email response from Michigan Rep. Laurie Pohutsky regarding horrific conditions at the Huron Valley Women's prison, tying conditions to the budget

ℹ️ Representative Laurie Pohutsky is tying long-standing conditions at the Women's Huron Valley prison to the appropriations policy team while discussing and negotiating the FY2027 (department of corrections) budget.

#internationalwomenshistorymonth #huronvalley #huronvalleywomensprison #michigandoc

Image from the November 1980 issue of AFSCME's Public Employee magazine showing children lined up to board a school bus who are greeted by their bus drivers, members of Local 202. The caption reads: "AFSCME Local 202 school bus drivers in Huron Valley, Michigan had as much fun as the kids last month celebrating Halloween. The drivers handed out sweet treats on their morning runs, then visited school classrooms to entertain students with hobgoblin stories. From left, tinman Kathy Forsythe, baker Marylou McManamon and pumpkin Joan Sobbe."

Here's another image from @afscme.bsky.social's Public Employee magazine of Sobbe (dressed as a pumpkin) with coworkers as children board a school bus on Halloween, 1980. Also pictured are tinman Kathy Forsythe and baker Marylou McManamon. #LaborHistory #HuronValley #BusDrivers

The program taught values like "acquiring harmony with the earth's natural resources," plus a variety of crafts and skills. Sobbe said, "The children develop a strong sense of pride about themselves, their Indian heritage and ancestry." #LaborHistory #HuronValley #NativeAmericanHeritageMonth

Article from AFSCME's Public Employee magazine from October 1981 under the heading "Personal Profile" and "Indian 'Roots' in Michigan." An inset photograph shows Local 202's Joan Sobbe and son holding animal hides during a camping trip. The article reads: "Milford, Mich.—For Indian children in the Huron Valley area, Indian culture and folklore are still very much a part of modern living, thanks to AFSCME Local 202 member Joan Sobbe. Huron Valley school bus driver Sobbe—a half-blooded Ottawa Indian —has been a volunteer parent with the Indian Education Program since 1974. For the past two years, she has served as the program's chairperson. The cultural and educational program teaches, in addition to crafts and skills, Indian values such as acquiring harmony with the earth's natural resources. "The children develop a strong sense of pride about themselves, their Indian heritage and ancestry," she says. Sobbe's own son and daughter are among some 200 children enrolled in the federally funded program. Each year, says Sobbe, the children look forward to the Snow Snake Tournament. The children carve their own wooden snow snakes—elongated spearlike objects resembling the hunting weapons their ancestors used. Sobbe and several other Local 202 members and parents build a 2- foot high snow mound. The children divide into teams, then slide their snow snakes down the mound and those children whose snow snakes go farthest win prizes. "We try teaching them that it's not winning or losing that's important. It's doing the best you can that counts. Learning this and other concepts will give them the direction they'll need to make it in this world," Sobbe says."

It's #NativeAmericanHeritageMonth and here's a local story from 1981 of @afscme.bsky.social member Joan Sobbe, a bus driver for Huron Valley Schools in MI. Sobbe, of Ottawa heritage, volunteered with and served as chair for the Indian Education Program beginning in 1974. #LaborHistory #HuronValley

07.10.2025

Ch Amala Zafirah and CH Amala Zayn at the 2011 Huron Valley Saluki Club Specialty. The Zs turned 9 two weeks later.

Photos courtesy of my lovely friend Karen Butler, who ran across them the other day. Wonderful memories!

#zafirah #zayn #thezs #amala #salukis #LOVE #hvsc #huronvalley