April is National Child Abuse Prevention Month

April is Child Abuse Prevention Month, and last week the Starke County Commissioners signed a proclamation urging all citizens in the county to become aware of this tragic problem and commit themselves to helping a child in need. Presenting the proclamation were CADA members Wendy Elam and Annette Ohman.

This is also the twelfth anniversary of the death of Lilliana Ciprianu, who had been brutally beaten by her stepfather two days earlier. CADA President Ruth Matsey told WKVI that it was the most tragic case she has had to work on.

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Knox Harvest Festival Meeting To Be Held Tuesday

The Knox Harvest Days celebration is August 24 – 26, and Michelle Bachtel, owner of the local H & R Block in Knox, is the new festival president. Bachtel says the organization has made a number of developments, including a new website.

“Well the first thing we did is establish the Knox Harvest Festival as its own legal entity, so it is now an organization that can be donated to. Sponsors can sponsor it and know the money is going where it needs to go and to whom its suppose to go. The second thing we did is develop a web page: knoxharvestfestival.org. If you need to e-mail me it’s just michelle@knoxharvestfestival.org,” Bachtel said.

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West Central School Turbine Still Under Work

West Central School Superintendent Charles Mellon

The West Central School Board got an update on the wind turbine last week from Superintendent Charles Mellon.

“Well, we are in production,” stated Mellon. “There is a little additional tweaking that will be done. We’re still getting some voltage spikes which all three companies are working on and they think they have a solution and will be correcting that. We have been in production for a while and in the short future we should be able to get a read-out just to see what our production has been — say over the last two week period.”

The wind turbine is not quite in full commission mode yet.

“Until those issues are solved and it’s fully commissioned, it’s not considered ours yet,” Mellon said. “They still have their work to do so we’re still anxiously awaiting, but we are getting credit for the kilowatts that are being produced during this time.”

Two Lottery Jackpot Drawings Tonight

Drawings from two Lottery Jackpots will be held tonight.

The Power Ball, worth an estimated $162 million, and Hoosier Lotto worth $9 million will be drawn.

Kenneth Lebeda of Peru, an Iraq War veteran won a Hoosier Lottery prize on Friday, August 13th, proving that “Friday the 13th was his lucky day.”

From the WKVI Archives

Remember the Busy Bee Restaurant in North Judson? The Busy Bee opened on this date in 1985. Jerry Patterson then moved to the location and changed the name to Patterson’s. It is now Brantwood, which is North Judson’s former name.

The U.S. 35 widening project began in Knox on this date in 2001. Culver Road was closed for a two block stretch between U.S. 35 to Main Street. This was part of a $7 million dollar widening of U.S. 35 to four lanes. Construction extended from the Yellow River Bridge on the north to just past the Astoria Motel on the South.

In Culver on this date Mr. T’s Pharmacy became known as CVS after the sale of the pharmacy by the family of the late Ron Tusing.

Finally organized sports began in Indiana as the Summit City Baseball Club was organized in Ft. Wayne.

Average Gas Prices Dip Slightly

The national average for gas prices is falling slightly, according to GasBuddy.com. At the beginning of April, the national average was around $3.90, but today it has dropped to $3.86. Indiana’s average is only a cent higher at $3.87.

The lowest gas prices currently reported in Indiana are in Martinsville, where regular gas can be found for $3.65. One of the highest prices is in Valparaiso, where regular gas can be found for $4.35 per gallon.

While gas prices may be dropping a bit now, it’s sure to be only a matter of time before they spike again. Remember, to save on fuel mileage, avoid high speeds, don’t accelerate or brake hard, keep those tires inflated, use your air-conditioning sparingly, and keep the windows closed. Be sure to keep your vehicle maintained, use your cruise control where you can, avoid heavy loads that increase weight on the vehicle, avoid long idles, and if you are purchasing a new vehicle, be sure to check the vehicle’s fuel economy.

April is National Safe Digging Month

With April comes the Fifth Annual National Safe Digging Month, and CenturyLink wants to remind all Indiana residents to always call 811 at least a few days prior to any digging project.

Striking a single line can cause injury, repair costs, fines, and inconvenient outages. Big or small, all digging projects should be reported by calling 811, even if you are just installing a mailbox, building a deck, or planting a tree or garden.

The depth of utility lines can vary for any number of reasons, such as erosion, previous digging projects, and uneven surfaces. By calling 811, you can ensure these lines are properly marked, eliminating the risk of striking an underground utility line.

According to the Damage Information Reporting Tool report, utility lines are damaged by digging once every three minutes nationwide, and one-third of these incidents are caused by failure of the professional excavator or homeowner to call 811 before beginning their digging project.

Secretary of State Connie Lawson to Speak at Lincoln Day Dinner

Jackie Walorski

New Indiana Secretary of State Connie Lawson is slated as a speaker Saturday night at the Starke County Republican Lincoln Day Dinner. The event, to be held at the newly remodeled Bass Lake Community Center, will begin with a social hour at 6:00 and the dinner at 7:00.

Other local and state candidates are expected to be in attendance, as well as 2nd District Congressional candidate Jackie Walorski.

Lawson was selected by Governor Mitch Daniels to fill the position vacated by Charlie White who was convicted of six felonies earlier in the year and lost his job.

The new Secretary of State was a State Senator from Danville, who Daniels said “comes to the office with the highest credentials.” She assumed the office with only 53 days until the Primary Election, and went right to work.

Lawson is the second woman to fill the position of Indiana Secretary of State, after Sue Ann Gilroy.

West Central Schools In Search of Bus Drivers

West Central School Superintendent Charles Mellon told the School Board Thursday night that the search is on for substitute bus drivers.

“We have different flyers out in the different areas in the community and hopefully we can come up with some interest in people wanting to drive a bus for us,” stated Mellon. “On that flyer it’s noted that there are a couple of seminars coming up in the near future that people can participate in that are fairly close — Twin Lakes has one in April and Kankakee Valley has one in July. We’re encouraging our community to get involved in the school in this matter and that would definitely help us out.”

Operation Quiet Comfort Raises $5000

Operation Quiet Comfort was a huge success this week in Plymouth. The fundraiser attracted over 300 people to the Memories Reception Hall for dinner and a program.

The speaker for the evening was Jan Houin who told the story of the organization which is part of a larger nationwide group, whose purpose is to provide blankets, clothing items and other articles of comfort in a care-type package to wounded soldiers.

The event raised $5000.

In her presentation, Houin read letters from servicemen who had received the articles from Plymouth, including one soldier who had lost an arm in battle saying he most appreciated the “warm socks.” Another commented on how the “blocks”
on the homemade blankets had lifted her spirits during a long recovery period.

On the “blocks” were messages of appreciation for their service to their country, and how a grateful nation has them in their thoughts and prayers

Also honored was the medical staff that tends to the needs of the injured.

Houin thanked all who attended and supported the organization.

Change in Leadership at I.U. Health Starke Hospital

David Hyatt

There will be a change in leadership at I.U. Health Starke Hospital, as Thor Thordarson, President and CEO of I.U. Health La Porte announced Friday that Linda Satkoski, current president of I.U. Health Starke Hospital, will become the Chief Operating Officer for the entire La Porte Health system. David Hyatt has agreed to become the Interim President at Starke.

The change in leadership will take place June 4th, and we’ll hear more from Thordarson, Satkoski, and Hyatt in interviews next week.

Week in Review for April 16th-20th, 2012

Here is a look at some of the news that made the news in the Kankakee Valley this week.

Starke County Jail

Data collection will begin now to get the paperwork ready for construction, or renovation, of the Starke County Jail. The Starke County Jail Committee is looking for estimates to give to the public and all the information gathered will be used to assemble a proposal for a jail project. The data will be collected over a period of 60-90 days and all will be given to the Committee for review.  Continue reading

Hope Wagner to attend Indiana University Northwest

Hope Wagner

Knox senior basketball player Hope Wagner has officially committed to Indiana University Northwest where she will begin her college basketball career next winter. Wagner is coming off a year when she not only led the team in scoring and assists, but was also one of the main leaders on a team that won the school’s first sectional championship since 1995.

After graduating most of the scoring off of last year’s team, the Redhawks anticipate Wagner’s aggressive style of offense to make an immediate impact. Hope’s own expectations of herself mirror that of her future coaches, “we lost a lot of scoring, so I’m going to have to do my best going to the basket and looking to shoot as much as I can”. While attending IU Northwest, Hope plans on studying criminal justice.

Hope posses with IU coach Ryan Shelton, Knox AD Phil Owens, and Knox coach Dan Huizenga.
Hope officially signs with IU Northwest as her family looks on.

Ethan Biggs to attend Rochester Community and Technical College

Ethan Biggs

South Central’s all-time leading rusher Ethan Biggs has decided to continue his football career in Rochester Minnesota. The Rochester Community Yellowjackets have one of the top Junior College football programs in the country, having won two national championships in 2000 and 2007, and have suffered just one losing season since 1968.

Holding multiple offensive records at South Central High School, Biggs is unsure which side of the ball he will be playing on this fall. The Yellowjacket offensive and defensive coaches are in a battle to have Ethan at either free safety or running back. When asked which side he would rather play for Ethan said “I love running the ball, but it really doesn’t matter to me as long as I can play and help the team out and hopefully win another championship”. Ethan plans on studying nursing while attending Rochester.

North Judson Railroad Committee Seeks Grant to Repair Crossing

The North Judson Railroad Committee is currently working on gathering funding for repairs on the U.S. 30 railroad crossing. Because a lot of truck traffic goes over the railroad, it has recently fallen into a minor state of disrepair — and with an expected increase in traffic passing over that crossing, the repairs are important.

Unfortunately, the repairs are not expected to be cheap. The committee is working on finding grants to fund the repairs, but the total cost is yet unknown.

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Starke United Dinner Held Last Night in Knox

Starke United Executive Director Julie Dessauer, Sandy Kersting-Rudd and Board Chair Todd Zeltwanger

The Starke United Annual Dinner was held last night at Community Services of Starke County.

Executive Director Julie Dessauer talked about programs Starke United supported during 2011 which included the Kindergarten Countdown, the Boy Scout and Girl Scout Food Drive, JA More than Money, Familywize, and 211. $13,000 will be distrbuted in undesignated funds this year.

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Oregon-Davis School Board Takes Action to Reduce Taxes

Oregon-Davis taxpayers will be noticing a reduction in their future bills because of action taken by the school board Monday.

“We approved the resolution to finalize the refinancing of our existing debt,” explained Superintendent Dr. Steve Disney. “What that means is that the previous debt from 2002 was at 5%, and with refinancing that goes down to 2.3%. We’ve been working on this for about nine months and this will mean a one million dollar savings to the taxpayers.  It will knock about four cents off the property tax rate in 2013.”

North Judson Town Marshal Presents Information to School Board

Doug Vessely
North Judson Town Marshal Doug Vessely

North Judson Town Marshal Doug Vessely gave a presentation to the North Judson-San Pierre School Board this week.

“We had a presentation by Police Chief Doug Vessely on substance abuse within the community and Starke County,” said Superintendent Lynn Johnson. “His information will be helpful as we are in the process of revising our policies to implement next school year. This was an informational session by Officer Vessely.”