Hancock, Michigan—The Youth Advisory Council (YAC) of the Keweenaw Community Foundation completed its Bedtime Story Drive for local youth. YAC encouraged the community to donate new and gently used books and new pajamas for children ages 5-17. “The Bedtime Story Drive is entirely youth-driven by our enthusiastic members in YAC,” …

Unemployment appears to be on the rise in the Upper Peninsula. Statewide, seasonally unadjusted unemployment rates in November declined slightly over the month in most of the state’s 17 major labor market areas, according to the Michigan Department of Technology, Management & Budget. Total employment and labor force levels rose …

See ABC-10’s Sarah Mac’s original story here: http://abc10up.com/suicide-rates-go-up-in-the-winter-officials-say-no/ It widely believed that suicide rates increase during the winter months, especially around the holidays, but health officials say that is not true. Sarah Derwin is the Health Educator for the Marquette County Health Department. Derwin says that there is no real spike …

Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette and Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi have agreed to a friendly wager over the New Year’s Day Citrus Bowl battle between the University of Michigan, and University of Florida. If the Wolverines win, Bondi will send Florida Oranges. If Florida wins, Schuette will send a …

Michigan’s lowest-paid workers will get a little more in their paycheck starting Friday. The state’s minimum wage will increase from $8.15 an hour to $8.50 on January 1st. This is the second gradual 25-percent increase in the minimum wage, which will go up to $9.25 an hour by 2018.

The Michigan Department of Natural Resources wants Michiganders to get outdoors and get healthy in the New Year and is offering some ways to do that. DNR spokeswoman Maia Turek says the News Year is when people tend to make resolutions to get fit, so several state parks are trying …

The director of the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality (MEDQ) has resigned following initial findings of a task force looking into the handling of the Flint water crises. Governor Rick Snyder issued a statement Tuesday saying MDEQ Director Dan Wyant offered his resignation and the governor accepted it. Snyder says …

Some school superintendents in Michigan are looking to the governor to veto a bill they say is effectively a gag order on any ballot question 60 days before a vote. The legislation, which impacts how schools can communicate information on millages and when political campaigns have to disclose their donors, …

Michigan legislators are missing fewer votes in the state House and Senate, according to a new report. The report by the Mackinac Center shows the state’s 38 senators and 110 representatives missed a combined 1,055 recorded roll call votes in 2015. That’s down from 1,093 in 2014. Jack McHugh, the …

Now that there is plenty of snow on the ground–thank you Heikki Lunta–it’s a great time to strap on your skis or snowshoes and head out to one of the areas many trail systems. Houghton County is home to the Nara Trails in Houghton, the Maasto Hiito trails in Hancock, …