Mia Tavonatti’s 2021 mural on the Be Well buidling on Third Street in Marquette,which is 28 by 65 feet. The Power of Words team began the mural in 2019 and finished in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic among other reasons. (Photo courtesy of Marquette Compass)
The Marquette Beautification and Restoration Committee holds its annual awards ceremony “to educate, to honor and to inspire” the community.
President Jill LaMere gave a welcoming speech honoring the committee’s 45th birthday and the 18th annual awards ceremony.
Vice President Barbara Kelly presented the awards themselves.
Al and Gail Edgars accepted the Youth Award on behalf of Audrey and Peter Kaufman. The Kaufman family has continued to support educational, recreational and other programs and organizations that support Marquette’s children for nearly a century.
Chelsea Monaghan’s mural on the corner of Front Street and Baraga Avenue on the Loyal Tees building in Marquette inspired by the Great Lakes. “Evolve and Stay Involved” is the message that Monaghan hopes to spread to the community. She includes Anishinaabe syllabics and symbolic constellations in this mural and others in order to honor Anishinaabe heritage and culture. (Photo courtesy of Marquette Today)
In 1927, Peter Kaufman’s grandfather, Louis G. Kaufman, established an endowment fund of $100,000 to be used for the “educational welfare” of the children of Marquette.
Presently, the Kaufmans have supported the following programs and more this year: U.P. Children’s Museum, Cancer Care of Marquette, Northwoods Airlifeline, Coats for Kids as well as Marquette Little League, junior hockey and youth soccer.
Next, Kelly presented the Sally Hupy Closser Green Spirit Award — an honor given to those who show an extensive concern for the health and presentation of their environment. It was presented to David and Thu Brule, and accepted by Thu.
The Brules earned the award for their immaculate garden showcasing over 10,000 plants, including approximately 6,000 tulips.
“The attention to detail, the passion for beauty, the love of plants, the painstaking and talented maintenance, and the thoughtful care of this garden thrill and delight all passers-by as new plant varieties come into bloom,” Kelly said as she presented the award.
Jennifer Voegtline accepted the Lifetime Acheivement Award for Peter and Peggy Frazier, who were in Florida.
Peter Frazier, a helicopter pilot during the Vietnam War, volunteered his time to the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary, Rotary and the Lake Superior Theater. He further helped the committee in a pinch during Petunia Pandemonium 37 years ago, donated his boat yard to become the Lake Superior Theater and is known for his “kind heart, infectious smile and unwavering generosity,” according to Kelly.
Peggy Frazier helped establish the Women’s Center, volunteers in Zonta, hosts fundraisers and runs the entirety of the Lake Superior Theater.
This award honors the Fraziers’ “distinctive life together of passionate hard work, devotion to community and dedication to innumerable causes and needs,” Kelly said.
Detective Sgt. Mike Archocosky of the Marquette City Police Department and Marquette city facilities maintenance supervisor Mike Sjolund were honored with the Partnership Award for their work in removing graffiti.
Archocosky, a guest speaker at an MBRC meeting, alerted the committee to a rising vandalism problem, inspiring Project Sparkle, which works to clean up grafitti.
Sjolund worked side by side with the members of the MBRC to test out grafitti removal solutions, purchase paint and supplies and clean up the unsightly pictures.
The Partnership Award was also given to the Ray and Peg Hirvonen Charitable Foundation, the source of funding for MBRC for over 30 years. The Hirvonen fund has given out nearly 49 grants this year totaling up to $750,000 — not including the $1 million donation for the Marquette Bandshell due to be completed in 2025.
Matt and Eric Beardsley received the Barbara H. Kelly Historic Preservation Award for their dedication to fixing up 231 West Washington after a fire scorched its interior.
In the past, 231 had been used as a meat market, saloon, grocery store and telephone office since its building in 1894, but laid vacant when a fire scorched its interior in 2007.
The Beardsleys renovated the space and opened up their 231 West Patisserie in January 2020. The MBRC applauded them for their “remarkable design taste and their investment in Marquette’s historic downtown, bringing a fire-damaged building back from a blight to a beautiful storefront,” Kelly said.
Mary Tavernini-Dowling, CEO of Beacon House — the home-away-from-home destination for families in medical crises — was awarded the Spark Plug Award for her “beautifully decorated” Rose Room.
“Mary’s energy is boundless and her concern for all of her guests provides a comfortable, supportive atmosphere,” Kelly said.
Beacon House Board of Directors President Sue LeGalley accepted the award on behalf of Tavernini-Dowling.
Kaye Hiebel, retired CEO of the Marquette Regional History Center, was also awarded the Sparkplug Award due to her efforts in restoring an old bus terminal into the history center of today. She additionally advised the MBRC during the Front Street irrigation system campaign and wrote many grant applications.
Holiday Inn owners Tim and Dee Dee Larson were honored with the Phil Niemisto Volunteer Award for their continuous support of the MBRC’s end-of-the-year picnic, Petunia Pandemonium and beautifying Marquette.
The same award was also presented to lobbyist, former assistant principal, MBRC chair and Child and Family Services President Nancy Lutey.
Tina McCorkle, a postal carrier for 25 years, also received the Phil Niemisto Volunteer Award for her floral display in front of the Marquette Post Office.
Jane Milkie received the Public Art award on behalf of her daughter, Hannah Milkie, who recently completed the mural on Trenary Toast Cafe’s wall at Washington and Third Street. She’s done other murals at Blackrocks, Temaki & Tea and Rose’s Dugout.
Sawftsea Chelsea Monaghan’s “Evolve and Stay Involved” mural on the Loyal Tees building on the corner of Front Street and Baraga Avenue in Marqette won her the Public Art Award as well. Tiina Morin accepted the award on Monaghan’s behalf.
Finally, Mia Tavonatti was honored with the Public Art Award for her mural on the Be Well building on Third Street inspired by the word “natural.” Michele Treccini accepted the award on behalf of Tavonatti.
Alexandria Bournonville can be reached at 906-228-2500, ext. 506. Her email address is abournonville@miningjournal.net.
