A ceremony to acknowledge improvements made at the St. Joseph County veterans memorial took place last week. Located at the northwest corner of the St. Joseph County courthouse, the memorial now has eight flags flying overhead. The central focus of last Friday’s ceremony was the raising of each of the flags. The U.S. Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps and …

Experts say wet weather this year has led to a booming mosquito population in parts of Michigan. Linda Vail, Ingham County’s health officer, tells the Lansing State Journal it’s been one of the area’s biggest years for mosquitoes. Health experts urge residents to apply repellents during peak mosquito biting periods, such as dusk and dawn, and to drain standing water …

A western Michigan woman says she’s no longer facing a misdemeanor charge after being arrested for failing to renew her dog’s license. Becky Rehr says she drove to the Kalamazoo County sheriff’s office June 23 to prove she recently renewed the license for the family’s 11-year-old dog, Dexter. The Kalamazoo Gazette says Rehr’s 14-year-old daughter waited in the car as …

Ethel ‘Shirley’ Renas, 93, of Three Rivers, formerly of Westland, passed away on Saturday evening, July 4, 2015 at Bowman Place in Three Rivers. She was born on Oct. 16, 1921 in Detroit, the daughter of John and Elsie (Paschke) Mason. In 1952, Shirley was married to Arthur Renas. She was employed by Michigan Bell for 28 years and Westland …

Residents in the village of White Pigeon are advised to boil their water before use until further notice. The village reports recent tests detected coliform bacteria in the village water supply. Area media will be notified when the boil-water advisory has been lifted.

A trio of Three Rivers Board of Education members subject to a recall has filed an appeal to St. Joseph County Circuit Court regarding the result of a clarity/factual hearing last month. The three – Waneta Truckey, Carl Barth and board president Mike Bosma – filed the appeal around noon Monday, the final day of a 10-day window they had …

A warrant is being sought for an Indiana man suspected of being involved in an arson incident Monday at a residence in Three Rivers. Fire crews were called to the 400 block of South Main Street around 2:30 a.m., where the front end of a residence was in flames upon firefighters’ arrival. The victim told investigators she was trying to …

Danna Jae Tipton, age 32, of Jones, MI., passed away on Thursday, July 2, 2015 at her home surrounded by her loving family after a courageous battle with cancer. She was born on September 18, 1982 in Saginaw, MI.; the daughter of Carl Eric Noreus and Doreen Doris (Jambor) Oatten. Danna graduated from Alpena High School. She moved from Grand …

A 33-year-old Constantine man died in a motorcycle accident over the weekend in Constantine Township. Sheriff’s deputies said James Carlson was driving east on Featherstone Road at 3:05 a.m. Saturday when he failed to negotiate a curve a half mile west of Constantine Road. His 2014 Harley Davidson went off the roadway and crashed into two trees. Authorities said Carlson …

The 2015 tax rates for Sturgis city property owners will remain unchanged from a year ago. The Sturgis City Commission recently set the general-operating tax rate at 10.0285 mills and continued a 3-mill levy approved by city voters in 2014 for street and sidewalk improvements. According to Ken Rhodes, city clerk/treasurer, the operating tax rate – about $10.03 for each …