Kellner named District 7 Conservation Officer of the Year

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Indiana Conservation Officers of District Seven announced Master Officer Mike Kellner was selected as the District Seven officer of the year. District Seven includes ten southwestern counties in Indiana. Officer Kellner is assigned to Warrick and Vanderburgh Counties and has served southwestern Indiana for over thirty years. Kellner was born in Valparaiso and grew up in Jackson…

Dubois County Council continues to feel finance squeeze

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Dubois County Council President Greg Kendall has been saying for months that economic belt tightening would have to occur if something isn’t done to put a stop to the slow decrease in state funding and an increase in county expenses. He sounded a more serious warning Monday night during the final council meeting of 2014.  “And then…

New Publishers Clearing House scam involves FBI and Huntingburg police chief

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The Huntingburg Police Department issued an alert that a new scam involving Publishers Clearing House, the Huntingburg Police Department, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation was hitting the area. According to police, the victim called the department and said that she had received a phone call from a female claiming to be an FBI agent. The…

Southridge football players and community come together for family

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The community outpouring in clothing, shoes, gift cards, housing ware, and cash was overwhelming Saturday morning Football players, their families, and coach Scott Buening opened the doors to the Southridge fieldhouse to accept the items for the Kirk Brown family. And the help came from all corners of the county. “It’s not just Southridge people, we…

Motorist killed at Dale intersection (Update)

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Update: According to the Spencer County Coroner’s office, the motorist killed Sunday afternoon in a two-vehicle accident southwest of Dale was retired Heritage Hills Middle School Principal Susan D. Grundhoefer. Previously: A motorist was killed in a two-vehicle accident at the intersection of U.S. 231 and State Road 62 southwest of Dale Sunday afternoon. The fatal collision…

Police radio, body armor, and guns with thousands of rounds found in probation arrest

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The Martin County Sheriff’s Department found guns, thousands of rounds, military-grade body armor, and a police radio as well as 70 grams of meth in the home of a man arrested on Christmas Eve for resisting law enforcement. Indiana State Police arrested Daniel Jackson, 34, of Shoals, Wednesday morning after Senior Trooper Jarrod Lents and…

Lake Helmerich fire displaces family

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A fire Christmas night destroyed a Lake Helmerich home. According to authorities, no one was home at the time and no one was injured, but the family lost all of their possessions. Local Red Cross representatives were able to find lodging for them overnight. Holland Volunteer Fire Department responded to the fire at 8:23 p.m….

Huntingburg teen seriously injured in moped accident

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Huntingburg — A Huntingburg teen was seriously injured when the scooter he was on was struck by a car Wednesday at about 3:30 a.m. According to police, Damien E. Fox, 18, of N. Chestnut Street, was southbound on Chestnut Street and crossed 6th Street/State Road 64 without yielding to oncoming traffic. When he entered the intersection, the scooter…

New turf depends on community’s help, no funding offered by school

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Jasper School Board presentation regarding new field and stadium from Matthew Crane The Jasper Football Boosters were given permission to move ahead with plans to replace the field at Jerry Brewer Alumni Stadium with artificial turf. Only three of the five school board members were present for the meeting, but the decision was unanimous. The…

Tri-Cap offers families a “hand up” for Christmas gifts

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Over 120 local, less fortunate families were able to shop for Christmas toys at a special event offered by Tri-Cap this year. Taking a different approach to holiday charity, Tri-Cap offered for families to earn credit to spend at the special shop by attending classes and taking part in volunteer activities through the organization rather…

Flu forces regional hospitals to implement visitation restrictions

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In response to the increase in influenza cases nationwide and in the tri-state area, the hospital members of the Community Patient Safety Coalition are implementing unified hospital visitation restrictions effective Monday, December 22nd. The restrictions include: • No visitors with influenza-like symptoms in the hospitals. Symptoms include cough, sore throat, fever, chills, aches, runny or…

Toddler’s cause of death released, Hopf makes initial court appearance

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Update: Authorities have released further details regarding the death of a 17-month-old over the weekend. According to authorities, the autopsy performed by Dr. Jeffery Springer, the Jefferson County, Ky., Medical Examiner, indicated Xavier Miller died from blunt force trauma to his head and the manner of death was ruled a homicide. Hopf was seen briefly in…

Jasper man arrested for battering toddler (update)

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Update: Authorities have released further details regarding the death of a 17-month-old over the weekend. According to authorities, the autopsy performed by Dr. Jeffery Springer, the Jefferson County, Ky., Medical Examiner, indicated Xavier Miller died from blunt force trauma to his head and the manner of death was ruled a homicide. Hopf was seen briefly in…

Birdseye man LifeFlighted for head injury

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Update: Englert was released from St. Mary’s over the weekend following the accident. He was originally listed in critical condition Friday morning, but his condition was updated to fair later in the day. Birdseye — Deputies are investigating a single-vehicle accident that sent a Birdseye man to St. Mary’s Medical Center this afternoon. Deputies responded to the accident on…

Jasper Council approves sweeping tax increment area

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The Jasper Common Council approved the proposed tax increment finance district encompassing about a third of the city — 90 percent of its industrial base — Wednesday night. If you haven’t been following along, a tax increment finance district is a special tool created originally in California — who has since abandoned it — that allows a specially created…

At least 5 things going on — December 18 – 21

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[fbshare type=”button” width=”100″]     Thursday, December 18, 2014  Storytime at the Birdseye Branch Library at 5 p.m. Christmas Story Time will be at 5:00 p.m. Janet Partenheimer welcomes all ages of children and Christmas treats will be provided. DC Speaks open house at 6 p.m. DC Speaks will host an open house at Vincennes…

Jasper Utility Service Board: Utility costs increase and no interest in power plant

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The Jasper Utility Service Board announced some rate increases coming in 2015. The board heard that the Indiana Municipal Power Association, of which Jasper is a member, gave the city advanced notice of an electric rate increase coming in 2015. According to Utilities General Manager Bud Hauersperger, the increase will be between 4 and 5…

Several factors play role in dropping gas prices

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How low can they go? We’re talking gas prices here. Plummeting gasoline prices over the past couple of months are expected to remain low through at least the spring, signaling generally good fortunes for the nation’s economy, said Purdue University energy economist Wally Tyner. The national average price for regular unleaded gasoline was $2.61 per…

Jasper police seek hit-and-run vehicle

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Jasper police are seeking a vehicle involved in a hit-and-run that occurred Monday morning on E. 12th Street. According to police, an unknown vehicle struck a black 1996 Honda Civic that was parked on E. 12th Street between Mill and Vine streets. The accident occurred sometime between 6:20 a.m. and 9:30 a.m. Anyone with information…

Bond ordinance frees up $350,000 for Huntingburg

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A bond approved Thursday will save the City of Huntingburg $100,000 in interest fees and free up about $350,000 in restricted funds. Buzz Krohn, of O.W. Krohn & Associates of Westfield, informed the council that if they refinanced an existing water works bond with Old National, the city would be able to drop the current…

Huntingburg hospital construction proposed to begin in January

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Huntingburg residents likely won’t be waiting for the other foot to drop in regards to a proposed senior housing development in part of the St. Joseph’s Hospital. The green and red building has been vacant since 2007 when St. Joseph’s Hospital closed its doors. After years of rumors and legless proposals, in 2013, Miller Valentine…

Cops and community come together for Christmas cheer

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About 50 police officers, some accompanied by their spouses, and other members of the Fraternal Order of Police took 67 children Christmas shopping at the Jasper Walmart today. The annual event, Cops for Kids (formerly known as Shop with a Cop), is sponsored by the Fraternal Order of Police and supported through donations by businesses, individuals,…

Ferdinand Town Council: Copy that — radio station could get an upgrade

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In what may have been the shortest meeting of the year to date (one hour, 10 minutes) the Ferdinand Town Council breezed through its second to the last agenda of 2014 on Tuesday night. The brevity may have been helped somewhat by the absence of Council President Ken Sicard, as various agenda items were tabled…

Housekeeper arrested for stealing medications from Jasper homes

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Indiana State Police arrested a woman caught stealing prescription medications from three Jasper residences. On December 4, Trooper Brock Werne began an investigation after receiving a complaint from the homeowner on the 1300 block of West 15th Street in Jasper. The homeowner said that on two occasions he had returned home to find that prescription…

Jasper Dog Park fundraising in progress

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The construction of the City of Jasper dog park began in October. A three-quarter acre area at Gutzweiler Park on 16th Street is now set aside with a fence in place. A fundraiser is currently in progress to raise money to purchase and install the electronic entry key system for the gate as well as a…

Jasper to look at other options for collapsed City Mill wall

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The Jasper Board of Public Works rejected a bid to repair the City Mill due to the costs involved at their regular meeting Tuesday. The single bid to complete the repairs to the Mill wall, which collapsed in 2013, was from Kern Excavating for $162,599. VS Engineering was retained by the board of public works…

City of Jasper publishes tax increment financing Q&A

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On December 2, 2014, the Jasper Redevelopment Commission held an community information session concerning the proposed Tax Increment Financing District during the Jasper Economic Development meeting. Jasper Redevelopment Commission members were present along with city staff, Redevelopment Expert Ed Curtin of Latitudes, and community members. According to the city, it is providing a trascript of the…

Worksite altercation lands Jasper man in jail

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Update:  Police levied an additional charge of intimidation with a deadly weapon against Aleman. According to police, as they conducted the investigation, statements by witnesses and surveillance video taken of the incident corroborated that Aleman had chased the victim with a machete. The charge is a Level 5 felony. Previously: Jasper — A Jasper man was arrested…

Carb-loading for those in need

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It’s not easy putting together 800 14-layer lasagnas and 300 heaping apple pies. But for the five women in the center of the organized chaos of volunteers at the Precious Blood cafeteria, the results are worth it. The women, Missy Krempp, Dana Thyen, Stephanie Armstrong, Janet Rydberg and Angie Schitter, organize and operate the lasagna and…

15th Street bridge could reopen this week

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From WITZ AM/FM It’s been a long project that has added traffic onto other streets and roads in Jasper but weather permitting, the 15th Street Bridge could possibly be open by the end of this week. Dubois County Highway Engineer Brent Wendholt reported that the contractor has moved quickly on getting the bridge to near…