Beyond the Bus

The COVID-19 pandemic has been tough on businesses everywhere. Here in Lansing, some of our local businesses have decided to join the fight against COVID-19 and are helping however they can. We want to highlight some of the local heroes who have been going above and beyond to help stop the spread of the virus.

Michigrain Distillery is using their supplies of high-proof alcohol to create hand sanitizer. Co-owner Mike Bird describes how the distillery came to be an essential business in a recent interview with WILX: “Since there’s no more isopropyl, which is what everybody uses to make hand sanitizer with, we’ve turned into an essential organization because we have to use ethanol. It has the same properties as isopropyl when it comes to sanitization, we just stepped it up and decided to make more of it that we can.” 

Dart Container

Dart Container, a Mason-based company which makes food and beverage packaging, said it will donate between 5,000 and 10,000 plastic face shields to Sparrow Hospital in coming weeks to help protect health care workers. “It’s a tremendous honor for our people to play a role in helping protect health care workers on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic,” Dart CEO Jim Lammers said in a recent interview with Lansing State Journal. 

Gier Community Center

Gier Community Center has teamed up with over 20 local agencies to open a gymnasium to the homeless people of Lansing during the COVID-19 pandemic. The gymnasium opened with the help of the Capital Region Housing Collaborative, and is offering 49 total beds. Buses from CATA brought small groups of homeless people to the center, who received bedding, toiletries, water bottles, thermometers, and masks to shield their faces. Read more about the efforts of Gier Community Center here. 

This is a tough time for everyone, but it’s the efforts of businesses like these that will help get us through. Looking to send thanks to local businesses and individuals who have been helping on the front lines? Check out our blog post about spreading positivity amidst COVID-19.

On the road, horn honks are typically used to alert other drivers or pedestrians. Today, they will be used to say two words: thank you.

At 3 p.m., our operators will honk their horns twice in solidarity with transportation workers nationwide as part of the #SoundTheHorn campaign.

“We proudly sound our horn today in honor of transit workers the world over who are doing their part to contain this tragic pandemic,” said CATA CEO Bradley T. Funkhouser. CATA participated in the original campaign on April 16 and again on May 21.

Operators will sound the horn once to thank healthcare professionals, grocery store clerks, first responders, gas station employees, and other heroes who are performing critically essential work during COVID-19. They will sound the horn a second time to thank transportation workers nationwide for getting these essential workers where they need to go.

“During the COVID-19 pandemic, the dedication and commitment of our own essential workforce has been nothing short of heroic,” Funkhouser said. “Our call takers have fielded tens of thousands of calls. Our operators, mechanics, utilities and facilities personnel are working together to fulfill life-sustaining and medically necessary trips, as well as trips to get critical-infrastructure employees to work, often at great personal risk.”

Searching for your own ways to thank essential workers and spread positivity during COVID-19? Check out a few ideas here.

The COVID-19 pandemic has required us to make sweeping changes to our daily lives. Toilet paper is the hottest item on the market. Social distancing is the norm.

For the health and safety of our employees, riders and the general public, CATA even temporarily suspended its fixed-route services. We resumed limited summer service May 26 with rear-door boarding, fare-free rides and mask requirements.

Other public services are adapting as well, such as Capital Area District Libraries.

Since CADL is closed through late June, we're counting down three ways you can still connect with their services.

1. Tune in to a storytime show.

CADLtales is a kid-friendly educational series with stories, songs and learning activities. Shows are filmed at the downtown Lansing branch, so while you may not be able to visit the  branch in person, you can play these storytime shows whenever you’d like.

You can find a full playlist of episodes on CADL’s YouTube channel. Click here to learn more.

2. Go digital with download and streaming services.

Library cardholders can download or stream books, music, movies and more. No need for a Netflix subscription here. A bonus of going digital? You don’t have to go to the library to return borrowed items, so there are no overdue fees.

Explore CADL’s impressive digital library here. It even includes comic books!

3. Create your own historical adventure.

Explore our community’s history through thousands of images and documents with Local History Online. Conduct your own research, go on a virtual historical scavenger hunt or flip through photos that pre-date social media. No library card required.

Click here to start exploring.

Want another look at Stevie Wonder's time in Lansing? Check out this video testimonial from Below the Stacks.