9/1/2015 Deadline For Blue Dolphins’ Winter Swim Season

Published: August 20, 2015 By: Michael Gallenberger, WKVI 

The Starke County Blue Dolphins youth swim club is starting its winter season.

This is the club’s third season. New this year is a pre-team, which will allow more kids to join and learn about swimming before moving onto the club’s competitive team.

Coach Stephen Miller says one reason kids should learn to swim is that it will benefit them not only now but also later in life, “Swimming is a lifelong sport. It’s one of the best sports out there for kids, adults, and old people all the way around. So, a good thing about swimming is once you get older, you can keep on swimming and it don’t hurt your body as much as, say, running or walking on a treadmill, or things like that.”

The club is open to kids of any age. Sign-ups are Saturday from 9:00 – 11:00 a.m. at the Knox High School Pool, or on the club’s website until September 1. The season starts August 31.

Starke County Commissioners Reaffirm Support for EMS Policies

Published: August 19, 2015 By: Mary Perren, WKVI

Pre-hospital emergency care remains the first priority for Starke County EMS, but it is not their only charge. The Starke County Commissioners reaffirmed that mission statement during their meeting Monday night. A recent Facebook posting about a lack of available county ambulance service due to transfers between facilities prompted the discussion.

Commissioner Kathy Norem says the service has contractual guidelines with IU Health Starke Hospital.

“We don’t do out of the county non-emergent transfers. We do emergent transfers out of the county. Emergency is defined by the physician. They’re the captain of the ship, and they’re the ones that say ‘this is an emergency transfer’.”

President of the Commissioners Kent Danford oversees EMS. He says they have always provided emergency transfers, and the revenue generated from doing so sustains the service without placing an undue burden on the county.

Starke County has EMS bases in North Judson, Knox and Grovertown. Director Keith Emigh  says there have been a few occasions when more than one ambulance has been out of the county at a time on a transfer. For instance, if Medic 5, which is based in Grovertown, is coming back from Plymouth, and the county is called on for an emergency transfer to another facility, two trucks may briefly be out of the county. As of Monday, Emigh says Medic 3, which is stationed in Knox, has run 33 life-and-death transfers. He adds it’s possible to have two rigs on calls at any given time due to any type of emergency call, leaving only one truck for county-wide coverage.

Emigh and the commissioners note all of the township volunteer fire departments have first responders with various levels of advanced medical training. That program was set up to provide a more immediate medical response until an ambulance can arrive and EMTS and paramedics can take over care as necessary. Emigh adds the statewide average response time for EMS is 18 minutes. The Facebook message thread claimed a response time of 15 minutes due to an ambulance being out of the county and a truck having to come from another base. Emigh says first responders were there within four minutes of being notified.

Kid’s Closet Places Third in National Contest

Published: August 19, 2015 By: Michael Gallenberger, WKVI 

Kid’s Closet, which collects clothing and school supplies for kids in Starke County, has received $6,500 after finishing third in an online poll. Safeco Insurance’s Make More Happen Contest awarded grants to 33 organizations nationwide who had been nominated by local insurance agencies.

Each organization got $3,000. Plus, since the contest surpassed its goal of 28,000 votes, the organizations each got another $500. On top of all that, Kid’s Closet got another $3,000 for finishing third.

Kid’s Closet founder and director Linda Lewandowski says the money will help the organization buy clothing and school supplies throughout the year, “This means we will have the funds to purchase the things that we do not have in stock. We do have a lot of gently used clothes in stock, but many times we don’t have the size that a child needs, so we have to go shopping for that need.”

The organization was nominated by Carrie Block from First Choice Insurance. She says winning third place in a national contest says a lot about the local community, “Being a small community, I didn’t know if we would even have a chance to be in the running, trying to advertise and get the word across our community. I just had no idea where we might be able to place, and week after week as I saw the results coming in, I was just completely blown away that we were able to accomplish that.”

Kid’s Closet is a ministry of North Judson United Methodist Church and serves children throughout Starke County.

Painting Class Was A Blast!

Sometimes you just don't need words to tell a story.

As you can tell from these smiling faces, everyone had a great time painting birdhouses with Tabitha Dillner. We hope to offer more classes in the future so keep an eye out for more information.

Box Tops for Education

Keep clipping those Box Tops because the North Judson-San Pierre Middle School is collecting them again this year (each of them is worth .10 cents).  Students should give their Box Tops to their reading teachers. 

8/29/2015 Poker Run To Benefit Starke County Humane Society

Poker Run, to benefit the Starke County Humane Society, on August 29^th hosted by O’s Tap, Knox.

 

Sign up starts at 10 a.m., $15 single/$25 couple. 

Kickstands up at 11 a.m., ride starts at O’s Tap and will be approximately 90 minutes with 4 stops. 

The ride will end at the Humane Society with a BBQ.  There will also be 50/50, raffles, door prizes!  

All proceeds go to the Humane Society of Starke County. 

Thank you for your support and please ride responsibly. 

Wine & Cheese Tasting Postponed

The Wine and Cheese Tasting that was scheduled for the Wooden Nickel has been postponed.

SBA Makes Small Business Loans Available Following Disaster Declaration

Published: August 18, 2015 By: Tyler Maffitt, WKVI

The U.S. Small Business Administration is offering financial assistance to entities affected by rains and flooding that started in the spring of this year.

The SBA announced today that federal economic injury disaster loans can now be made available to small businesses, agricultural cooperatives, non-profits, and small businesses engaged in aquaculture activities.

Indiana experienced record amounts of rainfall in June of this year. That trend continued into the first half of July before temperatures warmed.

LaPorte, Starke, Marshall, and Pulaski County are included in the disaster declaration after Governor Mike Pence composed a letter sent to U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack asking for the declaration to be made.

The Small Business Administration says it is disallowed from lending to farmers and agricultural producers.

Officials with the SBA say that when the U.S. Department of Agriculture issues a disaster declaration, they issue a similar declaration which opens options for businesses affected by the disaster in that same area.

Low interest small business loans of up to $2-million are available with terms that can be extended up to 30 years.

Leadership Starke County Seeks Nominations for Class

Published: August 18, 2015 By: Michael Gallenberger, WKVI

Leadership Starke County is looking for nominations for its fourth leadership class.

Participants can expect to build their leadership skills and form new networks while learning more about Starke County.

Classes will meet one day a month from September to May from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuition is $300 per person.

If you know someone who would be interested in taking part, contact Debbie Mix at 574-772-5548 ordmix@starkecountychamber.com.

American Pickers Seeks Collectibles

Published: August 18, 2015 By: Michael Gallenberger, WKVI

The History Channel show American Pickers is looking for your old collectibles.

The show’s stars Mike Wolfe and Frank Fritz are visiting Indiana next month, and they’re looking to buy old bicycles, toys, clothing, movie memorabilia, or other items.

If you’re interested in having Mike and Frank pick through your old stuff, send your name, number, address, and a description of the collection toamericanpickers@cineflix.com or call 1-855-OLD-RUST.