Orrin C. Bowlby, age 77, of Constantine, passed away Saturday, July 4, 2015 at his home surrounded by his family. He was born the son of Hiram H. and Hazel E. (Kreitzer) Bowlby on August 28, 1937 in Constantine, MI. Orrin graduated from Constantine High School in 1956. On November 20, 1960 he married Jama L. Spencer. He retired from MMPA in …

Thousands of gamblers might have been dealt a bad hand at a southwestern Michigan casino. FireKeepers Casino Hotel says someone got access to the computer system, which held information from 85,000 credit and debit cards used for food, beverage and retail purchases, from September through April. Employees were also affected. In a statement Thursday, FireKeepers says it has no evidence …

Betty Irene Shingledecker, age 79, of Three Rivers, formerly of Marcellus, passed away on Thursday, July 2, 2015 at her home surrounded by her loving family. She was born in Kalamazoo, MI., on May 28, 1936 the daughter of the late Ross and Zola (Kellogg) Morrison. Betty graduated from Delton-Kellogg High School in 1954. In 1971 she was united in …

Marilyn J. Franks, age 78, of Three Rivers, died Wednesday, July 1, 2015 at Borgess Medical Center in Kalamazoo. She was born on Feb. 8, 1937 in St. Joseph, MI the daughter of the late August and Lydia (Wutzke) Franks, and was preceded in death by her brother, Edward A, Franks. She is survived by a nieces, Laurel (Rick) Cordes …

Helen Louise Jordon, age 87, of Vicksburg, went to be with the Lord on Thursday, July 2, 2015 in the presence of her family. She was born in Jackson, MI on May 9, 1928 the youngest of four children born to the late Harry and Mabel (Enos) Evans. She was married to Robert James Jordon on July 3, 1948 at …

Three Rivers police K-9 Hondo passed away last month at Michigan State University following a battle with cancer. Hondo had worked for the department the past five years. Officer Matt Stark, Hondo’s handler, said his companion was a happy and loyal dog. In his five years on the force, Hondo was able to help police locate several fugitives in and …

The Colon Area Chamber of Commerce has announced its 2015 Citizens of the Year are Joseph and Paige Smolarz. During their 25 years in Colon they have become deeply entrenched in the Colon community and extremely active in school and community events. Village trustee Edith Doenges said Joe is an avid supporter of the village’s police and fire departments, allowing …

St. Joseph County commissioners recently gave their approval to a request made by circuit court judge Paul Stutesman regarding an out-of-state travel notice. In a memo to commissioners, Stutesman stated he would like court administrator Kathy Griffin to attend the National Association for Court Management’s annual conference in Louisville, Ky. Two nights of lodging during the weeklong conference later this …

The Kalamazoo Wings have hired Joe Roberts as its new director of public relations and broadcaster. Roberts began his professional career with the K-Wings as an intern during the fall of 2010, and has since been employed by the team in several different capacities. Most recently, his responsibilities included acting as the in-game emcee and PA announcer during the 2014-15 …

A 13-year-old Detroit area boy with a visual impairment due to albinism has been denied the use of an easier-to-see baseball during a national Little League tournament. WJBK-TV and MLive.com report that Ryan Huizdos’ Grosse Pointe Woods team was told the yellow baseball he uses while batting in local games was not approved by the national organization. Ryan played in …