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COLUMBIA CITY — The annual flag burning ceremony hosted by the Leatherneck Coffee Club will be held in the evening on Memorial Day, May 29. The event begins at 7 p.m. on the Whitley County Courthouse Square in Columbia City. The Chain O’ Lakes Chorus will perform as U.S. Marines retire hundreds of flags by fire. Emily Neher, a musician from Columbia City High School, will perform “Taps,” on the trumpet. Holly Oelschlager, a student at Northern Heights Elementary School, will light the fire. The program requires nearly 100 volunteers. Some bleacher seating will be available. Attendees are welcome to bring lawn chairs.
Woman arrested after child found alone outside By Nicole Minier nminier@kpcmedia�com
CHURUBUSCO — A Columbia City woman was arrested for the second time in three days after a Churubusco police officer reportedly found her young child outdoors with a dirty diaper and “a mess” on Millstone Run Friday. Cynthia Nation, 22, was arrested and charged with neglect of a dependent, possession of marijuana and paraphernalia, leaving the scene of a property damage crash, maintaining a common nuisance, false informing and criminal mischief. She was arrested three days prior by the Churubusco Police Department on drug charges.
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Sheriff’s son first to spot Collins fire By Nicole Minier nminier@kpcmedia�com
COLLINS — Whitley County Sheriff Marc Gatton’s son learned a valuable lesson last week — emergencies can happen in a split second. Max Gatton, a freshman at Churubusco High School, was in his backyard playing fetch with his dog last Wednesday, just like any other day. He went in the house for a moment, and when he came back out, smoke poured from his neighbor’s outbuilding. He alerted his mom, Kay, who called 911,
while he ran to the neighbors. One man was still inside the building when the fire started, and neighbors saw him exit out of the back of the building as emergency crews arrived. Witnesses said they believed the man was welding. It is unclear if that’s what started the fire, but Smith Township Fire Chief Kris Bair said he believes the fire is accidental. The man reportedly had a burn on his arm. He was evaluated by paramedics and refused
treatment. Some reported to Bair that he may have been passed out inside the burning building. The fire caused a power line to break, leaving it snapping and cracking on the ground near the barn. Firefighters had to stay back from the building for about 45 minutes while waiting for representatives from the electric company to arrive and turn off the power, and the fire quickly overtook the building. The building was formerly used for onion See FIRE, Page 11
NICOLE MINIER
Columbia City’s fire department used its ladder truck to fight a fire in an old onion storage building in Collins last week.
More than $1M in scholarships Columbia City High School hosted annual Honors Convocation last week By Nicole Minier nminier@kpcmedia�com
COLUMBIA CITY — More than $1 million in scholarships were given to Columbia City High School students at last week’s annual honors convocation. More than 100 students were recognized starting with the Class of 2017’s valedictorian and salutatorian, Madyson Stricker and Andrew Jagger, respectively. The Class of 2017’s top 10 percent are: Chase Clifford, Jacob Elkins, Darian Farber, Bailee Glass, Taylor Glass, Rachel Holbrook, Timothy Herald, Courtney Hile, Matthew Kennedy, Dayna Kyler, Kalika Lacy, Georgia Lieb, Ashley Miller, Dillon Reed, Holden Schaefer, Avery Sparks, Erin Trabert, Crystal Van Houten, Jayla Wigent, Samantha Winebrenner, Jagger and Stricker. Van Houten earned the Ohiki Scholar-
ship. Caleb Wakeman was named Historian of the Year. Eric Burkholder was also a finalist. Jill Daniel presented three scholarships: • Joseph and Irene Shull to Kyler and Lacy; • Mary Hallowell Honor Roll to Morgan Bales and Khale Rider; and • Kappa Kappa Kappa Alpha Iota to Chase Clifford. Four students received the Russ Fahl Family Memorial Scholarship: Rider, Bales, Elkins and Chelsea Pettigrew. Emily Neher was awarded the Jacob Tarleton Memorial Scholarship. Teachers Beth Andonian and Kristen Swonger gave out several awards and scholarships: • James and Janice Hammer Academic Team Scholarships to Courtney Gibson, Hellen See CONVO, Page 4
NICOLE MINIER
Tim Hearld, left, embraces the recipient of his father’s scholarship, Khale Rider. The memorial scholarship honors Hearld’s father, Timothy, who was killed in a snowmobile accident in 2014.
3-county pursuit ends in Collins Staff reports COLLINS — A pursuit that began in Kosciusko County ended near Collins May 11. A Nappanee man was arrested on multiple charges after leading Kosciusko County officers on a chase that began in North Webster. Kimbert Alvin Crafton, 31, was initially being investigated by the Kosciusko County Sheriff’s Department and Nappanee Police for allegedly being involved in a burglary and theft two days prior. Officers executed a search warrant the day before the chase, which provided detectives with evidence into his involvment in several thefts, according to a press release from the Kosciusko County Sheriff’s Department. See PURSUIT, Page 3
WCCS issues ‘letter of caution’ for Netflix series By Nicole Minier nminier@kpcmedia�com
COLUMBIA CITY — A recently released Netflix series is catching the attention of many — so much that Whitley County Consolidated Schools issued a letter to
families last week. The letter cautions parents to be informed about the show, “13 Reasons Why.” “The health and wellbeing of our students is of paramount importance to the staff of WCCS,”
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‘13 Reasons Why’ gaining popularity among youth; raising concerns for adults Superintendent Patricia O’Connor wrote in the letter. “Because of this, we work to keep our families informed about mental health and social media issues which may impact our students.” The series takes on topics such as teen suicide, bullying and sexual assault. The show revolves around a girl, Hannah, who takes her life and leaves behind tape recordings for 13
people she says were part of the reason she committed suicide. The show is based on a book with the same title, published in 2007, by Jay Asher. There’s been discussion on whether the series is more helpful or hurtful to young adults. “With children of all ages watching and talking about this series, mental health advocates have raised concerns
over the messages conveyed,” the superintendent’s letter reads. “Because of the show’s mature content, the series may raise questions and feelings which may be difficult for impressionable minds to watch and process.” The show graphically depicts sexual assault and, in the final episode, shows the suicide itself. “While many youth are resilient and capable of differentiating between television drama and See 13 REASONS, Page 5