Michigan State Police at the Coldwater post have arrested a total of seven registered sex offenders who failed to verify their addresses during the last quarterly verification period. Sex offenders are required to verify addresses in accordance with the Registration Act. They face being charged with a high-court misdemeanor for failure to do so during the 15-day registration period. The …

John Charles Baird, age 55, of Three Rivers, passed away on Thursday, Feb. 14, 2013 at the Heartland Health Care Center. He was born on Feb. 18, 1957 in Hastings, MI. the son of Alvin and Lucille (Hotrum) Baird. John has been a long time resident of this area. He was self-employed in the landscaping business and spent almost twelve …

Delton Bell, 74, of Mottville Township, White Pigeon, died Friday, Feb. 15, 2013, at Goshen Hospital in Goshen, Ind., following a short illness. He was born March 14, 1938, in Lumberton, N.C., a son of Malcolm and Libby Mae (Locklear) Bell. He had been a resident of the Mottville area since 1955. On Nov. 3, 1956, he married Phyllis C. Carper in LaGrange, Ind. …

Marlyn L. “Peg” West, age 81, of Sturgis, passed away Thursday, Feb. 14, 2013, at Sturgis Hospital. She was born Nov. 28, 1931, in Sturgis, a daughter of the late William and Augusta (Schlorff) Allen. Peg had been a resident of the Sturgis area all her life and was married to Lloyd West for several years until this marriage ended …

Joe Whetstone,age 81, of Constantine, passed away Thursday, February 14th, 2013 at Three Rivers Health Hospital. He was born in Elkhart, IN on December 16, 1931 to John and Susie (Hostetler) Whetstone. Joe proudly served in the Air Force from 1951-1955. On November 23, 1957 he married Carol Larrance. Joe was a Manager at Syndicate Systems in Middlebury, where he …

Kolyn Wayne Harker, infant son of Wayne and Kelli Harker, was stillborn Wednesday, Feb. 13, 2013, at Sturgis Hospital after he had been diagnosed with Trisomy 13, a rare genetic disorder affecting only one in 10,000 babies. He is survived by his parents, Wayne and Kelli (Modert) Harker of Sturgis; maternal grandparents, Scott Modert of Sturgis and Michelle Hershberger of …

Leola D. Geark, age 88, of Sturgis, passed away early Tuesday evening, Feb. 12, 2013, at her home. She was born May 17, 1924, in Nebo, N.C., daughter of the late Sam and Lizzie (Cuthbertson) Dellinger. Leola resided in Sturgis since 1952 coming Marion, N.C., and she was a graduate of Glen Alpine High School with the class of 1942. …

Voters in the city of Sturgis will have an opportunity later this year to decide whether to support a financial request exclusively for road and sidewalk repairs. Members of the city council Wednesday voted to put a millage request proposal before city residents May 7. The question will give city officials an opportunity to dedicate a 3-mil, 10-year property tax …

The Michigan Works! of Kalamazoo-St. Joseph counties is hosting a job fair this weekend to fill more than 500 positions at American Axle in Three Rivers. The company announced earlier this month its plan for a $100 million investment in its Three Rivers plant. About 500 hourly positions and 40 salaried jobs will be available, company officials said. Saturday’s job …

Colon High School will be able to better support its Future Farmers of America students thanks to the generosity of local farmer, Ruby Miller, and America’s Farmers Grow Communities. Sponsored by the Monsanto Fund, Grow Communities provides farmers in eligible counties the chance to win a $2,500 donation for a local nonprofit organization of their choice. Because St. Joseph County’s …