By Sarah Shurge – On Tuesday, December 19, 2023, the city council selected Diane Webb as the new city manager. Since then, her focus has been improving the city of Wayne. “As long as I can be an asset to the city and continue to drive improvements and increase quality of...

By Sarah Shurge – Congratulations to Lyman Derrick III on being crowned champion at the Division 1 MHSAA individuals bowling tournament on Saturday, March 1st, at Thunderbowl Lanes. Derrick is a Wayne Memorial sophomore and one of only three underclassmen to make the top 16...

By Sarah Shurge – “Our first priority is the people that are coming through the door and helping them,” said Lynn Boertje. Boertje is life-long Wayne resident, has attended St. Mary Parish, Wayne her entire life, and volunteers at St. Mary Community Outreach Center. St....

By Sarah Shurge – Wayne resident, Eula Underwood just celebrated her 104th birthday! Underwood was born March 7, 1921 in Clairton, Pennsylvania. In her younger years, Underwood lived in Warren, Ohio where she graduated from high school and met her first husband. Shortly...

Did you know that Wayne used to be one of the largest Carriage and Sleigh makers in the US? It all began in 1882 when local businessman John Steers wrote in his newspaper “The village presents a rather dull appearance, as farmers are engaged in haying and harvesting”....

Welcome back to another Spotlight Series with Sarah! The series where the writer gets to know the city more personally, while the readers get to know the writer better in the process. This month marks one entire year since I started my column, and next month will be four years...

By Sarah Shurge – “We run our program to prepare them for the next level,” said Steve Brooks, Wayne Memorial boys varsity basketball head coach. Brooks has a long history in coaching, but he cares more about the students than the record. “Anything you want to achieve in...

By Sarah Shurge – Many people celebrate love on February 14th, but Henry and Emma Timmermann celebrated something even more special this month. On Sunday, February 9th, Henry and Emma celebrated their 79th wedding anniversary. A celebratory brunch was held at US-12 Bar...

By Sarah Shurge – After over nine years in Wayne, Helium Studio is making a pivot. Dave and Kim Jenkins, Helium Studio owners, are planning for retirement within the next few years and in turn, plan to close the downtown brick-and-mortar store – Helium Studio, on Sunday,...

By Sarah Shurge – Goudy Park has been undergoing many changes recently and the City of Wayne Downtown Development Authority (DDA) wants your opinion for one of the next decisions. The City of Wayne is partnering with the Detroit Institute of Arts to create a public mural in...

Welcome back to another Spotlight Series with Sarah! The series where the writer gets to know the city more personally, while the readers get to know the writer better in the process. I’ve been writing for The Wayne Dispatch for almost four years now, however, The Wayne Dispatch...

This is the eighth and final installment on the history of the Wayne County Poorhouse and Asylum, commonly known as Eloise. After WW2 there began to be problems with overcrowding and funding at Eloise as priorities shifted. The state was still refusing to take all of its charges,...