Various tools valued at nearly $2,000 were stolen last week from a pole barn in Constantine Township. State police were called Dec. 22 to the 62000 block of Beers Road after the owner noticed the items were taken overnight. A similar incident occurred a week earlier, the victim told authorities. A department media release did not indicate the manner in …

James “Jim” Kevin Wolfinger, age 55, of Bryson City, NC, passed away on Monday, December 21, 2015 at his home. He was born September 13, 1960 in San Jose, CA, a son of George and Josephine (Mull) Wolfinger. Jim worked as a self-employed roofer in Daytona Beach, FL most of his life. He also worked with his brothers in tree and …

A gas station in Sherman Township was robbed Sunday night. The St. Joseph County Sheriff’s Department said the suspect entered the Marathon station in the 64000 block of M-66 shortly before 11 p.m. and robbed an employee of an undisclosed amount of cash. The suspect was described as a white man, approximately six feet tall, and wearing a white mask …

Martha M. (Forreider) Merchant, 95, of Kalamazoo, died Thursday evening, Dec. 24, 2015. Martha was born Aug. 26, 1920 in Sidney, Ohio a daughter of J. Isaac and Lulu (Dodson) Jones. She had been a lifelong Schoolcraft area resident and attended Sunnyside United Methodist Church. Martha was preceded in death by her parents; her first husband, Eugene Forreider in August …

Oliver Wendell Roberts, 90, of Leander, Texas, passed away Monday, Dec. 21, 2015, surrounded by his loving family. A Celebration of Life service will be held at 11 a.m., Tuesday, Dec. 29, at Generations Church, 1461 Woodview Drive, Leander, TX 78641, under the direction of Pastor Bob Brydon. Interment with military honors will follow at 3 p.m. sharp in Central …

The village of Colon’s computer system was hacked at some point in the early morning hours Wednesday last week. Village president Tom Tenney said no personal information was compromised. Tenney said the email looked authentic and it indicated it was from the village of Colon. Tenney said when the email is opened, what looks to be the homepage for Google …

Members of the Constantine Village Council are studying a proposal to ban assault weapons. No mention was made at last week’s council meeting regarding a problem with such weapons within the village. Police chief Mark Honeysett said a memo regarding the matter was included in council packets for review at the request of village president Pat Weiss. Weiss was absent …

The city of Sturgis is considering a new contract with the Sturgis Neighborhood Association that will increase the city’s annual financial commitment to the housing non-profit by more than $35,000. City Manager Mike Hughes endorsed the new proposal, saying the local private, non-profit group provides valuable services that improve the city’s overall housing stock and bring abandoned properties back on …

A state-administered survey found that people who had dealings with St. Joseph County courts this year are satisfied with the experience. Using a survey conducted in courts statewide, the 45th Circuit, 3B District and 75 Probate courts asked questions about their level of satisfaction with court services. Across the board, court users said all of the county’s courts were accessible, …

WHEELING, WV – Rebounding from a 5-2 loss to the Fort Wayne Komets on Saturday night, the Kalamazoo Wings (11-16-2-1) defeated the Wheeling Nailers (14-12-1-2) by a score of 7-4 on Sunday evening. The two weekend games were the first for the K-Wings since last Saturday night as they had a week off between games for Christmas. Many players were …