County Information

History was made last week in Centreville, as a pair of Three Rivers residents became the first same-sex couple to marry in St. Joseph County. Not long after the U.S. Supreme Court on Friday legalized same-sex marriage nationwide, Susan Henry and Dawn Munson arrived to county clerk Pattie Bender’s office to complete a marriage license. The two decided on a …

Three school board members subject to a recall have through Monday next week to appeal a decision Friday that will allow the process to continue. Three Rivers Board of Education members Waneta Truckey, Carl Barth and board president Mike Bosma did not indicate after Friday’s clarity/factual hearing what course of action they plan to follow. The three-member St. Joseph County …

St. Joseph County officials hope a program they have discussed will increase the number of quality candidates for deputy positions with the sheriff’s department. During an executive committee meeting earlier this month, county administrator Pat Yoder said undersheriff Mark Lillywhite proposed an idea that is an option for not having a strong candidate pool. Yoder said the process begins with …

Two people were taken to the hospital following a two-vehicle accident earlier this week in Fabius Township. According to the St. Joseph County Sheriff’s Department, 76-year-old Mary Corban of South Bend was driving south on U.S. 131 when her vehicle collided with an eastbound car driven by Catherine Kull, 61, of Niles. Kull was on M-60 and, according to investigators, …

Colon Community Schools addressed a pair of business matters during its June meeting. The board granted tenure to Great Start Readiness Program teacher Sara Lindsey, and high school life skills and English teacher Kim Klocke. Also, the board adopted the district’s 2015-16 school year calendar. The first day will be Sept. 8 – the latest possible start date. Christmas break …

St. Joseph County commissioners last week approved Schaffer Consulting of Bethesda, Md., to review the financial and operating procedures of the Community Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services of St. Joseph County. Commissioners agreed to include the county health department in the study. County administrator Pat Yoder said Schaffer is expected to do a follow-up performance and look at opportunities …

A Colon Township resident, whose plans to develop an operation that would house up to 90,000 chickens, has withdrawn his proposal. The two-barn project was proposed earlier this year by Jonathan Schrock and poised for a location on the north side of M-86, just west of Palomino RV – Division of Forest River Inc. Colon township and village officials, as …

Sturgis Public Schools has announced Nicole Airgood will fill the principal position at Eastwood Elementary, succeeding Bob Matkin, who is retiring. Airgood has been the principal at Wall School since 2009 and prior to that was principal for four years at White Pigeon’s Central Elementary.

A ceremonial ground breaking took place Tuesday for the South County Community Enrichment Center. County, municipal and commission on aging dignitaries gathered at the Sturgis site for a 20-minute program that included the ceremonial dirt-turning. Making comments to the crowd of about 30 people were Sturgis Mayor Ken Malone, Three Rivers City Manager Joe Bippus, St. Joseph County Commissioner Don …

The Michigan Main Street Center has awarded its first Design Assistance service to property owners in downtown Three Rivers. Mike and Nancy Russell, owners of Main Street Café, have plans to purchase and develop the units that previously housed Pub 21 as well as an adjacent site at 23 N. Main St. Depending on the individual needs of the property …