Jessica Mathews / news@whmi.com


The Village of Fowlerville is the top winner in the 2025 “Put Your Town On The Map” pitch competition from the Consumers Energy Foundation.

A total of $50,000 in grant funding was awarded to the winning projects honoring Detroit Tigers baseball legend Charlie Gehringer, celebrate heritage, and strengthen identity.

The Village of Fowlerville will receive the top prize of $25,000 to develop a mural honoring hometown hero, Charlie Gehringer - a Baseball Hall of Fame inductee who played for the Detroit Tigers from 1924-1942.

Consumers Energy Spokesman Brian Wheeler told WHMI the utility serves really all of the Lower Peninsula in some fashion – which involves a lot of rural areas and a lot of towns that have great history with great ideas and are looking for ways to “put themselves on the map”. He said the projects stand apart from others and will hopefully draw tourists and visitors who are interested in learning more about Fowlerville and other local communities.

Wheeler said this year’s winner is a great project to really shine a light on a local hometown hero by putting up a mural that honors his history and his heritage. He pointed out that there is only ten Detroit Tigers in history who spent most of their career with the team who are now in the Hall of Fame, and Gehringer is one of them. Wheeler said this would be an eye-catching mural and something that would grab people’s attention – noting there are lot of baseball fans in the state and the Tigers are playing well this year. He added personally, he grew up knowing who Gehringer was so if he had an excuse or reason to be in the community, he would want to check it out.


The other winners are:

-Watson Township in Allegan County - $15,000 to Supporting Seven Generations Park, a collaboration with the Anishinaabe (Gun Lake Tribe), Martin High School, and the township, featuring a natural area and veterans memorial.

-Manistee - $10,000 — Creating the Voices of Manistee initiative, a civic storytelling project aimed at strengthening community identity and fostering a sense of belonging among residents.

Consumers Energy Foundation President Brandon Hofmeister commented “Consumers Energy is committed to enhancing the quality of life for our neighbors and communities. We’re proud to invest in these initiatives that will strengthen community identity and improve public spaces.”

The projects were selected by a panel of judges made up of Consumers Energy, Michigan Economic Development Corporation and Community Economic Development Association of Michigan representatives, after being pitched at the Rural Partners of Michigan’s annual Small Town and Rural Development Conference.

Consumers Energy started the competition, which seeks to support communities in Michigan with fewer than 10,000 residents, in 2019.

In 2024, grant dollars were awarded to Imlay City for a public interactive art and audio display, Rogers City for a public art sculpture, and St. Johns for artistic benches throughout the community.