shon and her staff are simply masters at making sure you are informed, knowledgeable and that you know their work is dedicated to the best outcome for you.  It's the above and beyond that sets Shon a part, like setting aside time weekly to come by and help you understand in advance that is the most invaluable part.

Muskegon, it's known for one thing and that's making sure needs are met no matter the challenge life throws our way.  It might be an economic downturn,  maybe it's a natural problem we can't predict or defend against, or maybe it's a pandemic that only comes along every 100 years that we never thought we'd see.  We know how to circle the wagons and make sure those who can't care for themselves are taken care of the best we can.  It's not that we're an overly affluent community, it's not that we've got the deep pocketed donors who can use the money they make off interest to give back a little...no it's much more than that.  We have people here who genuinely make a sacrifice to take care of each other.  This is the overly wonderful part of "us".  Most of us know what it's like to need a hand to and to give one in return is a payback to what's been given.

Muskegon may be small, but it is filled with lots of people with great big hearts such as Sara Wolovlek. Sara saw the good in which another community was doing for their citizens and decided to take a stand and bring that same process to life here in Muskegon. 

Happy New Year!!  It's time to shake it off and move it on.  Did you make a resolution to be more fit?  Are you already committed to staying in the best shape you can regardless of whatever gets thrown your way?  Look at it like this...you probably survived the worst year any of us will ever endure and you made it!  We all made it and we look back on the year that was and those we lost with reverence and hopefully some wisdom for the future.  All part of being Fit and Healthy. 

A new year and a new feature on the Muskegon Channel.  Caitlin Anderson operates Tranquil Waves Yoga in Muskegon and she's come to the Muskegon Channel to show off her passion and how the ancient practice of yoga benefits more than just your physical well-being.  It's an approach to your whole body, mind and spirit.  

Every week, we spend a few minutes visiting with our sponsor Shon Cook.  She's a Family Law Attorney in Whitehall and her advice, well, simply put it's amazingly helpful because she makes all the legal speak understandable for the average person and she also makes the legal system less intimidating for her clients.  Let's face it, Shon is not generally called upon when everything is smooth sailing and there's nothing to worry about.  Having an attorney that not only works for the very best outcome for you as a client is important, but so are the "soft skills" of the job which Shon is able to share with us here every week to a degree and how she implements them into her practice.

Good Afternoon, 

I thought it best to maybe take a minute today and speak to you directly instead of making a story out of our announcement today for a couple reasons.  First off, the level of gratitude we have to share is far beyond any short article we could post accompanied by a video and secondly, maybe a little story about how we got to today's announcement, what it took and how we plan on going ahead with it.  So here we go!

With the new year we thought we'd add a little something to the mix when it comes to the well being of the audience.  We've done so incredibly well with Fit and Healthy With Becky that it was clear that there was room for some growth when it comes to health programs.  Becky will be kicking off every Monday with the energy, amps and hustle but Sunday mornings, it's going to be a totally different vibe.

If you've spent any time in or around Downtown Muskegon and become a fan of any of the offerings of the food trucks that have been becoming more and more popular, chances are you've been able to spot the wagon that's painted up like no other with the beautiful colors, bold words and overall message of peace and love that's run by Tacitus Nana-Kwesi Yabani.  "Tac" as those who know him refer to him for short moved here from Ghana not so long ago and has since become a fixture of the Muskegon community.  His food is amazing, his character is unforgettable and he's added a little bit of the "old country" into all of our lives with a spirit that is unmistakable and inviting.  To Tac, a stranger is literally a friend he's not met yet and it shows in everything he does.  His vehicle for introductions.... FOOD!