St. Joseph County’s Board of Commissioners this week agreed to a change in program description related to the Michigan State Housing Development Authority Community Development. The amendment to the funding award calls for the county to use community development block grant funds for the Homeowner Rehabilitation and Emergency Repairs program. The project will include administrative costs. St. Joseph County will …

Four personnel matters were approved Tuesday by the St. Joseph County Board of Commissioners. Mark Harter was brought aboard as a full-time park ranger at $15.90 an hour. Meanwhile, Linda Wyckoff and Virginia Soule were hired as home-care aides with a pay of $10.70 an hour. Also, Melton Powell was hired as a chore worker for $9.50 an hour. The …

The recent cold is making the Great Lakes ice cover grow rapidly. An MLive meterologist reports that all of the Great Lakes have seen the amount of ice grow in the past week, but Lake Michigan’s ice cover has almost doubled in the last seven days. The amount of ice currently is still behind last winter at this time, but …

A Dowagiac man died Sunday after being pinned by a skid-steer loader he was using to plow snow. Police say they were called Sunday afternoon to Cass County’s Wayne Township after 53-year-old Paul Williamson become pinned by the loader while clearing snow. Officers say Williamson was reaching out of his skid steer when his foot hit the hydraulic pedal to lift the …

I consider myself to be a fun-loving person. I’ve been known to play a few practical jokes on friends from time to time, and I’ve had practical jokes played on me more times than I care to remember. We can all use a good laugh as long as no one gets hurt either physically or mentally. My oldest brother used …

Herman B. Hodge, age 82, of Matteson Township, passed away Saturday, Feb. 14, 2015, unexpectedly at his home. Herman was born March 21, 1932, in Orland, Ind., a son of the late Eugene and Cora (Huff ) Hodge. He graduated from Reading High School and lived most of his adult life in the Bronson area, where he was a member …

The federal government and local partners are pumping $13.6 million into an initiative to boost water quality in the St. Joseph River Watershed, which covers 210 miles in Michigan and Indiana. U.S. Sens. Debbie Stabenow and Gary Peters of Michigan and Joe Donnelly of Indiana on Monday announced details of the project, which includes $6.8 million public investment that is …

Donna J. Hokanson, age 77, of Marcellus, passed away Monday, February 16, 2015 at Borgess Medical Center. She was born February 5, 1938 in Chicago, IL the daughter of Roy Axel and Beulah Barbara (Harris) Greenland. Surviving is one daughter, Linda Hokanson (Raquel Goad) of Bloomington, IL and one son, Mark (Andre Tompulis)of University Park IL; one brother, Donald (Pat) …

A number of officials representing the Free and Accepted Masons gathered Friday to attend a rededication ceremony at the Three Rivers Post Office. Staged in honor of the 100-year anniversary since the building’s cornerstone was laid, representatives from the group conducted a review of the cornerstone to assess its compliance with the building standards set by the Masons. Utilizing a …

State Rep. Aaron Miller, chair of the House Appropriations State Police subcommittee, issued a statement after Gov. Rick Snyder last week presented his budget plan to the Legislature, which includes funding for the Michigan State Police. Miller said public safety must continue to be a priority and he will work closely with the governor’s office to see that the Michigan …