Deb Dent | Author

New Coaches on the Block

Sept. 2, 2023

Fresh faces. Former players. Tried-and-true mentors. Northern Express talked with five coaches who are stepping up to the plate to help guide high school athletes toward victory (and helping them learn a few life lessons along the way.)

These folks have come full circle wit… Read More >>

The High-Vibrating World of Music

Aug. 5, 2023

Karine Pierson has been in love with music ever since she was a little girl. According to her mom, she started to play the violin, along with several other stringed instruments, at 18 months.

“For strings,” Pierson says, “you need to develop the ear very young; it&… Read More >>

Taste the Love in Every Bite

July 15, 2023

Thomas Koch, owner of Polish Countryside Kitchen in Cedar, was born and raised in Hamtramck, a little city just a few miles outside of downtown Detroit—or as Koch likes to refer to it, “the jelly to the doughnut of Detroit.” His Polish grandmother and grandfather, lovingly… Read More >>

The Voice (and the Apparel) of the Michiganerds

July 1, 2023

Beau Warren, owner of Tee See Tee in Traverse City, has been designing T-shirts since he was a kid, and he credits his smart and frugal mom for giving him his start.

In the early 1990s, all Warren wanted was to be like the cool kids, wearing the top name-brand T-shirts like Big John… Read More >>

Chiropractor Check-Up

May 27, 2023

According to the American Chiropractic Association, over 35 million (or about 10 percent) of Americans visit the chiropractor each year. To put that number in perspective, the AARP says only one-fifth of U.S. adults get their annual physical.

If you’ve never been in for a snap… Read More >>

Where Everybody Is a Kid

April 22, 2023

If you’re looking for a one-room schoolhouse, a 20-foot-long 3D periodic table of the elements, a replica Easter Island Head, a print shop, and an amateur radio station…where do you go? (Oh, and add a few cool reptiles and a Smithsonian exhibit to the order for good measure!)Read More >>

Providing Meals (and Hope) in the Face of Crisis

March 25, 2023

Tiffany McQueer and her husband, Jason, the owners of J&S Hamburg South in Traverse City, both grew up in poverty.

“I can remember my widowed mother going to food pantries and eating day-old food we would get in huge, black garbage bags,” Tiffany says. “We grew… Read More >>

Few Fish to Fry

March 11, 2023

It’s officially fish fry season here in northern Michigan, with many local establishments featuring specials on fish on Fridays during Lent. (Check out the end of this story for inspiration!)

But if you want to DIY your own Friday dinner, you can’t have a fish fry withou… Read More >>

Ski, Bike, and Run at the Second Gaylord Tri45 Winter Triathlon

Feb. 18, 2023

The Gaylord Tri45 Winter Triathlon, aptly named because the town sits on the 45th parallel, includes a 5K cross-country ski, a 10K fat tire bike ride and a 5K run, and is set to take place on the grounds of Treetops Resort in Gaylord on March 4.

It’s Michigan’s first eve… Read More >>

Weekend Escapes

Jan. 14, 2023

Ready to be transported to another place, even if you’re only a 30-minute drive from home? We are, which is why we took a look at three Up North properties that make you feel like you’re worlds away.

A Cozy Cabin in the Woods: Beaver Creek Properties

Located wi… Read More >>

A Science and an Art

Dec. 10, 2022

Chris Neri and Nova Mackentley, owners of Night Flight Images, have always had a passion for wildlife. The duo photographs the great winged wonders of the world from raptors to butterflies—plus other creatures too—in an effort to not only show the beauty of the natural world but… Read More >>