inwhitleycounty.com
Staff reports
COLUMBIA CITY — The Columbia City Post Office is asking customers to remember to clear mailboxes and walkways of snow and ice during the winter months. Postal carriers have suffered serious injuries related to slips, trips and falls during the past years. “We want to assure there are no delays in mail delivery caused by carriers being unable to approach mailboxes safely,” says Columbia City Postmaster Lisa Costin. Letter carriers are advised to not risk a vehicle accident or a fall if access to a mailbox is not free of snow or ice. In those cases, mail may be returned and delivery reattempted the next day. “No one wants to inconvenience the customer,” Costin said. “But we must ensure the safety of our employees.” The postal service is asking customers to help keep their letter carrier safe this winter by keeping walkways, steps and porches clear of snow and ice that can lead to dangerous falls. Additionally: • Customers are asked to clear enough snow from curbside boxes to allow mail trucks to approach the box, deliver the mail, and to drive away from the box without danger or the need for backing. • Walkways should be cleared of snow and ice and allow enough traction to avoid slips, trips or falls. Keep particular attention to areas affected by gutter runoff that refreezes onto the sidewalk. • Steps should also be kept clear of ice and snow See MAIL, Page 2
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Foundation announces 2018 Lilly scholar Staff reports
WHITLEY COUNTY — Olivia Vieyra, a senior at Columbia City High School, is the recipient of the Community Foundation of Whitley County’s 2018 Lilly Endowment Community Scholarship. In addition to the fouryear scholarship to an Indiana college of her choice, she will receive a $900 annual stipend for required books and equipment.
Vieyra resides with her grandmother, Mary Roberts, of Columbia City. She plans to attend Ball State University to pursue a pre-med degree focusing in pediatrics. During her high school career, she participated in S.T.A.N.D. (Students Teaching Against Negative Decisions), Fellowship of Christian Students, student council, Business Club of America, Key Club and the National Honors
Society. In her recommendation letter on her behalf, CCHS science teacher Robert Bell wrote, “This young lady can often be found early in the morning or, at times, tucked away after school continually working to perfect her craft, whether it be in her courses at school or through her various extracurricular activities. This is such a pleasant change from what we see from
so many of her peers, and our society today. She doesn’t want anything given to her, she wants to earn it, because she understands that through earning her achievements and opportunities she can hold a greater sense of pride in them. “In closing, I can simply state, what I believe to be the greatest endorsement I can give of any young person, and that is that I would be
Olivia Vieyra
humbled and honored if my children turned out as wonderful and driven as See LILLY, Page 4
OCRA awards ’Busco $10K grant for alley park Staff reports
NICOLE MINIER
No kisses for me!
One of Santa’s elves visited the South Whitley Community Public Library last week, and attempted to make Lex Crampton kiss his reindeer, who is named, “Elsa.” Crampton did not accept the invitation, however, several other South Whitley children jumped at the opportunity.
CHURUBUSCO — Churubusco is getting the green light for its downtown alley park after receiving a $10,000 downtown enhancement grant from the Indiana Office of Community and Rural Affairs. OCRA announced last week that Churubusco, the town of Greentown and the city of Attica will receive the grants, which are intended to improve quality of life, spur economic development and advance avenues for increasing private investment and employment in downtown areas. The grants total $27,056 with the communities providing a total local See PARK, Page 2
Root 9 Hops celebrates first beer By Tyler Roebuck troebuck@kpcmedia.com
COLUMBIA CITY — A lot more goes into making a beer than most people may be aware. The hops – the base of the beer - are combined with barley, water and a great deal of knowledge to make a good beer. Recently, Chapmans in Columbia City hosted the
release of a limited beer that was made with hops grown in Columbia City. Root 9 Hops, a company started by Bob and Leslie Von Seggern, began out of a collaboration with Leadership Whitley County. “My wife was doing it at the time, and her team’s project was about how to bring business
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Residents asked to help with snow, ice removal
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into Whitley County, and the project was for beer distributors, microbreweries and hop growers,” Bob Von Seggern said. “They actually brought together Chapmans and a bunch of other brewers and had a get-together, and that’s where it got started.” This collaboration eventually led to the Root 9 Wet Hop IPA, a limited edition beer at Chapmans that was first served Nov. 3. A wet hop is a special brew that takes less effort to create, which was perfect for Von Seggern’s limited experience and equipment. “A wet hop is a great beer. It’s a way for
TYLER ROEBUCK
Bob and Leslie Von Seggern grew their first batch of hops this year as a collaborative effort with Leadership Whitley County. Their company, Root 9 Hops, gets its name from the farm’s location along State Road 9.
brewers to bring people in because it’s a different kind of beer. It’s so hoppy, if you want to know what hops are, have a wet hop beer,” he said. “It’s
as fresh as you can get, because you take the hop right out of the field and put it in the batch.” See HOPS, Page 2