News

St. Joseph County Association of Realtors has named Michelle Williams as 2018 Realtor of the Year. The award is given in recognition of outstanding leadership and service for the association, the community and the real-estate industry. Recipients were chosen and recognized locally and again at the annual Michigan Realtors Convention and Expo next month in Traverse City. Nominees are evaluated on …

Centreville Village Council on Monday tabled amendments to its weed ordinance and open-burning ordinance. Proposed changes to the weed ordinance include a stipulation that weeds must not grow higher than eight inches, and that an annual notification in the newspaper will serve as notice to property owners to keep weeds trimmed. Proposed changes in the open-burning ordinance include adding language …

Daniel Czajkowski was among the individuals honored at the 139th annual convention of the Michigan Funeral Directors Association. Czajkowski, of White Pigeon, was recognized for 40 years of service to his profession. He is the owner of Farrand Funeral Home in White Pigeon, and co-owner of Eickhoff, Farrand, Halverson Chapel in Three Rivers. Following a reception, Czajkowski was presented a …

White Pigeon Community Schools has reached an agreement to retain Jon Keyer as superintendent for the 2018-19 academic year. There is a caveat, however: Keyer will work just 120 days during the school year and his role as high school principal will be filled by a new hire, Todd Reynolds. In addition, associate superintendent Carrie Erlandson will retain her administrative …

A summary of the process through which John Lindsey was hired as road commission managing director was provided by road commission board chairman Dave Allen during Tuesday’s county commission meeting. Allen said he is convinced the board hired the right person. The hiring process took a number of months and was described by Allen as open, methodical and transparent. Allen, …

St. Joseph County’s board of commissioners took care of a number of small matters Tuesday. First, commissioners accepted a secondary road patrol grant from the state. The $60,000 is $6,000 less than what the state awarded a year ago for 2018. The funding covers secondary road patrol by two deputies. Then, commissioners also approved an out-of-state travel request sought by …

State troopers are investigating the theft of a 2017 Pelican brand Catch 120 kayak from a residence in the 27000 block of Mahle Landing Road in Sherman Township. The incident took place at the owner’s dock and occurred between Aug. 12 and Aug. 18. The kayak was outfitted with different fishing equipment.

The St. Joseph County United Way is encouraging the public to help with a back-to-school drive it is staging Friday outside the Sturgis Walmart. From 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., volunteers will be outside the store entrance and collecting school supplies. Event organizers ask that all donations be new and limited to supplies, not clothing. Satellite drop boxes are in …

Troopers from the Michigan State Police Marshall Post are investigating a two vehicle crash involving a mini-van and a motorcycle which happened Wednesay at 12:35pm. The 2006 Kawasaki Vulcan motorcycle, driven by a 37 year old male from Fishers, IN, was eastbound on US-12 in Sturgis, when a 2010 Chrysler Town and Country mini-van driven by 38 year old female, …

The Michigan Court of Appeals has rejected a lawsuit and ordered a minimum wage initiative on the November statewide ballot. The court ruled 2-1 Wednesday. The One Fair Wage proposal would gradually raise the state’s minimum wage to $12 an hour and also increase the minimum for workers who make tips. The state elections board last month had split 2-2 …