Author Archives: abfifer

Pilgrims Not at Rest

April 27, 2015 – 9:16 pm

An intra-church dispute is in the news – again. A couple years ago, a pastor and his secretary were both convicted of embezzling funds from their congregation, Pilgrim Rest Missionary Baptist Church in Grand Rapids. Former pastor Arthur Pearson was ordered by the Kent County Circuit Court to pay back $167,000; former secretary Gerolanita Bailey, […]

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Jon’s Ten Biggest Mistakes

April 22, 2015 – 1:36 pm

Jon March is a seasoned litigator with the Miller Johnson law firm in Grand Rapids, who has built a successful practice as a mediator. He published at article in the ADR Section January 2015 newsletter entitled, “My Ten Biggest Mistakes as a Mediator,” and he’s given presentations on this topic; I heard one yesterday at the Dispute […]

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Prosecutor Apologizes for Convicting Innocent Man

March 23, 2015 – 5:27 pm

Here’s a public apology of a different sort: Marty Stroud, former assistant district attorney in Caddo Parish, Louisiana, wrote a letter recently to the editor of the Shreveport Times, in which he apologizes for convicting Glenn Ford of first-degree murder in 1984. Mr. Ford served thirty years in prison before being released last year, but […]

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The Reverend Charlie Jones

March 20, 2015 – 8:24 am

A great man died this week, though few outside of Grand Rapids have ever heard of him. I never met Charlie Jones, but when I hear his name, I think, “forgiver.” Several years ago, after his brother Willie was brutally tortured and beaten to death by four teenagers, Charlie was able not only to forgive […]

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Ring Those Bells

February 23, 2015 – 9:21 am

“Ring Those Bells” is a popular request at Christmas, but who wants to listen to church bells ringing day in and day out all through the year? Not Wolfgang Lassy. He lives near the New Cathedral in Linz, Austria, whose bells ring every quarter hour, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and he […]

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