David Slone Archives - News Now Warsaw https://www.newsnowwarsaw.com/tag/david-slone/ Wed, 18 Mar 2026 12:26:11 +0000 en-US hourly 1 Firefighter Kevin McSherry retires after 40+ years, Bryce Good assumes role as Burket fire chief https://www.newsnowwarsaw.com/kevin-mcsherry-retires-after-40-years-bryce-good-assumes-role-as-burket-fire-chief/ Wed, 18 Mar 2026 12:25:24 +0000 https://www.newsnowwarsaw.com/?p=128456
By David Slone
Times-Union

BURKET — When Kevin McSherry became fire chief for the Seward Township Fire Department in Burket, he was just 26 years old.

“I was way too young, but I had a lot of support. I had some very good assistant chiefs over the years, and as Bryce (Good) can tell you, you’ve got to delegate. You can not bite off the whole thing and chew it yourself. I’ve been so blessed and Bryce has been one of those assistant chiefs,” McSherry said.

McSherry, who joined the volunteer fire department in 1979, retired from serving as fire chief in December and Good, 35, accepted the role as the new fire chief.

“Looking back, we never have had a big water supply. We have no hydrants. Back then we had a 1,500-gallon tanker. Now we have a 3,000-gallon tanker,” McSherry said of some of the things that have changed over the years. “But, I went in my first interior attack and we had to put on air packs and get into it. You can’t wait to have it come out to you because it just ruins everything, and we didn’t have that much water. So you got to get in quick.”

One day, he recalled, a rafter fell and bounced off the side of his helmet and hit him in the shoulder. It could have really hurt him, but didn’t, so he decided to go get training.

“Back then, they called it First Class and Second Class, which is kind of like the Firefighter 1 and 2 today,” McSherry said. “I took that, and then the next step up was five categories of Master Firefighter. I started taking those because I just wanted to know what I didn’t know, and I wanted to be able to go home because early on, at that time, I had one kid on the ground, our son. Four years later we had a daughter, and I wanted to be able to go home to the kids.”

Kevin’s wife is Marsha McSherry, the Kosciusko County administrator.

“You just need to reach out and get all the training, and get it early because your life gets nothing more than busier, and these young guys, we try to tell them that and they are, ‘Oh, I can wait.’ Some of them go too fast, some of them too slow,” Kevin said.

When he joined the fire department, he came on with Chris Smalley after a fire at the Burket Grain Elevator where Smalley worked. Smalley noticed that the firefighters at the time were mostly older men and suggested he and McSherry should help them, so they both joined.

“It’s not a fit for everybody. Chris came on board and he gave us 10 years of very good service. He gave it his all, and then he just decided he paid his dues and wanted out. He just withdrew and I stayed with it,” McSherry recalled.

In his second year with the department, McSherry was made secretary because no one wanted to keep minutes. He then jumped from secretary to chief.

“You just learn on the fly, but one thing I do remember - here I am, 26 years old, and I had chiefs from Winona, Silver Lake, all over reach out to me and say, ‘If you need anything, you just say the word and we’ll be there to help you.’ I didn’t have to ask too much,” he said, calling the chiefs “wonderful people” and “brothers in the service.”

Walking away from being chief wasn’t easy, he admitted. “I know all these guys very well. Some of them since before they were babies,” he joked.

When McSherry decided to retire after more than 40 years as chief, he told Good a few days before the fire department’s Christmas party and they agreed to do the changeover at the party.

“In our election in December of 2024, I had decided I would do 2025, but I told them I would do 2025 but you guys have got to find somebody for 2026. I’ve had some health issues and I’m 67 years old now, and I didn’t want it killing me, frankly,” he said.

Good joined the volunteer fire department in Burket as soon as he turned 18 in 2009.
“At the time, mandatory Firefighter was a certification, kind of like the basics of basics to get you going, so that was an early-on class we took. I actually believe we sponsored that class here, so that was the basic first step,” Good said. “I joined and got the hook of the fire department and always kind of wanted to do that growing up anyways. It was always kind of a dream job. To fall into it volunteer-wise only gave me the foundation to follow it to go career.”

The fire service is ever-evolving and the training is constant.

“When I joined, we didn’t even run EMS calls. We were fire and auto accidents. That was it. I think we ran 70 calls a year, and we have also progressed as a department,” Good said.
McSherry said they now run 270 calls a year.

“As a volunteer, it’s tough because you have a life. You have a job and you start jumping into these trainings and it’s a time commitment, which does make it difficult when you have a family and a job. That’s the hard part to pursue into the young guys: You don’t have all this stuff. Put these eggs into this basket, and that’s the tough part. Unless those guys really, really have the drive and really want to go career,” Good said.

“My transition through the ranks over the years was a little different than Kevin’s. I was on for multiple years - seven, eight years - and then became a lieutenant. From lieutenant, I kind of hovered there for a few years, bumped up to captain, bumped up to an assistant chief and swallowed the pill to take the big seat this year,” Good stated.

In total, he’s been a volunteer firefighter for 17 years and a career firefighter with the Warsaw-Wayne Fire Territory for three years as of February.

As to what he’s learned from McSherry, Good said, “Honestly, Kevin has steered us in the direction that has made us what we are today. That’s just factual. There’s no if’s, and’s and but’s about that. Yes, the officers help us get there, and I have been a part of that in the previous years, but, honestly, he’s the leadership to keep us moving forward and keep our guys motivated, keep guys coming in the door.”

He said McSherry’s administration provided the tools for guys like him to be leaders and continue to pursue moving up those ranks.

“A lot of leadership value right here. He didn’t get to snake away, we keep him in our pocket,” Good said.

As to what made Good the good choice to be fire chief, McSherry stated, “His drive. He is a very particular person. Everything’s got to be just so and he’s driven until it is just so. And he’s a natural for this job, and he’s the pick. That’s what made it easier for me to step back, and I thank him for that.”

Since taking over in December, Good said there have been a lot of surprises and it’s been a busy start. “Kevin has been super supportive of making sure my sanity is still there, which has been great, but it’s been a busy start. We’ve had breakdowns. We’re still dealing with the engine situation, and there’s been a lot of things on our plate. Like Kevin said earlier, delegation is key. ... For me, stepping into this role, having good officers was the only way, and we are blessed with that. We have a lot of good and good-trained firefighters on our department and I need that.”

He stated his heart is in the fire service, which is obvious as he’s a volunteer firefighter in Burket and a professional one for WWFT.

“For me, being a career firefighter only makes me a better firefighter here. Outside of being a fire chief, I get good training, I get a lot more of it than what we do on the volunteer side,” Good said. “On the flipside, that allows me and, again, we have five career firefighters. Us as the five career firefighter body can bring good training that we get day in and day out in our career life to our department to only make our department better.”

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]]>
By David Slone
Times-Union

BURKET — When Kevin McSherry became fire chief for the Seward Township Fire Department in Burket, he was just 26 years old.

“I was way too young, but I had a lot of support. I had some very good assistant chiefs over the years, and as Bryce (Good) can tell you, you’ve got to delegate. You can not bite off the whole thing and chew it yourself. I’ve been so blessed and Bryce has been one of those assistant chiefs,” McSherry said.

McSherry, who joined the volunteer fire department in 1979, retired from serving as fire chief in December and Good, 35, accepted the role as the new fire chief.

“Looking back, we never have had a big water supply. We have no hydrants. Back then we had a 1,500-gallon tanker. Now we have a 3,000-gallon tanker,” McSherry said of some of the things that have changed over the years. “But, I went in my first interior attack and we had to put on air packs and get into it. You can’t wait to have it come out to you because it just ruins everything, and we didn’t have that much water. So you got to get in quick.”

One day, he recalled, a rafter fell and bounced off the side of his helmet and hit him in the shoulder. It could have really hurt him, but didn’t, so he decided to go get training.

“Back then, they called it First Class and Second Class, which is kind of like the Firefighter 1 and 2 today,” McSherry said. “I took that, and then the next step up was five categories of Master Firefighter. I started taking those because I just wanted to know what I didn’t know, and I wanted to be able to go home because early on, at that time, I had one kid on the ground, our son. Four years later we had a daughter, and I wanted to be able to go home to the kids.”

Kevin’s wife is Marsha McSherry, the Kosciusko County administrator.

“You just need to reach out and get all the training, and get it early because your life gets nothing more than busier, and these young guys, we try to tell them that and they are, ‘Oh, I can wait.’ Some of them go too fast, some of them too slow,” Kevin said.

When he joined the fire department, he came on with Chris Smalley after a fire at the Burket Grain Elevator where Smalley worked. Smalley noticed that the firefighters at the time were mostly older men and suggested he and McSherry should help them, so they both joined.

“It’s not a fit for everybody. Chris came on board and he gave us 10 years of very good service. He gave it his all, and then he just decided he paid his dues and wanted out. He just withdrew and I stayed with it,” McSherry recalled.

In his second year with the department, McSherry was made secretary because no one wanted to keep minutes. He then jumped from secretary to chief.

“You just learn on the fly, but one thing I do remember – here I am, 26 years old, and I had chiefs from Winona, Silver Lake, all over reach out to me and say, ‘If you need anything, you just say the word and we’ll be there to help you.’ I didn’t have to ask too much,” he said, calling the chiefs “wonderful people” and “brothers in the service.”

Walking away from being chief wasn’t easy, he admitted. “I know all these guys very well. Some of them since before they were babies,” he joked.

When McSherry decided to retire after more than 40 years as chief, he told Good a few days before the fire department’s Christmas party and they agreed to do the changeover at the party.

“In our election in December of 2024, I had decided I would do 2025, but I told them I would do 2025 but you guys have got to find somebody for 2026. I’ve had some health issues and I’m 67 years old now, and I didn’t want it killing me, frankly,” he said.

Good joined the volunteer fire department in Burket as soon as he turned 18 in 2009.
“At the time, mandatory Firefighter was a certification, kind of like the basics of basics to get you going, so that was an early-on class we took. I actually believe we sponsored that class here, so that was the basic first step,” Good said. “I joined and got the hook of the fire department and always kind of wanted to do that growing up anyways. It was always kind of a dream job. To fall into it volunteer-wise only gave me the foundation to follow it to go career.”

The fire service is ever-evolving and the training is constant.

“When I joined, we didn’t even run EMS calls. We were fire and auto accidents. That was it. I think we ran 70 calls a year, and we have also progressed as a department,” Good said.
McSherry said they now run 270 calls a year.

“As a volunteer, it’s tough because you have a life. You have a job and you start jumping into these trainings and it’s a time commitment, which does make it difficult when you have a family and a job. That’s the hard part to pursue into the young guys: You don’t have all this stuff. Put these eggs into this basket, and that’s the tough part. Unless those guys really, really have the drive and really want to go career,” Good said.

“My transition through the ranks over the years was a little different than Kevin’s. I was on for multiple years – seven, eight years – and then became a lieutenant. From lieutenant, I kind of hovered there for a few years, bumped up to captain, bumped up to an assistant chief and swallowed the pill to take the big seat this year,” Good stated.

In total, he’s been a volunteer firefighter for 17 years and a career firefighter with the Warsaw-Wayne Fire Territory for three years as of February.

As to what he’s learned from McSherry, Good said, “Honestly, Kevin has steered us in the direction that has made us what we are today. That’s just factual. There’s no if’s, and’s and but’s about that. Yes, the officers help us get there, and I have been a part of that in the previous years, but, honestly, he’s the leadership to keep us moving forward and keep our guys motivated, keep guys coming in the door.”

He said McSherry’s administration provided the tools for guys like him to be leaders and continue to pursue moving up those ranks.

“A lot of leadership value right here. He didn’t get to snake away, we keep him in our pocket,” Good said.

As to what made Good the good choice to be fire chief, McSherry stated, “His drive. He is a very particular person. Everything’s got to be just so and he’s driven until it is just so. And he’s a natural for this job, and he’s the pick. That’s what made it easier for me to step back, and I thank him for that.”

Since taking over in December, Good said there have been a lot of surprises and it’s been a busy start. “Kevin has been super supportive of making sure my sanity is still there, which has been great, but it’s been a busy start. We’ve had breakdowns. We’re still dealing with the engine situation, and there’s been a lot of things on our plate. Like Kevin said earlier, delegation is key. … For me, stepping into this role, having good officers was the only way, and we are blessed with that. We have a lot of good and good-trained firefighters on our department and I need that.”

He stated his heart is in the fire service, which is obvious as he’s a volunteer firefighter in Burket and a professional one for WWFT.

“For me, being a career firefighter only makes me a better firefighter here. Outside of being a fire chief, I get good training, I get a lot more of it than what we do on the volunteer side,” Good said. “On the flipside, that allows me and, again, we have five career firefighters. Us as the five career firefighter body can bring good training that we get day in and day out in our career life to our department to only make our department better.”

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]]> https://www.newsnowwarsaw.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/Screenshot-2026-03-18-080859.png Election filing begins Wednesday in Kosciusko County https://www.newsnowwarsaw.com/election-filing-begins-wednesday-in-kosciusko-county/ Mon, 05 Jan 2026 11:47:52 +0000 https://www.newsnowwarsaw.com/?p=125041 By David Slone
Times-Union

WARSAW — While the May primary election is about five months away, candidate filing begins Wednesday, Jan. 7, and ends at noon Friday, Feb. 6.

Kosciusko County offices on the ballot for the 2026 primary include judges of Kosciusko Superior Courts I, II, III and IV, currently held by Karin McGrath, Torrey Bauer, Chad Miner and Christopher Kehler, respectively.

The 54th Judicial District prosecuting attorney, currently Brad Voelz, is up for election, as are the county positions of auditor, Alyssa Schmucker, incumbent; recorder, Deb Wright, incumbent; sheriff, Jim Smith, incumbent; assessor, Gail Chapman, incumbent; and southern district county commissioner, Bob Conley, incumbent. Wright and Conley have already announced they will seek re-election.

The four district seats for Kosciusko County Council are up this year. Those include District 1, Kimberly Cates incumbent; District 2, Joe Irwin; District 3, Tony Ciriello; and District 4, Dave Wolkins. Irwin, Ciriello and Wolkins have announced they will seek re-election.
At the township level, all trustees and three seats per township of the advisory board are up for election in 2026.

Then at the town level, Milford will have its clerk-treasurer (Tricia Gall, incumbent) and three at-large council seats (Doug Ruch, Ken Long and James Smiley, incumbents) up for election.

The two at-large Syracuse Town Council seats, currently held by Paul Stoelting and Larry Siegel, are up this year, as are the Winona Lake District 3 (Jim Lancaster, incumbent) and District 5 (Jason Zaugg, incumbent) positions.

Also on the primary ballots will be the precinct committeemen for the Democratic Party, and the state convention delegates for the Republican and Democratic Parties.

School Boards
Election of school board offices will appear only on the November 2026 ballot. Filing for those begins May 15, 2026, and ends on June 18, 2026, at noon.
This year, Districts 1, 2, 5 and 7 for Warsaw Community Schools is up.
Tippecanoe Valley Schools will have an election for District 3 - Kosciusko County and Districts 4 and 5 - Fulton County.
Wa-Nee Schools will have board races for Harrison, Locke and Union Townships in Elkhart County.
Wawasee Community Schools elections will be for District 1 - Tippecanoe Township; District 2 - Turkey Creek Township; and District 3 - Van Buren Township and Jefferson 3.
Two districts are up for Whitko Community Schools. They are District 4 - Jackson, Monroe and Washington Townships in Kosciusko County and District 5 - Richland and Cleveland Townships in Whitley County.
The three districts up for election for Triton School Board will be District 1 - Tippecanoe Township in Marshall County, District 2 - Etna Township in Kosciusko County and District 4 - the town of Bourbon in Marshall County.
For more information about the elections and topics of interest, click on the Kosciusko County website at www.kosciusko.in.gov; click on the Menu button and then hit the “Elections” tab.

The post Election filing begins Wednesday in Kosciusko County appeared first on News Now Warsaw.

]]> By David Slone
Times-Union

WARSAW — While the May primary election is about five months away, candidate filing begins Wednesday, Jan. 7, and ends at noon Friday, Feb. 6.

Kosciusko County offices on the ballot for the 2026 primary include judges of Kosciusko Superior Courts I, II, III and IV, currently held by Karin McGrath, Torrey Bauer, Chad Miner and Christopher Kehler, respectively.

The 54th Judicial District prosecuting attorney, currently Brad Voelz, is up for election, as are the county positions of auditor, Alyssa Schmucker, incumbent; recorder, Deb Wright, incumbent; sheriff, Jim Smith, incumbent; assessor, Gail Chapman, incumbent; and southern district county commissioner, Bob Conley, incumbent. Wright and Conley have already announced they will seek re-election.

The four district seats for Kosciusko County Council are up this year. Those include District 1, Kimberly Cates incumbent; District 2, Joe Irwin; District 3, Tony Ciriello; and District 4, Dave Wolkins. Irwin, Ciriello and Wolkins have announced they will seek re-election.
At the township level, all trustees and three seats per township of the advisory board are up for election in 2026.

Then at the town level, Milford will have its clerk-treasurer (Tricia Gall, incumbent) and three at-large council seats (Doug Ruch, Ken Long and James Smiley, incumbents) up for election.

The two at-large Syracuse Town Council seats, currently held by Paul Stoelting and Larry Siegel, are up this year, as are the Winona Lake District 3 (Jim Lancaster, incumbent) and District 5 (Jason Zaugg, incumbent) positions.

Also on the primary ballots will be the precinct committeemen for the Democratic Party, and the state convention delegates for the Republican and Democratic Parties.

School Boards
Election of school board offices will appear only on the November 2026 ballot. Filing for those begins May 15, 2026, and ends on June 18, 2026, at noon.
This year, Districts 1, 2, 5 and 7 for Warsaw Community Schools is up.
Tippecanoe Valley Schools will have an election for District 3 – Kosciusko County and Districts 4 and 5 – Fulton County.
Wa-Nee Schools will have board races for Harrison, Locke and Union Townships in Elkhart County.
Wawasee Community Schools elections will be for District 1 – Tippecanoe Township; District 2 – Turkey Creek Township; and District 3 – Van Buren Township and Jefferson 3.
Two districts are up for Whitko Community Schools. They are District 4 – Jackson, Monroe and Washington Townships in Kosciusko County and District 5 – Richland and Cleveland Townships in Whitley County.
The three districts up for election for Triton School Board will be District 1 – Tippecanoe Township in Marshall County, District 2 – Etna Township in Kosciusko County and District 4 – the town of Bourbon in Marshall County.
For more information about the elections and topics of interest, click on the Kosciusko County website at www.kosciusko.in.gov; click on the Menu button and then hit the “Elections” tab.

The post Election filing begins Wednesday in Kosciusko County appeared first on News Now Warsaw.

]]> https://www.newsnowwarsaw.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Kosciusko-County-Election-2026-1.png Community leaders reflect on wide-ranging impact of Jean Northenor https://www.newsnowwarsaw.com/community-leaders-reflect-on-wide-ranging-impact-of-jean-northenor/ Sat, 08 Nov 2025 10:50:17 +0000 https://www.newsnowwarsaw.com/?p=122544 By David Slone
Times-Union

WARSAW — When she had to be stern, former Kosciusko County Republican Party Chairwoman and County Auditor Jean Northenor could be tough as nails.

But those who knew her knew the “force of nature” and “trailblazer” had a big heart and loved her community and the people in it.

On Thursday, Nov. 6, 2025, Doris Jean Northenor, born Dec. 21, 1932, passed away peacefully at her home.

‘Good Government’

County Commissioner Sue Ann Mitchell said, “First and foremost, Jean was a true friend who called many times with encouragement and support. Jean was such a strong and highly accomplished woman that set the bar high for everyone involved in public service. She inspired and encouraged so many of us with her leadership by example.”

Mitchell said she always gives credit to Northenor, Avis Gunter and Al Rovenstine for her dedication to county government.

“Every time Jean made a presentation, she would emphasize that we needed to provide not just government but ‘Good Government.’ Even with her passing, Jean will continue to be an inspiration!” Mitchell stated.

Mike Ragan, Kosciusko County Republican Central Committee chairman, said he’s known who Northenor was since he was a kid, but had gotten to know her more over about the last 20 years after he got into county politics. He estimated that around 2006-07, he started getting closer to her.

“Because she was a former county chair, she encouraged me to run for chair,” Ragan said, when Randy Girod retired as the Republican Party’s chair.

“She loved Kosciusko County, she loved the community and the people in it,” he stated.
He said Northenor died at home where she had been receiving hospice care.

“She was a wonderful lady. I can’t say enough good words about her,” Ragan said.

Second District U.S. Congressman Rudy Yakym said, “Jean Northenor was a true pillar of Kosciusko County and a legend in Indiana Republican politics. Her decades of service, leadership and love for our community left an indelible mark on everyone who had the privilege to know her. Sallyann and I are keeping Jean’s family and friends in our prayers as we honor her remarkable life and legacy.”

State Sen. Ryan Mishler (R-Mishawaka) has known Jean Northenor for most of his life.

In a statement, he said, "I am deeply saddened to hear of the passing of Jean Northenor. I've known Jean since I was a kid when she was still helping my dad as he served in the Indiana House of Representatives. She was one of the people who helped convince me to run for his seat when it opened up and guided me when I started serving our local community.

"Jean possessed leadership qualities we may never see again. She could really connect with people, and she loved and cared about her community and family. One thing I always appreciated about Jean was the notes of encouragement she would send me. While cleaning out my desk recently, I found a card from her that simply said, ‘Proud of you. Jean.’ These little notes often helped me through some of the tough times. Jean will be deeply missed by me and all those in our community who knew her," he said.

Ashley McGinnis, president of the Kosciusko County Republican Women’s Club, said in a statement, “On behalf of the Kosciusko County Republican Women’s Club, we are deeply saddened by the passing of Jean Northenor. Jean was a remarkable woman - bold in her leadership, generous in her heart and steadfast in her love for this community.

“As a longtime leader of the Kosciusko County Republican Party, Jean led with both strength and compassion. She inspired others through her wisdom, her kindness and her ability to bring people together for a common purpose. Her influence extended far beyond politics — she was a true mentor who opened doors for countless women and men to grow, lead and serve.

“Jean’s philanthropy was as genuine as her spirit. She gave freely of her time, talents and resources to strengthen the very community she helped shape. Often described as the person everyone turned to for guidance, encouragement and practical help. Her legacy as a mentor will live on in those whom she encouraged, empowered, and uplifted.

“She invested in our people, our youth, our future — and challenged us all to do more, to give more, to serve more.

“While we mourn her passing, we celebrate the remarkable legacy she leaves behind — a legacy of service, integrity, mentorship and heart. Our thoughts and prayers are with her family and we are forever grateful for the example she set for us all,” the statement concluded.

Former Northern District County Commissioner Brad Jackson said, “Jean was a force of nature. She was a very strong leader in the county and after that she was a very strong leader at Lake City Bank. But she still always had a lot of influence on the current elected officials.”

One of the things Jackson remembered about Northenor took place about 30 years ago. She took him aside and told him never to support another Republican in the primary election, though it was fine in the general election. It was just an unwritten rule, she said.
“She’ll be missed. Her mark on the community is an understatement,” Jackson said.

As an example of her wide-ranging influence, Jackson recalled that back during the Covid pandemic, the state was trying to shut Polywood in Syracuse down. Jackson called Northenor, she called then-Gov. Eric Holcomb and “the problem was solved. She had way more influence than anybody probably realizes. She had Eric’s ear. When she called, he listened.”

State Rep. Craig Snow (R-Winona Lake) said, “I'm very sad to hear about the passing of Jean Northenor. She did great things for Kosciusko County and inspired countless Hoosiers with her leadership. I know she will be missed by all. My thoughts and prayers are with her family and close friends.”

County Administrator Marsha McSherry has known Northenor for around 45 years.

“My first recollection of Jean Northenor was probably when I was old enough to vote. Of course, my dad was a precinct committeeman way back when, and he managed the fish fries for the Republican Party, so I started going to help with that,” she recalled. “Probably around ’79, ’80, right in there, was when I really got to know Jean Northenor. I worked for Jean at the Republican headquarters when it was located over here on top of the old Bodkin building upstairs. They wanted somebody to work at headquarters certain days, so I worked for Jean and she allowed me to bring my young son, so Jason was introduced to politics at a very young age.”

One of McSherry’s early memorable experiences was getting to meet Dan Quayle when Northenor brought him in.

She agreed “absolutely” that Northenor was a trailblazer.

“Jean Northenor was a friend and mentor to many, not just locally but across the state. She was a friend and mentor to me for most of my adult life. A champion for women in politics and a trailblazer. Many have ‘dipped their toes’ into the political pool with encouragement and guidance over the years from Jean. She will be sadly missed,” McSherry said.
She said her thoughts are with Northenor’s family.

Jean was married in 1961 to James “Jim” W. Northenor, who died at age 83 on April 15, 2021. She was also preceded in death by her son, Rick Reed. Surviving are a son, Steve (and Barb) Reed, Warsaw; grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

Northenor co-founded Kosciusko Leadership Academy (KLA), was a donor to The Magical Meadows, a former county auditor, served on the Indiana Supreme Court Selection Committee, was a four-time Sagamore of the Wabash recipient and served on the first Hoosier Lottery Commission. She helped establish the Republican Party’s Man and Woman of the Year awards, later becoming a recipient of the award herself. She was included in the 2001 edition of “Indiana’s Trailblazing Women” book.

Friends and family may visit from 1 to 6 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 16, at Redpath Fruth Funeral Home, 225 Argonne Road, Warsaw. A private family funeral service will take place with burial at Harrison Center Cemetery, Atwood.

Online condolences may be sent through the funeral home’s website at www.redpathfruthfuneralhome.com.

Lake City Bank
“Jean was just an exceptional woman,” said Lake City Bank (LCB) Chairman and CEO David Findlay. “She was truly a trailblazer for women in Indiana, no doubt about it.”

Northenor came to work at LCB on Dec. 31, 1983. She worked there for 17 years, retiring in late 2000. At the end of her career, Findlay said she was an executive vice president overseeing business development and marketing.

“That title really understates the role she played at the bank. When Doug Grant hired her in 1983, she was a very prominent Kosciusko County resident through her engagement in politics. So, Jean, even though her title was business development and marketing officer, she really touched every area of the bank. She was in charge of branch development, along with Doug Grant, so when we were building new branches in that 17-year period, she was at the forefront working with the architects and the contractors to build our branches, so she literally had an impact and an imprint on every one of those branches,” Findlay stated.
Northenor oversaw the human resource department, as well, throughout most of her career.

“If you think about back to 1983, having a woman come into the bank in a role as visible and as high profile as what she did, she was a true trailblazer, not only for women in banking in Indiana, but women in business and government in Indiana,” he said.
Northenor also was a gatekeeper for the Indiana Republican Party and had a strong influence not only for what went on in Kosciusko County, but also the Statehouse and the governor’s office, he said.

Findlay also pointed out that Northenor was also really good at crossing the aisle in the political world.

“She had really strong relationships with Democratic governors and Democratic legislators, as well, and I learned that after I came here in 2000. Even though she retired soon after my arrival, she still stayed very involved at the state level and local level in politics and had such a positive impact,” he said.

For LCB, Findlay said you can’t understate the value Northenor brought to the bank as a really strong leader, regardless of her gender.

“She was just a great leader by example for everybody at the bank,” he stated.

KLA

KLA had its first graduation class in 1982. According to Northenor in a previous interview, when she was the county auditor and Republican Party chair, she and Matt Dalton found themselves attending numerous community processes. She asked him at one point if there was anyone else in the community who could attend, and that got Dalton to thinking. He called Ball State University.

Later, Dalton called a group together for lunch. That group included Northenor, Doug Grant, Ben Knott, Bob Boley and BSU professor Joe Rawlings.

The purpose of the lunch meeting was to hear from Rawlings about leadership academies. The group talked extensively about them. The leadership academies they heard about were mostly associated with chambers of commerce and city or town-based.

Northenor wasn't interested in just a Warsaw leadership academy. She was a county person. And, while she had nothing against chambers, she didn't want the leadership academy to be associated with the chamber. The others expressed they felt the same way Northenor did.

Rawlings told them he'd send a moderator for the KLA to get it going. Professor Peter Murk was with KLA for its first three years, all on Ball State's dime.

"Ball State was pushing leadership academies to get younger people involved. This was a way to get them involved, and it worked," Northenor said in the interview.

Grant served as KLA’s first president, and Northenor was curriculum president. The original curriculum included programs on law enforcement, county government, religious organizations, agriculture, area planning and education.

KLA now has the Jean Northenor Award it presents each year to a deserving white paper project. The initial Northenor Award funds were donated by Dalton to the Kosciusko County Community Foundation to establish the annual Northenor Award as an honor to Northenor’s work in making KLA a success. KLA celebrated 40 years in 2021 with a 40 for 40 campaign and raised over $40,000. Half of that was contributed to the Northenor Fund and half was retained for operating funds and providing mini-grants for white paper teams.

KLA adviser and interim President Nate Conley said Northenor had been involved and participated in the Northenor Award panel to review the white paper up until just a couple of years ago.

“She stayed involved, even after founding it and retiring and everything. She stayed involved and supported it financially, and being involved with the white paper panel and stuff, too,” he stated.

The two big things Northenor brought to KLA since its founding, Conley continued, was she wanted KLA to be countywide and not Warsaw-centric.

“She stressed that and we continue to stress that to this day, that we have meetings and classes throughout the county because we want to make a countywide impact,” he said. “And then she, from the get-go, was always encouraging of women to get involved, too, because back when it was founded, there were just a lot of men in leadership roles so from day one she was just encouraging of women to get involved.”

Conley said KLA will find a way to honor Northenor and Dr. Jeffrey Fawcett this year. Fawcett, the KLA president for numerous years, died in June.

Suzie Light, who has served on the KLA Board of Trustees, said, “Jean was an amazing woman. So many things in our community exist because Jean Northenor said they need to be. When Kosciusko Leadership Academy was founded, she said women need to be at the table and it needs to be a countywide organization. Forty years later, it still is that way.”
Northenor said Ivy Tech was needed in the community back in the 1960s, Light said, and it needed to stay in the community so the Kosciusko Ivy Tech campus exists because Northenor had the drive to make it happen.

“I will miss my dear friend and mentor,” Light said. “She loved her family. She was a woman of deep faith. She loved her country and her community. She had a big heart.”

The Magical Meadows

The Magical Meadows offered the following statement on the passing of Northenor: “It is with great mixed emotions that we acknowledge the loss of our dear friend Jean Northenor. While we are filled with sadness that we will no longer be graced by her quick wit, profound wisdom and sincere generosity, we take comfort knowing that she is with our Lord in Heaven - hearing those precious words ‘well done good and faithful servant.’

“Jean and her late husband Jim's relationship with The Magical Meadows started in 2021 when we were blessed to grant their bucket list wish of riding horses again. Since then, Jean and her family have remained steadfast supporters and believers in the transformational mission of The Magical Meadows. Some of their most notable contributions include funding the construction of our hay barn in 2021, and most recently, a $100,000 donation toward our Growing with Heart Capital Campaign and Expansion Project. More than her financial support, we will miss her guidance, advocacy and genuine friendship.”
"It is said that in life a person has three to five people who are really a true friend. Jean Northenor was that to me," said Carl Adams, Magical Meadows Board chair. "Martin Luther King Jr. once said, 'In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.' Her silence is already being felt. My friend is now experiencing those things we often spoke about."

Magical Meadows remains “dedicated to keeping Jean's legacy alive for generations to come. In the meantime, we ask that the community join us in wrapping Jean's family and friends in love, compassion, and prayer during this time of loss,” the statement concludes.

The post Community leaders reflect on wide-ranging impact of Jean Northenor appeared first on News Now Warsaw.

]]> By David Slone
Times-Union

WARSAW — When she had to be stern, former Kosciusko County Republican Party Chairwoman and County Auditor Jean Northenor could be tough as nails.

But those who knew her knew the “force of nature” and “trailblazer” had a big heart and loved her community and the people in it.

On Thursday, Nov. 6, 2025, Doris Jean Northenor, born Dec. 21, 1932, passed away peacefully at her home.

‘Good Government’

County Commissioner Sue Ann Mitchell said, “First and foremost, Jean was a true friend who called many times with encouragement and support. Jean was such a strong and highly accomplished woman that set the bar high for everyone involved in public service. She inspired and encouraged so many of us with her leadership by example.”

Mitchell said she always gives credit to Northenor, Avis Gunter and Al Rovenstine for her dedication to county government.

“Every time Jean made a presentation, she would emphasize that we needed to provide not just government but ‘Good Government.’ Even with her passing, Jean will continue to be an inspiration!” Mitchell stated.

Mike Ragan, Kosciusko County Republican Central Committee chairman, said he’s known who Northenor was since he was a kid, but had gotten to know her more over about the last 20 years after he got into county politics. He estimated that around 2006-07, he started getting closer to her.

“Because she was a former county chair, she encouraged me to run for chair,” Ragan said, when Randy Girod retired as the Republican Party’s chair.

“She loved Kosciusko County, she loved the community and the people in it,” he stated.
He said Northenor died at home where she had been receiving hospice care.

“She was a wonderful lady. I can’t say enough good words about her,” Ragan said.

Second District U.S. Congressman Rudy Yakym said, “Jean Northenor was a true pillar of Kosciusko County and a legend in Indiana Republican politics. Her decades of service, leadership and love for our community left an indelible mark on everyone who had the privilege to know her. Sallyann and I are keeping Jean’s family and friends in our prayers as we honor her remarkable life and legacy.”

State Sen. Ryan Mishler (R-Mishawaka) has known Jean Northenor for most of his life.

In a statement, he said, “I am deeply saddened to hear of the passing of Jean Northenor. I’ve known Jean since I was a kid when she was still helping my dad as he served in the Indiana House of Representatives. She was one of the people who helped convince me to run for his seat when it opened up and guided me when I started serving our local community.

“Jean possessed leadership qualities we may never see again. She could really connect with people, and she loved and cared about her community and family. One thing I always appreciated about Jean was the notes of encouragement she would send me. While cleaning out my desk recently, I found a card from her that simply said, ‘Proud of you. Jean.’ These little notes often helped me through some of the tough times. Jean will be deeply missed by me and all those in our community who knew her,” he said.

Ashley McGinnis, president of the Kosciusko County Republican Women’s Club, said in a statement, “On behalf of the Kosciusko County Republican Women’s Club, we are deeply saddened by the passing of Jean Northenor. Jean was a remarkable woman – bold in her leadership, generous in her heart and steadfast in her love for this community.

“As a longtime leader of the Kosciusko County Republican Party, Jean led with both strength and compassion. She inspired others through her wisdom, her kindness and her ability to bring people together for a common purpose. Her influence extended far beyond politics — she was a true mentor who opened doors for countless women and men to grow, lead and serve.

“Jean’s philanthropy was as genuine as her spirit. She gave freely of her time, talents and resources to strengthen the very community she helped shape. Often described as the person everyone turned to for guidance, encouragement and practical help. Her legacy as a mentor will live on in those whom she encouraged, empowered, and uplifted.

“She invested in our people, our youth, our future — and challenged us all to do more, to give more, to serve more.

“While we mourn her passing, we celebrate the remarkable legacy she leaves behind — a legacy of service, integrity, mentorship and heart. Our thoughts and prayers are with her family and we are forever grateful for the example she set for us all,” the statement concluded.

Former Northern District County Commissioner Brad Jackson said, “Jean was a force of nature. She was a very strong leader in the county and after that she was a very strong leader at Lake City Bank. But she still always had a lot of influence on the current elected officials.”

One of the things Jackson remembered about Northenor took place about 30 years ago. She took him aside and told him never to support another Republican in the primary election, though it was fine in the general election. It was just an unwritten rule, she said.
“She’ll be missed. Her mark on the community is an understatement,” Jackson said.

As an example of her wide-ranging influence, Jackson recalled that back during the Covid pandemic, the state was trying to shut Polywood in Syracuse down. Jackson called Northenor, she called then-Gov. Eric Holcomb and “the problem was solved. She had way more influence than anybody probably realizes. She had Eric’s ear. When she called, he listened.”

State Rep. Craig Snow (R-Winona Lake) said, “I’m very sad to hear about the passing of Jean Northenor. She did great things for Kosciusko County and inspired countless Hoosiers with her leadership. I know she will be missed by all. My thoughts and prayers are with her family and close friends.”

County Administrator Marsha McSherry has known Northenor for around 45 years.

“My first recollection of Jean Northenor was probably when I was old enough to vote. Of course, my dad was a precinct committeeman way back when, and he managed the fish fries for the Republican Party, so I started going to help with that,” she recalled. “Probably around ’79, ’80, right in there, was when I really got to know Jean Northenor. I worked for Jean at the Republican headquarters when it was located over here on top of the old Bodkin building upstairs. They wanted somebody to work at headquarters certain days, so I worked for Jean and she allowed me to bring my young son, so Jason was introduced to politics at a very young age.”

One of McSherry’s early memorable experiences was getting to meet Dan Quayle when Northenor brought him in.

She agreed “absolutely” that Northenor was a trailblazer.

“Jean Northenor was a friend and mentor to many, not just locally but across the state. She was a friend and mentor to me for most of my adult life. A champion for women in politics and a trailblazer. Many have ‘dipped their toes’ into the political pool with encouragement and guidance over the years from Jean. She will be sadly missed,” McSherry said.
She said her thoughts are with Northenor’s family.

Jean was married in 1961 to James “Jim” W. Northenor, who died at age 83 on April 15, 2021. She was also preceded in death by her son, Rick Reed. Surviving are a son, Steve (and Barb) Reed, Warsaw; grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

Northenor co-founded Kosciusko Leadership Academy (KLA), was a donor to The Magical Meadows, a former county auditor, served on the Indiana Supreme Court Selection Committee, was a four-time Sagamore of the Wabash recipient and served on the first Hoosier Lottery Commission. She helped establish the Republican Party’s Man and Woman of the Year awards, later becoming a recipient of the award herself. She was included in the 2001 edition of “Indiana’s Trailblazing Women” book.

Friends and family may visit from 1 to 6 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 16, at Redpath Fruth Funeral Home, 225 Argonne Road, Warsaw. A private family funeral service will take place with burial at Harrison Center Cemetery, Atwood.

Online condolences may be sent through the funeral home’s website at www.redpathfruthfuneralhome.com.

Lake City Bank
“Jean was just an exceptional woman,” said Lake City Bank (LCB) Chairman and CEO David Findlay. “She was truly a trailblazer for women in Indiana, no doubt about it.”

Northenor came to work at LCB on Dec. 31, 1983. She worked there for 17 years, retiring in late 2000. At the end of her career, Findlay said she was an executive vice president overseeing business development and marketing.

“That title really understates the role she played at the bank. When Doug Grant hired her in 1983, she was a very prominent Kosciusko County resident through her engagement in politics. So, Jean, even though her title was business development and marketing officer, she really touched every area of the bank. She was in charge of branch development, along with Doug Grant, so when we were building new branches in that 17-year period, she was at the forefront working with the architects and the contractors to build our branches, so she literally had an impact and an imprint on every one of those branches,” Findlay stated.
Northenor oversaw the human resource department, as well, throughout most of her career.

“If you think about back to 1983, having a woman come into the bank in a role as visible and as high profile as what she did, she was a true trailblazer, not only for women in banking in Indiana, but women in business and government in Indiana,” he said.
Northenor also was a gatekeeper for the Indiana Republican Party and had a strong influence not only for what went on in Kosciusko County, but also the Statehouse and the governor’s office, he said.

Findlay also pointed out that Northenor was also really good at crossing the aisle in the political world.

“She had really strong relationships with Democratic governors and Democratic legislators, as well, and I learned that after I came here in 2000. Even though she retired soon after my arrival, she still stayed very involved at the state level and local level in politics and had such a positive impact,” he said.

For LCB, Findlay said you can’t understate the value Northenor brought to the bank as a really strong leader, regardless of her gender.

“She was just a great leader by example for everybody at the bank,” he stated.

KLA

KLA had its first graduation class in 1982. According to Northenor in a previous interview, when she was the county auditor and Republican Party chair, she and Matt Dalton found themselves attending numerous community processes. She asked him at one point if there was anyone else in the community who could attend, and that got Dalton to thinking. He called Ball State University.

Later, Dalton called a group together for lunch. That group included Northenor, Doug Grant, Ben Knott, Bob Boley and BSU professor Joe Rawlings.

The purpose of the lunch meeting was to hear from Rawlings about leadership academies. The group talked extensively about them. The leadership academies they heard about were mostly associated with chambers of commerce and city or town-based.

Northenor wasn’t interested in just a Warsaw leadership academy. She was a county person. And, while she had nothing against chambers, she didn’t want the leadership academy to be associated with the chamber. The others expressed they felt the same way Northenor did.

Rawlings told them he’d send a moderator for the KLA to get it going. Professor Peter Murk was with KLA for its first three years, all on Ball State’s dime.

“Ball State was pushing leadership academies to get younger people involved. This was a way to get them involved, and it worked,” Northenor said in the interview.

Grant served as KLA’s first president, and Northenor was curriculum president. The original curriculum included programs on law enforcement, county government, religious organizations, agriculture, area planning and education.

KLA now has the Jean Northenor Award it presents each year to a deserving white paper project. The initial Northenor Award funds were donated by Dalton to the Kosciusko County Community Foundation to establish the annual Northenor Award as an honor to Northenor’s work in making KLA a success. KLA celebrated 40 years in 2021 with a 40 for 40 campaign and raised over $40,000. Half of that was contributed to the Northenor Fund and half was retained for operating funds and providing mini-grants for white paper teams.

KLA adviser and interim President Nate Conley said Northenor had been involved and participated in the Northenor Award panel to review the white paper up until just a couple of years ago.

“She stayed involved, even after founding it and retiring and everything. She stayed involved and supported it financially, and being involved with the white paper panel and stuff, too,” he stated.

The two big things Northenor brought to KLA since its founding, Conley continued, was she wanted KLA to be countywide and not Warsaw-centric.

“She stressed that and we continue to stress that to this day, that we have meetings and classes throughout the county because we want to make a countywide impact,” he said. “And then she, from the get-go, was always encouraging of women to get involved, too, because back when it was founded, there were just a lot of men in leadership roles so from day one she was just encouraging of women to get involved.”

Conley said KLA will find a way to honor Northenor and Dr. Jeffrey Fawcett this year. Fawcett, the KLA president for numerous years, died in June.

Suzie Light, who has served on the KLA Board of Trustees, said, “Jean was an amazing woman. So many things in our community exist because Jean Northenor said they need to be. When Kosciusko Leadership Academy was founded, she said women need to be at the table and it needs to be a countywide organization. Forty years later, it still is that way.”
Northenor said Ivy Tech was needed in the community back in the 1960s, Light said, and it needed to stay in the community so the Kosciusko Ivy Tech campus exists because Northenor had the drive to make it happen.

“I will miss my dear friend and mentor,” Light said. “She loved her family. She was a woman of deep faith. She loved her country and her community. She had a big heart.”

The Magical Meadows

The Magical Meadows offered the following statement on the passing of Northenor: “It is with great mixed emotions that we acknowledge the loss of our dear friend Jean Northenor. While we are filled with sadness that we will no longer be graced by her quick wit, profound wisdom and sincere generosity, we take comfort knowing that she is with our Lord in Heaven – hearing those precious words ‘well done good and faithful servant.’

“Jean and her late husband Jim’s relationship with The Magical Meadows started in 2021 when we were blessed to grant their bucket list wish of riding horses again. Since then, Jean and her family have remained steadfast supporters and believers in the transformational mission of The Magical Meadows. Some of their most notable contributions include funding the construction of our hay barn in 2021, and most recently, a $100,000 donation toward our Growing with Heart Capital Campaign and Expansion Project. More than her financial support, we will miss her guidance, advocacy and genuine friendship.”
“It is said that in life a person has three to five people who are really a true friend. Jean Northenor was that to me,” said Carl Adams, Magical Meadows Board chair. “Martin Luther King Jr. once said, ‘In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.’ Her silence is already being felt. My friend is now experiencing those things we often spoke about.”

Magical Meadows remains “dedicated to keeping Jean’s legacy alive for generations to come. In the meantime, we ask that the community join us in wrapping Jean’s family and friends in love, compassion, and prayer during this time of loss,” the statement concludes.

The post Community leaders reflect on wide-ranging impact of Jean Northenor appeared first on News Now Warsaw.

]]> https://www.newsnowwarsaw.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/Untitled-design-2025-11-08T052337.801.png Mary Louise Miller loved her community, friends say https://www.newsnowwarsaw.com/mary-louise-miller-loved-her-community-friends-say/ Mon, 29 Sep 2025 12:44:02 +0000 https://www.newsnowwarsaw.com/?p=120236 By David Slone
Times-Union

WINONA LAKE — Anyone who has ever traveled on the greenways in Winona Lake, shopped at The Village at Winona, ice skated at the Miller Sunset Pavilion, attended First or Third Fridays downtown Warsaw or taken part in a host of other activities has Dr. Dane and Mary Louise Miller to thank.

On Saturday, Mary Louise, 78, of Winona Lake, died surrounded by her family and friends. Her husband, Dane, one of the founders of Biomet Inc., preceded Mary Louise at age 69 on Feb. 10, 2015.

Several friends recalled Mary Louise’s kindness and generosity Sunday, along with her love for her community.

Dan Hann has known her since about 1983-84 when he was an attorney at Ice Miller in Indianapolis, helping Dane with legal work in starting up Biomet. In 1989, Dane convinced Hann to join the Biomet Board of Directors, becoming general counsel for the company. When Dane retired in 2006, Hann took over as CEO for a couple years.

“Dane was one of my closest friends all of that time, as well as Mary Louise, and more recently, I’ve been on the Miller Foundation Board for twentysome years and have always helped them run the foundation. And then Mary Louise and I worked together this last fall to create - under the Miller Foundation - the new Village Foundation and took all of the Village property out of her personal estate and contributed it to a nonprofit so that the Village at Winona would hopefully continue on into perpetuity,” Hann said.

He said Mary Louise and Dane absolutely adored the community.

“Going back to the late ’80s, after they relocated to the other side of the lake, they always had a vision to rebuild and ultimately preserve what now everyone thinks of as The Village at Winona,” Hann said.

In the early 1990s, Dane and Mary Louise started anonymously buying up the real estate in Winona Lake when it was “basically a slum,” he recalled.

“We’re actually in the process right now of taking the old chapel in The Village and we’re going to make that into The Village at Winona Museum, and part of that will honor the legacy of Dane and Mary Louise, but I think it’s safe to say the real legacy of Dane and Mary Louise is really The Village at Winona. Zimmer Biomet goes on and continues to evolve, but (The Village is) something, I think, when you think of Dane and Mary Louise in this community, it’s truly their legacy,” Hann stated.

It was very important to Mary Louise, he continued. “Last year, when she became ill and had health issues, we had been working on this plan for - really since Dane’s passing - to protect The Village so it wouldn’t pass through her estate and who would know what future generations may or may not do. So she wanted to protect it and she created this nonprofit foundation called The Village at Winona Foundation, which is a subsidiary of the Miller Foundation, to preserve and protect it.”

Hann said he hopes the community appreciates what Mary Louise did to keep The Village going in perpetuity for the enjoyment of generations to come.

“So it’s well-protected and well-preserved and that was just a reflection of her love and commitment to the community, I believe,” Hann said, adding Mary Louise was just a remarkable woman. “Over the years, Dane has always received a lot of press and attention, which was very well-deserved, but the old saying, ‘Behind every great man is a great woman,’ well, that was her, that was Mary Louise.”

He reiterated that she loved her community and its people, but she never sought the spotlight and even shied away from it.

“She truly loved to give back to her community, and, again, she was just a remarkable woman. Kind, generous, loving. I can’t say enough about her. Like so many of her closest friends, we’re devastated. It’s such a great loss,” Hann said.

Jim Lancaster, Winona Lake Town Councilman, has known Mary Louise for about the last 20 years, after joining Biomet and more recently through community activities.

“She’s been a very good friend to me and very sweet to me in my personal life. And I think one of the things I find about Mary Louise is that she kind of has this quiet, graceful strength to who she was,” he said. “Everybody often thought of Mary Louise as Dane’s wife, but she was a champion and a giant in her own right. If you think about things that got done since Dane passed; if you think about what she did with the town of Winona Lake, with the Miller Sunset Pavilion, that was all her. That was all her wanting to do that and work with the town on that. She had a vision for a community venue like that, where you could do ice skating in the winter and a farmers market in the summer. And I would say that her vision has come to life there, and it’s great to see that, and I know she was excited about that.”

If one looks at The Village and its impact, not only on Winona Lake but also in Kosciusko County, along with the mountain bike trails and how it’s all a contiguous ecosystem, Lancaster said, “Mary Louise did an amazing job kind of getting that set up.” She set up foundations to make sure it was all protected forever.

“Those are not insignificant deeds for anybody to do, let alone do a couple of those in a matter of a few years. And quietly. Again, I just think it speaks to her quiet, eloquent, graceful way in which she championed things, causes for the community,” Lancaster stated.
He noted Mary Louise was still the driving force behind the Dr. Dane and Mary Louise Miller Foundation.

“She was very much involved with that, and, again, you think about what that foundation does, somewhat quietly in our community, and it’s not insignificant,” Lancaster said.
If Dane was a patriarch of the community in his own way, Lancaster said he thinks of Mary Louise as maybe one of the final matriarchs.

“I don’t know that we have a Dane or a Mary Louise Miller. It’s sad on one hand, but I think they also set great examples of what others can do in the ways they have. I just go back to her vision and sincerity, when you think about stewardship and what she’s done with the foundation, how the Village has been protected, how the trails have been protected. It’s such a blessing,” he said.

“I hazard to say that there’s very few people in the county that haven’t somehow been impacted by the generosity and/or the vision in which Dane and then more Mary Louise have had on our community.”

Former Winona Lake Town Manager Craig Allebach stated, “I cannot begin to put into words or describe the impact that Mary Louise Miller had on the town of Winona Lake and the transformation that the town has seen under the vision that Dane and Mary Louise created years ago.

“I was personally and professionally blessed to serve my entire time (25 years) as Winona Lake town manager and benefited from the vision and philanthropy of Mary Louise Miller. Mary Louise only wanted the best for Winona Lake and set out to make for a nice community, a place people wanted to live. What you see today in the investment by others makes Winona Lake the place people want to live. She wanted for things to stay local, and what I mean by local is actually Winona Lake,” he stated.

As a result of her efforts, Allebach said the community has seen not only the investment of their philanthropy but other residents stepping forward to improve their homes.

“She had an amazing heart for Winona Lake, and in the many conversations I had with her, she always put Winona Lake first. Whether it was the town’s greenways, police department, park department, mountain bike trails, leadership of the town council, the residents and the town were benefactors of her philanthropy and vision. I know she had a special place in her heart for helping women and children, also, that some may not know,” Allebach said.
“I will miss the down-to-earth conversations I had with her on moving the town forward, the latest being her involvement in the Miller Sunset Pavilion. She never wanted recognition and supported every project I brought to her on the town’s behalf, even on Warsaw and Kosciusko County’s behalf, too.”

Allebach recalled one of the first conversations he had when the new town manager, Pam Howard, came to Winona Lake was taking Howard down to the Village at Winona and Dane and Mary Louise Foundation offices to have a conversation about the impact of what the Millers mean to Winona Lake and to gather a historical perspective as to the impact.

“Man, what an amazing legacy that will never be forgotten and what we see in the town every day,” Allebach said. “I know family and friends, especially Winona Lake friends, can take comfort in having known Mary Louise and driving and walking through the community that she loved and put her handprint on. Prayers for family in the days ahead as we celebrate her life. She will be greatly missed. Thank you, Mary Louise Miller.”

Ken Nisly met Mary Louise 39 years ago when his wife, Priscilla, was friends with Mary Louise’s then-cleaning lady.

“(Priscilla) is the only one out of everybody who has worked for Mrs. Miller that has stayed with her that long. And then I got introduced to Mr. and Mrs. Miller at that point, and within about six months, they became almost parents to us both and it was like a match made in heaven. It’s been very special,” Ken recalled.

He said Mary Louise is the “most generous, loving, caring and reasonable person that you’d ever want to meet. And she never made quick decisions, and Dane was the same way. They both were just very, very to the point. I’ll just say it this way: I’ve never had anybody who could be as stern with me and you still felt like they were your best friend.”

It’s hard to put into words what the Millers meant to the Nislys and to the community, Ken said. Every day that he drives through The Village, he said he thinks about something the Millers did to make it such a beautiful community.

“Both of them, if they had their choice, they would have preferred nobody ever knew how that happened. They always gave everybody else recognition, but never were out there to say, ‘Look at me. This is what we accomplished,’” Ken said.

Priscilla said Mary Louise was her best friend after working for her for 39 years.
“We were just a team,” she said. “Kind. Generous. Loving. Cared about everybody. She was just outstanding.”

The post Mary Louise Miller loved her community, friends say appeared first on News Now Warsaw.

]]> By David Slone
Times-Union

WINONA LAKE — Anyone who has ever traveled on the greenways in Winona Lake, shopped at The Village at Winona, ice skated at the Miller Sunset Pavilion, attended First or Third Fridays downtown Warsaw or taken part in a host of other activities has Dr. Dane and Mary Louise Miller to thank.

On Saturday, Mary Louise, 78, of Winona Lake, died surrounded by her family and friends. Her husband, Dane, one of the founders of Biomet Inc., preceded Mary Louise at age 69 on Feb. 10, 2015.

Several friends recalled Mary Louise’s kindness and generosity Sunday, along with her love for her community.

Dan Hann has known her since about 1983-84 when he was an attorney at Ice Miller in Indianapolis, helping Dane with legal work in starting up Biomet. In 1989, Dane convinced Hann to join the Biomet Board of Directors, becoming general counsel for the company. When Dane retired in 2006, Hann took over as CEO for a couple years.

“Dane was one of my closest friends all of that time, as well as Mary Louise, and more recently, I’ve been on the Miller Foundation Board for twentysome years and have always helped them run the foundation. And then Mary Louise and I worked together this last fall to create – under the Miller Foundation – the new Village Foundation and took all of the Village property out of her personal estate and contributed it to a nonprofit so that the Village at Winona would hopefully continue on into perpetuity,” Hann said.

He said Mary Louise and Dane absolutely adored the community.

“Going back to the late ’80s, after they relocated to the other side of the lake, they always had a vision to rebuild and ultimately preserve what now everyone thinks of as The Village at Winona,” Hann said.

In the early 1990s, Dane and Mary Louise started anonymously buying up the real estate in Winona Lake when it was “basically a slum,” he recalled.

“We’re actually in the process right now of taking the old chapel in The Village and we’re going to make that into The Village at Winona Museum, and part of that will honor the legacy of Dane and Mary Louise, but I think it’s safe to say the real legacy of Dane and Mary Louise is really The Village at Winona. Zimmer Biomet goes on and continues to evolve, but (The Village is) something, I think, when you think of Dane and Mary Louise in this community, it’s truly their legacy,” Hann stated.

It was very important to Mary Louise, he continued. “Last year, when she became ill and had health issues, we had been working on this plan for – really since Dane’s passing – to protect The Village so it wouldn’t pass through her estate and who would know what future generations may or may not do. So she wanted to protect it and she created this nonprofit foundation called The Village at Winona Foundation, which is a subsidiary of the Miller Foundation, to preserve and protect it.”

Hann said he hopes the community appreciates what Mary Louise did to keep The Village going in perpetuity for the enjoyment of generations to come.

“So it’s well-protected and well-preserved and that was just a reflection of her love and commitment to the community, I believe,” Hann said, adding Mary Louise was just a remarkable woman. “Over the years, Dane has always received a lot of press and attention, which was very well-deserved, but the old saying, ‘Behind every great man is a great woman,’ well, that was her, that was Mary Louise.”

He reiterated that she loved her community and its people, but she never sought the spotlight and even shied away from it.

“She truly loved to give back to her community, and, again, she was just a remarkable woman. Kind, generous, loving. I can’t say enough about her. Like so many of her closest friends, we’re devastated. It’s such a great loss,” Hann said.

Jim Lancaster, Winona Lake Town Councilman, has known Mary Louise for about the last 20 years, after joining Biomet and more recently through community activities.

“She’s been a very good friend to me and very sweet to me in my personal life. And I think one of the things I find about Mary Louise is that she kind of has this quiet, graceful strength to who she was,” he said. “Everybody often thought of Mary Louise as Dane’s wife, but she was a champion and a giant in her own right. If you think about things that got done since Dane passed; if you think about what she did with the town of Winona Lake, with the Miller Sunset Pavilion, that was all her. That was all her wanting to do that and work with the town on that. She had a vision for a community venue like that, where you could do ice skating in the winter and a farmers market in the summer. And I would say that her vision has come to life there, and it’s great to see that, and I know she was excited about that.”

If one looks at The Village and its impact, not only on Winona Lake but also in Kosciusko County, along with the mountain bike trails and how it’s all a contiguous ecosystem, Lancaster said, “Mary Louise did an amazing job kind of getting that set up.” She set up foundations to make sure it was all protected forever.

“Those are not insignificant deeds for anybody to do, let alone do a couple of those in a matter of a few years. And quietly. Again, I just think it speaks to her quiet, eloquent, graceful way in which she championed things, causes for the community,” Lancaster stated.
He noted Mary Louise was still the driving force behind the Dr. Dane and Mary Louise Miller Foundation.

“She was very much involved with that, and, again, you think about what that foundation does, somewhat quietly in our community, and it’s not insignificant,” Lancaster said.
If Dane was a patriarch of the community in his own way, Lancaster said he thinks of Mary Louise as maybe one of the final matriarchs.

“I don’t know that we have a Dane or a Mary Louise Miller. It’s sad on one hand, but I think they also set great examples of what others can do in the ways they have. I just go back to her vision and sincerity, when you think about stewardship and what she’s done with the foundation, how the Village has been protected, how the trails have been protected. It’s such a blessing,” he said.

“I hazard to say that there’s very few people in the county that haven’t somehow been impacted by the generosity and/or the vision in which Dane and then more Mary Louise have had on our community.”

Former Winona Lake Town Manager Craig Allebach stated, “I cannot begin to put into words or describe the impact that Mary Louise Miller had on the town of Winona Lake and the transformation that the town has seen under the vision that Dane and Mary Louise created years ago.

“I was personally and professionally blessed to serve my entire time (25 years) as Winona Lake town manager and benefited from the vision and philanthropy of Mary Louise Miller. Mary Louise only wanted the best for Winona Lake and set out to make for a nice community, a place people wanted to live. What you see today in the investment by others makes Winona Lake the place people want to live. She wanted for things to stay local, and what I mean by local is actually Winona Lake,” he stated.

As a result of her efforts, Allebach said the community has seen not only the investment of their philanthropy but other residents stepping forward to improve their homes.

“She had an amazing heart for Winona Lake, and in the many conversations I had with her, she always put Winona Lake first. Whether it was the town’s greenways, police department, park department, mountain bike trails, leadership of the town council, the residents and the town were benefactors of her philanthropy and vision. I know she had a special place in her heart for helping women and children, also, that some may not know,” Allebach said.
“I will miss the down-to-earth conversations I had with her on moving the town forward, the latest being her involvement in the Miller Sunset Pavilion. She never wanted recognition and supported every project I brought to her on the town’s behalf, even on Warsaw and Kosciusko County’s behalf, too.”

Allebach recalled one of the first conversations he had when the new town manager, Pam Howard, came to Winona Lake was taking Howard down to the Village at Winona and Dane and Mary Louise Foundation offices to have a conversation about the impact of what the Millers mean to Winona Lake and to gather a historical perspective as to the impact.

“Man, what an amazing legacy that will never be forgotten and what we see in the town every day,” Allebach said. “I know family and friends, especially Winona Lake friends, can take comfort in having known Mary Louise and driving and walking through the community that she loved and put her handprint on. Prayers for family in the days ahead as we celebrate her life. She will be greatly missed. Thank you, Mary Louise Miller.”

Ken Nisly met Mary Louise 39 years ago when his wife, Priscilla, was friends with Mary Louise’s then-cleaning lady.

“(Priscilla) is the only one out of everybody who has worked for Mrs. Miller that has stayed with her that long. And then I got introduced to Mr. and Mrs. Miller at that point, and within about six months, they became almost parents to us both and it was like a match made in heaven. It’s been very special,” Ken recalled.

He said Mary Louise is the “most generous, loving, caring and reasonable person that you’d ever want to meet. And she never made quick decisions, and Dane was the same way. They both were just very, very to the point. I’ll just say it this way: I’ve never had anybody who could be as stern with me and you still felt like they were your best friend.”

It’s hard to put into words what the Millers meant to the Nislys and to the community, Ken said. Every day that he drives through The Village, he said he thinks about something the Millers did to make it such a beautiful community.

“Both of them, if they had their choice, they would have preferred nobody ever knew how that happened. They always gave everybody else recognition, but never were out there to say, ‘Look at me. This is what we accomplished,’” Ken said.

Priscilla said Mary Louise was her best friend after working for her for 39 years.
“We were just a team,” she said. “Kind. Generous. Loving. Cared about everybody. She was just outstanding.”

The post Mary Louise Miller loved her community, friends say appeared first on News Now Warsaw.

]]> https://www.newsnowwarsaw.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Mary-Louise-Miller.png More than 300 turn out in Warsaw for prayer vigil after Kirk’s murder https://www.newsnowwarsaw.com/more-than-300-turn-out-in-warsaw-for-prayer-vigil-after-kirks-murder/ Fri, 19 Sep 2025 09:54:00 +0000 https://www.newsnowwarsaw.com/?p=119536 By David Slone
Times-Union

WARSAW — They gathered together. They listened together. They sang together. And they prayed together.

Over 300 people —  some with American flags, a few with signs, from babies to the elderly and ages in between — met at Central Park in Warsaw Thursday night for the “Pray for America Vigil & Remembrance.”

Beforehand, Joe Jackson, of Warsaw, an organizer, explained, “The reason we organized it was the events of last week. And we were trying to be patient to see if anybody else wanted to do something. We just felt led that if nobody else was going to do it, why not us? And the goal is just to encourage people and to point to the thing that Charlie (Kirk) pointed to, which was his faith in the Lord and to say that brings hope. So in the midst of all the craziness, that brings hope.”

On Sept. 10 in a campus courtyard at Utah Valley University, Kirk, 31, a conservative activist and speaker, was assassinated by Tyler Robinson, 22, of Washington, Utah.

Robinson has since been arrested and charged with aggravated murder and other crimes.
Joe said the itinerary for Thursday’s event would basically be opening remarks, spend some time singing, spend some time in prayer, some guided prayer time, a couple more songs, a gospel presentation and that was about it.

He said the turnout was pretty cool.

“It was one-day notice with no money invested, and so we were just seeing what the Lord would do, and people were generous,” Joe said. “I think it just shows that people could use some encouragement, some hope.”

From Thursday’s event, he was uncertain where it would go from there.

“I guess we’ll see what happens. We didn’t even plan to do this. So I guess we’ll just see what happens,” Joe, who is a student pastor at First Church of God in Columbia City, said.
Kate Jackson, his wife and a co-organizer, said, “We’ll see what the response is and what the Lord does.”

In Joe’s opening remarks, he said, “I’m sure that we’re all kind of here for similar reasons, maybe the reasons are a little bit different, too, so I just encourage you to lean in with us tonight. We’re going to do some scripture reading, we’re going to have some prayer time, we’re going to sing some hymns. The goal of tonight is to pray for our country, to petition the Lord and ask for his blessing and continued guidance. It’s also to honor Charlie Kirk and who he was and what he did. So the goal of tonight is to do what he did, which is to point people to Jesus.”

Continuing, he said, “We gather here not just to mourn, but we gather to seek the Lord. The scripture’s promise in Psalm 34:18 - ‘The Lord is close to the broken-hearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.’ So we come honestly, but also we come hopefully and hopeful to see what God can do when people gather together and lean in, in the same direction.”

Joe said they also gather to remember that faith was the most important thing to Kirk, more than politics, influence or the spotlight.

“His ultimate hope - and I hope your ultimate hope, if not now, before you leave - is in Jesus Christ. That’s why we can say that his faith, his life wasn’t wasted. His life reminds us that following Jesus is costly, but the cost is worth it. And so this is a night of prayer, of probably some lament. Maybe it’s going to stir back up those feelings that we felt a week ago, but if you’re a person of deep faith, of deep conviction or maybe you’re just kind of figuring it out and you’re like, ‘Well, Charlie lived and something was worthwhile and I kind of feel like I want to know what that is, too,’ welcome. Thank you for coming,” Joe said.

He led everyone in a prayer, followed by his dad, Bob, leading everyone in the first of several hymns.

Joe read more from the Bible and spoke about the scripture, followed by Bob leading everyone in singing “Amazing Grace.” Everyone then broke up into small groups to pray together for three different things: first, everyone prayed for themselves and confessed of their sins; second, everyone prayed for unity and healing; and finally, everyone prayed for the future, the community and the nation, and the courage to pursue unity and healing.

After a prayer by Joe, Sam Yeiter then spoke and read passages from the Bible to encourage everyone.

The night concluded with one last group sing and a benediction.

The post More than 300 turn out in Warsaw for prayer vigil after Kirk’s murder appeared first on News Now Warsaw.

]]> By David Slone
Times-Union

WARSAW — They gathered together. They listened together. They sang together. And they prayed together.

Over 300 people —  some with American flags, a few with signs, from babies to the elderly and ages in between — met at Central Park in Warsaw Thursday night for the “Pray for America Vigil & Remembrance.”

Beforehand, Joe Jackson, of Warsaw, an organizer, explained, “The reason we organized it was the events of last week. And we were trying to be patient to see if anybody else wanted to do something. We just felt led that if nobody else was going to do it, why not us? And the goal is just to encourage people and to point to the thing that Charlie (Kirk) pointed to, which was his faith in the Lord and to say that brings hope. So in the midst of all the craziness, that brings hope.”

On Sept. 10 in a campus courtyard at Utah Valley University, Kirk, 31, a conservative activist and speaker, was assassinated by Tyler Robinson, 22, of Washington, Utah.

Robinson has since been arrested and charged with aggravated murder and other crimes.
Joe said the itinerary for Thursday’s event would basically be opening remarks, spend some time singing, spend some time in prayer, some guided prayer time, a couple more songs, a gospel presentation and that was about it.

He said the turnout was pretty cool.

“It was one-day notice with no money invested, and so we were just seeing what the Lord would do, and people were generous,” Joe said. “I think it just shows that people could use some encouragement, some hope.”

From Thursday’s event, he was uncertain where it would go from there.

“I guess we’ll see what happens. We didn’t even plan to do this. So I guess we’ll just see what happens,” Joe, who is a student pastor at First Church of God in Columbia City, said.
Kate Jackson, his wife and a co-organizer, said, “We’ll see what the response is and what the Lord does.”

In Joe’s opening remarks, he said, “I’m sure that we’re all kind of here for similar reasons, maybe the reasons are a little bit different, too, so I just encourage you to lean in with us tonight. We’re going to do some scripture reading, we’re going to have some prayer time, we’re going to sing some hymns. The goal of tonight is to pray for our country, to petition the Lord and ask for his blessing and continued guidance. It’s also to honor Charlie Kirk and who he was and what he did. So the goal of tonight is to do what he did, which is to point people to Jesus.”

Continuing, he said, “We gather here not just to mourn, but we gather to seek the Lord. The scripture’s promise in Psalm 34:18 – ‘The Lord is close to the broken-hearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.’ So we come honestly, but also we come hopefully and hopeful to see what God can do when people gather together and lean in, in the same direction.”

Joe said they also gather to remember that faith was the most important thing to Kirk, more than politics, influence or the spotlight.

“His ultimate hope – and I hope your ultimate hope, if not now, before you leave – is in Jesus Christ. That’s why we can say that his faith, his life wasn’t wasted. His life reminds us that following Jesus is costly, but the cost is worth it. And so this is a night of prayer, of probably some lament. Maybe it’s going to stir back up those feelings that we felt a week ago, but if you’re a person of deep faith, of deep conviction or maybe you’re just kind of figuring it out and you’re like, ‘Well, Charlie lived and something was worthwhile and I kind of feel like I want to know what that is, too,’ welcome. Thank you for coming,” Joe said.

He led everyone in a prayer, followed by his dad, Bob, leading everyone in the first of several hymns.

Joe read more from the Bible and spoke about the scripture, followed by Bob leading everyone in singing “Amazing Grace.” Everyone then broke up into small groups to pray together for three different things: first, everyone prayed for themselves and confessed of their sins; second, everyone prayed for unity and healing; and finally, everyone prayed for the future, the community and the nation, and the courage to pursue unity and healing.

After a prayer by Joe, Sam Yeiter then spoke and read passages from the Bible to encourage everyone.

The night concluded with one last group sing and a benediction.

The post More than 300 turn out in Warsaw for prayer vigil after Kirk’s murder appeared first on News Now Warsaw.

]]> https://www.newsnowwarsaw.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Add-a-little-bit-of-body-text-36.png Open house showcases improvements at Tippecanoe Valley High School https://www.newsnowwarsaw.com/open-house-showcases-improvements-at-tippecanoe-valley-high-school/ Mon, 28 Oct 2024 15:42:53 +0000 https://www.newsnowwarsaw.com/?p=100820 By David Slone
Times-Union

AKRON — Teachers, coaches, administrators and students were excited to show the public the renovations and additions to Tippecanoe Valley High School during an open house on Sunday.

Tippecanoe Valley School Corporation Superintendent Blaine Conley said planning began in 2022 with public meetings to gather input from not only school personnel but also from the community on what the needs for the facility were.

They knew the pool needed to be renovated.

Wanting to expand the agriculture program, having added a second teacher a few years ago, Conley said, “We wanted to provide a really improved instructional space for those two teachers.” 

The weight room was expanded, and a multi-purpose room will give the wrestling team a place to work and practice to expand their program.

“We were able to get all those different components into this project,” he said. “The auditorium was something that had been discussed for a long time, and we knew that there will be community events out here. And, obviously, the student events with our choir, theater and band. There will be more people able to come out and watch our kids compete and participate in those different activities.”

The project is very close to being completed. The $31 million in renovations and new construction is a tax rate-neutral project, Conley said.

One of the new spaces is the weight and fitness room, along with new locker rooms, to the right of a new entry.

Brandon Webster, strength and conditioning coach, said, “The old weight room was about 2,000 square feet. This is about 5,000 square feet, and we added 15 racks, so now we can have class sizes of 60 in here training at one time. So it’s just a little bit more efficient and, obviously, we’ve got a little bit more toys to play with to kind of help lead the student-athletes to a better future.”

Along with the weights, there are some cardio machines, med balls and “all sorts of fun stuff,” he said.
Of the people he sees during the day, Webster said about 90% are athletes.

Since opening in February, the weight and fitness room has just been open to students to let them break in the new equipment. Starting Nov. 11, it will be opened to the public, Conley said. Hours will be 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Monday, Wednesday and Thursday. People can enter the north door.

Across the hall from the weight and fitness room is the newly constructed stage and auditorium.

Thomas Boys, director of vocal music and theater arts, said the new stage at 48 feet is wider than the old state was at about 30 feet. Stage depth is also bigger, and over 600 people can be seated in the updated chairs.

“In here, we’re on all LED lighting,” he said, and they don’t have to climb a ladder to change the color gels on the lights. It’s all on the keyboard system up in the booth. 

“Everything is larger,” Boys said, including the wing space. “We can have larger groups. If any outside groups wanted to come and do a concert, or any kind of performance, I think we’re able to accommodate almost any normal-size production.”

There’s dressing rooms for boys and girls, as well as a green room for performers to do their hair and makeup.

The first production that will make use of the stage is Valley’s Got Talent at 7 p.m. Nov. 7. Two weeks after that will be the fall play, “Circus Olympus.” Show times are 7 p.m. Nov. 21 and 2 p.m. Nov. 23.

Boys said they’re getting training on the lights and sound this week.

Janell Riner, band director for the past 26 years, said the auditorium is acoustically designed for performances.

“It’s going to boost our sound - not necessarily make us louder, but the audience is going to be able to hear with absolute precision everything we do, which is really exciting,” she said. “The band will be able to hear themselves better. That makes you a better musician.”

She said it’ll give the band program a boost with exposure, which she said will be great.

“I would think, for the parents, it would be really, really exciting to come and watch their kids in a place like this. Behind the scenes, we know how hard the kids work, but then to get them out here, in this place, it just really, really highlights all the work that they’ve put into it. So, as a parent, I would be very excited to see my kid on this stage,” she stated.

The pool has been renovated and looks like new.

Scott Whetstone, boys and girls swim coach, said he swam at the old TVHS pool for age group and in high school.

“It’s a huge update. Much needed. But it’s been a lot of change and a lot of updates, with the bleachers, obviously. Getting the pool re-tiled. A whole new circulation system, all the stuff they did to improve to just get us up and running,” he said.

It’s still a six-lane pool, but there is an updated digital scoreboard. There’s a new timing system and inlines.

“Everything refurbished and new,” Whetstone stated. “We’re hoping to bring in some kids, that’s what we’re trying to do - help the program. Obviously, a new facility should help. Trying to get some numbers up and trying to get things moving along.”

The girls swim season starts today, Monday, Oct. 28, while the boys start Nov. 11.
He thanked the school board and everyone who helped make the pool a reality.

Conley said there will be open time for the pool for the public, with that information to be posted on their Facebook page.

Nathan Shewman, head wrestling coach, said the dedicated wrestling room will have mats on the floor from wall to wall. While there won’t be any competitions held in the room, he said it’ll just be for practice.

“With girls wrestling being sanctioned this year, that’s going to increase the number of kids we have in here at any given time for practice. It’ll be nice to have a place of our own finally,” he stated.

Luke Tucker, FFA president, and Aaron Backus, FFA secretary, highlighted the new agriculture space in the school.

   

“A lot of the stuff in here is new, more modern. With the shop stuff, it’ll help us learn the more modern ways to do stuff. There’s a lot of more new stuff that we didn’t have in our old one,” Backus said.

The FFA also has its own office for meetings.

In the new shop are all new welding booths and welders, which “is a big upgrade from what we had,” Tucker said. “And we have all new tools, tool chests, all that type of stuff.” He said the shop is a lot nicer.

Michael Jones, one of two TVHS agriculture teachers, said four years ago they added a second ag teacher, Hope Slagle, after student enrollment in the ag program increased.
“When we moved back here (from the north side of the school to the south), they built us two brand new classrooms, which are wide open. Lots of lab space so we can do more labs. And then a new ag shop for my ag mechanics classes,” he stated. 

The ag classes are closer to the woods, which they use a lot. The cattle operations also are back there.

Jonathan Tinkey, esports coach at Valley, and player Jacob Scacco showed off the new esports room.

“Esports stands for electronic sports. It is competition of different video games, usually team-based,” Tinkey said. “... Players compete against different schools in getting different objectives in a map.”

He said esports help students with teamwork and thinking on their feet. In many matches, they can be won or lost on a quick decision. Valley has 30 students currently in esports and they’re divided into four different games.

Scacco has been playing esports for two years. He said what he likes about it are the connections he makes. His best friend plays with him and esports gives them something to talk about and learn about each other. He said he’s also made a lot of friends through the games.

Brandon Kresca, TVHS principal, summarized the renovation project by stating, “It’s new opportunity ... We’ve just been anticipating this completion so that we can have access to all these spaces for our different groups - our fine arts departments, our athletic departments, our agriculture departments.  So many different groups are getting their programs enhanced by these different spaces.”

The post Open house showcases improvements at Tippecanoe Valley High School appeared first on News Now Warsaw.

]]> By David Slone
Times-Union

AKRON — Teachers, coaches, administrators and students were excited to show the public the renovations and additions to Tippecanoe Valley High School during an open house on Sunday.

Tippecanoe Valley School Corporation Superintendent Blaine Conley said planning began in 2022 with public meetings to gather input from not only school personnel but also from the community on what the needs for the facility were.

They knew the pool needed to be renovated.

Wanting to expand the agriculture program, having added a second teacher a few years ago, Conley said, “We wanted to provide a really improved instructional space for those two teachers.” 

The weight room was expanded, and a multi-purpose room will give the wrestling team a place to work and practice to expand their program.

“We were able to get all those different components into this project,” he said. “The auditorium was something that had been discussed for a long time, and we knew that there will be community events out here. And, obviously, the student events with our choir, theater and band. There will be more people able to come out and watch our kids compete and participate in those different activities.”

The project is very close to being completed. The $31 million in renovations and new construction is a tax rate-neutral project, Conley said.

One of the new spaces is the weight and fitness room, along with new locker rooms, to the right of a new entry.

Brandon Webster, strength and conditioning coach, said, “The old weight room was about 2,000 square feet. This is about 5,000 square feet, and we added 15 racks, so now we can have class sizes of 60 in here training at one time. So it’s just a little bit more efficient and, obviously, we’ve got a little bit more toys to play with to kind of help lead the student-athletes to a better future.”

Along with the weights, there are some cardio machines, med balls and “all sorts of fun stuff,” he said.
Of the people he sees during the day, Webster said about 90% are athletes.

Since opening in February, the weight and fitness room has just been open to students to let them break in the new equipment. Starting Nov. 11, it will be opened to the public, Conley said. Hours will be 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Monday, Wednesday and Thursday. People can enter the north door.

Across the hall from the weight and fitness room is the newly constructed stage and auditorium.

Thomas Boys, director of vocal music and theater arts, said the new stage at 48 feet is wider than the old state was at about 30 feet. Stage depth is also bigger, and over 600 people can be seated in the updated chairs.

“In here, we’re on all LED lighting,” he said, and they don’t have to climb a ladder to change the color gels on the lights. It’s all on the keyboard system up in the booth. 

“Everything is larger,” Boys said, including the wing space. “We can have larger groups. If any outside groups wanted to come and do a concert, or any kind of performance, I think we’re able to accommodate almost any normal-size production.”

There’s dressing rooms for boys and girls, as well as a green room for performers to do their hair and makeup.

The first production that will make use of the stage is Valley’s Got Talent at 7 p.m. Nov. 7. Two weeks after that will be the fall play, “Circus Olympus.” Show times are 7 p.m. Nov. 21 and 2 p.m. Nov. 23.

Boys said they’re getting training on the lights and sound this week.

Janell Riner, band director for the past 26 years, said the auditorium is acoustically designed for performances.

“It’s going to boost our sound – not necessarily make us louder, but the audience is going to be able to hear with absolute precision everything we do, which is really exciting,” she said. “The band will be able to hear themselves better. That makes you a better musician.”

She said it’ll give the band program a boost with exposure, which she said will be great.

“I would think, for the parents, it would be really, really exciting to come and watch their kids in a place like this. Behind the scenes, we know how hard the kids work, but then to get them out here, in this place, it just really, really highlights all the work that they’ve put into it. So, as a parent, I would be very excited to see my kid on this stage,” she stated.

The pool has been renovated and looks like new.

Scott Whetstone, boys and girls swim coach, said he swam at the old TVHS pool for age group and in high school.

“It’s a huge update. Much needed. But it’s been a lot of change and a lot of updates, with the bleachers, obviously. Getting the pool re-tiled. A whole new circulation system, all the stuff they did to improve to just get us up and running,” he said.

It’s still a six-lane pool, but there is an updated digital scoreboard. There’s a new timing system and inlines.

“Everything refurbished and new,” Whetstone stated. “We’re hoping to bring in some kids, that’s what we’re trying to do – help the program. Obviously, a new facility should help. Trying to get some numbers up and trying to get things moving along.”

The girls swim season starts today, Monday, Oct. 28, while the boys start Nov. 11.
He thanked the school board and everyone who helped make the pool a reality.

Conley said there will be open time for the pool for the public, with that information to be posted on their Facebook page.

Nathan Shewman, head wrestling coach, said the dedicated wrestling room will have mats on the floor from wall to wall. While there won’t be any competitions held in the room, he said it’ll just be for practice.

“With girls wrestling being sanctioned this year, that’s going to increase the number of kids we have in here at any given time for practice. It’ll be nice to have a place of our own finally,” he stated.

Luke Tucker, FFA president, and Aaron Backus, FFA secretary, highlighted the new agriculture space in the school.

   

“A lot of the stuff in here is new, more modern. With the shop stuff, it’ll help us learn the more modern ways to do stuff. There’s a lot of more new stuff that we didn’t have in our old one,” Backus said.

The FFA also has its own office for meetings.

In the new shop are all new welding booths and welders, which “is a big upgrade from what we had,” Tucker said. “And we have all new tools, tool chests, all that type of stuff.” He said the shop is a lot nicer.

Michael Jones, one of two TVHS agriculture teachers, said four years ago they added a second ag teacher, Hope Slagle, after student enrollment in the ag program increased.
“When we moved back here (from the north side of the school to the south), they built us two brand new classrooms, which are wide open. Lots of lab space so we can do more labs. And then a new ag shop for my ag mechanics classes,” he stated. 

The ag classes are closer to the woods, which they use a lot. The cattle operations also are back there.

Jonathan Tinkey, esports coach at Valley, and player Jacob Scacco showed off the new esports room.

“Esports stands for electronic sports. It is competition of different video games, usually team-based,” Tinkey said. “… Players compete against different schools in getting different objectives in a map.”

He said esports help students with teamwork and thinking on their feet. In many matches, they can be won or lost on a quick decision. Valley has 30 students currently in esports and they’re divided into four different games.

Scacco has been playing esports for two years. He said what he likes about it are the connections he makes. His best friend plays with him and esports gives them something to talk about and learn about each other. He said he’s also made a lot of friends through the games.

Brandon Kresca, TVHS principal, summarized the renovation project by stating, “It’s new opportunity … We’ve just been anticipating this completion so that we can have access to all these spaces for our different groups – our fine arts departments, our athletic departments, our agriculture departments.  So many different groups are getting their programs enhanced by these different spaces.”

The post Open house showcases improvements at Tippecanoe Valley High School appeared first on News Now Warsaw.

]]> https://www.newsnowwarsaw.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Untitled-design-2024-10-28T113125.986.png Claassen back on Etna Green council after appointment https://www.newsnowwarsaw.com/claassen-back-on-etna-green-council-after-appointment/ Wed, 28 Aug 2024 09:56:17 +0000 https://www.newsnowwarsaw.com/?p=97653 By David Slone
Times-Union

ETNA GREEN — Twenty years ago, Aaron Rovenstine appointed Keith Claassen to the Etna Green Town Board.

Tuesday, after current Kosciusko County Republican Central Committee Chairman Mike Ragan appointed Claassen back to the town board, Aaron’s son, Austin Rovenstine, gave Claassen the oath of office.

Claassen, 64, previously served on the town board for about 20 years, beginning in 2004. He was appointed to the board when Andy Cook stepped down to become an employee of the town.

In the November general election, Claassen received the fewest amount of votes of the four candidates for the three council seats. Incumbents Republican Jason Hanes and Libertarian Susan Klinefelter received 43 and 55 votes, respectively, while Republican Heath Roberts received 50 votes. Claassen received 35 votes.

On Aug. 7, Hanes resigned from the board effective immediately. Since fewer than two people would be eligible to participate in a precinct committeemen caucus to fill the vacancy, Ragan appoints a qualified individual to the office for the remaining unexpired term. Eligible applicants for the position had to be residents of the town and Republicans in good standing.

In appointing Claassen on Tuesday, Ragan said, “I thank all three candidates for filing for this vital position. Thanks also to the citizens of Etna Green who contacted Etna Township Precinct Committeeman Steve Sechrist and me to express their preferences.

“After these discussions and reviewing the three completed declaration of candidacy applications and the three candidates’ historical voting records, Keith Claassen has been appointed to complete the remaining term, effective immediately.

“We congratulate Keith Claassen on this appointment and wish him well in his new position. We are confident that he will serve the citizens of Etna Green with courtesy and professionalism.
“The Kosciusko County Republican Party thanks Jason Hanes for his service,” Ragan stated.
Claassen said it was nice to be of service to the town.

“I’ve been in service for the town for a long time between Lion’s Club, first responders and town council,” he said.

After not winning the 2023 election, Claassen said he was a little depressed because he looked forward to being able to serve on the council.

“You’re back on,” Ragan said.

Before the appointment, Claassen said, “Anybody that is not registered to vote, they have until Oct. 7 to register, so you can vote in the general election and it’s important that everybody votes. Every vote counts. There’s too much complacency in this country of people that don’t vote and are not even registered.”

The post Claassen back on Etna Green council after appointment appeared first on News Now Warsaw.

]]> By David Slone
Times-Union

ETNA GREEN — Twenty years ago, Aaron Rovenstine appointed Keith Claassen to the Etna Green Town Board.

Tuesday, after current Kosciusko County Republican Central Committee Chairman Mike Ragan appointed Claassen back to the town board, Aaron’s son, Austin Rovenstine, gave Claassen the oath of office.

Claassen, 64, previously served on the town board for about 20 years, beginning in 2004. He was appointed to the board when Andy Cook stepped down to become an employee of the town.

In the November general election, Claassen received the fewest amount of votes of the four candidates for the three council seats. Incumbents Republican Jason Hanes and Libertarian Susan Klinefelter received 43 and 55 votes, respectively, while Republican Heath Roberts received 50 votes. Claassen received 35 votes.

On Aug. 7, Hanes resigned from the board effective immediately. Since fewer than two people would be eligible to participate in a precinct committeemen caucus to fill the vacancy, Ragan appoints a qualified individual to the office for the remaining unexpired term. Eligible applicants for the position had to be residents of the town and Republicans in good standing.

In appointing Claassen on Tuesday, Ragan said, “I thank all three candidates for filing for this vital position. Thanks also to the citizens of Etna Green who contacted Etna Township Precinct Committeeman Steve Sechrist and me to express their preferences.

“After these discussions and reviewing the three completed declaration of candidacy applications and the three candidates’ historical voting records, Keith Claassen has been appointed to complete the remaining term, effective immediately.

“We congratulate Keith Claassen on this appointment and wish him well in his new position. We are confident that he will serve the citizens of Etna Green with courtesy and professionalism.
“The Kosciusko County Republican Party thanks Jason Hanes for his service,” Ragan stated.
Claassen said it was nice to be of service to the town.

“I’ve been in service for the town for a long time between Lion’s Club, first responders and town council,” he said.

After not winning the 2023 election, Claassen said he was a little depressed because he looked forward to being able to serve on the council.

“You’re back on,” Ragan said.

Before the appointment, Claassen said, “Anybody that is not registered to vote, they have until Oct. 7 to register, so you can vote in the general election and it’s important that everybody votes. Every vote counts. There’s too much complacency in this country of people that don’t vote and are not even registered.”

The post Claassen back on Etna Green council after appointment appeared first on News Now Warsaw.

]]> https://www.newsnowwarsaw.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/Screenshot-2024-08-28-054613.png Three file for Warsaw school board election https://www.newsnowwarsaw.com/three-file-for-warsaw-school-board-election/ Wed, 22 May 2024 10:07:51 +0000 https://www.newsnowwarsaw.com/?p=93400 By David Slone
Times-Union

WARSAW — Filing for local school board races began Tuesday morning, with three Warsaw candidates at the Kociusko County clerk’s office bright and early.

In races for Warsaw Community Schools, incumbents Randy Polston, district 4, and Matt Deuel, district 6, are seeking a fourth and second term, respectively, while Mallika Klingaman is seeking a first term for district 3. District 3 incumbent Elle Turley is not seeking re-election.

Deuel said he decided to seek re-election because, “Being a part of the school board has been an incredible honor. We have an amazing school system, wonderful community and this is a way for me to give back to the community. It’s been a great experience these last few years and I’m looking forward to hopefully being able to serve another four years.”

He said the school board is always looking to support the students and teachers and make sure everyone is having the best opportunity possible to have the best education they can have, and for teachers to feel supported and cared for.

“So anything we can do to just help that and make sure that each student are having an amazing school and education experience and teachers are feeling cared for and supported. Those are the things that we want to do,” Deuel said.

He wanted voters to know that, “We live in an amazing community and I think this is truly a special place and a place that I hope we don’t take for granted. We have an incredible superintendent in Dr. (David) Hoffert, who provides amazing leadership and all the way through his cabinet, through our teachers, our principals, our support staff. And so, I would just say for the community that, please be supportive of the schools and just realize that we live in an incredible place, in an incredible community and I’m just grateful to be a part of it.”

Klingaman said she decided to run for the school board seat because she has three children in the school system and she’s also very involved as a parent volunteer.

“I’ve just learned a lot about how the school system works, and I’m just in awe of all the different dynamics that work together to provide our children and our community with an excellent academic education, as well as resources to further the mission of our school system. So I just feel passionate about being a part of that great mission, and doing my part to serve the community, serve the children, teachers and staff, too. I feel like there’s just so many (paraprofessionals) and staff members that are supporting our children, and I just feel like this role would give me the opportunity to do that,” she said.

Klingaman and her family moved to Warsaw in 2010. She went to college in Canada, earning her Bachelor of Arts degree there. She worked at Manchester University for a few years before deciding to stay home to raise a family.

“I’ve done that since having our first born. I’ve served in different volunteer capacities. I’m currently on two other not-for-profit boards, as well as two PTOs. So (I’m) just very involved in the community, very passionate about this community. We’ve come to call it home. There’s just so many incredible opportunities, and the heart of the community’s really what’s the most attractive thing about this community. A heart of service and giving and coming together, and just to be a part of that — I really enjoy that part,” Klingaman said.

If elected, a huge priority for her for the next four years would be the mission of academic excellence. “Just making sure kids are getting the best education possible. I know there’s different opportunities that the high school has now, even in terms of providing pathways to careers. Just continuing to grow in those areas, how can we serve our children best at this level so that they’re equipped and ready to go on to the next level,” she said.

Klingaman also wants to support the teachers who do “incredible” work, staff members and everyone who is a part of Warsaw Community Schools.

She stated she’s very open to learning and to feedback.

“The one thing I love is talking to people about their concerns, about their positive feedback, just being interactive and being available. So I would love to engage and have conversations about how we can come together and make our school system a better place. So that’s one thing that I hope, if I am elected, that everyone would know. I love having those conversations on how we can all unite in that mission,” she said.

Polston is completing his third four-year term and, if re-elected in November, will serve his fourth and final term.

“I was blessed with a 34-year career with Warsaw Schools, and I retired in 2011, and after about a year of praying about this and thinking about it, and I had some people talk to me about it, I decided to run for my first term at that time,” he said. “And, again, because of my experience with the school corporation as a teacher, as a principal, as a coach, I wanted to give back. I wanted to give back to our school board, to our school community. And I have thoroughly enjoyed it. There’s always challenges, obviously, in this seat, but I thoroughly enjoyed and the opportunity to give back.”

Asked about the board’s biggest accomplishments over the last 12 years he’s been serving on the board, Polston initially didn’t know where to start.

“During those times, we’ve had some building construction going on to continue to better our school corporation. I would say that any time you can do any type of construction — buildings, remodeling, adding on - those are always big challenges because you’re taking a look at, obviously, the finance side of things and you want to try to balance that out to do what’s best for the kids in this community,” Polston said. “So I would say over the years, that we’ve done this, that I’ve been on the board, a lot of the building of those schools in our corporation.”

He said the other thing that’s been a blessing to see is Hoffert’s leadership as the school superintendent. Hoffert became the superintendent during the latter portion of Polston’s first term on the school board.

“Just to see his leadership and he’s in that capacity for 10 years, that’s been one of the biggest blessings we’ve had,” Polston said.

Asked what’s left for him to accomplish in another four-year term, he responded, “You never know what’s around the corner. I’ll file here and hopefully have four more years to give back to the school corporation.”

When Polston attends conferences around the state of Indiana, he said he hears “‘time and time again, Warsaw Community Schools, second to none, how are you guys doing this up there? What are you doing that’s so much different than everybody else.’ And to see us continue to have that type of level of status in our state is such a blessing, and I want us to continue to do that. We’ve heard it time and time again, ‘Warsaw, you’re doing it right.’ And so I think that’s the challenge, that we continue to do it right.”

Candidate filing runs until noon June 20.

Along with Warsaw Community School districts 3, 4 and 6, the following school board districts are up for election Nov. 7:
• Tippecanoe Valley, district 1 and 2.
• Wa-Nee School Board, Scott & Jefferson Township and two at-large positions; Olive Township, Elkhart County.
• Whitko School Board, districts 1, 2 and 3.
• Triton School Board, one at-large seat; district 3, Marshall County.
• Wawasee School Board, districts 1, 2 and 3 at-large, vote for no more than two out of the three districts.

The post Three file for Warsaw school board election appeared first on News Now Warsaw.

]]> By David Slone
Times-Union

WARSAW — Filing for local school board races began Tuesday morning, with three Warsaw candidates at the Kociusko County clerk’s office bright and early.

In races for Warsaw Community Schools, incumbents Randy Polston, district 4, and Matt Deuel, district 6, are seeking a fourth and second term, respectively, while Mallika Klingaman is seeking a first term for district 3. District 3 incumbent Elle Turley is not seeking re-election.

Deuel said he decided to seek re-election because, “Being a part of the school board has been an incredible honor. We have an amazing school system, wonderful community and this is a way for me to give back to the community. It’s been a great experience these last few years and I’m looking forward to hopefully being able to serve another four years.”

He said the school board is always looking to support the students and teachers and make sure everyone is having the best opportunity possible to have the best education they can have, and for teachers to feel supported and cared for.

“So anything we can do to just help that and make sure that each student are having an amazing school and education experience and teachers are feeling cared for and supported. Those are the things that we want to do,” Deuel said.

He wanted voters to know that, “We live in an amazing community and I think this is truly a special place and a place that I hope we don’t take for granted. We have an incredible superintendent in Dr. (David) Hoffert, who provides amazing leadership and all the way through his cabinet, through our teachers, our principals, our support staff. And so, I would just say for the community that, please be supportive of the schools and just realize that we live in an incredible place, in an incredible community and I’m just grateful to be a part of it.”

Klingaman said she decided to run for the school board seat because she has three children in the school system and she’s also very involved as a parent volunteer.

“I’ve just learned a lot about how the school system works, and I’m just in awe of all the different dynamics that work together to provide our children and our community with an excellent academic education, as well as resources to further the mission of our school system. So I just feel passionate about being a part of that great mission, and doing my part to serve the community, serve the children, teachers and staff, too. I feel like there’s just so many (paraprofessionals) and staff members that are supporting our children, and I just feel like this role would give me the opportunity to do that,” she said.

Klingaman and her family moved to Warsaw in 2010. She went to college in Canada, earning her Bachelor of Arts degree there. She worked at Manchester University for a few years before deciding to stay home to raise a family.

“I’ve done that since having our first born. I’ve served in different volunteer capacities. I’m currently on two other not-for-profit boards, as well as two PTOs. So (I’m) just very involved in the community, very passionate about this community. We’ve come to call it home. There’s just so many incredible opportunities, and the heart of the community’s really what’s the most attractive thing about this community. A heart of service and giving and coming together, and just to be a part of that — I really enjoy that part,” Klingaman said.

If elected, a huge priority for her for the next four years would be the mission of academic excellence. “Just making sure kids are getting the best education possible. I know there’s different opportunities that the high school has now, even in terms of providing pathways to careers. Just continuing to grow in those areas, how can we serve our children best at this level so that they’re equipped and ready to go on to the next level,” she said.

Klingaman also wants to support the teachers who do “incredible” work, staff members and everyone who is a part of Warsaw Community Schools.

She stated she’s very open to learning and to feedback.

“The one thing I love is talking to people about their concerns, about their positive feedback, just being interactive and being available. So I would love to engage and have conversations about how we can come together and make our school system a better place. So that’s one thing that I hope, if I am elected, that everyone would know. I love having those conversations on how we can all unite in that mission,” she said.

Polston is completing his third four-year term and, if re-elected in November, will serve his fourth and final term.

“I was blessed with a 34-year career with Warsaw Schools, and I retired in 2011, and after about a year of praying about this and thinking about it, and I had some people talk to me about it, I decided to run for my first term at that time,” he said. “And, again, because of my experience with the school corporation as a teacher, as a principal, as a coach, I wanted to give back. I wanted to give back to our school board, to our school community. And I have thoroughly enjoyed it. There’s always challenges, obviously, in this seat, but I thoroughly enjoyed and the opportunity to give back.”

Asked about the board’s biggest accomplishments over the last 12 years he’s been serving on the board, Polston initially didn’t know where to start.

“During those times, we’ve had some building construction going on to continue to better our school corporation. I would say that any time you can do any type of construction — buildings, remodeling, adding on – those are always big challenges because you’re taking a look at, obviously, the finance side of things and you want to try to balance that out to do what’s best for the kids in this community,” Polston said. “So I would say over the years, that we’ve done this, that I’ve been on the board, a lot of the building of those schools in our corporation.”

He said the other thing that’s been a blessing to see is Hoffert’s leadership as the school superintendent. Hoffert became the superintendent during the latter portion of Polston’s first term on the school board.

“Just to see his leadership and he’s in that capacity for 10 years, that’s been one of the biggest blessings we’ve had,” Polston said.

Asked what’s left for him to accomplish in another four-year term, he responded, “You never know what’s around the corner. I’ll file here and hopefully have four more years to give back to the school corporation.”

When Polston attends conferences around the state of Indiana, he said he hears “‘time and time again, Warsaw Community Schools, second to none, how are you guys doing this up there? What are you doing that’s so much different than everybody else.’ And to see us continue to have that type of level of status in our state is such a blessing, and I want us to continue to do that. We’ve heard it time and time again, ‘Warsaw, you’re doing it right.’ And so I think that’s the challenge, that we continue to do it right.”

Candidate filing runs until noon June 20.

Along with Warsaw Community School districts 3, 4 and 6, the following school board districts are up for election Nov. 7:
• Tippecanoe Valley, district 1 and 2.
• Wa-Nee School Board, Scott & Jefferson Township and two at-large positions; Olive Township, Elkhart County.
• Whitko School Board, districts 1, 2 and 3.
• Triton School Board, one at-large seat; district 3, Marshall County.
• Wawasee School Board, districts 1, 2 and 3 at-large, vote for no more than two out of the three districts.

The post Three file for Warsaw school board election appeared first on News Now Warsaw.

]]> https://www.newsnowwarsaw.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Untitled-design-2024-05-22T054750.711.jpg WNDU continues Toys For Tots tradition https://www.newsnowwarsaw.com/wndu-continues-toys-for-tots-tradition/ Mon, 04 Dec 2023 12:35:59 +0000 https://www.newsnowwarsaw.com/?p=86503 By David Slone
Times-Union

WARSAW — In their Santa Claus-red fire trucks Saturday morning, firefighters from all across Kosciusko County delivered boxes and bags of toys to the Toys for Tots toy drive at Martin’s Super Market in Warsaw.

It’s a tradition that dates back so many years, Kevin McSherry, Kosciusko Fireman’s Association, can’t remember exactly when the 14 fire departments in the county began participating in the toy drive, but it’s definitely been a long time.

“We don’t know, but we’re going to keep doing it,” McSherry said. They’ve already started for next year, he said, as he received a check Saturday morning for it.

[caption id="attachment_86505" align="alignright" width="375"] Kevin McSherry (second from right), Kosciusko Firemen’s Association, answers a question from WNDU Meteorologist Andrew Whitmyer (R) Saturday at the Toys for Tots toy drive at Martin’s Super Market. McSherry is joined by his grandson, Max Spangle, 10, and Kosciusko County Sheriff Jim Smith (L). Photo by David Slone, Times-Union.[/caption]

The fire departments gathered at JB’s Furniture on Center Street in Warsaw early Saturday morning before caravanning over to Martin’s on Husky Trail to drop the toys off. Before the fire trucks left with their lights and sirens sounding, JB’s Furniture gave McSherry a $1,000 check for Toys for Tots, which he handed over to Chris Cage, coordinator for Toys for Tots of Kosciusko County.

McSherry, Burket Fire Department chief, said the purpose of it is “to make sure kids can have a decent Christmas.” He said it was the fundraising for the toys that really has to be planned.

“Little fire departments like myself and Sidney, Silver Lake and Etna Green - that’s a lot of money. We bought $1,300 in toys the other night and that’s a lot of money for us,” he said. “We started a thing a few years ago where, at our fish fries, when somebody, say their fish bill is $18 and they say, ‘Here’s a 20, just keep the change,’ so the ‘keep the change’ goes into the Toys for Tots fund. And, luckily, every fish fry we’re able to make a $100 or $120 in ‘keep the change’ money.”

This year the fish fries helped raise $1,300 for Toys for Tots.

The firefighters chip in themselves, too, with McSherry estimating $200-$300 coming in from them.

Turkey Creek Township Fire Chief Mickey Scott said his fire department has participated in the toy drive ever since the beginning, but he also didn’t know how far back that’s been.
He said they are able to participate “from donations and stuff that we receive.” They have a pork chop and chicken barbecue in the summer and they ask for donations for Toys for Tots then.

This year, Scott said they were able to purchase about $500-$600 in toys. “It worked out pretty good,” he said.

Milford Fire Department is known for the amount of toys they collect every year for the toy drive.
Virgil Sharp, Milford fire chief, said a lot of what they raise just stems from the fact that their members like to donate and the department also donates a little bit.

“There’s been times where we’re standing around talking and somebody will put down a $20. Here comes somebody with a $5 bill, a $10 bill, and it all adds up and that’s how a lot of times we end up with so many toys,” Sharp said.

He said they don’t do any fundraiser or special event for it.

“We just have a lot of giving families and a lot of the families will take their kids shopping and drop their stuff off at the station. And it’s all members of the department that do it,” Sharp said.

Most years, he estimated they are able to buy $1,500 to $2,000 in toys. They’ll go shopping on Black Friday and get the toys cheaper.

“It helps to go when there’s sales and you get more for your money then,” he said.
The Milford trailer and equipment van were used to transport the toys Saturday. There were approximately 10 bicycles in the trailer.

“This is a special time as a department ... everybody on the department as a family comes together, and their kids, and we enjoy it. It’s a special time,” Sharp said.
Kevin Wagoner, Sidney fire chief, said they begin to look for toys after Christmas to get deals then for the following year’s event.

“All of our toys come through the volunteers fund,” he said.

Winona Lake Fire Department Public Information Officer Mike Cox explained, “We donate money from our department funds every year and we go buy toys. We did have a couple of the boxes out this year, and that helped because people were generous with their toys. We raise money in a lot of ways - we play bingo in Syracuse and then we use some of that money. But it’s all money from the department, not the town budget.”

He said they usually do the toy shopping as it gets closer to the toy drive because of sales and people are willing to provide “extra stuff” when they let them know what it’s for.

“The guys went out Wednesday and picked out almost a room full of toys. That’s probably the best we’ve done in recent years, anyway,” Cox said.

Terry Himes, WLFD, said they went to R.P. Home & Harvest who made them a really good deal of 50% off. They were able to purchase about $1,300 in toys there.

“Our goal was to beat Milford,” he said. “... So we’re going to start earlier next year getting toys bought and stuff.”

R.P. “really helped us out a lot with their sales because it’s going to be Runnings out there now. A change of hands and they want to get rid of all the R.P. stuff, so they got us a good deal on all the toys and stuff we needed,” Himes said.

Runnings, a Minnesota-based retailer, announced in April it was acquiring R.P.

If a child gets to open just one gift on Christmas, that’s better than nothing, Himes said. “And having delivered toys in the past, nobody gets just one,” Cox said.

Two hours into the three-hour toy drive Saturday, Cage said, “Everything’s going well. It’s a good morning this morning. I had quite a few donations. Some of the big groups came in: BCI Solutions, Echoes of the Past, American Legion Riders out of Syracuse came in with a big trailer full of toys and we’re getting ready for all the local fire departments to come in through here shortly and that’s always a good time to see the parade of fire trucks come through.”

If a person couldn’t make it out to the toy drive Saturday at Martin’s, Cage said the boxes are still out at participating businesses - Menard’s, Martin’s, Walmart, Meijer, Dollar General Stores, etc. - for a few more days. The Willie 103.5 radio station toy drive also will be out at Meijer 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. all week.

“If you pick up a new unwrapped toy, drop it in a box, we’ll get it collected and get it out to the warehouse and get it distributed,” Cage said. “I can tell you, we thought the need was great last year, but we have just right now, with a few days left in sign-ups, we’re pretty much where we were last year with a few days left. So, the need is great and we need toys.”

Over 400 families had signed up as of Saturday. Sign-up ended Sunday. “And that’s just the families, not counting the kids,” Cage said.

He thanked the Warsaw Community High School choir for caroling during Saturday’s event, as well as all the volunteers who helped out as well.

Toys will be handed out Dec. 16, a little differently than in past years. Instead of the toys being delivered to families, families will pick them up from 8 a.m. to noon Dec. 16. The address of the warehouse will be provided to the families.

“They’ll be able to just pull up, and we’ll go in and grab the bags and load them up for them,” Cage said. “It’s a little different this year, but a lot of the other Toys for Tots campaigns are doing the same thing.”

If a family can’t find a way to pick up the toys on Dec. 16, Cage said other arrangements can be made.

“A lot of the other Toys for Tots organizations said they have been doing it for a few years now, and it works out great, and it cuts down on our volunteers driving all over the county to find addresses. It’s a good thing. We’re going to try it out this year and see how it works,” Cage explained.

This is the 29th year WNDU Channel 16 has been a part of Toys for Tots throughout Michiana.

Meteorologist Andrew Whitmyer was live at the Martin’s in Warsaw. Saturday was his third year of airing live for WNDU for Toys for Tots.

“It’s really to just give back to the community. WNDU, Gray Television, we’re all about giving back to the community and helping the community as best as we can and to serve that community, so that’s what Toys for Tots is about, it’s about giving back to those families that need the help during this holiday season,” he said.

Whitmyer said the toy drive made him feel happy about helping the community and families in need.

“It’s just kind of nice to give back in that way and know that you’re helping someone that could use a leg up this year,” he said.

People will come out to donate whether it’s snowing, icy, pouring down rain or sunny and 60 degrees. “Either way people will still come out,” Whitmyer said, adding that Saturday’s decent weather provided a leg up with the toy drive. “Thankfully, this year, it’s been about 40 degrees. It’s a little cloudy, a little damp, but we can’t complain this year. We’ve seen much worse weather for Toys for Tots at all of our locations.”

Tim Martin, store director for Martin’s, and Missy Albright, assistant manager, bakery, brought out some toys in shopping carts Saturday for the drive.

Martin said they were asked to host the toy drive from the beginning and “basically, from there, we’ve just been taking it on every year and we’re just glad to be a part of it.”

On the toys in the shopping carts, he said some generous folks sometimes just drop them off at the front of the store and Martin’s just brings them out. “We try to donate some toys ourselves,” he said.

Albright said, “It’s always a good time of the season to be able to give. I’m always one I’d rather give than receive, so that’s what we need to do and be positive about it. That’s what Christmas is all about - giving rather than receiving.”

The post WNDU continues Toys For Tots tradition appeared first on News Now Warsaw.

]]> By David Slone
Times-Union

WARSAW — In their Santa Claus-red fire trucks Saturday morning, firefighters from all across Kosciusko County delivered boxes and bags of toys to the Toys for Tots toy drive at Martin’s Super Market in Warsaw.

It’s a tradition that dates back so many years, Kevin McSherry, Kosciusko Fireman’s Association, can’t remember exactly when the 14 fire departments in the county began participating in the toy drive, but it’s definitely been a long time.

“We don’t know, but we’re going to keep doing it,” McSherry said. They’ve already started for next year, he said, as he received a check Saturday morning for it.

Kevin McSherry (second from right), Kosciusko Firemen’s Association, answers a question from WNDU Meteorologist Andrew Whitmyer (R) Saturday at the Toys for Tots toy drive at Martin’s Super Market. McSherry is joined by his grandson, Max Spangle, 10, and Kosciusko County Sheriff Jim Smith (L). Photo by David Slone, Times-Union.

The fire departments gathered at JB’s Furniture on Center Street in Warsaw early Saturday morning before caravanning over to Martin’s on Husky Trail to drop the toys off. Before the fire trucks left with their lights and sirens sounding, JB’s Furniture gave McSherry a $1,000 check for Toys for Tots, which he handed over to Chris Cage, coordinator for Toys for Tots of Kosciusko County.

McSherry, Burket Fire Department chief, said the purpose of it is “to make sure kids can have a decent Christmas.” He said it was the fundraising for the toys that really has to be planned.

“Little fire departments like myself and Sidney, Silver Lake and Etna Green – that’s a lot of money. We bought $1,300 in toys the other night and that’s a lot of money for us,” he said. “We started a thing a few years ago where, at our fish fries, when somebody, say their fish bill is $18 and they say, ‘Here’s a 20, just keep the change,’ so the ‘keep the change’ goes into the Toys for Tots fund. And, luckily, every fish fry we’re able to make a $100 or $120 in ‘keep the change’ money.”

This year the fish fries helped raise $1,300 for Toys for Tots.

The firefighters chip in themselves, too, with McSherry estimating $200-$300 coming in from them.

Turkey Creek Township Fire Chief Mickey Scott said his fire department has participated in the toy drive ever since the beginning, but he also didn’t know how far back that’s been.
He said they are able to participate “from donations and stuff that we receive.” They have a pork chop and chicken barbecue in the summer and they ask for donations for Toys for Tots then.

This year, Scott said they were able to purchase about $500-$600 in toys. “It worked out pretty good,” he said.

Milford Fire Department is known for the amount of toys they collect every year for the toy drive.
Virgil Sharp, Milford fire chief, said a lot of what they raise just stems from the fact that their members like to donate and the department also donates a little bit.

“There’s been times where we’re standing around talking and somebody will put down a $20. Here comes somebody with a $5 bill, a $10 bill, and it all adds up and that’s how a lot of times we end up with so many toys,” Sharp said.

He said they don’t do any fundraiser or special event for it.

“We just have a lot of giving families and a lot of the families will take their kids shopping and drop their stuff off at the station. And it’s all members of the department that do it,” Sharp said.

Most years, he estimated they are able to buy $1,500 to $2,000 in toys. They’ll go shopping on Black Friday and get the toys cheaper.

“It helps to go when there’s sales and you get more for your money then,” he said.
The Milford trailer and equipment van were used to transport the toys Saturday. There were approximately 10 bicycles in the trailer.

“This is a special time as a department … everybody on the department as a family comes together, and their kids, and we enjoy it. It’s a special time,” Sharp said.
Kevin Wagoner, Sidney fire chief, said they begin to look for toys after Christmas to get deals then for the following year’s event.

“All of our toys come through the volunteers fund,” he said.

Winona Lake Fire Department Public Information Officer Mike Cox explained, “We donate money from our department funds every year and we go buy toys. We did have a couple of the boxes out this year, and that helped because people were generous with their toys. We raise money in a lot of ways – we play bingo in Syracuse and then we use some of that money. But it’s all money from the department, not the town budget.”

He said they usually do the toy shopping as it gets closer to the toy drive because of sales and people are willing to provide “extra stuff” when they let them know what it’s for.

“The guys went out Wednesday and picked out almost a room full of toys. That’s probably the best we’ve done in recent years, anyway,” Cox said.

Terry Himes, WLFD, said they went to R.P. Home & Harvest who made them a really good deal of 50% off. They were able to purchase about $1,300 in toys there.

“Our goal was to beat Milford,” he said. “… So we’re going to start earlier next year getting toys bought and stuff.”

R.P. “really helped us out a lot with their sales because it’s going to be Runnings out there now. A change of hands and they want to get rid of all the R.P. stuff, so they got us a good deal on all the toys and stuff we needed,” Himes said.

Runnings, a Minnesota-based retailer, announced in April it was acquiring R.P.

If a child gets to open just one gift on Christmas, that’s better than nothing, Himes said. “And having delivered toys in the past, nobody gets just one,” Cox said.

Two hours into the three-hour toy drive Saturday, Cage said, “Everything’s going well. It’s a good morning this morning. I had quite a few donations. Some of the big groups came in: BCI Solutions, Echoes of the Past, American Legion Riders out of Syracuse came in with a big trailer full of toys and we’re getting ready for all the local fire departments to come in through here shortly and that’s always a good time to see the parade of fire trucks come through.”

If a person couldn’t make it out to the toy drive Saturday at Martin’s, Cage said the boxes are still out at participating businesses – Menard’s, Martin’s, Walmart, Meijer, Dollar General Stores, etc. – for a few more days. The Willie 103.5 radio station toy drive also will be out at Meijer 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. all week.

“If you pick up a new unwrapped toy, drop it in a box, we’ll get it collected and get it out to the warehouse and get it distributed,” Cage said. “I can tell you, we thought the need was great last year, but we have just right now, with a few days left in sign-ups, we’re pretty much where we were last year with a few days left. So, the need is great and we need toys.”

Over 400 families had signed up as of Saturday. Sign-up ended Sunday. “And that’s just the families, not counting the kids,” Cage said.

He thanked the Warsaw Community High School choir for caroling during Saturday’s event, as well as all the volunteers who helped out as well.

Toys will be handed out Dec. 16, a little differently than in past years. Instead of the toys being delivered to families, families will pick them up from 8 a.m. to noon Dec. 16. The address of the warehouse will be provided to the families.

“They’ll be able to just pull up, and we’ll go in and grab the bags and load them up for them,” Cage said. “It’s a little different this year, but a lot of the other Toys for Tots campaigns are doing the same thing.”

If a family can’t find a way to pick up the toys on Dec. 16, Cage said other arrangements can be made.

“A lot of the other Toys for Tots organizations said they have been doing it for a few years now, and it works out great, and it cuts down on our volunteers driving all over the county to find addresses. It’s a good thing. We’re going to try it out this year and see how it works,” Cage explained.

This is the 29th year WNDU Channel 16 has been a part of Toys for Tots throughout Michiana.

Meteorologist Andrew Whitmyer was live at the Martin’s in Warsaw. Saturday was his third year of airing live for WNDU for Toys for Tots.

“It’s really to just give back to the community. WNDU, Gray Television, we’re all about giving back to the community and helping the community as best as we can and to serve that community, so that’s what Toys for Tots is about, it’s about giving back to those families that need the help during this holiday season,” he said.

Whitmyer said the toy drive made him feel happy about helping the community and families in need.

“It’s just kind of nice to give back in that way and know that you’re helping someone that could use a leg up this year,” he said.

People will come out to donate whether it’s snowing, icy, pouring down rain or sunny and 60 degrees. “Either way people will still come out,” Whitmyer said, adding that Saturday’s decent weather provided a leg up with the toy drive. “Thankfully, this year, it’s been about 40 degrees. It’s a little cloudy, a little damp, but we can’t complain this year. We’ve seen much worse weather for Toys for Tots at all of our locations.”

Tim Martin, store director for Martin’s, and Missy Albright, assistant manager, bakery, brought out some toys in shopping carts Saturday for the drive.

Martin said they were asked to host the toy drive from the beginning and “basically, from there, we’ve just been taking it on every year and we’re just glad to be a part of it.”

On the toys in the shopping carts, he said some generous folks sometimes just drop them off at the front of the store and Martin’s just brings them out. “We try to donate some toys ourselves,” he said.

Albright said, “It’s always a good time of the season to be able to give. I’m always one I’d rather give than receive, so that’s what we need to do and be positive about it. That’s what Christmas is all about – giving rather than receiving.”

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