Kierstin Gunsberg | Author

Volunteer Superstars

Oct. 7, 2023

Ask anyone working at a nonprofit how they take such great care of their northern Michigan community, and they’ll tell you it’s their volunteers behind the scenes bringing it all together.

While hundreds of folks pitch in for local nonprofits each year, the backbone of t… Read More >>

From Frenzy to Focus: Northern Michigan’s Real Estate Update for Fall 2023

Sept. 23, 2023

High-interest rates coupled with a lack of home listings have made for an interesting year in real estate. Northern Express caught up with Carly Petrucci and Heather Robinson, two born-and-raised northern Michigan realtors, to find out if the intense grab-it-before-it’s-gone housing m… Read More >>

What Teachers Want

Aug. 26, 2023

The days are shorter, bedtimes are coming earlier, and kids are shaking off the beach sand to fall back into a school year routine. As their parents and guardians pull lunch bags from the back of the closet and start to stockpile fruit snacks, teachers all over northern Michigan are welcomi… Read More >>

Tea with Intention

Aug. 12, 2023

Stroll too quickly past 116 E. Front Street in downtown TC and you might just miss it. There, tucked into the brick walls of the former Wooden Gallery space is Blessed Be Tea and Apothecary, a “magickal” shop that carries original tea blends mixed by Allie Robinson-Ollila.

A Day in the Life of a Beach Robot

July 8, 2023

In an era where technology is integrated into just about everything, even our beaches are getting the high-tech treatment.

The Watershed Center Grand Traverse Bay has recently received two cutting-edge beach cleaning robots, BeBot and PixieDrone, through the Council of the Great Lak… Read More >>

Understanding and Respect Among All

June 17, 2023

In a city of nearly 16,000, Traverse City’s Human Rights Commission (HRC) exists to advocate for and protect the human rights of each person who makes up that number. Common in metropolitans like Detroit and Chicago, HRCs may vary slightly in nuance, but their commonalities outweigh t… Read More >>

Island Life

May 20, 2023

Where do northern Michiganders go to get away? The true Up North, that’s where! Stay cool and skip the tropics—you can create that laid-back island life feeling without leaving the state. These three Upper Peninsula islands are brimming with wildlife, eclectic eateries, and enou… Read More >>

50 Years of Feeding a Community

March 25, 2023

The year was 1973. A McDonald’s hamburger was just 28 cents, the Vietnam War was heavy on the hearts of young men and their mothers, and David Bowie’s music was blowing minds across the country. It felt to many that the world was on the cusp.

On the cusp too was American… Read More >>

"Array" of Sunshine

Feb. 25, 2023

When the pandemic paused meetings for the newly-founded Sustainability Club at Petoskey High School (PHS), no one would have blamed the student members for letting the ideas they’d been brainstorming fizzle out.

But, taking into account the urgency of their cause, the students… Read More >>

Crafting a Community

Jan. 28, 2023

Off the beaten path of downtown Traverse City’s beloved restaurants and charming window displays are dozens of little neighborhood gems. There’s the swingset view of West Bay’s moody shades of blue at Darrow park; the summertime food trucks churning out tamales and sushi; … Read More >>

Sleigh Bells Ring: The Horses Know the Way at These NoMi Farms

Dec. 17, 2022

There’s no sound that better represents the joy of the holiday season than the gentle, sweeping rhythm of sleigh bells keeping pace with hooves crunching snow.

It’s this sound that Waneta Cook reminisces about this time of year. Growing up, wintertime was at its most mag… Read More >>

Moving the Needle, a Modern Take on Acupuncture

Nov. 12, 2022

One term you’ve probably heard a thousand times in the last couple of years is “self-care.” From normalizing teletherapy visits and athleisure as acceptable workwear to getting comfortable with home fitness apps and grocery delivery subscriptions, the pandemic has encourag… Read More >>