Seven organizations benefitted from the 2020 Shipshewana Lights of Joy event. In all, $7,000 was distributed to the groups, which received $1,000 each. They are: LaGrange County Habitat for Humanity, LaGrange County Night to Shine, Boomerang Backpacks Inc., Blessings in a Backpack, Elijah Haven, Compassion Pregnancy Center of LaGrange, and The Arc of LaGrange County. The funds were raised through …

The city of Sturgis is asking its residents to monitor their waterlines and consider employing a measure to prevent the lines from freezing. According to a city-issued media release, its department of public services is suggesting residents run a tap of water at a slow trickle to keep water moving through lines feeding from outside to inside. Symptoms of potentially …

Cass County sheriff’s deputies responded last week to a single-vehicle crash in Wayne Township. Authorities said deputies were called at 11 p.m. Feb. 3 to Ruby Road, near Swamp Street. Investigators found a vehicle driven by 26-year-old Joseph Badner was northbound on Ruby Road when it struck a concrete barrier and went over a bridge. Badner was extricated from the …

Branch-Hillsdale-St. Joseph Health Agency plans to stage three vaccine clinics this week in its tri-county service area. Whether agency officials are able to follow through, however, is contingent on delivery of an expected allocation of vaccine today. Registration links on its website are open beginning at 9 a.m. each Monday. Appointment slots typically are filled within 20 minutes. Health agency …

Officials from Sturges-Young Auditorium have announced the facility’s Sunday brunch has resumed. The meal is offered 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. The auditorium’s brunch had been put on hold due to the pandemic. Patrons may dine socially distanced in the center’s ballroom and masks are required until patrons are seated. Takeout and delivery options also are available. COVID- 19 mandates …

Twelve students in the advanced Career and Technical Education graphic design cohort at Glen Oaks Community College recently presented branding and advertising projects to a panel of outside judges. As part of the project, students developed a fictional company and created corresponding logo designs, print materials, design spec-sheets and website homepage mockups. They presented their work and interacted with judges …

Final details regarding a long-overdue municipal project are being worked out by Vicksburg officials. Village council members heard an update Feb. 1 from village manager Jim Mallery centering on a new public works salt building. It will replace a facility constructed in the 1950s on North Main Street. The building in question is 70 years old and has served the …

Louis Dean Hartzell, age 81, of rural Three Rivers, died Thursday, Feb. 4, 2021 at his home. He was born in Vandalia on July 18, 1939 the son of Glenn and Ada (Smeltzer) Hartzell and was a lifetime resident of the area. Raised on a farm, Louis graduated from Marcellus High School. He was employed by Continental Can Company and …

An Indiana man died in a single-vehicle crash Thursday in Cass County’s Porter Township. Sheriff Richard Behnke said deputies were called shortly before 1 p.m. to an area on U.S. 12, just west of Birch Road. A vehicle driven by 63-year-old Douglas Vankirk, of Mishawaka, appeared to be traveling eastbound on U.S. 12. Investigators said Vankirk lost control of the …

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and MDHHS Director Elizabeth Hertel announced Thursday the return of high school sports. Speaking at a press conference from Lansing, Whitmer announced the return to sports will start taking place next week. Indoor contact sports coming back include basketball, ice hockey, competitive cheer and wrestling. Each sport can begin contact practicing, with masks, on Monday. Basketball can begin competition with …