| February 24, 2021 
 For dining enthusiasts, igloos and other creative outdoor dining setups have been a welcome way to support Michigan restaurants during the COVID-19 pandemic. Local eateries across the state got creative in order to follow safety protocols and still host customers during the winter months. Even with a limited amount of indoor dining space now open to the public, restaurants are continuing to offer outdoor spaces as an extension of their dining rooms. We asked readers where we could find the best outdoor dining areas throughout the state and then we visited your favorites. Here's a look at the winners in regions across our two peninsulas.MORE ►Third Nature Brewing built for outdoor dining, and a pandemic  As the United States surpasses a half-million deaths from COVID-19, many are attempting to put the death count into context. Here’s a bit of context for Michiganders: The current pandemic has been the deadliest event in state history, at least in raw numbers. Michigan reported its first coronavirus death on March 18 last year. In the 11 months since, the state has recorded 16,343 COVID-19 deaths, which includes 15,362 confirmed by a positive COVID-19 test and 981 probable deaths based on symptoms. READ MORE  In less than a month after he was released from prison, more than 8,000 strangers raised $271,000 for Michael Thompson to purchase a new home, car, clothing and personal belongings. But not everyone gets the kind of support that has found its way to Thompson, whose sentenced was commuted after serving 25 years for a marijuana-related incident. Leon El-Alamin had a much different experience when he left prison 11 years ago. Now he is working to help the underserved community of ex-offenders, fighting for prison reform for people like himself and Thompson. READ IT HERE
 Soon the exhibition games will start and perhaps new Detroit Tigers manager A.J. Hinch will begin to drop a few hints about what his Opening Day lineup might look like. Until then, we’ll be guessing. So, here we present our first pre-season roster projection. That task is made more difficult by the fact that some of the players whose camp performance will have the greatest impact on this projection haven’t even arrived yet. But, oh well! We're guessing anyway! We’re picking 13 batters and 13 pitchers, which is what most teams are likely to do this season. MORE  Michigan set aside $55 million in state funding to help struggling small businesses hurt by COVID-19 restrictions, but only 17% of the businesses that applied are getting money. Nearly 35,000 Michigan applicants asked for a Michigan Small Business Survival Grant, and 5,960 were awarded funds. The program is helping retain more than 54,000 jobs in Michigan, state officials say. Only 146 businesses received the full grant amount of $20,000. The smallest award was $500. Here's a look at all the businesses receiving funds: MORE Get your local news 24/7 Connect with MLive
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