SATURDAY January 4, 2014
Courts Page A2 Auburn man pulls out of plea deal
Life Page A5 Christmas reading tradition continues
Weather Cloudy and warmer today with a high of 30. Snow starts late tonight and will be heavy at times. Page A6
GOOD MORNING
The Auburn, Indiana
Serving DeKalb County since 1871
Area preps for snow, big chill FROM STAFF REPORTS
AFD: Remove snow from fire hydrants The Auburn Fire Department is asking for residents’ help when shoveling driveways and sidewalks. The department is asking people to remove the snow from around the fire hydrant close to home or property. Clearing the snow around the hydrant and shoveling a path to it from the street will give the fire department the access it needs in the event of an emergency. At a fire, the fire department must quickly locate and gain a water supply source from the closest fire hydrant. If a fire hydrant is buried by snow, it is difficult to find and valuable time must be spent digging it out. Water is the main tool firefighters use to extinguish fires. Delays in locating and connecting to the fire hydrant could hamper fire suppression.
Coming Sunday
Fitness with Friends
Do you find motivation in numbers? If so read about the many options available for group fitness classes locally. On Sunday’s C1 and C2.
Clip and Save Find $162 in coupon savings in Sunday’s newspaper.
LOOK FOR VIDEO Jack D. Gibson Memorial Polar Bear Dip
MATT GETTS
Auburn Street Department crews remove snow from the corner of Jackson and Ninth streets Friday afternoon.
The Star 118 W. Ninth St. Auburn, IN 46706 Auburn: (260) 925-2611 Fax: (260) 925-2625 Classifieds: (toll free) (877) 791-7877 Circulation: (toll free) (800) 717-4679
Index
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Classifieds.................................B7-B8 Life..................................................... A5 Obituaries......................................... A4 Opinion .............................................B4 Sports.........................................B1-B3 Weather............................................ A6 TV/Comics .......................................B6 Vol. 102 No. 3
Don’t expect a break in the extreme winter weather conditions, the National Weather Service Northern Indiana is predicting. All of northeast Indiana was placed under a winter storm watch on Friday, as was most of Indiana, with the exception of the Chicago area. A storm packing upward of a foot of snow is expected to begin tonight, though northeast Indiana is expected to receive not any more than 7 inches of snow. “A significant winter storm will likely impact the region beginning as early as Saturday evening and persisting through at least Sunday evening,” the NWS watch said. “A cold front will move across the area Saturday night with light snow spreading from northwest to southeast. At this time light
accumulations are expected with this front. Greater concern lies with low pressure that will develop and rapidly deepen as it tracks from Arkansas Sunday morning to Ohio Sunday night.” Today is expected to bring more snow — maybe an inch accumulation throughout northeast Indiana — and wind gusts as high as 25 mph with partly sunny skies. Highs are expected in the 30-degree range. New snow accumulation to the tune of 4-7 inches is possible for Sunday with high temperatures around 24 degrees, with more blowing around of the white stuff on Monday. Snow is expected to taper off Monday and Tuesday, but severe cold temperatures will be ushered in. Highs and lows are forecast in the below zero range, with a low SEE CHILL, PAGE A6
Strong auto sales ending? DETROIT (AP) — Automakers are going to have to work a little harder for your business in 2014. After four years of strong sales increases — and few discounts — as the economy improved, U.S. demand for new cars and trucks is expected to slow this year. That could mean better deals for buyers as car companies fight to increase their share of the market. The industry got a taste of what’s to come in December, when General Motors, Toyota and Volkswagen all saw their sales fall from a year ago. One reason: Competitors like Ford and Honda increased their incentive spending on hot sellers like pickup trucks and midsize cars, according to TrueCar. com, which tracks car prices. Cold weather and strong sales over Black Friday in November also pinched December sales, automakers said. This year’s slowdown is inevitable, analysts say. Many people who held on to their cars SEE SALES, PAGE A6
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Birth control controversy: White House weighs in
KATHRYN BASSETT
HOPE mentor Mary Ellen Rayle plays a game of “Guess Who” with Waterloo Elementary School first-grader Briana Barrington. January
Mentoring definitely worth the effort, volunteer says BY KATHRYN BASSETT kbassett@kpcmedia.com
WATERLOO — The face of 8-year-old Briana Barrington lit up with a smile as her mentor, Mary Ellen Rayle, declared her the winner in a game of “Guess Who” that the pair had been playing. “I really love Briana. I look WASHINGTON (AP) — The forward to seeing her every week. Obama administration urged a I’m thankful for the opportunity to Supreme Court justice Friday to stop come and do this,” Rayle said. blocking the new health care law’s Rayle has been partnered as requirement that some religion-afBarrington’s mentor for three years filiated organizations provide health through the HOPE mentor program. insurance that includes birth control. They meet for one hour, once The Justice Department called on a week, on Thursday mornings Justice Sonia Sotomayor to dissolve at Waterloo Elementary School, her last-minute stay on the contrawhere Briana is a first-grader. ceptive coverage requirement of the “The goal is for mentoring and Affordable Care Act, also known as encouraging her (Briana),” Rayle Obamacare. Sotomayor issued the said. “Sometimes we work on stay on New Year’s Eve, only hours academic things, but it’s not our before the law’s coverage went into main goal.” effect. January is National Mentoring SEE BIRTH CONTROL, PAGE A6 Month, which aims to promote
PLEASE DRIVE CAREFULLY
is National Mentoring Month, which aims to promote youth mentoring in the United States.
youth mentoring in the United States. Mentors bring great value to children who might not have other adult relationships in their lives, said Barb Bryan, director of the Links mentoring program at Cahoots Coffee Cafe in Angola. The coffee house is an outreach of the United Methodist Church and the First Congregational United Church of Christ in Angola and serves middle- and high-school students. “Pairing a child with a mentor has positive results,” Bryan said. “The focus is a supporting relationship with a child. We let the child guide our relationships.” Bryan said the Links mentoring program is fairly new, but so far has made about 10 matches. She encourages anyone interested in serving as a mentor to contact the cafe at 624-2399. Rayle said being a HOPE
mentor requires only one hour of her time each week — something that is easily accomplished. “I really have a heart for making a difference in our community. It’s overwhelming to think about doing that on a large scale, but doing it for one person is really manageable,” Rayle said. Rayle said she was drawn to the HOPE program after learning about it from her husband, Terry, who also was a mentor. “I thought it was a really worthwhile thing to do,” Mary Ellen Rayle said. “I have a passion for kids, so it was a good fit for me.” The match was a good fit not only for Rayle, but also for Barrington. Turning to Rayle, Barrington told her, “I like seeing you.” Rayle said she enjoys talking to Barrington and reminding her of SEE MENTOR, PAGE A6
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