St. Joseph County’s board of commissioners last week renewed its grant-writer agreement with James Hissong. The employment agreement centers on Hissong providing his services on a part-time basis through June 30, 2019. Commissioners approved a salary of $35,000, and stipulated he provide monthly activity reports at the end of the month and an annual report by the end of June. …

Sturgis City Commission members appointed Travis Klinger to fill the board vacancy created by the resignation of Ina Taulbee. Commissioners took action on the issue Wednesday. The second-precinct term expires in November 2020. Klinger, employed as an RV painter at Coachmen RV, has been associated with the Sturges-Young Auditorium Board and Steering Committee the past two years. Kurt Esseltine, Brandon Kinsey …

Rosella A. Newman, age 92, of Three Rivers, died Wednesday, July 25, 2018, at her home. She was born Feb. 22, 1926, in Dowagiac, a daughter of Joseph and Luella (Probst) Szymonski. She had been a resident of the Three Rivers area since 2011, coming from Mottville, where she lived most of her life. She was a seamstress for Denton …

Joyce M. Adamski, age 79, of Sturgis, passed away early Monday afternoon, July 23, 2018, at Thurston Woods Village in Sturgis. She was born March 16, 1939, in Sturgis, a daughter of the late Peter W. and Roma (Rifenberg) Harker. Joyce was a lifelong Sturgis resident and a graduate of Sturgis High School with the class of 1957. On July …

The murder trial for Zachary Patton, originally scheduled to begin next week in St. Joseph County 45th Circuit Court, was adjourned Tuesday. Patton was scheduled to stand trial for the July 2017 murder of Shane Richardson. The proceeding was delayed so a psychiatrist could evaluate additional medical records to see if Patten is competent to stand trial. No new trial …

A sanitary-sewer overflow was reported earlier this week in Constantine Township. The incident occurred at 10:40 a.m. Tuesday, when a malfunctioning air-release valve caused the overflow along U.S. 131, between Withers and Garber roads. Once the release stopped, the area was vectored of visible liquid and debris by a contractor, and covered with hydrated lime as a precautionary measure. No …

Sturgis Public Schools officials have announced that the original bond to construct Eastwood School has been paid off. The school was built following a 1992 voter-approved bond and opened in 1994 as a facility for fourth through sixth grades. The initial bond was more than $7.5 million, though debt on the 1992 bond was refinanced in 1997 and again in …

Patricia Louise Noel, age 83, of Vicksburg, passed away on Tuesday, July 24, 2018 at her home following a long illness. She was born in Schoolcraft on April 11, 1935 the daughter of Lawrence and Alice (Downey) Beebe. She graduated from Vicksburg High School in 1953 and continued her education at Parsons Business College prior to joining Ronningen-Petter / Dover …

Justin Taylor will be back with the Kalamazoo Wings when they kick off their 45th season of hockey this fall. Taylor, 29, came back from a possible career-ending injury last season to post a career-high in goals scored with 35.  Taylor was also named as the K-Wings MVP last season. During a playoff game against the Toledo Walleye in 2017, …

We are two brothers.  I am Mango I am reserved and take awhile to warm up.  My brother is Mandarin, and I have longer hair, and I am more outgoing and I love to be petted.  I am very playful.  I quickly start to purr But we both started to purr while the lady taking our pictures was with us.  We are five …