Thirteen employees were recognized Tuesday for their milestone years of service to St. Joseph County. County commissioners staged their annual recognition ceremony, which was capped by an emotional tribute to sheriff Brad Balk by commission chairman Dennis Allen. The recipients were 10-year honorees Betty Persons, Commission On Aging senior center coordinator; Tim Hochstetler, building and grounds director; and Joseph Bingaman, …

State police are investigating the theft of firearms from a storage unit in Sturgis. According to a department media release, the incident occurred between Oct. 1 and Monday at H2 Self Storage. The suspects took multiple long guns along with other personal items. The victim reported the incident around 2 p.m. Monday, according to authorities.

My name is Xena.  I am a one year old, female, tabby.  I was brought in to Animal Control to find a new home.  I am housetrained and I love attention.  When the lady took my picture I nestled into her hand and arms.  I love to be petted and cuddled.  Help me find my new home.My docket number is …

Three Rivers Health welcomes the addition of Samantha L. Leonard, MD, a general surgeon who will be providing services to patients at Three Rivers Surgical Services located at 715 S. Health Parkway in Three Rivers. She is accepting new patients now. Please call 273-8471 to schedule an appointment. “My areas of interests are breast disease and breast cancer, diseases of …

A U.S. Postal Service truck was stolen from the Sturgis post office and its driver led police on a high-speed pursuit late Sunday. Around 9:30 p.m., White Pigeon police spotted the truck near the intersection of U.S. 12 and Lutz Road. When an officer attempted to stop the vehicle, its driver continued west on U.S. 12 at high speed. The …

A longtime fixture with the Centreville Downtown Development Authority is stepping down due to health reasons. Members of the Centreville Village Council last week accepted the resignation of Carol Snow Penn, program manager for the community’s DDA. Snow Penn’s resignation is effective Nov. 15. In the role she has held since February 2012, she helped businesses any way possible and …

The St. Joseph County Road Commission is wrapping up work on the Dean Street bridge, north of Centreville. The process includes a step called post-tensioning, which was used on a Heimbach Road bridge last year. Road commission officials said the procedure begins with stripping all pavement, pulling out pins that held the bridge together, performing the post-tensioning, refastening, then repaving. …

Vivian Ialeen Miller, age 88, of Sturgis, passed away early Monday morning, Oct. 15, 2018, at the home of her daughter Cheryl in Portage. She was born July 29, 1930, in Howe, Ind., a daughter of the late Kenneth and Ruth (Kline) Wisler. Vivian had resided in Sturgis for the past 58 years. Her early life was spent in Howe, …

Lodema “Vonnie” Sobie, age 76, formerly of Constantine, passed away Sunday, October 14, 2018 at Fairview Nursing Home in Centreville. She was born in Tulsa, OK on July 29, 1942 a daughter of Norville and Ella Lodema (Bucklin) Rust. Lodema graduated from Hillsdale Adult Education in the 1970’s. In 1959, she married Donald Inmon; they were later divorced. On February …

Michael Eric Bordner, age 72, of Sturgis, passed away Saturday afternoon, Oct. 13, 2018, at Borgess Medical Center in Kalamazoo. He was born Jan. 29, 1946, in St. Joseph County, a son of the late Earl B. and Amy (Anderson) Bordner. He is survived by his wife, Tonya (Davis) Bordner; his children, Amy Pace of Monroe, Phillip Bowen of Warren …