In this episode of the Max Loves Midland Show, Kevin LaDuke sits down with longtime Midlander John Metcalf, a designer, volunteer, storyteller, and community builder whose life journey stretches from rural Ohio to Japan and ultimately to Midland, Michigan. John shares how his early love of art and reading led him into industrial design, how living and working in Japan shaped his worldview, and how that experience eventually connected him to Midland through a career in exhibit design and a deep commitment to community life. The conversation explores John’s work through Good Design Group, his passion for museum storytelling, his involvement with the Midland-Handa Sister City relationship, and his volunteer leadership with Public Arts Midland and MCTV. Along the way, he reflects on the power of cultural exchange, the importance of civic participation, and why Midland has felt like home for nearly three decades. It is a thoughtful and wide-ranging conversation about design, belonging, creativity, and what it means to invest in a place and its people.
