News

Overseas voters and military members from Michigan will have more time to cast their absentee ballots in future elections under legislation signed Monday by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. All absentee ballots were previously required to be received at local clerk’s offices by 8 p.m. on Election Day. While military and overseas voters will have to postmark their ballots on or before …

March’s unemployment rate in St. Joseph County decreased by three-tenths of a percent from February. Figures from the monthly labor-market analysis by the Michigan Department of Technology, Management and Budget show St. Joseph County’s unemployment rate fell from 5.1 percent in February to 4.8 percent in March. St. Joseph County’s March 2022 unemployment rate was 3.8 percent. In addition, Cass …

Sturgis Hospital is taking the next step to converting to a rural emergency hospital model. Jeremy Gump, hospital board president, told the Sturgis City Commission last week that as of 7 a.m. today, the hospital will cease admitting inpatients. The announcement was made to hospital employees April 25, Gump said. Emergency services and lab services will continue, Gump said. In …

Michigan State Police troopers are investigating a breaking-and-entering incident that occurred within the past week in Branch County’s Coldwater Township. Investigators were called to the 600 block of Marshall Road, where the victim stated a blue, 14-inch Cobalt chainsaw, and a red, 14-inch Craftsman chainsaw were stolen from a barn. The incident occurred between April 23 and April 27.

The Branch-Hillsdale-St. Joseph Community Health Agency has received reports of cases of Lyme Disease within its three-county jurisdiction. Health officer Rebecca Burns said the arrival of spring and warmer temperatures experienced in March and early April tend to cause ticks to become more active. Ticks will remain active until fall or when temperatures are consistently below 40 degrees. A bite …

A boy grabbed the steering wheel on a school bus and hit the brakes, bringing the vehicle to a safe stop on a busy Detroit-area road after the driver had passed out, authorities said. “Someone call 911. Now!” seventh-grader Dillon Reeves shouted to dozens of other middle-school kids on the bus Wednesday. Dillon was hailed as a hero: He stopped …

St. Joseph County Bar Association has announced the recipient of its annual “Liberty Bell” award. Kelly Hostetler will be recognized next week as the 2023 award winner. Hostetler has been executive director of the St. Joseph County United Way since September 1998. She was involved in the merger of the Sturgis United Fund and the Three Rivers Community Chest to …

Michigan State Police Troopers are investigating the theft of a log splitter from a location in Calhoun County’s Burlington Township. The incident took place between March 1 and April 24 from the 7000 block of N Drive South. The stolen item is described as a Huskee brand log splitter.

The annual Robert Wood Johnson Foundation national county health rankings for Michigan are out with a wide gap between members of the Branch-Hillsdale-St. Joseph Health Agency. Health officer Rebecca Burns said according to the statistics, Hillsdale ranks 32nd, Branch is 57th and St. Joseph 63rd. According to the statistics, Hillsdale, overall, is the healthiest in the tri-county area, Burns said. …

The Colon Chamber of Commerce is hosting a networking event for area business owners next month. The May 11 event, being promoted as the Colon Chamber Open House Mixer, starts at 6:30 p.m. at the Grand Magic Theatre on East State Street in downtown Colon. Organizers said anyone who owns an area business is invited but should still RSVP. Participants …