Iconic giraffe statue returns to Meijer gas station

Iconic giraffe statue returns to Meijer gas station

Posted Tuesday, August 24, 2021 4:11 pm

TUESDAY, Aug. 24 — Rest easy, Lansing: The giraffe statue that was emoved from atop the Meijer Express Gas Station on Saginaw Highway last week is back.

The iconic statute — which had been perched above the westside gas station for decades — was removed last week amid ongoing renovations. Its absence ignited a social media panic among many longtime Lansing residents, even triggering an online petition to “put the Meijer giraffe back on the gas station or so help me” that has garnered nearly 900 signatures over the last week.

Those efforts appear to have been successful.

Meijer had planned to hoist the giraffe back atop the gas station in “a couple months” when the project is finished, store staff told City Pulse last week. Those plans appear to have changed. Crews are still working on the canopy shelter; the giraffe has instead moved to the roof of the building.

“We’ve had so many people asking about it,” a clerk told this reporter last week. “It’s wild.”

The origins of the giraffe statue aren’t totally clear, according to store officials. Calls to Meijer corporate offices were not immediately returned. But local lore offers a variety of explanations.

One online blog reports that the statue was installed on the roof in the late 1970s or early 1980s and was once part of a series of animals that were used to mark parking lot sections to help customers remember where they parked. The store eventually shifted to letter signs instead.

Lansing Facts also proposed another satirical explanation: The giraffe is a tribute to founder Fred Meijer’s pet giraffe, Gerold. And the reason the stores have such high ceilings? Because Fred used to ride his giraffe around the grocery stores during their annual inspections.

Regardless of its true origins, residents can rest easy while construction continues at the gas station, knowing the building is entirely fenced in and monitored by 24/7 video surveillance.

Republican House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy defends Reps. Moulton and Meijer over unauthorized trip to Afghanistan: ‘I understand their frustration’

House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy said it was a bad idea for congressmembers go to Afghanistan.

But he defended Reps. Meijer and Moulton for making the trip, saying “I understand their frustration.”

“They’re both veterans, they’re both frustrated,” McCarthy said.

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Republican House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy defended Reps. Republican Rep. Peter Meijer of Michigan and Democratic Rep. Seth Moulton of Massachusetts after they took an unauthorized trip to Kabul, Afghanistan on Tuesday.

Asked about the congressmen’s trip during a Wednesday press conference, McCarthy did say that members of congress should not travel to Afghanistan right now. But he also took the opportunity to echo the duo’s frustrations with the evacuation effort.

“They’re both veterans, they’re both frustrated, they have an administration that won’t tell them the answers to how many Americans are left,” said McCarthy. “So yes, it’s not the best idea to go there, but I understand their frustration.”

“They realize it’s life and death. So yes, they made a decision to try to do something on their own,” McCarthy added.

McCarthy said he is discouraging members of his own caucus from going. “I think it creates a greater risk,” he said. “You’ve got enough Americans over there that are being held hostage, they’d make a point out of a member of Congress.”

McCarthy further defended Meijer, a Republican, towards the end of the press conference. “I talked to Peter Meijer a couple different times. I’ll show you–– the text that he sent me was working to get people out,” he said. He later clarified that he did not speak to Meijer during the trip and was not aware of it ahead of time.

McCarthy declined to say whether Meijer would face any disciplinary actions for taking the unauthorized trip.

In contrast, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has been firm in her criticism of the two congressmen.

“It was not, in my view, a good idea,” Pelosi said at her Wednesday morning press conference. Pelosi on Tuesday night circulated a letter among her colleagues discouraging further travel to the region.

On Tuesday morning, Reps. Meijer and Moulton made an unauthorized trip to the Kabul airport amid the US evacuation effort. They “figured out a way onto an empty military flight going into Kabul,” according to The Washington Post.

“It’s as moronic as it is selfish,” a senior administration official told The Post anonymously. “They’re taking seats away from Americans and at-risk Afghans — while putting our diplomats and service members at greater risk — so they can have a moment in front of the cameras.

In a joint press release, the congressmen said they went to Kabul to “provide oversight” on the evacuation effort and claimed that they sat in “crew-only” seats to ensure they didn’t take the spot of any evacuees.

One Good Thing: A moment of kindness at Meijer

An anonymous buyer warmed the heart of a woman who couldn’t afford all her groceries.

Sometimes we come across a story that has no video or photos associated with it. It’s just heartwarming. I want to share one of those today. This good deed was spotted on a Grand Haven Facebook page, written by Alexis Wilson:

“Hoping that the woman who helped me today sees this. I was just at the Meijer on Marketplace with my daughter. Our family has been struggling to afford groceries since our food assistance got turned off. I ended up having to put back a good amount of food… and the woman behind me paid for everything I had to put back. If you are in here, I just wanted to say thank you for not only showing my daughter there are great people in this world, but also your kiddos who were with you.”

There are good people in this world. And even when we can’t identify them, we like to recognize them. One Good Thing to that woman who anonymously paid for groceries for Alexis Wilson and her family at the Marketplace Meijer.

And thanks to Alexis for putting that story out into the world.

If you have a One Good Thing you’d like to submit – someone or something that makes West Michigan a good place to live – email with your photos and/or video at OneGoodThing@13OnYourSide.com.

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