Tulip Time Festival: Two unfortunate pieces of news in Holland, MI

By: Chris Johnson

Personal note:

Many in West Michigan have equated Holland with old-fashioned values, conservatism and wholesomeness. And, too, the annual spring tulip festival where the Governor of Michigan shows up dressed in Dutch attire as Holland has a very strong Dutch heritage.

Two unfortunate news items that have brought a lot of attention in recent weeks (1) Tulip Time’s board decided to refrain from endorsing organizations (primarily the Right to Life of Michigan) whose objective is to influence legislative outcomes (according to the Grand Rapids Press). You can read more at:
http://www.mlive.com/news/muskegon/index.ssf/2009/04/right_to_life_float_bounced_fr.html

Another story coming out of Holland, Michigan — Tulip Time operations director arrested for allegedly producing pornographic videos, photos of underage boys

HOLLAND — With Tulip Time just days away, organizers are dealing with the resignation of operations director Tom Westerlund, who police say produced pornographic videos and took pictures of underage boys in various stages of undress.

Tom WesterlundWesterlund, 50, of Grand Haven Township, was arrested and jailed Friday after a joint investigation by state troopers and Zeeland police. He faces federal charges of possessing child pornography and producing images of minors engaged in sexual conduct, with “additional state charges expected,” state police said.

Police began investigating Westerlund on March 25, and he resigned voluntarily shortly after that, ending a 33-year career with Tulip Time, executive director Tamra Bouman said.

Despite Westerlund’s key role in organizing parades and events, Bouman said the weeklong festival, which begins Saturday, will not be affected. His duties, including setting up parades, scheduling and overseeing volunteers, have been reassigned to other workers, she said.

Police have not tied any alleged incidents to the festival, according to officers and Bouman. …
http://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2009/04/tulip_time_operations_director.html

Reading blog comments from the area some have questioned whether there is a connection between what the operations director was doing, the worldview of key decision makers and the decision to boot the highly regarded Right to Life of Michigan from having their float positioned as pro-life.

One blogger stated it this way:

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The issue here isn’t whether us pro-lifers get a float in the parade. It’s that a trusted community member has been found to have ruined the lives of so many families (something that RTL also stands for is the right to enjoy the life you’re given…).
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By the way, this savy ministry, Right to Life of Michigan, found a way to have their float in the parade:

See their blog:
http://rlmblog.blogspot.com/

For 25 years, Right to Life of Holland Area used a prolife float to share the prolife message during the city of Holland’s annual Tulip Time parades. This year their application for entry was denied but they’ve continued in their efforts to affirm the right to life at Tulip Time with the “Red Rose Campaign.”

The following is a statement from Right to Life of Holland Area: Right to Life of Holland Area is deeply grateful and encouraged by the outcry and support from the community.

As you are aware the original application for our float to be in the Wednesday and Saturday Tulip Time parades was denied. We consequently offered to enter our float under the name of Right to Life of Michigan Education Fund which has a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status because it is solely educational. We also suggested that any float that had a long record of participation could be grandfathered in and new entries would be held to the revised guideline.

On April 9, we were notified that the Tulip Time board had “affirmed its recent decision and will be taking no further action.” Regretfully, Right to Life of Holland Area has accepted their decision.

Consequently, the time has come to put controversy behind us and focus on ways to spread life-affirming messages. Right to Life of Holland Area chooses not to promote boycotts of Tulip Time activities. We choose to continue our 25-year history of being a positive part of Tulip Time.

We are pleased to announce that our float will be on display during Tulip Time at 1 Graves Place in Holland, just east of Centennial Park. We are also pleased to announce the “Red Rose Campaign.”

The red rose has long been the symbol of life. We have designed a special T-shirt with a red rose and the words “Life a Precious Gift,” which we encourage our supporters to wear during Tulip Time festivities. More details will be made available soon.

We have also been contacted by many parade participants asking how they can show their support for life. We suggest that they wear an arm band of a one-inch red ribbon on their left arm.

Our hope and prayer is that those who have phoned with words of encouragement, written letters to the editor, signed the online petition, made helpful suggestions, etc., will join us by participating in our “Red Rose Campaign” at the Tulip Time festival.

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American Decency Association
Bill Johnson, President
P.O. Box 202
Fremont, MI 49412
ph: 231-924-4050
https://americandecency.org

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