Marie Havenga is a veteran journalist of more than 30 years. The Grand Rapids native launched her journalism career at age 15, writing for WorkWeek, a weekly business magazine. She joined the Grand Haven Tribune staff as a columnist and reporter in 2003, after writing for the Grand Rapids Press for more than two decades. A boating and water enthusiast, she lives on the shores of Spring Lake. Havenga has published an environmental children's book and her writing has been featured in several national publications.
Assistant principal learns to live with the unknowns: 'Honestly, none of us are guaranteed tomorrow. None of us are guaranteed tonight.'
High School freshman Austin Craymer adjusts his vocabulary to include words like "chemotherapy" and "cancer" after being diagnosed with T-cell lymphoblastic lymphoma.
Lilly Vanden Bosch, 10, says good riddance to a nasty post-transplant virus.
Cancer patient Steve Johnson says that moments are everything. He wants to spend whatever time he has left helping others.
Kathleen Corey finds a healing path forward after discovering early-stage breast cancer.
Embroiled in a war with mesothelioma, Jim Phillips is armed to the hilt—with tenacity, strength and optimism.
After narrowly escaping death, heart transplant patient Fred Nelis will swim competitively in the Transplant Games.
A rare heart procedure gives Sheryll Neiboer new breath—and a new life.
After a leukemia diagnosis, Doug Ferrin couldn't find a suitable donor when he needed a stem cell transplant. Then cord blood arrived from France.
Although the impact may not be known for years, biospecimen studies help scientists learn what makes cancer tick.
Tim Lemon gets answers after a new technology precisely targets his prostate cancer cells.
A neurologist helps debunk some of the common misconceptions about this deadly disease.
