Neighbors | Sharon Arntson

Technically speaking, this portrait could be a lot better.
But I really appreciate it.

I learned this summer not to obsess over making a portrait that is completely literal –
Instead, capture personality. Life.

I left with several different portraits, but this one consistently stuck out to me.
This was the most genuine and warm. This defined Mrs. Arntson.

Lyle Dotson | A Soldier's Sacrifice

CITIZEN PATRIOT • ASHLEY MILLER
Lyle Dotson of Jackson left high school to serve in the Army
during World War II. He is now devout member of the Pentecostal
Church of God with his wife, Etta.

As Vandercook Lake High School’s Class of 1943 prepared to graduate, Lyle Dotson decided to leave school without a diploma to serve his country in World War II.
“I went home that day and talked to my mother and father and asked, ‘Would you guys co-sign for me to go into the Army?’ ” Dotson said.
When his father asked why, he responded: “To get the war over with.”
Dotson, now an 84-year-old Jackson resident, said that within a month, he was in a train station in Detroit with 48 other soldiers.
Dotson’s unit was stationed in France when he received news the war was over. He spent the remainder of his three years overseas working in the cleanup detail.
“I enjoyed going in. I saw a lot of the country,” Dotson said.
Sixty-two years after Dotson left high school, he was offered a diploma from Vandercook Lake High School. There were 65 graduates, Dotson said, and he was the 66th.
At the graduation ceremony, several female students from Spring Arbor University spelled out his name on white T-shirts.
“I got a standing ovation, and I felt real proud,” Dotson said. “But I had to leave the stadium and go around back because I cried. I felt like the king of the rock.”

Neighbors | Walter & Lucille Wrozek

CITIZEN PATRIOT • ASHLEY MILLER
Walter and Lucille Wrozek smile as they talk about their wedding 58 years ago
at their home in Jackson. The Wrozeks spend the majority of their time volunteering.
"It draws us closer together," Walter said.

Walter Wrozek dedicated his early years to serving his country in the U.S. Navy. Now in retirement, he serves his community alongside his childhood friend and wife, Lucille.
The Jackson couple have spent the majority of the past 30 years volunteering in the community where they were born and raised. Lucille’s late mother volunteered for the Retired and Senior Volunteer Program and hoped the Wrozeks would take her place.
“My mom said, ‘I am ripening these two children up so they will volunteer after I am gone,’” Lucille said.
One thing led to another, Walter said, and the Wrozeks began to serve at several places, including area care homes and churches.
“We need a calendar to keep track of everything,” he said. “We are very active in this community.”
The time spent dedicated to community service has drawn the couple closer together, Walter said.
“We don’t take anything unless we can volunteer together,” Walter said.
He noted that during their working years, they “had to be separated.”
The Wrozeks believe volunteering has kept them in good health. Walter said while they intend to lighten their schedule, they will continue to volunteer.
“The good Lord has been good to us,” Lucille said. “We are so thankful we’re healthy and able to give ourselves to someone else.”