ETNA — Many local churches are coming together to put on the annual Lord’s Acre Festival Sept. 23 in Etna. The event is one of the oldest in the county, beginning in 1949 by Rev. Albert Rider. The Lord’s Acre Festival went away in Whitley County in 1961, but was revived in 2015 by Pastor Jerry Burgduff, former pastor at Etna and West Point Trinity United Methodist churches. The Lord’s Acre Festival began in 1922 in Bluffton, Ga., with Rev. Henry Melton asking each of the farmers in his congregation to set aside one acre of farmland, donating the proceeds of “the Lord’s acres” to the church. Now, the festival has a more modern twist raising money for Boomerang Backpacks, a weekend meal program for students at Little Turtle and Northern Heights elementary schools — keeping the spirit of the festival. Several local churches will convene at Etna United Methodist Church, 4255 W. County Road 750 North, including Big Lake Church of God, Etna UMC, Salem Community Church, Thorncreek Bethel Church of God, West Etna Community Church and West Point Trinity UMC. The festival begins with a parade at 11 a.m., with line-up beginning at 10 a.m. Opening ceremonies are at 11:30 a.m. There will be a silent auction from 12:30-4:30 p.m., a live auction from 1-3 p.m. and live entertainment from 3-5 p.m. Food will See FESTIVAL, Page 3
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September 21, 2017
Security updates coming to City Hall By Nicole Minier nminier@kpcmedia.com
COLUMBIA CITY — Those visiting Columbia City’s City Hall after business hours will soon see changes to the security of the building. Access to the restrooms, after-hours drop-box and vending machines at the public entrance to the building will remain open 24-7, however, remote locks will be placed on the doors just inside the entrance to improve safety
for staff at City Hall. “We have had people roaming the hallways — there’s even stories of refrigerators being raided — things that aren’t called for, but happen when thing’s aren’t secure,” said Columbia City Mayor Ryan Daniel. Those needing to speak with the police department or use the after-hours pay option can be buzzed in by one of the city’s dispatchers, who are on staff 24-7. As all other
downtown government buildings are closed after business hours, City Hall provides the only 24-7 public restrooms to the downtown area. “I’m glad to hear there’s a good compromise,” Councilwoman Jennifer Romano said. “This building belongs to the citizens, and I’m glad we’re making it accessible, not locked down and unavailable — I’m glad to hear those areas will still be accessible.”
The buzzer system will have a video screen, and can be set up on a timer, so doors are automatically unlocked on evenings when there are public meetings or events at City Hall. “With this system, we can control any doors in City Hall or other city buildings, including gates,” said Terry Wherry, the city’s IT director. “It’s all network driven and we can control anything connected to the network.” There is a backup system
if the network goes down, Wherry noted. City bumps salary ranges in 2018 ordinance
Columbia City’s Common Council approved the first reading of the 2018 salary ordinance, which includes increases in pay ranges for several positions. One pay increase of note is the city’s human resource director, who will see a $5 See CITY, Page 3
WCCS hears update on CCHS construction By Nicole Minier nminier@kpcmedia.com
TYLER ROEBUCK
Fall Fest fun The annual South Whitley Fall Festival was held in the town Friday through Sunday, with a variety of events for people of all ages. From front to back, Braelyn Reed, Henry Cripe and Kelton Kilbourne play a squirt gun game put on by the Oak Grove United Methodist Church. See more photos on Page 4.
COLUMBIA CITY — Progress is steady at the site of the new Columbia City High School. Tom Smith, project manager for Skillman Corp., and Chuck Tyler, architect for Fanning-Howey, spoke with Whitley County Consolidated Schools’ board members at Monday’s meeting, outlining the current progress, what’s to come and the process for making changes to the original construction plans. Much of the site is complete, such as preparing the ground and installing in drainage and utility needs. In the next four weeks, the foundation will be laid and masonry will begin. Additionally, the houses along State Road 9 near the construction site, which were purchased by the school district, will be demolished. The new school will require 110 tons of reinforced steel — equivalent to the weight of a Boeing 747, Smith said. It will take 800 concrete trucks to fulfill all the needs at the campus — equivalent to 108,000 linear feet of city sidewalks. Smith hopes most of the concrete will be poured before winter when the construction will See WCCS, Page 9
Successful hoops coach named Churubusco AD By Justin Hunter jhunter@kpcmedia.com
CHURUBUSCO – Chris Paul was named the new Churubusco athletic director on Monday’s Smith-Green Community Schools board meeting. Over 30 candidates applied for the position. Paul took over as the Churubusco boys basketball team last season and led the Eagles to their first
sectional title win in its 99-year history. “I’m so excited and feel fortunate and blessed,” said Paul. “It’s been a great year. If someone would have told me that we would win the sectional championship and I’d be athletic director within one year, I would have told them they’re nuts.” Paul will replace Paul Sade, who resigned from
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the athletic director position but remains as the school’s head football coach. Paul will also continue coaching the Churubusco boys varsity basketball team. The annual salary for Paul athletic director is $61,500. Paul graduated from Saint Francis in Fort Wayne with a bachelor’s in business in 1994. He was the assistant women’s basketball coach at Saint Francis from 1995-2001. Paul then went on to be an assistant on IPFW’s womens basket-
ball team for eight years, then was the head coach for 10 seasons. He is the winingest coach in IPFW women’s basketball history and led the Mastadons to two postseason appearences. “Coach Sade has done a tremendous job here as athletic director,” said Paul. “I want to work to keep many things in place. One thing I would like to work on is that every team expects to win every game they play, and to carry pride in the school.” Also at the Smith-Green meeting: The board approved for formation of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes Club, which will be a extra-curricular club for the
first time in over 15 years. Daniel Hile was appointed as the SmithGreene Community Schools representative, replacing former Business Manager Todd Fleetwood, to the School Employees Benefit Trust board for a three-year term, ending in January 2020. Board member Jeremy Hart was appointed board representative to the wellness committee and representative to high ability broad-based committee to serve with Dean Geiger. Many field trips were improved to destinations such as Chicago Institute of Art, Crazy Pinz, Indiana University, Purdue University and Cedar Point.