Faith, Football & Farming: Small Town U.S.A.
When you type "Beal City, Michigan" into Google three things show up: football, the Catholic Church and Google maps. The map shows the rural town that is predominantly farmland. The town is centered around St. Joseph the Worker Catholic Church, the only church in town. Beal City is a satellite town to Mount Pleasant, Mich. with a population of only 345 people.
The community members are very religious and have a strong sense of support, especially for their football team. The town buzzes in the fall once the football season starts. Every Friday night the town come alive and supports the Varsity Football Team at their games. After the games the two bars in town are the busiest they will be all week. The town settles until Church on Sunday. The pews will be full of family and friends, everyone knows everyone, which makes the setting very friendly and relaxing.
Sara Schafer looks over Grace Schafer's shoulder as they stand with their friends at the Beal City High School after a basketball game on March 16, 2015.
Edna Rau, whom has been living in Beal City her whole life, has a home in the center of town across the street from the St. Joseph the Worker Catholic Church. Every Saturday evening after mass she has her neighbors over to drink a beer or a glass of wine. November 2, 2013.
Beal City Aggies football team took on the Clare Pioneers and won 48-0. The high school varsity football team has gone to the state championships seven times, winning twice over the school's history. October 6, 2013.
A member of Beal City can drive a mile from any point in town and find a dirt road; most of the dirt roads have a farm planted on either side of it. Some rebellious adolescents of the community take advantage of the seclusion and “booze cruise” on a regular basis. November 1, 2013.
Norm Gross talks with his son and grandson after Church on Sunday afternoon April 19, 2015.
Mechanic, Jared Losey, 26 works on a tractor at Tilmann Hardware for a local farmer on Feb. 23, 2015.
David Millard and Andrew Scully play in their aunt’s yard while they are dressed up as Si and Willie Robertson from the television show Duck Dynasty for Halloween. October 31, 2013
A bag of tossed out Bud Light lay atop snow on the side of a dirt road.
This piece of work was started during the Michigan & Me workshop at Central Michigan University with Danny Wilcox Frazier. Faith, Football & Farming; Small Town U.S.A. forced me to take a step back into the small town that I grew up in and photograph the feeling that each member of this village gets to feel everyday.