The mayor of the city of Elkhart wants to spend $349,000 to buy 80 body cameras for the city’s police force. Mayor Dick Moore was scheduled to ask Elkhart’s city council on Monday to approve the request that’s part of $3.75 million in proposed capital spending for 2015 for the city. The Elkhart Truth reports Moore said in a recent …

Consumer optimism rose in January to its highest level in the past decade. That’s according to the University of Michigan Surveys of Consumers which monitor consumer attitudes and expectations. U-M economist Richard Curtin, who directs the surveys, says most of the gains were recorded since mid-2014. The surveys found the gains during the past six months were as large among households with …

Mr. Robert “Bob” Norman Kerr, age 84, of Three Rivers, passed away peacefully on Thursday, Jan. 29th, 2015 at the Heartland Health Care Center following a lengthy illness. He was born on Jan. 5th, 1931 in Three Rivers, MI. the son of the late Paul and Shirlie (Jacobs) Kerr. Bob has been a lifetime resident of Three Rivers. On Oct. …

Rene L. Kidd Cook, age 56, of Sturgis, passed away Friday, January 30th, 2015 at an adult foster care home in Niles  She was born in Sturgis on May 26, 1958, a daughter of Ralph Kidd and Joyce Tinkham. In January 1987 she married Tony Lee Cook, he preceded her in death on October 2, 2013. Rene was a homemaker, …

Ana Jo Datema, age 68, of Marcellus, MI passed away Thursday, January 29, 2015 at Bronson Methodist Hospital, Kalamazoo, MI She was born August 19, 1946 the daughter of Basil and Josephine (Mikosz) Grimm. On July 17, 1987 she married Ronald Datema who preceded her in death. She was a member of the Marcellus V.F.W. Post 4054 Ladies Auxiliary and …

Three Rivers officials are advising motorists to use caution around the intersection of South Main and Broadway streets, where a small sinkhole has been detected. Partial lane closures in the area will be in place until a repair has been completed and the area subject to repair is in a condition to handle traffic. Motorists who approach the area should …

The automotive-training program at Glen Oaks Community College has received accreditation by the National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence, school officials announced this week. The program has been accredited in the areas of maintenance and light repair. Nationally accepted standards of excellence in areas such as instruction, facilities and equipment were used to achieve the recognition. Automotive Service Excellence is …

A piece of history has been returned to a historic schoolhouse now located in Burr Oak. The bell to Worden School, a former one-room schoolhouse, had been missing since it was stolen in 1974. Sturgis resident Sheldon Fieberkorn was instrumental in finding the bell and last month, it made its way back atop the school building. Fieberkorn said the family …

The Youth Advisory Council of the Sturgis Area Community Foundation recently awarded four grants. An amount of $12,500 went to the Children’s Trauma Assessment Group to provide immediate assessments for children in St. Joseph County who have been exposed to or experience trauma. Sturgis Youth and Family received $2,700 to support its 2015 Parenting Fair. Another $1,600 went to Campus …

After several weeks of gas prices under two-dollars per gallon in Michigan, they’re up above that level. An increase in wholesale gasoline prices is resulting in the price at the pump going as high as $2.19 a gallon in southwest Michigan and $2.39 in Detroit. GasBuddy’s Patrick DeHaan is not expecting prices to fall under the two-dollar mark anytime soon in the …