How JC3 is Evolvinginto Stay Lifted and the Woman Who's Making it Happen

Everyone who is Anyone, Knows Brenda and Roger from the Jackson County Compassion Club

 

by Benjamin Horner

 

In 2009, Roger Maufort founded the JC3 (more formally the Jackson County Compassion club), a private club for medical marijuana patients and caregivers. JC3 grew to having over 14,000 members. The club sponsored hundreds of cancer patients to get their Michigan Medical Marihuana Program cards and try Rick Simpson Oil (aka, RSO) for free. As the secretary of JC3. Brenda Lutz spent her thirties learning through experience every aspect of medical marijuana and quickly grew to be recognized as an expert. Roger directed JC3, and cemented himself as a hero to the community and leader in the legalization movement in several petition drives.  If it wasn't for places like JC3, we would not have been able to legalize marijuana in Michigan.

 

In 2013, Jackson County Compassion Club, moved away from providing clones, in favor of high-quality seeds. Clones can often be contaminated, so more advanced grower prefer to make their own mother plants from seed versus getting a clone from another’s grow. As the membership grew so too did the Seed Cellar, that was formally established as a stand-alone company in 2016, and has over 3500 seed strains. 

 

In 2017, Roger decided he it was time to turn the reins over to his daughter Brenda, who was eager to meet the challenge of navigating the complicated labyrinth of local municipal administration, stonewalling state and local authorities. Maufort maintained the Seed Cellar, which remained open, in the original location on Michigan Ave in Jackson, after the JC3 was asked to close by the local police following the announcement by the State of Michigan that they would be considering which existing cannabis facilities to license under the recently passed, MMFLA. Brenda along with her good friend and grow partner, Jon Bozung, found a suitable place to reopen the JC3 in Leoni Township just outside of the city Jackson.  

 

Brenda and Jon were determined to get one of 6 licenses in the township, and camped out behind the township office for 4 nights, because for some reason Leoni Township was not being forthright about when you could apply. Due to self-created confusion Leoni Township faced multiple lawsuits. Leading the way was Brenda and her attorney, who prevented the good old boys from boxing them out, forcing the township to consider all 15 qualified applicants. Having been an existing medical marijuana facility, JC3 was able to reopen under what was then called “Emergence Rules” and continue to serve their patients. Brenda ran one of only two such places and was the only sole woman proprietor of a provisioning center. The compassion club had to transform from a private club to the state model of a provisioning center, the new state term for a dispensary. For two years JC3 was in legal limbo and unable to advertise and promote, and business declined as new companies with big money came in to the Jackson Area and flooded, the area with commercial cannabis.

 

In 2020, after two years of denials and litigation with the state, a circuit court judge ordered the Marijuana Regulatory Agency to give Brenda her medical marijuana provisioning center license. This feat is very rare, but Brenda’s, like most facilities approved by the state, had the requisite significant amount of capital be on the application.

 

In 2022, this last April, Brenda was finally awarded her Adult-Us (recreational cannabis) license. This came late in scoop of the new competition from wealthy investors who already had rec licenses for their dispensaries in the Jackson area. 

 

Present day, Brenda is now ready to take back all that was effectively stolen by the capitalist men who were fast tracked to the front of the line to get licensed before her. “Get Lifted” will be the new name of JC3, but Brenda doesn’t’t want Michiganders to forget the origin story. 

 

“Unlike most places we take time to really communicate with our customers, which is what makes us different,” explained Brenda, as she gave the MM Report a tour of the Get Lifted store. “Jackson is not like Ann Arbor, we have to provide cost effective products, twenty-five dollar quarters of quality flower to be competitive.” 

 

Brenda’s dispensary has a very maternal interior decor, with a surprisingly diverse selection of flower and products including her favorite strain, Wonka Bars, which tests at 34% THC. Roger pops in to see Brenda regularly and say high to everyone, but stays focused on genetics at the Seed Cellar, a proud father of an amazingly powerful and determined independent woman and ganga goddess. The old JC3, now Get Lifted is worth driving to and meeting Brenda, her spirit and good karma can lift the visitors spirt and inspire you too dream big. Soon she will acquire a license to grow her own strains and make her own products. Having watched this 12-year journey we at the MM Report are glad to welcome back one of our oldest and best sponsors, and our readers will too.

DOES MARK FISK HAVE AN IRON FIST?

DOES MARK FISK HAVE AN IRON FIST?

By

Tim Beck

Except for a short announcement in "Crain's Detroit Business" and reports in an insider Lansing political watchdog publication, MIRS News (subscription starts at $2,700 a year) there was very little public fanfare when Mark Fiske, a principal in the Lansing lobbying and public relations firm "Byrum and Fisk" (BF) became co-executive director of  the "Michigan Cannabis Manufacturers Association" (MCMA).

 

Although BF calls themselves 'non-partisan,' the company has deep roots in the Michigan Democratic Party.

 

In 2008 Byrum and Fisk first began serving as the communications and public relations arm of Prop.1, the statewide ballot initiative which legalized medical marijuana in Michigan.

 

Now, MCMA represents the biggest cannabis businesses in Michigan. The goal of big businesses who pay B & F bills is to essentially legislate medical marijuana caregivers out of existence; in essence, sacrificing micro-growers in order to maximize profits for larger clients.

 

Mr. Fiske, and maybe Ms. Byrum, will now be fighting to euthanize the small business /caregiver system which they thoughtfully promoted and initiated into law.

 

To date, the MCMA has failed, for almost two years, to get the votes they need to eliminate the caregiver system. In part this is due to fierce resistance from caregiver supporters and the fact that MCMA leaders Steve Linder and Shelly Edgerton have strong connections to the Republican Party.

 

Capitol insiders believe bringing a Democrat power player like Fiske into the picture, will give MCMA the partisan "balance" needed to put them over the top.

 

So who is Mark Fiske?

 

A respectful request by MM Report for an interview to better understand his vision was denied. However, there is plenty of information to be found about him online.

 

According to the BF website, Fiske's "hard nosed approach to campaigns, relentless drive and desire to win led him to be nicknamed the "Iron Fiske" and won him respect from both parties."

 

Fiske first surfaced on the Michigan political scene in 2002, when he served in media relations for the ill-fated campaigns of Democrats Gary Peters for attorney general and Congressman David Bonior for governor of Michigan.

 

Prior to 2002, Fiske was a journalist writing in various capacities for the Oakland Press, Herald Palladium, Kalamazoo Gazette, Detroit News, Detroit Free Press and the Philadelphia Inquirer. From there he moved on to the Michigan House Democratic Caucus as political and communications director. In 2007, he teamed up with State Representative Dianne Byrum, who had been Democrat House Minority leader, and they created Byrum & Fiske.

 

BF's first big contract was with the "Marijuana Policy Project" (MPP) to head up public relations and communications for the ballot initiative, which ultimately legalized medical marijuana in Michigan. I worked closely with MPP to lay the groundwork for Prop. 1 and, in a strange twist of fate, played a key role in recommending BF for the MPP contract: it paid around $10K per month plus expenses. 

 

In Lansing ethics, all lobbying is fair game if it fits through “the Overton Window.”  Joe Overton defined this window as “the range of policies politically acceptable to the mainstream population at a given time.” In 2007 marijuana legalization issues were not politically acceptable. It was considered radical thinking.

 

When all was said and done, BF was the sole winner for the MPP contract.

 

Fast forwarding to the here and now, I spoke with pro-cannabis activists who expressed shock and surprise that Byrum & Fiske were now working to destroy their earlier creation.

 

While Fiskes' recent move may seem unnatural to some, it is nothing new in the Lansing soup kitchen. This has nothing to do with altruism or the nuances of theologically perfect behavior. It's just about business and maximizing profit margins. If the pro-caregiver side had gotten there first, with some hard currency, there is practically no doubt in anyone's mind that BF would be fighting hard for caregivers--rather than the big marijuana companies represented by the MCMA.

 

Will the "Iron Fiske" be able to punch through opposition on the Democratic Party side of the aisle and muster the 3/4 majority needed to change the law to benefit MCMA's clients over caregiver rights? That remains to be seen.

 

Fiske or no Fiske, a 3/4 supermajority vote of the Legislature is needed to change the law and this is a very high and slippery slope to climb. Linder and Edgerton's “putsch” last September to pass their law did not make the cut. Principled Democrats and Republicans, were sickened by the idea of using a government fiat to eliminate the competition for these already very rich corporations. Legislators of conscience in both parties stood their ground and said “no”. 

 

Unless the MCMA can negotiate in good faith and come up with something better than their current model bills; the road ahead for these people should be dark.