LYONS, MI – Head west out of East Lansing on I-96 and keep driving. After the exit, turn left at the John Deere dealership. Pass the little church with the steeple and the small parking lot, and follow the road through the farm fields.
Most have been harvested. In one, a combine is still working through the remaining rows of dried corn. Farm equipment occasionally dictates the pace on these two-lane roads, regardless of whether the pavement says you can pass. You might as well slow down and look around.
Eventually, the pavement gives way to dirt and an eagle stares out from a mailbox decorated with an American flag. A black rail fence borders the property, with the words “Simple Blessings” flanking another eagle. A windmill rises above the lawn. Tall pines line the driveway beside a red, white-trimmed barn home.
About 100 yards behind the family home sits Rowe Custom Cabinetry, a long, low building with tan siding, white garage doors, and ladders stored along an outside wall.
It is the kind of business you would drive past if you didn't know it was there.
Inside, on a white worktable surrounded by plywood, cabinet boxes, clamps, and woodworking equipment, stood one of the most recognizable figures in Michigan sports.
Paul Bunyan had come for repairs.
His foot had broken off. His axe was loose. His head and neck area needed some attention, too.
John Rowe and his father, Nick, were happy to see him.
Photo credit: David Harns/Spartans Illustrated
“It’s so cool they got him back, isn’t it?” Nick said, of the Michigan State football team.
Michigan State’s 15-6 victory over Michigan brought the trophy back to East Lansing for the first time since 2021. A few days later, it brought Paul to the Rowes’ shop, where a repair job became another chapter in a family’s long relationship with the university.
Nick had repaired the trophy after that 2021 victory while working in Michigan State’s Physical Plant cabinet shop.
This time, his son got the call.
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