The Heart of the Thumb

Marlette, Michigan is in "The Heart of the Thumb" when Michiganders show their hand to demonstrate where they grew up. The town has 1,800 people with a poverty rate of 26%. I visited my husband's in-laws in mid-July and there was not one child playing at the park in the week I spent there. The pool was the only respite and had the best-paying jobs for teens. There was a real spark in the eyes of the young women who worked there. They wanted badly to graduate and move out of their small town. Abagail, one of my subjects graduated in 2023 first in her class with honors.