Dave Person
Bio
Dave Person has been a professional journalist for more than 50 years. He was managing editor of the student newspaper at MSU, and was a reporter and copy editor at the Kalamazoo Gazette for nearly 40 years. Dave, originally from Allegan but is now a resident of Cooper Township in Kalamazoo County, officially retired in 2009 but has been a freelance journalist and editor ever since.
Articles

From the gym to gaming to a business idea
Playing video games was supposed to pass time until the pandemic ended and gyms opened back up. Then Jon Elms, a fitness coach, created an energy drink company for gym rats and gamers alike that is expanding beyond Kalamazoo after some help from another local business owner.

A sister by her side. A family behind her back.
It takes a will, skill, and family for two women running a cafe in the middle of rural Scotts. Yet the community is grateful they’ve taken it on, from the retired couple who offered them the chance, to their meat suppliers who are also regular diners.

‘I put all of my savings into this’
After serving her family and friends for years as a homemaker, Swapna Gorthi takes a chance on her own coffee-making and culinary skills, opening a shop with a unique menu. Coincidentally, it hasn’t been a direct path to establishing the Round About Caffe.

Design industry pipeline keeping workers in town
An education-to-employment infrastructure has brought businesses, kept workers, and made Kalamazoo a national hub for industrial design and related jobs.

Back to school
After an extensive restoration and a pandemic break, classes (and more) resume at the 143-year-old school house on a Cooper Township corner.

Spoken word duo’s final act: Animated poem ‘Stargazing’
Gabriel Giron shares the inspiration behind his final collaboration with spoken word partner Kirk Latimer.

Woolery’s work continues founders’ legacy
The SHALOM Woolery Sheep Barn enhances work space for an operation that has provided housing and support for area adults with disabilities for three decades.

Falsehoods fuel fear underscoring Kalamazoo GOP’s election strategy
The Kalamazoo GOP is using 2020 election misinformation to rally election inspectors for upcoming votes.

Small local businesses adapt to COVID economy
A survey of shops in Kalamazoo’s downtown business district finds entrepreneurs in various industries keep their doors open by taking the pandemic in stride.

Growing a new business in good soil
The Craft Soil Company has opened up a new gardening store, focusing first on artisan soil as more supplies come in.