Michigan wildlife officials say 23 wolves were killed in the Upper Peninsula during the state’s first wolf hunt in four decades. That’s well short of the quota, and experts blame frigid conditions. The Michigan Department of Natural Resources said Wednesday that one additional kill was reported on the hunt’s final day Tuesday. The department had a quota of 43 for …

A question of whether to remodel or build a new animal-control facility has been researched by county administrator Pat Yoder. Though Yoder has not yet reached a definitive answer, he said input from animal-control officer Tom Miller has helped him consider suggesting a remodel job. The issue was discussed during the county’s December committee-of-the-whole meeting. Yoder said there seems to …

The idea of St. Joseph County commissioners using iPads was a matter of discussion during the commission’s December committee-of-the-whole meeting. Commissioners agreed the proposal should be tabled until the full allocation of iPads approved for purchase in April. The nine iPads commissioners approved last spring were to be distributed to officials with the prosecutor’s office as well as members of …

St. Joseph County Commission Chairman John Dobberteen said the county might consider employees work a four-day, ten-hour-a-day work week as an option. Dobberteen raised the idea earlier this month, when he said the option would be on the table since the county can’t always afford to increase compensation. The concept is in place at the sheriff’s department as well as …

Grace L. Kurzawski, age 84, of Sturgis, Mich., passed away Friday, Dec. 27, 2013, at Thurston Woods Village. She was born May 9, 1929, in Chicago, a daughter to the late Virgil and Ruth (Cowdery) Donohoo. On May 28, 1949, in Chicago, she married Alfred Kurzawski Sr. He preceded her in death March 10, 1992. Grace has been a resident …

Dwayne Charles Gortner passed away at home on Dec. 19, 2013. He was born to parents Leroy James and Willajean Gortner in White Pigeon, St. Joseph County, Mich. He was a longtime resident of Orcutt, Calif. Before moving to Orcutt, Dwayne lived many years at Eagle Rock, Calif., and White Pigeon, Mich. He served in Vietnam with the Navy Seabees …

This is my final column for the year. It’s been a great year so far, so I really don’t have anything to complain about. Tomorrow is a new day and a new year, and like many of you, I’ve made a few resolutions that, hopefully, I’ll follow through on. Time will tell. One thing I will attempt to do is …

The murder of Sturgis-area CPA David Locey was chosen by a local newspaper as the top local story of 2013. The Sturgis Journal has released its top stories in St. Joseph County for 2013, and the October murder of Locey was the unanimous top choice. Following Locey’s murder, the March fire that destroyed Curly’s in Colon was deemed the second-biggest …

The St. Joseph County Board of Commissioners has approved a service agreement with Ann Arbor-based Merit Network Inc. During their Dec. 17 meeting, commissioners supported the service agreement that comes with the Internet line the county had previously approved and paid for. The service agreement covers a five-year period and will go into effect when the Internet line is installed …

Elmer R. Black, 93, of Three Rivers, passed away on Monday, Dec. 30, 2013. Elmer was born in Sturgis, Michigan on January 24, 1918 the son of Clarence W. and Helen (Sherer) Black, Sr. In 1924 the family moved to Moorepark to reside on the Joseph Wilbur farm, later known as the Plantation. Elmer attended the one room school in …