| December 27, 2021 
 So you’re a cautious, better-safe-than-sorry sort of parent. And your inclination may be to decide against vaccinating your children for COVID-19. You’ve heard that COVID is generally a mild disease for children, and the vaccine could have side effects. Plus, it’s such a new vaccine. Is it really safe? What about the potential of the vaccine causing health issues down the road? Is vaccinating really necessary? But at this point, the data is clear, experts say: Vaccinating your children is erring on the side of caution, and the virus -- not the vaccine -- presents the larger health risk, even for kids. Since the start of the pandemic, almost 270,000 or 11% of Michigan residents under age 20 has been diagnosed with COVID-19. READ MORE ►FDA authorizes emergency use of two COVID-19 pills to treat mild to moderate COVID-19  Michigan saw a ton of political action in 2021, a year that felt a lot like the last with COVID-19 still guiding our lives and policy. Between a Capitol rioter’s gubernatorial bid; the former House Speaker’s 10-day stint as a Kalamazoo business leader; an accidental Senate adjournment; Rep. Jewell Jones’ decision making and the state’s attorney general having one too many at an East Lansing tailgate, officials have given Michiganders plenty to talk about this year. Meanwhile, lawmakers spent much of 2021 debating how they would move billions of dollars in federal COVID-19 aid. READ MORE  'It's like a dream': Michigan man revels in first year out of prison after serving 25 years For nearly a year, Michael Thompson has been living life on the other side of cement walls, cold metal bars, a monotonous routine with no breaks and the absence of joy. Today, he lives life surrounded by his family, including his daughters and many grandchildren - a true delight - that just was not possible this time last year. Thompson was released from the Charles Egeler Reception And Guidance Center in Jackson on Jan. 28 after serving 25 years in prison. He was sent to prison to serve a 42- to 62-year sentence after he was convicted in 1996 of selling three pounds of marijuana to an undercover informant in December 1994. READ MORE ►Marijuana seizures at the Michigan-Canada border are booming. Here's why  The North Country Trail is massive. It winds through eight states, and at around 4,700 miles, it’s by far the longest in the entire national trails system. Joan Young of Scottville, Michigan was the first woman to hike every step of the North Country Trail and now she’s doing it again. The first time she did it in sections over the better part of two decades. Now, she’s aiming to do it all in a year. Young, 73, started at US-10 and started walking on December 1. Her goal is to finish on December 1, 2022, exactly a year from when she started. READ MORE ►VIDEO: We met up with Joan Young on the North Country Trail  “Jim Plocki is dead,” Jim Plocki said. Not many people can say that, but not many people have experienced what Plocki has the past four years. Michigan football’s performance operations manager, the program’s Swiss Army knife, was told in 2017 he had a 5 percent chance of living. That was before the horrific injury. Before tumors grew inside his body that could have killed him. Plocki, despite his declaration, is alive. This football season, the 56-year-old ran out of the Michigan Stadium tunnel and jumped to touch the banner. He’ll travel with the team to its playoff appearance in the Orange Bowl. READ MORE ►10 Michigan football stories you might have missed this season Get your local news 24/7 Connect with MLive
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