The Arts

A longtime employee of the Three Rivers Public Library has been named director of the Colon Township Library. Dave Stewart, a native of Peoria, Ill., started the job in late September following nine years of employment with the facility in Three Rivers. The 31-year-old Stewart, who remains a Three Rivers resident, replaces Patti Miller, who retired in the fall. Stewart, …

More than 75 people attended Saturday’s finale of the “Geek the Library” promotion at White Pigeon Township Library. The Geek the Library program started in June and was a campaign that allowed people to talk about subjects they like. The concept, according to library officials, was to remind people that information about their favorite subjects is available at the library. …

The Mendon Kiwanis Showboat kicks off for the 56th time this evening, the first of a three-night run. “White Christmas” is the theme of this year’s presentation, which begins at 7:30 p.m., with additional shows staged at the same time Friday and Saturday at Mendon Elementary School’s gymnasium. Dale Eickhoff, head of this year’s Showboat, said rehearsals have been taking …

Winners of the annual Scarecrow Fest, staged during Sunday’s Three Rivers Fall Color Tour, were announced this week by the St. Joseph County Parks and Recreation Department. A lower-than-usual number of entries took part in the event at Meyer Broadway Park, where nearly 150 votes were cast. Overall winner was Centreville’s Larry Brueck, who also claimed an award for scariest …

Members of the Three Rivers City Commission later this year are expected to award a contract for the job of redesigning the downtown mural mall. Steven Bishop, representing Grand Rapids-based Fleis and VanDenBrink Engineering presented drawings of the proposed project to Mayor Tom Lowry and commissioners at Tuesday’s meeting. Funding for the nearly $1 million project came from a $750,000 …

More than 142,000 people attended the St. Joseph County Grange Fair over the course of its seven-day run last week, officials from the fair board announced Monday. Despite rain Friday night and Saturday morning, a strong crowd to the Saturday evening Alan Jackson concert helped push the weekly attendance to a point that it surpassed 2011 attendance by 2 percent, …

The 162nd St. Joseph County Grange Fair is in the books, and organizers of the event said weather – as it usually is – was a key factor in attendance. Though a final figure for the seven-day event won’t be available until sometime today, a sunny Saturday afternoon coupled with more than 5,000 people attending the event-ending Alan Jackson concert …

The 162nd St. Joseph County Grange Fair kicks off Sunday. The seven-day event, which averages about 150,000 people over the course of the week, is once again offering a variety of activities and attractions. Though not officially a fair day, Saturday will feature an 8:30 a.m. dog show and 4:30 p.m. poultry show. Sunday’s opening day begins with large-mule pulls …

An audience of more than 100 people crowded into Three Rivers Public Library Wednesday for the culmination of the latest St. Joseph County “One Book, One County” program. The author presentation featured a 90-minute discussion and question-and-answer session by Nick Reding, author of “Methland.” The book was the second chosen this year by the “One Book, One County” selection committee …

The St. Joseph County Fair Board of Directors staged its annual media day Wednesday at the Centreville fairgrounds. Members indicated they anticipate a well-attended fair again this year, with showcase events each of the seven days of the 162nd fair. The nightly events include farm truck pulls, Motocross, monster trucks, a demolition derby, a Beatles tribute band and country/western star …