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The Michigan Lottery has raised more than $1 billion for public schools for the first time. The lottery announced Wednesday that it contributed more than $1 billion to the school aid fund in the last fiscal year. That’s a $129 million boost over the prior year. It’s the largest one-year increase in the lottery’s 47-year history and the fifth straight …

Two people were arrested on drug-related offenses following a traffic stop over the weekend in Three Rivers. According to a media release from the Three Rivers Police Department, a vehicle was stopped Saturday evening for an equipment violation at Broadway and Fifth streets. K9 Djengo was called to the scene and acted in a manner consistent with detecting an odor …

November’s unemployment rate in St. Joseph County was 1.3 percent lower than the previous month. The monthly labor-market analysis by the Michigan Department of Technology, Management and Budget showed the county’s 3.4 percent unemployment rate in November was down from October’s 4.7 percent. St. Joseph County was slightly above the state’s unemployment average, which was 3.2 percent in November. Employment …

A recent fundraiser to benefit teen suicide prevention raised more than $10,000. Bethan Hamilton, owner at Explicit CrossFit in Sturgis, said last month’s inaugural “Sweat-A-Thon” attracted 35 teams to the 12-hour event. Team members worked in one-hour shifts starting at 5 a.m. and took part in a variety of workout activities. Funds raised at the event will go through St. …

Sturgis American Legion, in a partnership with Salvation Army in Sturgis, helped to make Christmas brighter for 25 local families. Members of the Legion prepared, packaged and donated 25 meals consisting of smoked turkey with all the fixings, then delivered them to Salvation Army for distribution.

Welcome to 2020. I didn’t stay up long enough New Year’s Eve to watch the ball drop in Times Square in New York City. It was rumored that Barbara Walters might host the event so that at the stroke of midnight, she could say, “I’m Barbara Walters and this is 20/20.” Whether this happened or not, I’m sure I’ll find …

A man who died after falling from a kayak into a southwestern Michigan river during a New Year’s Day excursion with friends has been identified as an Indiana man. Niles police say 40-year-old Jean Claude Mutabazi of South Bend was pronounced dead Wednesday after being pulled from the St. Joseph River. Police say Mutabazi was kayaking Wednesday morning with three …

About 300,000 hens have died in a barn fire at a southwestern Michigan poultry farm. WWMT-TV reports that the blaze started about 11 a.m. Friday at the Otsego Township farm. The barn was destroyed. Konos Inc. spokesman Brian Burch tells the television station that about 50 people work at the cage-free farm. About 250,000 hens in a second barn were …

An overhaul of Michigan’s auto insurance system topped the list of new laws in 2019. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and lawmakers also legalized sports betting and online gambling, and enacted a measure to stop automatically treating 17-year-old offenders as adults in the criminal justice system. The Democratic governor signed 178 bills in the first year of divided government since 2010. She …

Michigan State Police troopers are investigating the theft of a pickup that occurred last week in Branch County’s Bethel Township. Investigators said the theft occurred between Dec. 24 and Wednesday in the 600 block of South Parham Road. The vehicle is described as 2008 Ford F-250, forest green in color with a black “Sno-way” snowplow attached to the front. The …