(upbeat music) - Celebrating vibrant people, captivating places, and remarkable things, this is "Living West Michigan."

(upbeat music) - [Announcer] Celebrating our vibrant community together, powered by your dedicated support.

Thank you.

(upbeat music) - Today we are taking you out to the ball game.

The West Michigan White Caps are our premier Minor League Baseball team here in the Midwest League.

There's lots to take in, of course, during a game, whether it's the thrill of home run hits or your favorite snacks at the concession stand.

Shelley takes us to LMCU Ballpark for an inside look.

(upbeat music) - Batter, batter, batter, swing.

"Living West Michigan" takes you to the West Michigan white caps.

Come on.

All right, Daniel, as a little fly on the wall, would you ever fly out on the field and pretend that you're a West Michigan White Cap?

What a wonderful opportunity we have here.

- It's fantastic, yeah, and a day like today with the sun out like it is, couldn't ask for much more.

- [Shelley] What do you look for as far as getting us to the Ballpark?

- It's about the entertainment, what are we doing outside of just the baseball.

- [Shelley] And it is for kids and of course kids, young kids at heart, there are actually special activities almost between every inning.

- [Dan] Almost every single inning.

That's part of the experience and that's what we're all about.

We talk about fun, community experiences, is what the brand is all about.

And so adding the food, the fun, and just creating memories and things that people can remember whenever they leave here and share with others.

- So a first timer, what do I do?

- Oh, well the first thing you gotta do when you come to the Ballpark is you gotta get your first game certificate to make sure that you were here, like all scheduled and framed, so you had a great time here.

But then you also need to take a nice little walk around the facility because it's beautiful, still state of the art.

You'll see some new things changing here with the updates, it's a tough place to be in the state of Michigan during the summer.

- There will be some updates here?

- Yeah, absolutely, yeah.

So between now and 2026, you'll see a change of the Ballpark, where we hope to have 360 degree concourse built out.

So you can enjoy the game from all over the stadium, at any stage there.

But we also will have some extra sweet space, hospitality groups, and we'll even extend that space out even more in 2025 and 2026.

(upbeat music) - We've been around for 30 years, we're going into our 31st year, we're really well established here in West Michigan.

We have families that have been passing down season tickets for many generations.

So we see families that have grandparents, their children, and now grandchildren are with them.

We also have attractions throughout this stadium that kids can participate in.

So we have a playground that they can go to, we've got inflatables that they can jump on, adults can walk around the concourse and belly up to a beverage area where they can kind of hang out and just really enjoy the game.

(upbeat music) Our food process is intense.

In January, we hold a chef competition where we bring local cooks and chefs from the Grand Rapids area together to whip up a new fan favorite.

We then feature that favorite in a reveal for our media partners, where we show all of our new menu items.

But we add probably eight to 12 new items every year to our menu.

Crash is our beloved mascot, he is wonderful, he's a river rascal and he likes to be everywhere.

So you'll find him here at the game, interacting with kids and adults alike.

But you'll also see him out in the community doing appearances for some nonprofits that we partner with or just kids organization.

Anytime we can get him in front of people, we love it.

We partner with lots of different organizations that feature things like kids, fitness and education, those are our three pillars.

And we love to come together, not only from bringing business opportunities together, but just being able to partner with some other great organizations in our area.

- In general, who are these guys?

Who are your players?

- Yeah, our players are really high school and college, college boys, men, they usually get drafted, either in college or in high school.

They'll spend a couple years with us and then they'll move up through the ranks.

- Well, they can come back and say, it all started here.

- It all started here.

I've been around this organization for a long, long time and it's really impactful for me to see how many corporations and organizations continue to come back year over year and support the White Caps.

And how many friends and families continue to support the White Caps, like you said, through the purchase of their tickets, season tickets, and just wanting to come see us every year and hearing about the memories that people have created with their friends and families.

- Do you see families making this a priority for their summer?

- I think so.

We've got affordable, fun, again, we have great promotions that bring people out to the Ballpark too.

And we've got some top tier Detroit Tigers talent that's gonna be coming through, that a lot of fans will get a chance to see before they make it in the big leagues in Detroit.

So a lot of reasons for families to come on out - And when obviously the team's not playing, you're still getting the word out that this is a community gym?

- Yeah, absolutely, absolutely.

We still host many events throughout the year and it's a wonderful facility to have picnics, to have your company outing, even share our parking lot for carnival days for those sorts of things, if you like that.

So we love to use this space as much as we can.

- [Shelley] Well obviously here at the White Caps enjoying a beautiful afternoon, so are the kids, what initiatives do you do for our schools?

- Yeah, some of our bigger initiatives focus around our reading month.

Every season, reading month takes place in March and we reward those students who are able to read with a ticket to the game.

And schools take advantage of that too.

And days where it's a nice afternoon, a lot of school groups love to come out to the Ballpark.

- [Shelley] And I understand I could even bring my dog?

- You sure can, we've got dog days, so if you've got your furry friend at home, you gotta check out those tickets too, because we've got all sorts of things set up for our little furry friends to enjoy the game as well.

- Why come to the Ballpark this summer?

- There's so many reasons to come to the Ballpark, but the main reason is if you're looking for fun, this is the place where you can get it in a one stop shop.

When it comes to entertainment, affordable food prices, all the different types of organizations you see here and the atmosphere, we are really thankful to be a part of this West Michigan community.

We know a lot of people pour into what we do every single season and we have a lot of demand to do well every single year.

So we love putting on a show every single game, whether there are 100 fans here or it's sold out with 9,000, we love to have the same energy every single time that we come out and play.

(upbeat music) It looks like that's the ball game.

- And it was a great ball game.

Thank you for your time.

- [Nate] Thank you.

- Keeping with our sports theme, I am excited about our next group of athletes, the Grand Rapids Rise, West Michigan's first women's professional volleyball team.

Women have flocked from all across the nation to play here in Grand Rapids, and there may even be a local face that you'll recognize.

Let's join Kylie as she takes us through a training session.

- If you've been driving around West Michigan highways lately, you've probably seen the talented faces that make up Grand Rapids Rise, the area's first professional women's volleyball team.

Today we are at the MSA Fieldhouse, crashing a practice and talking with some star players who are making history, let's go.

(upbeat music) So I'm here with Grand Rapids Rise head coach, Cathy George, and I had to pull out my notebook for you.

You've had such a storied career.

You led MSU for 17 seasons, and you were the winningest coach in MSU volleyball history.

You were also the first woman to coach in an NCAA D1 final four, that is history breaking, I think, in and of itself.

How does it feel to be here in Grand Rapids, breaking history yet again?

- Well, it was really part of the thing that lured me here is just the whole startup thing and how do we get women to be able to move into the future in a way that will help them be professionals.

- How does it feel to be back in your home region playing?

Because beforehand, did you ever think that you'd be playing professional volleyball here?

- No, I really didn't.

And honestly, it's a dream come true.

This wasn't really an avenue that I thought was possible after I graduated college.

So when it came up, I just had to jump on the opportunity because like you said, it's in the area that I'm living in and I get to pursue my passion and also get to keep my home life as well.

- You're back with Coach George and she was your coach at MSU, correct?

- Yes.

- Wonderful.

How does it feel to be under her leadership again?

- It's great, I mean, she just cares about her people so much and that's the reason why I love her so much and was easy to, of course, jumping on the opportunity to play under her again.

- [Kylie] This is not your first rodeo in professional volleyball?

- It's true, it's true, I've been playing for a while, Thailand, France, I was in Germany for two years.

I was in Poland, then I went to Italy.

So a little bit all over the place.

Took a little break, I had my baby, but now I'm back.

- Wonderful, and congratulations.

Are you a new mom?

- Thank you.

No, she's almost two now, but I haven't played in like three years, so it's been a while.

- How does it feel to come out after that break and be able to play again and let alone here in the US?

- Yeah, it's different.

I mean, it brings its own set of challenges.

Before, you are worried about yourself, most of the time, and now even when you leave practice, your mind is still on keeping a small child alive and it's really crazy, but it's super fun.

Like it's fun for her to be able to see me play too, I think, is really exciting.

- How does it feel to tell those talented athletes you can stay in the state, you can pursue your dream right here in Michigan?

- It hasn't been something that they're able to do.

And being a coach for so many years, I talked to a lot of collegiate athletes who said, hey I don't know, should I go that far away to play?

I really love it, but I don't feel comfortable doing that.

And then there's others that have jumped in and haven't been happy with that experience.

And then there's others that love it.

So we just wanted to make sure that this was a opportunity that women were able to have to use their gifts, I mean, the things that make them special in their career.

And it's really unfortunate that it had to be the way it was, but now we have options here in the state.

- What took it so long for professional volleyball to come here?

- Well, I just think that over the years, there's been so much collegiate sport and the focus has been in certain areas and now women are seeming to really make a breakthrough in terms of the fan bases and the TV viewerships.

And people are starting to take notice that people really enjoy watching women's sports.

And for such a long time, I don't think people gave it the credit that it deserved.

And I don't think that the fan base was pushed to actually watching it to the same level.

So once people started up with it, they started to see, hey, this is awesome.

The Big 10 networks started a while ago and when they started to say, not only are we going, but we're gonna go ahead and we're gonna make sure that we're highlighting all the sports, you saw the viewership start to pick up.

(players cheering) (upbeat music) - There are a lot of young players who are gonna look at you and say, if she can do it, I can do it, have you had any aha moments like that so far?

- I think honestly, well, one, just being a mom, having my daughter have that option and know that that's available to her is amazing.

I don't even know if she'll like sports, she's only like eight months old, so I don't know.

But yeah, we also signed autographs after the game for our home opener as well.

And just seeing all the young girls just so excited about the sport and so excited that there's something in their city or close by for them, it's really awesome and definitely a privilege for us and something that I don't take lightly.

- [Nia] So for young girls to be able to see that like they can go to a game, a professional, and watch it or watch it on TV and it's so much more accessible to them.

It gives them the chance to really dream big.

And I love that so much.

(upbeat music) - [Kylie] What do you hope comes from GR Rise?

- There's so many things, I do wanna see in 20 years to see it be where it is a norm and I don't want people to take it for granted at all, I don't want anybody to be entitled, but I do want it to be something where this sport people really love it the way that I do and the way that our players do and they understand why it should be something that they celebrate and it's entertaining.

The thing I really am enjoying is watching our players being loved by this community.

So it's been really cool and they're feeling it when they go to Target or Meyer or wherever they go, wherever they go, they're going out there and people are just really stopping them and saying thanks and they're really making 'em feel welcome.

- [Kylie] What do you hope to bring to Grand Rapids and Grand Rapids Rise?

- Championship.

- Good answer.

- That's my goal.

Yeah, I definitely wanna win.

So I would say that is definitely my top answer.

But after that, just kind of leaving a legacy for people to come even next year and the year after, but making sure that this really sticks so that they can build something for the generations to come after this.

(upbeat music) - And now for a different kind of physical activity.

Get ready, it's do it yourself arts and crafts.

Welcome to Pinspiration, A place where community meets creativity.

Pinspiration offers a gathering space for families, colleagues and friends to come together to make all kinds of art.

From paint splatter to digital creations, our little friend Caroline and I visited the Wyoming location to see all of those colors in action.

Caroline and I have been having a blast, of course, however, we thought we needed a little bit of help and so we have kind of pulled in a lot of the WGVU team to help us out.

You ready guys?

- [WGVU colleagues] Woo.

- Let's go.

Caroline.

(upbeat music) We just had a blast, right?

I mean, I'm kind of covered with a little bit of paint.

So what is the inspiration, the actual inspiration behind Pinspiration?

- So this is a franchise business.

The first lady that created it was in Arizona.

And what she was trying to do is basically get rid of the barriers of people in the Pinterest era.

Lots of people go on Pinterest, they find all these things they wanna do and then they pin a bunch of stuff and they never actually make anything.

Or they go to the craft store and they spend hundreds of dollars on tools and supplies when they only need one button, but you gotta buy a whole bag of buttons.

So really the inspiration was to try to make that easier for people so that they could come in, say I want to create something, they can see it on the wall.

Then they come in and then they don't have to buy 100 buttons, they can just get the buttons they need to make the project.

We have lots of stuff.

Everything from acrylic paint pours, we have string art, we do self-guided paintings.

We also have a lot of wood projects, where people create.

So just lots of cool stuff that you can come in and make.

- Or whatever they have an idea to do, they can do it.

- Exactly.

And it's interesting 'cause like I made a State of Michigan string art, then somebody was actually from Wisconsin and so they wanted a state of Wisconsin.

So then I had to get on the internet and start looking around for a map of Wisconsin that we could turn into a stencil so they could actually make what they wanted to make.

If you come in with your group of girlfriends for a girls' night out, you can do a string art, somebody else can make a candle and then somebody else can paint a picture.

So you really can have an individual experience rather than everybody leaving with the same picture of a sunset.

- We get so stressed, we get so busy, this is a place where you can kind of release all of that, do you think?

- Oh, for sure.

I actually have a sign over there that says, do something that makes you forget to check your phone.

And I love that because it's like everybody's on their phone all the time, they're on the computer, they're in front of a screen.

And I think coming in here with your family, with your friends, actually enjoying each other, creating something, and even if you don't end up loving your project, you still have a great memory.

- I think all of the art is for all ages, right?

I mean, varied ages find enjoyment.

- Yeah.

- And fulfillment.

- And I'm shocked every day, when people come in here, they think, oh, the splatter room is just for kids.

And if you watch what you guys just did, y'all had more fun than the little girl.

- Okay, so the elephant in the room, the splatter room, what is that?

Well, let us talk about that as I have paint still on me, right?

- It's definitely the favorite here at the shop.

We actually have two of them, but we hang canvas on the wall and we let people just sling paint.

They can do it with our regular paint or they can upgrade to our glow in the dark where they get to hang out with the disco ball and some black lights, it's super fun.

- It is super fun.

And it's kinda like releasing as everyone talks about, the Jackson Pollock in you.

- Exactly, and I think you can get out some aggression if you have some, or it can just be about creativity.

But everybody leaves with a masterpiece, which is great.

- Let's start from the beginning, you get suited up, tell us the process of doing the splatter room.

- [Kate] We get you suited up, we put on your hairnet, a poncho, cover up your shoes, or we have our hazmat suits to cover your clothes.

It's a really cute look.

We have a little photo op in the back, that we take a lot of family photos 'cause people wanna remember the experience.

- This allows too, an opportunity for parents to bring their kids to do something, whether it be the splatter room or some of the other art adventures as well, to do something that maybe then we don't wanna necessarily do at home, but it gives them that freedom.

- Well, it's funny, I have two kids and they laugh all the time because at home I do not allow glitter, we don't eat Cheetos, I don't like dirty.

But we come here to the store and it's throw paint, you don't have to clean it up, it's totally fine.

- The biggest thing, when you look at something like this and you look at the inner-creativity piece, one of the questions I always have for someone who's in the business of this, are you happy?

Is it making you happy?

- Absolutely.

I worked in corporate America for 20 years, it was a wonderful job with a wonderful company, but being the boss is pretty cool.

And also the fact that when I come to work, what I hear every day is kids having fun, families having fun, people making memories.

I read the reviews online where people are just overjoyed with the experience they had here, and it makes every penny worth it.

- [Jennifer] And lots of laughter.

And then you've got your mom working here and your dad with you.

- That's right, it's a family affair.

I've roped both my parents into helping.

And on random days my kids show up too.

So every now and then I get the husband behind the bar.

- [Jennifer] And also, that's the other thing, so not only do you have arts and crafts, but people can order food if they wanna have a little gathering or party or something.

- Yeah, absolutely, and if we do like a party, people can bring in their own food or we do offer like charcuterie boards, we have like a s'mores platter, just small bites, small drinks, that kind of thing.

Basically just to tide you over while you're crafting.

- Thank you so much, Kate.

- Yes, thank you.

(upbeat music) - I smell fresh flowers in the air, and you know what that means, our friendly neighborhood flower guy, J Schwanke, is here to show us a thing or two about creating beautiful arrangements right in our own home or our workspace.

So let's see what he's got going on today in Living in Bloom.

(upbeat music) - So we have some beautiful flowers, we have some fancy looking tools.

J, what are we making today?

- We are gonna make a breakaway centerpiece.

When you and I were talking about it, I think that it's fun to bring flowers home, right?

- Of course.

- But then sometimes we wanna maximize it.

And what can we do that would make it bigger or better yet?

Flowers all around the house.

- Love that.

- So we have a bouquet.

This is a bouquet that you could pick up at any grocery store or a flower seller, anything like that.

And so we're just gonna cut the band on it.

It comes with these packets.

So it's always great for us to put the packets in the water, measure, on the back directions, pour 'em into the vases.

And so we go in, we never use a scissors to cut our flowers.

- No scissors.

But we use bypass cutters, I also use a knife, but that's dangerous, this is better.

- Yeah, no, this is safer for me, thank you.

- So then choose your flowers and you can put those into those vases.

So now we have great things like, I love this, I love a spray chrysanthemum, because a spray chrysanthemum is big, it has a lot of different things on it.

We're gonna pull off any leaves that fall below the water line.

- Okay.

- And drop it into our vase.

- There are a lot of leaves, let me just... - Ask if we want it to be shorter, we can make it shorter too.

The shortcut is always your your best friend.

- Oh, I think I may have cut a flower, but that's... - That's okay.

Well, I think the great part about this is that we can take these flowers and we can do fun things with them.

So this is called Echinops, it's a type of thistle.

And so I can stick that down in this vase, and you know what, I'm gonna cut 'em even shorter.

And then when I do that, it almost makes an armature to go around the flower.

- Yes, it's like a hug.

- Exactly, exactly, it's so cute.

This is called hypericum.

- I was gonna ask, these are beautiful.

- This is St. John's Wort.

- Okay.

- So it's the fruit of St. John's Wort, there's over 27 different varieties.

- Wow.

- All different colors.

- These have to be the prettiest, 'cause they're gorgeous, I'm assuming, I can't imagine prettier ones than this.

- Well, I think that that's great.

- Something I'm noticing is that I cut way too short.

And is it good for beginners to maybe start slow on where they're cutting their stems?

- Sure, take a look at it, absolutely.

But I mean, at the same time, look at this guy.

I just want that little piece of foliage off the bottom there.

But see, look at how crowding these guys in here are all gonna be fine, look at that.

- That is true.

- When you do it, it looks so much easier.

- Okay, so that's the thing.

We have to get comfortable with it.

And so when you're getting comfortable with it, I want you to take time to enjoy it.

Because there's health and wellness benefits that go with arranging flowers.

And so one of the things that's really important is that we are taking time to experience those flowers.

Now as we do this and what we're gonna do and create with this, we're gonna be able to put these all around the house so we can put one in the bathroom, we can put one in the bedroom, we have all sorts of different opportunities to do that.

So see, look at how those two little guys can go in there to together.

- That is beautiful.

And I love that you're kind of getting the most out of your flower investment with this.

- Absolutely, because if we've got 'em all around the house, it's the perfect way to do it, it's a perfect way to be living in bloom.

- Absolutely.

- With your flowers.

- I love what you did there, putting the petal to the metal and living in bloom.

- You're the best.

- I'm not dandelion about that, you can tell I came very prepared for this today.

- Yes, you did, you're awesome.

Well, thank you very much, thanks for letting me show you the breakaway centerpiece.

- Absolutely, thank you.

(upbeat music) - More content can be found on WGVU's YouTube channel or the PBS App.

Be sure to also check out wgvu.org/livingwestmichigan, where you can submit ideas for future features on the show.

Thanks so much for joining us.

I'm Jennifer Moss and this is "Living West Michigan."

(upbeat music)