MORENCI —The Morenci boys varsity basketball team enters the 2025-2026 season hoping to turn the corner using groundwork laid over the past two years.
“We are looking to finally get over the hump of what we have been building for multiple seasons,” head coach Garrett Benjamin said.
MORENCI — Voters elected Gail Cleghorn to the Morenci City Council and returned incumbents Kori Christle and Kandi Speiser to their seats in the Nov. 4 election.
There were five candidates for three seats. The returns reported by the Lenawee County Clerk’s office were:
Mayor Tracy Schell, was unopposed for re-election and received 283 votes, with eight write-ins.
With 329 ballots cast, turnout in the city of Morenci was just over 17%.
Vote totals are unofficial until reviewed by the Lenawee County Board of Canvassers.
MORENCI — Morenci coach Ryan McDowell capped his first season at the helm of his eight-man football program without losing players to season-ending injuries or losing faith in the team.
“I wasn’t too worried about losses because we had small numbers,” said McDowell, whose team did go from 16 to 17 players during the season. “The big focus was on having nobody quit, but at the same time, still challenging them quite a bit. And to their credit, they answered the challenge.”
MORENCI — The Morenci varsity volleyball team entered the 2025 season with a new coach and a goal of changing the culture of the program.
Head coach Erin Ekins didn’t have to wait long for her squad to demonstrate they truly wanted a different season from years past.
MORENCI — First-year head cross country coach Tony Muzzi inherited a program returning only one athlete from its previous season and losing three runners to graduation. The Bulldogs finished the year with three high school athletes as well as three middle school athletes.
“And not just middle schoolers, they’re sixth graders,” Muzzi said. “So if they stick with it they will be in the program for seven years.”
ADRIAN — Community Action Agency is conducting a Community Needs Assessment to learn about the needs of everyone who uses, or might need to use, their services. The agency is seeking to learn if, and how, people’s needs may be changing, what barriers may exist to accessing services, and how they could be improved.
MORENCI — Municipal elections for the city of Morenci will take place on Tuesday, Nov. 4.
Mayor Tracy Schell is unopposed for re-election. Two incumbents are seeking re-election to the city council, and three additional candidates are vying for a chance to serve. There are three seats up for election this year.
The candidates are Kori Christle, Gail Cleghorn, Brad Lonis, Gary Pfund, and Kandice Speiser. Christle and Speiser are the incumbents.
MORENCI — Morenci City Hall will be open for voting from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 4. Residents may register to vote at City Hall during regular office hours, including on Election Day.
Additionally, City Hall will be open on Saturday, Nov. 1, from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. and Sunday, Nov. 2, from 10 a.m. to noon for voter registration and absentee ballot submissions.
MORENCI — Stair District Library is now accepting donations during regular library hours for its upcoming used book sale. Donations will be accepted through the back door of the annex; notify library staff first.
MORENCI — If you noticed somebody walking down your street one day in September and taking careful note of all the trees, that was Steve Lane.
Lane, an urban forestry consultant, has been engaged by the city of Morenci to work on a 20-year plan for managing all of the trees on public property on the city. The grant-funded project aims to help the city be proactive, rather than reactive, about managing its tree population, and it includes a comprehensive inventory of all the trees on public land in Morenci — about 1,350 in total.