The St. Joseph County United Way is asking for donations to be included in the 2013 Silent Auction at September’s St. Joseph County Grange Fair. Kelly Hostetler, executive director of the local United Way, said with more space gained as the result of a move to inside a barn, plenty of room is available for items to be displayed during …

A prison term in excess of seven years was issued to a corporate official with South Haven-based Village Market Food Centers. Christopher Pratt, who was charged with embezzlement, was sentenced this week in a Kalamazoo federal court after the 42-year-old Pratt admitted a gambling addiction and an extensive car collection were financed through the $6 million he stole. Village Market …

Michigan health officials have identified the states first confirmed human case of West Nile Virus for 2013 in a man from St. Joseph County. Last year, the West Nile Virus was responsible for 202 illnesses and 17 fatalities reported in Michigan. Department of Community Health Chief Medical Executive Dr. Matthew Davis says there is clear evidence that West Nile Virus …

A Greyhound bus passenger is in critical condition after the bus he was riding in rear-ended a tractor-semitrailer Thursday morning on I-94 near Galesburg in Kalamazoo County. The Kalamazoo County Sheriffs Office says 21 passengers were injured when the westbound bus collided with the semi-truck just after 10:15 a.m. Thursday. Eight passengers were taken from the scene to Borgess Medical …

Phyllis Pauline (Stauffer) Jones, age 54, passed away at Bronson Methodist Hospital in Kalamazoo, on Tuesday morning, July 30, 2013. She was born in Sturgis, Michigan, on August 16, 1958 to Henry and Bertha (Bontrager) Stauffer, of Centreville, Michigan, who survive. She married Roger DeVan Jones, of Portage, Michigan, on Sept 26, 1981. He also survives. She is survived by …

Hi, my name is Chevy and this week I am the Pet of the Week. I am a female domestic long hair and am about 12 weeks old. I am black and white and my white whiskers look very cute against my little black face. Being a kitten I like to play and I like people. Please come in and …

Smoke emitting from inside a garbage bag led to drug-related charges against a Colon Township man Tuesday. The St. Joseph County Sheriff’s Department earlier in the day acted on a citizen’s tip regarding a suspicious bag of what appeared to be trash alongside Decker Road in Colon Township. The St. Joseph County Area Narcotics squad was called to the scene …

Jamie Rydman was the winner of the gift bag from the “Sass in the City” promotion in downtown Three Rivers. Billed as a spectacular girls’ night out, the event was July 12. Contributors to the gift bag – which contained items with a value of more than $150 – were Love Your Mother, World Fare, Riviera Theatre, UniQ Jewelry, Parker …

Donald John Bohm, age 66, of Beachwood, NJ passed away Sunday July 28, 2013 at home in the company of family and loved ones. He was born in Sturgis, MI on Sep. 26, 1946 the son of the late Donald Leroy Bohm and Myrtle Frances (nee Bastar) Bohm, and was the elder brother to the late Dale Edward Bohm of …

Tom Douglas Quake, Sr., 71, took his final road trip Thursday, July 25, 2013 in Kankakee, Ill. We cannot count all the friends he made in his 3.5 million miles of road travel in his lifetime. Everyone wanted to sit next to Tom as he always had an enjoyable story to tell. Tom spent many years in different cities including …