I would like to take this opportunity to introduce you to my birthplace, Grand Rapids, Michigan. Grand Rapids is located about thirty minutes from the sandy beaches of Lake Michigan. The city was first inhabited by the Ottawa Indians, who settled along the banks of the Grand River. The city was settled by French fur traders in about 1826. Grand Rapids was originally known as the Nation's Furniture Capital because of its excellent lumber industry, and it is still known for its many national and multi-national headquarters including Steelcase, Herman Miller, Haworth, Alticor (formerly Amway), Wolverine World Wide, and Meijer stores. Large immigrant populations from Poland, the Netherlands, and other European countries settled in metropolitan Grand Rapids in the late 1800s and early 1900s. They brought with them a variety of skills and traditions, which
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